pop-up video (bloop)...
(chanting voice) BRING IT BACK! BRING IT BACK! BRING IT BACK!
and after a 10 year hiatus... it's baaaaaaaaaaack.
COMING THIS FALL: back for a 60 episode run is the vh1 classic from my youth.... pop up video!
let's recap some of what's to come.....
i've got the fever...
two days ago, i attended the 2011 ESPN sponsored ESPY awards.
yes, you read that correctly... I. ATTENDED. THE. ESPYS.
it all started when i got tickets to the red carpet festivities from an old college buddy (now one of my favorite green bay packers). and then it turned into tickets to the actual ESPY awards show (story to follow shortly)...
you see, since i moved to southern cal... some would say i've kinda become a big deal.
a little insight to the red carpet experience:
aaron rodgers was 5 feet away. my knees got wobbly and i started to sweat a little... and i may have hallucinated this, but i swear he winked at me.
clay matthews was so close that i could smell the exact outdoorsy and woodsman-esque aroma that i had always assumed his chiseled greek god-like body would emit...
and my oh my, how wonderful it was to be in the presence of ryan reynolds. and for allowing that, i'd like to give a special shout out to canada. not only did the canadians invent trivial pursuit...
but, more importantly, the great white north is the mothership to ryan reynolds' existence...
bless you, canada, bless you.
now that we're all on the same page, i'm going to let you in on a little VIP photo sesh...
the red carpet...
view of everything inside the nokia theater...
outside post-awards...
and one more small bit of information.... we met justin bieber. and he gave us sa-weeeeeeet tickets to the ESPYs. don't believe me? then apparently you didn't watch, because the proof was right there on your television screen...
long story short.... it's official. we've got the fever.
old man marley...
one thing i'm proud of is that i still own a vcr. and a rather large collection of vhs... now let me take you back to 1990 and remind you of one of my (and america's) all-time favorite christmas classics.
and now a bit of sad news...... old man marley, roberts blosson, died at the age of 87.
here is the news, straight from the mouth of tmz...
Creepy Neighbor from 'Home Alone' -- Dead at 87

Blossom appeared in many films before landing the role of "old man Marley" in "Home Alone" -- including, "Deranged", "The Great Gatsby", "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" and "Doc Hollywood". In addition to his acting career -- Blossom was a World War II Vet and a well-respected poet. He was 87.UPDATE: "Home Alone" director Christopher Columbus released a statement on Blossom's passing ... saying, "We have lost one of cinema's truly great character actors." He adds, "In 'Home Alone,' Roberts was able to convey a sense of threat and menace, then suddenly peel away those layers, and give a performance of emotional complexity and warmth. He was one of a kind."
summer lovin'... epic fail...
i believe danny and sandy said it best with "summer lovin' had me a blast. summer lovin' happened so fast..."
but today, for me, there was no blast. and i can only wish it would have ended even faster. for the full deets, let me take you back a few hours....
it was just your average saturday in july.
it was afternoon and i had yet to shower and/or be productive (shocking, i know!)
i decided to call it a wash (pun intended... go ahead, laugh!)
and go for a swim (both productive and shower-ish, right?). basically, it was just too nice to sit inside... outdoor lap pool at the gym, here i come.
seventy three minutes of freestyle and breaststroke and i was pooped. but a swim sesh is never complete without a pit stop in the sauna or steam room.
i chose the sauna.
i was just thinking i had made the wrong choice and was about to jump ship to the steam room when in walked hottie mchotterson.
i was intrigued...
he smiled. i smiled.
he said hello. i said hello.
then the unthinkable happened... he stood up and started doing squats.
squats... IN THE SAUNA??? seriously?
game over, bro.
moving on.......... there's a lot of summer left so who's next??
i'll be ready...
the silhouettes...
it's 11 pm... and tomorrow i'm leaving on a jet plane. my buddy chad will once again be my airport shuttle bright and early at 545am. by now i should have cleaned my apartment, folded my laundry and packed for my 4 day whirlwind trip to lower michigan for my friend kara's wedding-palooza... but typical me, and much to my dad's frustrations, i'm procrastinating. my apartment is definitely not clean. it's been a crappy week and i'm almost embarrassed to say, but it's a disaster. it kind of resembles an episode of hoarders. not that i hoard, it's just that messy. also by no means is my laundry folded. sure i had good intentions and started, but that lasted about 2 minutes. and by now i'm sure you've also guessed... i'm still not packed. my excuse for that can be summed up in 3 words...... america's got talent. i turned it on as simple background noise with full intent on cleaning, folding laundry and packing... and now nearly two hours later, here i sit, still not packed and blogging. did i plan on blogging?? of course not. but this show is addicting. auditions tonight were from minnesota. don'tcha know. one act blew me away. it was totally intoxicating. so much so that i watched at least 5 times. is it the ultimate display of talent?? probably not. but it's unique and like nothing i've ever seen before. it almost takes your breath away. see for yourself...
they call themselves "the silhouettes"...
it's my party and i'll blog if i want to...
earlier today the facebook original wall post and comments went like this...carol constantini jeske ---> ali jeske: happy half year b-day, ali :)
*ali jeske: i'm a little disappointed you didn't have the exact number of months counted out... :)
*patti rosenquist lepisto: even if your mom hasn't counted exactly (which i would truely be surprised if she didn't) i bet you have. i am sure you inherited the "counting gene". i was afraid this might happen! :)
so patti, my 29 1/2 birthday wouldn't have been complete without your added humor. and for that i thank you. or perhaps you were just baiting me so i'd get all fired up and mention you in my blog... i mean, i AM a pretty big deal (fact) and a lot of important people (basically just 30some followers) read this so the mere mention of your name could be your big break... none the less, you got my attention and sparked a blog idea. so to you, i say, bravo!
and now... to my mother, and anyone who knows how much she'll get a kick out of this...
you know you love me...
sorry for the silent treatment, gossips. but everyone needs the occasional R&R, even yours truly... a mini vaction can do a lot for one's sanity, but all it takes is one small spring breeze to blow reality right back in your face.
so here i am, blog followers, and i've got a lot on my mind.
i recommend you take a potty break, grab yourself a strong drink, sit back and relax because for the next few minutes of your reading pleasures... signed, sealed and delivered, i'm yours.those of you who know me best know that i have some hermit tendencies. i enjoy living alone. when it comes to phone calls and responding to texts or emails, it's all just too easy for me to simply screen or ignore. and i'm the first to admit that i'm not crazy about committing to specific plans. i like to keep my options open even if that means spending my friday or saturday nights home alone and reading in my pjs. and a day at the beach or a movie matinee by myself makes me very happy. i enjoy the time alone in my head. it lets me think. but sometimes... i'm not alone in my head. i often imagine how much more interesting life could be if a voice followed me around and narrated my life.
ok ok, now before you get all hot and bothered and label me a crazy person... just take a moment to consider the possibility of such wonderfulness. example, morgan freeman's narrating genius in "march of the penguins"... or ewan mcgregor's voice over of thoughts to one of moulin rouge's leading roles ... or how about bob saget's portrayal of ted mosby's future self in the cbs hit show "how i met your mother"... or who can forget about tim allen's narration of the "pure michigan" commercials... just admit it, you know those thoughts intrigue you. now imagine the excitement if you had your own narrator. you know you just paused a moment to think about it... you're probably smirking about it right now, aren't you?... and it's ok. i don't blame you. i've thought long and hard about this myself. sure tim allen's voice would be cool. i mean, he is a michigan native and attended central michigan university, much like myself. and there's no denying that the thought of morgan freeman narrating your life gives you anything less than goosebumps. but for me, i want the gossip girl voice to be my narrator. she's blunt and witty. she's innocent, yet dangerous. not to mention, her charming and mysterious allure that keeps everyone on their toes.
the narrations of my life would foreshadow or give harsh critiques... it'd be fabulous.
let's try this out..............
sometimes in life we hit a crossroads and are forced to choose which path we want to take. and there's no way of knowing if our journey will bring us pleasure or pain...
picture late august 2009. my dad and i have been in the car for almost 40 hours straight. our journey from michigan's upper peninsula is coming to end... we had officially crossed into orange county....
and once we've made our choice, there's no turning back. watch out, OC, i think this could be the beginning of an ugly friendship.
OR...
spotted: A, with her bags packed and headed for a relaxing vacation with old friends..
now, 4 days later that same girl (me) awaits her return flight home... she looks exhausted, her hair is messy and although she's indoors, she doesn't dare remove her sunglasses...
this just in: looks like you can take the girl out of the party but not the party out of the girl.
OR...
say i was faced with the hypothetical situation of my work world falling apart... it's here where the narrator to my life's story would say...
in order to fully transform, we might need to free ourselves of everything we've been holding on to. to send us on our new path. the right one.
now cue up one republic's "good life" to accompany a video montage of me.. i'd be carefree, happy and frolicking around without regret and an overwhelming new sense of calm...
and to those left behind, heed this warning. you reap what you sow. what goes around comes around. no matter how far you run, you can never truly escape. everything catches up to you in the end. and when it does, it usually kicks your ass.
now i have either sparked your curiosity of what life would be like with your own personal narrator (most of you should fall into this category, you are wonderful, you help complete me)... .. OR you're convinced, now more than ever, that i need a serious intervention (and if you find yourself in this category, you're useless to me. farewell and good luck)
but everyone can agree on one thing: tans fade, highlights go dark and we all get sick of sand in our shoes. and the end of this blog means the beginning of another. so we find ourselves looking to the future. and you ain't seen nothin' yet.
until next time, my friends...
no that's not a tear in my eye. it's just allergies. without you, i'm nothing.
XOXO, -Ali
anima sana in corpore sano....
anima sana in corpore sano... latin for "healthy soul in a healthy body"
this weekend my mom and a few of my best girlfriends will be running in green bay's annual "touch the tundra" marathon and half-marathon. since i am unable to be there running with you, this blog, i dedicate to you...
my alarm is already programmed for the wee hours of the morning here in cal's pacific time zone. i've got my favorite inspirational movie, miracle, ready for viewing. i've subscribed to each of your bib numbers and will be anxiously awaiting the text updates of your pace times that your race chips will trigger. less than half a mile from the end, you will run down the tunnel at lambeau and onto that sacred grass. the music will be pumping and you will hear thousands of people cheering as you take one amazing lap around the field. then you'll head back out of the tunnel and around a short loop to the finish line. for a second you won't believe it's over because it will seem like it all happened so fast...
so celebrate. wipe your sweat. and please, for wisconsin's sake, hydrate by grabbing yourself a miller. but do take a second to just close your eyes and listen... because off in the distance, you'll hear a faint cheer coming from this proud west coast-er!
and now, one of my all-time favorite running commercials... proof that running releases more than just sweat.
you rock, ladies... and good luck with the chaffing.
self?? is that you??...
doppelganger: tangible double of a living person in fiction, folklore and popular culture that typically represents evil. doppelgangers are generally regarded as harbingers of bad luck.
here's an example: my friend dave...the doppelganger: bartender dave (photo courtesy of THE jared white, formerly known as jtimberlake@hotmail.com)...
doppelgangers are hard to find... but when found, they can't be denied!
I HAVE FOUND MY DOPPELGANGER!!! brought straight to you from a netflix commercial...
(there's no way real me would be all calm and touching that dog. and the guy playing the husband... no thank you!)
i bet netflix commercial ali is pure evil. hopefully we never cross paths.
my new bling...
you think of the fashion world and certain names pop into everyone's head. all i can say is...
move over, dolce & gabbana...
better luck next time, louis vuitton...
watch out, prada...
because WHO would've guessed that this tomboy yooper girl right here would have the newest fashion accessory?! yes, you heard right... i'm rocking some new bling! woop woop!! (before some of you freak out... no i'm not engaged. please, that would have to mean i was actually dating someone. calm down, i'm working on it)
moving on, lets get to my grand entrance into the fashion world....
WHAAAAAAT?? now i suppose you all want the story.... i'll warn you, it's not a good one. i'd like to say i was swimming at the beach and fought off a shark. or that i got in a really sweet bar fight and totally kicked some dude's ass... but nah, it didn't happen like that. i was at work, more specifically a baseball game. a ball flying into the dugout. my initial reaction was to put up my hand to block the ball. of course i quickly decided that wasn't a good idea and turned to retreat to safer territory.... and BAM BAM BAM, i turned smack into a metal shed. ouch. initially i panic-ed, but later didn't think much of it. i went about my weekend, iced and layed low. monday rolled around and the bruising was starting to get a bit out of control. i called in a favor to my team doc and an hour later i rolled out of his clinic with my new bling. you're free to invent a better story and get the rumors a-spreading...for you nosey people out there... here are some pics of the bruises. i've sent a few of you some of the gross ones.... which means you're on my list of need-to-know. the rest of you will have to settle for these. and i'm keeping it pretty PG, this blog isn't a horror show.
anyone local, feel free to schedule a time to stop over and help me put my hair in a ponytail. it's a struggle. no qualifications required.



