Meet the Bloggers

Meet the Bloggers

 Last night, Matty came home from work

wondering why I had purchased another 

home without consulting him first, and

more importantly, who in our circle of 

friends was crazy enough to sell it to

(the girl who once viewed VISA as a magical 

gift horse that granted her anything she

desired for the low price of $20 a month).

I laughed, immediately knowing one of our dear 

readers had mistaken Celine's words as mine. 

It filled me with pride to think this error was made

because my writing partner and I have successfully keyed 

a living document so seamless in tone and quality

that it's difficult to tell where one of us ends and the other begins.

We are much alike on the screen however we do, 

dear readers, have our share of differences. 

Allow me to share them with you:

This is she...

...and this is me.

This is mine...

...and this is hers.

She's buying one like this and living here...

                              ... and I live across the river from there.

We're as different as that and this...

... but alike in many ways which bring us bliss.

Greetings from Snowboken!

I woke up this morning and walked my honey to the train.

It was amazing; the snow was two feet deep!

And my Matty looked so cute.

Then I decided to keep on walking to see the sights of Snowboken.

Yep, that's Buddy's place above; 

I don't go there, though, because Celebrocracy makes me nervous.

I stopped at Dames to get a Balthazar Bakery scone,

 but as I approached, I saw that it was closed.

That made me sad.

But then my phone blew up; I opened the text and read.

"Coffee? Eggwhites? Turkey bacon?"
That made me happy.

Upstairs Dara and Michael Cera to the rescue.
There's nothing better than living below a great friend,

except living below her on a snowday! 

Own It

I used to want to punch celebrities in the face every time I heard one whine about lack of privacy or the pressures of Hollywood. Duh, isn't that what they signed up for in exchange for fame and fortune? Did they really expect me, a single girl living in a crappy apartment above the walking dead, to feel sorry for them? Puh-leese.

Then I moved to Hoboken.

Although I was thrilled to be living with my main squeeze, the life I had assumed we'd be living (you know, the bright eyes, big city, country mouse-turn-city mouse one) was reduced to 11 hours on the New Jersey Turnpike and suddenly, New York City was nothing more than hazy lights viewed from the arch of the General Pulaski Bridge.

Sometimes, it's impossible to realize the reality of a situation until you are living it. When I made the choice to move to Hoboken, it was the decision that was best for me and my future. I had no way of knowing just how much stress and anxiety the commute would bring.

I would gamble to say that the majority of commuters here in New Jersey are conditioned to barreling down the turnpike five days a week at mach speed; to them, it's just another means to an end and not worth dwelling on.

Unfortunately, I'm not one of them and have resorted to the celebrity approach to my unforeseen circumstance: meet Wendy Whiner, otherwise known as Ali Lapointe.

For the past three years on any given morning, you could find me pulling into my work parking lot, fists clenched, nerves shot, mouth wide open and ready to complain to the first person I met.

That stops today.

I chose to move to Hoboken and I love it there. Since I am not leaving my job anytime soon and as we are not moving anytime soon, I need to start owning that choice.

(Do the math, Wendy - it's time to wake up, smell the diesel fuel, and start dealing with the real issue: it's not the commute, it's your inability to deal well with stress and anxiety that is the problem.)

So, on this second day of my Year of Choosing Carefully, I am taking ownership over my angst. Instead of whining, I'm going to follow the lead of one of my dearest friends (who has successfully been managing her stress in a more constructive, pro-active way) and tonight, I'm going to combat my stress and anxiety by taking my first Bikram Yoga class. Hopefully, taking some time to mellow out in a calm, tranquil environment will result in a more calm, tranquil me.

Wish me luck !

From the trenches of Camp Ali, this is my life as I blog it.