magaliblue

Tuesday, August 30, 2005

Sorry I've been absent. To celebrate my renewed interest in my blog, I give you a meme, courtesy of AliThinks:

Go to Music Outfitters and enter your high school graduation year in the search box near the top left. You should find a link to a list of the top 100 music hits from that year.

Bold = the ones I liked
Underline = my favorite(s)
~~Strikethrough~~ = the songs I hated
Italics = the songs I can’t remember
Untagged = no opinion

Top 100 Songs from 1988 (the year I graduated high school):

1. Faith, George Michael
2. Need You Tonight, INXS
3. Got My Mind Set On You, George Harrison
4. Never Gonna Give You Up, Rick Astley
5. Sweet Child O' Mine, Guns N' Roses
6. So Emotional, Whitney Houston
7. Heaven Is A Place On Earth, Belinda Carlisle
8. ~~Could've Been, Tiffany~~
9. Hands To Heaven, Breathe
10. Roll With It, Steve Winwood
11. One More Try, George Michael
12. Wishing Well, Terence Trent d'Arby
13. ~~Anything For You, Gloria Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine~~
14. The Flame, Cheap Trick
15. Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car, Billy Ocean
16. ~~Seasons Change, Expose~~
17. ~~Is This Love, Whitesnake~~
18. Wild, Wild West, Escape Club
19. Pour Some Sugar On Me, Def Leppard
20. I'll Always Love You, Taylor Dayne
21. Man In The Mirror, Michael Jackson
22. Shake Your Love, Debbie Gibson
23. Simply Irresistible, Robert Palmer
24. ~~Hold On To The Nights, Richard Marx~~
25. ~~Hungry Eyes, Eric Carnen~~
26. Shattered Dreams, Johnny Hates Jazz
27. Father Figure, George Michael
28. Naught Girls (Need Love Too), Samantha Fox
29. A Groovy Kind Of Love, Phil Collins
30. Love Bites, Def Leppard
31. ~~Endless Summer Nights, Richard Marx~~
32. ~~Foolish Beat, Debbie Gibson~~
33. ~~Where Do Broken Hearts Go, Whitney Houston~~
34. Angel, Aerosmith
35. Hazy Shade Of Winter, Bangles
36. The Way You Make Me Feel, Michael Jackson
37. Don't Worry, Be Happy, Bobby McFerrin
38. Make Me Lose Control, Eric Carnen
39. Red Red Wine, UB40
40. ~~She's Like The Wind, Patric Swayze~~
41. Bad Medicine, Bon Jovi
42. ~~Kokomo, Beach Boys~~
43. ~~I Don't Wanna Go On With You Like That, Elton John~~
44. Together Forever, Rick Astley
45. Monkey, George Michael
46. Devil Inside, INXS
47. ~~Should've Known Better, Richard Marx~~
48. ~~I Don't Wanna Live Without Your Love, Chicago~~
49. ~~The Loco-Motion, Kylie Minogue~~
50. ~~What Have I Done To Deserve This?, Pet Shop Boys and Dusty Springfield~~
51. ~~Make It Real, Jets~~
52. What's On Your Mind, Information Society
53. Tell It To My Heart, Taylor Dayne
54. ~~Out Of The Blue, Debbie Gibson~~
55. ~~Don't You Want Me, Jody Watley~~
56. Desire, U2
57. I Get Weak, Belinda Carlisle
58. Sign Your Name, Terence Trent d'Arby
59. I Want To Be Your Man, Roger
60. Girlfriend, Pebbles
61. ~~Dirty Diana, Michael Jackson~~
62. ~~1-2-3, Gloria Estefan and Miami Sound Machine~~
63. ~~Mercedes Boy, Pebbles~~
64. ~~Perfect World, Huey Lewis and the News~~
65. New Sensation, INXS
66. Catch Me (I'm Falling), Pretty Poison
67. ~~If It Isn't Love, New Edition~~
68. ~~Rocket 2 U, Jets~~
69. One Good Woman, Peter Cetera
70. ~~Don't Be Cruel, Cheap Trick~~
71. ~~Candle In The Wind, Elton John~~
72. Everything Your Heart Desires, Daryl Hall and John Oates
73. Say You Will , Foreigner
74. I Want Her, Keith Sweat
75. Pink Cadillac, Natalie Cole
76. Fast Car, Tracy Chapman
77. Electric Blue, Icehouse
78. The Valley Road, Bruce Hornsby and The Range
79. Don't Be Cruel, Bobby Brown
80. Always On My Mind, Pet Shop Boys
81. Piano In The Dark, Brenda Russell Featuring Joe Esposito
82. When It's Love, Van Halen
83. Don't Shed A Tear, Paul Carrack
84. We'll Be Together, Sting
85. I Hate Myself For Loving You, Joan Jett and The Blackhearts
86. I Don't Want To Live Without You, Foreigner
87. Nite And Day, Al B. Sure
88. Don't You Know What The Night Can Do, Steve Winwood
89. ~~One Moment In Time, Whitney Houston~~
90. ~~Can't Stay Away From You, Gloria Estefan and Miami Sound Machine~~
91. Kissing A Fool, George Michael
92. Cherry Bomb, John Cougar Mellancamp
93. I Still Believe, Brenda K. Starr
94. I Found Someone, Cher
95. Never Tear Us Apart, INXS
96. Valerie, Steve Windwood
97. Just Like Paradise, David Lee Roth
98. ~~Nothin' But A Good Time, Poison~~
99. ~~Wait, White Lion~~
100. Prove Your Love, Taylor Dayne

Friday, August 12, 2005

We're thinking about going camping this weekend - which can mean one of two things. Either we pack up quickly after work and leave tonight, which means "car camping" (where you park someplace and pitch the tent next to the truck, and never bother to unload the truck bed), or else we'll pack tonight and head out at 6am for someplace three hours from here....I don't know which. I don't really care, as long as there will be fishing. I haven't been in a couple of summers and am missing it. Unfortunately, this won't be a full weekend trip, I have a party that we committed to on Sunday afternoon, so we'll need to be back.

Monday morning, I head up to beautiful Keystone for a work conference for three days. I'll sit in sessions for most of each day, but there will be a three-hour window on Tuesday when my girlfriend and I will sneak off to the outlet stores in Dillon. Need to find some trousers for fall. While I have always loved having long legs, it's hard to find 10L* or 12L pants in the regular stores. I end up buying most of my stuff online, where long sizes are plentiful.

* okay, I'm a 12 right now, but sooooo close to a 10. I can hope - I'm working on it!

Thursday, August 11, 2005

I saw a new eye doctor today - I don't wear glasses or contacts, but have started to feel like my right eye is getting a bit weaker, so I went to get checked out. I have very good vision insurance through work, and so I pulled up their list of Boulder eye doctors and picked one. Usually I would just choose a name that I liked and hope for the best, but this time I chose based on address - the new doctor is across the street from where I get my hair done, and what a coincidence(!)- I have a hair appointment today. Synchronicity.

The doc said my eyes are great, but that I am slightly far-sighted - very mildly, but said that I might be more comfortable reading at night w/ some of those drugstore magnifying glasses, at 1.50+ - coincidentally, the same glasses that I already bought and have been happily using for months. Otherwise, perfecto!

After the eye doc, I crossed the street to the salon, where I got the most beautiful color done - I have been blonde for years, but shortly before the wedding went to medium brown instead. While I like the brown and think it's more flattering, it was a little too dark and was much too "saturated" immediately after she colored it. This time, we went a shade lighter for the base and a shade lighter for highlights, and it's perfect. It's what I think must be my natural color (it's been so long, I can't remember), it looks so good against my skin. It's amazing how getting your hair done and knowing that it looks good just takes your self-confidence to a whole new level...

Tuesday, August 09, 2005

Welcome to Denver. Please check your physical well-being and your sense of security at the gate.

Singer Marc Cohn Shot in Denver

Friday, August 05, 2005

This afternoon is just dragging by, and I can't even go home early today, because I'm headed to the airport after work and boarding a flight to....wait for it....OMAHA! Woo hoo! For one full day! Geez. Why can't we do track days in Hawaii, or Belize, for chrissake?

It's not that bad really - at least it's not 105 degrees there, like it was earlier in the summer at a previous track day. And, it's only for one day this time, which makes it infinitely easier to wrap my mind around. Hopefully there will be a nice piece of steak at the end of the day tomorrow (because really, why else go there?).

I'm reading various accounts of all the panels, meals, drinking and so on that took place at BlogHer last week. Dooce, Fussy, finslippy, jenandtonic, Suburban Bliss and many others were there, some meeting for the first time, others getting re-acquainted. I envy them the time they spent together, that they got to meet one another and maybe recognize a kindred spirit. You don't get that very often, do you? Go read some of their stories...

Wednesday, August 03, 2005

My mother had a long shoot yesterday that ran into the evening, so I left work a bit early and picked up the kids. We went to see "Sky High", which was better than I expected. There was some humor geared for my generation, but a lot was there for them as well. The hero of the movie is the same age as my nephew Joey, so he at least could identify and was entertained. We followed that with dinner at Red Robin, because my friend James swears they have the best burgers in Boulder (practically) - I don't know about that, since I had the salad and in my humble opinion the Walnut Brewery holds the "best burger" claim.

When we got back to the house, somehow (while I was out of the room and therefore unavailable to referee) Alex challenged Joey to do the same workout on the bike trainer that Alex does practically every night. Since Joey can never back down from a challenge, we put Alex's biking shoes on him, popped in the training video, and made him ride - the whole 40 minute program, with the simulated hills and race and all. By the end of it, the poor kid was covered in sweat and grunting "I hate you" at Alex out of the side of his mouth. Actually, he was a good sport, and he actually finished - I was really proud of him. Then his sister said, "Dude, if you did that every night, you'd get rid of your man-boobs."

Tuesday, August 02, 2005

Last night, Joni and I snuck out while her twins were in the bathtub (okay, their dad was watching them!) and went to the movies. Well, the movies by way of the pub. Couldn't let a "night" out opportunity go by without a pint before the movie. Actually, I had a taste of one of the specials - a lager from Kona, Hawaii - not exactly all that I hoped it would be, so I stuck with old faithful, my Heiney. So we sat and we talked and we uncovered bizarre crossover friend-coworker weirdness, in fact it was so weird and potentially dangerous that I can't even write about it in a vague sense for fear that it'll somehow come back to haunt me. I know that's frustratingly vague, but believe me, this one could bite me in the ass.

After a drink or two and the world's smallest plate of nachos, we went to see "Must Love Dogs". Having spent many years adoring John Cusack (ever since "Better Off Dead"), I was totally willing to fork over the $8 to see it at night like a normal person, especially since the damn bargain matinee doesn't seem like much of a bargain these days, being that it's $6 (gotta save that whopping $2 (I WANT MY TWO DOLLARS!) to go toward the $8 it costs for a small popcorn and small soda). I also happen to really like Diane Lane, in fact I have been told that I resemble her (on a good day) - although people seem to think I resemble a lot of other people. Anyway, the movie was "cute" - not so sappy that I am embarrassed to say that I saw it, but not SO good that I'd do the ever-annoying "You HAVE to see it" - unless you're my mother the stylist, who should see it because Diane Lane was beautifully dressed through most of the movie, and whoever picked out the jewelry for Diane and the other female leads did a ROCKIN' job. Beautiful necklaces, delicate earrings, all coordinated with the killer clothes. Of course, when you look like Ms. Lane, you can wear a burlap sack and some people will still go "ooohhh" - but she did look great.

Friday, July 29, 2005

I present Googlism, which I found over at Ali's - and yes, now you know my name...

...my personal favorites are "kate is my homeslice" and "kate is available for instant download"

**i confess, i deleted the duplicates and the ones that were just too raunchy for my niece to see**

Sunday, July 24, 2005

Today I took J&M on a hike with some friends from work. We went up to Rocky Mountain National Park, parked at the Bear Lake trailhead, and hiked up to Loch Lake. The scenery was incredible - I haven't been out on a nice day like that in a long time. The temperature at that altitude was about 80 degrees (while everyone down in Boulder was suffering through 100+ - ha! Suckers!). We didn't see much in the way of wildlife, but there was an extraordinarly ballsy chipmunk that kept approaching while we sat on the rocks at the Loch and had our lunch snack. I know you're not supposed to feed them, but how can you resist when they walk up, climb onto your shoe, and then stand up and beg?

The hike was about 7 miles roundtrip, and we were beat by the time we got back to the cars. However, there was lunch still to be had - one of the guys in our group had boiled brats in Guiness the night before, and then brought his grill so we could brown them up for lunch. They were delicious! Especially with the two mini-kegs of Heineken!

Saturday, July 23, 2005

Weekends used to be about hanging out, visiting with friends, relaxing at home - what happened to that? It seems like every Saturday, all I do is run errands. I leave the house in the morning with what seems like a small list, and I end up coming home 7 hours later, tired, needing to cook dinner and still do laundry! WTF?

Today is a perfect example. All of the errands I can usually knock out during the week have been relegated to Saturday. This because I've had to use all my free time on weekdays to sit around on my ass at the drivers license office and Social Security, trying to get my name changed. How can it be that two separate and unrelated government offices (one state, one federal) had simultaneous "computers down" and were unable to process my paperwork? How is it that said computer outage occured on the DAY I TOOK OFF WORK TO RUN THESE PARTICULAR ERRANDS?

Friday, July 22, 2005

I am whipped - just returned from a very long day. I spent the day at Elitch Gardens with a bunch of co-workers. We do about two "offsites" a year, and today was all about eating and playing. We started the day at Dixons Downtown Grill for breakfast, then headed over to Elitch Gardens. We were broken up into groups of four, and you stayed with that small group at the amusement park. It was blisteringly hot (about 104 degrees), so of course we hit all the water rides first. My favorite ride was "Half Pipe", but my favorite thing that I did at Elitch was that I got to fly! They have a ride called XLR8R, where they strap you into a body harness, hook a cable to your back, and then hoist you what seems like 10 stories into the air. Then, you pull the cable and FLY! It was absolutely amazing, after the first few feet where you just free-fall - then the cable catches you and you swing through the air. I had my arms out like a bird's wings, soaring over the park. Awesome. Definitely worth the extra $15 you pay to do it.

After Elitch, we dragged our wet, exhausted selves down to Cherry Creek, for a chi-chi lunch (for which we were all SO underdressed) at Fourth Story, the restaurant on the top floor of the Tattered Cover bookstore building. Lunch was great, lots of good food and wine, but truthfully, I was too exhausted to enjoy myself.

There was the long drive back to the office, and then I headed home, threw on my bathing suit, and walked up to the Elks Lodge, where Friday afternoon is our neighborhood swimming party. J was there, watching the twins because M was sick, so I sat in the kiddie pool and played with Matthew and Jordan while their mom & dad relaxed and chatted w/ friends. We had dinner there (hot dogs and fruit salad, with Cheetos!), then headed home and almost immediately passed out on the couch for an hour. Long enough day, ya think?

Wednesday, July 20, 2005

I'm playing with Blogger's new photo tool - that's a pic of me and my friend Tara, taken at a work event last week. You've gotta love a place that sends you bowling and out for Japanese food on a Friday!

Despite having the wedding and all the attendant fanfare behind me, I don't feel like things have really slowed down that much. I still seem to be busy with something at least four nights a week, even though I've taken a break from the rescue squad and I'm not doing any classes or volunteer work this season. Life just takes over - tonight I have to attend a meeting about the status of our land as being in the "flood plain", which is code for requires very expensive flood insurance, and whether or not it can be re-designated. Friday night is swimming/bbq/cocktails at the Elks Lodge, which is a real neighborhoody thing to do. Saturday I have a massage (hallelujah!), and then a cocktail party, and then the kids are spending the night before we get up REALLY early to head up to Rocky Mountain National Park for a day hike - about 7 miles roundtrip, with lunch along the way. They're both good sports and so gung ho about trying new things - I hope they can keep that spirit their whole lives.

BTW, the song listed at right ("At Last") is not actually how I feel - I'm fully aware that there will be lonely days - I just love the song.

Wednesday, July 13, 2005

It's only in these hottest days of summer that I'm grateful to work in an office building all day - especially an office filled with very expensive, very sensitive electronic equipment, such that the indoor temperature must remain low at all times. It's about 95 degrees outside right now, I know this because I just had to walk out of the building and across the street to the parking lot of our neighboring building, because the landlord threw a BBQ for the tenants of the three buildings in our little area. It's HOT out there. To combat the heat, I like to work as late as possible, killing two birds with one stone - rack up some of that OT, and stay indoors until the sun is a bit lower in the sky, and my car has found some shade next to the east side of the building. However, last night it didn't cool off all that much until close to 10pm, so tonight calls for drastic measures - I've begged the boy to take me to a movie. I want to see "Mr. & Mrs. Smith", because there are worse things than watching Brad Pitt for two hours just to escape the heat.

Tuesday, July 12, 2005

In support of teaching Flying Spaghetti Monsterism as a form of Intelligent Design, I give you an open letter to the Kansas School Board, found at Fussy.

Monday, July 11, 2005

As some of you may know, last Friday was my wedding day. Getting married, getting presents, being surrounded by family and friends tends to make you feel pretty much like the center of the universe. One of the more self-indulgent things I did last week was to go to the hippest nail spa (don't call it a salon, they'll correct you) in Boulder for a manicure and pedicure the day before my wedding. That day, of course, was last Thursday, July the 7th. Seeing as I was living in my little wedding week bubble, I hadn't turned on the tv or listened to the radio at all. However, when I arrived at the nail spa, the wall where they normally project movies or old reruns of "Seinfeld" was instead showing CNN and pictures of London having been attacked. I can't begin to express my feelings of outrage and sadness at this newest attack. I have such fond memories of my time spent in London, what a gloriously peaceful and pleasant city it is. I hope that at her heart, London will remain that way, despite what has been brought to her streets and to her people. My heart goes out to every person touched by what happened that day.

Via Len - this was too good not to snatch and post here as well:

From the Declaration of Arbroath, written by the Scots in 1320:

for, as long as but a hundred of us remain alive, never will we on any conditions be brought under [terrorism’s] rule. It is in truth not for glory, nor riches, nor honours that we are fighting, but for freedom — for that alone, which no honest man gives up but with life itself.

Saturday, July 09, 2005

Hey, I got married yesterday. It was awesome. I was so calm all along, through all the planning and set up and everything - and five minutes before I was to walk down the aisle -- PANIC ATTACK. Heart pounding, short of breath, butterflies in my stomach, all of it. Trying hard not to cry, I just held his hand while we stood at the altar. I think we set a record for shortest ceremony, but I don't care. It was beautiful, and almost every person in the world that I care about was there.

More later.

Sunday, July 03, 2005

...5 days to go...

I was supposed to be out of town this weekend at a race in IA, but I couldn't get a flight out of Denver last Thursday (another post on that adventure later)....anyway, it worked out for the best because I've spent the weekend organizing my house & basement - something that was desperately needed but for which I never carve out any time. The houseguests begin to descend on Tuesday, and my cleaning person is coming tomorrow, so I'm happy to have had time to get this done.

I think everything is in order for the wedding. I can't think of what I'm missing, but it seems like everything is taken care of. I even called the hotel where A's family will be staying and made a request for special rooms that face away from the road.

Have to run, my neighbors are hosting a "Napoleon Dynamite" 4th of July party today. Must go find my Vote for Pedro t-shirt.

Tuesday, June 28, 2005

Found this game over at Ali's. Basically, you just list the famous people you've seen or met (I'm doing mine in alphabetical order, for no particular reason):

Jamie Lee Curtis

John Cusack

Sally Field

Harrison Ford

Shaquille O'Neal

John Travolta

Vince Vaughn

James Worthy

Actually, when you live in LA for ten years, you see a TON of famous faces, too many to list here. A couple of the ones above I did meet & hang out with (but I'm not saying which ones!).

Wednesday, June 22, 2005

This headline seemed better suited to the Weekly World News than a major news source, but I guess that's why they say that truth is stranger than fiction....

Giant Popsicle Melts, Floods New York Park

I love quizzes that make me feel smart.

Via AllanThinks:

Your IQ Is 135

Your Logical Intelligence is Genius
Your Verbal Intelligence is Genius
Your Mathematical Intelligence is Genius
Your General Knowledge is Exceptional

A Quick and Dirty IQ Test

Tuesday, June 21, 2005

A little meme for today, from Spanglemonkey:

How did your parents meet?

They met in college, at Butler University. He was in a frat (can't remember which one), she is a Theta.

What was the most frustrating thing your mother faced in your childhood?

I don't know. She never confessed to being frustrated. If I had to guess, it would be that it was probably hard to find someone that she liked who also had no problem with becoming an instant father to three kids.

How does/did your mother feel about her mother?

She loves her mother deeply, but doesn't seem to have much in common with her. But hey, isn't that true for most people?

Monday, June 20, 2005

...19 days to go...

We had one of those huge neighborhood garage sales on Saturday in my mother's 'hood. I have spent the past few weeks slowly going through every room of my house (except the kitchen, I should have made time for that), weeding through 17 years worth of crap that has accumulated since I've been living on my own. Wow, that makes me sound really old. Anyway, I spent most of Friday afternoon and evening hauling massive amounts of stuff over to my mother's house, and then got up at 5am on Saturday WHICH IS CRIMINAL in order to be there and get stuff organized before people descended at 7:45, because you know that any time a garage sale is advertised as starting at 8am, people will start showing up a half hour early. Only that didn't happen. They started to slowwwwwly trickle in about 8:30 or so, just a few at a time, until about 9:30, when we got slammed. We speculated that it was because there were so many homes participating (I think it was over 40), that it took people a while to find there way back to us, tucked away in a quiet neighborhood as we were. So by 9:30, there were mobs of people, a handful of women pawing through the mountains of clothes that I was parting with (8 full Hefty lawn bags full), some of which still had tags, and all of which were going for $2 a piece. There was still some junk left at the end of the day, but I made $350 and most important of all, the first thing I sold was A's hideous black lacquer yeah-i'm-a-bachelor dresser. Glory be.

Sunday, June 19, 2005

Cool test, found via Beancounter:

Face Memory Test

Recognition score
(if you saw it)

Your score: 95%
Average score: 92%

This is a measure of your ability to remember the photos you've seen, regardless of the part in which you saw them. From all 24 photos shown in Parts 1 & 2, you recognised: 23 photo(s).

Temporal memory score
(when you saw it)

Your score: 91%
Average score: 68%

This is a measure of how often you recognised a photo and matched it to the correct part, instead of just remembering which ones you'd seen. From all the photos you recognised, you matched: 21 photo(s) to the correct part.

Thursday, June 16, 2005

....22 days to go....

Song lyrics of the day: "...and it's you when I look in the mirror...sometimes you can't make it on your own...."

My local radio station, KBCO, tries to be eclectic, but I'll tell ya - every time I turn on the radio lately, they're playing U2. Not that I object to U2. I wish there were more bands like them, and more celebrities like Bono - not content to sit and count his endless piles of cash, but using his celebrity for good rather than evil. No, my gripe with KBCO is lack of imagination. Their morning guy, Bret Saunders, is fun to listen to and all that (although I usually listen to the local NPR station in the mornings), but the playlists in the afternoons and evenings are always the same stuff - U2, Coldplay (sick of them, thanks very much), John Mayer, and usually something from the 70's thrown in (usually the Stones). Makes me miss my favorite LA station, KCRW. They have an incredible program called "Morning Becomes Eclectic".

This brings me to my other topic for today - TIGER! I know, I know - you're looking for the connection between my fond memories of a Santa Monica radio station and the new OS for my Mac. Ha! One of my favorite new features with Tiger is the Dashboard and the widgets. It just so happens that I went and downloaded a widget called RabbitRadio. RabbitRadio lets you select an NPR station from across the country, and streams it! 10 seconds to download the widget, 2 seconds to drop it into my Dashboard, 5 seconds to figure out how to change the settings (yes, it's that easy), and I heard KCRW. It almost made me cry, it was such a beautiful thing.

Wednesday, June 15, 2005

....23 days to go....

Song lyrics of the day: "I'm just a soul whose intentions are good...oh Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood..."

The song of the day idea has been bouncing around in my mind for a while. Each morning, usually while I'm in the shower, I realize that I've woken up with a song playing. I don't know if it's from a dream, or some other thing that happened between my bed and my shower, but there's a song, and it's usually pretty obscure, or it's a nursery rhyme from my childhood, or some other weird thing. It occurred to me that it would be interesting (to me, anyway) to see which songs are popping up from day to day. What sort of information about my emotional state might you gather from seeing what random songs my subconscious presents each morning? I suppose the fact that there is a "song of the day" in my head probably says a lot already (haha).

Met w/ the restaurant owner last night from the joint where we'll have dinner after the ceremony. It's perfect, very low key, across the street from our hotel for that night, just a block from the Pearl Street Mall, where there is likely to be much drinking done after the wedding. We'll have a private room, pool tables, access to the bar - exactly what the boy and I were after. Check that one off the list...

Monday, June 13, 2005

Not guilty. What a disgrace.

Verdict is in....ooh, the suspense!

Wednesday, June 08, 2005

....30 days to go....

I'm spending time each day trying to tie up loose ends. I had to send payments/deposits off for the wedding site and the photographer, and have sent the programs to the printer. The first wedding gift arrived this week (very exciting!). I'm going to lunch tomorrow with a girlfriend, and we're stopping at a local florist to look at some of my options. My mother found a wholesale flower guy who will put together whatever we want, we just need to let him know what varieties. I know sh*t about flowers, so I have to go wander around and see what appeals.

My mother and I visited a furniture rental place to see about tables, chairs and a bar - but it was all crap and would have cost a few hundred dollars. There's a church near my mother's house that sometimes loans furniture to congregation members, so she's looking into that instead. I also posted a flyer in the breakroom at my local pub, looking for someone to tend bar at the reception.

Despite having a laundry list of things yet to do, I feel okay. I know so many people who got so stressed before their weddings, about what was not yet done, or about who couldn't make it, or whatever - I'm really not feeling that. I get the occasional, momentary flash of panic when I remember something that had been tucked away in the back of my mind - but it's all doable, and I have so many friends and family who have offered to help me get everything done. I'm so grateful for that.

On an unrelated note, my deepest sympathies go out to Mel Brooks and his son, on the death of Anne Bancroft. She was a class act.

Thursday, June 02, 2005

....36 days to go....

I woke up early this morning (it's a wash-the-hair day, which means an extra forty-five minutes to get ready) and as I was showering, it suddenly hit me that the wedding is in just over a month, and I still don't have a florist or furniture for the party. What if the party rents place doesn't have anything available for me? I only have 3 weekends in town left before the wedding, and one of them is booked with a garage sale - how the hell am I going to get everything done? Will it be okay with you if my blog turns into a WedZILLA panic station?

I've been working on registry items, after reading on an etiquette list somewhere that you need to have registered for as many items as you have guests invited. Hah! I think I had 35 items on two different registries, but have invited 40 people to the wedding and another 60 are invited to the reception. The article suggested treating the registry like winning a shopping spree, and to register for the things you'd love to give yourself if money wasn't an option. So I went back and registered for a few more things, things that are more "love to have" than "need to have".

Tuesday, May 31, 2005

Wedding planning continues. Have received the contract from the photographer and I'm currently trying to chase down the musician and get a list of what she intends to play. My mother and I need to pay a visit to the furniture rental place that will provide tables for the reception. We still haven't pinned down exactly what we're feeding people. I need to order wine & champagne. I need to arrange for a hotel room for wedding night. WedZILLA is born.

Thursday, May 26, 2005

Falling under the heading, "Well, duh..."

"Sith" Fans Maimed in Lightsaber Mishap"

Monday, May 23, 2005

Yeah, yeah, I know. It's been a while. I blame work this time. Last week was five full days of training in a software platform & programming language behind one of our work sites. I did that and nothing else. Didn't go out to lunch once. Didn't go to training or do any staffing at the squad. Nothing.

This past weekend was my first weekend at home in a month. After going to a friend's baby's 1st birthday party, I spent Saturday afternoon outside weeding (dandelions in full bloom around here, baby) and transplanting some herbs and other plants that I'd been nurturing inside. Sunday was my girls day with Joni - shopping, lunch and more shopping. I love Tuesday Morning. Yesterday was the last day of a special sale, where you get an extra 25% off anything that's already on clearance - score! Got a runner for the upstairs hallway, a really beautiful folding wooden chair with a padded seat to tuck away in my guest room, some gorgeous silky sheets, and a ton of other goodies.

Last but not least, wedding invites finally went out last week. WHEW! So don't say that my time away hasn't been productive....

Friday, May 13, 2005

...and the other side (both quizzes via Julia):

Your Political Profile

Overall: 10% Conservative, 90% Liberal

Social Issues: 25% Conservative, 75% Liberal

Personal Responsibility: 25% Conservative, 75% Liberal

Fiscal Issues: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal

Ethics: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal

Defense and Crime: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal

How Liberal / Conservative Are You?

Yeah, yeah...

I am:
14%
Republican.

"You're a tax-and-spend liberal democrat. People like you are the reason everyone else votes for guys like Reagan or George W."

Are You A Republican?

Monday, May 09, 2005

Ruthlessly stolen from Julia:

mags (but not really)

blue

CNN HD feed

homemade pasta & sauce w/ turkey

purple

clear, sunny blue skies

the FedEx guy

length of his pants

red bell peppers

ice water with lemon

Heineken

the internet

dark blonde, but soon to be brunette

brown

nope

top

october

qdoba

"De Lovely"

some Saturday in the fall

nope - been there, done that

winter

kisses, but hugs would be good, too

vanilla

Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith

a picture of some stones

Scrabble

drove (ok, was driven) from Topeka, KS to Denver

Anne Lamott

butter AND salt

red gerbera daisy

sh*t

didn't have one

bottle of sparking water, two programming books, inches of paper, spindle of 100 CD-RWs, printer, coffee cups, giant water glass, bottle of hand sanitizer, dictionary, jade plant

symphony

opera

you betcha

it beats walking

right

CHUNKY

winter park, fl

Wednesday, May 04, 2005

I feel like I'm acting out a stereotype - I skipped out of work and am sitting at tiny little coffeehouse, listening to public radio and typing away on my laptop in this friendly little wi-fi environment. I have IM open, so work can still ping me, but otherwise....I figured, what the f*ck. Everyone in my group has taken to "working from home" - which used to be absolutely verboten, but now seems to be the norm.

Anyway, I've been sitting here working on the hellish doc that is my "2005 Personal Goals", which feeds into the larger doc known as "2005 (Department name here) Team Goals", which in turn must support the big enchilada, "2005 (Company name here) Goals". My friend Joe, sitting beside me at the coffee house (also "working"), pointed out that it was awfully late in '05 for me to be coming up with my goals, but since no one has come around askin', I haven't been wasting my time up until now. Unfortunately, I have to actually discuss said goals w/ my boss over lunch tomorrow, so must hustle and get them done.

Tuesday, May 03, 2005

Back now from a long trip to Brainerd, MN for a combo race weekend/track day. We ended up canceling the track day due to farking cold weather. I spent four days bundled up in my best fleece, layers, etc. and was still cold. The only time I wasn't cold was when standing in front of the lovely propane-powered heater/blower, or when hiding inside the living quarters of the trailer. Quite the lap of luxury there - kitchen, TV (w/ Dish!), DVD player...makes a big difference in the quality of our lives at these events. Thank you, D&K.

Trying to get caught up at work, more later.

Sunday, May 01, 2005

Ironically, my mother was born in Hawaii.

Via Ali:

You're Hawaii!

When they first meet you, few people can tell whether you want to say
hello or goodbye. Either way, most of them will end up saying that you're their favorite person to visit, if only they could afford the trip. But your soft and warm image is belied by an explosive undercurrent in your personality than can leave you drenched with tears or boiling with anger for days on end. You are rather fond of using plants as clothing.

Take the State Quiz at the Blue Pyramid.

Friday, April 22, 2005

It's Friday, glorious Friday. I have nothing to write about at the moment, so I'll borrow an idea from Amber and tell you what's in my lovely black Nine West saddle bag:

Wednesday, April 20, 2005

What does Spring mean to you? Does it summon thoughts of flowers in bloom? Green leaves returning to the trees? Emerald lawns and afternoons sitting on them? While I do associate all of those things with spring, mostly (for me) Spring is about my hair.

Every year, in fact twice a year (Spring and Fall), I feel the urge to radically change my hair. It's a physical need that I have, the kind that causes you physical pain when you ignore the craving. Usually it's that my hair is too long, or too blond, and I have a nearly irresistible urge to have short dark brown hair. Photos of me taken over the last 17 years or so will display a wide variety of lengths and colors - but I think I looked best with my hair very short (maybe 2.5" long) and close to my natural brown, maybe a bit darker. Couple of problems with that now:

So this is my dilemma right now. My wedding is 10 weeks away, so I'm hesitant to do anything radical that I'll hate - but I also don't think I look like the real me. I'm seeing my wizard of a hair stylist, the lovely and talented Miss Shira, next week for a cut, and the week after for color. What to do, what to do...

Tuesday, April 19, 2005

Having a farking devil of a time finishing wedding invites. I've had to e some of our out-of-town guests for their snail-mail addresses so that I can get stupid invites out -- but that contact of course prompts questions about where, when, where shall I stay, etc. There is precious little room at the Inn - just enough for my best friend Vic, and the friend of A's who will perform the ceremony. Okay, maybe I can squeeze four or so more people in here....we'll have to wait and see.

I've got a simple page ready with hotel info, etc. Just have to carve out some time tonight to get that finished, then write the rest of the invites and get them addressed. The only other hold up is the little cards to go in the invites that tell people where and when is the reception. Gaaahh! No wonder people elope! Had I known....

I tried on my dress. It almost zips closed over my oversized bust. Damn it, I just can't get away from these things. I have now officially decided that it's crash diet time, because you know the tits is the first place you lose it. My great-grandmother was a lovely woman, but these are her boobs and this is her fault.

Monday, April 18, 2005

Spotted while browsing over at Snowball's.

Your Linguistic Profile:

55% General American English

20% Yankee

15% Dixie

10% Upper Midwestern

0% Midwestern

What Kind of American English Do You Speak?

Friday, April 15, 2005

I'm so glad I stopped by Amber's today, because I've had a blah day and have nothing to say. I was much relieved to see Blog It Forward being passed around. Here's my part for BIF:

Go Fug Yourself. Why do I love these girls so much? Maybe because it reminds me of life in Hollywood/LA and I'm just homesick all of the time. Or, maybe it's because they take one look at Britney Spears and instinctively react the same way I do - with venom, sarcasm and (hopefully) wit.

Dooce. What can I say? I wish she lived in Boulder so we could walk our dogs and go out drinking together. Rube even looks a little like Chuck.

Gringa Diaries. I don't even know how I first visited this blog, but I've been checking in for a while now, while the Gringa tries desperately to become pregnant. About 10 days ago, she learned that she's finally there - and announced today that she's having twins. I'm not one of those women who's totally into babies or kids or anything - but when I read the Gringa's good news, I cried. I still cry every time I think about her.

There's a whole bunch of other good ones listed to the right, and a zillion more that I haven't found yet. Go read!

Thursday, April 14, 2005

I've just learned that one of my academy instructors was killed in the line of duty on Saturday. A former Douglas County Sheriff's officer, he and his family had returned to his hometown in Kansas, where he was a sheriff's officer.

Rest in peace, Kurt Ford.

Go check out the new Burton comic - it's fantastic.

Link via Beancounter.

Wednesday, April 13, 2005

Talk about stating the obvious...it was either that, or she was putting on weight as fast as she could for her "before" photos as the next Trim Spa spokes-girl....

She's preggers.

**Beware, the site takes forever to load and is clogged up with gobs of flash - no plain vanilla html version that I could find.

Tuesday, April 12, 2005

Our first track event of the season came off without any major hitches - we ran two riding schools (one for new racers and one for new riders), plus the regular track day events. Kim was so organized and well prepared - everything was ready for the customers, and she even fed all of us for the weekend - prepared everything in CO, packed it up and drove it all out to IA. I need someone that organized to plan the wedding for me!

A's father joined us for the weekend, and I think they both had a fantastic time. Unfortunately, he was supposed to fly back to the west coast on Sunday, with a connecting flight through Denver - and anyone who was watching the news on Sunday or read a newspaper on Monday probably knows, Colorado got hit hard by a blizzard on Sunday, which shut down Denver International Airport. We ended up having to fly him through Chicago early Monday morning in order to get him out of IA - but that wasn't too bad, we got to have another evening all together. The other bad news was that we weren't able to leave early Monday as scheduled...we were on standby and of course got bumped for all of the ppl who were supposed to have flown on Sunday. Another day at work missed. You can imagine how distraught I was.

Wednesday, April 06, 2005

The boy started TiVoing "MXC" a while back, and whenever we have a night home together where he's not glued to the computer (once a month, maybe?), we watch episodes of "MXC" (unless it's Friday, which is all about "Battlestar Gallactica"). Last night we watched 3 in a row, skipping over commercials, so about an hour - that show makes us laugh so hard! For those not acquainted with it, "MXC" airs on SpikeTV, and it's a Japanese program that has voice-overs in English - the contestants have to do a series of somewhat hazardous physical challenges which are themselves kind of funny (c'mon, it's funny when someone falls down!!), but the voice-overs are the best part - totally off-the-wall comments, and they make up ridiculous names and professions for everyone.

Tuesday, April 05, 2005

Today's meme suggested by Amber:

Accent:

none, except southern when liquored up

Bra size:

wouldn't you like to know

Chore I hate:

weeding. spiders and crawly things everywhere

Dad’s name:

jan

Essential makeup:

powder with spf, lip balm, black mascara

Favourite perfume:

it varies with the season - i use vanilla in the winter, a peppery chocolate scent in fall and winter, and Allure or Layla in the spring and summer

Gold or silver:

never gold, unless it's white

Hometown:

winter park, fl

Interesting Fact:

the high chair i used as a baby also held the infant Teddy Roosevelt

Job Title:

websitter, marketing wench

Kids:

does a deaf, one-eyed dog count? if so, one

Living arrangements:

hubby-to-be and i live in a house he bought 2 years ago - a big, drafty place in Boulder, with open space and a creek behind us

Mom’s birthplace:

honolulu, hawaii

Number of apples eaten last week:

3? maybe 4

Overnight hospital stays:

besides my own birth, one - knee surgery

Phobias:

runny eggs, spiders, rooms with low ceilings (hey, i'm 6' tall!)

Question you ask yourself a lot:

where the hell are my shoes?

Religious affiliation:

yes, i have one

Siblings:

one sister, one brother, both younger

Time I wake up:

6am - you wouldn't know that's daytime for how dark it is!

Unnatural hair color:

blonde/auburn highlights

Natural hair color:

light brown

Vegetable I refuse to eat:

mushrooms

Worst habit:

recovering nail biter

X-rays:

teeth, right elbow (sprained), right shoulder (broken), most fingers (one broken), toes (2 broken), right hip (dislocated), knees(both ACLs torn), ankles (only sprained)...did i mention that i'm an unprofessional stuntwoman?

Yummy food I make:

gooey pasta w/ melted mozarella & filet mignon

Zodiac sign:

scorpio

Just got to work after a site tour and breakfast at a new hotel in Boulder, the St. Julien Hotel and Spa. What a beautiful place. Visit the website if you have a chance - the "model" room on their website is identical to the one we toured. While the breakfast left a bit to be desired, the hotel itself was worth the trip. I'm considering it for our wedding night, something that I wouldn't have considered except that we'll have houseguests for our wedding weekend....

Saturday, April 02, 2005

I went to CompUSA yesterday, took a deep breath, and bought a PowerBook. Butterflies the entire time - I wasn't that nervous buying a car! Why does it feel like such an extravagance? It's a totally functional, necessary purchase (yeah, I'll keep telling myself that), which has already enabled me to be so productive - I worked on a wedding page yesterday in my spare time at work, and it's nearly done! Besides being a write-off for the business, it really wasn't that much when I considered how much I've spent over the years on less-worthy computers, and how many computers in the last couple of years have just come our way, for little or no cost. Anyway, I'm through justifying myself. I bought it, I love it. Now we can move on.

Friday, April 01, 2005

Hint: It's no longer on my wish list.

What's small, shiny and fast? What's sleek, beautiful, expensive and precious? No, it's not a new car. Guess again.

Tuesday, March 29, 2005

Today's meme suggested by Pam:

You're stuck inside Fahrenheit 451, which book do you want to be? Erm, it's been so long (high school? Hello? Seventeen years ago??). I guess I don't care/know, as long as I'm one of the books that Montag keeps hidden and refuses to burn.

Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character? A couple leap to mind, but they're not from books - Troy Dyer from "Reality Bites" and Parker Stevenson as the elder brother on "The Hardy Boys". I did/do have a very powerful, non-romantic crush on Atticus Finch. I wish I'd known that my father was that good a man.

The last book you bought is: An Ordinary Person's Guide to Empire by Arundhati Roy. I loved The God of Small Things, and although this new one is non-fiction, I'm hoping I'll enjoy it as well.

The last book you read: Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides. I loved it.

What are you currently reading? Struggling through Mirror, Mirror by Gregory Magurire. So far, it's not floating my boat.

Five books you would take to a deserted island: Tough one, to choose just five. Here goes: To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, e by Matthew Beaumont, The Eiger Sanction by Trevanian, and Blue Shoe by Anne Lamott.

Who are you going to pass this stick to (3 people) and why? None of my friends blog. However, I'm passing Middlesex on to a friend today, and am gifting a copy of Blue Shoe to a friend this weekend. I'll come up with a third...

Sunday, March 27, 2005

After a few days of snow and rain, the weather has finally taken a turn for the better. Things in the yard are starting to bloom (purple and yellow crocus, buds on the lilac tree), and the grass is emerald green. Today it's supposed to be up around 50 degrees.

We're doing a family dinner tonight, and have invited some of my mother's new friends to join us. It'll be like old times - big meal, big group, lots of talking and getting to know each other. It's one of the things I've missed the most about having my family be scattered around so much.

Wedding plans are moving right along. My mom's friend Jan has offered to help by organizing food for the wedding and reception, and she'll help my mom with flowers as well. I want to start looking for fun stuff for the yard - lights and cool stuff to hang from the trees and to decorate the fence that runs the length of the backyard, funky old tableclothes to throw over the tables, stuff like that.

Friday, March 25, 2005

I like a Friday where you don't really have to work. I went in for a meeting and finished some paperwork, and was out of there by 1pm. I went over to the squad and met one of the other members, who walked me through rigging a Tyrolean - something we had done at training earlier this week, but I was a little lost on the setup. Amazing what 20 minutes of one-on-one time does for your understanding.

**Kim, here's a link to photos from WoW.

Monday, March 21, 2005

Feels good to be home. I loved spending time with my friend Kim, but you can't beat sleeping in your own bed. Plus, my dog missed me. Okay, I think the boy missed me, too.

We have the beautiful and talented Miss Mare visiting for two weeks. I look forward to movies, dinners, pedicure parties, hikes, and knitting together. We also have VIP tickets to the Nuggets/Lakers game on Thursday night, and the Nuggets/Sonics game on Saturday night. Woo hoo!

Saturday, March 19, 2005

I REALLY don't like Omaha. The only food available after 10pm is at Old Chicago, and even they close at 12:30am. It's mostly flat, grey, filled with homes all built using the same cookie cutter. While the Old Market district is quaint, it's also filled with rowdy teenagers from one of the two local college campuses (like I don't get enough of that in Boulder!). Also, WHAT KIND OF A MORONIC CITY/COUNTY STILL ALLOWS SMOKING IN RESTAURANTS? That's so 10 years ago. That must be why all the movies at the one movie theater that I drove past opened a YEAR AGO. It also explains all of the gigantic hospital complexes that we drove past - they need all that space to treat their citizens for the host of respiratory ailments that they will surely have. I kid you not, every single thing that I have with me now reeks of smoke.

Thursday, March 17, 2005

Hi ho, hi ho, it's off to Omaha I go.

Leaving tonight to help out in a booth at the World of Wheels tradeshow. There's not really much about motorcycles going on at that show, but we hope to lure a few potential customers over.

At least they have good steak in Omaha, right?

Wednesday, March 16, 2005

Made a trek out to Lafayette today for the best Mexican food I've found in Colorado, Efrain's (ignore that review at the top that trashes their service, it's always been great). I have mixed feelings every time I eat there - love the food, love the service, love the space, but it makes me so homesick for LA, where great Mexican food can be found around just about every corner.

Tuesday, March 08, 2005

You've gotta love Colorado. We had a forecast for mid to high 60s today, and it's snowing. Granted, the snow is not sticking, but it's flying around fiercely after skies that looked like tornadoes were a'comin'.

I'm supposed to be working on a new Twiki site, and I haven't had 5 minutes to spare for this in a couple of weeks. I have a status update on the site tomorrow, so I have to carve out some time to at least take a look.

I visited a site yesterday for the first time, and loved the information there. It's called Stumptuous (via Erin). Check out the site, especially the links for Eating --> Basic Nutrition. I started reading late yesterday afternoon, and actually stayed late at work because I was so absorbed. I especially dig the links to info specifically about fats, proteins, and a great one called "Dieting 101". It's very much in tune with the information from my nutritionist and from several books that I've read lately. Give it a whirl.

Thursday, March 03, 2005

Today's post suggested by Amber:

1. Grab the nearest book.
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the text of the next 3 sentences on your blog, along with these instructions.
5. Don’t you dare dig for that “cool” or “intellectual” book in your closet! I know you were thinking about it! Just pick up whatever is closest.

In this example, I'm using the get function on the request object. If the incoming request to the page has the message variable, then the first value will be used, which of course is change. If the message variable isn't present, then the second value, default, will be used.
--The Definitive Guide to Plone by Andy McKay

Wednesday, March 02, 2005

Every once in a while, you have the opportunity to do something really wonderful for another person. I'm having one of those days, so I thought I'd share it.

I have a friend at work who I'll call Connie. Connie has only worked here for about 10 months, but it's been an eventful 10 months. Last summer, she lost both of her sisters on the same day - one to breast cancer, and one killed in a car accident. This was devastating to both Connie and her family, especially since Connie's mother was also killed in an accident, many years before. Within a month of losing her sisters, Connie learned that she too has cancer. Connie's cancer was advanced enough to require immediate surgery, which placed her on sick leave from work for many weeks. My company was amazing throughout Connie's illness - a fund was set up to assist with her medical bills, co-workers volunteered to clean her house, look after her dogs, rake the leaves in her yard, drive her to and from doctor appointments - the works. Connie was able to return to work last fall and resume much of her normal life, albeit without an appetite and having lost a pretty dramatic amount of weight. Still, she seemed in good spirits.

It's Connie's birthday today. Birthdays for her are special, magical days, and she's never worked on her birthday before. Due to circumstances around the office, it was necessary that she come in today, and work more than her normal shift - she'll actually be here for 12 hours today. She's been pretty depressed lately, both at the news that she needs yet more treatment for her illness, and that she had to spend this most special day at the office.

A couple of us at work who are close to Connie got together and planned a birthday for her. We decorated her cube with a "birthday balloon chandelier" and confetti, and left a couple of little gifts. Last night, I picked up two dozen roses, and we've arranged for 24 different people to randomly visit her today and each hand her a rose. It's not a lot, but it seems to have made her feel really good today. She told me that she's considering always working on her birthday in the future, because otherwise she would have missed out on being made to feel so special.

I know it sounds like bragging, but damn! We did good.

Tuesday, March 01, 2005

Via Daisy:

You Are 60% Left Brained, 40% Right Brained

The left side of your brain controls verbal ability, attention to detail, and reasoning.

Left brained people are good at communication and persuading others.

If you're left brained, you are likely good at math and logic.

Your left brain prefers dogs, reading, and quiet.

The right side of your brain is all about creativity and flexibility.

Daring and intuitive, right brained people see the world in their unique way.

If you're right brained, you likely have a talent for creative writing and art.

Your right brain prefers day dreaming, philosophy, and sports.

Are You Right or Left Brained?

Monday, February 28, 2005

Feel a little ripped off by the Oscars last night - BORRRING. Who here didn't know who was going to win in almost every category? I thought the musical numbers were a bad choice - Beyonce singing three out the four songs, including one in French? We couldn't find a French person out there to sing at least that song? And how about Antonio Banderas singing the song from "The Motorcycle Diaries" - why oh why would they do that to us? All of this has just given A further ammo to throw at me whenever an awards show comes along - he stayed out of the room all evening, but came back at the end with a smirk a mile wide.

There is a conference this week for work, taking place at a nearby hotel - there are about 5 people in the building. It's been amazing - I've gotten more work done in 4 hours today than I got done all of last week. The real beauty is the quiet - no phones ringing, no shouted conference calls on speakerphone, no one popping in to my cube just to distract me - I love this.

Wednesday, February 23, 2005

The flu bug that's been going around at work bit me, but luckily I am pumping so many vitamins into my body each day that instead of the flu it was only a cold. However, said cold lasted for 5 days, and I still sound congested. I went home sick from work on Thursday, stayed home Friday, Monday was a holiday, stayed home Tuesday, and am just now back among the worker bees. The one thought that I take away from the last 5 days is THANK GOD FOR TIVO. I mean, I was up and around on Sunday and Monday, but Friday - it was all TiVo, all the time. I watched probably 4 hours worth of "Everyday Italian" (LOVE Giada de Laurentiis), several episodes of "CSI" and "South Park", plus "Battlestar Galactica" with A when he go home from work. A is, by the way, a man who doesn't understand why there is television programming beyond Speedvision, the History Channel, and Mythbusters, but he absolutely loves "Battlestar Galactica". Could it be because of the blond who usually isn't fully dressed?

Thursday, February 17, 2005

Yeah, I know, I'm a slacker. 'Scuse me for having a life and not making time to write on my blog every day. I guiltily visit my own blog each day so I can check in with all of the Blogs I Browse (much easier than having them bookmarked), and each day I think about how many days it's been since I posted, and how there's so much I want to write about...but then I don't, and on it goes.

I am sick like a dog, and at work. I have no business being upright, as my nose, cheekbones, eyes and forehead feel like one solid fuzzy mass. I want to go home and sleep, but have meetings until 4pm. I think I may have to just blow them off and leave. No one wants to be sitting next to someone in a meeting, watching that person's nose drip onto the conference table.

Wednesday, February 09, 2005

It's been so crazy busy lately that I haven't been able to much blogging or writing or reading or any other thing that helps maintain my sanity. I've managed to make plans or commit to projects nearly every night of the week for the past two weeks. I am now committed to doing absolutely nothing this Saturday. I will sleep in, I will play computer games, I will read magazines, I will knit, I will drink copious amounts of alcohol. Those were not listed in the order of preference or priority.

Yesterday I bought the book for which I've been searching (couldn't remember the exact title): French Women Don't Get Fat: The Secret of Eating For Pleasure, by Mireille Guiliano. I read a review of it back around Christmas, and it sounded so much like the advice A's father had already given me - eat quality, ignore fad diets, avoid processed & prepared foods, savor the flavors, and indulge once in a while. I haven't had a chance to read through the book yet, but it seems to be practical advice - plus, there are some recipes in there that are supposed to be wonderful. Lo and behold, when I was reading the news today on nytimes.com, there was a review listed - read it here.

Saturday, February 05, 2005

The facial was amazing. It was a peel, so there was some stinging, and my skin felt really tight the next day, but I'm so smooth and soft now! Wow. I had no idea what I was missing. This is definitely going to be a regular thing from now on.

I also went back the next day and had my eyelashes dyed. I had always thought that was over the top, like "how lazy are you that you can't put on mascara in the morning?", but believe me, I'm singing a different tune now. I don't have to wear any eye makeup now. It has made my routine so much easier. I also don't have to worry about running mascara when I go to the gym and hit the steam room (my favorite part of gymming).

Thursday, February 03, 2005

Under the heading of "So What If I'm In Debt, I Deserve It" comes today's after-work activity......A FACIAL! My like 3rd ever facial. It's actually a peel, I think. I'm sort of worried, but trying hard to picture the smooth, soft, un-lined, pretty face of my facial/wax person, Elise, who swears she has one every month. Besides, her sister does my hair, so I know she won't want me mad at BOTH OF THEM....

Wednesday, February 02, 2005

I had my second meeting with my nutritionist tonight - we met at Whole Foods, and she helped me shop for things that she's recommending, things that are specifically beneficial for me and my body type. My current type is far, far different from what I started out with - from thin as a rail, to busty, to just big. Not fat exactly - strong, muscular, heavy. Too heavy for my tastes.

It sort of makes me unhappy to even need to seek help, but I've come to the awful realization that everything changes as we age, most especially our bodies and our metabolisms. My metabolism seems to have come to a screeching halt of late, so even though I eat well and work out 2-3 times per week, it's not enough anymore. I actually have to rethink the foods I eat, even though they were pretty healthy to begin with. I'm having blood work done to make sure that my cholesterol is where it ought to be, and that all my kidney and adrenal functions are normal - I tend to drink tons of water, but still generally feel thirsty.

The nutritionist has put me on some supplements - one for electrolytes (for the thirst/dehydration thing), and one for EFA (essential fatty acids), because I don't eat fish and she feels that I'm pretty deficient in those EFAs. I'm working on my own sort of "Lose the Buddha" kind of thing.

Tuesday, February 01, 2005

be abducted by aliens OR be abducted by the government?

abducted by the government. i have _slightly_ more faith in them.

be a united states senator OR a mafia kingpin?

us senator! channel the power of the people!

only wear lime green clothes OR wear any color you want but only with combat boots?

i already wear lots of stuff w/ combat boots, so nothing new here...

be mistaken as someone who did a hit-and-run accident OR a kidnapper?

i was mistaken (today!) for a hit-and-run driver. easier to explain than kidnapping.

Sunday, January 30, 2005

We celebrated my mother's birthday today - it was actually last Wednesday, but my brother couldn't make it up for dinner then, so we got together tonight. As usual, my mother cooked, which I felt badly about, but then again no one would want to eat my cooking, so it's better this way. We had steaks, asparagus, portobello mushrooms and red bell peppers (all on the bbq), plus beets & green, twice-baked potatoes and a Mediterranean bean salad with garlic. Yum. Everything was incredible. My mother was happy to have us there, I think she's been a little sad lately.

Saturday, January 29, 2005

I hate cleaning my house - that is to say, I hate the actual work, hauling supplies around and up and down the stairs, leaning over to vacuum the floorboards, etc. However, I love having a clean house, and the feeling of satisfaction that only comes when I've done the work myself. Then I walk around the house like a nag for days, telling A to clean up after himself, insisting that he take off his shoes at the front door (a rule in our house that he mostly ignores)...I've just finished cleaning, and I used my mother's new vacuum, a Dyson. It's the most amazing vac I've ever used. I couldn't believe all the dog hair it collected, and how it left clean tracks in my low-pile carpet. I think I need me one of them.

Tuesday, January 25, 2005

I'm so tired that I can hardly hold my head up, and it's only Tuesday. How am I supposed to get through the week? I have an extraordinary amount of work right now, and am stumped by the problem of how to get my squad's website back up and running - a very long story and not fit for my blog. Here we're all about sweetness and light, baby.

Crazy dreams are becoming the norm. I'm not sure why that is (could be that they switched me to different levels on my b.c. pills). I'm sleeping well, but having the most whacked dreams, strange and then gone completely from my mind in short order. Oh well, what do you expect from a girl educated at a school that saw nothing wrong with my showing up for 3rd grade class photos wearing a t-shirt advertising rum that read "I've Got A Lovely Bunch of Coconuts"?

Monday, January 24, 2005

Busy weekend - besides training, I also met up with my friend Kim, did a little shopping, dinner and a movie on Saturday. Sunday I met up with another friend, Tamara, at Cherry Creek and we shopped in the afternoon, then met my mother at my house for dinner. We did beef ribs on the BBQ, brown rice & spinach salad. Yum. Tamara brought a bottle of Spanish wine that she had received as a gift, which was the same type that A and I had picked up in LA over the holidays. We had that after we polished off the bottle of pinot that I picked up last week. Did you know that ever since "Sideways" came out, my local wine dudes have been selling out of pinot?

Saturday, January 22, 2005

Sorry to have missed a couple of days, Blogger site was on the blink for a while.

Today was Ice Rescue - we did our practical evals at the Boulder Reservoir. It was a beautiful day, but because it's been so warm, there wasn't a whole lot of thick ice. As the instructors pointed out, that actually makes it better for training, because people don't fall through the ice when it's 8" thick and you could park a semi on it. They fall through after a warm spell when the ice is weakest, so that's how we should train. I spent half the day in a "gumby" (really thick neoprene) suit, laying on my belly on the ice, dragging myself along with my arms and two ice prongs. Can I just tell you how sore my arms are? Plus, I think I cracked a rib again - at one point, I had to get in a hole and be "rescued" by one of the other members - this involved a rope around the chest, and then they yank from shore and pull you in. Plus, when they pull hard, you get jammed against the edge of the ice shelf that you've been clinging to. Gives me a whole new perspective on patient management.

Don't pay any attention to my whining. I had a blast.

Tuesday, January 18, 2005

be the world's best dodgeball player OR the world's best chess player?
best dodgeball player (even though i thought that movie was incredibly stupid) - a life of chess would give me too many grey hairs

be allergic to egg products OR wheat products?
wheat - i have already mostly given it up, but i likes my eggs

be able to go back in time to when JFK was assassinated OR abraham lincoln?
much as i would love to experience lincoln's time, it kinda scares me - probably kennedy

be able to do complex math equations instantly OR sing professionally?
totally want to do the math

Monday, January 17, 2005

Had a busy weekend - lots of laundry and football. How about those Patriots?!?! My friend Kat was probably turning cartwheels in her living room during that game.

Tonight is Ice Rescue training, and then on Saturday we'll do our practical out at the Boulder Reservoir. I'm not sure how that works - I know we get in the mustang suit, and may even get wet, but who's playing the part of the person that fell throught the ice and has to be rescued??? Not me!

Sunday, January 16, 2005

My friend Ray picked the Falcons to go all the way this year, Super Bowl and all. All I can say to that is

GO PATS!

Thursday, January 13, 2005

There is a "buddha" theme going on for me this week. First it was a blurb I read in "In Style" on Monday night about music being played on a photo shoot - Buddha-Bar VI, which I bought last night at B&N and am listening to as I write this. Very cool, especially to be seeping out from my cube at work. The second was today, when I stumbled on a great blog, Lose the Buddha, a very funny, well written blog about dieting, exercise and struggling with weight and torturing yourself (or not, maybe that was just me)...check out Lose the Buddha, it's up for a BoB award.

Tuesday, January 11, 2005

have all your body hair fall out and take a year to grow back OR have a really bad rash between your thighs for a month?

if i knew it was just for a month & didn't affect anything else, i'd go with the rash

have people shout to you because they think you're hard of hearing OR have people make funny faces at you because they think you're blind?

shout at me - i sometime have trouble hearing them anyway

be tortured with bamboo shoots under your finger nails OR with thumb screws?

ouch! thumb screws sound a little less terrifying

have your car stolen OR your wallet?

have to go with the car - at least it's insured. i'd feel weird if someone else had access to everything in my wallet

Monday, January 10, 2005

I got a page today to respond to 3 dogs that had fallen through the ice at a frozen pond - while we obviously don't want the dogs hurt, we respond to these calls in "emergency" mode because there is typically a person who will go in and try to rescue a dog in that situation - so then our scenario becomes a person in trouble. Luckily, everyone waited patiently for us to arrive (they didn't have to wait long, it was just a few minutes before the first trucks arrived), and I'm pleased to report that all three doggies were rescued and were just fine. I wasn't able to respond because it happened in the middle of the day and I had a meeting at 11:30 that I couldn't miss - this is why I need to be self-employed! More time to respond to rescue calls!

Friday, January 07, 2005

Question to you all - what is your experience with either Cingular or T-Mobile? I really want to know. I was a Cingular customer in LA (after they acquired Pac Bell Wireless) and would have stayed with them when I moved to CO, except that they didn't offer service out here. I switched to AT&T, who I hated, and finally moved to T-Mobile this year. T-Mobile is reasonably priced, but the coverage isn't great, especially once you leave Denver/Boulder proper. Now that Cingular has acquired AT&T, the coverage is supposed to be much better out here. Is it worth paying the early termination fee w/ T-Mobile??? A hates his phone and wants a better one (he does get really lousy reception), but I hesitate to upgrade his phone if we'll be switching plans anytime soon...

Thursday, January 06, 2005

Via Daisy.

My dear friend Paulett has been visiting from LA, and we've been celebrating her 60th birthday for several days. Dinner last night was at Da Gabi Cucina, a wonderful, quiet little Italian place tucked away in North Boulder. I had butternut squash and yam soup and then pasta. Breakfast this morning was at Lucile's, this tiny little cottage in Boulder that is home to the best Cajun food outside of Mississippi & Louisiana. I had eggs, grits and a biscuit for breakfast with chicory coffee - YUM. Paulett flies home this afternoon, full but happy.

Wednesday, January 05, 2005

Happy New Year to everyone! Sorry for the long break, but I've been on vacation for almost 3 weeks, and it's been incredible - I've hardly even seen a computer in all of that time.

Spent Christmas in CO with the family, had a lovely time. My sister and the kids came out for 10 days, and I was able to spend a lot of time with them. We went to movies and dinners and ice skating and made snowmen and played pool - really had a wonderful time with them. A and I went to LA for New Years to be with his family, also a very nice time. This was the first time we'd seen any of them since we were affianced (isn't that a great word?!), and there was much talk of things to do around the time of the wedding.

So, the wedding. Wow. The date is set for July 8, a small ceremony with our families and closest friends. The party (not a reception, a full-blown party!) is on July 9, and will be a much bigger, more festive event. I'm beginning to look into invitations and food and bands, all of that. I'll be setting up a website shortly for our out-of-town guests, hotel info and the like. I'm still at the stage when I'm really looking forward to it - I don't yet feel overwhelmed by details. My friends assure me that time is coming.

Tuesday, January 04, 2005

work at a company that regularly tests hair care products on animals OR regularly buries toxic waste illegally?

as deep as my love for critters goes, i just couldn't bury toxic waste

for an entire month, eat everything through a straw OR deep fried?

through a straw! smoothies every day!

invent the next popular kids toy OR sex toy?

probably make way more money on the sex toy

find out your neighbor is a spy for an enemy nation OR a black ops assassin for your government?

i'd rather know they were on our side

Wednesday, December 15, 2004

When a friend of mine recently became ill with cancer and required surgery and extensive rest, a bunch of us from work got together and took up a collection. We used the money to pay for things like a housekeeper and a window washer, etc. We also bought her a month's worth of dinners from Supper Solutions. They have a list of entrees available, and you choose either 6 (for about $90) or 12 (for about $175). Then you go to their store, and all of the ingredients are there for you, along with a step-by-step list of instructions for preparing each entree. They go into zippered freezer bags, and get labels with the cooking instructions (all are for the oven or stove-top). Then you take them home, stick them in the freezer, and use them as you need them. Since each entree serves a family of four, it works out to be about $2.50/person for each meal. Plus, they'll let you divide up the entree into a few packages (for those of us only feeding two people at a time) at no extra charge.

My friend Tara and I are going over tonight after work to put together some entrees for our families - my mother and I are splitting 6 of them to try it out. So basically, for $45, I'm getting dinner for A and I for about a week. The choices look pretty good - orange chicken, a pork loin with orange marmalade, and stuffed pork chops. Yummm.

Tuesday, December 14, 2004

A garbage collector OR a fry cook at a greasy spoon restaurant?

fry cook - i would like to shout "order up" all day long

The person who repairs downed power lines OR the person who cleans the shark tanks (while they're still in it) at aquariums?

clean the shark tanks - i've met those power guys, that's not a fun job

The person who does makeup on dead people for open casket services OR the person who who has to scoop the ashes of a dead person into an urn?

makeup on a dead person. i think you just get used to it.

A beat cop in new york OR a navy SEAL on a covert mission?

beat cop. it's not all bad out there.

Monday, December 13, 2004

What's the worst possible thing that can happen to your diet? A "Cookie Exchange" at work. Good lord, I didn't even know there were that many varieties of cookies. While the meringues with chocolate chips kind of freaked me out (they were pink and green), there was peanut butter & chocolate fudge....and that was it for me. Goodbye good habits, hello one-size-up-in-my-jeans.

Wednesday, December 08, 2004

I know that the holidays are a busy time for most everyone, but I really don't remember my own time being quite so jam-packed in recent years. I was supposed to go to Canada this weekend to see Vic, but I just can't do it - I'm exhausted, and the thought of heading to the airport and going up there, even to visit my dearest friend, just wears me out. So I called Vic and we talked and decided that now was not a great time for either of us, and we'll do it after the new year, when we've both had a chance to rest up from the holidays.

My project at work launched on Monday, to virtually zero problems. I can hardly believe it. While I did put in an enormous effort, I really think that's not the reason it went so smoothly - I truly think I just got lucky, because I sure didn't feel particularly well organized or prepared last week. Anyway, the site looks great, hundreds of customers hit it on Monday with no difficulty, so for all of that, I'm thankful.