MikShorty


This is what college REALLY prepares you for… by Mikael

There was a busy day… and then there was an epiphany.

Flashback to finals week during college.

All of your classes are demanding superlative amounts of homework on top of the studying you have to do just to scrape through their final exam or project. Late nights are pulled and even some all-nighters. Caffeine is a fricking crutch just so you can function in the morning and by noon, you want to slap a bitch and eat a doughnut for the sugar spike to make it through the next four hours of class. And then there’s the endless, never-ending run-on sentences that you find yourself writing, at which point you want to slap yourself since you’re going to have to go back and fix them in the end anyway so you don’t effing fail your literary class because of a run-on!

Back then, I remember thinking, “Dear God! How am I going to make it through this? Real life is not like this!”

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Uh, reality check. 

IT IS. 

Well, a lot of the time it is.

College didn’t prepare us for the things we learned, but it somewhat prepared us for the juggling of all the things–only it didn’t have a warning sign that screamed:

You better learn time management, sucker! And you better learn how to handle multiple things flying at you all at once because if you don’t catch them and put them where they belong in a timely manner, they will slap you in the face harder than a brick. Oh, and that passing grade you’re trying to get? That’s nothing when it comes to launching a website/publishing a periodical newspaper/and whatever the heck you’ll do for your job ON TIME AND DOING IT RIGHT

That’s right folks, there are rarely second chances. You get it right, and you get it right on your deadline. Or before. Whatever one you can manage to get everything done in time for.

This may be the story of my life right now. And why it’s all happening during the holidays, a time when it’s not only wonderful to sit back and relax with friends and family with hot cocoa, but a necessity, I’ll never know and I think I know who to blame (way to go, baby Jesus, this is all your fault).

Now you can sit back and relax and have a glass of wine or whatever your drink du jour is. I’ll have my Muscle Milk, thank you (just got home from pole), while I get back to my real work:

  • The monthly newsletter due by the end of the week.
  • Preparing my work’s website for a major section launch on Thursday.
  • All content for my big baby, the Life in Utah magazine, by Friday.
  • Oh, and that little thing called NaNoWriMo that ends on Friday too.

God, I love my life. :)

PS: Holla to the girl who wrote this whole blog post in less than 20 minutes! NaNo is training me to type super fast, I’m telling ya…

LOVE YOUR FACES! And good luck with all the crazy-ness that surrounds the holiday season. 



Blips of September by Mikael

Can’t believe October is already here… I feel like so much has happened in the past 12 months. Like an insane amount. I’m going to be 24 this month and I’m not sure I’m ready for it yet. Okay, let’s get on with Blips of September!

September was…

Getting (back) in the game!

Moving out! New bathroom set. Discovery of Dinosaurs on Netflix. Riding TRAX to work, running into friends and making them too! First time writing speeches for work–with CEO praise. Finding a flow at work and loving it! Grand tour of KSL News Radio and KSL news. Volunteering for United Way of Salt Lake Day of Caring–painting and organizing a pantry for a community center.

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Weekend in Vegas. Football watching with Dad (go Utes!). Playing with my dogs. Brunch with the gorgeous Sarah whom I’ve missed so much. Ice cream pedicures with my step-mom. Back to the Foundation Room. Met the sweetest and most stunning girl ever there. A major connection.

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The return of Pumpkin Spice. Lots of days and Facetimes with amazing friends. Helping friends move. Booby marks on TV. “I’m the Great Cornholio! I need TP for my bunghole!”

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Re-watching Revenge and Vampire Diaries. The return of nearly all my favorite TV shows–YAY! Big Ass Show amaze-ball-ness. Amazing Dine O’ Round night with co-workers and new friends.

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Sinus infection from hell. Many days spent in bed early. Lots of juice and Kleenex. No call back at my Christmas Carol audition. A bomb scare.

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New Movies Seen: Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (oddly awesome!) & What to Expect When You’re Expecting.

Books Read: The Fallen Star series: The Vision, Afterlife, The Promise by Jessica Sorensen.

New Obsessions: Trying new restaurants (like Copper Onion and Tin Angel Cafe). Wine. Ramin Karimloo.


Ramin Karimloo is Enjolras… *drool*

Top 5 Posts from Something Write: Being an adult, Minimum Wage, hold the door open, Friends Happiness and day of caring.

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Blips are a great way to remember the little things from each month so I can have something to look back on. Here are the others from 2012:

January ~ February ~ March ~ April ~ May ~ June ~ July ~ August

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What is your most memorable moment from September?



Hello, My Name is Busy by Mikael
January 20, 2012, 9:48 pm
Filed under: A Little Me, Good Things, My Awesome Internship, Updates, Writing

So that audition I mentioned last week? So didn’t happen… I decided that it would be mean to both me and the casting people for me to audition and then not be able to do the show.

Because guess what? It’s pretty much impossible to do a show when you have 3+ jobs. I realized the impossibility of it all after last week practically had me breaking at the seams a little bit.

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About 25-30 hours at ABC 4 between Wednesday and Friday. Five hours max for Park City TV on Mondays and Tuesdays, with up to 2 hours a day between Wednesday and Friday. I fit in time for Sinclair when I can either make the trip to SLC or steal away to Starbucks for a couple hours. Then the “+” is the extraneous help I lend to an awesome woman who owns her own real estate/staging business which could be a couple hours a week.

Busy doesn’t even begin to cover it. Heck, I’m struggling with my Project 365 on Something Write but I’m persevering since I really want to succeed in continuing that project for a year. It’s a wonder that I even had a down moment tonight.

There is an upside to all this busy-ness though, I promise.

I’m absolutely loving my jobs! ABC 4 has me running cameras and helping produce the evening shows. Not to mention the fact that I’m in love with the crew here. Everyone is just amazing. There are definitely stressful moments and too many pizzas ordered, but I genuinely enjoy what I’m doing.

PCTV is also very fun, despite the 6 am shift on Mondays and Tuesdays (hello, coffee!). And again, I really like the people I’m working with. Biggest perk is that my internship is mostly about helping keep the website and blog updated as close to daily as possible. Lots of writing? Hells yes, I can do that!

Weekends are almost free from work if I’m not behind on Sinclair stuff. But those are usually jam packed too with Pole Fitness, Zumba, church and what not. However, with the Sundance Film Festival, this weekend is looking pretty intense. Let’s see if I can keep my head. ;)

But you see my point? There is no way I can manage even trying to do a show right now. So no point in getting my hopes up in getting cast right?

Right…

If I wasn’t loving my work right now, I’d probably fall apart … so I’m good. The perfect distraction.

On another upside, more songwriting is going on behind the wings (aka: late at night) so hopefully I can produce another full song here in the near future. It’s amazing what emotional trauma (that I’m not going to delve into just yet… give it a few months) can set off creatively (again, see Something Write).

What are your thoughts on staying busy?



Twenty-Eleven by Mikael

Wow… has a whole year gone by since my first New Years kiss? Craziness!

2011 seemed to be the year of big things and big changes all around (my friend Caryn included a great list of the big news that hit this year in her 2011 recap post) It was also rather impulsive in a few respects.

Let’s see… what happened this year?

~  My step-brother and my best friend got married. Oh, and my adorable baby niece was born too. =)

~  I finished writing not only one but three plays. Varying in lengths, granted. But still… One full-length play was in there and that is definitely something worth celebrating in my book.

~  That college degree I worked on for four years was completed. Yep. I’m a college grad. That means you gotta do what I tell you! Just kidding, but definitely empowering.

The most fun weekend of my life at Bloggers in Sin City. A completely impulsive decision to go with absolutely no idea how it would turn out, and I was blown away by the wonderful bloggers/friends that I got to tear apart Vegas with all while experiencing some sweet VIP treatment.

~  I got to experience the world of broadcast journalism with my summer internship at ABC 4 News… and they have extended a job offer for me to be a production assistant. I start this coming week (and my horoscope totally predicted this one dead on… blew me away). =)

~  Auditions for The Voice turned out to be a phenomenal experience.

~  My family and I moved to Park City. Luckily I have an electronically heated blanket for my bed or I’d likely be a popsicle right now.

~  A pool of water washed away any of my previous “sins” when I got baptized.

~  Akasha, my beautiful baby 2012 Subaru Legacy (who is currently in the shop since someone rear-ended me this week), joined my family in November.

~  I got the opportunity to perform in a musical for the first time in nearly 5 years. There I made some amazing friends and even a soul sister. There really is nothing like being in a show!

~  Last and certainly not least, but I fell in love. A couple times actually. The love affair with my body fully hit me back in the spring… as for the other “fall”, it took me by surprise and it’s been the biggest roller coaster I’ve ever experienced. Who knows if anything will really come of it? Only time will tell really. Fingers crossed for good things though. ;)

Not a shabby list, all things considered. So many emotions fill these past 365 days… I can’t even list them all. Thinking about listing the names of the books I read this year seems daunting too. I read a butt-load of books this year amidst everything else! The Kindle app makes it so easy…

Quick! Onto bloggy 2011 stuff before I start going off on books!

Top 5 Most Popular Posts in 2011

My Top 5 Favorite Posts (aside from those listed above)

Life goes on and 2012 is just waiting for us to hold on tight before it heads off like those fireworks we’ll all see shooting across the sky tonight.

For me, 2011 was the year of new territory, taking the plunge and embracing everything for all it’s worth.

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What was the best thing about 2011 for you?



Blips of November by Mikael

For some reason, I feel like November was the longest month ever… even though it went by really fast.  Contradictory, I know.  Let’s just say it’s hard to believe that I’ve only known my Thoroughly Modern Millie family for such a short period even though I feel like I’ve known a couple of them for years! (Who’s going to come see it?  Tickets on sale at HighValleyArts.org!  Runs Dec. 10-22!)

Anyhoodle!  Onto this month’s recap!

November was…

Exhausting.

Santa Monica pier and numb toes.  A creepily accurate Zoltar fortune.  Never wanting to leave the flat I rented for two days in LA.  Meeting Skylar Grey— she is amazing, by the way.  A USC graduate information session that has me totally convinced that I should attend there (if I get in).  Many blasts from the past.  Paranormal Activity 3.  Having someone to sing with on the ride home–so fun.  Getting only 4000 words into NaNoWriMo.  First frost of the season.

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My new baby Legacy.  New addictions.  THIS close to happy weight again!  Continued obsession with John BoyCompletely memorized for TMM!  New part-time job as assistant to a realtor/interior designer and enjoying every minute of it.  Fitting into pants I haven’t worn since I bought them two years ago.  Attending my first social events with my ward.  Feeling the first songwriting inspirational kick in a long time!  Polishing up USC graduate school application materials for their Screenwriting MFA program.

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Having the greatest friends a girl could ask for.  Pulling out the Christmas music (and decorations for Mom) full monty!  Late nights of ping-pong, singing and hookah with TMM friends…  Dream journaling with far-too-vivid and far-too-strange dreams.  New boots! My first day completely being lazy in a LONG time–lots of video game time.  Being grateful for my electronically heated bed every single night… and then not wanting to leave it in the mornings.  Discovering that my life is/was like a YA novel against my will.  Recording my anthem and getting rave reviews on YouTube. =)

Looking for and making magic!  An amazing high school production of Aida.  Grey’s Anatomy marathonsBreaking Dawn.  Lots of Cap’n Crunch All Berries.  Being able to watch Netflix and Hulu Plus on a big screen rather than my iPad (AWESOME!).  Buying arguably the hottest dress that will hit the stage in TMM.  Playing with old Clayton Productions buddies.  Reading HoN: Destined.  Completely re-making MikaelShort.com while starting an online identity crisis because I felt the need to reserve my real name on TwitterAttending my first Ute (and consequently, their last) game of the season!

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Love.  Doubt.  Leaving marks.  What’s right and what’s wrong.  What is necessary in a relationship.  Faith. 

Now who’s ready for December?

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Blips of…
July ~ August ~ September ~ October



Blips of October by Mikael

What a month… what a MONTH!  Yes, October is over and my jaw is on the floor. This year has gone by so stinkin’ fast that I haven’t had time to tie my shoes yet!  Joking, but still.  Seriously, Father Time? Haven’t you heard the phrase “slow and steady win the race”?  You’re treating us like that damn hare who can’t even make it to the finish line! :P

Okay, I really digress back to what happened this October. It was a good one. Emotion filled one. Not so celebration filled since I barely celebrated my birthday and Halloween. Still had a blast though. =)  Now for the nitty-gritty.

July ~ August ~ September

October was…

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Attending the LDS General Conference with friends and family–amazing experience.  A moose family and a couple bucks passing through our backyard.  A nasty cold that Zumba couldn’t cure.  Checking out buying a new Subaru so I can make it up the mountain to my house.  Very sad when Steve Jobs left this world for the next.  First snow of the season.  New heating blanket to save myself from the biting mountain cold.  Getting baptized!  Awesome after-party with family too.

Horror movie marathons.  Learning new and obscure words from @way2sharp.  Looking back on my 22nd year.  My birthday month!  Mani-pedi’s with my mom.  Visiting My Man on my layover to Sacramento.  Four flights in less than 80 hours.  Exploring Old Sac Town and finding a lovely Halloween costume.  Delicious pre-wedding and wedding food.  Too many Shirley Temples.  Mucho dancing at said wedding.  A very strange pastor at said wedding too… Rehearsals for Thoroughly Modern Millie.  A new favorite sushi roll: The Red Dragon.

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The abandonment of my ridiculously glitchy Droid in exchange for my new addicting iPhone 4S that quacks at me whenever someone sends me a message… Love it!  More chapters added to Alpenglow (this story is my baby if you can’t tell–I’m determined to finish it!).  Countless hours spent reading The Book of Mormon, The Emerald Talisman, The Sapphire Talisman, and Everblue.  Playing with Siri way too much…

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Baking yummy peanut butter cupcakes with a wonderful old friend.  Polishing up my full-length script for my grad school app to UCLA.  The release of the The House of Night: Destined book.  Attending an oddly depressing, yet sometimes beautiful, choir concert with my lava. Seeing the amazing dancing antics of Thriller by Odyssey Dance Company.  Better journaling habits, even for my dreams!  Becoming obsessed with John Boy and his Nocturnal Circus EP.  First YouTube videos posted since August to celebrate Halloween.

One last road trip to Las Vegas, then to LA over Halloween for USC graduate information session with my old baby… and of course, to see My Man! =) Spooktacular story!  Soon to be expecting a new baby.  Stay tuned for more on that! ;)

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Quite a turbulent month if I may say so! November I may be as broke as blue balls and as busy as a queen bee, but I’m going to try my hardest to enjoy every darn tootin’ second of it.



Blips of September by Mikael

Time for a September recap! A little foreword… you may see hints at what I’ve taken the plunge at. Any guesses? Moving onward!

July ~ August

September was…

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Five days spent in sunny and wonderful LA being horribly spoiled. Eating a reincarnation of my favorite meal from Italy. Rose garden walks. Driving an uber-sexy car in downtown LA. Walking the Promenade in Santa Barbera. Being a pinball wizard on the pier. Attending a USC lecture for fun. Beautiful beach walks and frolicking in the Pacific. My best bowling game ever!

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See that? Strike, spare, strike, spare, strike? Yeah that's me. ;)

Jacked up sleep schedules. USC vs Utah PAC-12 opener game bet that I didn’t mind losing. Playing with my three-month old baby niece. Pokemon lingerie. National anthems and church performances. Choreographing more Zumba Fitness songs. Obsession with Nick Pitera’s One Man Disney Movie Medley. Spoiling and treating of my car and my laptop (who no longer hates me–Yay!). Grateful to have friends and family on 9/11. The idea that tie-dye should be totally acceptable in the work place. A beautiful full moon. First complete MMA fight experience.

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Investigating Screenwriting MFA programs. Writing two 5-page plays for submission to USC’s MFA program. Prepping and taking the GRE. The Utes ass-kicking of BYU (54 to 10; 7 turnovers). The Return of Saying Saturday. The discovering of The Middle Finger Project. The very slow cleaning of my room. Playing Times Up with old friends. Loads more health blogging. Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat with great friends — best production at Hale Centre Theatre ever!

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Two auditions=two callbacks. Ultimate result: Muzzy Van Hossmere in Thoroughly Modern Millie! Way too many Grey’s Anatomy marathons. Continuing the job hunt. Zumba Fitness audition up in my new city of residence. Recording and mixing of three songs in two days. Glee premiere! Grey’s Anatomy premiere! Private Practice premiere! Yippee skippee! Crashing of the boy’s fishing day to take pictures.

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My awesome duck face. LDS Magazine internship information meeting that turned out to be an inspirational confirmation instead. Setting a date. Lots of family time.

“Be mine.” ;)

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Love your faces! Hope you had a happy hump day!



Take the plunge! by Mikael

You know those opportunities that you think won’t happen and then they spring up on you, taking you by surprise? How long do you think those last for?

The biggest question may be if you decide to jump at the opportunity or not.

Sometimes there is a little leeway for decision making, other times not so much. Some opportunities require quick-on-your-feet thinking. And if you’re lucky, you can ask for a little time to deliberate.

I feel very lucky. I have had time to do just that before takingthe plunge. I have had the opportunity to separate out logic, emotions, what feels right and what is best for all parties involved. If I didn’t have that, I might have had a meltdown. There are/were a couple big decisions to make.

Now is not the right time to divulge the all of the details, however, though a few in my real life circle are aware of some of the leaps that I’m making. Some of it has been hinted at randomly here (though probably not really noticed). They may be revealed in due course on MikShorty depending on when those decisions truly manifest themselves in my life.

Let’s just say there are not just one, but a couple changes both in progress and soon-to-be. Crazy things… things that I never would have anticipated yet feel right for me. Things that could have really interesting repercussions for people in my life. Some things may be difficult, but those are the kind of things that make us stronger as people and can even strengthen the relationships that matter most.

Can I just say that I’m so grateful those opportunistic windows were open? =)

Are you one to take the plunge? Why or why not?



Closet Spiritualist? by Mikael

Lately, something has been up with me and I’m not exactly sure why or how.

Strangely enough, I’ve had this strange urge to explore my spirituality. It’s weird for me because I think of myself as a firm believer in the theory of evolution and such like that. Other religions and their beliefs fascinate me and I like to learn them but I have never sought to actually pursue a religion. Not sure if I’m even doing that now… I’m just broadening my spiritual horizons. Discovering what it is I’m supposed to be doing in this world and what this world is in my life.

I kind of feel like a loon right now because this is so not like me. Can’t help but follow my gut on things though and my gut has been telling me to check it out for the couple weeks. Sooo… that’s what I’m doing. It’s pretty interesting though as I’m getting some opportunities to learn more about faith and such, so I’m not complaining.

What really freaked me out was when I went to AstrologyZone.com to read my monthly horoscope for June (Virgo, in case you were wondering). Here is what it said:

Having Jupiter in Taurus will be a blessing to you. For the first time since the year 2000, you will have Jupiter, giver of gifts and luck, setting up shop in your ninth house, which rules, among other things, long-distance and foreign travel, higher education, and the media. This house deals with the gathering in and dispersal of information, which is why college study, publishing, and broadcasting are included in this house.

Yep, that’s ringing pretty true right now (ABC 4 News internship anyone?)… but the next bit threw me because I thought my sudden interest in religion could be just a fluke.

I sometimes fail to mention another very important area in the ninth house that is also covered – philosophy and religion. (While another house, the twelfth house, rules pure belief, the ninth house rules the dogma that forms the underpinnings of religions.) This is the area of the chart where we ask, “Why was I born?” “What contribution can I make to the world?” and other mysteries of life. Taking courses in philosophy and religion will also be favored in the coming year. Another excellent manifestation to this trend would going on an important religious retreat to pray and meditate. Your spirituality will be greatly expanded, and you may find answers to questions you’ve often pondered and that satisfy your inner yearnings.

Say what?! The bold part in particular is a lot of what has been going on in my mind lately. It’s no fluke… it was set in my stars.  And yes, I like to follow this kind of stuff because I’m also a believer that things happen for a reason and that the universe plays a large role in that. So perhaps I will develop more beliefs with my newfound spiritual side? I’ll just have to enjoy the ride while/if I do!

Isn’t it funny how beliefs, religion and all that good stuff also seem to tie into the universe? I love being fascinated! =D



Saying Saturday XX: BiSC Edition by Mikael

Volume 20 of Saying Saturday! I am constantly amazed at how high that number climbs… the quotes this time span quite a while but are still nonetheless entertaining (and I hope you think so too)! BiSC quotes included!!

If you’ve missed previous Saying Saturdays and wish to see them, go here! =)

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In a Skype call where my Aussie penpal and I were discussing the placement of my laptop…

Me: Where would you rather be: on my lap or between my knees?

During Water for Elephants on our girls’ day out where Reese Witherspoon and Rob Pattinson have a few… chemistry-ridden scenes.

Shaka: … I want to be an actress now.

(Shaka is my Zumba instructor. She picked her name.)

After the movie… (which was amazing by the way)

Me: I have a lot more respect for Robert Pattinson as an actor after seeing this film… He can really hold his own especially against Reese and Christoph.
Shaka: I already knew that.
Natty: Me too.
Me: Shining does not count as acting.
Tonya: Actually, he sparkled.

At lunch with the girls after the movie…

Me: Those chicken balls are good!

Shaka: All that yummy sauce and no balls…

Now some quotes from the sports interns that I will no longer have the pleasure of working with…

Connor: I will write a play! “To be… or not to drink. That is the question.”

Connor: You know, sit out in the sun with a beer–
Me: You drink beer?
Connor: Well, root-beer.

Here is an awesome conversation between one of the funniest employees from my sports internship. He tends to joke around a lot…

C: She was wearing a sweater that read “Huskies”. Why do we have Washington people here?
Me: There’s a local high school with huskies as their mascot, so she’s probably from there. You know? The Hillcrest Huskies in Murray?
C: First, I’d appreciate it if your eyes weren’t screaming at me. Second, I’d appreciate you not correcting me. And third, thanks for being pretty.

My brother went to Reno to pick up his new car…

Bro: I feel a little weird about a man named Coco picking me up in Reno.

Talking about some woman’s boobs that are supposedly ginormous with my step-brother…

Jake:  It’s not cleavage! More like… cleave-land!

(like Cleveland! XD)

One of my guy friends at a bar after which point I told him I’d like him to drunk text me sometime because apparently he comes up with quotes like this all the time when he’s drunk…

I’m sick of being broke! I just want a yacht, supermodels, and cocaine.

And his drunk text to me the other night…

Well, here is your drunk text, because i’m drunk: I want to see your boobies. And do lots of cocaine off of them… on a yacht of course!

He sent another one a couple weeks later:

Very drunk. Texting. Something about your bosom. K bye.

Then the next day he proceeded to ask me if he texted me. I said yes. He asked if he mentioned my boobs (he always does). How I find friends like this, I’ll never know… but it’s highly entertaining!

Now for some of my favorite BiSC quotes that I managed to write down/remember:

Seeing the flamingos at… the Flamingo Hotel! Whoda thunk it?

Me: Oooh, flamingos!
Ameena: … Oh, my god! They’re real!

Discussing guys/being single/etc. with Mich

Me: I go through guys like I do… chocolate bars. All too quickly and far too many… but they are just so delicious!

Ameena: Price is Right is in our bathroom!

At brunch…

Carly: I just launched  a sausage at a man.

Jayme: Dancing with the Stars has nothing on Absinthe. (via Twitter)

Describing all that is BiSC

Caryn: On a scale of 1 to Ape-Shit: this is Gorilla-Shit.

Attempting to give sexy dancing pointers…

Me: Just think of moving your hips like you would if you were having sex…
Cat: I’m good at sex so I can do that!

And let me just say… she had the men drooling! ;)

Post-BiSC….

Simone: We’re like the second to last season of LOST. We need to go back to the island. #BiSC (via Twitter)

And pretty much anything Nicole said… I wish I could remember more, so if any of you BiSCuits can remember some, I’d love to hear/read them so post them below! =)

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Thanks everyone for tuning in! Have a fantabulous weekend!