Lisa & Julie & Julia

I can’t believe I missed June completely. It’s been hectic though…filling in for my old job *and* trying to find direction, purpose and meaning in my life.

I’m not back in NY for long this time though. My dear friend is getting married in Chicago on August 1 (which happens to be another dear friend’s birthday) and so I will be in the Midwest for the first week of that month…and am super-excited to see that Julie & Julia opens on August 7! Which means that my mama and I may be able to see it together before we go to the airport.

I haven’t been this excited about a movie in a LONG TIME! (Aww…I Googled it and now I am following it on Twitter…) In fact, I totally get how Julie Powell feels about being stuck and things not working out the way she wanted them to…and hope that *my* book leads to a similar sort of Oprah-ish A-Ha Moment after which I can then look back at my life and say, “Yes! I understand why it all worked out this way now. It was all about getting me to this point!” I just wish I was there already, you know?

What do drink way up North…from a proud member of the Sourtoe Cocktail Club.

I have been remiss again! But…allow me to make up for some lost time.

I just flew in from Tucson (by way of Seattle) on Alaska Airlines because my parents have a gazillion frequent flier miles. And flying makes me a little, you know, nervous…so I usually buy trashy celeb magazines to distract myself during takeoff. But at one point during one of the flights, I was actually reading the in-flight magazine…and I came across an ad for a bar in Anchorage called “Darwin’s Theory” and it made me laugh because it says the owner is the world’s biggest seller of cinnamon schnapps *and* that the Anchorage Daily News said it has the best popcorn and the best jukebox in the city.

This, of course, vaguely reminds me of the Downtown Hotel in Dawson City, Yukon Territory and its infamous Sourtoe Cocktail. I was thinking — it’s too bad I wasn’t on Facebook when that whole episode took place as the photo of me and the toe would surely turn some heads. It feels a bit like cheating by putting it up now though…as if I am purposely trying to draw attention to myself. But! As I was *just* talking to friends in Seattle about this, I’ll reminisce with you a bit:

I did it with Yukon Jack even though I HATE whiskey because the Health Department declared the booze has to be a certain proof or something. The guy at the Downtown Hotel swore that Yukon Jack was the easiest way to do it…and I protested a bit, but finally relented…and remember thinking he was right and it was actually kind of lemony. Back in New York some time later, I came across Yukon Jack again and got a bit nostalgic…but it just seemed like regular stupid whiskey…and I was kind of puzzled…and my friend said, “Well, I think that maybe last time you were distracted by THE TOE.”