I'm super...thanks for asking

I'm no longer yours and you're no longer mine. *

2012-02-16T19:29:00.000-05:00

So, I like to go MIA every once in a while. Keeps you guys wanting more (or, just makes you not bother to come back...either or). Let's see, what fun things happened while I was gone...

I went shopping with my mom the other weekend and bought some shoes. My mom critiqued all my choices and told me that I had fat feet in them. (Ok, she didn't REALLY say they WERE fat, just said they LOOKED fat in certain shoes). Irritatingly, she was correct. So, I apparently have fat feet now as well. Boo.
I had a fight with a friend on Friday and I was very irritated. And, I left work at the worst time and didn't feel like sitting in traffic (especially while irritated), so I went to the outlets. Retail therapy. Spent WAY too much money, but I bought a bunch of shirts (none of which has any argyle...I wear too much argyle).
I worked at the flower store again this past weekend (ugh Valentine's Day). I had a new all time low. Married guy came in. Bought flowers for his wife, nicer flowers for his girlfriend, then proceeded to ask me out to dinner. Sigh. My faith in healthy relationships is dwindling more and more.
I signed up for the half marathon in Seattle in June. (One of my best friends from high school, we like to call her Seattle's Best, lives there and I can't wait to visit). I'm a little less excited to be running. Why do I keep signing up for these things???
I'm also planning a trip with Figgs to go to Prague, Budapest, and possibly Vienna this May. I'm SO EXCITED! This is hopefully going to be a good year for traveling!

I think I've caught you up on the good in my life. I'll catch you up on the suck later.

*Missy Higgins

Jewelry...

2012-02-09T08:12:00.001-05:00

I finally got around to taking pictures of some of the jewelry I made the other night. Some of it I think is actually really pretty. Some of it I feel kind of meh about. And at least one thing is hideous to me. I will be redoing at least one...

So, I'm posting this from my phone and took pictures with my phone, so won't be the prettiest.

Earrings. I actually kind of really like these. Simple. Nothing exciting. But kind of pretty.

Upside down necklace (I have NO IDEA why my phone started flipping the images as I was taking the picture). It matches the above earrings. I actually have worn this a few times and have gotten A LOT of compliments on it. Apparently it looks better in person than in the picture :-)

Then, there's this necklace. It's a wooden pendant, so I used all wood beads and such. I am torn if I like this or not.

This is actually SO MUCH PRETTIER in real life. The color is a beautiful sea green pearl. With matching earrings. I really love this set.

Then, there's these earrings, that I actually kind of really like. They're different. But the necklace that goes with it. Barf. I will definitely not be wearing it. It will get re-made, no doubt.

Just another Manic Monday*

2012-02-06T21:19:00.001-05:00

I had a bit of a blah day at work day. So, I went to Wegmans on the way home. Sadly, my surefire way of cheering myself up didn't work!

I walked around the whole store and only bought some oatmeal and a pepino melon. That's just sad! I just had no desire to buy any nice produce or fresh meat/fish. Sad face. You know it must be bad if even a trip to wegmans didn't cheer me up.

However, I'm currently listening to oscar snore up a storm, and it's pretty freaking adorable. It's kind of working. :)

I also had a lovely weekend. I saw JH and SH, and we saw Midnight Mosaic play in Hoboken. It was so nice seeing JH AND SH. It's been way too long since I've seen them, and it was awesome that SH found the time to come all the way from Brooklyn to see us. Always nice to feel the love from your friends. :)

Then, the super bowl party at J's house was fun and lots of yummy food. Good times had by all (except the whole Giants winning part...).

Anyways, if only today could have been as fun as the weekend. Hope everyone else had a better Monday!

*The Bangles

Ugh

2012-02-02T22:32:00.001-05:00

I am in a slightly rant-y mood. I apologize for any rampant abuse of the Caps Lock button. And the curses. There will probably be some of that.

Susan G Komen Foundation can kiss my ass (or is it more appropriate to say, can kiss my uterus in this situation?). I would like to thank Karen Handel for inspiring me to become a yearly donater to Planned Parenthood in her honor. I am SO SICK of my health being a political issue. And I'm even SICKER of poor women bearing the majority of the brunt of this politicalization (And this has NOTHING to do with abortions in any way, shape, or form, so please don't even try to use that argument).

However, from now on, every month, Karen Handel will receive a postcard from Planned Parenthood letting her know someone donated to Planned Parenthood in her honor and I hope she gets a million of these every month. If anyone else wants to donate on her behalf:

               Karen Handel Susan G Komen Foundation
               PO Box 650309
               Dallas, TX 75265

Argh this whole situation has had me in SUCH A BAD MOOD all day. I can't even begin to express my full rage at this. Just, at a loss.

So, I can't believe I am quoting this, but, seriously, he says it best:

"Politics have no place in health care. Breast cancer screening saves lives and hundreds of thousands of women rely on Planned Parenthood for access to care," Bloomberg said in a statement. "We should be helping women access that care, not placing barriers in their way."

J is not a jerk ;)

2012-01-30T10:15:00.000-05:00

Update to yesterday's post:

I in no way was implying my sister J was a jerk. She DID offer to let me stay and watch a stupid movie with her. It was just not what I was in the mood to do. :-P I was too grumpy for that. :)

Everything is ok, everything is fine*

2012-01-29T23:16:00.001-05:00

I hope everyone had a great weekend. Mine was moments of fun interspersed with moments of suckitude. Meh, can't win them all.

On Friday, my work laptop took a crap and pretty much decided it didn't need to work anymore. So, I spent the day in the IT department trying to get either a loaner computer or get set up on a desktop. However, they couldn't find my user identity anywhere on the servers (apparently I don't exist), so it took pretty much all day to finally get transferred to a loaner laptop. Unfortunately, said laptop has weird firewall settings and I couldn't access our work servers remotely, so I had to go to the office this weekend to make up for not doing anything I needed to on Friday.

But, to make it a happier day, my friend RN came to visit (I haven't seen him in about 8 years), and it was so great to see him and catch up. We kept it low key. Just went to Iron Hill, and had some yummy food and beers. Then we hung out a bit at home (and he helped me finally put together my guest bed). It was really nice.

Saturday, I spent the morning in the office while RN slept, then we just kind of went around to different places. I made him run errands to Target with me, then we checked out Trolley Square and Newark. I dropped him off st the train station that evening (kind of a short visit, but fun anyway).

Sunday I went back to the office and finished what I couldn't get done on Saturday. I was kind of grumpy for multiple reasons (work and personal). After work I stopped by J's house to see if she wanted to hang out for a bit, but no dice, so I just went home and was grumpy on my lonesome.

I made a bunch of necklaces and earrings while home (at least I am a productive grump). I'll try and post some pictures tomorrow.

Soooo, all in all, just a pretty low key weekend. Hopefully this week will be a little more exciting. :)

*Phantom Planet - I was listening to this song super loud today on my way home from the office trying to convince myself I wasn't really grumpy.

And the ice kept getting thinner with every word that we'd speak*

2012-01-23T21:27:00.000-05:00

So, Austin hat and mittens? Are no longer hat and mittens. Sad face. They are currently hat and mitten. I have NO IDEA how I managed to lose one mitten ALREADY (literally, I couldn't even keep them for a week???).

I looked all over the office, I looked in my car, I even called the bar and no dice. There is no matching mitten to be found. Super sad face. But at least I still have my hat. I have enough yarn to make another mitten. I can't decide if I should just make a second mitten plain green (will anyone REALLY notice they are completely mismatched?).

Oh, first world problems. I has 'em.

Irritatingly, I have a lot going on right now, but nothing I feel comfortable writing about. So, I'm feeling a little boring and unsure what I should be writing.

What would everyone like me to talk about?

*Death Cab for Cutie (I think the universe is sending me a sad message. I swear everytime I am in the car, I only hear break up songs. I'm not even really dating anyone!)

Austin hat and mittens!

2012-01-18T22:43:00.000-05:00

So, I love this yarn. I NEEDED to buy it and make it into a hat. I'm not entirely sure I did the yarn justice with this hat. I feel like it may be a little plain, maybe needed to throw in some cables? However, it does look a lot cuter on my head than on my desk, and maybe I'll take a picture of that some other time, but for now, this is all you get.

I love the colors, the feel, the way the yarn is made. It is also ridiculously warm.

I ended up with a little bit of yarn left after making the hat. Not really enough to make anything out of it, but it seemed so wrong to waste any of it. So I made some mittens and used it for the cuffs.

I am not as enamored with these as I am with my hat. But they are still pretty cute (and also very warm).

So, I have my official souvenier from Austin. I couldn't be happier.

Austin!

2012-01-16T18:41:00.000-05:00

So, Austin was so much fun! I got there around dinner time on Friday, so, I found some cheap mexican food.

I am such a fan of Texas and the price of mexican food. This, was some carnitas tacos and chips for $4. SO MUCH FOOD. And it was soooo ridiculously yummy. Then, I went out and explored some bars downtown and I have to say, the girls in Austin still seem to be forgetting their pants everytime they leave their house. This seems to be a very long trend for them (it's been at least a year since the last time I was there).

Saturday, I woke up a bit late, and did a quick run (only about 2 miles), and tried to figure out what I was going to do for the day. Then, Baracus texted me, and we decided to go to the Salt Lick for lunch (how convenient to have a friend that lives in Austin).

I'm so lucky I don't live near this place, I swear, I'd have had a heart attack by age 25. SO. MUCH. MEAT.

Seriously, the ridiculous amounts of meat on this plate were just incredible.

Then, after lunch, we were driving back to Austin, and saw some signs for the Wizard Academy. And seriously, how can you pass the Wizard Academy and not explore???

So, we stopped, and drove up and explored, and it was not as exciting as one would think from something called the Wizard Academy. It was some weird campus for a marketing/advertising school that also had outdoor chapels with weird druid/christian influences. It was just bizarre. I attempted to take some pictures, but the sun was creating a weird glare, and I only had my phone with me, so it didn't work out so well. Boo.

Then, Baracus dropped me off at the hotel (practically in a food coma), and I decided to go walk around South Congress Ave to try and digest. I found a yarn store while there and the second I walked in, I saw this beautiful yarn that I was just COMPELLED to own. Then, I walked a little further in and found SOME MORE yarn that I just NEEDED to buy and make into a hat. It was weird. I can honestly say, I have never felt compelled to buy yarn like that. I usually just think it's pretty, or I think will make a fun project, but this yarn practically jumping off the shelf for me to take it home.

So, I have a new hat (working on matching mittens right now) that I will now call my Austin hat. I'll try and post pictures of the hat and mittens tomorrow. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this yarn.

Then, late that afternoon and again on Sunday, I went running around Ladybird trails (apparently there was a body found in the lake that these trails go around that day, but I was unaware of this at the time). Here are just some random pictures taken on the trails.

Blogger is being difficult again with the pictures. Sorry for the obnoxious layout.

Then, Sunday afternoon was spent at airports making my way home. This trip was aweswome.

Explained

2012-01-10T09:19:00.000-05:00

So, I apparently didn't really make myself clear in my post last night due to the concerned comments/emails people have made to me.

I'm not a complete moron. I DON'T think just because it's earlier than 9, I won't get attacked/whatever when I'm out running.

I still take as many precautions as I can. I go to nicer neighborhoods, I run where there are still people out and about, I don't use my headphones, I carry my phone, and I do my best to stay aware to all my surroundings and avoid dark corners, etc.

I was more trying to make a point that in the winter, it gets dark by 4:30PM, and if I wasn't able to go running in the dark, I'd be screwed. I already have hermit tendencies, and they'd just get even worse. So, I tell myself that 9 is my cut-off time, but I do have SOME reasoning in there.

What's the deal with my brain? Why am I so obviously insane?*

2012-01-09T21:48:00.000-05:00

Does anyone else have a completely ridiculous belief that you KNOW isn't true, but just believe in it anyway to make yourself feel better?

Example:

I believe that as long as I go running and get back home before 9PM, I'm perfectly safe running at any time of the day. Ha! I know for a fact this isn't true. I was accosted at least twice (maybe more?) in college running in broad daylight (luckily, I was a lot faster then), I know of someone that was attacked running at night, and I always manage to find the news stories about people shot, raped, kidnapped, whatever at various times of the day.

HOWEVER, I really don't get to run enough as it is for my mental sanity (and even joining a gym won't really help, because I can't run on a treadmill. Just can't do it) and, in the winter, the only time I get to run is after work, when it's dark.

Therefore, I've come up with the belief that as long as I can get home before 9, I'll be ok. Completely and utterly illogical I know, but without this belief, I'd become very hermit like and would probably just never leave the house.

So, I believe it anyway.

In case you couldn't tell, I went running today. I managed to squeeze in 4 miles before 9PM (got home at 8:52). I'm an idiot. If I complain to anyone tomorrow about how sore I am, I want you to point me to this post and remind me that I'm an idiot. I am really not up to 4 miles of running. I should be sticking with my 2-3. Especially when it's this cold out.

*Weezer

The roof, the roof, the roof is on fire*

2012-01-06T12:16:00.000-05:00

I mentioned in my last post that I have been feeling a bit meh lately. I've got some personal issues with people in my life, a little stressed at work, not running/exercising enough, and just generally being a bit snarky.

So, how do I fix this?

First thing, I booked a trip to Austin. I LOVE traveling. I love EVERYTHING about it. I love the searching for the best price on tickets. I love the BUYING of the tickets. I love reading about the places I'm going to be visiting. I love deciding if I am going to have a rigid schedule, or just play it by ear (I usually jsut play it by ear). I love the packing and the arriving at the airport and the flying. I just LOVE to travel. Even the hassles involved are just part of the experience (um, don't get me wrong, I'm not a fan of sitting around in an airport, but it's still part of the trip, so it makes it worth it).

Second thing. I'm joining a gym. It's about 15 minutes from work, so it's a little farther away from the office than I'd like (it's going to make lunch time workouts a little harder to do, but still doable). It's also on my way home, so I will still be able to go, even if I end up working late. I really need to run/exercise or I get VERY squirrely, and it's really hard for me to get out and run during the winter. So gym it is!

Third thing. I need to stop being stupid about certain things. I have some people in my life that are not good for my well being. I need to just toughen up and get rid of them and move on. (Easier said than done, I know. I really suck at being mean for my own good). I also need to figure out how to get rid of my freaking neighbor. SUCH A WHACK JOB. He really is a BIG part of the annoyance in my life. He is so freaking creepy.

So what else do people do to de-stress? I'm out of ideas already.

*Bloodhound Gang

Austin!

2012-01-05T08:16:00.000-05:00

I've been feeling kind of meh lately.

Nothing is particularly BAD, but at the same time, nothing is particularly GOOD either.

So, I do what always cheers me up. I booked an improptu trip to Austin for next weekend. Free hotel room if anyone feels like joining!

Still it's a real good bet, the best is yet to come*

2011-12-29T21:00:00.004-05:00

Good luck getting through this whole thing. I'm apparently really boring. :)

What did you do in 2011 that you’d never done before?
I went to Las Vegas. Does that count?

Did you keep your new year’s resolutions and will you make more for next year?
I hate resolutions. I rarely make them. I think I said something last year about cooking more, but meh. Once I moved to DE, that went out the window.

What countries did you visit?
The US and Costa Rica. I had a decent amount of trips in the US this year, but only the one out of the country.

What would you like to have in 2012 that you lacked in 2011?
Um, I would like a new Garmin. I didn't exactly LACK a Garmin this year, but I did for part of the year. So I'm counting that.

What dates from 2011 will remain etched upon your memory and why?
November 4 - just because
What was your biggest acheievement of the year?
I don't know that I really had any big acheivements. I guess finishing the half marathon with almost no training?

What was your biggest failure
Failing to train for the half marathon.

Did you suffer illness or injury
Nothing major.

What was the best thing you bought
A Garmin. I really miss it. I also love my nightstand.

Whose behavior merited celebration
Um, all my friends?

Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed
I really don't want to answer this.

Where did most of your money go
Savings, paying off my car, paying off credit cards, buying furniture, food. You know, typical boring stuff.

What song will always remind you of 2011
Party Rock Anthem by LMFAO

Compared to this time last year are you (a) happier or sadder? (b) thinner or fatter? (c) richer or poorer
Oy, I hate this question. I don't recall how I felt last year, but I'm guessing I'm happier, same-ish, richer.

What do you wish you’d done more of
I wish I had worked out more, cooked more once I moved to DE, and talked about things instead of letting them build up.

Did you fall in love in 2011
Oy, this question. I fell in like a few times. I'm still figuring it out.

What was your favorite TV program
Chuck, NCIS, The Walking Dead.

Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year
It's not worth my time to hate anyone. I do dislike some people that I didn't last year, but hating is too much effort for them.

What did you do on your birthday and how old were you
I turned 29, and went to Chicago with the Spazzoid. Such a great birthday!

How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2011.
Still all about the comfort. I wear a lot of jeans and kahkis and argyle. I'm not exactly trendy.

What kept you sane
Running and drinking beer?

Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most
Mila Kunis and Woody Harrelson. Such a crush on both of them.

What political issue stirred you the most
Women's health and rights

Who did you miss
My friends from VA and my grandpa.

Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2011
Keep smiling, even when you want to cry. The moment will eventually pass.

Quote a song lyric that sums up your year
I don't know where I'm going yet, but I sure am getting there

*Sinatra

And I wonder if everything could ever feel this real forever*

2011-12-27T17:46:00.000-05:00

I went running for the first time since the half marathon.

It was a cold, wet, rainy run. Somehow, the rain worked against me and managed to fall directly in my eyes the entire time, no matter what direction I was facing, and I had way too many hills.

It was great to be back.

Why yes, I do have a bedazzled skull and crossbones hat. Thanks Santa!

*Foo Fighters

Told myself that you were right for me, but felt so lonely in your company*

2011-12-26T16:13:00.000-05:00

Christmas Recap:

I got the table! I have never been so excited to receive a piece of furniture before, but, my sisters rock and got me the table for Christmas. My precious.

If I make Christmas gifts, I always have ONE gift that just kills me and refuses to go well. This year, I only made ONE gift, and of course it was the one I have had nothing but issues with. I made my mom some fingerless gloves. Unfortunately, I somehow made them two different sizes. Noticeably different sizes. Sigh. I let my mom pick the size she liked better and am currently making a third glove, that I have already had to restart twice (I'm an idiot that can't count apparently). And, I get ALMOST done last night, and realized, I forgot to put a thumb hole in and I have to rip most of it back. Sigh. Stupid gloves.
The kids are SO FREAKING ADORABLE this year. They were all so excited to open their gifts. Little H acted like EVERY SINGLE GIFT was the BEST THING EVER. Little J was so cute, going around saying how lucky he was to get SO MANY GIFTS, and Little T was just a cutie pie (and entirely amusing and full of Christmas cheer...). Baby V was adorable, even if she didn't QUITE get the whole concept yet.
It seemed like a small group at my grandma's house this year, but still tons of fun. I got some awesome knitting books from my aunts and an awesome Pug canvas from my uncle that I can't wait to hang up in my bedroom. And, of course, it was so awesome just seeing everyone again. Even though I live closer, I feel like I don't seem my family as often as I should.

All in all, Christmas was awesome this year. I hope everyone else had a great weekend!

*Gotye

Blah

2011-12-23T14:30:00.000-05:00

I have been looking forward to today ALL week. I was so excited for a day off, so excited to get stuff done around the house.

Then, I woke up this morning with a horrible hacking cough and I feel like crap. Sigh. It's totally my luck.

So, I am currently sitting on my couch, curled up in a ball, watching cheesy movies and cuddling with Oscar.

Happy Holidays to everyone.

All I want for Christmas is you*

2011-12-20T21:17:00.001-05:00

A random Christmas meme, because, why not?

The Christmas song I can listen to even in June is...
Ugh, there is NO Christmas song I can listen to in June. However, if it came down to picking my favorite Christmas song, it's a mix between the Carol of the Bells (Trans-Siberian Orchestra) or Baby It's Cold Outside (even with all the date rape creepiness associated with it). She and Him actually have a great version of this song, where She sings all the traditional guy verses and He sings all the girl's parts. I can't decide if that makes it more or less creepy...

Hot Chocolate, Egg Nog, or Mulled Wine?
So, I have no idea what mulled wine. It is quite possibly my most favorite drink ever...but, in this question, I'm going with Hot Chocolate (although I do like Egg Nog, I just like Hot Chocolate much better).

When do you put your decorations up?
It depends. This year, I didn't put any decorations up (I am so bah humbug this year apparently). However, I usually decorate the first or second week of December.

What are you having for Christmas dinner?
Not a clue. Whatever my family makes. My uncle usually makes the main dish (I forget if it's ham or turkey...) and we all bring pot luck side dishes. Speaking of, I must figure out what I am bringing...

What is your favorite Christmas tradition?
My favorite tradition isn't really a tradition anymore (sad face). When my sisters and I were younger, we would always go to my grandparent's house with my dad on Christmas Eve (my mom and her mom would stay home and wrap gifts and be Santa). While at my grandparent's house, Santa would make his first visit to our house and drop off our stocking gifts (we were totally the only kids good enough to have Santa visit us TWICE in one night....). When we got home, we would go put on pajamas and unwrap the stocking gifts, and then usually it was bed time. We continued this up until high school (although I stayed up much later as I got older....). Now that my sisters are married, they spend Christmas Eve with their family, so we no longer have that tradition. But I still miss it.

Have you ever gone carol singing?
Is carol singing redundant? It seems like it should be. But anyway, no, I have never been caroling. At least not that I recall.

When did you learn the truth about Santa?
I'm not entirely sure. I know I was pretty young. I know my sister told me the truth (and got chewed out by mom for that one). I think I was 3 or 4?

How do you decorate your Christmas tree?
I haven't had a big tree to decorate in a while because Oscar likes to drink the tree water (ugh, dumb dog), and actually gave himself pancreatitis one year. And I despise fake trees (I have nothing against OTHER people having fake trees, I just personally don't like having them). I used to buy table top size trees and decorate that (but I didn't even do that this year). This answer is getting ridiculously long. If I had a tree, and planned to decorate it, I would use colored lights, a star on top, and ornaments that I have been receiving from my family every year of my life (at least that I can remember). I don't own any ornaments that were not given to me by family (I refuse to go buy any).

What's the best thing about Christmas?
I really like my family. They're some of my favorite people in the world. They're why I'm as awesome as I am. So, my favorite thing about Christmas is getting to spend a day with them (yes, I know, cheesy. But true).

All I want for Christmas is...
I don't think there is any ONE thing I MUST HAVE. Just a bunch of stuff that would be nice to receive, but not a big deal if I don't.

*Mariah Carey

Daytime friends and nighttime lovers, hoping no one else discovers*

2011-12-19T21:13:00.001-05:00

Yesterday was my daddy's birthday, and like ALL good daughters, I left his gift and card at home when I went to see him, and I put him to work on my car (in the cold no less). I pretty much made his day awesome. :-) (I seriously have the best dad. He didn't even complain about any of this). So happy birthday dad! I love you!

**********

I went to two shows this weekend. Friday, my sister J and I took my mom to see Kenny Rogers. We won't discuss the drive there (ugh, Friday rush hour in PA SUCKS), but once we got there, I was SUPER STOKED to see Kenny. Embarassingly stoked. :-)

The concert was a lot of fun, but Kenny is definitely getting old. (His fans are as well. Man, those 70 year old ladies get super rowdy with the catcalling for him). I still can't decide if he was purposely shortening songs or if he just forgot the verses. But he seriously changed the entire meaning of his Coward of the County song by leaving out two verses. Instead of the guy defending his girlfriend/wife/whatever she is from the bad guys, he is the asshole that just randomly picks fights in a bar. I was upset.

I ALSO realized that as a kid, the meanings of his songs went right over my head. I was listening to the lyrics, and he sings about some dysfunctional ladies! The one lady is having an affair with her husband's best friend, Ruby is cheating on her paralyzed husband, Lucille is leaving the guy with 4 hundred children and crops in the field (apparently this was a misheard lyric that my sisters and I all thought he was saying). I definitely was not aware of this as a kid.

Then, Saturday evening, I went and saw JP's band at some dive bar in Delaware. That was also quite enjoyable, in an entirely different way. :)

**********

So, all in all, I had a great weekend. :) Hope everyone else did too!

*Kenny Rogers (seriously, how did I not realize they were having an affair? I just kind of thought they were daytime friends and nighttime lovers without the whole cheating part).

I promise I'm worth it*

2011-12-15T19:51:00.000-05:00

Happy Things:

We baked a million cookies last Saturday. They are so yummy. I brough them to work today. Everyone loved them. :-)

The same day as the run in with my stalker, I went to WAWA and some random guy paid for all my stuff and walked away. So nice of him. So, I paid for some random persons drinks at Starbucks.
I cleaned my house today. I dont know when it happened, but I randomly became a semi-neat person. (Still never spotless in my house, but I get upset when things aren't where they should be). Anyone that knows me should also know that this is a complete 180 from where I was about a year and a half ago. Craziness.
J and I are taking my mom to see Kenny Rogers tomorrow night for her Christmas gift. I'm secretly actually really excited about this and he had BEST play The Gambler (haha, I can't believe I like Kenny Rogers).
I have the greatest friends. I came home from work today, and SH had sent me a She and Him Christmas CD for a Christmas gift. So awesome (seriously, I am SOOOO excited for this).

So, anyways, November brought the suck, but December has been turning it around.

*Adele

But I've got no secrets that I babble in my sleep*

2011-12-11T22:59:00.000-05:00

So, my crazy, stalker neighbor is back.

I woke up this morning looking a bit like a crack whore. Apparently, I fell asleep last night before washing my makeup off (I had more makeup than normal on because I had to go to a work party), and my eye liner and mascara had smudged just a bit. (And by just a bit, I'm not exaggerating when I say I looked entirely cracked out).

I didn't have time to wash my face when I woke up, Oscar was begging to go out. So, I figured, meh, whatever. I dont care.

I take him outside, and realize, crap, I REALLY need to rake the lawn, and this was basically the only weekend I had available until next year. So, I brought Oscar inside and started raking (still in my pajamas and entirely unwashed).

It was early enough, I figured nobody would see me, and seriously, who do I have around here that I care about impressing?

Not even ten minutes later, the neighbor's door opens and he comes bounding out on to the front porch to "smoke" a cigarette (seriously, he practically jumped out the door and then lit the cigarette but never actually brought it too his mouth). I do my best to not look in his general direction and ignore him (kind of hard when your yard is the size of a postage stamp).

THEN, he walks over to me and starts helping me put my leaves in a bag. So, I honestly would LOVE the help, but seems like a bit of a jerk move to let him help as I continue ignoring him. I tell him I really didn't need the help, but I appreciated it anyway, and he won't stop! Ugh.

Then, he tells me that I'm looking not so pretty this morning, but that's ok, he'll get over it because he likes me anyway (um...thanks?). He keeps trying to ask me out and where I had been for the last week or so. I finally said that I had been on vacation with a guy I was dating (yes, I lied, and I have no shame...) and he gets quiet for a second and then says. Oh, well I bet it's not serious, and even if it is, you can still go out and date me.

WTF???

So, the lie gets deeper...and I say, no, we agreed to not see anyone else. He, stops and thinks a bit, and says, well you didn't sign any paperwork right? You can still go on a date with me and he'll never know. (A- what paperwork??? B- ARE YOU KIDDING ME???)

Ok, ass. I already disliked you, now I hate you even more because you are actively encouraging me to cheat (Ok, granted, I had nobody to actually cheat on...but you still shouldn't be encouraging it!!!!). Ugh. So, he spends the next twenty minutes trying to get me to go on a date with him.

I FINALLY finished the lawn and tried to head inside and he kept insisting I stay out and hang out with him. I managed to get away, but seriously. He sucks. I'm so ready for him to move out (crossing fingers he really leaves at the end of December).

Luckily, the rest of my day rocked and hung out with Bug. Definitely an improvement :-)

*Missy Higgins

Now I know that I’m not, all that you've got. I guess that I, I just thought maybe we could find new ways to fall apart*

2011-12-09T08:34:00.000-05:00

Oscar = Biggest pain in the ass.

I picked him up at my mom and dad's the night I returned from Las Vegas. He was fine. Very excited to see me, very active and just happy. We go home, go to bed, and wake up the next morning to him not wanting to eat and kind of just groaning when I picked him up.

I put him in his crate for the day and decided to just keep an eye on him for the next day or two and figure out if he was really hurt/sick or just being a drama queen (he has his moments). I got home that night and he ate and while not completely back to normal, seemed somewhat better.

Yesterday, I wake up, and again, he's refusing to walk down stairs and eats insanely slow and doesn't seem too interested in going for his morning walk. Again, I put him in his crate, figuring he wasn't sick, just hurting a bit, and this would keep him from moving around too much and hurting himself even more.

I get home from work, he seems ok. Not normal, but better. So, I head over to my sister's for dinner and babysitting. I get home a few hours later and let him out of his crate, and he falls over then can barely stand and is whimpering. Ok then. To the emergency vet we go.

Of course, we get there, and the dumb dog decides he's fine. He actually manages to RUN away from the nurse when she is trying to see him stand, and is acting like there is nothing wrong. She walks out of the room, and he goes back to quivering in pain and whimpering. Seriously dog? Are you trying to make me look like an overreacting idiot?

The doctor comes in, and he goes back to acting like nothing is wrong. Until of course, the doctor starts examining his back, and Oscar freaks out and yelps (sounded like a stuck pig, I felt awful) and is writhing in pain (ugh, I felt so awful).

So, apparently, he has a similar issue from a few years ago. He has a protruding disc in his spine (luckily, it didn't rupture this time, like it partially did last time, so no paralysis of the hind legs to worry about) and is just in pain. He's on pain meds and cage rest for the week (which he is obviously already hating), but should hopefully be ok.

But seriously, can he go for a whole year without having any major issues? That would be fantastic.

*FUN. - LOVE this song. Such a fun song.

If I could blink if I could breathe If I could get my legs to move*

2011-12-05T16:57:00.001-05:00

I have some pictures this time! (Not many, Blogger is being a pain in the butt, and I don't feel like fighting it anymore). But, you can have some!

This trip has been so nice not being at work for a whole week. Sadly, I did NOT win big at Vegas, but I had fun nonetheless. :-) I never really managed to get on Vegas time the whole week I was here, so I was passing out by 1 or 2 every night, and waking up around 7 every morning. I was definitely living the wild life here. :-)

But, I did manage to get a picture or two of the Strip at night. (Also, I STILL giggle like a 12 year old boy everytime anyone says "The Strip". I apparently will never grow up. :-)

I love the New York New York Casino. Especially at night. So pretty and reminded me of home.

The Venetian is also really pretty, but just made me feel and like I was going to break something just looking at it. Way too luxurious for me, but still very pretty to look at. (I can't get the inside pictures to load, sorry, they're much prettier).

Then, the real reason we were here. The dreaded half marathon.

I have done a few of the Rock and Roll Half Marathons and I feel like this one was the most disorganized run I have ever been in. They had WAY too many people and not enough volunteers or space to run. They freaking ran out of water at some of the water stops (luckily, it wasn't hot, so it wasn't as bad as it could have been), and even worse, they ran out of finisher medals. They gave me a full marathon medal instead and I was kind of pissed. I didn't run the full marathon, I ran the half marathon. What am I going to do with a full marathon medal that I didn't really run??

And, this was in no way under their control, but the weather kind of sucked.

However, here I am at the starting line, headlamp and everything. Also, majorly nervous for this race. (Yeah, the picture sucks, it was dark out, and the flash on my phone doesn't work in self-portrait mode).

The first nine miles of the race were actually kind of nice. As I said before, there were WAY too many people, but it wasn't necessarily a bad thing, it kept me at a slow pace, as opposed to my normal sprint starts and subsequent dying a few miles later. And, surprisingly, I was able to run the first 9 miles relatively easily (HUGE shock, since my longest training run was only about 8 miles and it was the worst feeling ever).

HOWEVER, mile nine began to bring the suck.

There was a water stop at mile 9, and I stopped to walk through it (I walked through all the water stops, it's too hard to run and drink for us clumsy people). It also got about 10 degrees colder in the span of a minute, and began a light, icy rain. And my legs held a mutiny. My legs were so cold, and my muscles were tightening up by the second. Then, my hamstrings cramped up and REFUSED to run. I couldn't even get them to shuffle slowly.

I promised myself I would walk a mile and then run again. Yeah, that did not happen.

So, I was kind of disappointed. My first ten miles, I was on track for about a 2:55-3:00 finish time (which while not fantastic, is still pretty freaking good for me). Then, after mile ten, it took me AN HOUR to go the last 3.1 miles. (Considering I was walking and "hobbling" the last three miles, I guess an hour isn't terrible, but still such a disappointment to have such an epic meltdown).

I did manage to shuffle/jog my way the last mile and actually picked up my feet the last tenth of a mile to cross the finish line. (Only to find out they didn't have any medals). They are supposedly mailing me a half marathon medal, but still. Kind of sucky.

I then got a mylar blanket (thank goodness...at that point I was wet and freezing) and my picture taken (I'm ready to laugh at how awful I must look in that picture, I felt so dead at that point). I then had to walk about half a mile to the gear check area to get my dry clothes and meet up with K and Figgs (which while awful at the time, was actually nice, because it kept me from sitting down right away and cramping up even more).

I get to the gear check and seriously, Figgs is the best person to go to a race with. He finished almost an hour earlier than me, and had gone and bought us a bottle of champagne to celebrate with. Fantastic. :-)

Then, it took us almost 2 hours to get back to the room due to the huge number of people and lack of shuttles as promised (stupid race organizers).

But, even with my terrible last three miles, I managed to eek out a PR at 3:27. Not exactly happy with my time, but seriously, for the lack of training I had, I shouldn't complain. :-)

Sadly, I go back home tomorrow, and back to work on Wednesday. Sad face.

*Phantom Planet - This song came on around Mile 11 and was the only thing that kept me walking at that point.

You made my heart melt, yet I'm cold to the core*

2011-11-30T20:48:00.002-05:00

Greetings from Vegas! (Holy crap I can't believe I'm here and that the race is on SUNDAY!!!). Ok, minor freak out moment there, it's all good.

I lucked out on my flight out here. My dad drove me to the airport and dropped me off, only to find out that my plane was delayed by 2 hours (thanks delta for updating your online flight status!). BUT, it actually worked out fantastic for me. Due to the 2 hour delay, I was going to miss my connecting flight in Minnesota (ugh, connecting flights), so the guy changed me to a different airline and I got a non-stop flight leaving half an hour earlier. Yay direct flights and less time in the airport.

By the time I got through security and found my gate, I only had to wait about 30 minutes to board. Then, I asked if I could get moved to an aisle seat. And got put in the emergency exit row. All by myself. So, I had all this extra room and nobody behind me to complain if I put the seat back. Talk about a good flight. (Everything's coming up Milhouse).

The hotel itself is quite nice, if a little...confusing. It's a resort type place, with a bunch of different buildings connected outside along a jungle like path and very little markings anywhere to let you know you found the right building. I felt slightly lost at night and texted K that one of us needs to stay sober just to make sure we find our room each night.

I woke up at 7 this morning (ugh, my body thought it was 10) and spent my first day here just walking around the strip. (Nobody else is here yet, K doesn't get here till late tonight, and Figgs arrives tomorrow). I didn't do much gambling (spent a whopping TWO DOLLARS at the slots so far), but it was cool to explore downtown and I did do some shopping. Always fun.

However, today, has been all about the relaxing and not doing anything. It's just me, myself, and Vegas. What more could you ask for (ok, I admit, it was a little lonely at times and maybe would have been more enjoyable at certain parts with more people, but I have the rest of the week for that). A day to myself was still pretty great. And, like all good explorers, I completely forgot to take ANY pictures. (Hangs head in shame). So, hopefully I remember tomorrow.

Anyways, I am now going to be entirely lame and take a nap, so I can be awake when K gets here. Yay!

I LOVE being on vacation/traveling. I feel like the world back home just doesn't even exist right now. And that's a very good thing. :)
*Adele

From Reality I Just Can't Drift*

2011-11-21T19:54:00.000-05:00

I'm having a hard time figuring out what to write lately. And, as I mentioned before, this whole month has pretty much been bringing the suck. I find I need to remind myself that it hasn't been all bad.

I went to New York to visit JH for her birthday. I got to see JH and Mike, who are some of my favorite people to hang out with. I got to take a crazy cab ride with a crazy cab driver, got to drink a lot, and save Mike's life with a TUMS (his words, not mine). It was so awesome to see them.
I ran 8 miles this weekend. Calling it running may be a stretch, but I ran/walked 8 miles this weekend. Which is kind of crazy to me considering I was in no way prepared to actually finish the 8 miles. I'm even running/walking a 5k with my mom and sister on Thanksgiving. Always fun.
I'm seeing RR today. That is fantastic. I'm seeing most of my family this weekend. Also fantastic.
The Walking Dead has been PHENOMINAL this month. Seriously. LOVE this show.
I bought one of two of my tables. It is even prettier than I ever imagined. Now, I just need to buy a second one (hopefully Target still has them at Christmas time!).

So, it hasn't been all terrible. Just kind of feels that way sometimes.

*Bob Marley

Week of suck

2011-11-21T13:29:00.000-05:00

So, I know I've been MIA lately. Lots of stuff going on, very little of it good.

And, pretty much all capped off with crappy news last night.

I'm so sorry, Mike. I'm here if you need anything.

Want to get ourselves on the straight and the narrow, Gonna need a better plan*

2011-11-08T07:55:00.001-05:00

Irksome Thoughts

I get really annoyed when people ask me why I dont want to have kids. Seriously? Why do you do this? I don't ask you why you WANT to have kids (it's a personal decision that has nothing to do with me), so why is it so abnormal for me not to want them? And, PLEASE don't try to tell me I should have kids because I'm so good with them and like them so much. I like them because they aren't mine, and I am good with them, because I can give them back. I don't have to live with them 24/7. It's a big difference.
I usually come in to work between 8:30 and 9:00 (I really like my sleep), but I occasionally come in at 6:30 or 7 (or earllier) if there is a need. It's not unheard of. In fact, it's not even all that uncommon. Yet, everytime I come in before 8, I get the barrage of questions. Why are you so early? Aren't you missing out on your beauty sleep? Ha, Hell must have frozen over. Sigh. I get it. People think it's funny that I'm early. It's really not. Especially not when I have heard it EVERY DAY FOR TWO WEEKS NOW. Seriously, it's obviously not a fluke. I'm early for a reason. Get over it. (I'm also apparently a little grumpy from lack of sleep, but meh, get over it).
How rude do you have to be before someone gets the hint and leaves you alone? My neighbor is DETERMINED to be my friend. I am DETERMINED I will NOT be his friend. Literally, this man followed me to the park, tried to follow me on my run. (My favorite part was when he told me to stop and rest because he was tired....). Has tried to invite himself to dinner with me. And, last night, tried to get me to "invite him" for a run again some time. I have been RIDICULOUSLY rude to this man. I told him he couldn't come to the park with me. I said I never want to run with him again. I have told him I have no desire to be his friend. I pretty much just ignore him when I see him, yet he keeps persisting. It's obnoxious. (He's not really a stalker I dont think. He's not from this country, and he has no friends, and is just kind of socially inept).

Happy thoughts

Peppermint Mochas are coming back next week. (It's the little things).
I went to New York last weekend and got to see my aunt (and my favorite place). We went to the Brooklyn Flea and I got an awesome necklace and watch. I randomly love buying used jewelry. Has so much more character that way.
I get to see my JH this weekend. I haven't seen her in what seems like forever (possibly since I moved?). Fun times.
I made the PERFECT spaghetti squash and ginger chicken last night. I'm counting down the hours till lunch time when I get to eat it. (Apparently my day revolves around thoughts of food and drinks....)

So, what's making you happy today?

*Jakob Dylan

I'd like to a monkey, be monkeys with you*

2011-10-31T09:35:00.000-04:00

OK, so I was feeling SUPER grumpy on Sunday. but then, J posted some adorable photos of Baby V, and I am shamelessly stealing from her blog to post these, because seriously, EVERYONE needs to see the cuteness that is my niece.

How can you not want to just give her a big hug and kiss? It's like cuteness overload.

*100 Monkeys

But I knew that you were a truth I would rather lose than to have never lain beside at all*

2011-10-30T18:17:00.000-04:00

I am excessively grumpy. I'm pretty sure it is due to lack of food, but ugh. The grumpiness today.

I went for an 8 mile run today. After last weekend's 7 mile attempt, and how good I felt, I was expecting this week's run to be ok. Ha!

I quit after 2 miles. I was completely mentally NOT in to this run, and I couldn't even force myself to run a second lap around the park. I just felt mentally exhausted and I had NO energy and it was so frustrating, because my legs felt fine. I SHOULD have been able to run, I just could not make myself do it.

I have all sorts of excuses. I didn't eat right today (I knew this before even going to the park), I am still fighting this cold which is making me super stuffy and hard to breathe, I have been working long hours making me super tired, but seriously.

I just didn't want to do it. That's pretty much it. And I'm stubborn enough, if I really don't want to do something, I am just not going to do it. Blah.

So, I went back home and am currently sitting on the couch watching football and yelling at my fantasy players for sucking. Some consistency week to week would be FANTASTIC.

I'm going to attempt the 8 miles again tomorrow. Hopefully it goes a bit better. Sigh

*Death Cab For Cutie - What Sarah Said always makes me sad, not sure why it's floating around in my head today (may also be explaining my grumpy mood)

This is the best way that I've found, to be the best you've ever seen*

2011-10-26T21:15:00.001-04:00

I have found that I am missing a bunch of small items that seem to have disappeared in the move. Like, an iron. I really need an iron to fix my curtains (it's an iron on hem type thing). And, my extra tube of toothpaste. Things like that. I'm also apparently missing my can opener. Which I discovered in the middle of cooking dinner the other night, when I really needed to open a can of broth.

I KNOW I had one at one point. Where it is, I have no idea.

I finally resorted to stabbing the can with a knife until I had a hole big enough to pour the broth through. I felt slightly pathetic. And yet, I still haven't had a chance to actually go and BUY any of these things. This weekend. I swear.

**********

I am trying to figure out when I turned so old. There are these annoying kids that live in my neighborhood. EVERY FREAKING NIGHT, no matter what time of night I am getting home (ok, seriously, they were there at 2 AM the one morning), they are hanging out on this corner. Now, these kids are NOT old enough to be outside at this time (they range from ages 8-13 or so).

EVERY time I see them, I get so pissed off. They are standing at the corner, not quite int he middle of the street, but enough so that you can't safely turn without worrying about hitting them, and ugh. I just want to yell, DON'T YOUR PARENTS LOVE YOU?!?!?!?" And WHY ARE YOU OUTSIDE AT THIS TIME OF NIGHT?!?! You morons are going to get hit by a car!!!! I know MY parents made me come home before it was dark at that age (and granted, when I was older, I snuck back out, but not at that age).

And then, I think, when did I get so old, that this started irritating me so much? But seriously. WHY ARE YOU ALWAYS THERE!!!! Sigh, they're just obnoxious kids that should be at home in bed (and I swear, next I'll be peeking out my window, spying on them, yelling at them to get off my lawn!)

**********

So, is it the weekend yet?

*Hedwig and the Angry Inch

If I had the time, I'd stop the world and make you mine, and everyday would stay the same with you*

2011-10-23T21:47:00.003-04:00

Random rundown

Little H turned 4 this weekend. I can't believe how old he's getting. I apparently had camnesia this weekend, and didn't take hardly ANY pictures. I did get a cute one of D and Little H and his Lego gifts (Little H is a little distracted). So, I guess you will have to settle for that.

**********

I ran the scheduled 7 miles this weekend. I have abandoned all hope of actually running and finishing this thing, so now I am on a, just get to the finish line kick. I did a run 2 mile, walk quarter mile type thing this weekend. And, while I was incredibly slow, I actually felt like I could finish this race for the first time. So I guess that's a plus.

**********

Ever go on a date and not know you were going on a date until after you were on said date? Ha! I accidentally did. That was awkward. And no, I will NOT give details. The entire thing just needs to be forgotten. :-)

**********

Some friends/family also came up with some more...less useful things I am great at:

loving a deranged dog that nobody else could love
I am flypaper for freaks (I'm so good at that one).
I injure myself in the most bizarre ways. (Just a few examples: breaking my foot twice while walking, stepping on a broken bottle and requiring 10 stitches, or kneeling on a needle and needing surgery). RR apparently tells her friends all about me. Her favorite story to tell is about me walking across the Best Buy parking lot and breaking my foot. She fails to mention the totally hardcore part where I drove 30 minutes home...WITH A STICK SHIFT AND A BROKEN FOOT.
I can bust out Vanilla Ice's Ice Ice Baby or Sir Mix A lot's Baby got Back in their entirety. It's a good party trick.
I'm good at being paranoid. This one is really just obnoxious.

So there you go, five MORE things I'm great at.

**********

I totally sound like someone you want to be friends with right? :-P

*Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds - I randomly really like this song. I think I'm still a closet Oasis fan. :-)

There's an old voice in my head that's holding me back*

2011-10-18T21:50:00.000-04:00

Past few weeks, I've been feeling kind of meh. Some friends of mine have been pissing me off, same old crap. I've just been kind of getting down on myself, so, I decided I would do Trapped's five things I'm great at.

I had a hard time coming up with things (apparently I'm better at the whole self deprecation thing than I am at the self promoting thing). However, I asked some people and came up with some things I agree with.

I am great at knitting. Two friends from Virginia taught me how to do a knit stitch and a purl stitch. From there, I've been able to teach myself everything else I've learned. I knit awesome socks. I knit awesome hats. I knit almost awesome scarves. I may not be the BEST knitter, but I'm pretty damn great for a casual knitter.

I am a great friend. I have a lot of patience. I am generous with my time. I drive ridiculously far to hang out with them. I go out of my way to keep in touch with them.

I am a great sister/daughter/aunt. I am always willing to watch the nieces/nephews. I make sure I visit my sisters and parents as often as possible. I call home all the time. I enjoy just spending time with them.

I am great at making people laugh. Granted, a lot of times, people are laughing AT me, but not always. I am good with the witty comeback. I make mundane activities (like running errands to Target) fun. I tell stupid stories, but unless you're an ass, people appreciate that about me.

And last but not least, I am great at reading. I read like a fiend. I HAVE to read for at least half an hour before bed each night, and usually can finish a short book in that time. I don't "speed read", I actually read every word and usually retain the information. I've had teachers accuse me of lying when I was younger because I would finish our silent reading assignments too quickly. I'm great at it.

So, some of these are kind of lame, but they're what I'm great at. :-)

*Of Monsters and Men (anyone know anyone in Iceland? I REALLY want this cd but can't get it here :-( so sad)

So many things I'd say, if only I were able*

2011-10-17T21:41:00.001-04:00

I missed a run last week, and I'm starting to get a little irritated with myself. I am definitely doing bare minimum to get me to this finish line (it's not like my newest schedule was all that involved to begin with). I did my long run yesterday (about 6 miles), and I was definitely struggling more than I should be at this point. I probably walked about a mile (maybe a little more) of those almost 6 miles. I'm really questioning if I even want to do this race.

However, I do still want to go to Vegas. So will I let myself go without running the race? Probably not. So...I guess I'm back to my half assed training. Sigh.

*********

I covet this table. COVET. Unfortunately, I need two for my nightstands, and I don't really want to be spending this much money right now. If anyone feels the urge to get me a random gift card to Target, I wouldn't turn it down. :-P You know, a belated a birthday gift or something. ;-) Instead I plan to keep an eye on the Target website and just hope they still have it in a few months.

Covet.

*Sara Bareilles - This song has been on the radio SO MUCH this week. Pretty much sick of it.

I took a sip of something poison but I'll hold on tight.*

2011-10-13T21:11:00.000-04:00

I made a very big mistake this week. And while it's not as big a mistake as I initially thought, it's still a very big mistake. I have this ball of dread just chilling out at the bottom of my stomach. It's awful.

Got even worse when I went to buy gas today, and realized I didn't have my credit card and it wasn't anywhere in my wallet or purse. Such a terrible feeling. Luckily, I found it a few minutes later when I got home, but still, awful feeling (note to self, stop putting credit card in pants pocket).

How come when it's raining out, it always takes an hour to drive somewhere that should only take 20 minutes? Argh. Hate PA drivers. Seriously, they are terrible.

I ran my 2 miles on Tuesday, and was supposed to run 3 today. Fail. My "oh crap" schedule is not appearing to be a success. However, I think I found my new strategy. Genius. But I plan to do it in style. Limo with a wet bar is more my style.

Yeah, not much else. Been working super long days this week, so I'm even more boring than normal.

Have a lovely weekend!

*Foster the People (seriously, this is probably their best song, needs to get more radio play...)

My mind forgets to remind me, you're a bad idea*

2011-10-10T19:59:00.000-04:00

I started my "oh crap, the half marathon is coming way too soon" training plan. I ran 5 miles this Sunday. That sucked. I have no desire to run this half marathon at all. I'm contemplating just going to Vegas for the fun of Vegas and screw the race. Meh.
My place is being overrun by crickets (overrun is a strong word, but even one is one too many). Ugh crickets. Even worse, Oscar's favorite thing to do is catch a cricket, bite it and shake it a bit, then let go so it's writhing on the floor in pain. Leaving me to have to go near it for a mercy kill. I am slightly terrified of jumping insects (I get this "they're coming right for me!" feeling when I see them), so having to go near them to kill them does not make me happy. Ugh crickets.
Speaking of Oscar, he is apparently as graceful as his mommy. We were standing at the top of the stairs, and I started to go down, realized I forgot something, and turned back around. Oscar attempted to follow, and instead, fell down the steps. He literally went head over tail all the way down, hitting each step along the way. I felt so bad, and all I could think was he was going to break his back again. That sucked.
I have been trying to catch up on my TV shows lately. I managed to FINALLY watch the last episode of Game of Thrones, and I caught the rest of The Walking Dead Season (just in time for the second season to start next week). Excellent. I have also been going back and watching Chuck. I'm slightly confused. So many people have said how much they disliked Season 2, and only ONE person I know liked it (he liked it so much, it is one of the reasons I decided to keep watching after I thought Season One was kind of meh). Um, what are you people smoking? Season 2 is freaking incredible. Seriously. Incredible.
And...last but not least, one of my most random pet peeves. I despise when radio stations change the song lyrics to make them fit the local area. Example, one of the stations around here change the lyrics in Lady Gaga's song from Nebraska to Philadelphia. Or, in, Party in the USA (dying of shame I am referencing a Miley Cyrus song), Z100 always changed the lyrics to "and Z100 was on" (in a song about California btw, NOT New York). No! You wouldn't change Sinatra's New York, New York song to Philadelphia, Philadelphia (yes, I realize that makes no sense...but you wouldn't change it to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania either) and it drives me insane that they think its cool to change these songs. Also, yes, I realize I just used Frank Sinatra and Miley Cyrus in the same example, and I apologize immensely to Sinatra's memory, but I'm just making a point. It drives me insane. Grr. Stupid irrational anger of mine. :-)

Anyways, that's about it. Hope everyone had a lovely weekend.

*Taylor Swift (meh, I figured I already referenced Miley Cyrus, may as well finish it off with Taylor Swift).

When I kiss your lips. Ooh I start to shiver, can't control the quivering inside*

2011-10-05T21:27:00.000-04:00

Stupid comments

The half marathon is in less than 9 weeks. I am so boned.
I used to have this HUGE girl crush on Zoey Deschanel, until I saw her in this AWFUL show the New Girl. UGH. Hate. Pretty much every stupid stereotype in a show. Just awful. (I hope none of you like it). It has really...tarnished her appeal. So disappointed.
I took a short cut to work the other day. This short cut took me TWO HOURS to get to work. It was a really shitty short cut. I will not be going that way again.
I went running in my neighborhood yesterday. I brought my phone with me because I was planning to meet J at the bar later and I was thinking she may call. Instead, JH called, and I was so busy trying to figure out how to ignore the phone call, I ran into a gate. Literally ran into the gate. I'm thinking this is why people don't run with phones...

Yeah, I don't know. I work a lot. I don't really do anything else. I'm so boring.

*Phil Collins - OMG, I have NO idea why this song is randomly in my head. And yet, I keep singing it ALL DAY!!! Wouldn't you agree? Baby you and me got a groovy kind of love.

Promise I'm worthy to hold in your arms*

2011-10-02T20:50:00.000-04:00

My house is looking a whole lot more put together after this weekend. I invited some family and friends over on Saturday morning, fed them breakfast, and then put them to work moving and building furniture, hanging pictures, etc.

I'm still hanging up a few more pictures, but for the most part, the place looks great. My bedroom looks fantastic. I still have one more picture to hang above my bed, and I am having a slight dilemma. The wall is not a normal wall. I think it may be a brick wall with a layer of drywall or something over it (ha, I know NOTHING about how houses are built, so I may be completely wrong). It's the connecting wall to my neighbor's house, so it's definitely thicker than normal. ANYWAYS, I have bent 2 nails trying to hammer them in, so I think I'm giving up on that method.

I have no desire to drill a hole in the wall (and I'm sure J, my landlord is strongly agreeing with that statement), so I'm not sure what to do. I could use the command strips, but I am a little wary about that (it's a heavy frame, hanging above my head as I sleep...what could possibly go wrong?), or I could just put nothing there. Blah. Suggestions???? Ones that don't require drilling a hole, thanks.

*********

I am also in a period of...mourning (for lack of a better word). I had my Garmin in my running shoes, and my running shoes in my gym bag, but the bag wasn't zipped. My shoe fell out of the bag on my way to the car one morning so I grabbed it and threw it in the car. Can we see where this is going?

My Garmin was nowhere to be seen for about a week. Every morning, while walking Oscar, I would search the area hoping that this would be the day I found it. Finally, on Friday, I see it laying under the tree next to my car.

Yeah, that's not going to be doing me any good anymore. Sigh. (Also, where the heck was this thing all week??? It definitely was NOT under that tree all week).

I can't afford to buy a new one this month, but I'm hoping to work it into my budget next month. I feel like I'm running naked without this thing. It's awful.

**********

Football this year. It's killing me. That is all.

*Adele -(I've been listening to her as I unpack. I just hope I don't start associating her with bad things.)

But time has changed nothing at all -You're still the only one that feels like home. *

2011-09-27T21:44:00.000-04:00

Until this weekend, I had a mess in the study, but every other room was basically unpacked and put away and not messy. Ha! Now, every single room in the house is a DISASTER! I kind of want to hire a dumpster to come and just throw out everything in the house. Argh.

The Ikea furniture showed up, and so far I've constructed my dresser and hall table, and constructed, then deconstructed (I was so pissed, I got all the way to the end before realizing I put the sides on wrong...sucked), so, I then reconstructed my TV stand. Stupid. In the process I managed to crush my finger (OMG hurt SOOOO bad). My nail is bruised and ugly :-(

My TV also showed up. Unfortunately, the TV showed up on Saturday, BEFORE the TV stand arrived. And I don't trust myself to pick up the TV on my own...so, the TV is chilling on the floor, next to the TV stand. It looks great.

Sigh, why am I not unpacked yet?

*Missy Higgins - LOVE this song

All the other kids with the pumped up kicks*

2011-09-23T16:39:00.000-04:00

I love that I'm not the only nerd out there and other people liked my awesome shower curtain :-)
I have plans to be painting old furniture and building new Ikea furniture this weekend. Not to mention the cleaning and laundry. Oh joy. I really miss having housekeeping...I am still REALLY thinking about finding someone to come twice a month to do my floors and bathroom and kitchen, and I'll just do light cleaning in between. Is that ridiculous?
The mosquitos around here are INSANE. I don't know if it's just bad everywhere, but I swear, everytime I walk outside I get 5 new bites. Not to mention I let about 10 in to the house to bite me randomly through out the night. I'm pretty much just one big bite right now.
My fantasy football is pretty much the stuff of nightmares. Sigh. I am not a fan. (Also, I'm not exactly spending much time on it like I used to, so I don't foresee it getting any better).
I have been sick pretty much all week. And by sick, I mean pretty much coming straight home and curling up in bed after dinner. (I dont think I stayed awake past 8:15 until last night when I made it all the way to 9:30). This means no running. This means I haven't gone running SINCE CHICAGO (moving pretty much screwed me up for about two weeks there...). So that's like THREE weeks, no running. Not only do I feel like shit, my half marathon training is not exactly progressing as it should. Sigh. This half marathon is going to suck big time. Hopefully this weekend, I'll feel up to running. I've been feeling so sick...I don't even miss running. That's unheard of.

Anyways, hope everyone has a great weekend. I'm going to go take a nap I think.

*Foster the People - meh, not really feeling clever when it comes to music lately...

Tell me to run and I'll race, If you want me to stop I'll freeze*

2011-09-22T11:05:00.000-04:00

Wells Fargo is completely ridiculous.

I went shopping last night and bought a new TV (I caved) and toaster oven at hhgregg, and a shelving unit thing from Bed Bath and Beyond for my bathroom last night on my debit card. Then, I went to the ATM and tried to withdraw $20 in cash. It got denied.

I then get a phone call from the fraud prevention hotline at Wells Fargo. They don't question if I authorized the charge to hhgregg, or the charge to BB&B. However, they DID question if I authorized the $20 withdrawal. My money feels very safe from those fraudulent $20 withdrawals....

**********

I am almost finished my bathroom.

All I really needed was a shelf unit for my towels, however, I still don't have a bathmat. I can't decide if I still NEED or a bathmat, or if it is not necessary. What do YOU think? I also have two pictures I eventually plan to hang, but hanging pictures is not high on my list of priorities right now.

I love the brightness of the room (I know, the above photo is kind of dim...but I swear it's bright!). It's a pretty light blue with BRIGHT yellow towels and bathroom acessories.

Then, if you walk in further, you can see the bright yellow part of my shower curtain and start to get a glimpse of what a nerd I am.

Why yes, I DO have a shower curtain with the periodic table of elements on it...

I love my bathroom.
*Adele

I've had enough of so-so, for the rest of my life*

2011-09-19T19:05:00.000-04:00

Hi, I'm still alive!

I finally got cable and internet hooked up to my house yesterday, and I come home from work today, sit on the couch, all excited to watch TV. And...my TV broke. Argh.

I have plans to buy a new TV, but I've spent SO MUCH MONEY this past month that I was really trying to hold off until November/December time frame before buying it. Blargh, I may be buying a new TV this weekend. Along with some new tires (yeah, I still haven't bought those either).

However, I did buy a shit ton of furniture this weekend (and spent a shit ton of money doing it). That all gets delivered this Sunday. And then I get to spend the rest of my life building it (I bought it from Ikea, I'm cheap like that...and seriously, furnishing almost an entire apartment isn't easy on the budget).

I feel like I'm in this awkard settling stage where, I'm not in a huge rush to finish unpacking anything else. The house is livable, and the only room still not unpacked is my study (and my clothing is not unpacked, but I'm waiting for my dresser, and I have to paint the other). However, the study still drives me insane every time I walk by (I have solved this by keeping the door shut at all times...).

I also find that I'm having to buy a bunch of stuff that I used to own, and yet got misplaced when I moved into the hotel (like a broom, and trash cans, and things like that). It has not been a cheap process.

Oscar is also not settling in as well as I had hoped. Oddly enough, he is not barking too excessively (don't get me wrong, he has his moments), but I was DREADING leaving him the first day here alone. Yeah, he slept all day. No worries there. Ugh, however, the BATHROOM use is KILLING me.

He has a backyard that he basically refuses to go in. He will practically cross his legs and do the pee-pee dance and NOT GO. At night, after a few attempts, he will finally give in and go, but I don't really have time to deal with this in the morning, so I put his leash on and take him out front and he will go RIGHT AWAY. Argh. What does he have against freedom and going to the bathroom off leash???? I even tried taking him out back with his leash on, still no go. He is the most ridiculous dog ever.

I'm trying to get a little more decorated in the upcoming weeks, but I'll do the big reveal soon. (I hope to show my Nerdish-ly awesome bathroom in the next few days, I just need to find a shelf unit of some sort to hold my towels.)

So, yes, moved in and sort of settled. In need of a new TV. In need of a new personality for my dog. In need of someone to unpack my study. That'd be great!

*Sugarland (this song makes me think of summers in Virginia)

I used to want you so bad, I'm so over that*

2011-09-13T08:23:00.000-04:00

I finally moved. I have my own place again!

Is it wrong to be so in love with my new headboard and comforter? And the blue walls? (The picture does not do this justice. It looks AMAZING in person).

The place is pretty much a disaster area, but I unpacked a decent amount last night. The living room is at least livable now. Only one box still to be unpacked there.

My goal for tonight is to unpack the kitchen and dining room, and MAYBE some of the boxes in the bedroom. Tomorrow will be for organizing the bedroom closet and study, but I can't really unpack anything in there until I get new furniture this weekend.

Yay my own stuff!

*Beyonce - again with this song stuck in my head.

When you lose yourself, you find the key to paradise*

2011-09-07T11:10:00.000-04:00

I'm in the process of moving. It's not making me happy. Stupid rain.
I am almost entirely out of the hotel. I have a lot of stuff. Even after donating, I have too many items of clothing (especially since it feels like I wear the same five shirts all the time...). Maybe I will go through and donate some more.
I am exhausted. It's only Wednesday. I need more sleep.
I saw RR last night. I couldn't make it all the way to Richmond in one trip. I was too tired.
The drive down to RR isn't too bad. Hopefully, I will get to see her more now.
I am down in the Richmond area today and tomorrow. I can't wait for this move to be over.
I am so tired, I started to cry at a Salvation Army campaign being discussed on the radio this morning (poor children with no shoes!).
I donated to the poor children with no shoes.
I really need sleep.
I can't decide what cable package to get. Too many choices!
This move is stressing me out a bit. However, I keep telling myself...yay new place (and oven!).

I have no more words to share. Hope everyone is having a lovely week. Even with this awful rain.

*Zac Brown Band (I love this song. Makes me happy everytime I hear it. Seems like a good day to listen it...)

The Trip

2011-09-04T21:29:00.000-04:00

First off, thank you everybody for all the happy birthday phone calls, texts, emails, facebook messages, whatever you sent. It was really nice to get so many. :-)

Secondly, Chicago is soooo much fun. I always forget exactly HOW MUCH I love this city, until I go again. Every trip is so much fun, and it’s still on my list of cities to possibly live. (The winter is kind of crappy though, pretty much the only thing holding me back…).

I went with Spazzoid (she agreed to this name…) this time. We are not so good at the whole self portrait thing, however, I still think this is a pretty adorable picture of the two of us. We look amused and confused, which is pretty much how we probably looked the entire time here.

Well, maybe not amused the ENTIRE time. The Spazzoid wanted to kill me a few times with the whole walking thing. I am normally very anti-walking. I prefer to run or drive most places…EXCEPT when I’m on vacation in a new city. Then, I want to walk EVERYWHERE. Spazzoid does not. Compromises had to be made.

We also jam packed as much tourist-y things as possible into our two days in the city.

The very first thing we did was get pizza. Yummm…deep dish pizza that I’ve been craving for about 5 years now. (I’m contemplating having a frozen one delivered to my place as a welcome to your new home/yay oven gift to myself).

Why yes, I DID take a picture of my pizza...

We went to Navy Pier and rode the Ferris wheel and swings (the swings were awesome), and ate at Harry Caray’s. I still think the man was kind of weird looking, and the bronzed version is just creepy. I also got distracted walking back from the bathroom (I SWEAR I saw someone I knew) and wasn’t paying close attention and tried to sit down at some random people’s table. Ooops, my bad.

We went to the Sears Tower (Or, the Willis Tower I suppose now) and stood out on the little glass sky deck thing (slightly disconcerting when you first step out). Went to Millenium Park and took pictures of the bridge and the bean and the amphitheater thing. I actually really like that park. I apparently like weird metal sculpture type things. Yeah, Blogger is pissing me off with picture lay outs and I'm not going to bother fixing it...sorry.

The Bean

The Amphitheater at Millenium Park

View from the Sears Tower

Sad attempt at a self portrait at the Sears Tower

Our hotel was conveniently located a block from Michigan Ave, so we obviously explored the shops (including the American Girl doll store). Saw this hilarious statue of Marilyn Monroe (who is beautiful even as a 30ish foot Amazon). The men were just excited to stand under her skirt.

We were also only about 4 blocks from the waterfront, so I got to go on my run along the Lakefront path. And it was absolutely beautiful and fun and I want to run along this path like every day of my life. It is awesome.

In fact, that’s pretty much the only word I can use to describe Chicago. It’s just awesome and I’m so glad I got to go for my birthday.

Now, let the week of moving commence. I’m almost in my new place!

The sad middle class I problems I face

2011-08-28T12:55:00.000-04:00

The biggest annoyance about the storm for me last night? The rain broke my phone. Argh. I was on the phone and got out of my car and it got wet and it broke the microphone.

THREE days before my phone is eligible for an upgrade.

Luckily, I had kept my last phone (I usually donate them when I get a new phone) because the eris had a really crappy alarm clock on it. So, the Verizon Wireless guy at the store couldn't fix it, but he helped me activate my old phone so I could at least have a phone of some sort (the only downfall to having your cell phone being your only phone).

However, I don't have any contacts in there from my new phone (so if you gave me your number sometime in the last 2 years or so, I probably don't have it) because the card holder on my old phone is damaged and they couldn't download the contacts onto the new phone manually b/c it's so crappy. Sigh. Hopefully, when I eventually get my new phone I can re-transfer them. We'll see. I'm special like that and will probably have issues getting that to work.

But now I'm trying to pick out a new phone. I had it narrowed down to the Droid 3 and the Samsung Charge, but now I'm seeing the Droid Bionic comes out in about a week and a half, and maybe I should wait and see that one?

The difficult decisions I face.

Sadly, I won't have my phone in time for Chicago, which is kind of crappy b/c I wanted to be able to use the nav system on my phone. Blargh. I may reactivate the phone before going to Chicago and using the awesome cousin's phone as our phone in case someone needs to reach us and my phone for the maps? Who knows. (I could just be old fashioned and use an actual paper map, but that seems like a lot of work...).

And yes, I did just write an entire post about my phone.

Thank God I found the good in goodbye*

2011-08-23T21:11:00.000-04:00

I went camping this weekend. I now have 46 bug bites (at my last count, I may have missed a few). I was dinner for the entire park's population of bugs. Including the numerous crickets that kept jumping on my head (yes, I was wearing bug spray, I swear). Luckily, the beer was plentiful and the company was lovely, so I still had a fantastic time. I also discovered a previously unknown skill I have. I can't cook bacon without burning it on a normal stove. But, I can apparently cook it on a bunsen burner type camp stove (I also make some mad good french toast). Good to know

There is a contractor at work that is constantly wearing an Utley jersey. He wears it so often, that when I see actual pictures of Utley (or see him on TV), I think to myself, that's not Chase Utley. Then I remember that I'm apparently a moron. Just because someone WEARS a Chase Utley shirt, it doesn't actually MAKE them Chase Utley. The fact I even have to remind myself of this makes me realize why people think I'm an airhead.

After a few days in a row of rain, my mom would throw us outside in our raincoats and tell us to play outside (she wouldn't do this in the middle of a storm or anything, so don't think my mom was endangering us in anyway). Apparently, we were a bit...high strung after being cooped up indoors for a few days in a row. I find that I am STILL this way. I didn't run much last week because of weather and work and then I was at the beach/camping this weekend so didn't run then either. I only ran once for 3 miles last week. That is apparently not enough for me. I have been so squirrelly lately (I left work too late last night to run again). Today, I HAD to run. I even bailed on dinner with some friends because I REALLY had to go running. I feel a little less stabby, and a lot more rational (seriously, sometimes I cringe at how irrational I can get). So that's a plus.

So how about that earthquake? At first we all thought that something out on the production floor had exploded or something (we were trying to repair a robot and I thought maybe something had gone horribly wrong). And then, I realized it's an earthquake. I wasn't scared or anything, just a little disconcerted. However, I'm quite glad I wasn't in Virginia this week. That would have been a little more disconcerting I'm sure. Unfortunately, I have to go to VA for the day again on Tuesday. That's a lot of driving for one day. Sigh.

However, then on Friday, I'm going to CHICAGO!!!! I CANNOT WAIT. Seriously. CANNOT WAIT. EEK!

I've been trying to find a used copy of Knit. Sock. Love. for what seems like forever. I am cheap. I don't want to pay $27 for a knitting book. However, the used copies are MORE than the new copies? Um, $145 for a USED copy of a $27 book? Is it gold plated??? WTF?

*Beyonce (As annoying as I find Beyonce, I have a kind of girl crush on her and Rihanna. Go figure).

Bedtime...no songs

2011-08-17T20:41:00.000-04:00

I did something very unlike me, and I'm so proud of myself.

I'm very anti-confrontations and usually avoid them at all costs. But, I've been thinking and thinking and thinking, and I couldn't take it anymore. I really didn't want to just give up on a friend, so I said something. And honestly? Even if nothing changes, I feel much better and I said my piece, and at least if something bad happens between us, I tried.

Yay me.

You better lose yourself in the music, the moment*

2011-08-16T21:36:00.000-04:00

I think I mentioned helping RR move in my last rambling post. Although we moved some stuff ourselves, her new company hired her professional movers to pack up her stuff and send it to VA. You'd think this would help make the move easier, no? However, I'm dreading my move (being up here while all my stuff I need to move in VA is not going to make this move any easier) because honestly, this move was just not fun, and I'm worried mine will suck just as much logistically.

It started out amusingly. The movers came at the beginning of the week and packed up her stuff for her. While there, they asked her if the bong was coming. Um, it's a hookah, from Israel (no really, it actually was a hookah) and yes it's coming. They were apparently VERY thorough and made sure they packed everything. Including these lovely bits of lint that were very carefully placed in the box with her other valuables (who packs lint???).

They then proceeded to load one truck with her stuff and drive it to the warehouse to transfer it to a different moving company's truck (I have NO IDEA). Somewhere in this process they managed to damage at least 3 pieces of her furniture, and I'm not even sure what else. Originally, it was thought the delivery date would be Monday, so RR planned to drive up to Virginia (from South Carolina) on Friday evening, stay the night with K and I in Richmond, and then drive the last hour and a half to her place at a leisurely rate. That would give her two days to get her keys and clean the apartment before the movers show up.

That Friday evening, while driving up to Richmond, the movers call and tell her that now they will be arriving at her place first thing Saturday morning. Um, nice 14 hour notice? The rental place was going to be closed by the time she got up there, so she didn't really have much choice other than staying in Richmond as planned and waking up at the butt crack of dawn to drive further north and get her keys early Saturday morning and hopefully have an hour or so to clean. Not ideal, but doable.

She gets her keys, goes to her apartment...and they don't work. She is then told by the rental company that the keys work for everyone but her, she must be using them wrong (ha! apparently she's an idiot that hasn't figured out the basic mechanics of a key!). THREE different people show up and are unable to get into her apartment (but you know, the keys totally work!). At this point, the movers have also arrived and are starting to bring her boxes of stuff in and basically piling them up in the hallway because there is nowhere else to put them.

Locksmiths are called, the maintenance guy is called, and about 2-3 hours later, she FINALLY gets in her apartment, where apparently the air conditioner is leaking and water is running down the middle of the bedroom floor. The maintenance people tell her, oh we don't work on Sundays. Put a towel under it and call us on Monday. Seriously?

I think at that point I would have been a little bitchy and told them that their asses were there now and they were going to fix it now. But, we were so tired and just relieved to be in the apartment, that it wasn't even worth fussing over. And, the maintenance people and movers all appeared to be under the impression that I was RR's girlfriend, and I didn't want them thinking she was dating a bitchy girl. Got to keep my reputation intact.

It started raining with half her stuff laying around outside off the truck. It was like a thousand degrees inside the apartment (hi, no air conditioning). We had no food or water at the apartment thanks to the 14 hour notice and the keys not working, leaving no time to run and grab anything.

All in all, it was a rough day. And I keep thinking, I have to do this myself in about a month. Hopefully mine goes a little smoother (I at least already have a key that I know works...that's a plus).

*Eminem (I just listened to most ATROCIOUS Taylor Swift cover of this song. It was awful. So I had to listen to the original)

That girl don't fake it, give her rules she'll break it*

2011-08-14T22:43:00.000-04:00

Random thoughts from the weekend that pretty much have nothing to do with each other

**********

I have been thinking a lot about the relationships in my life lately. The ones that I am so happy to have back, the ones that have always been there, but now I'm able to see them more, and the ones that make me feel like shit and yet I can't seem to let go. I'm really bad at letting go.

I keep thinking, that things will go back to how they were before. But I know they won't. And I don't seem to know how to break things off before they blow up in my face. (Case in point, a few weekends ago, a friend and I had a HORRIBLE break up because I couldn't figure out how to distance myself from them before it got awful).

Oddly enough, in the midst of all this. I got a phone call this weekend from the person who has probably hurt me the most in my life. I was kind of amazed to discover that I really HAVE let them go. I don't care about them or anything they do (other than feeling sorry for the people they are currently hurting). I've been wanting them to call for the longest time so I could tell them EVERYTHING I had thought up over the past years about what an awful, weak person they are. I didn't even care enough anymore to say anything. It's done. They ARE out of my life, and I didn't even realize it.

I don't really know where I'm going with this. At all. I think I'm just trying to work out in my head what to do about some of my so called friendships that just seem to make me feel like crap. Is it their fault, is it mine? And does it really matter either way?

**********

I went running on the trails when I was in Richmond. This trail has a really sandy soil base. It hadn't rained in a while. It felt like I was running on the beach, it was ridiculously loose sand. Then, the next day I helped RR move some of her stuff up three flights of stairs (including a ridiculously heavy air conditioner). I believe she compared me to a pack horse at one time (sadly, this is not the first time the comparison has been made...not exactly flattering). I also spent approximately 15 hours in a car this weekend. I am stiff and my calf muscles are KILLING me.

**********

I went for a run again today. This was intended to be a "recovery" run. Fail.

I am an idiot and forgot I basically live at the top of a hill. I didn't want to drive to the park to go running, so I went running around here. I had a VERY hilly run (and a very SLOW run). My calf muscles are still killing me and I'm still insanely stiff.

I used the foam roller after my run today and kind of wanted to cry. I have two really bad spots on my left leg (outside my calf right below the knee, and my hip flexor) and my right leg is just overall sore. I don't understand how a piece of foam can be so torturous.

**********

I am so ready to move. I'm so sick of the horrible internet here. I'm so sick of the TV not working anytime it rains (stupid Direct TV). I'm so sick of not being able to do laundry here b/c people are idiots and don't understand the concept of washing a FULL load at once (really, you don't need to tie up FOUR washers with ONE pair of underwear in each one). And not understanding that you have to turn ON the dryer for it actually dry.

People keep telling me that living in a hotel is so freaking sweet and I should be grateful for it and not paying rent. Yeah, it's sweet. Until you actually LIVE in a hotel. I am ready to pay rent again and just have my own place. I don't care how whiny that sounds. I'm over this place. I want to be gone.

**********

I'm going camping this weekend, then our family birthday dinner celebration thing, and then CHICAGO (and my birthday)! My next few weekends are going to rock. I keep telling myself this so I don't get too grumpy about being here.

**********

I think that's probably enough random thoughts. Hope everyone's weekend rocked.

*Ben Kweller (love that little man)

Turn up the bass, turn up the treble. I'm about to take you to a whole another level*

2011-08-12T08:23:00.002-04:00

Random Thoughts (it's too early in the morning to be coherent)

I'm sitting at the car dealer waiting for my car to be fixed (and inspected). All the new cars in the showroom is making me want to say, screw it, I'll just take a new one home. I'm obviously not going to, but they're so pretty. And shiny. And have cool new features. I want I want (however, I also want to not have a car payment which is coming soon...so I suppose I can get over it). Although, I guess we'll wait and see how much they're going to charge me for this visit. Sigh. At least they have internet!

**********

The South makes me grumpy. I swear, there is this cloud of doom that gets activated when I cross the Mason Dixon line. It makes the traffic terrible, the drivers turn into idiots, and I get the terrible urge to use my car as a ramrod. I seriously NEVER get road rage at home. No matter how bad the traffic is or how stupid the drivers are, I just shrug it off. I get to the south and all I want to do is yell at people for being stupid and figure out how to develop mental powers that will let me move cars off the road with the power of my mind. (Seriously, is the concept of a left lane for passing that difficult to comprehend?).

**********

I got my headboard yesterday! I'm so excited! It's so pretty! I am an idiot and forgot to take a picture (I was in a rush to get on the road to VA).

The delivery guy asked if I wanted him to connect the headboard to my bed. I had to laugh and tell him there was nothing for him to connect it to.

As of now, my house has 3 chairs, a rug, a cedar chest, and now a headboard. I'm getting there....

**********

I am a dumbass. I have a filing cabinet that had some old paperwork that i didn't want to get rid of, and then I have a file box full of important paperwork that comes with me (it's in the hotel now). I THOUGHT my social security card and birth certificate were in there with my passport and other important papers. Um. No.

Apparently, they were chilling in my storage unit for the past TWO years. That's a HORRIFYING thought. I'm so relieved that they were actually there.

Unfortunately, now I need to go get my social security card corrected because they didn't spell my name correctly on it. And really mom? You never bothered to fix that when I first got it?

**********

Yay seeing RR tonight!

**********

Worst family member ever. Our family reunion camp is this weekend. I had planned to attend. And....yeah, obviously not anymore. Stupid trip to VA. Hope everyone has a good reunion with out me (sorry I'm not bringing the awesomeness).

*T-Pain (another song I am not entirely sure why I like. But it's fun to run to. And seriously, they worked in Kissing Cam to the song. That's just impressive).

2011-08-09T21:49:00.001-04:00

So ready for vacation.

That is all.

Time can never mend the careless whispers of a good friend*

2011-08-07T18:35:00.000-04:00

This weekend we had a surprise party for J for her birthday. I went down a few hours early to help JP set up and help clean and such. About half an hour before everyone is supposed to show up, J is still in cleaning mode (and doesn't seem to wonder why I'm volunteering to help her clean) and doesn't appear to be having any intentions of showering/changing/etc.

Did you know there is NO polite way to tell someone they need to go shower now? Seriously. I was "strongly suggesting" she go take a shower now. She's like, um? Do I smell? I'm cleaning? What is wrong with you? Yes, you smell. Awkward.

**********

After the party, a few of us stuck around and we had a fire in the fire pit and sat around drinking beers and scotch (it tastes like burning).

It started to rain, and instead of going inside, we just dragged the canopy over the fire and sat under the canopy. It was pretty nice, however, now I feel like I smell like a bonfire. I've showered twice so far today, and I STILL smell like it. (Apparently now I'M the one that smells?)

**********

I'm not really ready for this weekend to be over, and I don't really want to return to work tomorrow. But, at least it's a short week since I'm taking a few days off to go back to Richmond to take care of some stuff before I have to move (ugh, Virginia). However, on the plus side, I should get to see RR this weekend and her new place. So that's fantastic. And, even more fantastic, once we both move, we're only going to be about 3.5 hours apart as opposed to the 10-12ish hours we are now.

Definitely doable in a weekend, and I'm hoping we see each other a lot more than we have the past few years.

**********

Hope everyone had a fantastic weekend!

*George Michael (This has randomly been in my head the past few weeks. JH used to make me listen to it ALL the time in college and it would drive me INSANE. Yet now, I feel compelled to listen to it every time it comes on).

I hope you don't take this the wrong way, Girl you look better with the lights off*

2011-08-04T20:51:00.001-04:00

In 2005 (ish?), RR and I went to Scotland (as did my mom), and we decided to take a tour of the Scottish Highlands, that we affectionately refer to as the eating and sleeping tour of Scotland (I'll get to that in a minute).

While on this tour, we went to Glen Coe, Loch Ness, and other famous Highland landmarks. We went on this trip mid-March when it was freezing and raining pretty much every day. Basically, a low mist hung over everything, all the time. And while this made me have to wear pretty much every article of clothing packed at once for the whole trip, it also made the view of pretty much everything, absolutely beautiful.

Yesterday, I went for a run in the park, and it was crazy. It had just rained, and there was a low level mist floating on the path and over the river, and it looked amazingly like Scotland, except ridiculously warmer.

It was probably the best run I've had all summer, and it made me feel SO MUCH BETTER and less irritable, and it was basically everything a run should be. And, I was actually able to sleep well last night, so I'm finally feeling caught up on my sleep, and yeah, it's nice.

As for the eating and sleeping tour of Scotland, my mom really wanted a break from us, so she convinced us we should take a day trip to the Highlands. On a bus.

Anyone that knows me, knows that motion sickness and I are very well acquainted. I do NOT do well as a passenger in back seats of cars or buses. So, I'm not entirely sure why I thought a bus tour would be a good idea, but I bought my ticket, and then, I realized. That was stupid.

I can kind of mitigate some of the effects of motion sickness by taking Dramamine and constantly eating candy/pretzels/etc. Unfortunately, Dramamine tends to knock me out and all I want to do is sleep.

So, this trip consisted of me falling asleep between bus stops and while not sleeping, eating twizzlers and pretzels. Any time we would stop at a tourist center, I'd be feeling sick, so I'd go to the tea shop and get tea and scones. And, RR being the awesome friend that she is, joined me. I'm not kidding when I say on a 10 hour bus tour, we slept for 8 hours, ate at least 6 scones, drank at least 6 cups of tea, and god knows how many twizzlers and pretzels. It was awful. Even when we stopped for lunch and dinner, all we ate was scones and tea.

I also have no recollection of anything on this tour other than Glen Coe (there was a random guy in a kilt with a sword there, which is really the only reason I remember this place) and Loch Ness (where the weird guy on the bus bottled some of the lake's water and then drank it on the way home on the bus).

I would rank this as one of the worst days we had in Scotland, however, it's definitely one of our favorite Fat Kid memories from the trip.

*New Boyz (I like this song, but I have yet to figure out how NOT to take this the wrong way? I mean sure, THINK it, but don't TELL me this).

So...there's that

2011-08-02T21:10:00.001-04:00

Needed something pretty this week:

Flowers always make me happier.

Party rock is in the house tonight, Everybody just have a good time*

2011-08-01T21:43:00.002-04:00

The weekend kind of started out shitty again. I worked pretty late Friday night, and then had a pretty big fight when I got home with a friend, and then said screw it and went to bed and laid there feeling sorry for myself. Gah! I laugh at how melodramatic I was there, but seriously, I was not in the mood to do anything else.

But, then Saturday came along, and I had a really good time. I took my parents out to brunch and went shopping with my mom. Then, the parents kept Oscar and I drove up to go to the city with JH. And, as an added bonus Mike and a friend from college came as well, and I met a new friend of JH's who is awesome.

We went to go see a band in the Village, and I always feel so old after going out in the city. We never leave till late, and I'm always super tired and it's past my bedtime and I get grumpy (I am such a bitch when I'm tired). This weekend was no exception. We had to drop a few people off in Jersey City on the way back to JH's house, and I was getting grumpier and grumpier driving there (um, it's like a 15 minute drive, if even, I got ridiculously grumpy in that short amount of time). So, we dropped Mike off and I said screw it, I'm not driving anymore, and made Trent drive us back to JH's.

I then proceeded to fall asleep in the back seat with JH, which looking back was probably not the best idea since we were the only two that knew how to get back to her house. We finally made it back around 5:30, and all I could think was that if it was the work week, I'd be getting up about now (and that L was probably going to be getting up in an hour or so).

I then had to wake up about 5 hours later and go to L's to borrow her van to go buy a new piece of furniture for the new house. It was a $100 cart from Ikea, that the lady wanted $15 for, and I talked her down to $10 (I have no idea where this skill set came from on Sunday, I usually suck at bargaining).

So $100 seems a bit steep for this thing, but $10? Awesome.

And then, I drove home to have dinner with the parents, and back to the hotel to try and get some sleep (major fail) before going back to work crazy early today. And now, I'm exhausted today. As in, I tried to convince myself that I didn't really need to wake up this morning because I was already running late so I might as well sleep a little longer. Sleepy logic is my favorite kind.

And I'm ending this post with a kind of question. On Saturday night, someone called me Meek S. Now, it was said as a joke at the time, but really? Do I come across as meek?

*LMFAO - I am mildly OBSESSED with this song (mildly is not really an accurate description of how much I love this song). I cannot figure out why I'm so drawn to it, since it's pretty much everything I hate in a song. And yet, LOVE LOVE LOVE.

All right in a sort of limited way for an off night*

2011-07-28T20:58:00.001-04:00

I went to the dreaded mall yesterday with PD, my awesome co-worker to grab some dinner. While there, I noticed this little boy standing in the middle of the food court all alone, crying and calling out for his mom. All these people walked by and looked at him but did NOTHING to see if he was ok.

Seriously? How do you not stop and see if he's ok???

So I walked over and started to talking to the kid, and oh, he was so heartbreakingly cute and I felt so bad for how scared he was. He couldn't have been much older than 2, and he was so terrified, he could barely talk. All he could say was he couldn't find his mom and he was scared. I was trying to figure out if he knew his name or his mom's name and he just kept shaking his head no and not talking.

Then, he put his hands up to be picked up, and said up and that he was scared and wanted his mommy and oy, completely broke my heart. PD went to go find security, while I was standing there with the kid, and at this point FINALLY other people started coming up and asking if I had gone to get security, and really? Why does it take someone doing something for other people to react? It's a freaked out, crying kid who is obviously alone and scared. It's not that hard to just stop and see if he's ok.

So, security came and we couldn't get the kid to answer any questions to identify who he is, and then his mom comes running up, practically in tears, and he threw himself at her, and it all ended well and we went and got our dinner.

But, it made me kind of sad that I was the first person to actually do something, when I know so many other people saw him standing there.

**********

And now, completely switching gears. The Chicago trip is full steam ahead. I had already decided I was going to go even if I went alone, but then, my cousin who has yet to earn a nickname said she wanted to go, and Bug was on the fence and said she would possibly go if she could work it out with the hubbie and her work schedule.

Sadly, Bug really couldn't work it out, but happily, the awesome cousin (who really NEEDS a nickname) is still coming and I bought the tickets today, and I'm so excited to go! Is it my birthday yet???

*Paul Simon

Crazy insane, got no brain*

2011-07-26T20:58:00.000-04:00

I find myself to be really boring lately. I have a lot of stuff that I COULD talk about it. But it's not the most prudent thing to do. So instead, I talk about nothing.

However, L assures me I'm cuddly boring. I'm not entirely sure what that means. Thanks? I guess?

But seriously, I am so boring, these are the only topics I could safely talk about, and seriously, who wants to hear about any of this?

The terrible foot cramps my safety shoes are giving me. I finally got used to not wearing them all the time, and unfortunately have been living in them this week. My feet are not fans.
The run I had in the rain yesterday (that was actually a really awesome run, but not exactly exciting reading material)
The cheeseburger I've been craving all week. Oddly enough.
The lack of sleep I've been getting this week.
The irrational anger I am feeling towards a particular individual (who probably doesn't even know I'm feeling this way b/c it is SO IRRATIONAL!)
Oscar's new intense hatred for rolling suitcases which is not the most convenient hatred to have in a hotel.

Ha! I tricked you into reading my boring post topics anyway!

Also, I'm pretty sure I've gone insane this week, and it's only Tuesday. Hope everyone else is having a slightly saner week than I am.

*Cypress Hill

It's nothing to cry about, cause we'll hold each other soon*

2011-07-24T21:23:00.000-04:00

On Friday I had a couple of friends pass on some bad news. A friend of mine from Richmond lost her husband suddenly Friday morning, another friend of mine told me some bad news about his dad, and another friend of mine had a miscarriage. So, it was not the most auspicious start to the weekend.

But all the bad news DID give me the urge to see my family, so I made a quick trip home on Saturday morning (I know I had said no driving, but I really wanted to see them). I drove my sister, JP, and Baby V to the airport at stupid early in the morning and then drove up to my mom and dad's.

My dad was a little less enthusiastic about seeing me when I dragged him out of bed way earlier than he likes to wake up, to make him take me to breakfast. In my defense, I had been awake for 3 hours at this point and I was hungry. AND to be honest, I waited a half hour longer than I really wanted to before waking him up. So, I think I was a good daughter. :-)

Later that night, I hung out with SH and went and saw Friends with Benefits which was surprisingly not as terrible as I was expecting. I pretty much went in with no expectations and was pleasantly surprised. I mean, obviously not film of the year or anything, but it had its moments. Plus, I have a huge girl crush on Mila Kunis and I pretty much geek out over Woody Harrelson, so they made it worth my time. :-) Then, Sunday was spent with Bug catching up on everything that has happened in the last few months.

So, started out kind of sad on Friday, but all in all, I had a really good weekend. It was great catching up with my friends, and even greater not driving all over the state to see them.

I sort of slacked on the whole running thing (skipped two of my runs...sigh), but this week should only be in the 90s. I can totally handle running in that.

If you're still reading, hope you had a good weekend!

*Death Cab for Cutie (they played "I Will Follow You Into the Dark" in Friends with Benefits. Just Reminded me how much I love this sweet, creepy song)

Now I've come to my decision, and it's one of a painful kind*

2011-07-22T13:50:00.000-04:00

I appear to be having my effect on electronic things again.

Our internet at the hotel has been broken for the past two nights, and the A/C at work isn't working right either. Of the two issues, the A/C being down is the one that's really not making me happy right now. Seeing how it's over 100 outside right now (I've been watching the temperature steadily climb in here all day. Right now we're at 83). Ugh.

**********

On a positive note, I do have some fun plans for the weekend. Two of my friends are driving out here to see me, instead of me visiting them, which is awesome. Means I will be doing minimal driving this weekend and still getting to see friends. I've been getting tired of always being the one to drive. I need new friends either in the area, or that like to visit.

**********

I'm supposed to run again today. I may be lame and just run it on the dreadmill. I'm not entirely sure I could breathe if I tried to run outside today. But ugh, the treadmill kind of sucks my will to live. I'm not sure which is worse.

**********

And, on another random, sad note (it's too hot to think coherently), my Chicago trip may not happen anymore. Which makes me sad. I was going to go with JH, and now it looks like she's probably going to be moving that weekend instead. So, I am trying to decide if I still want to go and just go by myself, or if I should say screw it, and not go at all.

Because, dammit. It's my birthday and do I really want to be traveling on my own? During the day I'd have no issues, in fact, I'd have fun. But I want to be able to go out and drink with someone on my birthday. Meeting people at a bar on my own is not my strong point. But, at the same time...it's my birthday dammit. I really want to go!

So, I have to decide this weekend what I'm going to do. Sigh. (Anyone else want to go to Chicago?)

*Jim Croce

Forget all the regrets that are bound to follow*

2011-07-18T20:27:00.002-04:00

I was reading a blog today talking about participating in postcrossing. They got a postcard today that said "Today, I'm going to tell my best friend I love him".

And Gah! Both of our reactions were NO!

Then, I thought more about it, and, yeah. My reaction is still NO! Don't do it! Just no.

My reasoning

If he doesn't feel the same way, potentially ruined the friendship.
If he DOES feel the same way, but it doesn't work out, potentially ruined the friendship.
I'm a complete coward and don't think I'd have the guts to actually take a risk like this with someone that I'm THAT close with. (It's one thing to make an ass of yourself in front of someone you don't know and never have to see again, or even someone that you're friends with but you could easily avoid if he rejects you. It's completely different if this person is your best friend).

HOWEVER, having said that, I can see how if he DOES feel the same way, but didn't have the guts to make the move, and it DOES work out. Quite possibly the best thing you could have done in your life.

So, for the 2 people that actually read and occasionally comment, what's YOUR opinion? (I'm still strongly leaning no even with the potentially greatest thing comment. I'm that big a coward.).

**********

So, having not run a single step last week, I've managed to run twice so far this week. I stopped at Liberty State Park (I think that's what it's called?) and ran about 2-ish miles yesterday on my way home from north Jersey. I didn't wear my Garmin, so I'm going solely based on a guesstimate.

Then, I ran again today at the park after work. Ugh it was so humid. Breathing was a bit difficult and I got light headed when I stopped. But, I finished. All that matters. Also, leave it to me to start my first week of training for the half marathon during a freaking heat wave. Blargh.

**********

Anybody got any new book recommendations? I need some new ones.

*Chris Young

I broke my own heart*

2011-07-17T23:15:00.001-04:00

I have a bunch of unrelated things:

I am so glad that last week is over. I had to drive to Richmond on Wednesday evening for meetings on Thursday. The trip took 10 hours because there was an accident on 95, so I got onto 301 and was doing great until I got to the Nice bridge (which is the most in-accurately named bridge ever) where a truck was hanging off the side of the bridge and the bridge was closed. Apparently, the south doesn't believe in building many bridges, and I had to drive all the way back up to DC and get back on 95 and head back south to Richmond. It added at least 4 hours to my drive. I was so irritated. THEN, the meeting I was supposed to attend got cancelled, so...basically the ENTIRE reason I had driven down was no longer there. And, I had to drive back home to PA on Thursday evening so I could be

back in the office early on Friday morning. I was not a fan.

**********

I went and saw the last Harry Potter movie this weekend, and up until the last half hour, I thought they did a pretty good job (at least better than the first part of book 7). But UGH to the last half hour. I don't understand how you can take a great ending in a book and make a movie version that sucks. It was such a disappointment. Sigh.

**********

I didn't run a single day last week. I can tell.

**********

I have some random book recommendations.

Anything by John Green, especially Paper Towns. (He's actually a young adult author, but he's really good. He also does my favorite youtube channel with Hank Green, the Vlogbrothers)

The Strain and The Fall. Both are by Guillermo del Torro (the guy that did Pan's Labyrinth) and Chuck Hogan. There's also a third book in the series, but it hasn't come out yet, so not sure if I recommend it or not.

Damnation Alley by Roger Zelazny

So, as I was putting this list together, I realized all of these books were actually suggested/loaned to me by Mike (except The Fall, but I read that b/c I loved The Strain so much, so it probably counts). So, I guess this is maybe his recommendation list as well?

**********

Yeah, I'm pretty boring lately. Nothing super exciting going on in my life. Hence the lack of posts lately.

Hope everyone is a lot less boring than I am!

*Pissed Jeans

Oh Princess you make the party*

2011-07-11T21:30:00.000-04:00

This past weekend we celebrated Little T's birthday. She turned two last week, and can no longer be called Baby T. Sniff. My nieces and nephews are getting so big!!!

In honor of the occasion, she dressed up for us:

Super princess indeed. The cuteness is killing me.

*Matt Nathanson

Meh

2011-07-07T22:32:00.000-04:00

All day today I was looking forward to running. Literally. ALL DAY.

Then, ten minutes before I'm getting ready to leave, torrential downpour and thunder and lightening. You have got to be kidding me. Now, I make some stupid decisions when it comes to running (as in, not eating enough before going, or ignoring fences blocking the trail, or running when it's 100 degrees outside), but even I'm not entirely dumb enough to run during lightening storms in the middle of the woods.

Luckily, I got back home and the rain hadn't reached the park yet, so, I squeezed in a quick 2 mile run (ha, apparently maybe I AM dumb enough to go running with pending lightening storms). The rain and lightening held off until I reached my car. So that was nice. I really needed to run. :-)

Sadly, I have nothing exciting to talk about. So, that's all you get.

There's something good waitin' down this road*

2011-07-05T21:38:00.000-04:00

I really dislike being hot. I dislike sweating (and unfortunately, I am one easily sweaty person). I dislike feeling dirty. I pretty much just hate the heat. Summer is my least favorite time of the year (seriously, as much as I bitch about being cold all the time, I'll take a snow storm any day over a heat wave).

Having said all that, I randomly kind of enjoy running in the summer.

Seriously, my brain got wired wrong at birth. It is so...contradictory it doesn't even make sense.

However, I love the lack of warm up required. I start running and about 10 steps in, I'm already loose and limber, and by a quarter mile, I'm sweating up a storm and I feel like a well oiled machine. (Ok, that sounds ridiculous, and it's not as pie in sky as I just made it sound, but it's the closest I can get to explaining it). When I run in the winter, I usually feel stiff and tight and cold for at least a mile before I warm up enough to enjoy the run, and seriously, if you're only running 2-3 miles. That's a ridiculously long time to feel cold.

So, yes. I enjoy running in the heat.

Having said that though, I am positively vampiric when it comes to the SUN and the heat. I slather on SPF 50+ sunscreen (yeah, I don't care what they say about SPF not really counting past 30 or whatnot). I run in shaded areas at all times. I wear a hat and sunglasses (well, the hat is also partly for bug protection since I run in shaded areas, which tend to consist of woods). Basically. I look like an idiot.

Also, I apparently can't smile when I'm wearing this stuff or taking my picture. Not entirely sure which one is preventing the smile. Possibly both?

And as a random embarrassing side note. I went to the grocery store after running. While in the wegmans, a little girl asked her daddy, "Is she SOAKING wet?" in a HOW CAN THIS BE kind of tone of voice. Her poor dad was horrified and was like SHUSH! So I was amused, and yet, very self conscious after that (I mentioned above how easily I sweat). I looked down at my front and I looked ok, but what if I was SUPER sweaty on my back (or even worse, my butt???). What if it looked like I peed my pants or something (the things I am concerned about).

I'm hoping it was just the pattern of my shirt. You can kind of see in the picture above that it's a fake camo type pattern, that does look like I've been rained on. I'm gonna go with that. Less embarrassing. :-)

*Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Now I'm drunk, and you're insane*

2011-06-29T22:16:00.000-04:00

So ever get mad at someone else because they're being themselves? Or even worse, get mad at yourself for being you? Because right now? TOTALLY happening here. Gah! (Also, do you know how ridiculous it feels to be mad at myself for something I can't change?).

Anyways, that's where I'm at right now. I'm so ready for some time off. I need to not be around people or something.

I went for a run today, hoping to clear my head. The weather was perfect, I wasn't hungry (I'm usually ready for dinner by the time I head home, and convincing myself to run while my stomach is yelling for food totally sucks), and was totally in the mood for this run.

The run SUCKED big time. As in, I was going for a 4 mile jaunt, and it quickly turned into a 2 mile garbage run, that quickly turned into a combination 1.7 mile "jogging" and .3 mile "walking" (I at least still did the pushups at each quarter mile, so I got in 80 pushups). But, gah! it was awful.

My legs felt not right from the first step, and then just felt shaky after about half a mile (usually how my legs feel after running 8 or 9 miles...not half a mile) and I just hated it the ENTIRE time. I was miserable and kept looking at my watch hoping I was at the quarter mile markers so I could just stop already. However, at least my pushups felt ridiculously easy for the first half of the run, and didn't get super hard until the last set. Maybe I need to increase my reps.

But yeah, not only am I am mad at myself for being me (and someone else for being them), I then had a shitty ass run that just made me feel worse about myself. Awesome. Totally counter productive and not what I had intended when I started out for the run.

Is it Friday yet?

*Jakob Dylan - I randomly heard this song somewhere (no idea where), and can't seem to stop listening to it. It's practically on repeat in my car. Go download some Jakob Dylan!

Life is a highway, I want to ride it all night long*

2011-06-27T15:11:00.002-04:00

This past weekend was the weekend of driving. Other than the fact that I was EXHAUSTED by 4pm on Sunday, I had a good time for the most part. I got to see a bunch of different people, and had fun.

I left work a little early on Friday (like 4PM, instead of the normal 5PM). I hopped on the PA turnpike and headed up to L’s house in North Jersey (because I am an awesome sister and said I would watch her kids for her all day on Saturday while she packed). I headed up after work on Friday so I wouldn’t have to wake up early on a Saturday to get up to her house in time (remember that reasoning, it’s kind of amusing later).

The PA turnpike was awesome. No traffic. I was able to get to NJ in about 30 minutes (that’s awesome, it’s usually closer to 45-60 minutes due to traffic). The PA and NJ Turnpikes connect via this 1.5 mile-ish long road that is considered to be part of the NJ Turnpike, even though it’s not actually a real part of the turnpike. There is an exit about 100 feet past the bridge to get off onto RT 130, but if you don’t take that exit, you go through a toll and then there is nowhere to go other than straight to the turnpike. Google maps showed the turnpike was ok, so I didn’t take the Rt 130 exit. I took the toll that’s about ¼ mile past that exit and hit a solid wall of traffic. Brake lights as far as you could see. Sigh.

It took 40ish minutes to go that last mile on the “extension” part of the turnpike before actually getting on to the ACTUAL turnpike. Once I got to the actual turnpike, I hit more traffic, and construction, and flooding, and closed roads. All in all, it took about 4 hours to get to L’s house. It normally takes 2-2.5 hours (even with bad traffic, it’s usually only a 2.5 hour trip). It was awful. And, I didn’t eat dinner before heading up b/c I figured I’d be there by around 6.

Traffic and hunger are not a good combination for me. I was SO grumpy. Ugh.

Saturday morning, I woke up around 8 thinking I should head upstairs (I slept in her in-law’s guest room downstairs) b/c I had told L that I would be there around 9am. I get ready and head upstairs and everyone was still hanging around and hadn’t even eaten breakfast which seemed odd to me. They usually get up and eat pretty early. About an hour later, I look down at my phone and realized it was only 8:15. I had woken up an hour earlier than necessary b/c I can’t tell time half asleep. I was so upset. I really wanted that extra hour of sleep (it was the whole reason for coming up the night before).

I spent the day playing with Little J, Little H, and Baby T. JH showed up later that afternoon (with lunch! She’s so awesome) and we took the kids to the park for an hour or so.

After we got back, I showered, and JH and I headed to Jersey City to get some dinner (I was craving banana pancakes). We met up with Mike and his roommate and some other friends at a local diner there. I ended up staying the night in Jersey City and had to drive to DE on Sunday morning to pick up J and JP’s truck, then take the truck to PA to get the ugly chairs mentioned yesterday, then back to DE with the truck. I picked up my car in DE and headed back to PA b/c I was exhausted and couldn’t bring myself to drive to my mom’s house in Jersey to pick up Little O before heading back to PA.

So, I was basically driving all evening Friday, a little bit on Saturday, and then from 8:30-4:00 on Sunday.

I got back to PA and took a nice hour long nap, and then finally went to bed around 9. Today, I have to go look at that chest after work and head to my mom’s to pick up the dog.

Then, I can go back to my hotel and refuse to drive anywhere other than work for the next few days.

It will probably all start over again this weekend. So, who wants to come visit this weekend and save me from driving all over the country?
*Tom Cochrane

this room will stay just as it is now for quite some time*

2011-06-26T20:40:00.000-04:00

Anyone that has been reading L's blog, has probably already seen that I am moving in September, and L has already decorated almost my entire house/apt for me. And it rocks.

Unfortunately, I do not have much in the way of furniture (when I lived in VA, I had a lot of...unfinished rooms). Therefore, I'm feeling like I'm attempting to furnish (and decorate) an entire house at one time and, I'd rather not spend all my money doing this.

So, L has donated some things to the cause, I'm going to be buying a lot from Ikea (luckily, I really like modern furniture, so Ikea is great for me) and Craigslist, and I'm initially buying some things that I'm not entirely enthralled with if they meet my budget (or you know...is free).

Perfect example. L designed my living room and it rocks. I love it. Included in this living room design, is this $5 chair I found on craigslist.

Yeah, this thing is ugly , and not exactly a living room chair style. But, it was $5 (and I got two of them!) so I figured, I was willing to learn to love them because a $5 chair frees up more money to put towards the rest of the place, and in a while, I can upgrade to a nicer chair hopefully.

In what involved a ridiculous amount of driving this morning, I went to pick up my two ugly chairs today, with my $10 in pocket, ready to be spent. The owners of the aqua chairs also had 5 of these red and tan brocade type chair and needed to get rid of them, so they asked if I wanted it. Never one to turn down free furniture, I am now the proud owner of THREE ugly chairs (instead of the original two I had planned).

Is it sad that I am excited to own three ugly chairs?

This chair, at least kind of matches the color scheme of the rest of the living room (ha, not really, I just pretend it does) AND it was pretty damn comfortable (surprising no?). I will be attempting to improve my slip-covering skills sometime in the near future I imagine. One of the aqua chairs will now go in my "study" (the room otherwise known as the catch-all of my mismatched/un-needed furniture), and either my bedroom (where it will somewhat match the rest of the room) or the basement (which is going to be the spare bedroom). Oh, the possibilities.

Tomorrow, I'm going to look at this cedar chest I found on Craigslist. I'm hoping it's in decent shape and can either go at the foot of my bed or will be my new coffee table until I can find a steamer trunk I like and is in my price range.

So, progress is being made. Even if I don't move until sometime in September or October. However, the amount of stuff I still need to buy is a little intimidating. I'm hoping I have more furniture than I remembered in storage (and that it's not entirely hideous), and maybe I won't need to buy as much as we think. :-) Wouldn't that be lovely?

Hope everyone had a lovely weekend! I'll give another post about what I actually did this weekend (that necessitated ridiculous amounts of driving) tomorrow or the next day. I think I've already done a ridiculous amount of writing and I'm amazed if you made it this far!

*Dan Mangan

Though winds of change are blowing wild and free, You ain't seen nothing like me yet*

2011-06-20T20:42:00.000-04:00

Sunday was spent building a Summer Funland for Baby V with J. Unfortunately, we are both idiots and kept calling it a Winter Wonderland, which it most definitely was not.

We had a sand and water table set up (except both sides were filled with water for more summer fun), and a kiddie pool filled with water and activity balls, and an awesome sprinkler with wacky wavy arms. It was quite the Summer Funland indeed.

Unfortunately, I did not have my camera, and only had my cell phone, so pictures are a little scarce. But you can get a small idea of how awesome this funland was.

Does this not look like a blast? I was jealous :-)

On a completely different note, I bought a headboard today! (Yes, I DO live in a hotel right now and don't need it. But it was on sale! And it's pretty!)

In case you don't feel like clicking the link, here's a picture from the West Elm website (however, I got it in white).

I'm getting so excited to move and decorate and have my own place again! And my awesome sister has already started planning my place for me and telling me what to buy. I'll have an adult place, with little work on my part...just money output :-).

So excited!

*Technically Bob Dylan, but lately Adele.

Growing up won't bring us down*

2011-06-17T09:42:00.001-04:00

I wanted to do this yesterday, when it was actually Baby V's birthday, but, I failed.

So, today you get a mini-slideshow of the cuteness that is my niece.

One year ago, J and JP welcomed this amazingly precious baby into the family. It was love at first sight (at least for me :-P). And it's been amazing watching this little girl go from this newborn:

To this 4.5 month old (who plays the most adorable almost 900 year old Jedi knight ever):

To this not quite 6 month old:

To this approximately 9 month old (I can't remember when this picture was taken exactly):

To this amazing one year old (who acts more and more like her mom every day. I'm pretty sure I have a bunch of pictures of J making this EXACT face).

Happy Birthday Baby V. I can't wait to see what the next year brings. :-)

*The Maine

Wow look at you now, flowers in the window. It's such a lovely day, and I'm glad you feel the same*

2011-06-15T20:18:00.000-04:00

I love flowers. Adore them. Unfortunately, my friends and family appear to be slacking on the whole "giving me flowers" front.

So, taking matters into my own hands. I bought these:

So pretty. I love how happy they look. And the way this week has been going, I need the happy.

Hope everyone is having a great week!

*Travis

Breaking the ban on pics!

2011-06-13T14:52:00.002-04:00

I kind of have this "rule" where I don't post personal pictures of me on here. Not that I think it keeps me anonymous, but I feel like if someone from work (or something like that) were to somehow stumble on here, it would take a few extra steps of digging to find out who I am.

However, this weekend was C's wedding, and I am absolutely in love with some of the pictures that got taken.

My friend Mike came with me. He seemed like the ideal wedding date. He lived across the street from us in college so he knew all my old roommates and would have fun seeing them again. I have a good time when we hang out, so I wasn't worried about spending a weekend around him, and he kept me entertained while all my old roommates were busy being in the wedding (I didn't really know anyone else there, so it was nice to have someone to talk to when they were busy doing bridesmaid things).

I'm not as in love with this picture of me as I am with some of the others, but a lot of people are curious about Mike. I'm not entirely sure why, since I feel like I mention JH and RR just as much, but they don't seem to draw the same curiosity. Maybe it's the fact he's a boy...(Gasp! a member of the opposite sex who's a friend?!?!), but I figured I'd satisfy everyone's curiosity already.

So, Mike and I at the reception -

It's a slightly awkward angle I think, but you get the idea. And yes, I know, he's cute. I swear, I got more compliments for Mike than I did for myself. :-P (I'm cute too dammit! :-P).

Anyways, now everyone knows what Mike looks like. Feel free to compliment him if you want. I'll pass it on, along with all the other ones.

So, moving on.

Because I think JH is JUST as exciting (and cute) as Mike, I want to post some pics of her. (Also, I look much cuter in this picture, so you can see I am also cute).

I'm on the right, JH is on the left (see, we are also both cute).

And lastly, b/c these are also super cute pics of JH, RB, and me, two more pics.

The look on my face in this one is so funny. This was taken about five seconds before losing my balance, but it's a great expression. :-)

Mike took some GREAT shots of us. Another reason I'm glad I brought him with me. :-)

Also...how many times did I say the word cute there?

McGrumpy Pants

2011-06-09T22:40:00.000-04:00

Hi Grandma - there will be not lady appropriate words used in this post. You may want to look away now :-)

I have been trying not to talk about Weiner's little...moment of complete asstard-ness, but today has been a terrible from a political point of view, and I find that I need a moment to rant.

I find it very difficult at times that I work for a large corporation, because my personal political beliefs completely clash with what is best for my job. It's hard to...not get frustrated when I see some of the things we support (like a Republican run house), because personally, I think the current budget issues are showing Republicans to be heartless assholes that only care about making themselves the most money (not that the Democrats are showing themselves as a better option). However, from a keeping my job point of view. I probably should be agreeing with the Republicans.

It's frustrating. And we just had a government affairs rep at work discussing some of the issues we are supporting and, it was hard to bite my tongue at times.

Then someone at work said how much they hate Obama because he's a Muslim. And seriously people. There are SO MANY THINGS you can pick to criticize Obama for. Can you at least criticize him for something that is at least TRUE, and that actually MEANS SOMETHING. Who gives a fuck if he's Muslim (and like I said before, he's not)? It does not make him a terrible person if he was, and it has nothing to do with how he's doing as a president. Argh.

So, now my mini rant on Weiner

A - I absolutely LOVED him before. He was one of the few Representatives that I actually admired. I mean, watch this video and tell me you wouldn't think he's freaking AWESOME. He was one of the few people that actually called people out on their bullshit. They need that.

B- I don't particularly care that he's a pervert. Whatever. To each their own. What I DO have an issue with is that he lied about it for over a week (I also have seen reports that the woman did not want to receive this pictures, in that case, this would also be a sexual harassment case, however, I'm not even going to get into that argument because I dont have enough evidence to actually have anything useful to say). If he had just flat out said, yeah, that's me. It probably would have blown over, because it's not like he's an asshole lecturing people on family values and being a huge hypocrite. He's just a pervert. And that has nothing to do with him as a politician.

C- I ALSO give a shit that he just supported the idea that Breitbart is an honest, trustworthy publisher/whatever you call him. Hello, this is the douchebag that didn't want to leak the pictures b/c it would be harmful to Weiner's family, and yet, he then SHOWS THE PICTURES ON HIS PHONE TO RADIO DJs and LET THEM TAKE PICTURES OF IT. Explain to me how this isn't leaking the pictures? The fact that he was actually proven right in this whole situation just PISSES ME OFF b/c more people are going to consider him an actual source of information. ARGH.

D- We needed someone that was able to stand up and get in the faces of people on votes. As shown in the video above. Except now, he's just a pathetic joke, that has no right to be lecturing anyone on honesty or ethics.

So, this is just a big EFF YOU to Rep. Weiner.

Ok. Rant over. I shall never talk about this again.

Cause this whole world needs an Anthem, and I'm trying to put the words where they belong*

2011-06-07T19:10:00.000-04:00

Three completely unrelated topics in one post:

So, I made this for J:

(Please, ignore the toilet, I had no where else to hang it). Anyone want to guess what I'm making? (Really, how many things can you make out of a paper mache balloon?)

Isn't it lovely?

Then, my awesome lunch today. Citrus Wasabi Tofu and Veggies.

Yeah, it looks kinda gross, but it was sooo yummy. New favorite tofu recipe (super easy too). :-)

(Just press the tofu and cut it into cubes. Then, cook it in a skillet with the citrus wasabi marinade until it starts to brown). Yumm!

Sadly, there has been no running lately. I had a really crappy run on Friday. I stupidly decided to run 4 miles after work (after having been sick on Thursday and unable to breathe). Idiot.

I had a lovely asthma attack about 2 miles into the run (while I was 2 miles from my car) and this was after almost falling OFF the trail, down a ravine, into the river thanks to an asshole mountain biker. I'm not kidding about the almost falling off. I had to sit down quickly on my butt to stay on the ground. My leg and foot were actually dangling off the edge. And of course, the mtn biker just kept on going without stopping to see if I was ok. Some people need a serious lesson in trail etiquette.

Anyways, my lungs finally stopped bothering me today, and I'm not as nervous about running on the trail anymore, so hopefully I'll go for a run tomorrow after work.

*Phantom Planet

Dresses (I'm too busy watching Game of Thrones to figure out a song)

2011-06-05T21:40:00.000-04:00

Anyone that doesn't give a crap about what I'm planning to wear to a wedding next weekend shouldn't bother reading this. I just feel like I've been planning for this wedding for so freaking long, that I'm just ready for it to be over with already (actually, just ready for it to be here so I can enjoy it).

I had other dresses originally picked out, and THAT was a huge fiasco. The one for Friday night was HUGE. As in, looked like a potato sack. I had it taken in, and it STILL was too big and just unflattering, and I felt like I was wearing a shroud, and it was making me want to cry just looking at it (not really, but there were definitely some angst-y moments there with the dress. Sigh). The other dress I was planning to wear to the wedding was a little too cleavage-y, so I tried to get the dress altered to close the V-neck, and it just looked terrible. Ugh. Big disaster.

So, last weekend, L and I went shopping and bought all new dresses. This weekend, JH and I went shopping and I bought cute shoes to match my dresses.

Friday night I'm wearing a coral halter neck dress with these flowered shoes (You can click on the pictures to make them larger):

Then, for Saturday (the actual wedding), I'm wearing a fun flowered dress with dark silver heels.

So, yeah, at least I have the clothes worked out.

Here we go again, I kinda wanna be more than friends*

2011-05-31T20:30:00.000-04:00

I love long weekends, especially 4 day weekends. Wonderful.

I got to go visit L and her family on Friday. I was supposed to help pack/watch the kids/etc. Yeah, that didn't really happen, we just hung out instead (I am apparently the WORST packing assistant, I did the same thing not helping Mike). However, it was super fun.

We went shopping and bought some dresses. Including this little gem here:

Ok, seriously. I think this thing is hideous. I tried it on more as a joke. And SOMEHOW, between the hanger and putting it on, it turned into the cutest dress ever. So cute, L, ran back out to the floor from the fitting room and picked up one in her size. It's adorable, and so flattering. When I was getting rung up, the sales lady told us she had a similar reaction. When it first came in, she thought it was so ugly and couldn't figure out who would buy it. Then, she saw a customer wearing it and had to buy it THAT day. Love it.

I also got caught up on all the Game of Thrones episodes I had missed and I'm back in line with HBO. However, I went and read the first book, and ugh. I'm not a fan of how not happy this story is. I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to keep reading it.

The rest of the weekend was spent catching up an old coworker, more shopping, some sleeping, reading, watching TV, and working on Baby V's birthday gift. It was so relaxing. Why did I have to return to work today? Sigh.

*Neon Trees (Just a fun song)

Underneath your clothes, there's an endless story*

2011-05-26T07:58:00.000-04:00

This is going to be the pink sweater saga.

(However, first things first...the dragon fruit is ok. It's not my favorite, but, definitely better than the persimmon I tried last week.)

So, anyways, back to the pink sweater saga.

I learned to knit about 5 years ago (wow, has it really been that long? Is that really right D?). I was still in the hats and scarves stage, but I decided to attempt a baby sweater for Little J (wow, it really WAS 5 years ago). After that turned out to be successful, L told me she wanted a bright pink (think bubblegum pink) sweater.

We looked for a while, and found this really pretty pink yarn from www.knitpicks.com (seriously, the best yarn website, I go and add things to my wish list all the time...). Now, keep in mind, L had just had a baby not that long ago, and was not back to her pre-pregnancy size.

So, I excitedly cast on and started knitting. And knitting. And knitting. I got about halfway up the back of this monster, and realized, A - it was HUGE, as in, it would probably have fit at least two of L. And B - L had lost a lot of weight and now it would probably have fit 3 of her.

I put it aside for a few months (probably closer to a year). Then, she started asking for it again, so I pulled it back out of its hiding place, and started ripping it out.

I found a sweater that looked a little less boring, and re-cast on for skinny L. This sweater was a lot more difficult (lots of cables), but I was persevering. Then, L got pregnant again. And gained weight again. And I had no frame of reference to use for size (yeah, L, would never actually measure herself and let me know how big to make this damn thing). So, I put it aside again and refused to look at it.

After she had H, she lost a bunch of weight. Yay, the sweater should fit. So I pulled it back out and started knitting again. Then, she lost even more weight. And I realized I was deluding myself. This thing would not fit her. It was at least a size and a half too big, and it wasn't the type of sweater that would look ok if it's not fitted.

So, I ripped back the sweater. Again.

I re-cast on and found a new sweater that was a lot easier than the last one. I cast on based on what I was guessing was her size (again, wouldn't give me any measurements!). She got pregnant again. I said screw it. I don't care, I'm going to continue making it this size. She'll eventually not be pregnant and it will fit.

I finished the body of the sweater last week (Ha, only took 2 years!) and started the first sleeve. Then, I thought, I should make sure this thing fits her before I do both sleeves. I brought it up to her this weekend to try on.

Two things.

A - I'm an idiot. The sleeve I started? Yeah, I started it INSIDE OUT. Idiot.

B- IT DOESN'T EFFING FIT! It's too small.

I am pretty sure I am just going to burn the yarn at this point. It is obviously not meant to be made into a sweater for L. I never want to look at this thing again.

*Shakira

Ever since you hung up on me, I'm hung up on you*

2011-05-25T19:15:00.001-04:00

I have a lot of random things to talk about and they are in no way connected to each other, so this entry is going to be quite incohesive (I'm pretty sure that's a word, but blogger/google does not seem to agree?). Anyways, yes. Random topics. My favorite.

L is cleaning out her house and paring down, which is great for me. So far, I have beautiful new bedding (I coveted the blanket when she used to have it in her old house) and some new pillows, that I'm not entirely sure I will be using (but at least she doesn't have to move them now), and some kitchen stuff (yay pyrex baking!). I also got my hands on this:

It's a Kandinsky print that L used to have, then gave it to me when I lived in VA, then asked for it back when she moved up to north Jersey, then she put it in storage (she just didn't want me to have it apparently), but it's mine again! The colors in this thing is awesome. I love it.

She says she will probably have more kitchen things after this weekend. Score. (The kitchen is the one place in my old apartment that I had a lot of crappy things, and when I move, I was planning to have to buy entirely new pots and pans, but if I can just supplement with her stuff, even better).

Anyways, so that Kandinsky is going to be living in my mom and dad's garage until sometime after September (mom you already agreed, you can't take it back!), however, I haven't been home since I've gotten in. It's currently chilling in the backseat of my car.

I had to take my car in for an oil change and to get this awful rattling noise checked out (oh, the dread I was feeling for the cost of this repair bill). So, I didn't really want to leave this in the backseat when I took it there (who knows what they do to my car), so I looked like an idiot carrying this thing through the hotel to my room (it's at least 3' x 4', maybe bigger), and then back out to the car this evening.

Luckily, the awful rattling noise was NOT that big a deal. Just an idler pulley (yeah, I have no idea what that is, but it was cheap, so woot woot). I've also apparently been driving around with my brake lights out (I feel like that girl in Bridesmaids), and they replaced those for me (no dad, I usually don't pay for them to replace my light bulbs, you've taught me well. But, I was there, and I figured the extra $20 to replace them was worth not driving out of my way to go buy the lights and replace them myself).

And, my car, no longer makes that terrible rattle sound (that apparently I was the only one to hear, and I swear that thing was loud as hell, I have no idea how nobody else heard it) and idles much smoother. I'm much happier.

Lastly, I bought a cactus pear last week to try and a dragon fruit today to try. Unfortunately, I don't think I can still eat the cactus pear, it's a little too ripe. However, I plan to try the dragon fruit tonight, and I'll let you know how it tastes. :-)

I promise to buy another cactus pear and let you know how it goes. :-)

I had other things, but this post is already pretty epic, so more later :-)

*Fountains of Wayne (I have randomly started listening to them again, and remembering how much fun they are. It also makes me miss passing that store on my way to my old job).

And now I just don’t know what I should do. I'm twisted all around like some cartoon*

2011-05-22T19:27:00.000-04:00

I went to visit L this weekend and while there, I got to see Little J play baseball.

It's kind of hard to get pictures of the kids playing baseball through the chain link fence, but oy, they were adorable. I love little kid's sporting events. So adorable.

And, even cuter, would be the Super Why super hero that came to the baseball game with us.

He also dressed as Batman, and told me, "Don't worry Auntie S, it's not Batman, it's just me...Little H". Seriously, this kid. He kills me with the cuteness.

*Phantom Planet

Love, such a silly game we play*

2011-05-17T20:32:00.001-04:00

I mentioned a while ago (I'm too lazy to go find the original post), that my friend C, was getting married in June, and I had offered to help her figure out what flowers she wanted to use for her wedding. So, this past weekend, I hung out with her in DC and we played with flowers on Saturday. It was so much fun. (It was obviously also fun to hang out with C, we hadn't done it in a really long time). It was just a really nice weekend.

The two of us have completely different tastes when it comes to flowers, which made it even more fun (I am weird. I enjoy the challenge of finding something that someone else will like). I'm all about BRIGHT, HAPPY COLORS and fun flowers, whereas C is more into romantic colors and English garden flowers. Even more challenging, finding something that would be quick and simple to re-create (she's doing the wedding herself, with help from friends, none of whom really have much flower arranging experience), and all in her budget.

So, we had 48 decorated mason jars to use as centerpieces (seriously, they are so cute!) and the colors had to be pink (but not too pink, more of a rose color), yellow, and white.

We came up with the following:

Groomsmen Boutonniers Sponsor Boutonniers

Groom's Boutonnier (Ringbearer is similar but smaller)

Can I just say how much I LOVE using billy balls as a boutonnier. They are so fun! And just think, C made all those herself after only a little bit of instructions from me. She could totally work for a florist. :-)

Sponsor's Corsage

This is the centerpiece and you can see the cute mason jars.

I'm a little disappointed at how the pictures of the centerpiece turned out. They were so pretty in person (and smelled amazing), but the angle and the lighting of this picture don't do it justice at all. It's just a few stems of stock (half will be white, half will either be pink or white hydrangea) with yellow billy balls in it.

We also picked out flowers for the bouquets for C and her bridesmaids, but we didn't make any of those, and I'm keeping that a surprise. Maybe I'll post some of them after the wedding. :-)

I can't wait to see the reception all decorated. They'll be so pretty! C picked out some great flowers!

*Matt White (the song C has on her and her fiance's nearly wed website)

And the more I try to feel the less I'm whole*

2011-05-16T18:44:00.000-04:00

I have a total case of the Mondays.

I saw an old man's butt today. It was not the highlight of my day. He was walking into the hotel and his shorts were falling down, and he pulled his shirt up to adjust the shorts, and I saw full on moon. The ENTIRE thing. Sigh.
The guests at the hotel lately are pigs. They leave chewed gum behind everywhere (like on floors), and everytime I go into the elevator, there is a new pile of sunflower seed shells (so housekeeping is obv attempting to clean them up, and they just keep spitting out more). And they're loud. And someone took my clean laundry out of the machine and put it on the floor so they could use the washer. WTF
I would really like a cookie. I REALLY want a cookie. Alas, I have no cookies.
My mind is all over the place today. I don't know why.
I just have this completely unsettled feeling going on. Like I'm dreading something to do with someone. I can't describe it. It's just a feeling that something bad is going to happen between us. It's just this ugh feeling. I hate it.

Anyways, I hope tomorrow is better.

*Lindsay Lohan (OMG I am DYING of shame right now. I found a song by Lindsay Lohan on my ext. hard drive, which means I had to have actually DOWNLOADED this at some point. Why???)

Should I give up, or should i just keep chasin' pavements*

2011-05-09T20:54:00.000-04:00

I spent the weekend helping out at the flower store for mother's day (don't worry, I still went home with flowers and bought dinner for my mom...I'm not a terrible daughter). I was SO exhausted after working there all weekend (I basically worked about 25 hours in 2 days, standing up on a concrete floor the whole time) that I crashed at my parent's house.

This means I went straight to work from their house in the morning. Which means I left my dog with them. Again. Sigh. Poor little Oscar.

So, this also means that I didn't have my running shoes with me. However, I DID have my laundry with me which had some running clothes in there. I thought about it, and I knew if I drove home to get my shoes, I would not come back out to go running.

Therefore, I did my first barefoot run.

I can't say that I liked it or disliked it. Yes, I ran differently, and different muscles than normal are sore. But, who's to say that they're the muscles that SHOULD be sore? I am definitely not sold on the whole barefoot running concept, even though I know there are a lot of people out there that are. The ONLY reason I even tried it, is because I didn't have my shoes with me.

My favorite part of the run was actually all the people giving me strange looks. They definitely did some double takes looking at my feet. That was fun.

So, what can I say? Not too exciting. :-)

Hope everyone had a lovely mother's day!

*Adele

This is looking like a contest, of who can act like they care less*

2011-05-05T20:51:00.000-04:00

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

While most everyone else my age is out at a bar drinking Margaritas, I had a different way of celebrating in mind (A- I am allergic to tequila and B- I have to be at work tomorrow even more insanely early than normal and I would like to sleep tonight).

My plan was to run five miles for the cinco. I laugh at my optimism.

Today was just not really my day. I overslept, and the one guy at Dunkin Donuts pisses me off b/c he never freaking listens and he made my coffee wrong and it sucked and I didn't drink it, so I was even more tired, and there was an accident so the traffic was horrendous and took me forever to get to work, and it just kept getting better. At one point today, I managed to fall out of my chair onto the floor. (Apparently I stretch too hard and just fell out, it was ridiculous).

I left work later than normal, and got stuck in traffic going home, and all I wanted to do was curl up on my couch and veg all night. Luckily, the traffic got really crappy at the exit by the park and I took it as a sign to leave the highway and go to the park. I changed into my running clothes at the park and started out for my jog.

It was such a NICE day. I can't even begin to describe how enjoyable the run was. The weather was perfect, there was a slight breeze, the scenery was beautiful, and I was taking it nice and easy. I ran two miles, and felt like I could have kept going, but I decided screw it.

I didn't want to push it so far that I stopped enjoying it, and it's not like I'm training for the marathon, so, cutting it short. Whatever. Then, I came home, and the hotel was grilling tonight (woohoo), so ate a hotdog, chayote squash, and strawberries. Yum.

Now I'm trying to stay awake long enough to take Oscar outside for his last walk, then I plan to pass out.

*Taylor Swift

Nothing matters in this whole wide world, when you're in love with a Jersey girl*

2011-05-04T21:54:00.000-04:00

I am watching the South Park episode where they make fun of New Jersey and I'm so horrified and amused at the same time. Everything east of the Mississippi is New Jersey!

So, yeah, this is terrible. I love it.

On a completely different note. I went running yesterday and it was a lot harder than I thought it would be. However, when I stopped for my push-ups at the 1 mile mark, I realized WHY it was so hard. Apparently, I felt the need to run the first mile and stop for push-ups in 10 minutes. So assuming about a minute to do each set of push-ups, I ran a 9 min mile which is A LOT faster than I usually run. Then, the second mile was finished in 11 minutes. So, two miles and 40 push-ups in 21 minutes was fantastic for me.

Unfortunately, tomorrow, I have to do a longer run, and I do not foresee it being as fun.

*Bruce Springsteen

I could face the day, and all the long night too...if only it were true*

2011-05-02T20:30:00.001-04:00

A reason I couldn't figure out how to cook the chacaya squash last week, is because it's not called a chacaya squash. It's a Chayote squash. I did find that on google this evening, and will be attempting to cook it this week. Fantastic. (By the way, ehow.com is GREAT for learning how to cook/serve things you've never cooked before).

The reason I discovered the correct name? I went back to Wegman's tonight. Where I may have overdone it a bit in the produce department. They had grapes for sale! And I like grapes. But, they only had the kind I like in a pre-packaged container. No bag or bunches for me. So, I MAY have bought 3 lbs of grapes.

I have no idea what one does with THREE POUNDS of grapes, but I shall endeavor to find out (I'm thinking maybe one gives a bunch of them away). I also bought some raspberries, strawberries, and more pepino melons (These things are growing on me. The more I eat them, the more I like them).

On a completely unrelated note (I had NO idea how to segue into the new paragraph...sorry), I was rejected from the marathon I had applied for. Stupid lottery system. Oh well, there's always next year. So, my running plan has to be completely revamped to train for a half in December instead. Which, is actually kind of awesome, I can cut back on my runs and go back to the 2-3 mile runs for a little longer instead of the 5-6 mile runs I was doing (that I'm not entirely sure you could even consider them running). I'll probably actually stick with 3-4 mile runs, but just scaling back a little makes me happy.

So, I'm trying to take the rejection as a good thing. I mean, come on, who really wants to run 26.2 miles through the streets of New York anyway? (I do).

Anyways, hope everyone had a lovely weekend and their week is starting out fantastic.

*The Walkmen

You realize the sun don't go down, it's just an illusion caused by the world spinning round*

2011-04-28T20:18:00.001-04:00

Today has been quite the productive day. I did all sorts of fun things:

I got to draw a PFD (and for you non-chemical engineers out there, that's a Process Flow Diagram...not a Personal Flotation Device). I love logical process flows. So much fun.
I learned how to play cribbage. Well technically, I suppose I re-learned. J taught me how to play when I was in high school, but I haven't played in over over 10 years, and I had completely forgotten how to play. So, Mike taught me how to play online today. Amazingly, I wasn't TERRIBLE. I lost, but I didn't get blown out or anything. So...I was happy.
I made a roast beef last night. I thought I had overcooked it and I was worried it would suck. It was surprisingly really good. I think it was probably the beer I cooked it in. How can anything taste bad when it's cooked with beer? (So...I guess following the productive day theme...the productive thing I did today, was to eat it?)
I made some pulled pork tonight for my dad and JH. (I had some frozen meat in my freezer that I wanted to use and clear on out, hence the roast beef and pulled pork in the same week). So, that also counts as my nice deed of the week. My mom doesn't really like pork, so my dad rarely gets to eat it. Therefore, I figured pulled pork would be a nice treat for him. I also put some aside for JH just because. I just hope it doesn't suck. :-)
I'm planning to do more jumping jacks. Screw the people downstairs. Go ahead and call and complain. They got nothing. (Can you tell I didn't get to go running? Stupid hail storms).
I'm planning to do some knitting tonight after the 30 Day Shred. We'll see if I can continue this whole "productive" trend haha.

Um...I do realize that I wasn't all that productive, I just had a good day (other than the whole not-running thing, and just felt like sharing. :-)

*The Flaming Lips

Without you this sky of blue clouds up*

2011-04-27T21:22:00.000-04:00

I was watching TV today after work, and saw an asics commercial about running. It had a guy and a girl running and these emotions were just sweating out of them.

As soon as I saw it, all I wanted to do was go running.

However, I was trying to wait until the end of this week before trying to run again. So, I laced up my shoes, and put in the 30 Day Shred (ugh I hate Jillian Michaels, and yet, kind of like this workout). FIVE seconds into my jumping jacks, the asses downstairs call the front desk and complain that I'm jumping up and down too much.

Seriously? I was even doing everything I could to land on my toes and be as quiet as possible. It couldn't have been that bad.

Besides, I hear SO MUCH CRAP in this place, and have never once complained. Karma? Anyone????

So, I still did the strength and abs part of the workout, but I couldn't really do any of the cardio, because it mostly involves, jumping or running in place (I assume they would complain about that as well?).

I'm so irritated. I just want to run, and my alternate outlet gets taken away from me.

I may end up ending my run moratorium tomorrow. I'm getting fidgety and irritable. I NEED to go for a run. A few days early shouldn't kill me right?

*Todd Snider

Never was a girl with a wicked mind, but everything looks better, when the sun goes down*

2011-04-26T20:21:00.000-04:00

I went to Wegman's today and bought some new produce to try.

I bought:

So, I am REALLY not happy with Blogger and it's picture lay-outing right now. So, I apologize if it's not lining up correctly.

Anyways, up there I have a starfruit, a chacaya squash (which I can't seem to find ANYWHERE on google...so I'm not entirely sure how to eat it), another pepino melon and some raspberries and strawberries.

Stocked up.

So, if anyone has any idea how to eat that green thing up there. Let me know.

I have also been spending the past few days using the foam roller like crazy on my left leg because I sure messed it up somehow recently. It's crazy to see the difference in flexibility my legs have. I can bring my right leg up over my head and my left leg? Doesn't even come close. Sigh. So, I'm working on that.

Because of this, I decided to take a couple weeks off of running and focus on stretching my hip/leg/knee. I am still doing other workout videos and and lifting, so I'm not entirely skipping out on the exercising, but, I had to cut back a bit.

Frustrating.

So, nothing very exciting happening right now.

Hope everyone had a great Easter weekend :-) Mine was fantastic.

*The Pretty Wreckless (the shame that I listen to this is almost overwhelming)

You'll pay me back in kind and reap just what you've sown*

2011-04-20T20:32:00.000-04:00

I've been a mission to try new types of produce this week.

So far, I tried baby squash (which OMG are so cute and tiny). I honestly don't even know if they have other names besides baby squash. But, they're about the size of a brussel sprout and sold at Wegmans. And I had yellow and green ones. I basically just steamed them and cut them all in half and added a few sprays of I can't believe it's not butter! spray and they were yummy. I will definitely add this to my repertoire of vegetables I like (I find that so far I have liked every type of squash I have tried, so I'm not surprised I like these.). Now I need to branch out AWAY from the squashes and find some non-squash vegetables I can eat.

I also tried a Pepino Melon, which tasted oddly like a pear mixed with some kind of root vegetable. It had the texture and taste of the pear, but it was missing the sweetness of the pear. It wasn't terrible, just a little bland. If I were planning to serve it with dessert, it would need some yummy sugary glaze added to it. However, I could see myself adding it to a fruit salad or something. On my list of acceptable fruits.

Today, I tried the Kiwano and it was not something I'd eat again. I was totally sold by it's spiky orange appearance. It just looks like a bad ass piece of fruit. However, it felt like I was eating Slimer from Ghost Busters. The inside, is a slimy green gelatin-ish "sac" with seeds in it. It tasted like a mix of a cucumber and a banana. Which is not the most...pleasing of flavors. I ate about 1/4 of it before the texture and consistency forced me to stop. It was too slimy for me.

So, I'm on the lookout for the next weird bit of produce to try. Any suggestions?

*Adele

And your eyes must do some raining if you are ever going to grow.*

2011-04-18T20:44:00.001-04:00

So, I've always had really vivid dreams, and I tend to remember a lot of them. I also would really like to go to someone and have them analyze my dreams, because they are INSANE.

Example, this weekend, I had the following dream:

I had to drive home and visit my mom and dad. While there, I was given notice that we were going to be killed that night because my dad had pissed off some important people by talking too much about global warming and pollution. However, since I KNEW what was going to happen, I had a chance of stopping it.

So, that night, I am looking out the window and see an old white beater car pull up and I knew they were the ones. I screamed for everyone to stay out of range of the windows b/c they were here to kill us and ran to the kitchen to grab knives and other weapons I could find. Where, by the way, my mom apparently keeps bolt cutters and garden shears in her knife drawer.

My dad came downstairs to get us to all go hide in the garage and told us he had called my grandma and grandpa (which is weird enough to begin with, but I couldn't understand why my dad would even THINK to call and have them come over and stop the people from shooting us). Then, he comments how they were a day away from moving to Paris and this shit happened (um, he never mentioned to anyone he was moving to Paris, this was the first I was hearing of it).

So we're cowering in the garage, and I'm pissed at him and yelling at him that he was moving to Paris, and why didn't he bother to tell us, and my grandma knocks on the garage window. And she and grandpa had pulled up in his old Crown Vic and were standing outside the window, and my dad made a comment that those guys wouldn't be coming back even if the Crown Vic did have a great motor.

The cops eventually showed up, and my dad was outside trying to explain what happened to them by doing some weird interpretive dance with the lady detective while I was upstairs packing a suitcase and being super pissed, because I was told I had to enter the witness protection agency and would have to leave everyone I knew that day and couldn't say goodbye. And I was so mad to have to leave all my friends, and not show up at C's wedding, and everyone would just think I was an ass for standing them up and they would all hate me.

So.

Yeah.

Anyone? Interpret? I would REALLY like to know what's going on in my messed up mind.

*Bright Eyes

I see the road now, I know just what I need, to find my way back to Tennessee

2011-04-14T00:18:00.001-04:00

So, one of the reasons I've been too busy to write the past week, is because, I'm spending this week in...

NASHVILLE!

This is the swanky hotel we're staying in.

My pictures don't do this place justice. I don't feel important enough to be staying here. It's way nicer than anything I would be able to afford.

Check out my swanky room with the 18 foot tall ceilings (even if it DOES only have two double beds instead of the king bed I've grown accustomed to). I actually really like the headboards on these beds. They kind of remind me of something from a Dr. Suesse movie or something (I have no idea why).

Can you tell I forgot to pack my camera on this trip?

During our free time (we can't work ALL day), we have gone on a few tours of the city. The first day we just walked up and down Broadway (our hotel is right downtown, so not a far walk). I took this lovely picture of this giant boot...

Just...because I felt like it.

Then, we took a real city tour (on a trolley no less) today. I got pictures at both Centennial AND Bicentennial Parks.

The Parthenon replica is at Centennial Park, and the columns looking up towards the Capitol Building is Bicentennial Park. I'm curious what they will build for their Tricentennial Park in 2096.

As we were on the city tour, I got a little distracted by the awe inspiring view of this shirts and skins game of soccer

In case you can't tell, The "skins" team is playing in their speedos (and looked pretty damn good for guys wearing speedos), and the "shirts" team, is fully dressed. (Click on the picture for a larger view).

Nashville is a great city.

*Billy Ray Cyrus

Strangers waiting, up and down the boulevard, their shadows searching in the night*

2011-04-11T21:42:00.001-04:00

Man, I'm all about feast or famine over here. I either post every day of the week, or you're lucky to get ONE post in the week.

But, I saw an interesting post somewhere the other day (honestly my reader has over 200 subscriptions in it, I can't even remember where I saw it). And after today, I felt inspired to write something about it. This post was all about their biggest flaw. And, I think that's a really interesting topic and I'm going to attempt to do that here.

However, this is REALLY hard for me, because my biggest flaw is that I am terrible at being open with people. Don't get me wrong, I have no problem talking about myself, or what I want, to an extent (hello, I have a blog, and I write about stuff all the time). But I guarantee, there's a lot more going on that I won't even scrape the surface of.

Today was a great example of this. JH is one of my BEST friends. We were roommates for 3 years of college, and she's one of the few people that I still make an effort to keep in my life. Even when I lived in VA, I would make sure I made an effort to see her when I was home for holidays, and I know she feels the same way.

However, I was talking about someone I used to date in VA, and she had no idea who I was talking about. And it has NOTHING to do with her being a bad friend, and not remembering the guys I dated. It was because I never told her about him. I dated the kid for four months (which while not exactly a world record for dating, should probably have been significant enough to MENTION), and I never told anyone about him until AFTER we broke up.

Or, the last guy I dated. There's the real break up story, and the one that I told most people. I lied to two of my favorite people and told them the "not real" story, because it was just easier to tell at the time. (Nope, still not going to tell you guys the real story :-P Guess that's a fail at being open). I did eventually tell them the real story (although, one of them only heard the corrected version today, so still not exactly a win at the whole open and honest communication).

So, I hurt my friend's feelings because I hate opening up to people. And I had to explain, that no, it's not personally against you. I trust you, I like you, I just...don't talk about stuff. (And I know that my sisters don't understand why I'm like this either).

And it's not just about guys I'm dating (I do this with SO MANY THINGS), it was just an easy example to give, since the conversation happened today.

I have no idea if this is making any sense.

And seriously, the irony of this post is killing me. Do you realize how hard it is to be open about how you're NOT AN OPEN PERSON! Pulling out my fingernails would almost be more pleasant than this (and it's not like I'm exposing any big secret here or anything, so really, I shouldn't feel this awkward).

But anyways, while this is in no way my only flaw, I do think that this is my biggest flaw, or at least the flaw with the most potential to hurt others, and I need to work on it (and probably the hardest thing to write about for me).

So, any questions? :-P

*Journey

Take me out to the ballgame...

2011-04-06T20:36:00.001-04:00

I'm exhausted this week. Mostly from not sleeping enough. And it all started with this weekend.

But more on that in a different post. (Too much effort to write a good post about the weekend...maybe when I'm not so tired).

However, part of the reason I'm tired today, is I stayed up way too late to go see the Phils play Tuesday night. (Ugh, don't remind me of that terrible score...stupid Hamels and 6 runs in one inning).

We had SRO tickets, so my friend/co-worker and I decided to go eat at Harry the K's and watch as much of the game from there as we could. We got GREAT seats right along the railing, and since we sucked so bad, the place cleared out pretty quickly, and we were able to stay as long as we wanted.

Yeah, that was taken with my phone. See those little ant-like white figures out there? Those are the players. However, seriously, a great view.

This guy, on the other hand didn't seem to care about the view so much. He spent all game on his laptop (I think he was on reddit.com the whole time actually). At that point, if you're that bored, why not just go home?

At the end of the 6th inning, we were pretty cold, so we got up to walk around and went to the store there. Of course I felt compelled to buy Baby V a pink Phillies outfit. I contemplated buying mini bats for Little J and Little H and Baby T, but honestly, I'm pretty sure they'd use it to beat each other up, and L would kill me. And, since they're not exactly a Philly sports fan family, I didn't get them anything else (worst aunt ever...I know).

We walked back out and thought about staying for the end of the 8th inning, and said screw it, we're cold and went home.

So, even though we lost, I had a great time. If only it could have been a bit warmer...

You've got a nerve to be asking a favor*

2011-04-01T14:23:00.002-04:00

Random Friday

Half the time during the week, I have one of those commutes where if I leave by 6:30am, it takes me about 20 minutes to get to work, but if I leave at 6:40 it takes about an hour (the other half of the week it takes me 2 minutes).
When it rains or snows, it takes me about an hour no matter what time I leave.
I left super late today, and it was snowing. Only took me 25 minutes. I’m still in a bit of shock.
It was raining last night, and I did the trash run anyways. I am so ridiculously sore today. I definitely need to start lifting again. I’m weak!
There was an older guy walking in the rain on the trail at the same I was running. He was weird. He had on his big trench coat and golf umbrella and was kind of skipping along. He gave me a “Good for you!” when he walked (skipped?) past me doing my push-ups. Thanks strange guy!
I am so sore today. I know I mentioned this earlier, but it’s worth repeating. It kind of hurt to turn the steering wheel this morning (not like excessively hurting, but a definite…oh hello there muscle I haven’t used in a while).
I am so irritated with my insurance company right now. I’m STILL waiting for a check that they supposedly mailed two weeks ago. When I called to complain, they were the most unhelpful “help” ever. They have cancelled the first check and sent another one.
Also sent by mail. Which means, who knows how long it will take to get here. I tried to make them overnight it (I even offered to pay for the cost of shipping it overnight), and I was told they don’t have the “technology” to do this
Seriously? You don’t have an envelope and a phone to call Fedex? I feel there is something wrong with that statement.
So, I still can’t pick up my car (this check is required to be signed by the repair shop and me so I can’t even pay it with my money and then cash the check when it arrives). And don’t even get me started on why they’re mailing it to me and not the repair shop. Ooooh…I’m pissed.
However, I don’t want to end my Friday post on a bad note. So…happy news. Hmmm…
I’m hanging out JH tomorrow night in New B to see my friend’s boyfriend’s band play. Super fun. :-)

Have a great weekend everyone!

*The Walkmen (as suggested by Mike when I asked for a song to use...I thought the opening line kind of fit).

I'm the winner of cards I can't play*

2011-03-29T23:09:00.001-04:00

I had to do the "trash run" at work today. This involves following a truck of material to the landfill and witnessing it go into the incinerator. Super boring, but necessary for tax purposes.

However, when I was whining to J that I had to do the trash run today, she thought I was talking about some modified run that was a good workout, but not so much a good run. And...my new workout has been created. I'm not sure if I want to thank J for this, or hate her with the fiery passion of a thousand suns (I suppose I should thank her). Also, you lose cool points if you know where that quote is from.

But, my trash run has been created and will now be incorporated on my low mileage day (ha, who am I kidding, they're ALL low mileage right now...but hopefully that will be changing), which is usually a Wednesday or Friday.

My plan so far:

Run .25 miles

Do 20 push-ups or 1 minute plank

Run .25 miles

Do 15 burpees

Repeat until completed the necessary miles. So, on a 2 mile day, that would be 80 push-ups or 4 minutes of planks (or some sort of combinational type thing), and 60 burpees (plus 2 miles), and a 3 mile day would be 120 push-ups or 6 minutes of planks and 90 burpees (plus 3 miles).

I think I did that math right. And I may change it up and add in different exercises depending on the run. But yeah, that's the basics.

Talk about a trash run. I'm sore just thinking about it.

*Rachael Yamagata

And love, such a silly game we play*

2011-03-28T22:15:00.001-04:00

My friend from college, C, is getting married this June. And obviously, I'm excited for her wedding and I'm looking forward to going and celebrating with her. However, she just upped my excitement level like ten fold with our conversation tonight.

It started out as a random discussion, that somehow moved on to what I want to do in life (God who knows), and she started to say I should open a flower store (ugh, a small business owner is so not my calling in life), and then, she moved on from there to asking for my opinions on her flowers for her wedding.

She's not hiring a florist, she's ordering flowers from a wholesaler and is going to make her own stuff. Here's the where the fun part comes in.

She's never made bouquets or boutonnieres or centerpieces, so, I'm going to help show her how to do all this. I'm going down to DC a few weeks before her wedding and we're going to do a few practice pieces and figure out what she likes/doesn't like, etc (and we have completely conflicting tastes in flowers, so I love trying to figure out what someone else will like). So much fun!

I love anything to do with picking flowers, arranging flowers, making things out of flowers (um...pretty much anything to do with flowers). So, this is going to be a blast for me. And it will be fun to see what she comes up with as her final pieces.

That totally made up for my terrible run today (my planned 5 mile run got truncated to 4. It was just pathetic). But now, all I can think about is flowers.

While searching, I came across this, and I am currently in love:

I do love me some plumeria.

*Matt White

If you can't get behind your own life, get behind the driving wheel*

2011-03-27T21:25:00.000-04:00

This weekend was one big snoozefest. I did absolutely nothing that anyone would care to read about.

Lets see, I babysat, I read, I slept, I finished a pair of socks, I filed my taxes (OMG what a fiasco that turned into), and I went to the grocery store.

I live my life a mile a minute...I know you are all so jealous.

However, after going to the grocery store (I had intended to only buy butter and broth, I walked out $100 later, with no broth. ARGH), I did cook some food for dinner and lunch tomorrow. It rocked.

I present my yummy meal:

Ignore the plastic fork. I ran out of clean regular ones (they only give me 4!). Anyways, I had some salmon, green beans, and a squash/zucchini mix.

Tomorrow, I am having the same thing (probably for lunch AND dinner). It's annoying cooking for one person. You always end up with so many leftovers.

Anyways, yeah, I have done absolutely nothing exciting this weekend. And, to wrap it up, I need to go get my laundry out of the dryer downstairs.

Hope everyone had a great weekend.

*Ben Kweller

I want to ... melt ya down into something that I can take around in my pocket*

2011-03-23T20:39:00.000-04:00

So, you know what one of my favorite things in the world is? Flowers!

You know what I love even more?

When someone else buys the flowers for me!

Look! I got flowers and I love them!

*Dan Mangan (such creepy lyrics I know)

For you I know I'd even try to turn the tide. Because you're mine, I walk the line*

2011-03-22T23:11:00.000-04:00

I went running yesterday. It sucked.

I was hungry when I got home from work (I didn't eat breakfast that day, and my lunch was pretty small). I wanted to run on the trail, so I couldn't take time to eat and then run or else it would be too late to run there (park closes at sundown). It was already later than I wanted, so I didn't stretch my knee enough before heading out (I'm slow, I was worried I wouldn't finish before sundown and my car would be locked in the park). I forgot to bring gum to chew while running, which normally isn't a big deal b/c I keep packs in the car. Except I'm not driving MY car. Right. I need gum. Keeps me from hacking up phlegm all run (yummy thought I know), and keeps me from burping up food while I run as well (all these terribly yummy images I present here).

So, the actual running. I got lightheaded about a mile and a half in from not eating enough before going. Not having the gum caused all the above mentioned things to happen. My knee bothered me A LOT on this run. Never full out pain, but definitely twinges and this feeling that the pain was going to happen anysecondnow. I was running super slow because of my knee and kept worrying I wouldn't make it back to my car in time.

But, you know what? I ran the 4 miles, and that was 4 miles more than I had run earlier. So what if it sucked? Not every run is going to be awesome. Some runs are just going to kick your ass, and make you feel like crap, but it's still a run and you still did it and that's what's important.

I just have to remind myself of that sometimes.

*Johnny Cash

We got nothing to do, but when I look at you, I see something that I know and love*

2011-03-21T21:09:00.001-04:00

Weekend Recap (because I know you really want to know).

Thursday /Friday

I had to return my mom's car so I took Friday off. I picked up a mirror for my older sister L in Delaware on Thursday night and ate dinner with J. That was lovely.
I spent Friday with my mom. We went to breakfast, and Target and shopping at Wegmans. Three of my favorite things to do.

Saturday

My mom drove me up to L's house so we could drop off her mirror (which by the way, when I first saw it I thought it was the most hideous thing ever...but it's surprisingly growing on me) and so I could pick up D's car (I have the nicest brother in law!)
We ate some yummy pumpkin pancakes for breakfast (and again for lunch).
I got to see my adorable nephews and niece. Oh they're just so much fun.
I went to Mike's house later in the day. I had to give him his birthday gift and I was going to help him pack up his apt since he's moving this upcoming weekend.
We also went out to eat. I had banana pancakes (it was a very pancake-y day).
I am the worst packing assistant ever.
We decided to go get some beer to drink while packing. Then we came back and Mike wasn't quite ready to start packing so we started watching TV. Then we drank some Chimay beer (which is amazingly yummy). Then, we drank some other beers that Mike had (I can't remember what they were, but I know the lager was good and I hated the ale).
Then Mike decided we should go to a bar and I agreed this was a great idea.
Then we came home and went to sleep.
No packing was done. Best. Packing. Help. EVER.

Sunday

Nothing much done on that day. Mostly just driving home and sleeping. I was tired.

All in all, it was enjoyable weekend, even if it wasn't exactly what I planned. :-)

*O.A.R.

A falling star fell from your heart and landed in my eyes*

2011-03-16T21:53:00.000-04:00

So, after the accident, what better way to cheer up than spending the afternoon with the family?

The ever adorable Baby V.

And the adorable Baby T, who isn't really a baby anymore but oh I don't want to stop calling her that yet.

So, this is pretty much the ONLY picture of Little J proving he was there that day. But he was, and he had fun playing Nellie - or as he calls her, Elliot.

Little H, was a little closer. He kept calling her Kellie.

Here's Little H, playing the drums like his uncle JP, however, Little H is even more talented. He's playing the drums AND the castanets at the SAME time. Total one man band.

So, if you have to have an accident, I hope you at least have such great company (sisters and brothers-in-law are included in this great company, I just didn't really have any pictures of them) to hang out with afterwards to make you feel better. :-)

*Florence & The Machine