Denim and Chocolates!

Four stuffed bags and a couple horrified stares from Mark and CoHo later, my closet is cleaned!

I tossed (with MUCH convincing):
My running shoes from senior year (ummm...in high school)
My running shoes from junior year (in college--- way more recent, thank you).
A t-shirt from Universal Studios that said Peace, Love, The Universal Way
A pair of adult Mary Jane type shoes with an ankle strap
A pair of wedge heels that Colleen gave me awhile ago (I don't feel good about that one, but she swore they'd never come back in style. I was like, are you even sure they're out of style?!)
A black and grey striped stretch polo from Kohls, circa 2000
A red bag with a band aid patching up a hole in one of the pockets

I kept:
A Big Dog t-shirt that says It's Not Easy Being a Princess
A boys flannel shirt that I bought at a Salvation Army in Bloomsburg
A XXX t-shirt that goes past my knees and elbows
A maroon halter, circa 2002, with a rip in it that you can hardly see!
A purple t-shirt that I tie-dyed in second grade (they'll have to peel that one off my dead body)

Aaaand, the piece de resistance.... my stretchy denim dress bought in 1997 specifically for Senior Week in high school! I fell in love with it all over again and completed the cleaning process marching around proudly in what I will probably wear to my wedding rehearsal dinner.

And what, you ask, were Mark and CoHo doing this entire time? In between yaying and naying, Colleen was daring Mark to eat old chocolates (from a year and a half ago!) that I'd found shoved in the back of my closet. Just another Sunday night at Fairfax....

Who Cleans Out A Closet

better than Hoops? We should have live-blogged this as it was incredibly entertaining.

Appetite Curbing, Fat Burning Lip Balm: Lip Smackingly Cool or Only for Fools??

YOU DECIDE.

Burner Balm Gets International Attention

Orders Coming in Worldwide for Fat Burner, Energy Booster, Appetite Control Lip Balm

LOS ANGELES, July 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Pacific Shore Holdings, Inc. (PSH), a Los Angeles-based manufacturing and distribution corporation is proud to announce the continued success and fast-paced growth in its Burner Balm lip balm product division. Burner Balm, a natural lip balm that claims to boost energy, suppress hunger and burn fat, recently came into the dietary, energy drink and lip balm arena. The product line is turning heads worldwide with orders coming in from as far away as the Czech Republic, Ireland and Great Britain.

Recently reported by ABC 7 News in Los Angeles, many of the competitors in the lip gloss arena have come under fire about the effects of their newly developed weight loss lip gloss products because of lack of ingestion of the dietary ingredients. The physicians that were involved in the development of Burner Balm fire back with facts about the statements being made. "Due to the number of blood vessels on the lips, product extracts are more easily absorbed than one might think," explains co-developer Dr. David Toomey. Blood vessel absorption coupled with our tasty formula leads to ingestion which gives Burner Balm a double impact and an edge over other products that are currently out there."

"Burner Balm is producing results," explains (PSH) Vice President Joey Valvo. "We are receiving calls and emails from satisfied customers worldwide, our products are different than the lip glosses, they are very gratifying to the taste buds and have a really flavorful aroma, which means ingestion of the product as well as absorption into the bloodstream."

Dr. Allan Kurtz, lead developer and co-founder of Burner Balm tells a convincing story of how Burner Balm works. "When Burner Balm is used as directed (placed on your lips four to six times daily), the product will energize you while simultaneously curbing your appetite. The science behind the product is simple, Green Tea, Hoodia, Chromium Picolinate & Caffeine have all been proven for many years to be effective as dietary supplements. When these ingredients are blended together as extracts into our flavored lip balm they become not only absorbed into the blood stream through the lips' blood vessels but also become ingestible. Meaning, when you place any of our deliciously flavored Burner Balm lip balm products on your lips, the flavor and aroma is a natural attraction for you to lick and taste, thus ingestion of the extracts occurs with taste while simultaneously absorbing through the lips' blood vessels, which leads to boosted energy and appetite suppression. Exercising while using Burner Balm can also lead to fat reduction, as Chromium Picolinate has also been proven to help your body burn fat and carbohydrates."

"Fuze, Guilt Free, and Huge Lips Skinny Hips lip glosses might just work after all," says Vice President Joey Valvo. "According to our research, which is extensive, the average woman consumes anywhere from four to seven pounds of lip products in a lifetime, which refutes any statement made about ingestion. We applaud the makers of these lip gloss products; an affordable way to curb your appetite while looking your best." These lip gloss products don't compete in the same arena as the Burner Balm lip balm product line up. Lip gloss is for women, lip balm is for everyone and at $5.99 for each lip balm, it's no wonder Burner Balm is causing such a stir worldwide. You can find Burner Balm Lip balm at www.burnerbalm.com.

Carlos.

I have got to write about what just happened. And it is not exaggerated one bit.

I'm on my way back from the gym and I notice that I have four missed calls from a restricted number. I'm like, What the frack?! Huntington Theater get off my back! (Love the theater, but those biotches have been stalking me to renew my play package...and I just rhymed). Anyway, I get back to my office and they call again, but the owner of my company is two feet away, so I ignore it. Finally they call back again and I answer. This is the conversation. Verbatim.

Me: Hello?
Mexican Lady: WHO is this?
Me: This is Sarah.
Mexican Lady: How do you know Carlos?
Me: I'm sorry? (without a British accent, though that phrase sounds better with one)
Mexican Lady: This is his WIFE and I found your number in Carlos' pocket when I was doing the laundry and I want to know where you met him!
Me: Wait, what? Nooooo idea what you're talking about. I don't know any Carlos.
Mexican Lady: (Confirms my number). That's YOU! I just want to know why Carlos has your number in his POCKET!
Me: Ma'am, I have no idea what you're talking about. I don't know a Carlos and have NO idea how he got my number. I'm sorry I can't be of more help, but I am at work, so I'm going to need to go.
Mexican Lady: Well I'm going to talk with him about this when he gets home...
Me: I hope that you do. Good luck with everything.
Mexican Lady: ...and we're going to text you later about it.
Me: Um, what? Whatever. Good luck.

Hung up.

WTF?! I am so weirded out right now. First of all, who the F is Carlos? And more importantly, why does he have my number??? I can't remember the last time I gave my number to a guy... maybe a month ago? (Kidding Mark). Seriously, I have no idea what is going on. Am I intrigued about being brought into a domestic scandal? Absolutely. Do I want anything more to do with this? Hell to the no. Will I update everyone if they text me later? Obviously.

Oh, I am just the saddest ever. I honestly cannot believe that Michael Jackson is dead... I really just can't stop thinking about it. Mark and I were up until 1:30 in the morning watching old MJ videos on MTV Jams and I'm listening to him nonstop right now on Kiss 108- he was just so good.

Michael Jackson was an enormous part of my childhood. The videos we have of Bekka and I dancing to Beat It and Billy Jean (it was never Becky Jean- sorry Bek), the pictures we have of us baking cookies in oversized shirts with his face on it, the MJ microphones we used to sing into, the bust of his head (yeah, you read that right) that Vo made me, crying over Thriller (so scary!), choosing him to write a biography on in English class and getting laughed at.... like probably everyone in the world right now, I have a million memories involving someone I'm never even met.

MJ STORY: My family and I visited California for a wedding when I was 15 and Bekka was 12. I had just bought the HIStory album and to say that I was obsessed is putting it mildly. I barely spoke to anyone as we drove up the PCH. Headphones firmly lodged in my ears, I was completely devoted to my Discman... to Michael. Anyway, at one point during the drive, Bekka timidly piped up that she would love to hear a couple MJ songs and maybe could she borrow my Discman? WHAT?! I, naturally, was horrified that she would even attempt to separate me from my beloved and responded in the most logical fashion possible. I made her list 3 (maybe 4- I could have been feeling generous) songs that she wanted to hear and told her that she wasn't to listen to any songs she hadn't listed. I then asked her to bark out the window like a dog. She did...and I think she'll tell you it was worth it.

Michael Jackson was an easy target and whether or not you believed any of the several rumors that continuously swirled around him, the impact that he's had on music is in immeasurable. He created the blueprint to pop music and I can't think of one current musician who can claim to not have been impacted by his visionary instincts. Michael Jackson had a lot to work against, but he loved what he did and, more importantly, was perfection as a performer; I respect every choice that he made (well...maybe not the baby dangling- that can get dangerous).

I just love, love, love him and only regret that I will never get to see him in concert.

Just for fun, here are my five MJ faves: Keep it in the Closet, Remember the Time, Human Nature, I Just Can't Stop Loving You, Scream.

Please bark for Michael Jackson.

Love, Sarah

CDs for Life!!

If you could only listen to five cds (not burned mix cds) for the rest of your life, what would they be?

Here are mine:

1) Amos Lee: Amos Lee
2) Gavin DeGraw: Chariot
3) *N Sync: *N Sync (or No Strings Attached! Can't decide!)
4) Garden State Soundtrack (Sorry Mark!)
5) John Mayer: Either Continuum or Room for Squares. Can't decide on that either!

Now, you might be like, "Whaaat? Becca, some of these aren't artists you are obsessed with!" This is true, but they ARE cds I could listen to over and over and over again. *N sync and Garden State are pretty self explanatory. We all know how much I feel about them!

But while most of Chariot did not get radio play, it is an AWESOME cd. (I must give a shout out to Sarah for introducing me to it!) Favorites: "More Than Anyone," "Belief," "Chariot" and "Nice to Meet You Anyway."

Same with Amos Lee. Just put that cd on and let it play! Favorites: "Colors," "Arms of Woman" and "Keep it Loose, Keep it Tight."

As for John Mayer, oh man, I just love that guy. I know some of his lyrics can be a little cutesy and whatnot, but boyfriend can compose a good tune! That's why it's so hard to choose between Continuum and Room for Squares...some of my favorite songs are on each! Favorites: "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room," "The Heart of Life," "Dreaming with a Broken Heart" (on Continuum) "Neon" and "My Stupid Mouth" (on Room for Squares).

But

really. What would YOU choose?

What's the Rush(ian?)

Well, I've just made an appointment with a Russian hypnotist. I have had it with my nail biting. I just tried to eat a banana and my hands stung. And then I tried to wash my hands after the banana and they stung even more. And I'm like, wassup?! Can't a girl eat fruit and touch water anymore? I can't control myself and I have Michael Jacksonized myself (band-aids) for too long... it's getting ridiculous and embarrassing. But I'm not blushin', bring on the Russian! These E.T. fingers need a little decoration.

Apparently he's some small man who Russian-ly rambles on and on for two hours, growling at you if you fall asleep and barking compliments at you if he likes you. It's a group sesh, so I'm actually looking forward to weeding out the sex addicts and judging the people with paralyzing fears. I've heard it's mostly smokers, though...booooring. Then, I guess, I get a one-on-one where he breathes on me and "heals" my addiction. I'm all set with people unleashing midget, foreign air directly into my face, so hopefully he'll stock up on breath mints.

Either way, I am sick of getting distracted by an appetizing hangnail while I'm trying to look at my beautiful ring. I'm sick of showing the ring off with a fist to hide my mangled nails. I'm sick of looking like an animal while I gnaw at my hands. August 1st. It's going to happen.