Photo Friday

This is me with my "Sister Queen" at the Queen's Reception at state last weekend. Calling her my "Sister Queen" makes it sound like we are into pologamy, since they call the other wives "Sister Wives." It's not that complicated, this girl won the teen age bracket when I won my title back in October. I think she looks a little like Blake Lively. She is the sweetest, prettiest, most wholesome teenager you could ever meet. I had so much fun hanging out with her at state!

Whoo Hoo! The GRE went better than expected today. You are able to see your score immediately and I made a 1000 (500 Verbal and 500 Quantatative). I'm so happy! Most graduate programs at my school require 1000. A few require 1200. More than likely today was my first and last time taking the GRE so I can't complain.

I'm finishing the work day and then tomorrow I'm judging the middle school pageant. More pics to come from state and this weekend.

Thirsty Thursday...

I'm having a thirsty Thursday...seriously...our water cooler is out of water and no one has come to refill us. I drink water like it is going out of style so this is hard for me. We do have a water fountain in the building, however, the water that comes out of it is warm and tastes weird. Oh well. Not a huge problem in the grand scheme of things. I just hope they come soon. I'm parched!

Yesterday I watched Changeling. It is a true story and it is just heartbreaking. Angelina Jolie is a very sympathetic character as a struggling single parent in this movie and you really see what a talented actress she is. She should have won an Oscar, not Kate Winslet. I really like Angelina. Most people like Jenn or Angie, but I like them both. I love FRIENDS and will watch a rerun in a heartbeat.

Changeling was very 1920s Hollywood, which I love. A few years ago Ralph Lauren did a home collection called The Belle Aire Suite that was 1920s Hollywood insprired and I loved it. You can't find it online anywhere, but it's still my dream furniture.

My Question

I have given more thought to my "big question" for the middle school pageant I am judging this weekend. I don't want to ask really serious questions, because of the girls age (6th, 7th, & 8th grade) and also because this is a school pageant, not a pageant in a national system. Usually those questions go something like "What makes you stand out from the rest of these girls?" and "What would you do if you won?"...in other words, hard questions to answer. My big question (I'll have a few others, such as give me three words to describe yourself) is "What celebrity would you like to go to a school dance with and why?" I'm thinking answers will be Edward Cullen, The Jonas Brothers and Zach Efron. Zach is pretty cute.


When I was in middle school I liked Brandon from 90210 (Jason Priestley). I was sad when the show went off - was that 1998? When I was in elementary school I really liked Jonathan Brandis. I saw the 1992 movie Ladybugs with Rodney Dangerfield and thought Jonathan Brandis was the hottest thing I had ever seen. Strangely enough, I just today realized that he looks almost identical to my teenage and early 20s best guy friend, Jeremiah, who is now married with 3 kids.

Back to work for me now...

Exciting!

Girlies, Glamour magazine is running a special where you can get a year's subscription for ONLY $1.50. It is in honor of their 70th anniversary and $1.50 was the price in 1939. I love reading magazines so for me this is EXCITING!
To get yours, go here

New: word, hair style tips, moisturizer

First of all the new word I learned. Grat-tu-i-tous. I saw this word NOT while studying for the GRE (which I should be doing a lot more of), but while reading another blog. It means unnecessary or unwaranted; unjustified. I love it. Now, I'll use it in a sentence: I think the show "Gossip Girl" is totally gratuitious. And I mean that. I know I might not have the best taste in TV (The Bachelor) but I just can't get into that show at all.

I've been wanting to do something new and easy with my hair for work. Something like this: I thought this might be something I can do on "the second day", meaning Day 1 is the day I wash my hair, Day 2 is my dirty hair day. I only wash my hair every other day. And who knew, you do this with a flat iron?!I'm going to try this at home.

Something else gratutitous...I have found a new moisturizer and I love it. I read about it on anther blog. I'm pretty blessed in the metabolism department, but not so much with skin. My skin is super sensitive, anything in the world can make me break out. My skin barely needs a reason to just blow up...I didn't get enough sleep, I ate something it didn't like, I used a cosmetic it didn't like, I spent the night somewhere other than my house, I'm traveling and washed my face with water it isn't used to (once I figured this out I attempted to wash my face with bottled water while on vacation in South Texas - it sounds easy but it's not) ....I have finally learned that my skin demands a consistent routine of sleep, drinking enough water, exfoliation (this one is key), cleansing, and moisturizing. This is is great, it's very light and non greasy. My only complaint, it dosen't have SPF.

I'm still exhausted from this weekend. The combination of the pageant and the time change did me in. Oh, and all the junk food I've been eating. Junk food just makes me feel bad. Today I'm back to fruit and an egg salad sandwich for lunch, then back to the gym, and early to bed so I can adjust to the new time. The weather is awesome and I don't want to be stuck in an office!!

The Pageant....

The Pageant was this weekend. I thought that I was really "on". I didn't trip over my words in interview, I felt that I could talk about who I was and speak from the heart on my platform, and I felt good about on stage, even my swimsuit. I managed to shed a few pounds last week at the very last minute. I did not get into the top five, which was a little dissapointing, but better luck next time. There were 5 female judges and I typically do not do as well with the women. Hopefully, next time out there will be a man on the panel.:-D

I don't have pictures to post yet, but will post some as soon as I have them!

Even though I have spent since October preparing for this I'm not really upset about the result. I would have been upset with myself if I had flubbed something or made an error, but I think I was OK on everything. I will be getting a video and photos that I can reveiw with my coach. I felt that in this case the judges wanted something that I was not, if that makes sense. When you go into a pageant, if you have to be true to yourself and not compromise yourself, even if you sense that the judges are looking for a different kind of girl. Or, at least that's how I think. I was the oldest contestant and I have to admit, that hurt. It's just the group of girls that happened to be competing this year were all young. I know a girl that won the title I was competing for when she was 27. Most of the girls were super nice, but some had their claws out as was to be expected. There were a few snarky comments thrown my way. One thing about being in the industry of acting, modeling, or pageants is that you have to have thick skin. Doing pageants has really taught me to have thick skin. I feel like the outcome of the pageant is based on the judges opinion. If you are devestated by the outcome of a pageant, I think you don't need to be doing pageants. So, once I have the grad school/job situation settled I will be looking to do another one. I am tentatively looking at a pageant in June in a different pageant system from the one I just competed in.

After the pageant I went out for a burger and fries. It was heavenly! I hadn't had that much salt in a looong time. The next day my hands were swollen!

Oh, and the opening number was to Brittany Spears "Circus". I LOVE that song. I'm not ashamed to admit (OK, not ashamed anymore) that I like Brittany. No, she is not a role model. However, I've loved her music since I was in high school.

This weekend I will be judging a pageant. These are middle school girls. My mind is full of questions I can ask them. I want to ask good questions and make them think on their feet. However, I don't want to be mean and make them terrified. After all, I know how it feels to be in their shoes. The question I am thinking of (& I think it's really age appropriate) is: "What celebrity would you love to go to a school dance with and why?" Cute, right?

A Welcome Distraction

Last night was the 2 hour season opening for America's Next Top Model. I was so ready to think about anything besides the pageant. Looks like I'm turning into a reality TV junkie, no? At first I thought that Sandra was adorable and that she would be my favorite. She was the girl from Kenya. Then her claws came out {yikes!}. After I ruled her out as a favorite, I decided I like Celia. She seems really sweet and smart AND she's 25. I'm glad to see contestants that aren't all 18. I also really liked Kortnie. She is from Texas (like me) and works at a non-profit (once again, like me). What's even more, she used to date Dale Earnhardt Jr. {or as he is called where I'm from "JUNNNN-YYOR!"}. Now, I'm not mentioning this because I'm impressed by this fact. Oh no. I am NOT A FAN OF NASCAR. At. All. Part of the reason I am not a supporter {in addition to the fact that I think driving in left hand circles is pointless} is that my first ever boyfriend drove late model stock. That's right boys and girls, I have spent many a Saturday night in the pit. Would you believe it!? Moi? When he found me, I was fresh off the farm and didn't know any better. He was not a world class driver, but he was a world class jerk. In my day, I've gone out with some gems, but you live and you learn, and believe me - I have learned some lessons. For your entertainment, here is a music video that is fitting: Enjoy! (embedding is disabled, so copy and paste link - it's funny)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ncGZWQGkNzc

Here he is "JUNNNN-YYOR!" and Kortnie...take the kids out of school...Whoo Wheee!



MMmm Taco Bell sounds good right now, no?

This is me back in the day (and fresh from the farm). I was tiny!



Saturday night is SHOW TIME!! I'm ready! Praying this goes well!