Facebook Warned Me?

Today I received a rather surprising message from Facebook, considering our surprisingly good relationship lately. The email read as follows:

You made one or more wall posts that violated our Terms of Use. Among other things, posts that are hateful, threatening, or obscene are not allowed. We also take down posts that attack an individual or group, or advertise a product or service. Continued misuse of Facebook's features could result in your account being disabled.If you have any questions or concerns, you can visit our FAQ page at http://www.facebook.com/help.php?topic=wposts

Well Facebook, I have some concerns. First, I have traced and retraced my activity over the past few days and can't seem to find what you consider to be "hateful, threatening, or obscene." My last wall post was "Happy Birthday"... Where did we go wrong Facebook? I'm starting to think you don't like me, but I don't know why. I always play by your rules. I do my best to attend the events you recommend. I try to send warm wishes to every birthday boy and girl you tell me about. I even go so far as to keep you updated on my latest likes and dislikes, activities, work, and music tastes. I know you may not like the fact that I don't use your chat feature, but that is no reason to send me emails threatening to disable my account.

Whatever your reasons Facebook, I hope we can reconcile. I'd be lost without you.

War and Peace

In need of a book and somewhat of a time filler, I found myself strolling through the aisles of a small book store in Grand Central on my way home. After looking at all the titles, I kept returning to Tolstoy. I've always wanted to read War and Peace, maybe just for the challenge, I'm not sure. For some reason some of my favorite books turn out to be the ones that are really long and are filled cover to cover with the small details of everyday living. So anyway, as I lugged my small dictionary sized book to the counter the cashier gave me a look and sent me on my way with an apologetic "good luck" that made me second guess my choice. However, I'm 50 pages in and I'm already finding amusement in the last names of the characters. Sergyevitch, Mihalovna, and here's my favorite Vladimirovitch. Thats correct, 14 letters, I counted. The first thought that popped into my mind after this discovery was thinking how stressed out I would be if I had to bubble the name Vladimirovitch in on a standardized test. Probably not the type of thoughts Tolstoy hoped to provoke when he wrote this novel...

A Scroll Through Memory Lane

I the midst of a New York thunderstorm I found myself taking shelter inside my room and somehow I managed to stumble upon my old Xanga. Yes, I had a Xanga- and for those of you who missed the Xanga craze... I'm sorry, it was wonderful. Reading through all my old entries, it was just weird to discover that despite all the little details you forget about your life, a quick read and you remember everything you were feeling at those exact moments.

In case any of you find yourself trapped indoors and are in need of some nostalgia, here is the life of Katie Chapin circa 2004.

http://www.xanga.com/HangLoosKC

We know there's Love In This Club... but what's outside?

I love Usher, and probably listen to Love In This Club more than is socially acceptable to admit, but seriously- when you reach your twenties is that all that's left? Does everyone find love intoxicated? Am I too naive in wanting to believe that old fashioned romance still exists? I'm going to answer my own question and say probably. I mean did it ever really exist... or was that something created by novels and TV dramas?

In a scripted drama, even the girl with her head buried in a book always finds some way to get the boy. In the real life she has to put the book back on the shelf and exchange her cup of tea for a can of beer.

Miss, you have some beautiful eyes.

Is it sad that this comment stopped me on the street? Am I so desperate for attention from anyone in NY that I will turn to strangers on the street for my validation?

The answer to both of these questions is most likely yes. As I was walking towards the French restaurant right next to my building a doo rag clad, straight baseball cap wearing, guy was watching me approach. When I came close to him, he said, "Miss, you have some beautiful eyes." By the time he finished his sentence, I was already a few feet past him, but I was so shocked by his statement that I literally stopped, turned, and tried to say "Thank you." I'm not even sure if the words came out of my mouth or not, but he answered, "You are most definitely welcome."

I'm not really sure what significance this encounter plays in the larger scheme of things, but it's always nice to receive a compliment.

There's Something In the Water

FRUIT. I love my gym. Most girls go to the gym to work off drinks from the night before, check out guys, read the latest Cosmo... I go to the gym for the fruit water (OK... and for a few of the aforementioned items). Every morning my gym puts out a clear cooler of water topped off with different type of fruit.

And while this probably doesn't sound thrilling to anyone else... I find it quite amusing. I've been going there for 2 weeks now and there haven't been any fruit repeats! I can't explain the excitement that builds each morning on the subway as I try to anticipate the fruit of the day. I've experienced water with the essence of kiwi, strawberry, orange, lemon, honeydew melon, grapefruit, pineapple...the list goes on!

It's official. I'm a water [accessorized with fruit] addict.

The Wall

Getting a good seat at a musical is pure luck. You can't buy the best seats in the house. The reality is, the quality of your seat is determined by the person who sits in front of you. Today, I was not in the lucky crowd. Today I was seated behind a wall of hair. Now I'm a large, frizzy haired girl myself, so I don't often have anything to say about anyone else's hair, but for this I'll make an exception. I was out frizzed, out sized, and out walled by a mere teenage girl. She was the skinniest, boniest thing I've ever seen WITH THAT MUCH HAIR. However, to add to the problem, the girl decided that she wasn't too old for a booster seat. So here I am, seated behind a TALL wall of hair.

Needless to say I didn't get to see much of Mary, but the singing was wonderful.