My Junk Is You

The other day I was watching Celebrity Sex Rehab with Dr. Drew and I thought, "I could never be on this show."

There are three major reasons that I couldn't be on Celebrity Sex Rehab and the first two are pretty obvious; first, I'm not a celebrity and second, I'm not a sex addict. The third reason though is because I could never be in a program designed to help me control my sexual impulses while staring at the object of some of these impulses, Dr. Drew. I love love love Dr. Drew! He is so sexy; a true silver fox if there ever was one!

So who's your... how should I say it... slightly odd celebrity crush?
[BFF, feel free to leave a comment and let everyone know about your long standing crush on a certain red headed late night talk show host.]

Today's title is reference to a song from one of my all time favorite Broadway musicals, Spring Awakening, which starred Glee's Lea Michele. Yup, I got to see her on Broadway; twice!

********

TODAY'S GIVING OPPORTUNITY

Because we know that girls with healthy self-esteem become women who make better decisions about sex and sexuality (and because there is much more we can do for the world than just give money), I'm highlighting an old favorite that you've heard me mention before, the Dove Self Esteem Fund. You can give money to one of their partner organizations or you can enter a upc from a Dove product and they'll donate $1 to self esteem programs or you can use their tips and tools to help young women and girls in your life! There are so many ways to help women feel better about themselves!

Call Me Martha

I'm going to make what may seem to you like a very bold statement; I make the worlds greatest homemade cranberry sauce! I know I sound very sure of myself, but pretty much everyone who has ever tried my cranberry sauce has told me that it's the best they've ever had. In fact the best cooking compliment I've ever received was from my friend Cosmo who, after going back for seconds, said, "I have never liked cranberry sauce before. My aunt took cooking classes at Le Cordon Bleu in France, she's the best cook I know. Last year for thanksgiving she made cranberry sauce and I even hated hers, but this is amazing."

So here is my holiday gift for all of you:

Little Fish's Famous Cranberry Sauce

1 3/4 cups water
2 cups sugar
2-3 cinnamon sticks
2 12 oz bags cranberries
1/4 cup Grand Marnier
zest of 2 large oranges
Supremes of 2 large oranges roughly chopped
Large pinch of salt

In large sauce pan bring water, sugar and cinnamon sticks to boil. Add cranberries, Grand Marnier*, zest, supremes and salt. Lower heat and allow to boil gently until cranberries have popped open and sauce has thickened, about 12-15 minutes. Cool in pot for a few minutes; when cool enough to handle fish out cinnamon sticks and transfer to container. Cover tightly and refrigerate for several hours (preferably over night).

I know it sounds really simple, but trust me it's really delicous!

*Note: If you cook on a gas stove like I do, always be very careful when adding alcohol near an open flame since it is highly flammable. I suggest turning the burner off for a quick second while you dump in the Grand Marnier and then turning right back on once it's safely in the pot.

********

TODAY'S GIVING OPPORTUNITY

I'm a big fan of culinary programs for at risk youth because they work! There are several programs like this around the country, but I've chosen to highlight Cafe Reconcile in New Orleans, LA. This past summer I was in NOLA for the business trip from hell. Unfortunately, I didn't get to see much of it, but what I did see I fell in love with! The amazing spirit of the city is infectious and makes what New Orleans residents have endured since Katrina seem even more devastating. Consider donating to Cafe Reconcile or, if you're going to be in NOLA, have dinner there and support this wonderful place!

Giving Thanks

Is everyone out there as excited for Thanksgiving as I am?

In honor of Thanksgiving (and because you've all been so kind in indulging my recent bad moods), here is a list of some things that I'm thankful for:

• My health and the health of those I love.
• My family. They're crazy, but they love me.
• My mom who is the best mom in the whole world!
• My female friends who are always there to cry with or to be silly with; to dance with or to dine with.
• My male friends who always cut right to the heart of the matter and tell me just what I need to hear.
• BFF who is the bestest best friend a girl could ask for.
• My cousin who, as my only young female relative, is the closest thing to a sister that I have.
• This awesome community of bloggers that I am privileged to be a part of.
• Having been blessed to have had been to amazing places and met so many interesting people in my lifetime.
• Currently living in my favorite city in the world.
  
  Those are just a few of the things that I'm thankful to have in my life. It goes without saying that I am thankful to have a warm bed to sleep in every night and plenty of food to eat. My family will have an abundance of food on our Thanksgiving table and many leftovers afterwards which makes me giddy with delight, but also more aware that not everyone is so fortunate. Last year, in honor of Thanksgiving, I donated to Share Our Strength and I'll be doing the same this year because the one thing we still had room for on our table was good karma. There is always room for more of that.

Have a very happy Thanksgiving.

Thanks to everyone for indulging me in whiney week last week, but, as promised, I am not allowing myself to whine this week.

Saturday night I attended a birthday party for my friend London. As the party wound down a few of us remained chatting, when someone posed this question, "What's the best compliment you've ever been given?"

After he clarified that the compliment could be about your looks or personality, we all took a minute to think. It was a really great and thought provoking question. Here's what I came up with. I don't know if it's the best I've ever received, but it's the first that came to mind and certainly qualifies as one of the best.

My friend BeBe is currently attending a multi-denominational seminary to obtain her Masters degree in Interfaith Studies. She is an active and practicing Catholic who has memorized Vatican II and regularly quotes obscure bits of cannonical text. Like so many in this area of the country, I would call her a liberal Catholic. She is working with others to bring what she sees as much needed change to the church. Of course, change does not come easily.

A few months ago she IMed me in frustration. She'd just found out that her advisor, a man she admired, was in jeopardy of being excommunicated from the church due to his views on the ordination of woman and priests being able to marry. In her rage, she swore that she needed to find a new religion. After calming and reassuring her and her faith, she agreed that she was just speaking out of annoyance and it just seemed like things would never change. I told her that I understood, but that she just had to remember that change takes time and that there were plenty of young Catholics like her that would continue to fight for change.

"You're right," BeBe said, "Thank you, that's why I came to you. Most people would've just said, 'just don't be a Catholic anymore,' but I knew that you'd understand."

I can't quite tell you why those words meant so much to me, but they did.

OK your turn; tell me about one of the best compliments you've ever received.

The holidays are fast approaching. Do you have a worthy cause you'd like me to highlight during the holiday season? Remember, You Do What You Can.

It's My Blog and I'll Whine If I Want To

First of all, YOU GUYS ROCK. I really and truly was only venting when I wrote my last post and was not expecting all of your kind words. I'm truly blessed to have such wonderful friends, both in my everyday laugh and in blog world.

I wish that I could tell you that I'm in a better mood, but I'd be lying if I said that. So, you will have to indulge me in another incredibly whiney, self-pitying, "oh poor me" post. On the upside, I have declared this "Whiney Week," which means that you have to suffer through me whining this week, but next week there is an official ban on Little Fishing whining. (Aren't you glad it's already Thursday).

OK, now that that's out of the way, let the whining begin...

Has anyone ever said that you look like a celebrity? Were you flattered? I've been told a bunch of times that I look like various celebrities. What's the problem, you ask? They are all really, really unattractive celebrities. Apparently the people who have told me these things have never heard, "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all."

Here's the list:

Kirstie Alley. Yea, that's right, the actress who is constantly ridiculed for the way she looks and is the butt of late night jokes. When I point this out the rebuttal is, "I mean back when she was pretty." Ummm... when was that... I must've missed that.

Lea Michele. If you watched Glee last night you know that her character was referred to as, "mildly attractive." Awesome.

Lake Bell. I believe this is what kids today refer to as, "fugly."

Now you're probably thinking that it can't get any worse, right? Wrong! I saved the best... err... worst for last. Take a deep breathe.

Laura San Giacomo. You remember the frizzy haired girl with the gap in her teeth who utters the, "Cinder-fuckin-rella" line in Pretty Woman? Yea, that's her. This is a good picture of her because the others were just too painful.

So, as you can see, these celebrity look alikes have done wonders for my self-esteem. In the interest of fairness I should tell you that I don't think I look like any of these people (thank God). I have also been told by two friends that I look like the stunning Amanda Peet and by two coworkers that I look like the adorable Sandra Bullock. I know that I don't look like Amanda or Sandra and I know that those people were only saying it to be nice, but their intentions were good so I will take those as compliments.

OK that's it for the week, I promise. Next week begins no whining/feeling sorry for myself week!

Does anyone ever tell you that you look like a celeb? Which one? Do you take it as a compliment?

The holidays are fast approaching. Do you have a worthy cause you'd like me to highlight during the holiday season? Remember, You Do What You Can.

Gone Fishin'

This post probably makes me sound like a whiney, obnoxious brat, but I don't care.

I'm having one of those days weeks months where nothing seems to be going my way and mean, ill-intentioned people seem to keep finding me. As you can imagine this hasn't left me feeling so great about things... about myself. Right now I could really use a compliment; OK many compliments; OK I could use as many compliments as one person can hear.

I had tea with my friend Soprano on Sunday and she said something really sweet about me. I admit it helper, but God knows that I could use more. I promise you that I'm not fishing for compliments here. That would be pretty ridiculous considering that most of you don't actually no me.

In my real, non-blog, life fishing for compliments would also be silly because it doesn't feel genuine if you had to ask for it, but damn I could use some positive feedback right now...

Do you have a worthy cause you'd like me to highlight during the holiday season? Remember, You Do What You Can.

Numbers Game

Last night, as I walked out of my building, I struck up a conversation with one of my neighbors, an Australian woman who looked to be in her mid-30's. She started telling me about an article she had read on how Americans date versus people in other countries.

What she wondered most was the concept of dating multiple people at once. In Australia, she said, and in Western Europe, I'll add from my own experiences, it's totally fine to have casual sex if that's your desire, but if you're dating someone you aren't waiting for an exclusivity talk. If you meet someone you like, you don't date other people. It's as simple as that.

My neighbor had trouble understanding that an American might go out a few times with someone s/he really likes, but keep dating others assuming that one of them, hopefully the one s/he likes best, will become exclusive.

I couldn't really explain it to her because it's not something that I've ever been comfortable with myself. I pass no judgement on people who date that way and in fact I can see the logic in it. For myself though it feels strange.

Let's set up a scenario; you've gone on a couple of dates with a guy and have had a phenomenal time. You like this guy a lot and you're hoping it develops in to something. You're looking forward to seeing him again, but, in the interim between dates, some one else asks you out. Guy number two is nice and cute, what do you do?

You and guy number one have only been out a couple of times and there would be nothing wrong with you accepting a date with guy number two, but, to me, it seems unfair to guy number two. It feels disingenuous to me to go out with number two when you already know that you can't wait to see number one again. What if you do go out with number two and you have a nice time with him, but it's no where near the time you had with guy number one? Are you supposed to keep him around as a spare in case things with guy number one don't work out? That seems unfair.

I also can't help but put myself in the other persons shoes. Let's say I go out on a date with a guy and I think it went really well so I call and ask him to go out again, only to have him say, "I'm sorry, but before we went on our date I had actually gone on a couple of dates with another girl. I really liked her, but we hadn't had an exclusivity talk yet so I went out with you. Well, last night she said she we should stop seeing other people which is what I was hoping for in the first place." I'd feel really used in that situation.

What about you guys? Where is your comfort level when it comes to dating multiple people?

Do you have a worthy cause you'd like me to highlight during the holiday season? Remember, You Do What You Can.