Post-choreography. So hot.

Fact: In my younger days, I took 5 years of jazz dance classes. We’re talking sequins, spandex, and hair with enough AquaNet to withstand a tornado. The whole nine.

Last night, yours truly was thrust into the dancing world once again, as part of The White Hot Happening at the National Ballet’s White Hot Gala. After some incredible performances by newly promoted members of the company, as well as retiring dancer Chan Hon Goh, it was time to grab a martini and bust a few moves of my own.

And how on earth did I manage that? Like most of my crazy adventures, it was sort of by accident…

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Has it really been a week since I went to The Hour? Time is seriously flying by. I mean, June? Really? How did that happen?

Anyhoo, back to The Hour. If you live in the GTA and want a great way to spend a few hours one afternoon, I highly recommend checking out a taping. Tickets are free, which makes for one very budget-friendly outing. George and Bradley Cooper in the same room, and I didn’t have to sell a kidney to be there? Life is good.

If you’re not familiar with Bradley Cooper, here is a sampling of his resume: Guest appearance on Sex and the City, “Will Tippin” on Alias (<3), The d-bag boyfriend in Wedding Crashers, The d-bag husband in He’s Just Not That Into You, and most recently, part of the hilarious cast of The Hangover (which opens June 5, and I can’t wait to see it.)

Highlights from the taping: Yours truly made it just in time, thanks to some stunning performances by the TTC. (Tangent: Why is it so hard to get a damn bus out here? I mean, really. Nothing comes for 20 minutes, and then? TWO buses going the exact same way show up simultaneously. I like a good surprise as much as the next girl, but not when it comes to public transit, thankyouverymuch.) So, being the last one in the studio, I got a chair right on the end of the aisle, meaning that in the intimate setting that is The Hour, Bradley Cooper (who my friend Sarah has dubbed “very lickable”) could have easily tripped over my purse on his way to the stage. Wouldn’t that have been lovely? “Random Girl Trips Will Tippin, Breaks His Handsome Leg.” Thankfully, that did not happen. Totally charming, very funny… Great interview. (And if you missed the awesome interview, you should absolutely check it out here.)

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While everyone may be buzzing about The Oscars right now, I’ve always been more of a Grammy kind of girl. I love the performances, the acceptance speeches, the crazy collaborations… it’s just a great night for a music junkie like myself. And tonight’s 2009 Grammy Awards certainly did not disappoint. Here are my Top 5 highlights of the night:

5.  A very pregnant MIA
When you can rock a see-through top and dance around stage the day that you’re due to give birth… You get some serious respect. At the same time, though, her baby may be scarred for life after sharing a stage with a fugitive, an American Gangster, a closet bowling fanatic… and Kanye West. (I kid, I kid.)

4. Jennifer Hudson
What a year Jennifer Hudson has had. She snagged the first award of the night, her performance was simply beautiful. Understandably emotional, but she is one very strong woman. If you missed her tonight, you can check out the video here.

3. Kanye’s Mullet
I’m from Oshawa, so you’d think that a mullet would not surprise me very much, but you’d be wrong. I can handle the single glove, the high tops and even the crazy sunglasses, Kanye. It’s cool.  But the mullet is one trend I am begging you not to resurrect. Please. Think of the children.

2. Lil Wayne’s acceptance speech for Best Rap Album
I’ve been all about Lil Wayne all week, thanks to his fantastic interview with Katie Couric. At first I was thinking, “who are all these people?” but then I realized that Lil Wayne is just incredibly efficient. Rather than list of a bunch of random names, he could simply say “I’d like to thank these people right here.” My love of Lil Wayne now knows no bounds. And his performance? Excellent.

1. John Mayer’s live updates on Twitter
Okay, yes, I am biased. I think we all know the level of my appreciation for John Mayer. But I just think it’s so damn cool that in 2009, as I’m hanging out in flannel PJs, watching the Grammy Awards on TV, I’m also reading live Twitter updates from one of my favourite artists who happens to be at the very event I’m watching. (Props to BlackBerry, too. Sorry I was such a hater back in 2006.)

I also HAVE to mention how happy I am that Adele took home a few awards this year. Her album, 19, is phenomenal. If you haven’t heard it, head on over to her MySpace page and check it out. Brilliant!

Now, hit me… What were your favourite moments of the 2009 Grammy Awards?

So, here’s the thing… I’m kind of (really) addicted to books. Fiction, non-fiction, biographies, how to rule-the-world-in-30-days, you name it and it might already be on one of my many over-stocked shelves. I love books like some women love shoes – they just cost less and look a lot more awkward when I strap them to my feet.

When I was in university, reading books was practically my sole mission in life (a dream come true when you’re a major bookworm) since I was working on a BA in English Literature. The only down side was that if it wasn’t on a syllabus, I didn’t have time for it… So now I have a lot of catching up to do. Like figuring out who this Harry Potter chap is, anyway.

Now that I’m on the path to life as a bona-fide “grown-up” (eek!), I’ve found that I don’t make nearly as much time for my books as I used to. It’s like a great friendship that’s drifted over the years – we started hanging out less and less, and before I knew it, they weren’t returning my calls. Or e-mails. Or singing candygrams.

But, it’s a whole new year, and in 2009 I’m determined to get my relationship with books back on track. I hope to work my way through quite a stack this year – new titles, old must-reads and a few classics for good measure. Here are a few new finds that I’m really looking forward to:

• The Optimist: One Man’s Search for the Brighter Side of Life by Laurence Shorter
• Rockabye: From Wild to Child by Rebecca Woolf 
• Zen Wrapped in Karma Dipped in Chocolate by Brad Warner
• Down to This: Squalor and Splendour in a Big-city Shantytown by Shaughnessy Bishop-Stall
• Breakfast at Tiffany’s by Truman Capote

Fact #9482156 about me: I am a huge John Mayer fan.

Now, I mean “fan” in the sense that I really enjoy his music and own every CD he’s released to date. I’m not lurking in the bushes outside his house, or hoping that he’ll let me have his baby. That falls under the category of “stalker of biblical proportions.” Plus, it’s just plain creepy. So take note, the Mayer Love is rooted firmly in music. The fact that I find him to be an attractive man is really just a bonus…

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I’ve come to an important conclusion: I either need to swear off Jen Lancaster novels, or stop being so nice to total strangers.

Kicking my Lancaster habit is unlikely to happen any time soon, as all three of her novels are on my Summer Reading list. It’s just toting them around in public that seems to get me into trouble… and by “trouble” I mean “hopelessly awkward situations with random men I’ve never met before.”

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So, I’m flicking through TV channels today, taking one of my (somewhat infamous) procrastination breaks, when I’m confronted with an image of bumper cars riding around in an Always Dri Weave.

Seriously. Bumper cars. Dri Weave. I couldn’t make this up even if I tried…

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