Iron Chef Marathon!

Starting at 2 p.m. New Years Day on the Food Network, you can watch 6 hours of Iron Chef America! I don't about you, but I'm pretty excited. It's like my equivalent to holiday football, I guess.

Just Shoot Me!

Well, Friday I learned how to give myself my own allergy shot. It was quite an experience. I'm at the end of my 3-year treatment, and now on a maintenance dose, so it's pretty safe to do it myself since it's always the same amount. The caveat is I have to have my epi-pen ready, and do it while someone is there in case I keel over and die. I just can't make it to the allergist once a week anymore with my new job, taking it at my primary care isn't working out too well, and I'm tired of paying my copayment every week for something I could do myself. Needless to say, giving my first shot was a little weird. It didn't hurt too bad, but I guess my technique is bad, cause the shot site swelled up really huge and red and hot. I was really freaking out for a while, but around dinnertime last night it seemed to start getting better, and it's definitely better today.

Working in DC

It's always so interesting working in the district, and those of us who do take things for granted that most people travel here on their precious vacations to see. My last job was right near the White House, and I often walked down there during lunch to see all the crazy people in the little park behind it. This new job is a stone's throw from the Capitol, which is actually really beautiful and a very impressive structure. I'm also in walking distance from the new American Indian museum. Pretty neat. I actually took a walk during lunch today cause the weather was so nice.

So I bet you're wondering how I like my new job? It's definitely less stressful--but it's the holidays so it's hard to tell what it will really be like. The commute is certainly shorter. The people are a heck of a lot nicer. So from what I can tell, things are looking good. The early hours really suck, but also mean I'm home earlier in the evening and have more time to do what I want to do, if I can stay awake that is. Dare I have my hopes up??

I Hate Comcast

I just spent about 30 minutes on the phone with Comcast--most of the time on hold--to ask about extending my high speed internet for a good price. No dice. The first guy was so rude, he actually told me, "if we keep you at that rate we'd make no money off you." The second guy, the "supervisor" was no better and sounded like the biggest dork in the world. They made it sound like they've been doing me a favor all this time, losing all this money over me. Yeah, right. Anyway, as of February, I'm going to be a Verizon DSL customer. Or maybe I'll just do it sooner just cause I'm so very furious. What a bunch of assholes. I told the guy that their customer service sucks and hung up on him.

Doggone Guilt

I often suffer from guilt from leaving my dogs home alone too long without me. This new DVD Dog-On Television provides a handy companion for those of us who are perpetually guilt-stricken. Apparently it's all the rage and has even been endorsed by Oprah!

Thanks to Jeffro for the tip.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas started Friday night when Jeffro and I exchanged gifts. He gave me some funny stuff: a Martina McBride Barbie doll (see my profile pic) and an Iron Chef book. My big gift was a Canon digital camera! So I enter further into the digital world. Maybe you'll be seeing some actual photos on this blog soon as opposed to google images! Look out, world!

I got Jeffro this cool chair that he wanted for his living room, an Atari video game console, and a book that I thought he'd like. From Jeffro's mom I got 2 great new CDs--Big & Rich and Reba, Napoleon Dynamite, and some great chocolate goodies, including homemade cookies. My neighbor got me these great sterling silver earrings from Tiffany's and 2 small cups to add to my china closet collection.

Jeffro's mom came down from NJ yesterday and we had a nice Christmas Eve. We went to lunch at the Lost Dog Cafe, which not only serves great food but also helps to rescue dogs and cats. Then we went into Old Town Alexandria to walk around a little--the weather was just wonderful! We went to our traditional Italian "7 fish" Christmas dinner at my mom's house. Today is dinner and gifts at my sister's house. She has 6 kids and it should be quite a festive day! Hope everyone out there has a safe and wonderful holiday.

You Could Get Hit by a Bus Tomorrow

Apparently this morning a woman was hit by a bus right outside our office. It was pretty crazy, they closed a bunch of streets, my boss couldn't get near enough the office to park. What a terrible thing--apparently she was not only hit, but dragged and run over. Really awful story. I wonder if it will make the news tonight. Since it happened right after I got in this morning, it kind of made me think that you know, things could be a lot worse. Her poor family right before the holidays.

On a brighter note, tomorrow is only 1/2 day. I'm working until noon, then have to do a little last Christmas shopping, including exchanging a gift for my niece already and buying more paper to finish wrapping. My sister comes in from FL tomorrow night, and Jeffro's mom is coming from Jersey on Saturday.

Hump Day

Well, I'm midway through my first week, so I guess I'll survive after all. I must say, though, that these early mornings are nearly killing me. I was just not cut out to do the 8:30 to 5 thing. I have to get up an hour earlier than normal. That means I get home an hour earlier too, but I've been so tired that my early evenings really haven't been as fun or productive as I'd hoped . . . and there's a Gold's Gym actually in my building, but I haven't been motivated to actually bring workout clothes and take advantage of my membership yet. Maybe next week. Or maybe not. The DC powerball is apparently 2 million, so if I played, maybe I could really never work again.

Today I actually got to do a little bit of actual work like writing and web updating. Woo hoo! I also got all the office supplies I ordered, so that is good news. I like the people I work with for the most part, except for the glimpse of micromanager I saw in my boss today. I wrote this stuff for the web, and she brought it back and said it was great except to do it all over the way she thinks it should be done. Sigh.

Our office setup is really weird. We're under the umbrella of a larger organization, and we sit in an office with a bunch of other people who are technically not in our little organization. The weird thing is that nobody talks to each other, even if they walk by you 10 times a day. There seems to be an unspoken rule that never the two shall meet. Very strange.

I have eaten way too much crap this week. With the holidays almost here, the office has received millions of gift baskets filled with all kinds of stuff. My biggest weakness these days seems to be all the chocolate. My predecessor left the company to start her own business making chocolate and consequently our Christmas gift from the president was a nice little personal box of these decadent goodies.

And lastly, there is a Starbucks opening soon in my building, which is just a little too close for comfort.

Day Number Two

Well, I finished the exciting Christmas card project--I had to seal the cards and was too lazy to find a better way to do it, so I licked them and cut my tongue! That was fun. The other excitement of the day consisted of cleaning out 4 years of files. Why my predecessor couldn't have done this, I don't know. That was fun too. So as you can see, I'm getting all the high level projects . . .

Seriously, though, it was helpful to go through old files. I did get to proofread something for my boss, and she complimented me on my proofreading skills, so that was good. She wants me to critique our website, which I started to do. They are definitely easing me into everything.

The rest of the week should be quiet since the big boss won't be in. And we are closing at noon on Friday, which is awesome. I will be having individual meetings with everyone to get to know what they do, so that is good. People are so darned nice and calm here, it is very refreshing. But just give it a month and I'll say it's too calm and boring! ;)

First Day on the Job

Well, I survived my first full day at my new job. And while I am glad to have gotten out of my old job, I must say that the reality is, I just don't want to be working. Period. While it's all new and exciting, I still have to endure a rather bad commute and drag my ass someplace I don't want to be at a time in the morning when I really don't even want to be awake. And although I have some nice perks already lined up (see below) and hopefully will be working with people who aren't insane, it's still just a job like any other.

My first day started with absolutely everyone getting in late. I basically sat in my office entertaining myself for a while before anyone ever showed up to tell me where the refrigerator, bathroom, etc. were. I had a quick meeting with my boss first thing, in which I learned that I'm going to Las Vegas in about 3 weeks. I've never been and I'm so thrilled! Apparently we're staying at the Venetian, in suites that are 700 square feet with living rooms and sunken bathtubs. Can I just move there? Then apparently I'm taking a Steven Covey workshop in February, and going to CT in March to give a presentation on the status of the organization. Uh . . . hopefully by then I'll have some clue about that.

On the one hand, my boss knows how to treat her employees. We went to lunch at Bistro Bis at the Hotel George downtown. I had a wonderful appetizer of manchego cheese, and seared scallops as the entree. I must say they were the best scallops I'd ever had. We of course also had to have dessert. So that killed a good 2-1/2 hours. However, on the other hand, for some odd reason she gave me an interesting first "project"--addressing her company Christmas cards. I'm really not sure why, as we have an admin assistant . . . maybe this was some kind of weird test of my willingness to do crappy assignments?

This week looks like it will be pretty slow, and I'll get to do some reading and acclimating to my new surroundings. Next week the boss is taking off 2 days, which will be nice. The bad thing about this job is that big brother is watching big time from what I understand, and I don't think I will be able to do any blogging or checking personal email while at work. So I'll have to try to check out whether that's true from other staff members as I get to know them.

Weekend Update

What a crazy weekend. I'm exhausted and wish I had a weekend to recover. It took most of Saturday and Sunday to finish my Christmas shopping, and I'm not even sure I'm happy with some of my choices. Sigh. When you have 6 nieces and nephews, shopping can be a little challenging.

Saturday night Jeffro and I went to my friend's annual Beethoven's birthday party. It's their excuse to throw a Christmas party (they're a little eccentric, but very nice). They always have an interesting theme and crazy food. This year it was Middle Eastern theme, as my friend had taken a cooking course and wanted to share her new skills. Each year it astounds me how people actually cook complicated dishes to bring to the party. Must be nice to have that kind of time. Me, I just bought some store-bought couscous and hummus and called it a party. I got to see some old friends, and make some new and very interesting ones.

Sunday night we went to see Les Mis at the National Theatre. I'd never seen it and had heard mixed reviews from friends. I was pleasantly surprised, and liked it more than I thought I would. Almost all the singers had very strong voices, and the harmonies were wonderful.

Is It Winter?

I have been astounded this week by the number of people I have seen wearing shorts, short skirts with no hose/tights, and open-toe shoes. Has it not been the coldest week of the year? Do we not still have remnants of the last snow on the ground? Last night walking around the national tree, my feet got so cold in WOOL SOCKS that they were hurting and numb, yet I saw at least 2 people inappropriately dressed in their summer garb, no coat, etc. Maybe it's just me, but I'd prefer to avoid frostbite.

Annual Christmas Tree Trek

Last night a group of friends and I made our annual trek to see the national Christmas tree on the mall. What was probably more entertaining than seeing the tree itself was the rat that ran across my friend's foot and the crazy man who was arrested right in front of us. It was definitely a night to remember. Afterwards we made our annual trek to Old Ebbitt Grill to wait an hour and a half to get a table. Actually, this year was much better because we went there first to put our name in and then only had to wait 1/2 hour by the time we finished with the tree.

José Pariente

Since Jeffro mentioned turning this into a wine blog, I thought I'd tell you about my favorite white wine, Jose Pariente. You can read more about it here. I buy mine at The Curious Grape in Shirlington.

Visiting An Old Friend

I spent the better part of the day visiting a former co-worker who married, had kids, and moved to the suburbs and I never see her. We had some time to ourselves and then spent the rest of the afternoon entertaining her almost 2-year old. Boy am I tired! I thought this was supposed to be a restful week, but my dogs never let me sleep in.

CC's Famous Lentil Soup

Since some of you have asked, I guess I will put my secret lentil soup recipe online, although it somewhat pains me. I made a nice batch of it last night. It's great in this cold weather, very hardy. Serve it with some crusty Italian bread and red wine, and you've got a great meal.

olive oil
1 clove garlic
1 small onion
1 or 2 sticks of celery
potatoes (optional, small cubes)
carrots (optional, finely diced)
1 can chicken broth (or part of a bouillion cube)
1 bag of lentils (prepare per bag directions, some you need to soak)
2 bay leaves
salt and pepper to taste
red pepper flakes (if you like spicy)
pepperoni or turkey pepperoni (about 15-20 thin slices, cut into quarters)
7-8 cups of water

Saute the garlic, onion, celery, and carrots (if you include those) in olive oil for about 5 minutes until tender. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Cook at a slow simmer for at least an hour until everything is tender. The key is to keep going back and tasting and add the salt/pepper/red pepper as you like it. The other key is to keep adding water if it starts looking dry. Soup should be thick but not lumpy.

Lady of Leisure

Boy am I loving being home. So far today I watched schlocky morning television, finished my Christmas cards (just need to buy stamps), and done some web surfing that I hadn't gotten to yet. The rest of the plan for the day includes calling a friend I haven't talked to in a while, and some Christmas shopping this afternoon. I could get used to not working. If only I could afford it . . .

First Day of Freedom

Well, yesterday was my last day of work. It's pretty hard to believe and it somehow doesn't feel real yet. I think it's going to take the better part of this week to really de-stress. Today was just great. I got up on the early side to get my allergy shot, did some Christmas shopping, got some cleaning done, made lentil soup, and watched General Hospital. I also talked to people on the phone without having to rush to end the call. Very nice indeed. My goals for this week:

1. De-stress!
2. Finish 90% of Christmas shopping
3. Finish Christmas cards
4. Get some work done around the house
5. Errands
6. Have stress-free lunches with some friends

Oh What a Night!

Last night's gala was quite the event. It even got covered by AP. Why? Who was the famous Former President? Clinton . . . after spending the day in Montreal bashing Bush, he came to our gala to accept an award. And he took photos with some of our other awardees and I got to shake his hand! Pretty exciting, huh? I also got to meet the president of the NAACP and his wife.

The other highlight of the evening was that our other big awardee--a teacher--is stationed in Iraq and we managed to get a live satellite feed for him to give an acceptance speech. All in all, a very cool night!

Where Have I Been?

Oh. My. God. This has been really the most insane week of my life. I didn't get home tonight till almost 8. We have our big gala tomorrow night for work and we've been doing all this extra stuff--placing ads, PR, media tours, etc. that has take a hell of a lot of time and energy. I still have to make a few calls from home tonight to confirm everything. Plus it might snow tomorrow and who the hell knows if everyone will be able to even get there? I'm just exhausted and so sick of all of it. I will be so happy tomorrow night when this is all over. Except it won't be over, cause I'll have to send some press releases afterwards at like 11 p.m.

All the hullabaloo is over our big awardee. In the past, we've honored people like Mister Rogers and LeVar Burton but this year is really big. Like former President-big. Like having to deal with his office to get every little mention of him approved-big. Like having to do a run through with secret service this week-big. Like having to give my name, dob, and social security number for a background check-big. It has been very interesting to say the least. I would not want to be on the staff of someone like that. It is completely exhausting. The cool thing is there is a 50-50 chance I will get to meet him. I oversee the photography at the event and we've got a photo opp lined up, and either myself or my cohort I've been working PR with will do it. We both say we don't care who does it, but I must be honest and say I think it should be me.

Anyway, that's my news. As of tomorrow, it will all be over. But I think I will need to go in this weekend to straighten my wreck of an office. I never got to meet with the person who is sort of taking over my position, and I don't know if it will happen. I have to go in Monday, but only for our office party. I feel like I just haven't had enough time to do everything and leave things in a good way. So that really sucks. But I've worked my ass off this week, and I guess that is the best that I can do. But I'm not happy about it.

Squirrel Skeleton

There is a full squirrel skeleton, carefully preserved, on the sidewalk near my house. It is pretty crazy. I wish I had a digital camera to take a picture. So I had to settle for this Google image instead.

Lost It

I have officially lost it today. Things are really stressful because of the gala, people are driving me absolutely crazy. But you know what, in less than a week this will all be over and I don't have to come back here again to this crazy place. I just said to someone, who was asking me to revise something for the millionth time, "this is why I'm leaving." I'm just so furious right now it will be a miracle if I make it through this week.

DA Bomb!

According to my neighbor, apparently my lentil soup is the bomb. My other neighbor stopped by to visit too and told me the whole building smells wonderful cause of my soup. I must say, it is pretty damned good this time around.

Day of Rest?

Not for me. Today has been really busy, actually the whole weekend has been busy. Here's the rundown:

Friday night - Jeffro made me a wonderful dinner. We later went grocery shopping to get it out of the way.

Saturday - Went to the Old Dominion Boat Club's annual oyster roast. All you can eat--raw, steamed, fried, and chowder--for just $20. Although my stomach was sort of mad at me later. Later we went to Target, which was a huge mistake. It was so friggin crowded we couldn't take it and made it a quick trip.

Sunday - I have been so productive today. Let's see, I gave the dogs a bath--no easy feat, vacuumed--again no easy feat in a house with 2 dogs, bought a b-day gift for my neighbor, cooked soup and 2 other meals for the week, and sent off Christmas lists to my family. Now my neighbor is headed down for dinner and hopefully some wine.

I have some work I need to do tonight, if I'm sober enough. This is my last week at work, and I'm feeling the crunch of trying to get everything organized and finished. Yes, I'm a lame duck but I still feel a responsibility to leave things in good shape. Or maybe I'm just lame . . .

Dr. Noah Drake Is Back!

Rick Springfield resumes his ever-popular 80s role as Dr. Noah Drake on ABC's General Hospital from now through December 7. How exciting is that? Check it out at 3 p.m.

Chocolate Coma

I was totally craving chocolate today and much to my surprise a chocolate cake appeared that was untouched from an earlier meeting. It made me so happy, but now I'm very sleepy. Things are majorly stressful this week, as our event is next Friday and people are getting testy (not that it's much different than usual). I'm trying to stay out of it, but not successfully. Plus in the middle of it all I'm going through 4 years worth of crap. Boy do I love throwing things away.

You Know What's Fun?

Jackhammering going on right outside your window as you're trying to work, that's what's fun. I can only hope it will last the whole day . . .

Kiss of Death

Apparently a teenager in Canada died from a peanut allergy after kissing her boyfriend who had recently eaten peanut butter. How crazy is that?

Thanksgiving with Kids

The holidays are always interesting when you have to spend time with your family. But spending the holidays with kids always adds a new dimension to the insanity. My sister has 6 kids—5 girls and 1 boy. Here are a couple funny stories from the holiday dinner:

As I walked to my seat after going to the buffet for seconds, my 6-year old niece (who aspires to be a cheerleader or comedienne) announced to the table that I was walking like I was really hip and proceeded to do a really funny imitation which had everyone cracking up. I guess I’m not so old if a kid thinks I’m hip, huh?

My youngest niece, who was sitting in my lap, decided to try a piece of chestnut. She started coughing, so I thought she had just bitten off too much or something, but my ever-astute sister noticed that she was actually going to throw up. My sister says, “she’s gonna blow” and I’m thinking “blow what?” By the time I finally caught on, my niece had almost started puking and my sister put out her hands to catch it and somehow I managed to transfer my niece to her and got her off my lap just in time.

Turkey and Stuffing and Pie, Oh My!

I feel like all I've done is eat this weekend, like the rest of the country I'm sure. Jeffro and I spent the holiday with his family in Jersey and got sent home with some great leftovers. Today we go to my family to have another turkey dinner/birthday celebration. Besides eating, I spent yesterday running a million errands, including buying birthday gifts, and today cleaning. I am not ready to go back to work tomorrow, although now that the word is out about my leaving, it should be kind of exciting!

Reason 5,342

Here's one of the reasons I'm leaving this friggin job. Every time we have a holiday we get out early the day before. For example, today we were officially closed at 3. But yet it's 5 and I'm still here. The worst part is that it's the fault of people who had to get me stuff and were late, yet once they handed it off to me they're free to go. So I'm the only schlump left here while everyone else is off starting their holiday. I'm so pissed right now I can't tell you.

The Office Ecards!

For those of you who love their job as much as I do, you can now send Christmas ecards from your favorite work spoof show, The Office. Check it out!

PS - I had to delete the photo cause my site is loading too slow . . .

Swedish Meatballs

That's what I'm having for lunch. We have the best cafeteria here (which I will miss) and I just couldn't resist today. What's new? I'm still in gala panic mode, probably worse than last week. I need to get the program to the printer this week and it's gonna barely make it. This is the first chance I've had to do any personal work at work. Plus we still haven't told the staff here that I'm leaving, so the unreality of the new job is still my reality. Thursday Jeffro and I leave again for Jersey for turkey day, but probably just staying through Friday cause I have so much crap to do here, like buy gifts for a family party on Sunday which I don't even want to go to.

Crazy!

Let me tell you, things are just nuts for me right now. At my current job, we have a big gala in early Dec with some big-time awardees, just about 3 weeks from now, and we're in full panic mode. Things could not be crazier. So I'm also supposed to be wrapping things up to leave? I don't know how and suspect I'll be working this weekend.

My weekend plans include dinner at Guapo's tonight, possibly going to see Walk the Line tomorrow during the day, an Elvis impersonator party tomorrow night, and a songwriting awards ceremony at Jammin Java on Sunday night, where Jeffro and his cohort Pete will be receiving honorable mentions for 3 songs. In between all of that, my friend from National Geographic is working a big sale at the DC Armory and that might be great place to find some Christmas gifts. So it will be another busy one!

Yes I Quit!

I finally, finally turned in my resignation last night just before I left the office. It was sort of anti-climatic, really after all this build-up. Plus the big boss doesn't want anyone to know yet, as it would cause "widespread panic" and she wants to meet next week to talk about my projects and how we're going to handle them before telling the staff. She was lamenting about who was going to handle all this stuff, and I was like "how exactly is that my problem?" I must say, though, that I'm somewhat flattered that she thinks it will make this much of a stink, after all her talk about how crappy my work is. Apparently she must think I really do some actual work and make a contribution. Who knew? So that's the deal. My last day will be December 12, as she's insisting I attend our office holiday party that day so they can give me a gift and send me off in a nice way. Which I guess is pretty nice of her after all.

I just wish I could tell the world, that's half the fun of quitting is seeing everyone's reaction!

CMAs!

I know ya'll are excited about tonight's CMA Awards--Country Music Association, that is. You know you wanna watch! It starts at 8 p.m. on CBS. It's in NYC this year, which is the CMA's attempt to appeal to a wider audience than just us hicks down south. Even Bon Jovi will be appearing and Melissa and Joan Rivers will do their usual fashion bashing on the red carpet. Check it out!

Crazy Night!

Boy, last night's All American Rejects concert at the 9:30 Club was definitely one of the craziest shows I've ever been to. It was sold out, and the place was just packed. Jeffro and I had a good time, and managed to stay out of the craziness that included crowdsurfing and moshing. It was almost more fun to watch the crowd than the band. I have to say, even though Jeffro liked AAR, I think they're better when you just listen to their CD. I was very unimpressed with their use of some sort of accompanying track--at one point the drummer STOPPED DRUMMING and was sitting there taking a drink of water(?) and yet the drum beat went on. I felt like I was being duped, and wondered how much of the other parts of the show were pre-recorded? Boy, was I mad! I felt like they had no integrity. Plus they were just too crazy on stage--to the point where you're asking yourself how are they playing guitars and jumping around like that? I also think the lead singer was high-high-high . . . gosh, how old fart-ish do I sound? I actually loved one of the opening acts, Rooney, and I'm going to look into getting some of their stuff. Very, very good harmony vocals.

Not Much to Say

I'm just kind of on pins and needles about this whole job thing, so I don't have a lot to say today. I'm stressed at work for various reasons and we're going to a concert tonight (All American Rejects). Standing around in a smoky room and staying up late are just not sounding that appealing right now. Especially knowing I will feel like crap tomorrow. Plus I'm tired from the weekend where we basically ran up to NJ and back within essentially a 24 hour period. So I guess I've got a case of the Mondays today . . .

Finally Getting Away

Jeffro and I are headed to NJ this weekend. We're only going overnight, but hey it's better than nothing. We're going to see The Fab Faux, a Beatles tribute band. It should be quite interesting. Wonder if all the girls in the audience will be screaming.

Update on Job

Well, it's been an agonizing week here . . . I am reluctant to resign because I haven't had official confirmation from my new boss that she received my acceptance of the offer. She's traveling and apparently tried to send me a confirmation via email, which I never received. For some reason she cannot resend it now, and no one else in the office can handle it. She's not back in her office until Tuesday, so I have to sit tight until then cause I don't want to get screwed--the whole thing is just weird enough for me to feel like it's going to fall through or something since I haven't heard from her. In the meantime, I'm starting to clean up my computer files and stuff at work, which is really weird. And get this--my boss is out on Tuesday, so I'm going to have to resign via email . . . which is pretty funny yet somehow less gratifying. But I simply cannot wait until she gets back in the office Thursday or I think I will just explode! This is just agonizing torture, let me tell you. Patience is not one of my strong points.

Almost There

We have this Friday off for Veteran's Day and I couldn't be happier. Jeffro and I are trying to get away this weekend to head back to his home state of NJ to go see a concert with his dad. It looks like I will put in my official resignation tomorrow, so be looking out for a post! BTW, I'm glad I voted yesterday cause my candidate won!

Vote Already!

Today is election day in Virginia and it's a tight race for governor. I can't tell you how many friggin' phone messages I've had over the past week telling me to get out and vote for so-and-so. I've never been more inundated with calls like this--today alone I had 3, including a call from one of the gubernatorial candidates, and the current governor of Virginia. Geez!

Puggles

I have just encountered my first puggle, a cross between a pug and a beagle, after hearing about it recently on the news. Apparently they are the latest rage in dog breed, and I can see why. They are so darned cute! If I didn't already have two dogs . . .

Second Best News of the Week

We just got word that our former president, who left here about a year ago for a job in Chicago, has already been ousted from that job by the board. Unbelievable! We had taken bets that she'd last about 2 years there, and boy were we too hopeful on that. I am so gratified that it wasn't just me thinking she was horrible. Obviously her new job concurred! That is too funny and I am so laughing! And I say second best news of the week, because I hope to give my resignation this week, and that will be the best!

Resignation letter

Well, my resignation is all typed out and ready to go. Boy was that fun! I am 90% sure that I will take the position offered, so I am good to go. I'll just have to wait for the right time to present the letter, probably at the beginning of my one on one meeing with the boss on Tuesday.

Weekend Update

It was a busy one. And what great weather! In the 70s--I can't believe it's November. Friday night Jeffro and I met a friend at Guapo's in Shirlington for dinner. It was a very belated birthday celebration, and they brought me a dessert and sang in a very embarrassing display.

Saturday I had to take the dogs to the vet ($400!) for various problems, tests, meds, etc. On the way back we stopped and played at the local dog park since the weather was so gorgeous. I spent the rest of the afternoon running errands and enjoying the weather. Met friends (see previous blog posting) for dinner in Rockville at a nice Chinese restaurant and got to meet their crazy pug puppy, who was adorable and fun. (PS - you guys should start your own blog!)

Today I've been hanging out, not doing enough of anything productive. I'd like to get my house cleaned and so forth, but not sure what I'll get to. I'm sort of agonizing over this job offer and whether or not to accept it. I have another 2nd interview in the morning, which might help to clarify things. So we'll see.

Sad

I am saddened by the sudden death of my hairdresser from a brain aneurysm. She was only 44 years old and died on her birthday this past week. I'm planning to go to the viewing tomorrow night after work. The ironic thing is that last night we had dinner with a couple that I hadn't seen in a while, and the wife is a hairdresser. They jokingly asked if I needed a hairdresser in order to write the dinner off as a business expense. How weird is that?

Offer Made!

Will I accept, that is the question. I am getting the formal offer letter today, to ponder over the weekend. My gut tells me to say yes. I would probably officially resign on Tuesday, when I already have a meeting scheduled with my boss. That will be a fun day!

Late Night

I’m pretty tired this morning. Last night Jeffro, his friend Pete and I went to see Butch Walker at the Black Cat. I must say I wasn’t fond of the opening act, but Butch put on quite a show. There were a couple of songs I really wanted to hear that he didn’t play, but otherwise a very solid performance. He’s got a great stage presence.

The crowd was quite something, though. Very young, I felt like some people weren’t even old enough to drink. It was weird, I kind of felt sorry for them. There were a lot of drunk and obnoxious girls who were continually hitting into me, and I have to say when I’m bothered like that in a club I get the very violent urge to really kick someone’s ass. I know one day it will happen and I’ll be thrown out for starting a fight. It’s like my impulse control disappears. Last night, for example, I tripped one girl who kept hitting into me, and later I shoved her. She was so drunk I thought she didn’t realize I did it, but Jeffro says apparently she gave me a dirty look behind my back and pretended to hit me. That was gratifying—that I pissed her off as much as she pissed me off. Hey, if they’re gonna invade my space I’m gonna invade right back. I just don’t take too kindly to people acting like you don’t even exist and thinking they can just keep knocking into you and there will be no recourse. So that was exciting.

Today I have a lunchtime interview, which I’m really looking forward to. Luckily I was able to scrub off the very large double stamp from Black Cat.

Busy Me

Work has been keeping me pretty busy lately, so I haven't had much chance to blog. Just got out of a three hour meeting and have another shorter one this afternoon. Ugh. But somehow things haven't been as unpleasant this week, which is a nice treat. Have a second interview tomorrow, it's just a lunch. But I still have to decide whether to go out to a show with Jeffro tonight and be up till all hours, or stay home like a good girl and get some rest for tomorrow. Still not sure what I want to do.

Wiped

I'm so tired . . . three interviews in two days. All of which went well, one of which has resulted in a second interview Monday, another wants me to come back the week of Nov 14 after they get back from a conference. Plus I have a second interview Friday with a company I met with last week. So we'll have to wait and see what happens. Gotta love having options!

Life Goes On

Terri Clark's new album was released today. Go get yourself a copy! I wish I'd had time to buy it today. She's another of my favorite female country artists.

More on Rosa

The funeral service for Rosa Parks has just come to a close after many hours and speakers. I could hear the entire service from my office, as it was being broadcast out to the street. It was pretty unbelievable. The streets were lined with bystanders. I watched as they loaded the casket and drove away, followed by a procession of metrobuses--one was circa 1950s to replicate the one she boarded all those years ago. Three others carried her family members. Applause broke out on the street as they brought the casket out, and again as they drove away. It was very moving.

And as far as celebrity sitings, I got to see Oprah and Marion Barry. Others saw Tyler Perry, Cicely Tyson, and Ted Kennedy.

History in the Making

Living in Washington DC is usually pretty interesting. I work right across from the church that is having the memorial service today for Rosa Parks. It is pure chaos outside with the police and camera crews and streets blocked off. President Bush was supposed to attend, which was going to make things very tricky, as we'd all have to have IDs checked, deal with Secret Service etc, but for some reason he cancelled.

Happy Halloween!

Saw some interesting costumes over the weekend, which wound up being pretty quiet after all. I did a lot of shopping, which was fun.

This week is packed with interviews--one Monday, two Tuesday, and a second interview Friday. I swear, if something doesn't turn up from all of this I don't think I can handle it. But I will keep applying for jobs just in case. These interviews are the only thing that will keep me sane this week, as it's gonna be crazy at work.

A Day of Rest

I'm just exhausted after my week and enjoying my day off. I did have an interview this morning, which went well, but I don't want to curse myself so nothing more being said. Please everyone who reads this cross all fingers and toes for me that I get out of my hell job.

On a downer note, it looks like all is lost this weekend as far as getting out of town. I'm bummed. I could really use a break.

Now, I think I'll go take a nap.

Bad Day

Oh boy, it's been a bitch of a week at the ranch. We had our board meeting, where of course everyone picked on everything that relates to my job. Oh, it was fun! Then we had a staff debriefing, where we had to rehash everything that pissed me off in the board meeting. Then the president tells me I have to get a press release out by the next day. A press release I haven't written yet. A press release that needs to be approved by several people before it can go out. She just has no grasp on reality, and how real work actually gets done. She thinks you can just blink your eyes and magically, it's all taken care of! This happened at 4 pm and I had just sent everyone a reminder that I was taking Friday off, so exactly how am I supposed to do this? So I remind her after the meeting--if I'd brought it up at the meeting she would have just used that as a reason to berate me and make me look like an ass in front of everyone as she loves to do--and she gave me some leeway until noon on Monday. Boy, isn't she nice?

Then I find out Jeffro has to work tomorrow and we cannot leave for our glorious weekend away from home at my alma mater, Wililam and Mary. I have an interviewed planned for tomorrow morning, but hell if I'm going to work after that. I've already put in for vacation, so I will have a nice fun day off. Wonder what I'll do after my interview. The possibilities are endless. I'm just thrilled I don't have to be at the office where they can all go to hell! Can you tell I'm at the end of my rope? I am seriously tempted to just up and quit without a job to go to, that's how bad it's gotten.

Freaky!

This is the weirdest, most incredible thing I've seen, the Flash Mind Reader. How could this be possible? I tried it twice and it worked both times.

In other news, thank God today is calmer at work. I'm actually getting some real work done. But tomorrow's our board meeting, so I'm dreading that.

And lastly, I'm feeling sort of sorry for my sister in FL, although she is an idiot. Just about the whole state has lost power from this weekend's hurricane, and they don't know how long (could be weeks) until it is restored. She is freaking out cause everything is pitch black outside at night, she is running low on batteries, doesn't have enough nonperishable food, and needs ice because of a medical condition. Apparently she is making my other sister, who lives in the DC area, run around and buy things to send to her. That is, when fed ex resumes delivery. She can't leave cause so much of FL was damaged and she wouldn't have enough gas to get anywhere useful, and flights out are few and far between. Plus she refuses to leave her cats. Unreal. Maybe since she's lived in FL for 8 years she should have been better prepared? Especially after all the recent disasters.

The Fun Continues

Yes, it's been another joyous day here at the office. I actually decided to cancel my interview for two reasons: primarily, it's too far and I don't think a job there is realistic; secondly, I have too much going on here this week. In a meeting today with the boss and other staff, I was told by the boss that our old printed materials (which I am in charge of) are subpar and don't measure up to her standards. Isn't that nice? Now granted, I agree they're nothing great, but when you have no budget, you have no room to produce pretty things. So I've been meeting with designers and we're supposed to roll out a whole bunch of new pretty stuff. How we will fund this, I'm not quite sure.

If I haven't said it enough, my boss is the biggest fucking bitch that ever lived, and if I don't get out of here soon I will do something rash, like just up and quit. I swear, if I didn't have a mortgage I'd have done that already. The good news is I still have three interviews coming up.

Crazy

I think this place is going to drive me crazy, or cause me to become a heavy drinker. There is unbelievable crap going on today--people wanting to delay a big mailing--that is already 2 weeks late--yet again to reprint something that really doesn't need to be reprinted. Plus the boss is demanding a report by tomorrow that she originally told me I had 2 weeks to work on. I really think I'm the only sane one here sometimes, and I ain't all that sane. Luckily, I have another of my upcoming 3 interviews tomorrow.

I also had a doc appt today, where my pulse was racing, like 91. Hmm, I wonder why? They also discovered I apparently also have acid reflux, which is ever so fun. I sort of suspected I might have this.

The weekend was pretty low key, mainly rented movies and did stuff around the house. Which was just fine with me. This week is nuts, and Jeffro and I are going away this coming weekend, so it was good to get some stuff accomplished. Plus I made some apple crisp! Mmm.

ZZZ

Boy, am I done for the day. I've had various meetings, plus an interview during lunch. I am just beat. Looking forward to this rainy weekend, staying inside and relaxing.

Rock Star: Van Halen?

The rumor on the street is that Van Halen will be looking for a new lead singer via the Rock Star: INXS model that chose J.D. as the new lead singer through the reality tv/singing contest. How cool would that be? Eddie and Alex as judges?

Going Greek

In the Greek Orthodox church, of which I am not a member, it is a tradition to repeat things three times during the ceremonies. The significance of which I don't care about. In any case, I feel like I have been re-living that here at work. I have had nothing but dreary horrid meetings all week--with the same people, mind you--and I have heard the same "updates" now at least three times. Is this really a good use of my time? At least they fed us cookies this time.

Right On

Can I say how scary it is that my horoscope has been right on most of this week? Yesterday I had a hell day with my boss. We had an afternoon meeting that turned disastrous, as she chose to pick on me. She is such a bitch. Today is another staff meeting, but hopefully it will be someone else's turn for fun. I'm just going to keep my mouth shut, as that's what got me into trouble yesterday. (I didn't say anything bad, but she didn't like it nontheless.) At least I get to leave early today for the dentist. How sad is that when the visit to the dentist is a welcome event? Read the horoscope below.

Virgo(Aug. 23-Sept. 22)You've done your level best to keep a professional situation under control -- and with the confusing, even contradictory information you've had to go on, it certainly hasn't been easy. Take the night off to relax and congratulate yourself.

Prophetic?

Check out my horoscope today. How funny is this?

Virgo(Aug. 23-Sept. 22)A dispute is showing signs of escalating into a very serious argument, and soon, too. Your best bet is to put some distance between yourself and all parties concerned, as quickly as possible for as long as possible.

Get This

My lovely boss not only sent that wonderful email to the managers (see 2 postings ago), she wound up confronting one of them about it and was bitching to them in their office for like 1/2 hour. Man, she's lucky she didn't come in here. I do feel very lucky that I did not have to deal with that. She is digging her own grave around here, and very quickly. I think quite possibly everyone on staff is mad at her right now.

Martina McBride Coming to DC

It was announced this morning in an interview with Martina on local country radio WMZQ that she is coming to the Patriot Center in DC (well, Virginia) in February, with tickets on sale in November. Guess who will be going?

Bitch!

Ok, my new boss is the biggest bitch ever. She attempts to "team build" and "empower" people on the one hand, while smacking them down with the other hand. She sent the whole staff an email inviting us to a Shakesepeare play with her, saying this is her way of getting to know the staff. (Like I want to socialize with her after work?) This was yesterday around 2 p.m. I had meetings all afternoon then left early to run work errands. This morning around 10:30 a.m. I get the snotty message below from her, and of course I had to apologize when I really felt like saying "fuck you bitch!" I am sooooo getting out of here . . . two phone interviews today, and one in-person interview Friday.

Boss snotty message: I suspect your none response is a no..and I certainly understand, but as one of the managers I would hope you’d respond to my e-mails no matter what the nature of it is…thanks

More Wine?

Boy, I've had the craziest, stressful day of meetings. Luckily, one meeting did get cancelled, but the anticipation leading up to it makes me want to go home and pour a bottle of wine!

Timeless

Run right out today to buy a copy of Martina McBride's new CD, Timeless. It's a collection of old country hits like Rose Garden. If you buy it at Target, you get 4 bonus songs. Guess where I'm headed after work? Gotta have it on the release day!

Weekend Update

It was a crazy one, frequently involving too much wine . . .

Friday night - Jeffro met me at work, where we were in the middle of a crisis at 5 pm on Friday to decide whether to "stop the presses," literally, on the invitiation to our December event. I'm like "look, I have to go, my boyfriend is on his way and we're going out." Very professional. We went to see Matt Nathanson and it was an ok show. Not as good as the first time I'd seen him.

Saturday - slept in late cause we'd been out late the night before. I had to go shoe shopping, and thought about calling my friend MJ, cause I hadn't talked to her since her brother's wedding, but didn't really have time. Ironically, MJ was there at DSW . . . . So we helped each other with our purchases and it was a good girly time. That night we went to his friend Bettina's housewarming party--and where the too much wine occurred. As we left, her parting comment was, "are you sure you don't want another bottle?" I didn't know whether to be amused or mortified. Oh well.

Sunday - my friend Cristine came over and we went to brunch at Cafe Mariana in Alexandria. She found this huge metal object in her salad, which caused us to get the entire meal free. Sweet! Then I did some errands/housework and had a nice cheese/fruit/wine dinner with my neighbor.

What gorgeous weather we had, overall. And I was excited to get to wear my sandals one last time.

Much Better Today

I'm so glad I stayed home yesterday. Drank tons of green tea and I am much better today, thank God. Because Jeffro and I have plans to see Matt Nathanson tonight at the 9:30 Club.

Poor Poor Pitiful Me

I am home sick today. I've been feeling miserable all week, and decided to stay home and get some rest. After all, I don't want to ruin my weekend plans! I've been diligently checking my work email, and will go in this afternoon if I need to take care of something pending, but otherwise you'll find me on the couch with the tv and a good book or magazine.

Joe Bland

Was anything but bland. He was a long-distance colleague that I saw about twice a year. Quite a character and funny guy, kind of a living legend. Unfortunately he's been sick for a while, and I found out this morning that he died on Sunday. I'm pretty bummed. So I just thought I'd write this little note about him, he will be missed.

It's a tough day today for other reasons too. I seem to be fighting off a cold and have a pretty bad headache. My sister who lives in FL is also going to the doc today, and we're not expecting good news as they've found another chronic condition that she has. I only came to work today because the boss is still out, and I'm expecting a proof I need to turn around quickly. Other than that, I think I'd be home in bed. Who knows, maybe I'll do that tomorrow instead.

Interview recap

Liked the company, liked the salary, liked the benefits, liked the people, liked the friendly atmosphere and vibe. Didn't like the position. I think 2/3 people I met liked me a lot, the third liked me but realized I probably wasn't best suited for this particular position and sort of made that clear. And she's the one who would be my boss. She's right though, I think the position is actually too boring and narrow for me. So which is more important? I hate the place I work now but don't mind the tasks and I'm miserable. What if I hated the tasks but liked the place? Who knows, maybe it won't even be an issue.

Good Start

You know what makes a good start to the week? Having Monday off, and walking in on Tuesday to the boss being out for the next 2 days. Now that makes me happy! Plus I have an interview today during lunch, so that means no boss to witness my departure in the middle of the day. No details, don't want to curse myself.

Barbie Goes Country?

Ok, I'm sadly tempted to buy one of these . . . apparently my favorite country singer, Martina McBride has been immortalized as a Barbie doll. You too can own your very own for only $24.95.

Burn, Baby, Burn!

Would you believe this techno-phobic, neo-Luddite figured out how to burn CDs on my fabulous new computer tonight? It's a piece of cake, software is already built in. Let it rip!

ZZZZ

All I've been wanting to do all weekend is sleep. Today I didn't get to sleep in as late as I'd hoped, since I had the day off. Dogs woke me at 8:30, but that's pretty good considering it's usually 7 or earlier on the weekends. I wish just once I had absolutely nothing to do but curl up on the couch with a good book. Here's what I did this weekend instead.

Friday - sat in over and hour and half of horrendous traffic after work on my way to Jeffro's for dinner. Then we watched a movie, Crash, which was pretty good. My dogs refused to go outside because of the rain.

Saturday - got up fairly early--poor Jeffro, to go to work, me, to have lunch with a friend. Yes, in the pouring rain. This was definitely a day to just curl up on the couch, but instead I wound up going to Asia Bistro in Pentagon Row for disappointing sushi. And my dogs were impossible again about going out--I had to drag them out cause they hadn't gone the day before!

Sunday - slept till 11 and quite frankly could have stayed in bed all day, but it was off to my sister's for a birthday party for my 3-year old niece. Tons of food, which is why I guess my stomach isn't feeling too great today.

Monday - met a friend for lunch at Luna Grill, where they were only serving brunch, but neglected to tell any of their customers until they went to order something non-brunchy off the menu. Huh? Now I need to prepare for tomorrow, finally have an interview. Ironically it's right next door to where I work now so I'm going during lunch . . . fingers are crossed.

Iron Chef Comes to DC

This is too cool. Well, if you're a big kitchen stadium fan, that is. Three top DC chefs competed locally for a chance to be challengers on Iron Chef America. Morou of Signatures won and will compete with an iron chef in January. Read about the local competition.

Good Day?

Check out my horoscope. I can almost believe this today. For some reason, I woke up feeling extremely good today. Usually waking up is a traumatic and agonizing experience, and I feel like I've been hit by a truck every morning. But not today. I even had time to work out. I always want to, but it never happens. This bodes well for the weekend. Of course, now that I've said this, all hell will break loose instead.

There's a mixed bag of heavenly energies shuffling around upstairs at the moment, but they've all got one end in mind: to put you in the mood to have some unadulterated fun with your loved ones. Why fight it?

Oh. My. God.

This is excerpted from an actual email exchange in my office. Comments in parens are what I really wanted to say. I swear I work with the most incompetent people and this kind of crap takes up probably 50% of a good number of days. This is like “who’s on first?”

Sept 21, from AA: Do you have a bio of our lovely boss? I need to edit it to put in the source book for our board.

Sept 21, from Me: Yes, let me attach it for you. (Which I did)

Oct 5, from Me, forwarding Sept 21 email: Have you finished editing lovely boss’s bio for the board book yet?

Oct 5, from AA: What bio? Her bio doesn’t go in the board book. Do you mean the source book? (Like, what the hell is the difference anyway??)

Oct 5, from Me: Yes, that is what I mean.

Oct 5, from AA: No, we haven’t even looked at that yet.

Oct 6, from AA, forwarding email from Sept 21: I’m cleaning out my email. Does anyone have lovely boss’s bio?

Oct 6, from Me, smoke coming out ears: This is what I just asked you about yesterday. (Are you that friggin stupid?) You said it hadn’t been looked at yet. Do you need another copy? (And if so why the hell didn’t you ask for it yesterday?)

Oct 6, from AA: Well, I don’t have it and no one is working on it. Who is supposed to?

Oct 6, from Me: (How the hell am I supposed to know who works on it, you asked me for it so I assume you knew!) Let me attach another copy. I have nothing to do with this sourcebook (so leave me the hell out of it!). Please send me the final version when you are done with it. (You figure out who is supposed to deal with it, but it’s not me! I do not want to hear another friggin word about this or I’m gonna run screaming from the building!)

Week. End.

Please I'm begging . . . I am just so done for this week. I am getting nothing productive done today except cleaning out my personal email. Not good. I have Monday off, and would really love to make it a four-day weekend by skipping out tomorrow. It's tempting.

Doggie World Part Deux

In a semi-related story, now you can order this fabulous Wonder Woman costume for your dog for Halloween! I used to love that show when I was younger!

Thanks again to Jeffro for the tip. Perhaps he has a little too much time on his hands??

Doggie World

It's a doggie world out there. Check this out. In Japan, Honda has designed a dog-friendly car with special seats for dogs. Too much!



Thanks to Jeffro for the tip.

I Hate My Officemates

They are driving me crazy today. No one can do anything themselves, they are scheduling me into meetings that I am not able to attend cause they haven't checked my calendar, and asking me for crazy things like: can we revise the invitation that is currently at the printer and over a week late? Um, how about no? Next I get to sit in on a meeting with my lovely boss, who I just gave access to my calendar. Maybe I should make a bunch of stuff up on there just to shock her. I predict leaving a little early tonight just to get the hell out of here, and possibly going home and having a drink.

Big Sister

Apparently our new boss wants full access to our Microsoft Outlook calendars. We all use these to schedule meetings--at a glance you can see people's schedule and whether or not they are busy at certain times when you're trying to set up a meeting. Very useful. Busy time or out of the office time show up as different color blocks, but no specific info is given on what the person is doing. The boss has decided she wants access to all of our calendars so she has all the details. I am so pissed! Not that I have anything bad on there . . . even I'm not stupid enough to say "3 pm, interview with XXX" but it's such an invasion of privacy. What is she gonna come track us down in the middle of a meeting now? Or perhaps she can come find us if we have lunch with a friend. Or maybe she could come with me on my doctor appointments. That would be fun.

Weekend

I must say I had a very nice weekend. I did a lot of fun stuff and some productive stuff. Wish I’d been more productive, but I seem to always choose fun over work these days. Here’s a recap:

Friday – met Jeffro for dinner and went to Matuba in Arlington. Very good sushi restaurant on Columbia Pike. Afterwards, I had to walk my neighbors dogs—2 of which were husky puppies rescued from Katrina. They were very cute and it was fun to watch them wrestle each other continually.

Saturday – I almost went apple picking with MJ, but couldn’t get my act together in time. So she got a few apples for me anyway, thanks MJ. I went instead to Art on the Avenue in Del Ray (Alexandria) and it was a nice time, although the day was hotter than expected. I bought a birthday gift for a neighbor and 2 pair of earrings for myself. That night we met some friends for dinner at Carlyle in Shirlington and had a lot of laughs.

Sunday – Happy Birthday to my sister. I had sent her a package for her b-day, so she opened it while I talked on the phone. I got her this funny book, Your Cat’s Just Not That Into You: What Part of Meow Don't You Understand?, among other things. My dogs got a much-needed bath, I had dinner and wine with a neighbor, then went grocery shopping with Jeffro. How peaceful shopping on a Sunday night!

And now we’re back at work and thrilled as always to be here.

Every Light in the House is On

For some odd reason this song by Trace Atkins keeps running through my head this morning. Perhaps it's because my wonderful boyfriend chose to put every single light on in his cozy efficiency, and without warning, as I was still in bed trying to get more sleep. I am the biggest crankster in the morning, and this is a well-known fact, yet for some reason he couldn't understand why I was mad and essentially stormed out.

Buried Treasure

Well, ok, I wouldn't call it treasure. But I'm one of those people that always has a messy desk. I don't like organizing, filing, etc. so I have piles and piles everywhere in my office. It's worse than usual lately cause I'm so busy. Yesterday one of our board members stopped by to visit and nearly had a heart attack, it was sort of embarrassing. So will today be the day I get my act together and clean off my desk? Only time will tell. Even I have to admit it's getting to the ridiculous point.

Laughs

I'm not big on internet jokes, but this one is sort of too good to pass up, so I'll share.

Donald Rumsfeld is giving president George W. Bush his daily briefing. Rumsfeld concludes by saying: "Yesterday, 3 Brazilian soldiers were killed." "OH NO!" exclaims Bush. "That's terrible!" His staff sits stunned at this display of emotion, nervously watchingas the president sits, head in hands. Finally, the president looks up and asks, "How many is a brazillion?"

Feel like some more laughs? Check out my favorite whacky store in DC, Chocolate Moose It really has some funny and politically incorrect stuff. The website's not great, but there are some products there, under accessories. I always get my sister some crazy birthday gifts there, for example, two gifts this year are gum in boxes that say "Let's pretend I give a shit and leave it at that" and "How about a nice big pack of Shut the Hell Up!"

Ugh

I feel so ugh today. I had some tests this morning involving rapidly downing various disgusting things like barium. It was so gross, my stomach is still protesting. I think I have a permanently disgusted look on my face, cause everyone walking into my office immediately asks me what's wrong. It was not a fun start to my morning. When I said this to the technician, who could care less cause he does this all day, he (being ever-so-upbeat) comments, "well at least your day will get better now!" Duh!

Writing on the Wall?

It’s been an unbelievably crazy week so far. Today I was “omitted” from an important meeting that I probably should have been included on, because I’ve sort of been the main contact with this company for a while. So what does that tell you? Sharpen up that resume! Actually, I’ve sent quite a few this week, had a phone interview today that seemed positive.

Maxed Out!

I'm so thrilled . . . I've been getting allergy shots once a week for the past 3 friggin years. It's been a long haul and very inconvenient for me to get to the doc, but it looks like I'm finally at the maximum allergy poison dosage that you can take. I still have to get shots once a week, but I think my primary care can do it now, and that is a lot closer to my house. After about 6 months I can go to every other week. I know ya'll don't really care about this, but I'm thrilled! The end is in sight!

How Can It Be Monday?

I’m sitting here in my office trying to talk myself out of being grumpy this morning. I had a lousy commute in, starting with a standing-only bus that I refused to board, and messages from the boss asking for a report that I had left her before my day off Friday and she neglected to find.

That being said, here are highlights from the weekend:

Friday – drove with Jeffro up to central PA and visited his alma mater, Bucknell. He insisted that Bucknell is prettier than my alma mater, William and Mary, which is completely absurd! So we will soon make a trip to Williamsburg so he can see that my college kicks his college's ass! We spent the day walking around campus and he bought me a t-shirt to convert me to a Bucknell Bison.

We spent the evening at the Inn at New Berlin, which was very lovely and stayed in a pretty room with a turret. Dinner was at Gabriel’s in the lower level of the inn. Very convenient, yet made for a somewhat noisy stay.

Saturday we drove around a bunch of small towns nearby and did some antique shopping. The best part of the day was coming across this really cool covered bridge, which I would show you if the "adding images" function would work properly. I have to say small towns definitely have their charm. Headed back home Saturday night to be back for a visit from Jeffro’s father, which unfortunately didn’t happen. But that meant I had the day to get things done, so I could start the week feeling good that my errands were run, house cleaned, etc.

R&R

Jeffro and I are off to the relaxing and beautiful Inn at New Berlin this weekend for some much need R&R. No internet access there, so everyone have a great weekend. I tried to get a photo of the place in here, and initially it worked but then something screwed up. So you'll have to check it out yourselves.

Fire!

As in Firehook Bakery, where I went to lunch and had a very yummy sandwich and chocolate espresso cookie. My friend MJ had called to see if I wanted to walk during lunch, and on the way back we stopped before I passed out from low blood sugar. A very nice time, and a gorgeous day today. So get out and enjoy it, it's officially the first day of fall today, I believe.