Almost Famous?

Every try to figure out which celebrity you resemble? Go to www.myheritage.com and click on Find the Celebrity in You. The site is intended for you to do genealogy and family research, but the celebrity finder is too much fun. You upload a photo and they match it to their "celebrity" database. Apparently, I look like an Indian woman in my photos. I put in 2 different photos and came up with 2 different famous Indian celebrities that I matched about 65% each. I couldn't find one woman on Google; the other, Kajol is some Indian actress. See, that's me to the left.

Minimum Wage

Did you know that as of January 1 minimum wage went up to $7/hr? And it went up from the previous $5.50/hr, I think. That's a pretty good raise. I remember back in the day when I first started working when I was in high school and minimum wage was only . . . never mind, I don't want to date myself here.

Bastard!

This morning at the metro at the Pentagon there was a man standing at the Metro worker's station just yelling at the top of his lungs about something. It seemed the worker had just told him he had to go upstairs to the sales office to solve whatever the issue was. The man was so irate and making so much noise yelling at the Metro guy, and finally yelled "Bastard!" melodramatically and took off in a huff. It was like a scene from a movie and most people who observed this were trying hard not to laugh.

Le Weekend

Well, it was an interesting weekend all around. What gorgeous weather we had on Saturday! I took the dogs to the dog park to run around for a while. That afternoon I was supposed to go to the Andy Warhol exhibit at the Corcoran Museum with Jeffro. I drove in and really shouldn't have--there was absolutely no parking, no garages open, a couple of streets were closed to parking for no apparent reason. It was very frustrating. We drove around for a while to no avail, and I finally had to just drop Jeffro off to meet our friends and I just went home mad and we all met up for dinner later on. Then it turns out the place we selected, Cafe Dulat in Clarendon, had closed along with 2 others next to it. That is so disappointing. It was a little hole-in-the-wall restaurant that had great Vietnamese food. I'm sure it's being taken over by some awful crappy chain like the recently-moved-in Cheesecake Factory.

Sunday I basically met up with friends most of the day, went to brunch at Luna Grill with a former co-worker and to dinner at Guapo's with my neighbor. I don't want to eat the rest of the week.

Nothin' But the 90s

This weekend it was nothin' but the 90s on country station WMZQ. It was pretty cool to get to hear some songs that don't get much airplay anymore. A lot of today's popular artists got their start back in the 90s, so it was good to remember their tunes from when they came on the scene.

Why I Love Friday

Well, besides all the obvious reasons, I love Fridays because it's our one "dress down" day of the week. However, unlike most workplaces where "casual Friday" means you can wear jeans, casual Fridays for us means "business casual." I can wear clothes on Friday that I used to wear every day to work but now I have to wear a jacket every day. I thought I would like looking super-professional every day, but it's just a drag--boring and uncreative. And also, hot on the metro.

The thing that kills me is my boss is a real stickler for the dress code, yet her "suits" aren't really suits at all. More like weird sweaters that she tries to pass off as a blazer. They try to tell us that since we're a business organization we have to dress in a very professional manner, well, maybe someone should tell my boss the 80s are over and wear some real clothes.

Toast and Beats

Some pretty exciting things going on today--I attended my first Toastmasters International meeting. I saw a sign at work and decided to check it out cause I suck at public speaking and I hate it and need to get better at it. I actually had a good time at the meeting, it's a very supportive atmosphere and I think I would really benefit from it. The most exciting part of this meeting was one of the members--Jocelyn. I think Jocelyn used to be John at one point in her/his life. I must say that was my first real-life encounter with a transvestite/transsexual.

And tonight I get to get out my frustrations of the day with some drum lessons. I have found a new teacher and he's coming to my house, bringing a small drum set that he will leave for me to practice. I can't wait!

Toast and Beats

Some pretty exciting things going on today--I attended my first Toastmasters International meeting. I saw a sign at work and decided to check it out cause I suck at public speaking and I hate it and need to get better at it. I actually had a good time at the meeting, it's a very supportive atmosphere and I think I would really benefit from it. The most exciting part of this meeting was one of the members--Jocelyn. I think Jocelyn used to be John at one point in her/his life. I must say that was my first real-life encounter with a transvestite/transsexual.

And tonight I get to get out my frustrations of the day with some drum lessons. I have found a new teacher and he's coming to my house, bringing a small drum set that he will leave for me to practice. I can't wait!

Feeling Like a Criminal

I've been at my new job just over a month now. To enter my building, and even my suite of offices, you need a handy little ID badge. However, due to new Homeland Security restrictions, getting a badge apparently now involves an in-depth background check, criminal investigation, credit check, and the ever-fun fingerprinting. So that's how I started my day today. Then they discovered they'd given me the wrong fingerprinting form and I had to do the fingerprinting twice. Keep in mind, I'm not officially classified as a government employee, and I'm certainly not doing any top-secret crap. What I want to know is:

1. What the hell do they need to check my credit for? I don't have the authority to get anywhere near the company checkbook, credit card, etc. Plus if my credit sucks, that's why I'm working, to pay off my bills. It's such an infringement of privacy I could just scream. I could see if I had an accounting job or something like that, but hello, marketing?

2. What about the 500+ employees who were hired before this whole investigation thing started (right before I was hired)? They could be friggin criminals and what, that doesn't matter? Just let them keep running around the building unchecked, good plan.

In case you hadn't guessed, I was supremely pissed today. Not to mention the fact that for a month I've had to loiter at the door to my office waiting for someone to let me in, or call someone to let me in.

Oh, and the reason it's taken a month to get this far? The person who normally handles badges is out and no one else could seem to get their act together to push this through. They're haggling about who's paying for the background check etc. So I don't even have a real badge yet, just a temporary one until my background check is complete. The government is run by idiots.

Brief Moments of Panic

I had a BMP (brief moment of panic) at work today when I realized how much I have yet to get done this week and how this extra project is dealing with something I know nothing about and no one is in the office to help me. Sigh.

I Want My $20!

As I entered the metro station tonight with the intent to add fare to my Smart Card, I realized that I never received my $20 cash back from Giant last night. I got the cash specifically for this reason. So I called Giant to ask if they would be able to identify whether the register I went to was over by $20 and they said they could but then left me on hold so long I went back to the store to sort it out. The person in charge wasn't available and the manager asked if he could impose on me and ask me to call back the next day. Today has been a very long day, and I gave him a very pained look and he managed to get in touch with the person in charge and sort it all out. Long story short (too late I know), I got my money back.

Saved by the . . . Coffeemaker?

This morning my alarm didn't go off for some reason and the dogs didn't feel like getting up. The only thing that saved me was my programmable coffeemaker, Cuisinart's Grind and Brew, which makes a hell of a noise. Maybe I should move it in my bedroom tonight just in case . . . and then I won't have to get out of bed to get my coffee tomorrow.

Best Part of the Weekend

I forgot to mention yesterday that the best part of my weekend was my Ann Taylor Loft shopping trip. I got 3 spring-like shirts, one wrap, a necklace, pair of earrings, and the coolest blazer ever for like $150. I used a $25 gift certificate from Christmas, which made it even better!

Good Weekend

I had a pretty good weekend, sorry to see it go so quickly. My sister was supposed to come in for the weekend but cancelled at the very last minute--postponed from arriving Friday to Saturday, then cancelling on Saturday itself*. So here's what I did instead.

Saw one of Jeffro's favorite local bands, Catfish Honeymoon, at this little hole-in-the-wall dive bar in Clarendon called Jay's. They put on a damn good show and completely packed the place, which seems like the kind of place mostly locals go.

Tonight I went to have dinner with my sister and her 6 kids. They're leaving for a week-long vacation this week to Punta Cana resort, I'm so jealous. I'd really much rather be there than here this week!

*Note to MJ: Did you go to the shower? I was going to since my sister cancelled, but I had to go to the eye doc Saturday, which ran really long and by the time it was done it was just too late, and Jeffro really wanted to go see that band. I just couldn't do it all, even though sometimes I mistakenly think that I can. Sigh.

Vote for Tim

Apparently the latest rumor is that Tim McGraw has political aspirations and wants to run for governor of Tennessee. And apparently he's being endorsed by Bill Clinton. So he'd be a shoe-in, I'm sure. So he's apparently not satisfied with being the king of Nashville, he has to be king of the state now.

No More Avoiding It

Ok, I've done everything possible tonight to avoid the inevitable. I must clean the bathtub/shower and that is the single worst job in the entire house. But off I go. I'm sure you're all excited over this news.

Excitement of the Day

My day was pretty quiet as my boss was gone. Well, that is, until the CEO came looking for me around 3:00 and says he's just had an interview with the Wall Street Journal and the reporter was going to call him back and he wanted a marketing expert with him to make sure his interview went ok. So I looked around for one, but realized he was talking about me . . . and since I've been there about a month so far, I thought if I'm the most expert around here, that's not a good sign. Anyway, I guess it all went ok, I made one embarrassing contribution (I had forgotten what her original question was--it's hard doing phone interviews) and a few decent ones, so I hope it all evens out.

Welcome Back American Idol!

Watch it now! 8 p.m. on Fox.

Talkin' Bad About Work!

Well, nearly a month into my job and yes it's time for my first job rant! We have a number of technology/web problems at my new job, that were there long before I was, and no one bothered to fix them. Somehow everyone there thinks they are my problems to solve. I am pissed because I wasn't hired to be a technology geek, nor am I in any way qualified or want to be. So I have various people being pissy to me cause some things aren't fixed yet--things that I can't fix. Plus my boss today shot some emails my way and when I asked her about it she said something like "I don't review these, I pass them to you." Um . . . very helpful, thanks for clarifying. I swear, this better be my last damn job before I break out on my own, or I think I'm in for the loony bin.

Las Vegas Photo Log

My trip to Las Vegas was pretty good--as good a time as you can have basically by yourself in Vegas. I wouldn't advise a solo trip . . . here are some photos using my new digital camera. Sometimes, you gotta love technology.

My 700-square feet room, lovely as promised.

The casino at The Venetian.

"Venice"

Siegfried and Roy tigers at the Mirage.

Sorry I missed this show . . . not.

A Lambrogini for Jeffro.

You can get anything in Vegas.

The famous Las Vegas sign . . . it was much smaller than I thought, maybe 5 feet tall at the most!

Viva Las Vegas!

Well, I'm off bright and early tomorrow morning for Las Vegas, babies! I doubt I'll be posting, so everyone have a great week! Unless I hit the big time, I'm back on Friday the 13th--Oy!

Viva Las Vegas!

Only one day of work this week in the office. Tuesday I'm headed to Las Vegas for a meeting and staying at the Venetian. I am pretty psyched. Check out the accomodations. The suites are like 700 square feet--as big as the first floor of my condo!

Weekend Update

This was a pretty laid back weekend for me, for once. Friday night Jeffro and I had dinner at our favorite sushi place, Matuba in Arlington. Quite tasty. Saturday I got my hair cut and ran some errands after learning how to use my digital camera--just in time for Vegas. I also made some of my much-requested lentil soup. Today Jeffro his friend Pete, and I went to Guitar Center to do a little shopping. I was really tempted to buy this electronic drum set on sale for $800 but I resisted. Then my friend Lynn and I hung out and had some dinner and wine and I just got done cleaning my house. The excitement never ends! Now it's on to Iron Chef for a new episode . . . except they're killing the fish they're supposed to be cooking, so I'll tune in after the murders are done. That is just too gross.

Excitement of the Day

Now I can spy on everyone coming to my blog--I just added a site meter. I also learned how to use my digital camera today. Thanks to Jeffro for helping with all this stuff.

Bubble Burst?

I feel like my 3-week work-honeymoon-bubble burst today. I'm supposed to meet with each staff person to learn a little more about what they do. I met with this one girl whom I really like. She said she was good friends with my predecessor and told me stuff about my boss that I really didn't want to hear. And she said my predecessor wasn't very happy, was stressed, and worked late too much. Yippee! I'm trying not to be discouraged by it, but it's hard . . . cause I really don't want to be involved in as much stress and political crap as my last job. Only time will tell. At least I get to go to Vegas next week, leaving Tuesday and out of the office all week.

Tequila Shots

Tequila shots just might not be a good idea on the evening before returning to work after a long weekend. Why tequila shots? My neighbor invited me up for a drink, her boyfriend showed up unexpectedly and decided we all needed to have a little post-NY Eve party, I suppose. I must say it was a very rough day at work today . . .

My weekend was very lazy. I think I actually watched most of the 6 hour Iron Chef marathon on Sunday--despite having seen at least half of them previously--and didn't move off my couch at all. That may not seem like a big achievement, but I usually can't ever seem to sit still and relax or stop running around. So this was quite a feat. And enjoyable. I guess I could just say I was helping Jeffro get over his cold by commiserating with him. He didn't even go to the New Year's Eve party with me--I went for a couple of hours, but returned home before midnight to spend it with him.