La Douleur Exquise

Feeling like this today:



Luckily, I have a girly happy hour date after work to look forward to.

None of these things have anything in common with each other:

1. So everyone's putting on facebook that Dennis Hopper died, but not knowing who on earth he was meant that I had to do a google image search. I found a few pics of Dennis Hopper (still don't recognize him), but this is what caught my eye . . . a picture titled "Paul Newman by Dennis Hopper, 1964." No idea if the photographer is the same Dennis Hopper, but it's one of the HOTTEST, most gorgeous photos I've ever freakin' seen:

seriously! can't stop staring!

2. After having now seen Sex and the City 2 twice, I still haven't conclusively decided on a favorite outfit (Carrie's cream/blue accented, long, flowy nightgown? Miranda's dress at Stanford's wedding? The gray, rope-waisted, mid-calf dress Carrie wore on the airplane to Abu Dhabi? The light pink billowy one shoulder dress with sequined turban? Carrie's Dior ensemble when she sees Aiden at the spice market?). The only thing I can say definitively was that my favorite thing worn in the movie were Carrie's gold glitter Louboutins from the opening scene. What was your favorite? Although it's always fun to look at SATC fashion, I'll admit that I was more stunned by the outfits in the first movie.

3. This morning I'm lazily drinking coffee and grading finals at my kitchen's bistro table when I get to ZT's final (some of you may remember ZT from here or here or here). Here are two (of many hilarious) answers to questions on his final exam:

I don't know how to rotate them, so you'll have to click on them to really see. The question in the first picture says: "In your opinion, what are some of the problems with the prison system in the U.S.? Use examples from things we've discussed in class." I was looking for answers such as: high recidivism rates, disproportionate incarceration of people of color, over 200 people exonerated from Death Row in the past 30 years, racial segregation and violence, and/or billions of dollars spent on the prison system that could be going to education, etc. Instead, I got ZT's answer. Notice how he switched up each "gang rape" with inverted/upside down letters, symbols, etc.

In the second picture, the question states the Miranda Rights as they currently are, and then asks the students to, considering what they've learned about arrest and incarceration, rewrite the Miranda warning to best protect the rights of arrested people. ZT's response:

You have the right to shut the fuck up. Any fucking thing you say will be used in court. You have the right to speak to a cracker. You will get a cracker if you can't afford one.

What do y'all think I should give him on his final? ;) Happy weekend!

Mum's the Word

You know that expression originated with Shakespeare? I guess that's not actually even remotely surprising. It's supposed to refer to the sound that comes out when you try to speak with closed lips (mmmmmm). I hate to admit it, but I kind of love etymology.

So why mum's the word? Cause I saw Sex and the City 2 last night. Oh my goodness gracious alive, it was good! I won't say anything revealing . . . just that not even the nightgowns disappoint. Be ready for some serious glamour. Especially the gold glitter Louboutins in the opening scene (my heart dropped a little when I saw them). Without spoiling anything, here are some things you can look forward to:

*some magnificent gowns, shoes, accessories, and nightgowns (seriously, the nightgowns: whoa!)

*a few amazing and hilarious cameos

*some hottttttness

*SJP's stunning, wavy, slightly darker hair

*2.5 hours of Carrie & co!

Here's the camp ground outside the theater for those of us with advance screening tickets (even with ticket in hand, I got there an hour and a half early):

I went with five girlfriends and we had such a great time . . . anticipating it, quivering with excitement at the opening credits, gasping in awe throughout the movie, and squealing happily afterwards. Get ready, girls! You're in for some fun.

XOXO!

Notes from Cloud 9

You won't believe what happened tonight.

After work today, my friend Meagan and I went to a happy hour Sex and the City 2 promotion party at a club called Harlot in San Francisco. You know you're in for a good time when you walk in the door and are handed a raffle ticket and a cupcake. ;) Not even the pricey cosmos could keep us down! The party was thrown by a local radio station, and they were raffling off tickets to an early showing of Sex and the City 2 (this coming Monday night!), a spa package, a $500 gift certificate to Tiffany's, a pair of Manolo Blahniks, and a pair of Jimmy Choos.

This pic is almost too bad to post, but it's all I got:

yes, I'm shorter than Meagan even when I'm in heels and she's not

So we head to the bar and order up a pair of cosmopolitans, then find a seat at a swank table in the middle of things. The djs are snapping pictures, Meagan and I are chatting, people are mingling. Before we know it, boom! My name is called--2 tix to an advance screening of the movie! Then, boom! Meagan's name is called, 2 more tix! An hour later, we're heading out the door, figuring that since we've already won tickets, we can't win the big swag. But lo and behold . . .

"And the winner of the $500 gift certificate to Tiffany's . . . Claire Kiefer!!!"

Unreal! So I giddy-up to the front and claim my prize, only to be followed by the dude who won the Jimmy Choos (what?? a dude??). Immediately, a lightbulb! I chased him down and with one quick "excuse me, sir" had negotiated a fine, fine trade . . . and he left happily with the Tiffany gift certificate while I left with these perfectly-sized beauties in my paws:

OMG.

I'll get back to you on Monday about the movie . . . sans spoilers, of course!!

I have a confession to make

. . . I really, really love Lynyrd Skynyrd.

I abhor the Confederate flag, would rather be in a room with 25 convicted felons than 25 die-hard Skynyrd fans (though it's quite possible there'd be some overlap), and adore Neil Young just as much as I do Lynyrd Skynyrd. I've even had the harrowing experience of a Skynyrd concert, where most attendees were Bud-guzzling, mulleted men draped in oversized Dixie flags. Nevertheless, I can't help it . . . maybe it's my Georgia upbringing, maybe it's the appreciation for southern rock instilled in me by my parents . . . but I think these good ol' southern boys are genius:

And DAMN did Lee Dewyze do Skynyrd some justice last night on American Idol! When he announced that his personal song choice was "Simple Man," my respect for Lee soared. Who would have thought a mainstream-ish midwesterner would be so awesome as to choose one of the greatest songs ever? As soon as he started talking about it, I knew I was gonna love it. And he was brilliant. Convicted, honest, and pure . . . it was amazing. Even if you don't watch Idol, go to youtube pronto and look up Lee's renditions of both Simple Man and Hallelujah (Simon's choice for Lee).

Speaking of which. When Simon chose Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah for Lee to sing, I was like awww man! for real?? I mean it's probably the most covered song in the world (watch out--Miley Cyrus might be next), and we've already heard the dang song this very season (though Tim's version was forgettable). But I guess the smack-talkin' Brit knows what's up, cause Lee ROCKED IT OUT. Seriously, I got the chills. And then immediately watched it again. The choir and the horns helped make the performance killer, no doubt, but Lee himself was on his A-game. INCREDIBLE!

I'm a total convert now. (Though I haven't gotten over my love for Andrew Garcia).

Other things I'm excited about this week:

*My amazing package to Micaela (I'm pretty proud of myself for this one)

*Cosmos, Cupcakes, and Couture (Ummmm OMG! SATC 2 party this Thursday night--with passes for the premiere, $500 to Tiffany's, and Jimmy Choos up for grabs!)

(I kinda want this for my living room)

*the Grey's Anatomy season finale (I'm a little embarrassed that 1/2 of my excitement this week is about tv)

We're halfway through the week! Hope yours has been a good one so far. :)

TAKE a Napa!

"When you're tired, you TAKE a Napa, you don't MOVE to Napa!"

--Carrie Bradshaw, in one of the greatest episodes of Sex and the City ever: I ♥ New York

The high school where I teach has a funny sort of block scheduling in which we skip one period a day. On Tuesdays, we skip 5th period (the last class of the day that I teach), which means that I am technically done teaching by about 11:30. Usually I stick around and work in my office, meet with students, sometimes meet with teachers/my nonprofit/etc . . . but today, I went to Napa!

I'd ordered this pretty BCBG dress from the outlet store, but since I am never home during the day (I live in Oakland/work in San Francisco), it got returned to the Napa store. Which gave me a lovely excuse to head up to the wine country this afternoon! It took less than an hour to get there from work, and when I got to BCBG, not only did I pick up my original dress (which I've designated for this Saturday's PROM!), but I found the perfect LBD and two sweaters for $9 each. WHAT?!

Wanna see??

hello, glittery prom dress! (BCBG Runway, on clearance for $39!)

hello, adorable silk little black dress! (BCBG, on clearance for $39!)

It was a beautiful, sunny, breezy day in Napa, so when I was done at the outlet, I had one thing on the mind: vino. Um, who goes to Napa and doesn't drink some wine? No one, that's who. So I drove five minutes to downtown Napa and stopped at this adorable wine bar/tasting room called Bounty Hunter where the bartender gave me a few too many tastes--"this one's from an oak barrel, this one's from a steel barrel . . . see if you can tell the difference!" (I poured some out, btw)!

Everyone there was so nice and friendly that I just had to buy three bottles of wine. ;) Since it was happy hour, they gave me a 20% discount, so it was all quite the steal. I stopped at the coffee shop on the corner for a soy latte on my way out, and 45 minutes later was in my apartment in Oakland.

All this in a Tuesday? Damn, I love California.

Sex and the City 2

Okay so I'm not really a movie person . . . I'm usually much too fidgety to sit still (and with decorum) for 2 whole hours at a time. I maybe see two movies a year. But this May, Sex and the City 2 comes out, and you bet your britches I'll be one of the first in line with a flask of cosmo in my hand! Here's the trailer for those who haven't seen it yet:

Expect an amazing pre-and-post party from me, complete with pretty dresses and sky-high heels and all kinds of cocktails. I can't wait!!

An excerpt from my 5th period class today:

me: "Please be quiet and work on your journal questions so that everyone can--"

DT: "Ms. Kiefer you look nice today."

me: ". . . Thanks. So please write in your--"

LG: "You really do look good today."

me: " . . . write about one thing you're really proud of and one thing--"

EM: "You got a date tonight or something Ms. Kiefer?"

me: "ummmm, can y'all please focus and get out your--"

LG: "When I turn 18, will I have a chance with you?"

me: "Um, no way."

LG: "But why?"

me: "Y'all are kind of creeping me out today."

MP: "Why, cause we're all tryin to get at you?"

Ugh. Humiliated me in front of my new paraprofessional. But aren't they funny, though? Today in class I worked on my impressions of them. I've pretty much got ZT, MP, and EM down pat. Ask me to do them for you next time you see me. Heehee.

This weekend is gonna be chock full of babies for me (Milo tonight, Freeman tomorrow night), hopefully interspersed with a little bit of farmers market, a little bit of exercise, and a little bit of friend time. Oh, and a little bit of book time, since I need to finish The Hunger Games before our teacher/student book club meeting on Tuesday. And speaking of that link, if you're not on goodreads, hop to! And then add me as a friend. :) I love reading my friends' book reviews . . . especially Cheryl's since she actually gives really substantial feedback. ;)

Despite my devotion to progress, 2010 has started off a little shaky . . . beginning with a life-course-altering breakup, then a crashed-in ceiling (followed by the Indian meal moth infestation, omg gross!), and then it was Eric moving away, and now the news that my roommate AND my beloved neighbors are all moving out. So much distance everywhere. However, some of the folks I love the most seem to be experiencing all kinds of luck . . . Anna's been swept off her feet by an incredible man, Jennifer got a new job with a serious salary increase, Marisa's first book is coming out in April . . . which brings me so much happiness and hope.

happy weekend!