Vampires I Like More Than Twilight

Seeing as how the third installment in the Twilight series opens today, I thought it would be apropo to do a post on this very subject for which I couldn't really care less.

I don't get Twilight.

I understand that there are a bagillion fans who like the jailbait eye candy, and even a bagillion more who are age-appropriate for said eye candy.

But I don't understand what made this series so successful. Humdrum storyline. Overly dramatic, yet wooden characters. Bad writing. Wayne's World-esque Megahappy ending. Author who claims to know little about other successful supernatural series even though she's in the supernatural series business and competitive intelligence is key.

Yeah, I don't get it (though I do get that I'll likely get some hate mail from this post for being so anti-Twilight, oh the inhumanity).

But I do get the "Team" thing.

And so, with the help of my friends, I spent a few moments of my day coming up with a list of vampires I like more than Twilight. A few "teams" you can count me on, so to speak. In no particular order...

1. Team Eric Northman
Yeah, Ladies, I don't think I have to give you a reason why, right?

2. Team Dracula
I love myself some Bela Lugosi, but don't get me wrong. I'd take the inspiration, Vlad Tepes, over Bram Stoker's character any day.

3. Team Count Chocula
Pretty sure this one needs little explaining too. A vampire that makes a delicious chocolate cereal for me? I'm just hoping for a better marshmallow-to-oat ratio.

4. Team Count von Count
One! ah, ah, ah Two! ah, ah, ah, Three!...


Thus ends the short list of Vampires I Like More Than Twilight. Thank you for playing.

Please Note:
There are, of course, many more I could add to this list - namely Angel for his brooding ways, Spike for this maniacal ways, Harmony for her clueless ways, Pam because she's sassy, Jessica because she's hilarious, and Bill because of the way he says, "Sookie!" But I didn't want to list to get into a "which supernatural series is better" debate, and so I only put my favorite, Eric, in a top spot.

Acknowledgements:
And if you're wondering where I came up with all of these, well, it wasn't just me. Thanks to my very funny friends Rob and Maggie for the inspiration!

Summerfest Shenanigans

This blog would be remiss without a post on Summerfest, the World's Largest Music Festival and it just so happens that this author has a lot to say after her visit.

The night included Dan Rodriguez, Gavin DeGraw, and Skillet. Well, I didn't really "see" Gavin DeGraw as there were hundreds of teens obstructing the view. But my friend and I did sit at a picnic table far from the stage, eating Chipotle and listening to him play. You know, a little secret of live concerts...the music sounds way better from far away. Up close we could only hear drums and bass, but when we sat down far from the speakers, we could hear a better mix.

Another secret of live music is that smaller shows are always better than large shows unless fire is involved. Enter Dan Rodriguez and Skillet.

Rodriguez was a very entertaining singer/songwriter from Minneapolis who entertained the crowd with his acoustic covers of Single Ladies and Hey Ya. Part comedian, part guitar playing lothario, he really lives up to his mission statement, "make love and music," inviting audience members to become applicants for a make-out session on the SkyGlide whilst singing a song with no second verse.

Charmed.

While Rodriguez won over the intimate setting, Skillet lived it up on the CoolTV stage. By the by, can anyone tell me who used to sponsor that stage? It slipped my mind and is making me crazy...

Skillet's show was everything the 10 o'clock rock spot should be and then some. The "then some" being pyrotechnics. A long-time fan of the band, I was excited to see them live but did not expect to be blown out of my seat, er, standing position as it were. Not only were the folks on electric violin and cello raised and lowered on hydraulic lifts during the performance, a variety of shooting fireballs and giant spinning sparklers turned the concert into a pyromaniacs wet dream. Luckily, no permanent blazes ensued.

The eventful evening commenced with a potential t-shirt making business utilizing the following slogans all overheard and experienced at Milwaukee's greatest festival:

I Survived the Summerfest Bathrooms

I Want to Sex You Up Like a Chocolate-Covered Strawberry

A'hoy Matey (this would include a graphic of a swashbuckling concert crowd in eye patches, all high-fiving each other)

Oh, Milwaukee, your strange ways and even stranger people never fail to make my day.

Book Review: Columbine by Dave Cullen

Occasionally I like to post a book, movie, or music review for pieces I particularly enjoy...or hate with unrelenting passion. I kid. But truly, sometimes I come across something I so enjoy that I'd like to recommend it to you in the hopes that you enjoy it also.

It is with this spirit that I introduce you to a book I've recently finished: Columbine by Dave Cullen.

I'd have to describe the book as a sometimes fast-paced account of the years leading up to, and years following, the Columbine school tragedy.

I say "sometimes fast-paced" because other times it's a bit jumpy, moving between the scene of April 20th, and the past events of the planning stages or the investigation time line.

Meticulously researched, the account includes hundreds of hours of interviews weaved together in a disturbing, yet stirring narrative. Disturbing because, by this account, officials had many red flags leading up to April 20th that they failed to act upon, which may have derailed Harris and Klebold's plan, and stirring because the stories of the survivors move between heartbreaking and inspiring.

As I've mentioned, the book is a bit jumpy, dropping threads of pre-April 20th and then picking up with the narrative of the tragedy or snippets of post-April 20th, but I almost think it works better that way. After all, the book took me a month to read mainly because I could only handle it in small doses. The zig zag between story lines is effective in managing your sanity.

I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to know what really happened, why they did it, and what happened to Littleton afterward. Warning: Not for the faint of heart.

Cream City Cuisine Has Arrived!

That's right folks, www.creamcitycuisine.com (@CCCuisine) is ready for your cooking pleasure.

Jess (@JPrim), Evan (@EvanOnline) and I (@MsQuarter) have been cooking together for over 8 years and it only now occurred to us that we should start a blog and share our recipes. After all, our retirement plan includes opening a restaurant together in Door County, WI, and why shouldn't we get started now on working out the kinks of the menu?

So I urge you to visit the website. We're specializing in dishes that make Wisconsin products the star. More often than not these star products are of the adult beverage variety, but every so often we will segue into cheese, meats, produce, and the like. We might even take a foray into cooking with regional or international adult beverages. You'll just have to follow us and find out.

Our blog not only includes recipes, but also product descriptions of the ingredients and utensils we cook with. Because what you cook is a result of the products you use - both edible and culinary.

So be sure to visit us at www.creamcitycuisine.com. If you've ever wished you ate like us, now you can!

Where has the etiquette gone? A Philosophical Soliloquy

Oh, we job seekers are a pathetic lot.

We try to keep up our spirits after 6 months of sending resumes out into the abyss.

We develop elaborate schemes to capture the attention of would-be employers.

We wait, wait, and wait some more for any scrap of indication whether we have been shucked to the side or chosen for that rarest of all modern day events: the job interview.

And we do all of this with rarely any contact from the thousands of potential employers we've reached out to, after having spent precious time crafting a cover letter and resume - no small feat.

Oh, sometimes we spy the unicorn - a generic mail-merged letter or email telling us we've failed. But even these mythical beings are fast becoming extinct.

Instead, we poor, defenseless job seekers are left in our very own purgatory of permanent suspense, never knowing what it is we did that landed us in this state.

We realize it is a buyer's market out there, that there are so many more of us than there are jobs for us to fill. And yet each resume we send out, each cover letter we carefully craft, we imagine ourselves in the position for which we are applying. We think maybe this time will the one that will end it all, this fruitless searching, forever waiting.

The silence fades our hope.

The lack of contact - even if that contact is a rejection - kills our optimism.

Because though the waiting may damage our armor, it is the lack of any response that lands the harshest blow.

BP Gulf Disaster: Dislike.

There's something that's been bothering me about the disaster in the gulf...more than the obvious, that is.

Before now I couldn't put my finger on it, and though I still don't think I'm doing justice to my thoughts in this articulation, I'm still going to give it a shot.

What really bothers me is two things.

1. I'm annoyed that so many people are blaming the U.S. government for the disaster and deriding them for their lack of response.

First of all, I'm not sure what the U.S. government had to do with the oil rig exploding (beyond the tenuous connection of our dependence on oil and foot dragging on legislation that would lead to clean energy and might've kept a company like BP from drilling an oil well at such a risky depth). This could just be my ignorance. I'll be the first to admit I don't know a lot about this situation beyond what I've seen in the news and on Discovery Channel and NatGeo programs.

I also don't know if we should be as angry at the government's lack of response as we should about other issues, as I'll explain in my next thought...

2. The second main reason I'm annoyed is based on BP's response to the situation.

BP may sound contrite in the wording of their press releases and they may give off a sense of being concerned in their press conferences, but I can't help but sense that it's a bit fake. I can't help but get the feeling that, behind all the pretty words and empty promises, they're really just annoyed to be having to deal with this issue at all.

Does anyone else get that feeling?

Maybe it's just skepticism on my part, but I get the feeling that BP is less concerned with how this disaster is going to affect the gulf region, and more concerned with how this situation is keeping them from going back to business as usual. As if that will ever happen. As if the gulf region will ever get back to business as usual.

And this is where I think we should direct our anger - not that a perceived lack of response by governing bodies shouldn't warrant some question...just a little perspective.

It bothers me that we don't see a lot of concern by BP or the U.S. government for what this disaster will do in the long term.

Perhaps that's because the more immediate need is to stop the oil leak and keep what's already spilled from spreading. And I get that. One step, one concern at a time.

But it would be nice to hear more remorse for what this ecological disaster is going to do to an entire region's economy and culture in the next 100 years. Because we're all kidding ourselves if we think there won't be long-term consequences from this.

And that's the end of my ignorant rant. To lighten the mood, I give you @BPGlobalPR - a fake Twitter account that sarcastically says what we're all thinking...on behalf of BP.

A sample of the tweets:
We are not killing animals in the gulf, we are creating fossils in the gulf. Have a little perspective. #bpcares

Investing a lot of time & money into cleaning up our image, but the beaches are next on the to-do list for sure. #bpcares

If you want to help clean up. Drive your cars fast and often. Let's melt those glaciers and dilute this mess! #bpcares

Now, if you want to do something about this mess, you can click here and send a message to your Senator, telling him or her to support clean energy legislation that will hopefully help prevent such disasters in the future.

And So I've Commenced...

It's official, Ladies and Gentlemen. I am now the Master of my future. On Sunday I graduated from Marquette University with much fanfare and only a little bit of a stranglehold from my robe's hood.

Unfortunately, Marquette puts a bit too much confidence in a graduate's ability to understand vague directions, and so there was a slight slip up in seating...

It seems that some MBA grads got in line by the "Master's Candidates" flag. This, combined with what generally happens at a commencement - people follow those in front of them blindly and without question - some of us MA candidates followed those MBA folks once they entered the arena and we ended up in their crew. We quickly corrected this mistake by leaving the row and walking up the center aisle in the Bradley Center to where the rest of the MA candidates were filing in. Much to the chagrin of the seating patrol (aka: man in courtly robes glaring at us from underneath a blue and gold squishy hat), this seemed to fix the problem, but when it came time for the President to confer our degrees, I looked back and noticed about 100 empty seats between us and the MBAs...meanwhile, there were graduates from the College of Engineering sitting in the bowl.

Perhaps instead of glaring at us, that gentleman in charge of seating graduates could've directed those folks to the empty seats so that there wouldn't be an embarrassingly large empty space on the arena floor? But what do I know?

Bygones.

Marquette did a splendid job of choosing a commencement speaker. Wendy Kopp, Founder of Teach for America, did an excellent job sending us out into the world. Instead of blowing smoke up our behinds and telling us how great we are, she instead told us how incredibly privileged and blessed we are and that we should take all that blessing and give it out to those in need as we make our way. In other words, "Be the Difference," as Marquette's motto states.

I'm really glad I went to the big ceremony; it was much more entertaining than the small, college-level one where I listened to my stomach growl while idly counting piles of degree holders as they dwindled down in proportion to the number of undergraduates who were called across the stage.

That took awhile.

And the auditorium where that ceremony was held was not air conditioned.

Thumbs down to polyester robes.

And they coldly ended the ceremony before we Masters graduates could even make it back to our seats after we had the privilege of walking. Boors.

But all in all it was a fun day. I enjoyed the pomp and circumstance. Perhaps more clarity could have helped all of us to know how to correctly put on our hoods and when we were supposed to switch our tassles over (the directions stated "after YOUR degree is conferred," AND "once ALL degrees are conferred"), but the mess ups only added to the experience.

And nobody really noticed.

Right?

Bar Trivia: One of Many Talents

It's a little known fact, but in addition to my general awesomeness I am pretty darn good at bar trivia. Not so good at Trivial Pursuit, but pretty excellent at bar trivia.

That being said, I hope I don't blow it tonight. Because the @MUCollegeofComm grad students and I are heading out to Whiskey Bar to play (and likely drink) a round.

We. Will. Dominate.

2nd Annual Greater Green Bay Getaway

In celebration of the day I entered into this world, I once again invited some friends to spend the weekend at the family's homestead in Green Bay. Last year it was such a hit with the Door County winery tour that I knew I had to come up with something equally fantastic. And I did.

Friday Evening: Arrival
Most everyone arrived by Friday evening just in time for a drink. I took the gals to The Bar, as Tom, Dick, & Harry's, GB's trendy night spot, had a total of 3 cars in the parking lot.

You know, if you're business only happens when you've got live music, then you are in trouble. That's all I'm saying.

The margaritas were sadly free of any but the smallest amount of tequila. We requested an extra shot to make it more, hm, "South Side Milwaukee," if you will. The price of the mid-shelf tequila shot was almost the same as the margarita. Fail.

Saturday
Wakey, wakey, eggs and bac-ey
Because we got to bed around 3 a.m. the night (morning?) before, we woke up bright and early at 9 a.m. Just in time for LB to arrive and the rest of us to realize that we'd better get showered and dressed.

Go Pack Go
Our only plan for the weekend was a birthday dinner and a Lambeau Field tour. We braved the 10,000 marathoners at Lambeau and happened to get a tour all to ourselves. This way we were able to ask all the silly, ridiculous questions we wanted much to the good-natured chagrin of our very patient tour guide. No, we can't see the locker rooms as a few players were in residence. No, she's not sure where they hang out in their free time. No, she cannot pass along our phone numbers to the single ones.

I kid.

Sort of.

But really, we got a great tour all to ourselves and asked all sorts of pertinent questions lady Packer fans graduating with communications degrees would want to know the answers to. Like how do they rig up the sky cam on game day? How many times per day do they feed the players? What do they do with all the food left over from feeding the media?

We ended our Packer fan experience with lunch at Curly's (respectable Bloody Mary's by the by), and a stop in the Pro Shop.

A Girl's Best Friend
For graduation my parents took me to the jewelry store and let me at it (within reason). I had my eye on something since January and so the trip was brief, but the gals got to look around and decide what kind of engagement rings they would want should they become engaged.

Captain's Walk
Last year we started the Door County winery tour at Captain's Walk in Green Bay. For the rest of the day every other stop was slightly disappointing as it just couldn't live up to the Captain's experience. They treated us real well last year, and again this year when we went for an afternoon tipple, I mean, tasting.

My favorite was the 7 Seas.

My second favorite was sitting on the porch in a rocking chair with my glass of wine for an hour, chatting with the gals and soaking up the sunshine.

Seriously, if they took on boarders, then surely I'd live there.

Dinner
I'd been telling the ladies how awesome Angelina's in Green Bay is for, oh, 10 months or so. Three of us had gone to Italy last summer to study abroad and I said, "Ladies, this is the best Italian I've had outside of Italy."

(This was before I went to Chef John Besh's Domenica in New Orleans, bygones).

So when I called for a reservation for Saturday night, imagine my extreme disappointment when they told me they were full.

10,000 marathoners will do that, I learned.

Then I tried not to think about how I might punch anyone in running shorts in the face.

Then I called my parents. Surely they would know a great place in the greater Green Bay area?

"But, of course!" said my stepdad, "Don't you remember that delicious seafood restaurant by UWGB on the bay?"

How could I forget? Harbor Fish Market & Grille, the magical place that makes risotto cakes (think Suppli if you've ever been to Italy) that are like small, fried, pillows from heaven.

The waitress remembered me from my one visit there, oh, about a year ago.

We gals each ordered something different and not one of us was disappointed.

We did not regret this dining experience. I even stopped wanting to punch runners in the face.

Sunday
Our weekend ended with an amazing breakfast. Homemade waffles with a variety of toppings combined by homemade Bloody Marys with a variety of garnishes. Really, the hitch was that we needed to commit ourselves to one thing before moving on to the next - to start with sweet? or savory?

I think I pickled my intestines.

Carlson School Training

The funny thing about my undergraduate training at the Carlson School of Management (CSOM) is that it manifests itself at the oddest (ironically most appropriate) times.

Today I had a job interview. In true CSOM fashion, I did a little company research, took notes, planned out a few answers to questions, etc. It's what they ground into my head. It's now what I do.

A routine, if you will.

In preparation I also scoured my closet for a business suit last week, and wasn't impressed with what I found. Though my suit will do in a pinch, I much prefer something a little stylish. Understated, yes. But stylish too.

So instead, when I woke up today I put on what I thought was a professional, understated, yet stylish outfit instead of suit. It was only later that I realized how well it fits into the "rules" CSOM gave us business students.

Neutral colored basics - check, with a black shell dress (bonus points for being more traditional than pants)
Neutral colored accents - check, with the light blue button down shirt
No bare legs - check, because dang if it's cold out today
Minimal jewelry - check, with the stud earrings and watch
Minimal makeup - check, because it's me
Black pumps - check, with a small diversion of ankle straps

See? I didn't even think about it, but automatically dressed by the job interview guidelines CSOM pounded into my head. The rule of thumb, of course, being don't let them remember you for anything else but your mad skillz and experience. Not your distractingly dangly earrings or fire engine-red shoes...both of which I have and sport on a regular basis. Instead, keep it simple and understated, in a word: generic.

I even brought a small portfolio briefcase with copies of my resume and references. Because that's what we Carlson kids do.

So to all of the U of M folks who used to call us CSOM students nerds, I'd just like to say that yes, we are nerds, but being a nerd is great sometimes.

PS - And yes, I'm sending hand-written thank you notes...