I'm back!

Ok, so I've been SUPER lame in the past, um, 5 or so months, but I'm making it a priority to get back to the blogging. Not that anything necessarily exciting has been happening to me lately, but I always like to keep up on the writing skills and I KNOW that there have been things that I could have commented (ranted) about in the past few months that I have let slide. So here is a quick catch up, and a reminder why this day is an important day in my own personal history.

Why I've been MIA: I know, I know, I hate excuses too. But back in September I had to decide between blogging and working on my law school applications. Unfortunately, the apps won out for awhile, and then I was out of the groove, so during my free time I turned to episodes of Always Sunny and watching my cat chase his tail for hours on end (is your cat making too much NOISE all the time?). But the applications did prove fruitful, and I am glad to announce that I WILL be attending law school in the fall. Where hasn't exactly been determined, yet, but I am leaning very heavily towards Fordham.

Oh, also I joined twitter, which kind of makes me hate myself. But I secretly love it already.

Anyway, back to why I would choose this day, of all days, to begin blogging again. One could argue that it is because the greatest show of all time (no, not gossip girl) is premiering its 6th and final season tonight. But as happy as I am that Ben Linus, my one true love, is reentering my life, this date holds much more history for me than the last season of Lost. This day, 8 years ago, was the day that I made possibly the stupidest decision of my life. Yes, on Golden Groundhog's Day (02/02/02) a group of friends and I traveled from Lewisburg to Punxsutawney, PA, to see the world's most evil rodent crawl out of his cage to inform us that there would be 6 more weeks of winter. Which we PROBABLY could have guessed after staying outside all night in 19 degree weather with, wait for it, ABSOLUTELY NO ALCOHOL. Long story short, we almost caught on fire, my lung partially collapsed, we lost a few of our friends for several hours, froze half to death, had our palms read incorrectly, took some horrible pictures, realized that no one should EVER be my partner at the game Taboo, and found out the Groundhog zoo doesn't even have a groundhog. I blame every second of this on Bill Murray.

So, in short, I have come back to the world of blogging to both apologize for my absence and to warn you to never travel to Punxsutawney for any reasons related to weather prediction or small rodents. It is, however, lovely in the summertime.

My apartment should be the new UN

Apparently tomorrow is Purim (a holiday that I only partially understand...mostly because I missed half of the story because you are supposed to make loud noises when the bad guy's name is mentioned), and for Purim, you are supposed to make hamantaschen. Never being one to skip baking, I decided to join in on the fun. I felt that this was only fair, especially after forcing a Christmas tree on my two Jewish roommates. And because Hailey valiantly attempted to give up hummus for Lent (a direct quote: "I gave in and ate a full container yesterday. But I thought about Jesus the whole time.")

Tonight I learned a few things about Judaism, what flavor combinations go well together (pumpkin butter + raspberry preserves + chocolate = epicfailmantaschen), and that sugar is important but strangely not crucial in the baking process. Also, I believe that maybe, just maybe, a Lebanese girl and her Jewish roommates baking cookies together makes the world a little more peaceful. At least it makes our apartment a little more delicious.

O Tannenbaum

Anyone who knows me knows how much I adore the Holiday Season. There is nothing better than cozying up by a fireplace, drinking hot chocolate and basking in the smell of a brightly lit evergreen tree. And this is made all the more beautiful when surrounded by friends and family.

Imagine my joy, then, when my parents offered to drive me home from my Mom Mom's (where we enjoyed our annual Lombardo family Thanksgiving feast, along with our newest addition, my cousin's new daughter Mia :-)) and, along the way, help me transport a lovely little 6 ft. Douglass Fir. Although it wasn't like decorating the family tree at our snowy home in Western PA, it was lovely to have my entire family (little bro included) help me set up my most beloved Christmas tradition.

After my parents and brother left for their journey to Western PA and the West Village, respectively, I engaged in the time honored ritual of blasting Christmas music (oh, how I've longed to hear "My Only Wish" by Britney Spears and "This Gift" by 98 degrees since circa July!), placing lights, organizing ornaments, and enjoying the crackle and pops of my New York fireplace (aka a DVD entitled "Cozy Fireplace"). Sure, the ornaments may not have all of the memories of a little plaster star with my kindergarten picture or the box set of Disney characters that I've had since childhood, but my ornaments will always remind me of my first New York roommate, and that's definitely a start. It's nice to know that your adult memories don't have to be so different from your childhood ones. And it's also nice to know that its true -- you can take the girl out of Western PA, but you can't take the Western PA out of the girl.