Spies of the Empire State: The Legend of Elizabeth Grace GBE2 #60

Beth, our fearless leader (of the GBE2 group) and all-around favorite word nerd, went on sabbatical for the month of July.  She said she needed to step away from the internet to gain some much needed clarity and perspective.  She said that she wanted to spend more time with her family and pursue some of her non-internet related interests.

Well...I am here to tell you that her story is HOGWASH!!

I'm sure that when Beth made her plans for the month of July, she wasn't expecting to find herself here in upstate New York.  I'm also sure that, even though she can clearly see on my Facebook profile that I live a mere fifteen miles south of the Empire State's capital city, she wasn't expecting to see me.

Or should I say...she wasn't expecting ME to see HER. 

It was a rare moment for me.  I was alone and I had a spare ten bucks in my pocket!  That never actually happens almost never happens.  I was feeling a little sluggish and decided that a refreshing caffeinated refreshment was just what I needed.

I spied a cute coffee shop and said to myself:  Self, no one knows you have this extra ten bucks.  What better way to spend it than to buy an overpriced, over-caloried coffee drink!  You can sit and people watch for a few minutes before you head back to town and into the insanity of summer vacation.

My inner monologue is notoriously talented at getting me to do it's bidding.

I bought my coffee and sat at a table facing the street.  The hustle and bustle of downtown Albany proved to be perfect entertainment.  I was truly enjoying this moment that was all mine.

A chime above the door alerted me that someone had entered the coffee shop.  Being the nosy gal that I am, I looked up to see who had entered and I could NOT believe my eyes.  I knew that Beth was taking July off from online activities, but boy oh boy...when August rolled around I was sure going to tell her about her New York look-alike!!  

That's when I heard a man say "Beth, I'm so glad that you made it here safely."  Oh my goodness!!  This woman's name was Beth too??!!  I was certain that Beth would find this story very amusing.  

I turned around just in time to see her give a warm, friend like hug to a man who...wait for it...looked just like Johnny Depp!!  I rubbed my eyes.  I did that thing where you try to look at people without actually appearing like you are looking.  They sat down at a table near mine, which made eavesdropping that much easier.

I had to text Jeff and let him know that I'd be late getting home.  I HAD to investigate this.  He would totally understand.

"Johnny, I'm so glad that you could find time out of your busy schedule to come give me my next assignment personally."

 

"Oh Beth, it's nothing really.  Movie companies are using Albany frequently for filming because it's cheaper than New York City.  It's natural that I could be here."

 

What??  I could not believe my ears.  Well, the part about Albany being in the movies is true...but...what kind of assignment was Johnny Freaking Depp giving Elizabeth Grace?  To say that I was intrigued was an understatement.

He pulled a thick manila envelope out the bag at his feet and slid it across the table.  Beth opened it and out plopped what appeared to be a passport and other forms of identification.  I couldn't see what they said but the items looked authentic enough to me.

Beth grinned across the table at Johnny and took a sip of her coffee.  "How long have we been at this?  It feels like forever.  No one has ever suspected a thing."

Johnny chuckled.  "It has been forever, Bethie.  Or at least since I was doing Jump Street.  The assignment is a simple one...just some basic surveillance...with photos and a report, of course"

Beth, looked over the documents and pondered everything for a moment.  "It won't take too long, will it?  The Hubs and I have plans for the rest of July...a road trip to nowhere."

"It'll just be a week or so.  You're going to Italy this time.  Do you think you can handle it?"

Beth downed her coffee and looked at Johnny with a mischievous gleam in her eye.  She gathered up her identification and stuffed it into her oversized purse.

"Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy..."  she said.

 And she was out the door.

Random Questions on a Lazy Saturday Morning

I have no school this morning! *happy dance* 

Clinicals are on break for a few weeks.  I do have one class later this afternoon, but it's only for ninety minutes.  I'm pretty psyched about my mini 'vacation'.

But....I'm not used to having so much free time on my hands on a Saturday.....

Then I saw that over at  Word Nerd Speaks (my favorite blog), readers were invited to answer some random questions.  Score!  Now I have something to do as I laze about this morning :)

1.  Using what's in your fridge right now, what sort of meal would you be able to make for guests knocking on your door this very minute?
I'd like to believe that anybody that's coming for a visit would have the courtesy to call first--so I could be better prepared for them.  But if I did have to throw a meal together for these rude no-callers...it would probably be pasta and salad.  I have plenty of pasta in my pantry, ingredients to put together some "semi-homemade" sauce, and some random salad veggies in my fridge.  Oh, and I also have a bag of shredded mozzarella--we could have baked ziti.

2.  What is something about yourself that you hope will change but probably never will?
I would love to be more organized.  I envy people who have systems and special tricks to keep things in order.  I admire how neat and polished things look when everything is in it's own place.  I've tried--I really have!  I bought containers, folders--whatever I thought was necessary to get my spaces in shape.  It starts off well enough but in no time at all I'm back to the chaos. 

3.  What is something about yourself that you hope will never change?
I don't feel my age at all.  I don't know if it's that I'm "young at heart" or I'm in some sort of denial.  I might be about to hop on the expressway to the big 4-0...but I honestly feel like I'm barely coming up on thirty.  I can't help but think that this mindset will be helpful as the numbers keep rising.  A positive outlook keeps you young, right???

4.  Do you usually send serious or funny greeting cards and why?
I prefer funny greeting cards.  Of course, I'd never send a funny card to someone who is gravely ill or has just lost a loved one, but overall I think funny is the way to go.  However, I normally don't send funny cards to my mother.  If you knew my mom, you'd understand.  I really don't think that she would appreciate my sense of humor--at all.  I laugh at the same things twelve year old boys do.  She has the sense of humor of the 72-year old that she's about to be.  I always send very thoughtful and sentimental cards to her.

5.  Bird watching, shell gathering, or star-gazing--your choice for whiling away the hours?
What?  No option for the internet?  Come on now, that's how my hours are whiled away!  Well that and books, TV, and makeup.  Birds do not interest me (although I do like to listen to them sing in the morning while I'm still in bed).  There are no beaches here and, seriously, the beach is OUTDOORS...IN NATURE.  Nature isn't really my thing.  Plus, I'm so pale that I'd get burned out there faster than you could say shell-gathering.  Star-gazing it is! 

6.  Do you double or triple-check things?  If so, what?
Only one thing I can think of.  My car keys.  I have a 'fear' of locking my keys in the car.  I will check my purse and pants pockets at least three times before I'll lock the car doors. 

7.  What's your favorite place for people watching?
I want to say everywhere.  I am a notorious people-watcher.  What they're doing....what they're wearing...how they're behaving....you name it, I want to observe it.  But, if I had to pick a favorite it would be a tie between a restaurant and the checkout line at the grocery store.  Why?  Because I think the types of food people choose can say tons about them.

8.  Insert your own random thought here.I'm really glad that I've started blogging again.  I know that I don't blog (on either of my blogs) with enough regularity, but I really enjoy it and I feel very fortunate that people actually stop by and read what I've written.  I may not have a ton of followers, but just to know that what I do here is appreciated (even the smallest little bit) really makes my day!  Oh and I checked my stats for the first time... and was surprised to learn that more people are reading than following.  So to those readers who are in hiding....come on make a girls day even brighter....click the follow button! 

Have a great weekend everybody and if you're bored like me this morning...take a stab at these questions!