Excitement Is A New Album From My Favorite Boy Band, Ever

For those of you who don't care a whit about NKOTB, my obsession with Donnie Wahlberg, or the fact that I'm doing cartwheels because of their new album, you can probably skip this post. However, you are weirdos and I reserve the right to judge you for judging me. 

The New Kids newest album, "10," came out today. I downloaded it on iTunes this morning before the gym, and was waiting (with Brian) outside of Target at 7:45 so I could buy my store exclusive copy (TWO EXTRA TRACKS!!!) when they opened at 8.

Like a true fan-girl, I recorded my reactions as I opened the cd. There may or may not be a love letter for the band at the end as well. Enjoy. 

Things I'm Loving Lately

After this weekend's somber post, I decided to do something much happier to kick off the week. (I know you're relieved. Truthfully, I used up half a box of tissues just writing Saturday's post. I'm ready to move on to the happy stuff, too.) So, I'm turning to the blogging tool that has been so successful for me in the past. I'm sharing with you a list of the things that are making me smile lately. (If I use it as a tool to turn my frownies upside down, well, that's just an added bonus. Right?)

Things I'm Loving Lately:

1. This house in Kansas:

As it turns out, it was purchased by activist Aaron Jackson, who bought this house just to send a message to their neighbors: the Westboro Baptist Church. A peaceful, and colorful, protest to all the hate speech---I'd say this is a must-visit location to any and all living and vacationing in Kansas. It makes me so happy, I'm not above declaring that if we buy a house with siding, it might just get the same treatment. (Somewhere in a hospital room far, far away, my husband the nurse just collapsed when he read that statement.) Visit CNN to read the entire story.

2. Smash.

I know, I know---I've gushed all about this show here on AbbyGabs before. But the new season started a couple of weeks ago, and I've got to tell you----I'm just as addicted in season 2 as I was in season 1. I know I'm not supposed to like Ivy, but I absolutely adore Megan Hilty, and I'm excited for what's coming up for her character in the episodes to come! For your viewing pleasure, here she is again, as Marilyn Monroe. LOVE.

Sigh. My Broadway tendencies get tickled every time she performs. I really want to be her when I grow up.

3. Lego City: Undercover (for the Wii U)

This game has everything we love: Lego-themed puzzles, fun game play, and silly narration. We simply can't stop playing. The only thing it doesn't have is multi-player...but it's only making us look forward to future Lego games on this new console that much more. My favorite mantra while playing Lego games? BREAK STUFF!!!!

4. Searching the internet for nerdy t-shirts to wear to Comic-Con in July.
Believe me when I say there are a treasure trove of them out there. I've got an entire Pinterest Board dedicated to the subject. Here are a few of my favorites, for your viewing pleasure.

Nyan Cat Meets Doctor Who

Star Trek Awesomeness

The Entire Buffy Gang--The Peanuts Version

5. Remix (I Like The)
Don't throw stuff at me. I know I told you all about how much I love this new video by NKOTB in my last video blog. But someone happened to point out to me that I failed to leave a link to the video on that post, and so I'm sharing it with you here. (Remember--part of this blog is so I have something to look at to make me smile. And this video makes me smile. So there.)


It's not just the hotness of the band in suits, or the fact that the lead in the video is a big girl like me, or the ADORABLENESS that is the dance sequence with Donnie Wahlberg near the end. It's the WHOLE SONG, and the knowledge that I'll get to see them perform it live in T-minus 2 1/2 months, that gets me all giddy and grinny. I can't wait for the album release in April. Yay!!!

Ok that's it. My list of happy things. I've got a few more, but I'm too busy rocking out to Remix and pretending I can sing like Megan Hilty to write any more. 

Meet Captain McSneezyPants

I believe that everyone has their own special brand of super-hero-ness. You might not know it, but there's something about you that could be construed as a super power. Maybe your smile can light up a room, or maybe your soprano high notes shatter glass. Either way, it makes you special. Unique.

I mean, Mary Tyler Moore can turn the world on with her smile.

Donnie Wahlberg can turn the world on with his abs.

And not to toot my own horn or anything, but I can turn the world on with my homemade cupcakes.

My husband's super power, however, isn't always one that puts a big grin on Earth's face. In fact, if he's not careful, Brian's super power can part hair, break windows, and startle someone into a panic attack.

My husband's super power is his sneeze. Let's call them his Super Sonic Sneezes.

When we first started living together, a sneeze from Brian was enough to leave me huddled in the corner, arms over my head, preparing for the ceiling to fall. Seriously. They are that loud. It got so bad that I finally asked him to try and devise a way to warn me when he feels one coming on.

It took a few years, and a few trial runs. Flare guns don't work inside. Tapping his leg didn't help much either, since my clogging background brainwashed me to recognize that sign as the beginning of a hoe-down.

After years of practice and polish, Brian finally has a signal down. It works in almost every situation (although we find it can be slightly dangerous when he is driving.) But regardless, it gives me a chance to batten down the hatches, prepare myself for the thunderous sound that will issue from between his lips, and grab a hold of any expensive vases.




You can imagine our surprise (and dismay) when we discovered that another person on this planet uses Captain McSneezyPants' Super Secret Sneeze Signal. And not only is he using it as a source of adorableness, but also to sell people on a service plan with AT&T.




Uh-Oh. Your Super Secret Sneeze Signal has been compromised. Back to the drawing board, Captain.

Note: I'm not selling anything for Disney, nor am I making any money for posting an AT&T commercial. Both videos just help me illustrate my point a little better. And the kid in that phone commercial cracks me up.

Milestones: The "HOLY CRAP I WROTE A NOVEL" Edition

On Saturday afternoon, January26, 2013, at approximately 3:45 in the afternoon, I completed my very first novel.




I asked for real Champagne and a chocolate fountain, too, but I didn't get them.

Allow me to be forthcoming when I say that, while the bare bones of the novel are finished, there is still a ton of editing to be done. So, I'm not headed to the presses just yet. 

However, I have, in my possession, two-hundred and seventy-four pages that are MINE, ALL MINE.

The smell of new paper, fresh ink, and potential rejection is a heady elixir, my friends.

Now comes the time of nit-picking, of finding all the missed commas and typos, of fixing timeline issues and capitalizing the word "Twitter" eleventy-hundred times. Now is the time of rewording wordy sentences and reworking flawed characters. It is the time of red ink and highlighters. 

(It may just be my favorite part.)

Let me back pedal and tell you a little bit about this book. I started writing it in November of 2011, in association with my first NaNoWriMo experience. For about twenty-five days, I pounded out a little over 60,000 words. And as it turned out, it was a story I was totally in love with.  However, with the sudden death of my grandfather, along with the holidays and other life events, the novel got shoved into a tiny corner on my hard drive, and I didn't look at it again until November of 2012. That's when I picked up where I'd left off, and pounded out another 50,000 words for NaNo 2012.

By the time the dust had cleared, I had about three-fourths of a completed novel, a clear direction, a main character I totally identified with, and her heart throb--a character based on Donnie Wahlberg.

Put your eyebrows away. You know you aren't surprised.

In case you're curious, here's a little synopsis about the book I'm calling "#TheContest."

Lena went to all the right schools, followed all the right paths, and shook all the right hands. And yet, 8 years out of New York University, she still finds herself in a dead-end job, working out of a tiny cubicle, with nothing to look forward in her immediate future. The only thing that gets her through each soul-sucking, boring day is her infatuation with The Beantown Boys, the popular boy band from her childhood. 

She's been in love with Derrick Walsh, the band's "bad boy," since she was 10 years old. Her childhood was spent writing love letters to the fan club, in hopes that somehow, her celebrity crush would read the words she wrote to him, so earnestly, in purple crayon. With the invention of social media--Twitter especially--Lena found a whole new way to connect with her favorite group. And in the past few weeks, the band has been hinting at some major announcement. Their biggest fans--Lena and her best friend, Greg, included--are all a flutter. 

Lena never suspects, on a random Tuesday in November, that her life is about to take a rapid turn from cubicles and coffee runs to road trips and potential romance. And it all boils down to one Twitter contest, a girl's undying love for a boy, and the opportunity of a lifetime. 

That's the general idea of the book. A jacket-cover insert, if you will.

So, if we're keeping score here, I have a completed first draft, a title, a jacket cover insert, and a dedication page (already written but not to be shared here.) So, if I'm doing my math correctly, all that leaves is finding a publisher.

Ahem.

It's not purple crayon, but it's still a love letter, readers. I swear.

Summer of Dreams

I feel like I should probably issue an apology to those of you who follow my Twitter feed. Normally, I'm all like "Hey, go read this blog!" and "You guys are awesome!" and "This totally made me laugh!" 

But this past Tuesday, an announcement was made that was so big, so MONUMENTAL, that it changed the course of my Tweeting in a nano-second.

If you were reading along, you know exactly what I'm talking about. If not, here's a quick refresher course:

For those who don't speak hashtag, let me explain a little further. The New Kids on the Block---the band I've been obsessed with since I was 9 years old, dancing around my room in a tutu and tennis shoes---made an appearance on The View. 

That, in an of itself, is reason enough to get me all giddy. But the reality is that they'd been tweeting since before Christmas that there was a BIG announcement coming in 2013. And they did not disappoint. Not only did the group announce a brand new album, hitting stores in April, but they also announced a brand new North American tour!!

And they're not going alone.

OH no, friends and neighbors, they're making this the Biggest Boy Band Lollapalooza in All the Land.

They're taking Boyz 2 Men AND 98 Degrees with them!!!

(Pause for a moment of silence while you peruse the following photo:)

The insanity can be found HERE.

(Children of the 90s, rejoice!)

When I realized I was going to have another opportunity to see the group perform, I sort of lost my mind. Which created an even bigger Twitter monster:

That little snippet was only the tip of the ice berg, people. 

And if you'll notice the second tweet...

Then you'll understand why THIS is the face I've been making since Tuesday:

(I tried making this photo black and white in order to make it less scary. I don't think it worked, though.)

My gal pal, Jenn, jumped on the concert band wagon as soon as I started going berserk on my personal Facebook page. She's been gung-ho to go to a concert with me since we met a few years ago. And she's the perfect New Kids friend, because SHE'S a Joey girl, and I'm a Donnie girl.

So it will work out well when we meet the guys. There will be no competition for our favorite Kid's affections. Right, Jenn?

Anyway, Jenn and I both have birthdays in June, and as it happens, the concert is making a stop in Charlotte on June 19. And guess who's going?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

(If you didn't guess Jenn and me, then you're not very good at this game.)

Now for the kismet part of this whole thing. I've only been to one New Kids concert in my whole life. It was in 1990, not too long after my 9th birthday, at the Charlotte Coliseum. I'll finally get to see them again, in 2013, 6 days after my 32nd birthday, at the same coliseum.

GOOSE BUMPS!!!!

With all that excitement in June, I don't know how I'm going to handle the added excitement of attending my very first Comic-Con in July!!!?!?

Oh, yes. Brian and I have been planning a trip to San Diego for 2013 since he started nursing school. It's our big "Hooray for Life Changes" vacation, and we are totally pumped. While they haven't started making formal announcements of all the nerdy-type fun there will be at this year's event, we are hoping for a Big Bang Theory panel, something involving Joss Whedon, and most importantly, Doctor Who and Transformer stuff. 

But there will be a whole separate post about that. Because c'mon. It's COMIC-CON.

I just don't know what to do with myself, readers. All this excitement, jam-packed into one season? It really will be the summer of dreams.

The End (For Real This Time) -- An Abby Gabs Video Blog

If you're still able to use a computer, and you want to see this video blog, but are having a hard time viewing it here, point your browser to: http://youtu.be/pYAgkhTAols

Thanks for watching!

Woooooo! Zzzzz...

Where in the cotton-pickin' world have I been lately?

Good question, readers.

You see, I've had a lot of folks ask me just what takes so darn long between one post and another. Well, folks, there are a couple of answers for the time lapse as of late. And they are as follows:

I've been busy decorating for Christmas.

Because what's the point of having a New Kids on the Block shelf
if I don't get to decorate it with tiny Santa hats and a teeny tree?

I've been blowin' up Pinterest with fun and festive holiday ideas.

Because we're so broke, everyone in my family will be lucky
to get these candles instead of a pair of socks for Christmas this year!

I've been helping Brian plan for his big graduation from nursing school on 12/12/12.

He has to wear a tux,  y'all!!!

I've been wishing my pal, Arielle, a happy birthday in a most-Laverne inspired way.

Arielle is a Leo girl all the way (particularly Leonardo Circa Titanic.)

I think that about covers it. I mean, that's how I've been spending most of my free time. But I feel like there was something else....

...oh, right, I've been WRITING A BOOK SINCE NOVEMBER 1st!

That's right! I did it! I completed the 50,000 words necessary to win NaNoWriMo 2012. Paired with last year's half-manuscript, I now have almost 250 pages worth of book. I don't know about you, but that's a serious reason to throw around confetti.

The only problem? Things have been so busy (and stressful) around here lately that I haven't had much time to really think about my major accomplishment. I actually finished Nano on Monday, after an 11,000 word marathon on Saturday afternoon. (Yes, I actually meant to include that many zeros.) I finalized my word count, posted on Facebook that I was all finished, and then promptly went to sleep.

Hence, my big celebratory WOOHOO!!! moment was actually more like WooZZzzzzzz.....

But the good news is that now that I've wrapped up the intense writing of NaNo, it frees me up to start blogging regularly again. Hooray for December! And oh, boy do I have some awesome posts coming up.

(None of which are as awesome as the one my friend, Leslie, wrote over on The Bearded Iris today. Especially if you're a fan of Dancing with the Stars. Seriously. If you need a laugh, go read it. I promise. It's awesome.)

So bust out the signs, readers! Balloons are welcome, too! And if there are enough of you to line up and do the wave, I'd be most appreciative. Because I am officially a NaNoWriMo 2012 Winner!!!

Three Love Letters for the Price Of One

Dear Donnie Wahlberg,

It has been awhile since your name has been mentioned here on Abby Gabs. And I feel like I owe you an explanation. You see, a few months ago, my husband made the statement that he felt like my blog was more often a "Donnie Wahlberg Featurette" than anything else. He felt slighted that he was rarely mentioned in my daily writings, where you, dear Donnie, were always front and center.

This little statement led to a blog-wide stat counting endeavor, which led to the eventual score board you can see in the left-hand column of my blog. (Just scroll down a bit...yep...there it is.)

As you can see, Brian was sorely mistaken. Although I wrote your name quite frequently, Donnie, his was still mentioned the most. (May I interject that this in no way represents how I feel about you!)

Since the contest was issued in July, you have only been mentioned once--on August 21, 2012, also known as National First Twug Day (the first time you "twugged" me on Twitter.) (Thanks again for that, by the way. It made my whole summer.) (Can we do it again soon?)

But I have to tell you, Mr. Wahlberg, that despite my lack of blogging in your name, I have nonetheless been spending plenty of time with you (whether you realize it or not.) I'm still faithfully tweeting almost every day...

I haven't missed an episode of Blue Bloods yet, and was parked in front of my TV for September's season premiere...

I've been rockin' out to The Block---in my car, at my computer, in the kitchen while cooking dinner, through my iPod while I'm working out---and even though it's been 4 years, I still shake my bootie just like I did back in 2008...

And as of yesterday, my nose has been permanently stuck between the pages of the new NKOTB biography, "Five Brothers and A Million Sisters." (I read the first chapter last night, and cried no less than 3 times.)

So, Donnie, I just wanted to reassure you that, although I haven't written about you lately here on Abby Gabs, I'm still very much a Donnie Girl. My husband knows this, as when he goes to bed each night, the last face he sees is yours.

I know you're a busy guy, and you probably didn't even notice. But I thought it would be nice to send you a letter today to let you know that you're still very much a part of the Abby Gabs household, even if I haven't blogged about you in awhile. (Brian says it's psychological warfare, because I'm trying to prove a point by writing about him more than you. I say I'm trying to maintain a relationship with a man who's jealous of your animal magnetism.)

Love always and forever,
Abby

PS: This blog is totally a point in your column. Oh yeah! Rock it!!

♥     ♥     ♥     ♥     ♥

Dear Brian,

I love you to the moon and back with a bushel and a peck and a hug around the neck, no take back, oodles and oodles, to infinity and beyond, the end that's all folks.

Love your slightly crazy wife,

Abby

♥     ♥     ♥     ♥     ♥
Dear Faithful Reader,
Did you happen to notice that I'm wearing a pink ribbon today, in honor of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month?

Can you see it?

Well guess what...I'm not just sporting a pink ribbon on my shirt. Every single facet of Abby Gabs is donned in pink---and it's easy for you to join me! Just click on the tab at the top of the page titled "Web Wide Pink Out" and you'll find a TON of free graphics to use on your Twitter account, Facebook timeline, and more!  I would love you even more than I already do if you helped me on my mission to turn the internet pink in October. ♥♥♥
Have a beautiful Friday.
Love, Abby

My Hair, Some Advertising, and a Little Donnie Wahlberg-Husband Rivalry

A couple of months ago, I mentioned that I was considering changing my hairstyle. I'm proud to announce, after approximately 12 weeks, that I'm making some not-so-significant-but-still-some-slight progress. I always knew growing out a pixie was going to be challenging. But so far, I'm pretty pleased with the results.

I love how it started doing this "woohoo" flippy thing in the front:

And I love being able to use all the cute hair accessories I've purchased to keep my hair out of my face:

This one was taken about 3 weeks ago. See how much it's grown since then??

However, after having a pixie cut for almost 5 years now, there are certain things I'm having to get used to again when it comes to having longer locks. Like hair touching my ears:

And what I'm referring to as my Elvis side burns:

Granted, those few little things will be tamed when I visit my friend and stylist, LeAnn, tomorrow. But at some point, the snipping here and there to tame the beast won't be able to contain those puppies, and I will have to don some gold sparkly glasses just to get my shopping done incognito.

The one thing I'm really struggling with, though, is a habit I formed as a young child. When I am focused on something (writing, reading, Doctor Who on BBC America) I tend to play with my hair. It's totally involuntary, and I really don't even know I'm doing it half the time. But there I'll be, minding my own business, and somehow my hands wind up in my hair.

Truly, it's not such a terrible habit. The problem is when I do it during the day. Because inevitably, after about an hour, I go from looking like a normal, mostly-coiffed Abby, to something more along the lines of Medusa in glasses.

Source

Not only do I look weird, but I've actually suffered a hair-play injury, involving a pinched nerve in my neck, due to my overzealous twirling of late. And so my husband has been given the assignment to help me remember to STOP playing with my hair. Now he walks around the house randomly shouting "HAIR!" and "Arms down, missy!" 

I swear I'm not making this up. Everything I publish here is true. Mostly.

Anywhoo, I'm excited to see what the next 12 weeks will bring. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I lose the Elvis look by Christmas. It'll happen. I just know it.

IN OTHER NEWS...
Those of you who are observant will have noticed that my BlogHer ads are live as of today! (Those of you who aren't observant will now scroll up to see what they missed. It's ok, you can go peek. We'll wait for you....Back now? Awesome. Let's continue.) There were a few moments of confusion this morning as I tried to find my newly generated ad code on the BlogHer website, but with the help and support of my husband (who reminded me to breathe,) Alex from Late Enough (who sent me an email with more Abby-friendly instructions), and MoMo from Team BlogHer (who cheered me along like a pro), I finally got the ads installed. I think they look fantastic! And I'm super-excited to see what my association with BlogHer will bring in the future.

That being said, I'm still trolling for readers. The little contest I started last week brought a few new faces to my Abby Gabs Facebook Fan Page, but I still haven't broken 70 friends. So, spread the word, share the love, and pretend like all you REALLY want for Christmas is an Abby Gabs specialized portrait.

Lastly, a little shout out about a big thing that happened to me last week. I wished the ever-sexified Donnie Wahlberg a happy birthday via Twitter, and he totally hugged me.

The following conversation with my husband took place minutes later via text message:

A: I just got a Twitter hug from you-know-who.
B: Will Smith? The Doctor? DJ Jazzy Jeff? Voldemort? Justin Timberlake? That guy from the Backstreet Boys?
A: Noooooooo.
B: Mark Wahlberg?
A: Noooo, but you're closer.
B: The Funky Bunch?

And that, ladies and gentleman, is why I married him.

A Day of Stat-Keeping At Abby Gabs: The Man War Edition

My husband has always been my #1 Biggest Fan when it comes to my blog. In fact, just the other evening, he sat next to me on the couch, computer in his lap, and spent the better part of an hour sharing archived Abby Gabs with his friends on Facebook.

After sharing the links to some of his favorite "Brian" blogs, he abruptly closeed his laptop, cleared his throat, and turned to look at me. "Abby," he said, "I'm a little worried that the Donnie Wahlberg blogs are beginning to overshadow the Awesome Husband blogs."

Well, well.

"I think you need to institute some sort of scoreboard on your blog, to clearly depict how many blogs have been written about each of us. That'll keep you honest." Satisfied that he'd made his point, he turned back to watching the Olympics.

His little Man War diatribe got me thinking....maybe he's right. So I did what any dutiful wife/blogger would do. I pulled up my blog and went through EVERY SINGLE POST, tallying the number of blogs written about Brian, those written about Donnie, and those in which both are mentioned.

I have to admit. There are a lot of DW mentions.

So I decided to follow Brian's advice. But, before there could be a scoreboard, there had to be parameters for me to follow. Hence the following brief, but informative, interview:

With those rules in mind, I headed to the internet, certain that somewhere in the wide world of web, there would be SOMEONE who had created a completely customizable scoreboard widget. And that it would take me 10 minutes to whip one up and add it to the blog.


<Pause here for your laughter and scorn.>


In fact, there is not. Or if there is, I couldn't find it. And believe me when I say I looked. Hard. For about 5 hours.


So I decided to use my Photoshop skills to create a meme instead, which you will now see at the top right of the blog, until the end of time. I will do my BEST to update it as frequently as possible, so that Brian's insecurities will be regularly tamed. 


Without further ado, here are the current standings on Abby Gabs. Out of 318 posts, Brian has been mentioned (gushed about, turned into a super hero, generally canonized) 104 times. Donnie Wahlberg has been mentioned (and occasionally worshiped) 31 times. And they have both been mentioned in the SAME blog (without incident) 21 times.

There honey. See? I do love you best.

A Reason to Celebrate (In Two Parts)

There are moments in every blogger's life that are celebration-worthy. It may be reaching 100 readers, or a validating comment that makes your writer's soul soar, or writing that all-auspicious 250th post. And readers, yesterday I had one of those moments. And today I'd like to share it with you.


A little over a week ago, I shared my sadness at the lack of Donnie Wahlberg's social media activity of late. As usual, it was a tongue-in-cheek account of what it's like to be an uber-fan of someone you only get to interact with on the web. In the post, I mentioned that my summer has thus far been saved by daily doses of Donnie deliciousness thanks to fan-site  ThoseWahlbergMen.com. They've been on the web for over 10 years, and are 100% Donnie-approved. (He's done videos endorsing the site. Seriously.) While I haven't gotten to enjoy daily tweets, videos, and pictures posted by the man himself, the ladies over at TWM thrill me daily with photos like this one:

(on the set of Blue Bloods)

Well, I rarely write a glowing review about something (or someone) that I love without sharing. So, I reached out to TWM via Twitter and let them know about the blog. I was expecting a thank-you (cuz these ladies are pure class), I was hoping for a laugh. But what I couldn't have dreamed for was this:

Now, Abby Gabs has been shared by friends and family and husbands alike over the last year and a half. But this may be the first time in my blog's history that it's been shared to such a large and diverse audience. TWM's Facebook page has 4,791 fans. And we all have one major thing in common---our unending infatuation adoration of Mark and/or Donnie Wahlberg.

My first reaction, when seeing the shared link, was to giddily think to myself, "OMG! I might gain some new readers from this!!! Hooray for me!"


Then my Uber-And-Slightly-Crazed-Donnie-Fan took over, and I was all like...

When I regained consciousness, I jumped into mega-thank-you mode, and began the celebration by telling EVERYONE I KNOW what TWM had done for me. As the congratulations started rolling in, I got another awesome surprise from a fellow Block Head (the nickname given to die-hard New Kids fans.) Meet Selena:

Isn't she lovely, ya'll?

Selena reached out to let me know that she's working hard to raise money for a foundation that's close to my heart--The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. And, like a true Donnie girl, she knows the best way to rake in cash hand-over-fist: by offering a contest where the winner gets some swag with a half-naked Donnie on it. 


Uh, yeah. I'm all in. *insert stupid-excited grin*


Here's how it works:


Point your browser to Selena's Page on the Susan G. Komen website, click on the "Donate to Selena" button, and make a donation of at least $5. When you do that, you'll be automatically entered to win a 2013 Donnie Wahlberg wall calendar AND an awesome DDUB t-shirt, both from ThoseWahlbergMen.com.

Here's what your shirt will look like. You'll have to
work at not drooling on the front while wearing the shirt.
Good luck with that.

Selena will announce the winner on August 1, 2012. She says she'll send the prizes any where in the world, so don't hesitate to enter!! You'll be donating to an amazing and worthy cause, helping a terrific gal out in the process, and let's not forget the hotness that is the grand prize. I know I'LL be entering. Won't you join me?


In the meantime, I'll be camped out in front of my computer, checking my blog stats like the criminally insane, and watching for the all important "click" that may come from the man himself. There may be cruellers and coffee involved. Like a full-blown cop-style stakeout. Except with no guns.


Except for Donnie's. 

Oh, man. That was bad.

The Life of a Celebrity's Pretend Girlfriend

It's been a lonely, lonely summer. The big-time romance with my famous boyfriend, Donnie Wahlberg, is going a little stale. I've been doing my part, faithfully Twitter-stalking him on my many electronic devices. 

But alas, he's nowhere to be found.


It's a sad, sad state of affairs. You see, once upon a time, my Twitter feed would light up on an almost-hourly basis with Tweets from my sweetie. There were pictures from the set of Blue Bloods, updates on his fellow band mates, tweets from the road. I miss his silly videos, like this one:




And his daily bits of encouragement, which his fans have started calling WOWs (or words of wisdom.) My favorite of all time (so far)?

Because he used a hyphen, and made up a word. And it is flat-out adorable.

Each morning I dash to my computer, hoping that he's surfaced for a quick Twitter chat. And each time my Twitter feed is empty, I feel a little bit sadder. But my love for him runs so deep, that despite his lack of Twitter activity lately, I continue to go back. Holding my breath. Hoping for more. Sigh.

In my mind, I know he just came off of a huge world tour (Europe, Australia, South America, Mexico.) They also just finished up with the 2012 New Kids on the Block Cruise. (If you love me, you'll give me the eleventy-billion dollars it costs so I can go next year.) I know he's probably taking a much-deserved vacation, relaxing on some remote beach somewhere, soaking up the sunshine and adoration of the women of a nearby village.

But that doesn't make me miss him any less.

Thankfully, there's a whole mess of Donnie's girlfriends out there in the world, and in an act of sisterly solidarity, we've been keeping one another abreast of his comings and goings. We tweet, we Facebook, we upload pictures to Twitpic and Instagram. The most organized of us got together and created the MOST AWESOME WEBSITE EVER. Those Wahlberg Men dot com are solely responsible for the epicness that is my Donnie Wahlberg desk calendar.

It's swoon-worthy on a daily basis.

They also keep my Donnie mania quenched by posting some of the most excellent fan pics I've ever seen in my life. While I wasn't able to be on the boat with all the other "Block Heads" this summer, with the help of Those Wahlberg Men, I almost felt like I was there thanks to photos like this one:

It leaves me speechless.

And so, though I've thought about ending it, though it's been on-again-off-again, and though I'm on the verge of insanity from the loneliness, I'll stick it out. I will keep pounding the proverbial pavement in the virtual world that is the Twitterverse. It takes a lot of work being a celebrity's pretend girlfriend. But I'll keep it up. Because I could never turn my back on those abs.

Thanks to the moderators at Those Wahlberg Men dot com for the awesome swag, photos, band updates and more! You guys rock!!