Tehillim for Wedding

Its said that on your wedding day you have a direct connection to God. I plan to take full advantage of this. But I don't want to just pray for myself. I'm here for you too. If theres anything in life that you would like an additional blessings for, please let me know. It could be to find your soulmate (shidduch), find a new job or get a raise (parnassah), pray for someone who is sick (cholim), or anything else you feel you need some extra karma on. Please either leave a comment here (if you want to keep it private, still leave a comment, everything is moderated before its published and if you want it not published, just make note for me), reply to me on Twitter (@susqhb), or message me. Try to include your Hebrew name (if you have one) and your mother's Hebrew name (if you don't know it, just include her name). Also, make note of what it is you'd like me to pray for. You don't need to know who I am. If you are somehow reading this, or a friend sent you here to submit a name, thats good enough for me. Many blessings to all! May we see Only Simchas from here on out!

LA Weather

Dear God,

In 2 days I will be privy to the 10 Day forecast for December 28th. That's my wedding day. Please let the weather be beautiful so my guests can appreciate the "divine" (double entendre there, how do you like that God?) weather of Southern California. Thanks.

Your Most Benevolent Worshipper,

Susanne

Dear Person Posting Simcha on OnlySimchas,

Here's the dealio. If you don't know your friend well enough to know the first AND last name of the guy they are becoming engaged to, there is no way in hell that you are the appropriate person to be announcing their simcha with the world. I say this every day. As I make everyone aware, I am a huge OnlySimchas fan! I rejoice in all the simchas posted there. There is a lot of sadness in the world, so sharing your family's joy with the world is a beautiful thing. But I just went on to see what was new and saw this. Engagement of LUCKY CHOSSON & "Chick from Brooklyn" (not her real name, no need to write it here). The Lucky Chosson part was the real name listed for the dude. Here's the story.

A) Not everyone wishes to be posted on the site. For whatever reason, its still their perogative.
B) As stated before, let a closer friend post the damn thing. If you've never met the guy, maybe waiting until a family member or someone who knows them better gets around to it.

Well, thats all I've gotta say. Live long and prosper. But whatever you do. Don't forget to post your good tidings on OnlySimchas!

40 Days til Wedding

Forty days until my wedding on December 28th. The number 40 has great significance in Judaism. So I compiled some different sources speaking about why the number 40 is so important to us Jews.

Take for example from Rabbi Shraga Simmons of Aish:

"The number forty has significance throughout the Torah, and the Talmud.

For example, when a person becomes ritually impure, he must go to a ritual bath, a Mikveh. The Talmud tells us that a Mikveh must be filled with FORTY measures of water, and a person, must completely submerse himself in it. After being submersed, he leaves the Mikveh ritually pure. It is no accident, that in the story of Noah, the rain poured for FORTY days, and surrounded the world with water. And just as a person leaves a Mikveh pure, so too when the waters of the flood subsided, the world was pure.

According to the Maharal (16th century, Prague), the number FORTY has the power to raise up something's spiritual state. Just as FORTY measures of water purifies a person, and FORTY days of rain purified the world, so too Moses being on Mt. Sinai for FORTY days also had a purifying effect, in that the Jews arrived at Mt. Sinai as a nation of Egyptian slaves, but after forty days they were G-d's nation.

In the Deuteronomy, Moses tells the Jewish people that he had "led them FORTY years in the wilderness," (29:3-4) after he told them that "G-d has not given you a heart to know, and eyes to see, and ears to hear, until this day." So we see, it took the Jewish people FORTY years in the desert before they could understand the things that took place. Accordingly, the Mishna in Ethics of Our Fathers explains that "a man of forty attains understanding." (5:26) (Ethics from Sinai)."

This I found on the Torah.org site:

The number 40 occurs most conspicuously in connection with the Flood (40 days), with Moses on Mount Sinai (40 days, during which the Jews made the Golden Calf), and with the time the Jews spent in the desert (40 years, in punishment for their listening to the spies who had spent 40 days exploring the Promised Land). Thus 40 seems to be associated with punishment. Note that for violating a negative commandment the Torah specifies a punishment of 40 lashes (which the sages interpreted as 39). Perhaps the association with punishment is related to the fact that 40 is the numerical value of "yad Ha-Shem" (14+26).

This is from the Faqs.org site:

Forty days after a child is conceived, the Talmud tells us, the soul
enters the body. Forty, therefore, is a symbol of birth, rebirth and
change. It is interesting to note that it was recently found that
neural activity does begin at 40 days after conception. This also
means that abortion is permitted in more instances within the first 40
days of pregnancy than during the rest of pregnancy.

And finally, there is an idea that praying for a specific thing for 40 straight days is a great segula. I have friends that recited Shir HaShirim 40 days in a row to merit finding their bashert. There is a group, Western Wall Prayers, that will pray in your merit at the Kotel (Western Wall) for 40 straight days. They explain their mission as:

"Chazal (our Sages) have long spoken about the Segula of praying for 40 consecutive days. Whether one recites shir hashirim (King Solomon's Song of Songs), tehillim (King David's psalms) or personal heart-felt words, 40 days is a significant time period to arouse G-d's mercy.

Praying for 40 consecutive days specifically at the Kotel (Western Wall) is a famous practice of Jews in Jerusalem. Most people have heard about the popular Segula through word-of-mouth and have made the pilgrimage for marriage partners, income, children, healing and other.

According to Rav Sheinberger, author of a popular commentary on the Zohar (the definitive book of Kabbalah), the Segula was officially coined by Rabbi Yisroel Yaakov Fischer, of blessed memory - one of the leading Sages of the last generation. Dayan Fischer reportedly said that if someone goes to the Western Wall for 40 consecutive days to pray for 1 thing, it was a special Segula of its own."

I get it. 40 is an important number. I have 40 days until my slate is once again wiped clean. Evan and I will start a brand new life together on this day. I must do teshuva. I must free myself of all my ill feelings towards others. I must make ammends. I have 40 days left to "pack" for this journey.

Who I'm Voting For

On April 26, 2007 I wrote my first of many candidate analyses. I ranked the order of the potential candidates in order of who I'd vote for and why. Senator Barack Obama was #7. The order is as follows.

1) Al Gore (D)

2) Hillary Clinton (D)

3) Bill Richardson (D)

4) John Edwards (D)

5) John McCain (R)

6) Mitt Romney (R)

7) Barack Obama (D)

8) Rudy Giuliani (R)

My defense for Senator Obama's low rating was as follows: Obama Who? Where did this guy come from? I'd never heard of him until last year. He is a first term, junior Senator from Illinois. Sure hes a wonderful orator, hes good looking, and very well educated. But what kind of experience does he have that he should be the leader of the free world? I'm 100% in favor of a President who is not a white, middle aged, male. Thats why I have Hillary (female) and Bill Richardson (Hispanic) near the top of my list. Obama, leave this race right now and run again in 8 years. You will have my vote. I promise. But first you need to put on public record where you stand on the issues. And convince me that you are passionate about Israel a little bit more.

When I was on the Fox News Channel's panel for undecided voters I said I considered myself undecided because if my Democratic choice (Senator Clinton) was not the nominee I'd consider voting for the Republican candidate. After all, McCain was two spots ahead of Obama on my list.

I had liked John McCain for a long time. I always thought he was a Moderate Republican. Didn't blindly vote party lines. Instead he voted what he believed was best for America. That was until he chose Sarah Palin. Governor Palin as a running mate is the antithesis of what all moderate voters saw in John McCain. She is just not what I would want to see in a potential running mate. Was Joe Biden ever pranked by a Canadian radio show using a ridiculously fake French President Nicolas Sarkozy accent? And if he was, would he have fallen for it? No. The woman who did fall for the prank, the woman running under a 72-year-old man with a history of health problems, is not ready to be President and frankly never will be. She is unable to make her own decisions without being schooled by instructors. She does not have the intellect to comprehend the complexity of world issues. She does not have my back when it comes to women's rights. She does not have my vote and therefore, neither does the man at the top of the ticket.

Tomorrow, I am voting for the lesser of two evils. I am afraid to vote for the Republican ticket because I am scared of empowering Sarah Palin. I am disappointed in Senator Obama for not choosing Senator Clinton as his running mate. Together the Democrats could have sailed to the Presidency. Now we are looking at a potential 2000, one party winning the Popular vote while the other wins the Electoral count. Its far fetched but its possible. It could happen again. There are other Hillary supporters out there that are hoping for an Obama upset to open a 2012 Hillary run. I want the Dems to win today! Not in four years! I'm not going to be like McCain, picking someone who my advisors decide on. I will choose the man who is best for America. And that my friends is Senator Barack Obama. I hope you all (especially those in the swing states, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Florida, listen up, I'm talking to you) agree.

Shana Tova Greetings from Susanne

Dear Friends, Fam, and Followers,
I wanted to write you this year to make sure you have wonderful Rosh Hashanah and a meaningful Yom Kippur. At this time, as we are beginning a new year, we must take time out of our busy schedules for a bit of introspection. With each new year we must grasp this clean slate and ask ourselves, what can we do this year to be a better friend, a better parent, a better spouse? Let's fill this year's slate with Torah, and Mitzvos, and most importantly Love. This is the Season of Love (those noticing the Rent reference, nice work). Let's commit ourselves to loving not only our friends, parents, and spouses, but Klal Yisroel as a whole. Only then can we actually see ourselves coming closer to the ultimate redemption, the coming of Moshiach. This year has been a busy one for me. This year I met Evan, my future Rabbi Hubby. For all of you who always insisted that I'd end up a Rebbitzen since our days at Darchei Binah, well, you won that bet. I've learned a lot from Evan. He is one of the most selfless people I have ever met. Always there to lend a helping hand to a friend. This makes me want to help others even more. Whether its helping them find somewhere for Shabbos, deal with the big issues, or my new hobby, finding them a shidduch (if you haven't yet, send me what you're looking for!). I just want to be a better person. I've tried hard not to push away my friends because of a relationship. I've lost many friends who have gotten so wrapped up in their relationships and weddings that I promised myself for years that I would not do the same. Hopefully I didn't sleight anyone since I've been so overwhelmingly busy this past year. With this in mind, I hope that you can somehow find it in yourself to forgive me for any of the transgressions that I have committed, whether I did them knowingly or unknowingly. I will of course do the same for you. May all of our relationships with our families, our friends, and our fellow man be stronger this year than ever before. I hope this coming year will be filled with nothing but Simchas for us to share together! I hope for a year of blessings and prosperity for us all. Gmar Chasima Tova!
Love,
Susanne

PS If anyone's emails were left out, please know it was done unintentionally. Hopefully all of my loved ones will receive this message somehow through my Twitter page (www.twitter.com/susqhb) or my Facebook (http://www.new.facebook.com/profile.php?id=502647624&ref=name) or my blog www.susqhb.blogspot.com.

Had I known...I'd have been a Rabbi

I just spoke to a lovely rabbi in the Greater Philly area. When I went to her shul site to double check the address I saw that the other rabbi in her shul had the same last name. Its not the most common name, so my guess is that they are married. It comes up pretty often when I find that two rabbis at a congregation are married to one another. Obviously I'm not referring to Orthodox institutions since they do not ordain women. I guess in the Reform and Convervative movements when a couple meets in Rabbinical school, they have a good heads up that their suitor is like minded in terms of their connection to Judaism, making it a good match from the get-go. Of course, there was one time when I called a congregation and asked for Rabbi X and the receptionist asked, which one, and I said Rabbi XX, and asked, oh, are they married? She said, um, they're divorced. Awkward! But anyhoo, point is, had I known how easy it was to meet my match had I gone to Rabbinical school I would have gone years ago. Well, it took some time, but at least I did in fact find my Rabbi. The question now is, when they announce us for the first time as husband and wife, do they say "Rabbi and Rebbitzen", or "Rabbi and Reverend"? :D

Am I a Stern Girl?

This morning, for the first time ever, someone asked me if I was on my way to Stern on the train. She needed directions I presume. I was wearing the same exact thing I've worn pretty much everyday for 10 years. Denim skirt, polo shirt, and zip sweater. What could possibly have been different today that made her query me and not the girl next to me also wearing a skirt and long sleeves? Must be the engagement ring....

Wedding Music

We booked whats supposed to be the most excellent Jewy band in LA/Orange County for the wedding. I was just sent a website where you can view all the songs that the band can cover. First thing I noticed. Not nearly enough Tim McGraw tunage. Or any for that matter. I think more Orthos need to play Tim at their nuptials. I was just going through the wedding band's song list and....Oooh Beatles, lets see what songs are listed here.....OMG.....Do they really get requests for Eleanor Rigby from couples?! Isn't it about chick who died alone? Really?!! Some people seriously need to rethink what songs are really about. Yup pretty song. Not exactly appropriate sentiment though. Like I'd LOVE to walk down to the opening bit of a Rascal Flatts song. Its a beautiful string piece....but its a song called I'm Moving On. Again, not sure the right kind of appropriate for that moment.

Spin

It seems as though every other post I'm apologizing for not writing more. And here I go again. Sorry loyal readers. My life is hectic. Be patient.

So heres the story. I'm packing and throughout I've been throwing clothes in the laundry bag to be washed. Tonight was when I got through the four loads that needed to get done. I then proceeded to fold the laundry (this alone took all night, its now 2 am). When I finished I counted 43 freshly laundered pairs of underwear. This can be seen two ways depending on how you spin it. I'm not completely sure its natural to own that many. But I'm a sucker for buying undies in bulk. As many of you know, my favorite store is Costco and when I make a trip I usually pick up another package. If its a cute design, two packages. Thats one way to see it. I just have an undie fetish and own so many that I have to wash a ton whenever I do the laundry. The other is, How the hell long has it been since I've done laundry? Don't think about this too long. Might make you gag a little. Anyhoo, this is what happens when you can't sleep and decide to blog in the middle of the night. You write embarrassing things. Good night all.

Our Wedding Monogram

One of my bestest most talented buds put this together for us. I think its amazing. My only goal was to have all of our Hebrew initials incorporated somehow, and bonus points if I had to do some detective work to make out some of the letters. Can you find them all? Shin, Mem, Aleph, and Yud. And of course a Resh for Rosenhouse. :)

Dear Anonymous

Dear guy who has way too much time on his hands,

You know who you are. You spend all day on my site driving up my sitemeter, thereby directing more traffic to my site and more ad money to my pocket. For that, I thank you. I originally just planned to ignore your ridiculousness, but instead think you deserve a thank you. Feel free to keep posting inappropriate comments to my various blog posts. Calling me whatever names you'd like. I really don't mind as long as my numbers keep going up. After all, you've figured out that I'm not posting them. I'm not even reading them. Everytime I get an email saying "Anonymous" has posted again, I laugh to myself. Its a shame that this wuss who won't even identify himself is hiding behind his sense of invisibility. Hiding behind the AOL account that he uses to connect to the internet. Why don't you spend your time more wisely. Throw the ball around with a buddy. Take someone on a date. Call up an old friend who you've lost touch with. Anything must be better than reading my blog. But while I still keep you busy, knock yourself out.

New Potter Trailer

Positively frightening. And they didn't even show the really scary stuff (like the inferi in the lake ""shutter""), just Dumbledore's visit to the orphanage to visit the young Tom Riddle. Now everyone says that it wasn't until HP 4 that Rowling got really dark, and while thats kinda true, it wasn't until this book, HP6 that I was chilled to the bone. One of my faves of the series and the one that I think fleshed out the Dark Wizard's backstory and really because of their duality, in essence, Harry Potter's. I remember the first time I saw the first trailer for Sorcerer's Stone. I was in DC for the summer. And we went to see that horrible movie AI just for the trailer. Just seeing the trailer was an event in itself. So enjoy!




If above video is not available, try clicking here. Movie is being released in the US on November 21st. Go see it!

BREAKING NEWS! SavvyAuntie.com Launches!

Back in March I briefly offered a shout out to a site that I heard was in development entitled Savvy Auntie. The particular post was on the book The Panic Years: A Guide to Surviving Smug Married Friends, Bad Taffeta, and Life on the Wrong Side of 25 without a Ring by Doree Lewak. The book and the elongated title explains, touches on relationships with your friends who are married (while you are not) as well as those who have kids. I remember thinking in Stern after my first close friend Alissa got married, wow looks like shes winning in this race called life. Then a year later her first son was born and I thought, damn, not only is she winning, she's lapped me. That was in 2001. She just delivered her THIRD child b"H in May, one week after I got engaged to my fiance Evan. So I guess I may have gained ground in this race, although, it'll be years (if ever) for me to catch up to her and her bountiful fam.

For a long time I just accepted the fact that there was a good chance I'd be an old maid. Its widely believed that there is a "singles crisis" (their words, not mine) in the young frum world. So anyone who doesn't fit into the teeny tiny box of whats an ideal man or woman in the frum world just might be single for a while. For a woman, you can generally read that as thin, because thats pretty much all frum guys are looking for. Although, not always true, I have some incredibly hot, professional friends who remain single (gentlemen, contact me for their numbers). Guys in the frum world are just generally stupid, so thats why they let these lovely ladies slip through their fingers. For men, they must have a six figure salary. Bald, fat, and toothless are not factors. Those guys still have no problem finding wives. As long as they take home 100K.

Since there are so many women getting married later and later in life, many are putting off having children. That doesn't neccesarily mean that they aren't actively involved in childrens' lives. A large majority of my girlfriends have extremely close connections to their nieces and nephews. They take them to the circus (as my bud DJ did last week), they act as confidants, and they get to be another adult that loves the children unconditionally and spoils them rotten. Every kid needs more than two adults to fill that last role. When I was little, I needed like 20 aunts and uncles to yield the amount of attention my precoious younger self required.

Right now SavvyAuntie.com is being launched like literally as I type this blog. This website can act as an online community (the first of its kind) for hip aunts, great aunts, godmothers, and my own personal coined term quasi-aunts, to communicate with one another on all the important things it means to be an aunt. Biological or not. For instance, two weeks ago I went to my quasi-niece's first birthday. Being a woman in my late 20's with pretty much no experience around little ones (I've changed like 5 diapers in my 28 years) I had no idea what to get her for a gift. Had I had this community to turn to for advice, I would have had a much easier time of gift buying. I would have known a Playstation wasn't a good idea (just kidding, I found like some ball thingy, for ages 1-3).

All that said, yes, I plan to, God willing, one day have a family. Not neccesarily anytime so soon. I'd like to enjoy married life for a little while before popping out a little one. For now, I'm content doting over my two nephews who live in Las Vegas (when I see them, which is usually once a year if that) and my brand new nephew (Evan's brother's son), as well as my countless other quasi-nieces and nephews, children of my close friends. They're awesome little tykes. And I'm their Aunt Susanne! If you fit this category, visit SavvyAuntie.com today!

Mormons are cool!

Okay, so this is my 301st post. No fanfare needed. I keep getting these funny ideas to write about and when I get to my desk at work or my laptop I become so busy with other stuff I never get around to articulating the humor to y'all. So since its been awhile I thought I'd come on here and punch in a couple quickies.

This morning on the subway two young Mormon elders got on the train. A man in his 30's initiated a conversation with them and he chatted about faith, family, and spirituality with these young missionaries from 175 to 59th street. I give the Mormon faith major props. Not that I'm in favor of any religion proselytizing (Jews actually turn away prospective converts), but making people explore life's positive attributes, even if its a 30 minute conversation that doesn't translate to anything, is a great thing. I mentioned before that I grew up in the Mormon stronghold of Orange County, California. My high holiday services (since the synagogue wasn't large enough to hold all of us once a year Jews) were held at the local Mormon temple each year. They had seating for 1000! The Mormon faith puts a strong emphasis on family and moral values. My father is a district commissioner for Eagle Scouts in the area and a large majority of the young men he meets with come from the community. Our next door neighbors growing up with a large LDS family. I remember when the mom first came to my mom after we moved in and started talking up the religion, my mom said straight out, "listen, you don't try to convert us, we won't try to convert you. We'll have a better friendship that way". Religion was never really mentioned again. We had a great relationship with this family for many years. Thats all I really wanted to say. So the next time you see an elder or a young Mormon lady (not sure what their title is) be sure to say hello. You can usually recognize them by their big lapel name badges, their bicycles, and their backpacks. Good times!

300

This is my 300th blog post. The End.

P.S. Today's a Woot-Off!
Will this be my lucky day where I finally win a bag of crap?! Woot= One Day, One Deal. A Woot-Off is when they continiously throughout the day post new products at dirt cheap prices. The "bag of crap" is life's most coveted possessions. If you Woot, you know that I'm talking about. Oh yeah.

RIP Tim Russert

Tim Russert died this afternoon in DC at the age of 58. Honestly I'd never known who he was until the 2000 election. When the state of Florida toggled back and forth between Al Gore and George W, Tim remained our constant. I was like, who is this guy? All the other networks had expensive FX on the screen with a map of the United States and a ton of blue and red numbers. But there on NBC was this guy Tim Russert and a whiteboard that was probably picked up at Staples before he got to the studio. I watched him until 4 AM as he explained the electoral college math and what it would take for each candidate to become President of the United States. I was fascinated. Of course, the state of Florida eventually landed in President Bush's hands, but for those few hours in the middle of the night it could have gone either way. And Mr. Russert was the one who helped us understand. I went on to do my thesis paper on the electoral college. And Tim Russert had a lot to do with that. I'll always remember Tim...and his whiteboard. Thanks Tim for making politics make sense.

10 Years

10 years ago yesterday, on June 11th, 1998 I graduated from Edison High School in Huntington Beach, CA. I've mentioned before in my blog, but I'll happily say it again, I LOVED high school. I made some good friends, went to some great parties (mostly at the Nadler hacienda), hit a lot of softballs, won a lot of gavels (from Model UN), was Student of the Month (in a school of 1,600, thats pretty impressive), and was almost named Prom Queen. I like to say I was runner up because we didn't have a runner up but if we did I'm sure it would have been me. :) I never got great grades because I was lazy as shit but I stayed above 3.0 throughout my time there. I was supposed to graduate with honors but was one Spanish class shy of the requirement. I hated Spanish. Spent 2 1/2 years in remedial Spanish and can say "Yo Hablo Susanne". Thats about it. I wish I could have foreseen living in the barrio affectionately known as Washington Heights where Spanish would have been infinitely helpful.

And then we graduated. We wore our green robes and sat in the heat in the Edison Bowl. What I regret is that I didn't really appreciate the impact of that day. There were people there that I saw every day for 4 years. Now I haven't seen them in 10! I wish I took more pictures. I wish email was more widely used back then. I wish Facebook existed. I wish we had Myspace. I wish I'd stayed in touch with my peeps. I wish I still had my old 1982 Honda Accord Hatchback. I wish I had applied myself more.

We have our 10 Year Reunion coming up this November. I can tell you I am so excited to see all my old friends. But I can't help but think, what if I could go back 10 years and do things differently. Would I be a lawyer like I'd always planned? Would I be the observant Jew that I am today? These are questions that we cannot even think about. We need to love the life we live. And thats what I'm doing.

Happy 10th Anniversary Edison High School Class of 1998!

Happy Birthday Evan!

Wishing a Happy Birthday to my main man, Evan "Tex" Rosenhouse AKA The Rabbi AKA the BF AKA The Fiance (depending on which previous shout out you've read). Love you babe!

I think its over...

EphShap just forwarded me an RSVP link for an Election Night Rally for Senator Hillary Clinton...at Baruch College in New York City. She's coming home. Instead of hosting a victory or concession speech in the last two primary voting states, South Dakota and Montana, she is hosting a rally here, in her home state of New York. I had planned to try to get Broadway tickets to Cry-Baby the new John Waters musical based on the Johnny Depp movie, but gosh, I think I really want to be there with one of my heroes, Hillary Clinton, in what I fear may be shaping up to be a real concession speech. Like the real deal. Supposedly shes started letting campaign workers go. It saddens me that I wasn't able to personally share my memories of the Senator with more people. Find her more supporters. Her compassion and realness really touched me. When I spoke to her, she listened. I understand the inevitablity that she will not be the Democratic nominee. I've accepted that for weeks now. But seeing this campaign really begin to close up is really sad for me. Tomorrow night might not be the moment she throws her support behind Senator Obama, but I do believe it will be the first step towards that.

To RSVP for tomorrow's rally at the Baruch College Athletic Center, visit:
http://www.hillaryclinton.com/events/ticketed/20080603NewYork

RIP King Kong

Above picture taken during my last trip to visit King Kong before his untimely death, Passover 2007

Yesterday I went to the Israel Day Parade where I'd hoped to bump into old friends who got married, had babies, and never called me again. True story. It was fun. Walked up and down the street people watching the day away. When I got home that evening I was greeted by this unfortunate news story. There was a major fire at Universal Studios Hollywood which destroyed many famous sets and backlots. Most notably (in my mind at least) the King Kong set. I really enjoy Universal Studios. Been there like 10-15 at least. The backlot tour is amazing! The take you up and down the hills in the backlot showing you where Psycho and Jaws and the new War of the Worlds was made. And then they drive you through sound stages. The tram driver alerts you that you are about to enter a stage with a calm NYC street. Nothing out of the ordinary. There is a helicopter overhead (just like in New York) and you see televisions on in the apartment windows (just like in New York). Then out of nowhere the helicopter crashes just beside the tram. And then theres a roar! And then King Kong appears just to the left of the car. And everyone screams. Women. Children. Most of the men. Its beyond exciting to be inches away from this gigantic beast. I've always gotten a kick out of this. Then at 4:30 on Sunday morning, Kong was wiped out by a fire. So sad. Also gone, the clock tower from all three Back to the Future movies. That was actually really nifty to see because you had you remember that even though it was the same exact set, it was doctored up to look like 1985, 1955, 2015, and 1885. It really showed a person like me how magical filmmaking could be. How something so ordinary (a gigantic beige sound stage) could become extraordinary. At least I have my memories. RIP King Kong.

Bearcats 1-1

We won our game yesterday. It was like 16-7. I was on base 2 of 3 times. We played literally under the Queensborough bridge at York and 59th streets. If your hit connects with the bridge (about 300 feet above the field) it can be played by the fielders. If it drops its designated a foul ball. My team hit two balls off of the bridge. Seriously New York City Parks department, are there no other real fields on which we can play? I'm paying like $200 for this league and I risk being struck by rivets from an old bridge. Seriously?!

I made one awesome put out at first which I was really proud of. Our third baseman made a wild throw and I had to come off the base a few feet to stop it. Instead of hurrying back to the bag I instinctively threw my glove hand at the batter as he ran up the baseline toward first, tagging him out. The umps reaction when I came to bat in the next inning was, "Wow, looks like you've played this game before." The human body really is an amazing thing. When anyone has spent a significant amount of time doing any particular thing it can be done absolutley and completely without thinking. I find it so incredible. Not to say I'm like a pro or anything, cuz I'm not, but I have played this game for 23 years and some things just sink in in that amount of time.

Quote of the game: Overheard chick on the other team say, "Wow, I've only ever played this sport on my Wii." She hit 2-3 so I guess that game system really works.

Thanks Mom

Today is the 37th day of the Omer. And it took this long for my mom to mail me the bra I left in Cali over Pesach. Thanks for being so on top of this Mom! Although, USPS Flat Rate boxes do have a good thing going for them. Since my bra doesn't quite fill a box the box, mom filled it with several Easter eggs. Most notably some new contact lens solution that just entered the marketplace and a copy of my Bat Mitzvah reception video. Get ready to see Susanne just months shy of her 13th birthday...and dealing with the worst bout of stomach flu in the history of man. But don't you worry, I made it through the Shabbat morning service and layning just fine. Ever see a black tie Bat Mitzvah reception (with a life size replica of Pop Tate's Choklit Shoppe!) where the lucky girl is completely missing from the festivities? Nows your chance! Viewings daily!!!

Krups Heineken BeerTender

I will be registering for this. Oh yes, I will be registering for this.

Oh right! I'm engaged.

After spending most of my 28 years as a single, its hard to transform from available hotty into spoken-for woman. Oooohh the Bangitout Lager B'Omer party is tonight! Oh right, I'm not on the prowl anymore, nix that from my calendar. Oooohh, theres a SawYouAtSinai Shabbaton at the end of the summer! Oh wait, I'm going home for my bridal shower that weekend. But this week I've spent a lot of time looking at pictures. We took over 200 at my engagement party last week. And let me be frank, I looked good! I wore a cute dress. Put on a bunch of makeup. I even let Reif comb my hair. So being the narcissist that I am, I've been staring at my pictures non-stop. And they're everywhere! FACEBOOK! ONLYSIMCHAS! MYSPACE! I'm so vain I can't get enough of them. But the worst is this. Throughout the week I've caught myself riffling through pictures thinking, damn, I look good. And when I come to one of my more striking pictures, the first thought that comes to my mind is wow, this will make an incredible Frumster headshot. Doh! When will my brain realize I'm single no more?

EAT THAT SIMON! DAVID COOK IS MY IDOL!

I already had a message prepared here lambasting the American Idol judges for crowning Archuleta champion on last night's finale. That was right before Ryan announced DAVID COOK was the new American Idol winner. Moments prior Simon Cowell decided to apologize for coming down on Cook too hard last night. Well Simon, too little, too late I'd say. But STUFF IT! Your boy lost. American Idol voters, you've restored my faith in the next generation! And by 12 million votes, David Cook is officially THE MAN! Way to go my Little Cookie! Who else was waiting for Archuleta's dad's head to explode? Now THAT would have made my night!

I'm Engaged

In case the word on the street hasn't reached you yet, I'm engaged. I, Susanne Michelle Goldstone will become Susanne Michelle Rosenhouse on December 28, 2008. My initials will go from SMG (smug) to SMR (smear). Not sure which is worse. I think they're both alright.

I apologize for the delay. Its taken me a week to post something on here. I've been ruminating a lot about what to say on here. In addition to the story of how this all went down, I'd also like to give you some thoughts about how I feel about simchas in general.

Now to preface, I'm not the type of girl who enjoys being the center of attention. Contrary to popular belief, I am pretty shy and having people singing, jumping, and dancing around me (literally) is not my cup of tea. That said, last Tuesday my boyfriend, now fiance (holy crap, thats like the first time I've uttered that aloud, well, not actually aloud, but still), and I became affianced.

Evan and I met on SawYouAtSinai. This is a Jewish dating site like no other. Instead of direct contact you have a shadchan or intermediary matchmaker set you up. Ours was Kim Davis Solomon. You may know her as Happy Kim. Kim was that girl in Stern who always had a smile on her face. She was always happy to see you. Always had an anecdote to cheer you up. Always made you a little bit happier. I tell my friends, "remember Kim Davis? She set us up." They go "who?" I go "Happy Kim." They go "ooooohhh HAPPY Kim, course we know her!" Point is, shes an incredible incredible person. So incredible that I sincerely believe that she is more happy about our engagement than both Evan and I put together (as if that's possible). I am so happy we were able to make her so full of joy and able to give this amazing woman the zechus (merit) of making our match.

As for the proposal which I know all my rabid female readers are waiting for, here goes. Was I suspicious that this was coming soon? Yes. It started over Pesach when I went to Dallas to meet my future in-laws. The day before I came to town Evan nonchalantly says, "so I went shopping today." I asked, "oh for a new suit?" "Nooo." "What then?" "Jewelry." "Oh..." Thank goodness the meeting went well. I get along with his family (at least the 90 of them that I met during my 3 day visit) and his grandparents LOVE me (its mutual, they are awesome!). :)

Evan asked me like a week earlier if I was free Tuesday night the 13th. I was like, um, we aren't the couple that makes plans in advance. We are mucho laid back. So that kind of tipped me off. He wanted to get tickets to the show I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change. Thats kind of random. He never mentioned the show before. Plus, he suggested we go to dessert after, something we've never done after a show. So I was super suspicious at this point. So I cancelled some plans I had with my girlfriend's on Tuesday and told Evan I would go to show on Tuesday. I passed up Smokey Joes's for you Evan. Now THATS love!

We went out on Tuesday and nothing was too weird. I suggested we get a bite to eat. We went to Le Marais one of our faves since you can get a good kosher steak for an affordable price. Then we were off to the show. Evan didn't seem nervous or do anything out of the ordinary. We then walked to the show. It was a small theater but a very fun show about the trials and tribulations of being single in this day and ago. The show ended and I noticed Evan didn't take a program at first. So I thought to myself, if he was really going to propose tonight, he probably would have taken that with him as a memento. I went to the bathroom which I always do after a show (I have the world's smallest bladder, honest, look in the Guinness book for my picture). While I was in there I remember berating myself thinking how lame I was to think it might be tonight. I left the bathroom and found the lobby empty of our fellow theatergoers. Only a couple ushers were left in the room. And Evan said, "Susanne, can I ask you something?" I was like, "Um, I guess." Then he went into a beautifully planned speech using the elements of the show and ending with the question of whether I'd like to CHANGE from his girlfriend to his wife. The last part was done on bended knee. After gratefully accepting and exchanging hugs to the ecstatic cheers of the two ushers, the first thing out of my mouth was, "my God Evan, what if the play ended badly and everyone decided to stay single?" I don't think he had thought of that part. I'm glad it ended the way it did. Happily.

Of course, being me, I needed photographic evidence of this occasion. So I asked Evan to reenact the proposal while the ushers greatfully snapped pictures. We made our requisite phone calls to our family and friends and ventured out to find a cab to take home. The subway would put us out of cell phone range for too long and our well wishes were pouring in.

We got back to my apartment to find that my roomy Sharon had decorated my door. Back in Stern there was a custom to decorate the door of the latest 20-year-old to get engaged, in order to make all the other girls on her floor feel inadequate. I always wanted one...but sadly, I graduated YU without my MRS degree. So Sharon made up for lost time. See video here.

My favorite part about this whole experience has been the outpouring of mazel tovs. I've haven't had a real mazel tov in my life since like my Bat Mitzvah. Or I guess my college graduation. I've been stagnant without a simcha for at least 6 years. Simchas bring people together. They help old friends reconnect. So far like 10 friends who I haven't seen or heard from in 5-10 years have either called me up, emailed me, or signed my guestbooks on OnlySimchas or Shmais. People I know well (and some even vaguely) have stopped me on the street to tell me how great they think I am and how highly they regard my friendship. They've told me memories they have and other positive things about me. But most importantly, they want to say how happy they are to hear about my simcha. My question is this: Why wait for a simcha? Why not tell your friends and companions everyday how much you care about them? Someone told me yesterday that she doesn't think she'll ever get a mazel tov. That saddened me so much. I challenge you all to treat others like they have simchas in their lives. Call someone you haven't spoken to in a while and reconnect. Do it now, because who knows when you'll get a chance.

Now folks, please feel free to hit me up for brachos. Brides and grooms apparently have superpowers where we have an open line to God. Ask and you shall receive. Take advantage of my generosity.

My heart is bursting with all the warm Mazel Tov wishes! I may not get back to all of you, but they mean the world to me. Thank you!

For more pics visit my Facebook photo galleries. Enjoy!

L'Chaim Gallery 1
L'Chaim Gallery 2
The Infamous Bucket of Cheesy Poofs

Who paid Simon Cowell?

Oh Simon. David Archuleta didn't prove anything tonight. David Cook was the bomb on tonight's American Idol finale. For my boy Cook to win, I had to counter those rapid 13-year-old David Archuleta fans. I needed to fight fire with fire. So far, I've called David Cook's voting line IDOLS-05 about 25 times, and I'm still going. Although, not winning Idol isn't a death sentance, per say. Remember Chris Daughtry? Well, Chris, David Cook is on your heels. Get running!

You're Fired!

Ho Boy! Well, maybe not fired...yet. But Sue Simmons dropped the F bomb tonight on her intro to the 11:00 news. I missed it! But have no fear, visit the blogosphere! Sure enough within like 20 minutes of her fateful curse numerous blogs had already commented on it and at least one posted the video. My life is now complete. Are we going to go back to the days where even news is tape delayed? Oy vey!

Frozen OJ and Little League

Some of my fondest memories from growing up were of my Saturday mornings spent on the Seaview Little League diamond. I loved everything about it. Being chosen by my coach to recite the Little League pledge from the pitcher's mound. The words are so sacred and true that its awesome to think that boys and girls repeat this everyday. Some of the best moral objectives are included. See below:

I trust in God
I love my country and will respect its laws
I will play fair, and strive to win
But win or lose, I will always do my best

Also awesome: Getting a ticket for the snack bar after the game and getting Red Vines and Now & Laters. Getting my new uniform each year (Giants, Tigers, Orioles, etc) and being jealous of whoever was assigned to the Angels, our hometown team. Getting drafted into Minor A when all my friends were still in Minor B (okay, kinda sucky not being with friends, but cool to have my abilities acknowledged). Being the only girl on the team and still kicking the boy's butts.

And close to the top of my list of favorite memories was the annual pancake breakfast on opening day, and not just cuz I was the little chubby kid. Opening day was always amazing in general. But thie breakfast for some reason was always so much fun. Seeing all my friends again from different schools. Hanging with old buddies. Seeing former coaches. Here comes my odd segue. Today I ordered breakfast from around the corner and they delivered my egg and bagel with a small bottle of orange juice. I stuck it in the freezer to cool it off and forgot about it. When I went to take it out it was all slushy. Thats when the pancake breakfast and good times at Seaview popped into my head. For some reason, each year, the tiny little OJ containers were deliciously frozen. Of course, that morning was always freezing (69 degrees is considered freezing in Huntington Beach) but I was always excited to have the frozen OJ to go with my pancakes and bacon (yup, this was almost two decades before my kosher days).

So today's OJ made me fondly remember my Saturday's spent at LeBard field for my Seaview Little League games. Earlier this year the Huntington Beach City School District decided to sell LeBard school which is home to Seaview. When I was home for Passover I saw lawn signs everywhere around Huntington Beach. Instead of just toting support for Clinton, Obama, or McCain (mostly McCain, by the way, in Southern Orange County), people had "Save our Diamonds" signs on their front lawns.

One day during Passover 2008 I was driving down Brookhurst and passed the track where LeBard is located. So I decided to drive by, just in case my next time back in town the whole school is razed. Sadly, I didn't have a camera with me. There were games just starting this Friday afternoon. I first stopped at the Minor B field where a couple 10-year-olds were reciting the pledge. I kinda teared up a little. Then I went to watch the Minor A game where the Diamondbacks were in the lead. When I played, the Diamondbacks weren't even a farm team, now 12 kids had this team name emblazoned on their jerseys. On the Majors field they now have an announcer's booth with an announcer calling out the batters names and stats. All we had was our Team Mom keeping score. I am so old.

Today there is a "Save Seaview" website. Basically, I loved playing ball for Seaview. The fact that the school district wants to sell of the site where thousands of little boys and girls learned what it takes to "respect laws" and "play fair" is just infuriating. I implore you to visit the Save Seaview website and share your thoughts. Even if you didn't participate in Seaview. If you've ever had a kid in Little League somewhere, post a comment. If you think its just plain wrong, post a comment. I know this was a long ramble that started with a 10 ounce container of orange juice, but the importance should not be missed.

Jenna Bush Gets Married

Mazel Tov! Theres nothing like when a couple meets, discovers similar political leanings, falls in love, and gets married. Its just so beautiful. Kinda like what happened with my friends (and couple I married #1) Mark and Sura. But they're on the other side of the political spectrum.

PS: Doesn't President Bush look dreamy...sigh...

David Archuleta Supporters are Big Babies

Some babe (or really gay male) just verbally attacked me for putting down David Archuleta. Don't his fans have anything better to do with their time? Honey, when you graduate from middle school and have to deal with real world issues like picking out a prom dress (fyi: I was prom queen runner-up) you will understand that attacking a fellow human being who is using their right to free speech is pretty damn lame. And if you are going to do it, at least be eloquent and use spell check and punctuation.

To paraphrase:
"you know you jerks david is better than all of you and he is hott!!! he will be the next american idol...u guys dont have the right to put down david because you don't even know him soooo yea david will win and u guys will be bitches for the rest of ur life haaa superman that yeahhh i said it JERKS!!!!

The part taken out was a long tirade where this individual spent an hour calling me fat. Yeah, that adds validity to your conjecture.

P.S. What the hell does "superman that" even mean? Oy, kids today. Please God don't let this commenter be a 35 year old man...

DAVID COOK RULES!!!

The End is Near

I am is voting for John McCain. No not really. I like him a lot. Hes a stand up dude. He came in 5th place on my list ranking presidential hopefuls last April behind Al Gore, Hillary, Bill Richardson, and John Edwards, respectfully. Only problem, hes a Republican and I just can't force myself to yank the level in their direction. I made that comment to express my disdain for the Democratic Electorate. You guys are comparable to the people who have been voting for Jason Castro week after week on American Idol. Complete imbeciles. Lets vote for the guy because hes so handsome and has such a nice smile (read: Obama). But not the chick who has the lung capacity to get the job done (read: Hillary, oh, and Carly Smithson for that matter). My Fellow Democrats, as we watch Hillary Clinton's campaign come to a complete stop, I'd like to take this time to admonish you. You suck.

My friend ES who happens to be more obsessed with Hillary than I commented this morning that he'd rather move to Mexico than vote for McCain or Obama. I corrected him and said "Dude, didn't you get the memo. We don't threaten to move to Mexico. Only Canada. I'll meet you in Montreal in November." Doesn't everyone read Stuff White People Like? Cuz they hit the nail on the head.

Anyhoo, as always, I hate being the buzzkill, but I am a realist. And in my mind, last night was my last hope of seeing Hillary take the presidency. So lets sit back and see where this journey now takes us.

David Archuleta Sucks Take 2

So I just wanted to say how funny I find it that I write a blog about my disdain for that little Mousketeer David Archuleta and I patiently wait until American Idol airs on the East Coast. Each week at approximately 9:05 EST my blog post begins to get comments agreeing that David is an overrated twerp. Hundreds of people every week are Googling David Archuleta Sucks and Susanne's Blog is one of the first hits. I have never been so proud.

D Train

Sorry to everyone who has bitched that I haven't been updating. A lot has been going on in my life lately and I barely find time to sleep, so blogging has been out of the question. I still hope to fill you in on my trip to Dallas over Pesach and Jury Duty, but first....

I came in a little early to work today. Tonight is opening day for my softball team the Bearcats and I need to leave early from work so I came in earlier than usual. I was fortunate enough to meet Zehavs for the first leg of my journey. Knowing that I dig her taste in music she gave me a listen to the Fine Frenzy, a group I totally plan to download when I get home tonight. We parted ways at 59th street and I got onto the D Train alone. I'm standing in the middle of the car for two stops. As the doors closed at Rockefeller Center a guy caught me eye. He's sitting there in a fricken facemask and gloves and was carrying a backpack which I noticed had big heavy duty locks on it. And not to rationalize, but he did have dark skin. And no, I'm not that racist guy or anything, but its something your brain takes into consideration when you are sitting next to a Unabomber wannabe. They say if you see something, say something. But I was like, no, I must be crazy. No one around me even notices the guy. Are New Yorkers so numb to the weirdness around them that THIS goes unnoticed? For goodness sake, its 75 degrees out today. There is no non-malicious reason to be wearing a skimask. I considered flagging down a cop at the next stop. But then I got all doubtful. What if he had some weird skin condition where he can't be exposed to light? Maybe he had some outrageous deformity? I don't know. I let him be. But not before getting off the train at the next stop. Even I'm not crazy enough to stay on with him all the way to 34th Street.

Susanne Goldstone Googlegängers

If you run a search of "Susanne Goldstone" into Google you currently get 629 responses. I wrote a blog about my obsession with googling myself last year. The best part is that my name is unique so every single posting is actually about me. Not a Susanne Goldstone from Mequon, Wisconsin. Not Susanne Goldstone from Sedona, Arizona. ME! As I wrote last year, my name is Susanne, not the more common Suzanne, and Goldstone, not Goldstein. I'm not just tooting my own horn. I learned from the New York Times this morning that I'm not the only one. Its actually a scientific thing that people are "unconsciously drawn to people and things that remind us of ourselves." For instance, the article tells us about Sam Blackman who consistently checks up on the other Sam Blackman's of the world and sheps nachas whenever someone gets married, has baby, etc. Even though he doesn't know them, he feels a kinship because they share the same name.

I would love to find another Susanne Goldstone. With so many billions of people in the world, there must be one. So I am asking, if you are Susanne Goldstone, hit me up. I'd love to hear from you. You can be like the "sister" I never knew I had.

My Parents' Celebrity Sighting

My parents flew in to New York last night from LA and the first thing they told me upon arrival was how many celebrities were sitting near them in First Class. Goldstones like to fly classy (Thank G-d for miles!). Next to them was Alec Baldwin sitting with one of his brothers. Unfortunately my mom is not a celebrity gossip extraordinaire and couldn't identify whether it was Billy, Stephen, or Daniel who accompanied Alec. Had it been Billy, I would have accidentally faked turbulence and fallen into his lap. "Whoops, sorry Billy, planes make me clumsy. Why don't you take off your shirt and let me apply seltzer to that wine spill I made." :D

Sitting in front of my parents was Marilyn Manson. My mom was shocked by his "scary eyes" and my dad was like, "How does that dude walk in 5 inch platform shoes?" At 6'3" and with 5" heels, I wonder how the heck he fit on the damn plane. Plus, he'd probably block the movie screen which would piss me off. If I can't watch "The Nanny Diaries" I swear I'll just scream! Why is it that I never see any cool celebs when I travel? The most famous person I ever sat next to in First Class was Dr. Bernard Lander, founder of Touro's Lander College. I even offered him some of my kosher meal since he forgot to order one. If I die with THAT being my claim to fame it will just be so sad.

Funniest Geek EVER?

Jack McBrayer was beyond hysterical as the sexually inept newlywed in the hilarious upcoming comedy Forgetting Sarah Marshall (which basically includes my entire dream cast, btw). He is the funniest thing about "30 Rock", a show that I love (so thats really saying something considering my undying love for both Tina Fey AND Alec Baldwin). A lot of people think hes going to be typecast by playing the same bumbling yet warmhearted nitwit in each role he takes on. But Jack, I have this advice for you, KEEP IT UP! Never has nerd chic been so enticing. We love you! If you need more proof. Watch the above video for Mariah Carey's 'Touch My Body'. HYSTERICAL! I will watch anything this guy is in. Love it!

Look what I found

Guess who found their favorite ever alcoholic beverage at a Midtown Gristedes? Okay, maybe its my second favorite alcholic drink, but you can't just find an Adios Motherf*&#er on a grocery store shelf near you. Hornsby's is the drink I grew up on. When I was too much of a wuss in high school to drink Jack Daniels like the Soccer Bums, and turned off by the taste of Boone's Strawberry Hill after witnessing my friend Maggie puke up a bottle of it sophomore year, I turned to Hornsby's Hard Cider. Delish, goes down easy, and had a low alcohol percentage so I wouldn't get embarrassingly wasted (okay, not as often at least). Its like my Holy Grail. I search for it in every liquor store and supermarket I walk into. I was leaving a movie screening at Kip's Bay on Thursday night and walked by my old apartment in the Windsor building. And a lightbulb flashed over my head. Had I once seen Hornsby's tucked a way in a corner of the beverage aisle at the Gristedes there. I went to investigate and lo and behold. There is was. Grail has been unearthed. What should I turn my search towards now? World peace?

Best Bush Picture EVER

I can't get enough of this. This is a picture of President Bush with all the leader's of NATO member countries in Bucharest, Romania posted in the NY Times on Friday. Stared at it for like 10 minutes on the subway on Friday afternoon and talked about it all Shabbos. I love the look on our President's face. I love all the hustle and bustle around him as he just stands there. I love that he's in the middle of the nations, yet doing nothing. Metaphor? Hmmm....

Maternity Cocktail Dress?

Someone posted on the Washington Heights message boards seeking a maternity cocktail dress. I don't mean to pry, but should she really be drinking? Har har. Those Corny Rabbi Joke classes are really paying off.

GOOD PEOPLE DAY (GPD08)!!!!

There is an internet movement advocating today as "Good People Day". Gary Vaynerchuk wrote and recorded a video on his blog yesterday asking for people to spend one day, it should of course be everyday, but just spend one day putting out good vibes, talking about the good attributes in people. You go to a site like TMZ and a majority of the stories are about the troubles and travails of our favorite celebrities. Can you imagine the power of the media (and yes, I am including myself, a mere blogger, as an adjunct member of the media at large) if they only talk about the good things people do. Just for one day? I realize there are more stories posted about Britney's constant custody disputes than there are about Hayden Panettiere saving dolphins and the like, but seek out these Good stories and share them with the world. They are out there. Dig deeper!

And now to get all religious on you. In this week's Torah Portion, Tazria, Rabbi Ephraim Buchwald from the National Jewish Outreach Program (NJOP) says in his weekly message "According to rabbinic tradition, the "tzah'ra'aht" (leprosy) affliction is not a bodily disease, but a physical manifestation of a spiritual illness that results from "lashon hara," speaking evil about others. Its purpose is to show gossipers and defamers that they must mend their ways and cease their inappropriate speech." I wonder if Gary realized the connection of speaking good about others in this week's portion when choosing the date of his campaign. Whether or not, brilliantly done!

I encourage you to take the idea of GPD08 and make it a daily occurence in your life. And I'll do a better job of doing it in mine.

Tonight I was robbed...

Tonight a few things happened that left me short of breath.

A) I have a new stalker. Sorry Diana. The competition is getting stiffer.

B) I finished Veronica Mars, and it was a huge let down. Heres a run down of the last 24 hours as I made my way through the final episodes of the series, collected from my Facebook Status Updates on the subject.

Sunday afternoon: Trying to get through a few more eps of Veronica Mars before leaving for the circus. Will season 3 ever get good? Only 2 discs left!

Monday, 5:00 PM: Running a temperature and counting the minutes until I can go home and finish Season 3 of Veronica Mars

Tonight I got home around 7:00 PM and immediately put in disc 6, the final disc in my Season 3 booklet, the final season of like the best ever series on television. The disc loads. I'm already itching for the final episode or two to begin. But alas, disc 6 was nothing but Extras! Not one episode on it! I didn't watch "The Bitch is Back" episode thinking, okay Susanne, prepare yourself for crying. The end of an era must be celebrated with tears. Tear of joy. Tears of sadness. But there must be tears. I'm such a wuss. I've spent months obsessed with this television show. I've added Veronica Mars to your list of heroes, right next to Mitch Hedberg and Hillary Clinton. And shes fictional!! The last ep (which I had to rewatch by the way because it was so damn unremarkable) was like, la dee dah, Veronica walks out of a voting booth. No mystery. No intrigue. The first two seasons had blockbuster finales. A murder was solved, another question was asked. If I'd know that was it for Ronnie I would have been like, WTF! Are you kidding me? Thats it?!! Instead I was like, that episode was boring. It ended and I thought, tomorrow I'll finish the series and it'll be awesome. Rob Thomas the creator never let me down before. No. That feeling of awesomeness was stolen from me. Now I'll need to start from scratch and emotionally prepare myself correctly for the moment when the show ends. First ep, VM cuts Wallace off the flag pole. Let the games begin. Zehava tells me I can't blame Rob. Its the nonexistent television audience that never watched the show that was blamed for its downfall. But dude, the least he could have done was ended with a real zinger. A rapist hiding in the voting booth? Lily Kane's ghost standing at the door of the polling station to comfort Veronica? Dick the dick shows up with roses and professes his undying love for Veronica? So many awesome options. Rob? Why'd you disappoint me so? Harumph! There was an easter egg on disc 6. I'll give him that. The proposal of season 4, if CW network had given them another season. It was pretty fun to watch. But at the same time, it was a total sell out. Rob made it into just another girl at the FBI show. Veronica looked like the blond chick from Cold Case in her blue pantsuit. I know he wanted season 4 to have a chance at survival by reinventing it as your typical detective show, but honestly, it sullied my memory a little bit. I really feel robbed of that warm fuzzy feeling I had when watching my other favorite shows come to an end. I remember watching the West Wing and Dawson's Creek finales, other shows I was emotionally involved in end. This was a disappointment. Ronnie, you let me down.

Celeb sighting #1

Can you guess which celebrity couple shared my subway car this evening? I'll give you a hint. I was standing about one degree away from them. I was desperate to talk to them, or ask for autographs, or snap a picture... But nooooooo, Reifer wouldn't allow me to. Something about me always making a scene on the subway. She lies. Believe it or not, I've never really had one of these chance encounters with celebrities that everyone in New York talks about. So this was mucho exciting for me. I could barely contain myself. I wonder if they thought I was cool. I sure hope so.

Stop-Loss

Just saw the movie tonight at a free screening. It was pretty amazing. The state of being that our soldiers are coming back from this war is absolutely heartbreaking. We were in tears the entire movie. We need to get out of Iraq ASAP! At least there was eye candy. Ryan Phillipe and Channing Tatum (who is shirtless for a good portion of the movie's beginning!) are gorgeous! HOOAH!

David Archuleta Sucks!

Ooooh, I'm just waiting for the Susanne bashing to begin. I read a review in New York Magazine's online edition about last night's Idol performance. And they LOVE David Archuleta. I still haven't gotten on the boat. Just like the message I have for my Obamaphile friends, I'm just not ready to go there. So I posted the below comment after reading the article that I thought I'd share:

"I am still not figuring out the whole David Archuleta obsession. I admit he has a pretty voice. But this is voting for the whole package and I ain't voting for a kid that doesn't even know who wrote some of the songs he sings or the fact that "Another Day in Paradise" is not a happy song (its about homelessness you moron, not a vacation at Atlantis). David Cook is the one I think is a star. Even though everyone keeps claiming he's steailing arrangements from other groups. What he's done with his latest performances (Eleanor Rigby, Billie Jean) has been brilliant. Like when Brooke White did Love Is a Battlefield as a ballad. Amazing! It would have been perfect in my book if she didn't do basically the same exact performance every single week. Good season so far. I'm waiting until the day when Archuleta loses it and runs off stage. That'll be the day."

As soon as David Cook loses his flock of seagulls haircut, I think he'll be going places.

The Panic Years?

The Panic Years: A Guide to Surviving Smug Married Friends, Bad Taffeta, and Life on the Wrong Side of 25 without a Ring by Doree Lewak.

I know what you are thinking. Susanne recommending a book? She doesn't even read! Well thats a complete lie. I do read. I've got a pile of Archie comics and People magazines stacked up in my bathroom. Well, when I come across a book that is worth reading I feel the need to tell you to check it out. We all know what its like. You are best friends with this girl. They meet a guy, get married, and you never hear from them again. They become that smug married girl that they promised you they'd never become when you sat in their dorm room listening to details after the couple's third date. I'm not bitter. I am happy for all my friends that accidently lost my phone number when they got married and started popping out babies. I just feel sorry for them that they no longer get to experience the awesomeness that is Susanne. I shouldn't generalize. I still see a bunch of them. We meet up for dinner. I go for Shabbos. I love their kids (I am a Savvy Auntie after all)! All in all, its good to have a book where someone else says the things that all of us single ladies in our late 20s and 30s are thinking (ie Chapter 4: How not to be bitter at your friends' weddings). This should be some good reading. I ordered my copy today!

Side story: I met Doree a couple years ago at a focus group for the Jewish dating website Frumster (thats a story for another blog post altogether). Also in attendance was William Levin writer of one of my favorite comic strips about a Jewish Robot, Shabot 6000. I know telling you that I met them there might harm their street cred, but so be it. When I first heard she was writing this book I was excited. It'll be interesting to see how this spunky girl deals with the ridiculousness of New York City dating. And after reading the first chapter "Confessions of a Panicker" I am excited to see whats next. Might Doree be the Carrie Bradshaw that us Stern grads living in Washington Heights and the Upper West Side have been looking for? I'm starting to think so.


****My copy arrived today. I'm so excited to get reading. My mom would be so proud!****

Twitter

So I'm trying to figure out this Twitter business. Everyones using it and everyone swears by it. So I'm giving it a shot. I was WAY behind with MySpace (Jen, one of my least tech savvy friends first told me about it, bad sign from the start) and years behind with Facebook. I wasn't even in college when I signed up (I was 25) and never heard of a facebook. Yeshiva University has a kind of facebook type of thing where all the students' pictures are posted in one spot, but they prefer to call it Frumster. So I've signed up for Twitter (search for me, my name is susqhb). Hopefully, I'm on my way to getting ahead in this tech savvy world. Next step-taking over the universe. First step in taking over the universe- helping to write the Mount Sinai Purim Shpiel to be presented without interruption on March 20th, one week from tonight. If you thought my Frumster joke was funny, you ain't seen nothing yet.

Winner Takes All

Okay, so tonight I did what might be the most loserish thing of my life. I've been thinking for a while about the campaign of John McCain. The Republican party's primary set up is a winner takes all event. If a candidate wins the popular vote in the state, they carry every single one of the state's delegates. Thats why Senator McCain has already accumulated enough delegates to be the presumptive nominee for his party even with Mike Huckabee hanging on and stealing a good chunk of votes in many of the states. The Democrats on the other hand, have this lame, convuluted set up where the votes get carved up depending on which districts you won within the state. So like the disturbing 2000 election, there is the possibility that the less popular candidate will win the majority of delegates. So I started thinking, what if the Dems had a winner take all set up? So I dorkily created a Google Spreadsheet and inputted the numbers. And I was shocked. If the states that Hillary won were not divvied between her and Barack Obama, Hillary would be leading Obama by more than a thousand delegates! If we include the state of Ohio (which was just projected an hour or so ago) and Rhode Island, she'd currently have 1,476 delegates. Shes currently ahead in Texas. If she takes that her total would be 1,704. Wait, heres another doozy. If the votes counted from the Michigan and Florida primaries (which Hill won by huge margins) she'd be up to 2,070!! Now lets look at Barack Obama. Including the ridiculously liberal state of Vermont which he won tonight, he would only control 967 delegates!!! Thats a difference of 1,103! Why are the pundits not pointing this out? I know its a moot point. Its not the case, so why point out. But seriously. You cannot win the general election as the Democratic nominee unless you are immensely popular in the states that count. Hillary is the one winning the BIG states. California, New York, Massachusetts, Florida (if it was counted, damn DNC!). Shes the most popular Democratic candidate in these states. States that are must wins for the Democratic candidate for President. 6 of Obama's 14 wins were in states that are almost definitely red states come November. Some of the most ardent Democratic friends of mine are already predicting a McCain win in '08. Why? Because Obama may win the Democratic candidacy. And no matter how badly we must keep a Republican out of the next White House, McCain will beat Obama. McCain versus Clinton? He doesn't stand a chance.

Everyones a Little Bit Racist

Its true. I doesn't mean we go out committing hate crimes or anything as noted in the Avenue Q song entitled "Everyones a Little Bit Racist". And even the most tolerant person has moments of being judgemental of a particular minority. Well folks, one blogger created a site that is, I guess, self mocking. Stuff White People Like I can only guess is written by some white dude or chick, because it is pretty darn accurate. My favorite post so far is entitled #75 Threatening to Move to Canada (which is coincidentally where gay Rod's "girlfriend" Alberta lives in Avenue Q).

***DISCLAIMER***
I am not racist.

Bitch is the New Black

Get it while its there. Will be taken down by NBC Universal in the very near future. Tina Fey exhorts why Hillary should be the next President. Her defense, shes a bitch. But you know what, bitches get stuff done. Thats right. Bitch is the New Black!



*UPDATE*

"And like that, (s)he's gone." Just one hour after posting, the clip was removed. NBC Universal can kiss my tuchus. Okay, now you have to go to the official site to view the vid. Here you go. The Clinton bit is about a minute and a half in. Enjoy!

Things I learned from being on Cable News

Last night I took part in a Frank Luntz focus group, which turned out to be a live taping for You Decide 2008 on the Fox News Channel. It was an altogether awesome experience, thank you very much. Although, Frank is a die hard Republican pollster (which I should hate), the dude knows his stuff and I respect him for that. This focus group was very well picked. 29 people, a third leaning Republican, a third independent, a third leaning Democrat. None were 100% convinced who they will vote for this election. I've said before, I support Hillary. But if she doesn't win the nomination I will strongly consider John McCain. We were asked to support our decisions. When the dude next to me, a registered Democrat but voting Republican this year, said that the Dem candidates haven't impressed him, they are both being wishy washy, making speeches and false promises, I offered a rebuttal. Yes, there is a Democratic candidate that has stepped up, and thats Senator Clinton. As she said over the weekend, speeches are great, but they don't fill up your gas tank, fixing the economy does that (a direct attack on Obama and his lofty speeches). Plus, she has the experience to get these things done. That was basically my only sound bite of the night, but I think it was a good one. ;) GO HILL!! Here's the clip of me speaking up:



There was also a special guest on the show, none other than the Former Mayor of Cinncinati, Jerry Springer. THIS. DUDE. RULES. Earlier in the taping, before we know of his appearance, Frank told us to feel free to get rowdy and argue your points with other audience members. I was like, yeah, I'm going to pick up my chair and get all Jerry Springer on you. So when he came out, I was fired up. You can see me on camera, as soon as they announce the surprise guest was from Cincinnati I almost jumped out of my chair. I was like, dude, we were just talking about you. I got to shake his hand later. I was like Jerry, you are the man. I'm not ever washing this hand again. I tried to start a chant, JERRY! JERRY! JERRY! Apparently, chanting is frowned upon at the Fox News Channel. The host at one point joked during commercial, that Jerry is here to announce he is running for Senate. I was truly intrigued by this idea. Hell, if Al Franken has a shot...

I learned two things tonight. One political. One, um, not so much.

1) Independents and Republicans, much like me, don't believe a word that Obama has to say. This is not a positive thing come general election if he is our nominee. There were several Obama supporters in the room, but not one of them could articulate why he should be the nominee. Not one could define what the Senator meant when he said change. Its one thing to jump on the bandwagon and blindly vote, but come on people. Its like in 2000 when all my friends voted Bush simply because their Rabbi got up one Shabbos and said, Bush is the best candidate for Israel, and everyone in the congregation believed him. Any candidate this year, Democrat or Republican, Hillary or Barack, John on Mike, they ALL will support Israel. Israel is mucho importante to the USA and no Pres will blow that.

There was a question asked today on the Fox News (right leaning) website that quantifies the point. Does Barack Obama's campaign rhetoric have substance behind it?
No (58%)Yes (35%)Don't know (6%). Like me, these folks believe he's talking the talk, and not prepared to walk the walk.


2) Frank asked the question, you're so lucky to be here, what else would you be doing on a Sunday night? The very straight, college professor type to my right was like, um, sit on the couch and watch the L Word. Right on my friend. I've always been a little embarrassed to admit my affinity to this show since well, its about a bunch of lesbians living in LA. Not that anyone should doubt the fact that I'm totally into dudes, I drool over Brad Pitt like any other red blooded female and have a boyfriend of my own. But theres still that fear of stigma to watch the show. But, as I've said many times, its one of the funniest shows on TV. The Single White Female stalker thing thats going on now between Jenny and her assistant Adelle is more comical than homicidal. So now I have learned, many straight Americans (Republicans I might add) love this show as much as I. Phew!

ROCK THE VOTE PEOPLE!

Baruch Dayan Emes

I just received a Breaking News Alert from JTA that Tom Lantos has passed away. He was 80. I wrote about his retirement from congress just last month due to sickness. He was a longtime crusader for Jewish issues during his time spent in congress. I hope that his family finds consolation in the fact that he used his position for good and helped thousands of people throughout the United States and abroad. May God console his family among the other mourners of Zion and Jerusalem.

Am I Crazy?

I know its crazy but as I read my glorious NY Times on the subway this morning I had an epiphany. We need a Clinton/Obama ticket! I know. I can't believe the thought slipped out of my brain. But how amazing would that be? This would ensure that we will have an incredible President in the White House for the next 16 years. Heres my take. I love Obama. But I do not think he's ready for the White House. As I've said before, I find experience to be one of my strongest tugs when choosing a candidate. I think Clinton is ready, Obama is not. But don't get me wrong. I am incredibly inspired by this guy. Have you heard this speech? I've said many times I plan to vote for him in 8 years. Even on my account I voted NO to Will there be a Clinton/Obama or Obama/Clinton Ticket? I know that there is a lot of animosity between the two of them but they must broker a deal and make this happen. Look at the votes collected last night. It was like the 2000 Presidential election in that Hillary won the popular vote in many of the big states (CA,NY, MA) but Obama was drawing more people from the larger urban areas and therefore scored almost as many delegates. Obama took almost the entire midwest while Hillary scored some southen states. Together they are unbeatable. I think either of them separate may fall to Senator McCain. I like this even more than my previous favorite, the Clinton/Richardson ticket. Would I vote the other way? An Obama/Clinton ticket. See that I don't know. Right now, Americans are open to the idea of a female president, but I don't know how open they would be to a 69 year old female president (her age in January 2016). That could hurt the Democrats when that time comes. Look at John McCain. This dude has stellar credentials. But hes like 72 and people are scared he's going to keel over in the Oval. And God Forbid he chooses Huckabee as his running mate (my current Predictify prediction). No more anti-semites in the White House. Thats my policy. I apologize for all my poli talk. I know. I'm usually way funner than this. I just needed to share this amazing revelation with all of you...

Why I'm Voting Hillary

I know there'll be no time in my schedule to write this tomorrow. Crazy day with many many things to take care of before the NJOP dinner. But in about 7 hours I will be walking down to the Holy Rood Church on 179th street and pulling the level of freedom. Tomorrow, I will be voting in person for the first time in 10 years. Since I've been 18 I moved to New York for college and regrettably haven't moved back. I retained my California voting eligibility and have voted absentee ever since. Why you may ask? Well, my Congressman in the 46th district of California is in my eyes a pretty huge anti-semite, so I like to stick it to him every two years when he's up for re-election. You know those Israel bills in Congress that are voted in favor of by 430 members of the House, and against by 5. Yeah, hes one of the 5. But this year, someone I am very passionate about is running for President and I wanted to physically walk into my neighborhood polling station and give her a shout out. I'm of course talking about Hillary Clinton.

I know, I know. You hate her. I'm aware of that. Have you ever met her? Sat down and had a conversation? Well I have. And I can honestly say I haven't been more impressed by someone in my life. I've met other politicians before. But when you are in the room with her, you know she is taking in what you have to say, thinks about it and gives you a solid, honest answer. Theres a story I want to share with you. My buddy Sari was a political machine while in Stern College. She organized a huge Rally to DC. She was my roommate when we did the OU internship in DC. She volunteered for the mayoral campaign (not for Giuliani). She called one night and asked if I wanted to volunteer at an intimate Hillary event. We got to a restaurant on the Upper East Side and helped out at an event for about 100 people. Afterward they asked if one of us could accompany the team to a small after party at a donor's home. Little did I know this was for only about 20 people in a gorgeous UES penthouse (overlooking the park). I went since Sari had plans later that night. Hillary arrived and was introduced to everyone. Including this horrible host lady's servants (who BTW she was incredibly kind to, even while weirded out that this lady had servants in her home). After working the room and spending a great deal of time speaking to everyone individually, including myself, she announced that she had to leave, she was on the red eye to Israel that evening. What you are about to read is possibly the biggest regret of my life. Are you ready? Okay, here goes... Hillary was saying her goodbyes to everyone. I got the idea that I really wanted to give her shliach mitzvah gelt. When someone is travelling, especially to Israel, some people have the custom to give that person some tzedakah, money to give to charity when they arrive, thereby making them a part of my mitzvah and essentially helping ensure a safe trip as your shliach, your messenger to deliver the tzedakah. Whether that is the true definition I don't know, but that is how I view it. I wanted to do this because A) I always try to give someone going to the Holy Land, and B) I knew Hillary would sincerely be touched by my proposition. Although, I was a little scared someone would shout a picture of me slipping money to my Senator. Especially with all the heat in '01 about soft money. But alas, as she worked her way through the room towards me, I became totally starstruck. She remembered my name (from hours earlier) and all I could squeek out was "I really admire you and your daughter". At least thats all I can remember. If I had a list of 10 do-overs in my life, this would be one of them. What a cool story that would be.

I'm not going to tell you to vote for Hillary just because I am. I'm not going to tell you to vote for her because there won't be another viable female candidate for at least another 20 years (when I plan to start running for office). I'm not going to tell you to vote for her because we would get to have my favorite former President again living in the White House. I'm going to tell you to vote for her because she is the right candidate. I am a strong believer in voting for the person with the best experience and the person who can lead this country in the right direction. Those are the two qualities I find most important in a President and shes number one on my list (because Al Gore isn't running, otherwise she might be number 2). We have been going downhill ever since Bush's dad's Supreme Court gave him the White House. We need to take this country back and move it in the right direction. And Hillary's the girl who will get us there. The odds are in favor of Obama taking the nomination but I'm not ready to jump on that bandwagon and throw him my vote. I believe in Hillary Clinton.

Addendum
I just got back from voting. It was really hard. I didn't know what to do. I had to ask the poll watcher for help. I did learn something though. You know how candidates that have already dropped out of the race end up getting 1% of the vote...its cause they are still on the ballot. People probably see that and go, hmmm Bill Richardson, I thought he dropped out, but hey hes still on here so I must be mistaken. Also, WTF are all those other names doing on the ballot? I swear there were like 100 names on there. I thought this was just the presidential primary...there should be like 6 names on the darn board. Do we really have to have the names of everyone who endorsed the various candidates listed on the ballot as well? How confusing. I consider myself a pretty intelligent person, and frankly I was kind of embarrassed at how much trouble I had understanding this process. Plus, I was DYING to get one of those "I VOTED" stickers and they totally weren't giving them out. Sooooo sad!

As I left my polling station I began to tear up. I didn't think this would make me so emotional but it did. This is democracy in action people. Not taking advantage of this incredible gift is one of the biggest mistakes anyone can make. Rock the Vote people!!! And remember, Friends don't let friends Vote Republican!