All the best things happen in March

'Ello there.

So i'm back at the blog and have a few things to comment on.

I do firmly believe that March is the best month; not just because of my birthday, which tends to be the only reason people like certain months (ex: February. Seriously? That month sucks.) but also because it's finally when Chicago tends to thaw out and give us teasing little glimpses of Spring. Also, when I was in grammar school, March was when our girls' soccer team started practicing which was basically the highlight of my year as a pre-teen. But most importantly, I firmly believe that March is the luckiest month of the year, or at least produces the most good omens for me to follow.

Last year around this time, I was sitting on my couch at home during Spring Break watching the Food Network when my Dad told me to apply for more jobs. Being obsessed with the Food Network, I figured I would send in my resume to the most general email contact I could find just to make myself feel marginally productive with my job hunt. The very next day, my future boss called (while I was again watching the Food Network...how apropos)and offered me the chance of a lifetime to start working on a new offshoot site for the Food Network. I couldn't beieve my luck and still can't to this day.

This year was slightly less eventful, although I did get a bunch of calls for jobs and landed in a project doing social media. The pay is great and I'm pretty sure this is what I should be doing to stay "relevant" in the media. Whatever. I do what I want.

Watch this

Just finished watching the final episode from "The Inbetweeners" season 2 online. If you haven't heard of this show before, do yourself a huge favor and at least watch the first episode online. It's basically a British TV version of Superbad, but obviously substitute the sarcastic American humor with a wittier English comedy.

It follows the tried and true formula of recording the devastatingly hilarious happenings of four teenage boys in a comprehensive (Americans, read: public) high school as they muddle through girls, school and just generally being huge dweebs, although not dweeby enough to be absolute losers... this, my friends, is how we've arrived at "The Inbetweeners" title. Moving on, Will (Simon Bird) narrates the sitcom as the preppy "briefcase wanker" (he carries a briefcase to school, hence the original "baggage-themed" insult). He makes friends with the rather socially-inept group consisting of Simon (Joe Thomas), Jay (James Buckley) and Neil (Blake Harrison).

If you're looking for more info about the cast and plot line, look it up here: http://www.e4.com/inbetweeners/. I'm not your TV Guide.

It airs on E4 in the UK but I first found it on BBC America a few weeks ago. I'd seen a commercial for it and had made a mental note to Wikipedia it later on and was pleasantly surprised to find it listed under the free TV programs to watch on my Comcast On Demand menu. Apparently, an American version was aired for a short while over here but failed...and this of course leads me to assume that either A. we Americans have a very limited sense of humor and would rather watch another dimwitted sitcom starring Ray Romano or B. they tried to dilute the original so much that it lost its spark (admittedly, this is the more likely scenario). Even the episodes on BBC America cut out a good deal of prime humor because it's either too vulgar or sexual. Rest assured, however, that it's by no means an offensive show, unless you're one of those people who tend to make an annoying habit of being offended at everything.

So at this point in time, I'm basically just scanning for any information I can find about season 3 and when I'll be able to find it online. If you're anything like me and feel that you'd appreciate an unboubtedly original hybrid of "Monty Python" and Superbad, find this online and watch them: http://www.tvduck.com/The-Inbetweeners.html

Crumbs, Crumbs, Crumbs, Crumbs

So after spending five months living in New York and working in the beyond fabulous Chelsea Market, I think I'm able to make a few shallow comparisons between some staple New York and Chicago foods. However, that will be a later post. For now, I'm going to verbally drool over one of the sweet, sugary treats that I miss more than anything else from the New York food scene: Crumbs Bake Shop cupcakes.

If you're not in the New York, New Jersey, Connecticut or California area, you're not going to have the divine pleasure of walking into a Crumbs store to behold the Mecca of Cupcakes. I tried Magnolia cupcakes (featured in Sex and the City), but I found the selection was lacking compared to Crumbs'. Seriously, this place has EVERYTHING. Everything you loved to eat as a kid has been transformed into gigantic, work-of-art cupcakes. And I mean it, these things are huge; I always end up saving half for the next day, which is not an attempt at being health-conscious or demure. I just physically cannot eat the whole thing in one sitting.

My favorite is the Candy cupcake: soft, fresh vanilla cake filled and topped with sugary, light vanilla icing and covered with mini M&M's. A-mazing. Truly, I had a cupcake epiphany when I first tried this. We were at work and some mentioned there was a tray of mini cupcakes for everyone to try. When I saw them, they looked pretty but I assumed they'd be the same as the mini cupcakes I could get from the grocery store and figured I'd save the calories for a brownie at lunch (which was quickly becoming a tasty and fattening daily habit). But I tried one. And I finished it. And I quickly began wondering when I could get another. I had NEVER had a cupcake like this before and I urge you, if you're ever in NYC, find one of their 15 locations and splurge on one of these $4 baked pieces of heaven. They also ship across the continental U.S., but you should really try one fresh if you're going to pop your Crumbs cherry.

Seriously. GO.
http://www.crumbs.com/

I refuse to title this

Hooray for finally starting a blog!

"Finally" is used loosely here, though, considering no one ever encouraged me to blog nor have I ever thought the stupid, random things I think about 18 hours a day were ever interesting enough for others to read. Plus, I hate the idea of thinking of a title for this because I feel like no matter which direction you go with it, the title of a blog will almost always sound ridiculous.

I find the most successful blog titles are ones that accurately summarize the content of the blog itself. Examples: "This is Why You're Fat" and "Stuff White People Like." Simple and true. If a blogger can succeed in choosing an apt title such as these, they won't run the risk of seeming pretentious or just emo.

If I named this "Random musings from a wanderer," you'd probably wish I'd just wander somewhere else...like in a private journal with no domain name. But if I went for the basic "Caroline's blog" (which was in fact my first choice), my lazy unoriginality would probably get misinterpreted for a weak attempt at kitch...or originality. Even worse than that would be if I went with the ominous "Insert clever title here" choice. Ouch.

Lastly, there's the popular title option that I've noticed from years of wandering library aisles looking for a good book cover that will inevitably influence my decision of what to read. I'm referring to the random flowery nonsense that graces the covers of too many second-rate novels with titles like "Whispering Huckleberries" or "Daffodil Wednesdays." Umm...what? Thank you, but I do not want to read about fruit-bearing bushes or lawn weeds gallivanting, socializing, or contemplating life with twigs or willow trees.

Bottom line, I hate writing titles. I hated it when I worked as a reporter and my editor would occasionally want a witty one-liner for a three-inch article about a capsized boat or an auto show. Don't pull too much from them, they're usually an afterthought. Ha...kind of like this whole blog.