Mmmbop

Song on the radio=the above by Hansen. I remember the first time I saw this video. I thought many things:

1. This has to be a joke.
2. What's up with these Swedish chicks?
3. Since when do they play non-English songs on MTV?
4. That middle one looks like Jodie "Stephanie Tanner"
   Sweetin. (ALWAYS a Full House connection)

Ooh, now "Eternal Flame" is on. This takes me back to the good old days of bringing my pastel "jambox" out to the playground at recess and my friends and I singing along with the Bangles. Oh that's bad.

Let's see what I've been up to. . .Friday was a stay home night, nothing too exciting. Saturday evening we celebrated Shannon's birthday. We started out with dinner at Rosebud, then headed to the bars of Naperville for more fun. Our first bar stop was Quigley's, the Irish pub. I always think of Quigley's as the "pre-party" pub. It's a good place to start the evening, not super crowded, and the cider is awesome. We hung out there for a while, then we decided to check out a new bar called the Red Door Tavern. Actually, it could have been the Red Star Tavern, but I just liked calling it the Red Roof Inn. Anyway, we jaywalked over to the Red Roof Inn, only to find that its only inhabitants were a bartender and a man wiping off tables. We quickly headed to more bustling pastures, aka Features, which was hopping as usual. It was even too busy for nachos! Actually, I was still full from my Chicken Marsala. The bathroom line was extremely long, and we befriended a girl wearing a white and green John Deere themed outfit, complete with pointy white shoes. Also on the fashion tip. . .one of the "hot topics" of the evening was the new fashion craze, the poncho. I have mixed feelings on the poncho, which. I like some ponchos (except the really big ones that look like afghans from Roseanne's couch, or as some clever people, have said, rugs), and I think they can look really cute on people. However, I purchased one recently, and whenever I put it on, I think I look like a tool. Thus, my poncho has not yet left the house. Megan sported one the other night, and it looked very cute on her, but she also shared my confusion/frustration about the poncho ordeal. It just feels really weird leaving the house in a blanket. Perhaps one day I will attempt to wear my poncho, but no one knows for sure. Other amusement during the evening included trying some shots I'd never had before called Cherry Bombs (cherry vodka and Red Bull, I couldn't really taste the cherry part), and dancing (they play "Slow Motion" at Features. Features, I tip my hat to you). After helping an inebriated loner find his friends, and taking some amusing pictures with the Barnes and Noble statues (picture to come in a minute), we called it a night. Odd note: the homeless person that is usually outside B&N is now outside the parking structure nearby with a "Boycott Panera" sign. Is there a Panera in downtown Naperville? I wasn't aware of one.

Sunday evening Melanie and I went to St. Joe's Park for a "night of fun," but, again, no smokies. Apparently next week is the last picnic, and according to Melanie, St. Paul's will not be having smokies, so I guess I'm going to have to wait until the Grape Dance to get a smokie. According to the marquee, St. Mary Magdalene was putting on the picnic, but I'm wondering if that was a mistake, because to me it looked like a Festival Of Swollies. (Side Note: I am 99.9's bitch, they're playing "Lights," my favorite Journey song). Men in sleeveless t-shirts were everywhere, swollin' it up, and they kept feeling the need to engage us in conversation. The lads included Joe, a fellow whose shirt may have been more of a wifebeater than a swolly, and felt the need to bond with Melanie and I over fireworks, particularly his favorites that "came down like willow trees." Another swolly wearer first told Melanie, "Quit lookin' so good, you'll break my heart," and later came up to Mel, Mel's brother's girlfriend and I, and said, "I have one word for you girls," and proceeded to make a cat noise. We thought that was more of a sound effect than a word. Speaking of sound effects, the band for the evening was NoJo, who I had seen a couple years ago at Prime. Very entertaining, I enjoyed their version of "Any Way You Want It." Afterwards we made a stop at Coach's Corner for some ice cream and hung out on the plastic bouncing horses until an employee told us to dismount. Melanie expressed dismay at this command, but once I heard the employee saying he was going to get "backup," I convinced her to get down. I think that's about all I've got for now. Adios.