RealityBites

It's 2012?

2012-01-19T20:46:00.002-05:00

I can't believe I haven't posted since November! I hope everyone had a great holiday. I am just glad that they are over and hoping that 2012 will be better than 2011 . . .

Four-Day Weekends

2011-11-28T19:59:00.003-05:00

I have to say, I loved having a 4-day weekend over this past holiday. It is so hard to compress your life into a 2-day weekend; working just sucks the life out of you that you need more than 2 days to recover. I was busy most of the time, but also had time to get most chores and things I needed to get done. I went back to work actually feeling refreshed, unstressed, and happy. What a miracle! Now if only all the weeks were like this . . .

Falling Back

2011-11-06T19:18:00.002-05:00

It has been a most interesting weekend, with lots of unexpected drama. I found out the *real* reason my niece is grounded . . . found out that a foster father shouldn't be and now wondering what to do about that discovery . . . and found a source of unexpected wisdom in someone you wouldn't expect it from. She said she had a card for me that said something about "When one door closes, another opens. But you can only take advantage of that open door if you stop looking back at the closed door." Wow, is that applicable to my life, or maybe I've just had too much wine tonight? I am always the "grass is always greener" type of person. What would have happened if I'd made this choice instead of that? Guess I need to start letting go of some of that thinking . . .

I also am exhausted after supposedly earning an extra hour of time this weekend, after turning our clocks back an hour. The problem is, no one told my dogs,and they had me up twice in the middle of the night to go out, so I woke up completely zonked. I have a few more things to accomplish tonight, then I'm going to try to relax!

Estate Sale Finds

2011-10-23T19:39:00.002-04:00

I went to an estate sale today and bought a couple of really cool things. Usually at an estate sale you don't find many good electronics, but apparently this person did a lot of stuff with computers and there were a lot of electronics to unload. I wish I'd gone earlier in the day as I'm in the market for a new PC and laptop, and apparently there were many of those to be had. But I did get a large, very nice flat screen monitor for just $25. You can't beat that.

Other items I purchased included an old-school phone that doesn't require power to work, for those rare times when the power goes off; a nice crystal candy/nut bowl, as I was just looking for one last week when I had guests over; and a copy of The Breakfast Club for $2. Nice!

Cancellations and No Shows

2011-10-22T10:35:00.003-04:00

I was supposed to have breakfast this morning with 2 people from my neighborhood. I volunteer a lot of my time to neighborhood projects, and this meeting was to touch base about that. The meeting was supposed to be at 9 am. Who wants to be anywhere Saturday morning at 9 am? Not me. But like the schlump I am, I showed up, without having checked email first. No one else showed.

I waited 1/2 hour and figured they must have rescheduled or cancelled. I had just confirmed this like a day ago, and checked email last night to make sure it wasn't cancelled. I am supremely pissed and sent a very terse message to the people involved.

I am getting to a point where my time--even 1/2 hour--is too valuable to waste. Earlier this week I busted my ass to get to a meeting at 7 pm, which is really hard for me given work constraints and the dogs. Me and one other person showed up. Again, really pissed.

The lesson here is, my time is too valuable to just be giving it away like this. I told the folks this morning that I wasn't willing to reschedule. And I think I'm dropping the other thing from Tuesday. I have got to get a better handle on my life and my schedule, and I am starting to figure out how. Just say no!

I Have Followers?

2011-10-21T20:49:00.003-04:00

I noticed that I actually have some followers of this blog, and people who seem to check it daily. I sincerely appreciate that, as I didn't realize that anyone really gave a crap. It reinspires me to put some interesting things up here to keep you all entertained, so I will do my best to try to post more often. I think these days we all get caught up in our emails, Facebook, etc. that require more immediate attention, and blogs have sort of fallen out of favor.

In the spirit of rekindling my blog, I will tell you some of the stress I have been dealing with over the past three weeks.

Work - I have an employee who is--well, let me put this delicately--crazy. He has thrown me under the bus with my boss more than once and has been ranting and raving about his job, what a bad manager I am, etc. etc. Over a two week period, during our busiest time, he got no work done and then we found out he did something slightly illegal. All this put together means . . . wait for it . . . I gave him a written warning and disciplinary action has been taken. Not sure what is going to happen, but this warning is a first step towards getting him fired. Now mind you, I have been at this job for like 5 months, and I just don't need this shit or stress!

Personal - I found out my ex of 6 years who "never wanted to get married" is now engaged to someone he met online less than a year ago. WTF?? (Sorry if you are reading this, but it's my blog so tough shit.) Then I meet this cute guy who is Italian and seems really cool. However, his baggage? He is going through a divorce, supposedly has 6 kids, and when I looked him up on FB he seemed to already have a girlfriend. Again, WTF? Are there no straight, single, eligible, decent men left? I didn't think so. Anyway, people wonder why women my age are bitter. I have no insight into that.

On top of all this I have a guy who has been after me on and off for 10 years, who decided that the weekend I found out about aforementioned ex was the weekend he was going to "charm" me into finally going out with him. Boy was he wrong, and wound up unfriended on FB. I am tired of being fucked over!

But on a good note, it is Friday and I am getting a massage tomorrow. So maybe things are looking up after all.

My Shockingly Bad Review of Martina McBride’s New Album “Eleven”

2011-10-20T21:53:00.004-04:00

I have been a fan of Martina McBride for at least 10 years now and she is awesome and I love her. However . . . her latest album just came out last week and it is taking a long time to grow on me. I’m not sure it ever will . . . not sure it’s something I’ll crave listening to. That’s how I know when a CD is really good, when I can’t get the songs out of my head and I can’t wait to listen to it again.

Apparently, she has been writing songs and co-wrote most of the songs on the album. Well, I’m wondering if she should stop writing and concentrate on what she does best: sing. There are two main problems with the songs on here:

First, there is not enough new. A lot of the songs sound like other songs she has already done.

Second, the writing is often bland, not descriptive enough, and uninteresting. I really enjoy songs that have clever lyrics, descriptions that make you feel something. These lyrics don’t have enough to say.

Here is a brief review of the songs on the CD.

One Night – This could be a really awesome, fun song. The one thing I don’t like is that parts of it are too similar to “Ride” from her last CD. There’s a part where she sings the word “Sky” with exactly the same melodic descent as “Ride.” It’s a shame cause it ruins the song a bit for me.

Always Be This Way – This has a sort of reggae beat, which is a little odd. But the song is not bad, I guess, though a little saccharine.

I’m Gonna Love You Through It – This is a tear-jerker about a woman with cancer. It’s her “statement song” on the CD. And it too is not too bad.

Marry Me – This is a remake of Train’s song, which I adore. I don’t love her singing it. However, the end is cool when she duets with Pat Monahan, who I love, love, love. But more of the song should have been a duet.

Broken Umbrella – This song is full of horns and sounds very old-fashioned and boring. What is she doing with adult contemporary??? It’s so awful, saccharine, blech!

You Can Get Your Loving Right Here – This is supposed to be her “sexy” song but again the horns! Not a big fan of this song.

Whatcha Gonna Do – I don’t mind this song, the words are pretty good. It’s about a relationship that can never make up its mind. Are we on or off? Boy do I understand that. I love the “whatever” in this song.

Teenage Daughters – This was already a radio hit. It is a pretty good song, if you have teenage daughters.

Summer of Love – This is about a summer romance, and she wanted to evoke a “Strawberry Wine” feel here, but it doesn’t quite work. Again, there is not enough description here to evoke enough feeling or nostalgia, though I have to say I am liking it a bit more the more I listen to it.

When You Love a Sinner – This song title and melody have the potential to be interesting, but the song doesn’t say quite enough to make you feel. You don’t know why the person is a sinner, why they do what they do, why the singer sticks with them, etc. It’s a bit too vague to be effective. It has some clever lyrics in it, but I want to know more of the story. She’s been with her husband for like 20 years so obviously and hopefully it’s not about him.

Long Distance Lullaby – This is actually a beautiful song to her family when she’s on the road.

You’re in My House Now – Has the potential to be a sassy song, but there are like two measures in each verse where she goes "la la la la, la la la la, la la la la la la," like she just forgot the words or was too lazy to write them. WTF? Plus it doesn’t say enough about why it’s good to be in her house, so it leaves you unsatisfied.

Closing Time – It’s an interesting concept, likening closing time at a bar to the end of the relationship. But it’s way too slow a song to be interesting enough.

Ask the Boy – WTF? This song makes no sense. What is she asking him? This song makes absolutely no sense. The melody is kind of interesting, so if it made a bit more sense, it could have been better.

I Give It to You – The first word was Jesus. Enough said. Fast forward and the CD is finished. Bummer.

RIP, Reed

2011-09-14T20:27:00.004-04:00

I found out last Friday that a neighbor and former board member on my neighborhood association's board passed away unexpectedly. He had a heart condition, so this was not totally implausible, but still quite a shock and sad. He was only 45. The night he passed away, we were supposed to have dinner but I rescheduled cause things were busy, and he was just getting back from vacation. I thought, we'll just do it another day.

Well, there is no other day, and I'm really sad. Though, I admit I would probably have felt worse if I'd gone to dinner then found out he died right afterwards. It just all sucks no matter how you look at it.

Tomorrow is his funeral in DC. I would like to go, but practicality won out. I am new at my job, he's not a familiy member or boyfriend where it would make sense to be there, my dog is sick and I have to conserve my time off to deal with that, etc. I hate it. I hate the fact that life in DC is so annoying and work is so all-pervasive that I feel I can't even ask for a few goddamn hours to honor a neighbor who was a good guy and a good friend. So, I wanted to let it be known that while I cannot be there in person, I am there in spirit and heart. RIP, Reed.

Giant Rant

2011-08-07T20:38:00.003-04:00

First of all, I hate grocery shopping because it takes precious time out of my very-time-crunched weekends. Second, the prices keep going up, while sizes keep going down. I am soooooo frustrated cause I try not to eat out during the week so I can "save money." Ha. I went to Giant today so I can get their Shell gas miles, and everything I bought, just about, was way more expensive than last time I was there. Blueberries were like $3.99 a pint! This price is fine in winter, when there are no blueberries, but summer? They should be like 2 for $4! WTF?

Then I go to check out and I use their recyclable bags to earn the 5 cents per bag. The stupid woman loads all the large things into one bag--two large containers of OJ, one 1/2 gallon of milk, 2 tubs of yogurt, etc. and I make a comment and she's like "oh I can change it for you." Well, duh, you shouldn't do it in the first place, you motherf*cking idiot! I am not the bionic woman with endless strength. I was quite pissy to her, plus I was furious at the prices so she's lucky I didn't just let her have it for the complete unfairness. I stopped going to Shopper cause they were so idiotic, Harris Teeter and Safeway are WAYYYY overpriced, so what am I supposed to do?

Sonny, Tony, Grandpa

2011-07-30T18:25:00.002-04:00

It is with great sadness that I post about my wonderful grandfather's passing this past Thursday, July 27. He was 96 years old, and lived 4-1/2 years after my grandmother's passing. He was doing pretty well up until a year ago, then things got tricky after some surgery that I felt was unnecessary but others apparently did not. He was never the same after that--how is a 96 year old going to recover from surgery? Really?

Grandpa was sharp-minded, right until the end. I spoke with him last about 2 weeks ago, and he remembered that I had a problem in my basement with these hopping crickets. He was at my house only once, about 10 years ago, but he remembered these bugs and was giving me advice on how to get rid of them. He also thought I should white wash my basement. It was the most awesome confersation, and somehow I knew it would be our last.

I will never forget how amazing he was . . . smart though he'd never gone to college, handy, sharp as a tack, opinionated, Democrat! (old people are never Democrats), a major Yankees fan. He was a big music fan, and taught me all of these old songs as a kid. To this day I still remember the words to "I Love My Baby" and "I Took My Girl." He always took us to get Slurpees as kids, and told us the story "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" no matter how many times we asked.

I leave tomorrow for the services in NY. My grandfather was very well-loved, there will be a lot of people there to pay respects, and it will be very hard to get through cause there will be a lot of tears. He was my last grandparent. It's the end of an era and I'm so sad . . .

July 4 Beach Weekend

2011-07-05T20:36:00.003-04:00

This past weekend I hit the beach with NOAAGirl and we had tons of fun, starting with riding in her cute little red VW bug convertible. We were loving the attention we got as we rode with the top down, rocking out to great 80s tunes.

We left Saturday morning and it took a while to get to the beach. Saturday night we hung out on the Rehobeth boardwalk, having dinner at the awesome Pig and Fish. We shared the fried green tomatoes and pork tacos as appetizers, and probably could have stopped right there cause they were so awesome. But we got entrees, I had the swordfish (sustainable, of course) and NOAAGirl had tuna. My swordfish was out of this world, cooked just perfectly. The Rehobeth boardwalk was quite a spectacle and we earned our place in hell by people-watching and making fun of everyone who walked by.

Sunday we spent the day at Bethany Beach working on our tans. At night we went to Matt's Fish Camp, which also was outstanding and had a cute young waiter who was flirting with us. We drove to Cape Henlopen, recommended to me by a cute coworker, and watched the sunset from the beaches there. Then we cruised through Dewey back to Bethany where we hung out at the boardwalk and had more Kohr Bros. frozen custard.

Monday we left for home, and were determined to find Evolution Craft Brewing Co., on the way. It turned out to be closed, and we were peering inside sadly when a guy with beautiful blue eyes came out from the back and let us in. NOAAGirl bought a "growler" of a beer she'd loved the night before, and then we got samples of another Summer Session, which I wound up buying. Score! It was the perfect ending to a really fun, flirty, and fabulous weekend. Best of all, there was no traffic on the way home, unbelievable!

Quittin' Time

2011-05-09T21:13:00.002-04:00

Ok, I have finally found a new job and accepted it! I start as of May 31, after taking a few days off for Memorial Day.

First, I am thrilled to be making more money. A lot more . . .

But second, I am very sad to be leaving some coworkers I truly love. As much as I complained, I am having a hard time dealing with all of this. The wine is helping, but not enough :( Maybe the brownies in the oven will help more. Today was a hard day having to tell everyone.

Hopefully I am making the right decision. Time will tell. But it is a great opportunity, one I cannot in my right mind turn down. But it is hard.

Getting the Last Word

2011-05-03T20:43:00.002-04:00

I can't believe I haven't written since the crazy dog lady incident. But I got my revenge on her! I came across her and her dog playing this morning with another dog. She was letting it romp, etc. and the other dog owner was laughing delightedly. Oh, how I wanted to march right up to her and say "I thought dogs weren't supposed to play like this" but I didn't (cause then I'd be a crazy dog lady).

In any case, I kept walking and lo and behold she wound up walking right in front of me. I could not bite my tongue, and commented that I thought she didn't let her dog play like that. Huge pause . . . she didn't know what to say since she got busted! So she said, "Well, your dog jumps a lot." Which she doesn't, no more so than the dogs that were playing this morning. Great comeback.

Then she said "Well, you won't have to put up with us much longer we're moving." What an idiot, giving me such a free opportunity! So of course I said that was the best news I'd heard in a long time. And kept walking. I win!!

Ok, crazy . .

2011-02-03T19:12:00.005-05:00

So I had this run-in this morning with this dog owner who never likes her dog to play, she says the dog gets upset when they play too rough or some crap like that when it's pretty obvious the dog is having fun. I have always thought she was a bit odd, her husband too. They're like this psycho couple. In any case, I approached her this morning and my dog really likes hers and they started playing.

The woman said she was pressed for time, so I started to leave. Then she turns and says "You know, your dog plays too rough, you should discipline her. Dogs aren't supposed to play like that. You should read some books." I just stood there in shock cause I'm like, where is this coming from? Who disciplines their dog for playing? And what books are she reading that tell her that dogs don't like to play that way? If they didn't like it, they wouldn't do it and most dogs in my neighborhood do.

I should have said to her but thought of it too late, "Maybe you should stop reading so many damn books and let your dog be a dog." Ok, crazy . . . and what right do you have to tell me how to parent my dog? F*ng bitch!

Thrown Under the Bus, Survived

2011-01-25T19:27:00.004-05:00

WARNING: CO-WORKER RANT AHEAD!!

It's been a long time since I've put up a work rant, so it's about time. I don't think I can let this go until I vent about it. There is a particularly unpleasant co-worker in my small office of 14--not a good situation. Let's call him "Mark" cause, well, that's really his name.

Mark hates me, thinks I am incompetent and lazy. Which I am not. Nor does anyone else at work think that. He is a pompous ass. In any case, we have had many run-ins but it's been a while.

Today, a board member emailed Mark to tell him that he was having trouble finding some info on our Web site, which I maintain. He thought the information should be more readily apparent, he had some marketing tips for us, yadda yadda. (It's always so much fun when everyone tells you how to do your job.)

So of course it's immediately my fault--not the board member who probably didn't look real hard to start out with. Mark forwards the message to me and my boss as FYI. Then he responds to the message seconds after forwarding the "FYI" telling the board member that he would "work with me" to correct the problem and he would welcome marketing advice. As if that wasn't bad enough, he copied his entire department, my boss again, and the CEO. That's like 6 people out of the 14 on staff. Way to throw me under the bus, fucker.

To his credit, the board member wrote back and said something to the effect of: if only Mark had copied a few more people it would have been the entire staff on email. Ha! What a burn! (Yes, that expression shows my age.) I was so gratified to have Mark called out on throwing me under the bus. I win!

Goodbye 2010

2010-12-31T09:42:00.003-05:00

Can't say I'm sorry to see you leave. I wanted to quickly post my favorite Christmas gift of 2010 from Funny Girl Goes Blog. The complete series of the Brady Bunch! I'm a fanatic!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

2010-12-24T16:25:00.003-05:00

I just don't have much time to post these days, so I thought I'd put up a quick post to wish everyone a happy holiday!! I'm off to start the festivities with an Italian fish Christmas Eve dinner. Then tomorrow it's basically presents and lots of food . . . and Sunday to recover!

Do You Know Where Your Christmas Spirit Is?

2010-12-19T21:29:00.003-05:00

I admit I've been having a hard time getting into the spirit this year until this weekend. I went to the Gaylord resort at National Harbor, and they have a lights and fountain show along with Christmas music. The best part was hearing the screams of delight from the kids there whenever the fountain sprayed. It was really adorable, and made it a wondrous event . . . that along with the hot chocolate with peppermint schnapps ;)I think I'm mostly done with my shopping after this weekend. What a relief. It's thankfully a short week, I have Thursday and Friday off, and a retirement lunch that will take up most of Tuesday. Maybe, just maybe I can make it through to some much-needed time off.

Fuck Facebook

2010-11-17T20:31:00.002-05:00

I am a victim of the stupid Facebook bug this week, and they have still not fixed my account. Now I'm getting another error that I may have been a victim of phishing. Right . . . I am beginning to think they are never reinstating me and I've been talking to various reporters to make a stink about it. I am completely pissed off and want to get reinstated just so I can quit . . .

701 Restaurant

2010-11-05T17:29:00.003-04:00

Had dinner with a friend last night at 701 and it was fabulous! Started at the lounge with a pumpkin spice martini - like having dessert first! I had a Fig & Arugula Salad with goat cheese, crisp guanciale, grilled red onions, vanilla vinaigrette--what a yummy surprise the vinaigrette was. My friend had Grilled Baby Octopus with salsa verde, roasted breakfast radishes and usually I'm not an octopus fan but this was delicious. Not at all rubbery, cooked and seasoned to perfection. For my main course I had the Eco Friendly Pork Loin & Belly with cider & tobacco braised pork belly, celery root puree, savoy cabbage, and grain mustard. Absolutely to die for. Dessert was "Apple Pie" with vanilla bean ice cream, milkado sticks, and salted caramels. It sounds like a lot of food, but the portions were really reasonable and I didn't feel awful when I left.

The nice surprise was the piano player, playing soft tunes in the background. All in all, a fabulous experience, I highly recommend it!

Long Time

2010-11-02T20:31:00.002-04:00

I just don't seem to have the energy to post much these days. Things have been pretty busy, here are some recent highlights:

1. Went to Chicago for work, didn't get to the restaurants that I wanted to :(
2. Went to a great Halloween party!
3. Loved Rick Springfield's new autobiography Late, Late at Night
4. Found out my grandfather has congestive heart failure, don't know how long he has. I'm pretty bummed about it and am trying to make a visit soon . . .

Idyllic Weekend Weather

2010-09-06T14:00:00.003-04:00

What a beautiful weekend for Labor Day! It's been a pretty good one and busy too. The highlight was Saturday I had lunch reservations with NOAAGirl, her DH, and Jeffro at Volt in Frederick, MD. The owner is Bryan Voltaggio of Top Chef fame. It took months to get a reservation, and I could only get lunch reservations at that. But no matter, lunch or dinner, it was a fabulous meal. We all had the 5-course tasting menu of heirloom tomatoes, goat cheese ravioli, scallops, beef strip loin, and dessert. Dessert was supposed to be cheesecake, but I wanted something else so they were able to substitute. What a wonderful meal, attentive waiters, beautiful restaurant, and best of all we saw Bryan on the way out! He was every bit as cute as he was on TV but unfortunately he didn't really appear to want to say hello. That was the only bummer.

Accentuate the Positive

2010-08-19T20:29:00.002-04:00

I don't want to curse myself, but it's definitely been an interesting week, in a good way. I've been interviewing, and had more luck than I anticipated. I have a second interview tomorrow, and they are calling references so that is really interesting. We'll see if they make and offer and how much, though I am more interested in another job and waiting for them to come to town to do interviews. This has all been very anxiety-producing, but exciting.

The other really great thing is my college roomate, who I haven't talked to in like 10 years, contacted me through FB recently. I was surprised in a way, but I had sort of been following her and knew she was on FB so it wasn't a total shock.

So these are some really cool things. I needed some good stuff sent my way. I also went to a very fun happy hour last week, and we're doing it again tomorrow night. Yeah!

2010-07-28T19:23:00.003-04:00

The Audi R8 is the coolest car ever. I wondered how much it was, but was afraid to look. Now I know why. The MSRP is $156K! Someone actually parks one frequently in Shirlington. Man I need to find out who it is and make a new friend!

Back from Boston

2010-07-24T18:48:00.004-04:00

I was in Boston recently for a conference from work, and it just about took me a week to recover . . . the conference went well, it's just exhausting. Now I'm full into interview mode. Every year I say to myself "this has to be the last conference" and yet every year I'm still there. So I am trying to change that before the next one comes around. There's also change in leadership coming, and I do fear that we won't be able to get through another budget without laying someone off. So it's go time. I've had two phone interviews so far with a company out of town. I would get to telecommute, but the job has a lot of travel. They are coming into town in August to do in-person interviews, and they already told me that they want to meet me in person. I also have an interview with another company Monday, so I'm taking the day off work cause it's in the afternoon. I also just really want another long weekend.

In any case, it's hotter than hell here. I just wonder what these extremes mean. We had record snow this year, and now record heat. I just don't like it, I think the world is going to hell in a handbasket. Ever the optimist here ;)

Two Saturdays This Week

2010-07-03T11:22:00.002-04:00

My conference for work is coming up and Thursday was a really busy, stressful day. The kind where you feel completely beat up by the time you go home. So I chilled that night and got myself ready to face Friday.

But when I got up, my brain did not want to face Friday. It told me that the day was Saturday. I turned my alarm off thinking, why did I set my alarm for Saturday? I took the dogs for a really long walk, thinking, why are people standing at the bus stop on Saturday? We stopped at the dog park, thinking why is it so empty on Saturday? I walked home and started taking my vitamins in my Sunday - Saturday plastic packet and noticed I was taking vitamins marked Friday. How odd that I forgot to take my vitamins on Friday, I thought. Then, with dread, it occured to me: Maybe today is Friday. Oh crap. Could it be? Are you kidding me? Am I getting really senile or something? I checked my cell phone to be sure, and it was indeed Friday at 9:30 a.m. and I was already 1/2 hour late for work and hadn't showered yet.

What a terrible shock, and such a disappointment!

I quickly checked my work schedule: did I have a meeting? No. Did I have something due: Yes. Crap, I need to go to the office. Otherwise I would have called in sick. I called my boss and left a really vague message about running late and that I would be in around 11. Am I going crazy? I was completely convinced that it was Saturday. Unbelievable. I think after my conference I need a serious vacation.

A Person Who Cares

2010-06-30T19:37:00.003-04:00

I was walking my dogs tonight (what a gorgeous night!) and just up ahead this guy was walking towards another dog owner. The guy was walking very quickly. The woman had a small pug on a leash, and was trying to get out of this guy's way. She was standing on a hill, and in trying to avoid this guy, she slipped and fell down the hill in her sundress. The guy didn't blink an eye, just kept barrelling past. Didn't say "are you ok?" or "sorry about that" or anything. She was looking at him like WTF and I approached and said I couldn't believe that he didn't even acknowledge how rude he was by just about knocking her off the sidewalk. I said that I was sorry he was such a jerk and that most people these days just don't care and she agreed. Then she said "A lot of people don't care, but I'd rather be a person who cares." I thought that was such a great sentiment I had to put the story up here. I'm glad too that I'm a person who cares. Well, I try to be anyway ;)

Goal!

2010-06-23T20:34:00.002-04:00

No, I'm not talking about the World Cup. I'm talking about my sponsorship goal at work. I actually met it this year, and it was $10K higher than last year. I'm so thrilled! Now if and when I leave my job I can leave on a high note, so to speak. The rewards? A nice fat commission? A bonus? No. Ice cream. But I guess I'll take that. At least it was acknowledged.

Last Chance Highway

2010-06-09T18:58:00.006-04:00

Tune into Animal Planet for "Last Chance Highway," an 8 part series that follows a group of volunteers who rescue soon-to-be-euthanized shelter dogs. Part 1 airs on June 19th at 8 pm, June 20th at 1 am, 3 am, & 10 am, and June 21st at 8 pm. For a sneak preview click here.

Busy Weekend and Unsealed Lips

2010-06-02T19:44:00.004-04:00

Things have been crazy as ever. This weekend was busy with gardening in between all the other fun stuff. Boy it was great to have Monday off!

Friday: shopping for my sister's surprise birthday party

Saturday: car repair in the morning, sister's party at night (she was very surprised!)

Sunday: gardening during the day, friend's BBQ at night

Monday: dog park, dog baths, pedicure, wine and dessert with friends

On a separate note, Belinda Carlisle, one of my favorite singers (lead singer of the Go-Gos!)from the 80s has a new book out: Lips Unsealed: A Memoir. Apparently she's had a really huge problem with drug abuse most of her life. It looks like an interesting read cause she struggled with self image and depression problems, and that just makes her so real. So I might have to pick up a copy.

Why I Hate Work

2010-05-25T20:45:00.003-04:00

I have read a couple of interesting articles recently related to work.

The first is about how now that the economy is improving, people are quitting their hated jobs without having anywhere to go. I would love to do that. Check out the article here.

The other article was about the terrible health effects that it has on your body. I always thought that work is killing me, and it truly is. Check out the article here.

Then I saw an episode of House Hunters tonight where the person moved to Cabo in Mexico, bought this huge, great place for $350K that had a level that could be rented out. How sweet would that be?

And let's close this with one of the things I love from the past few weeks:

Why does your boss tell you to give someone a deadline of Friday then decide she wants it Thursday after you’ve already told them Friday? Then you have to go back and look like an ass and ask for it earlier.

Long Gone

2010-05-18T20:36:00.002-04:00

I have been super busy this month, so I haven't been blogging much. Here are a few highlights of what I've been up to:

*Coordinated a pet happy hour in my neighborhood
*Helped put on a neighborhood day
*Pulled up two overgrown shrubs in my yard that didn't fare well over the winter
*Dug out two new flower beds behind my fence
*Purchased flowers and started to plant, waiting for the rain to subside!

I'll try to be better about blogging, but truthfully it's hard to keep up with all the "social media" stuff that you're supposed to these days . . .

NY Wedding and Shelter Stamps

2010-05-02T19:22:00.004-04:00

Well, I just got back last night from my cousin's wedding on Long Island. It was a really fun time and I got to see people I don't see very often. I didn't stop dancing the entire night!

I also wanted to raise awareness of new forever stamps being issued by the Post Office to create awareness about adoption and shelters. Check it out and buy other really cute products here.

NYC

2010-04-10T08:40:00.004-04:00

I was in NYC this week for a business meeting. I haven't been to the Big Apple in many, many years but it never seems to change. Here are some highlights of my brief time there.

Ate at Morimoto! I stayed my first night at The New Yorker Hotel, which was walkable to the restaurant. I had called ahead and asked if I could sit at the sushi bar, partly because I hate eating by myself at a real table, and partly because I knew I'd never get in at the last minute to the restaurant itself. So I sit down at the sushi bar and look to my right and THERE IS MORIMOTO himself, looking just like he does on Iron Chef. My jaw hit the floor and I had to resist the urge to call everyone I knew right then. Eventually, I saw that he was very personable and talking to other guests, so with some encouragement from my waiter, I stood up and shook his hand when he walked by me. He asked how everything was, and if the sushi chefs sitting right in front of me (two of which I recognized from TV) were doing a good job. What a thrill!

As an appetizer, I ordered some of my favorite spicy tuna rolls, and they were outstanding. By far the best sushi I have ever eaten. Then I ordered the black bean cod, which was also outstanding. All in all, a delicious and memorable experience! Oh and before I forget, I went to the bathroom before I left and the seats were heated. An unexpected and very nice feature.

Before I got in a cab, I went into the nearly-closing Chelsea Market, located apparently under where Food Network films. It was a cool indoor market that held all kinds of little shops and restaurants. And the stars from Food Network always shop there. Too bad I wasn't there during the day.

The rest of my trip wasn't nearly as eventful. I moved hotels and stayed at a Marriott right in Time Square/Broadway, which was really cool. They have closed off a street and made it more of a pedestrian area, so it was pretty crazy. One night I walked with my boss to the Apple store, and it was late, around 10, but you would have thought it was a weekend afternoon cause there were so many people around.

I walked by the famed Magnolia Bakery but it was too early in the morning for me to consider cupcakes, and I was leaving in about 1/2 hour so I couldn't get one to go. All in all a good trip, I just wish I'd had time to stay and see more sites or catch a show.

Rude or Not Rude? You Decide

2010-03-28T16:49:00.003-04:00

I'm invited to a family wedding next month, and received the invitation a few weeks back. The RSVP date is March 31, next week. I have been really busy and haven't had time to send the RSVP back, but this week, my cousin e-mails a bunch of us who haven't RSVP'd yet reminding us that we have only 8 days to reply!

Call me crazy and old fashioned, but I thought that:

1. I had until March 31 to reply.
2. Since the invitation was a formal printed invitation, a follow up e-mail seemed a little gauche.

My sisters were offended and wrote back nasty replies. The next day I mailed my invitation and didn't reply cause it seemed like it had been addressed by my sisters. However, today I got YET ANOTHER e-mail reminder. And boy, I let my cousin have it!! Cause I mailed the friggin RSVP already, and it's only been a few days so the RSVP couldn't have gotten there yet.

So I'm wondering what everyone thinks about this? Is it tacky as hell to ask for an RSVP before the RSVP is due? And to ask by e-mail? And twice in one week? Curious minds want to know. I'm just furious about the whole thing and have half a mind not to even show up now!

Vosges Hautes Glaces

2010-03-28T16:45:00.002-04:00

The other night on a rare trip to Whole Foods, I discovered that my favorite chocolate, Vosges, based in Chicago, now makes an exotic ice cream, Hautes Glace! I wanted to buy the Red Fire, which is hot and spicy, but felt too guilty cause it's full fat ice cream and I would have eaten the entire thing. So I refrained, but I'm sure at some point I will have to go back for it!

Cincinnati/Memphis Trip

2010-03-24T11:16:00.003-04:00

I just got back from being away for about a week. Sundae, my trouble dog, ate just about everything in my house. I had a good trip except for that little problem.

Cincinnati was a trip for work, and was pretty tiring. I have to say the city itself was nicer than I remembered. I'd been there once years ago. I didn't get to have any of the city's famous chili, but I did manage to have some Graeter's ice cream.

I went to Memphis afterwards to visit Funny Girl who moved there back in December. We had a great time, hitting all the popular sites: The Rock and Soul Museum, the Peobody, and Sun Studios. But the highlight was probably seeing Graceland. It was really pricey, but I wanted to go. It was amazing to see all of Elvis' gold records. What a legend. We even went to the Botanic Gardens on the only sunny day. Loved the barbecue at Corky's and got to see her brother-in-law sing at BB King's.

At Sun Studios I discovered the first song to officially be called rock 'n roll: Rocket 88. Click on the link to hear it and learn a little about it. I'm a little obsessed with it right now and bought a CD that had it on there. I can't believe I have never heard it since my dad used to love this kind of music. I'm recovering today and trying to get my life back in order. It feels like I was gone forever!

March Mourning

2010-03-08T20:58:00.003-05:00

I absolutely hate the month of March. Not only is it the time when I'm just waiting for spring to be here, a very busy time at work, and the longest month ever, but for the second year in a row there's been a death in my family.

This weekend my last remaining grandmother passed away at the age of 92. I am grateful to have had my grandparents for as long as I have . . . I still have one grandfather who will be 95 this year. I wasn’t as close to this grandmother as the one I lost three years ago, but it’s still hard to accept death and the fact that you will never see that person again.

And in loving memory, today is the day I lost my beloved Pepper last year. I miss her every day.

Officially. Sick. Of. Winter.

2010-02-16T19:31:00.004-05:00

I am so sick of this winter I could just spit. We have beat the all-time record for most snow in VA, over 54 inches total! If I wanted a winter like this I would live in Buffalo or something. There are just huge piles everywhere, it's hard to get around and walk the dogs, having to cross the streets like a maze to find an opening to get to the sidewalk. Then there's the post-walk cleaning up of the dogs again and again. Not to mention the trouble of trying to find an empty parking spot after leaving the lot. Oh, I am so tired of it all. And it's so cold, that whenever we have temps above freezing it feels nearly balmy. I just can't take it and don't know how many more winters I'll be willing to spend like this! Here's a photo of my back gate for your amusement. The gate is about 5 feet tall.

A Bit of Thanks??

2010-02-05T17:54:00.002-05:00

To follow up on a recent, post, we did actually celebrate our goal being met at work during our last staff meeting. However, when someone exclaimed that they wanted to thank those of us who marketed the hell out of it (i.e., marketing) my boss very quickly jumped in and said that it was due to everyone's work and that's why we were all here having champagne. WTF??

Martina McBride - Shine Indeed!

2010-02-02T19:47:00.004-05:00

I went to see Martina on Sunday night, and wow, what a great show. That was probably the best she's ever been, and I've seen her about a million times so that says a lot. She played for nearly two hours, and it was a great mix of her old and new songs, ballads and upbeat tunes. The only "bad" thing I have to say is she didn't sing "I Just Call You Mine," her current single, and that surprised me a bit. She ended with Bon Jovi's Living on a Prayer, which was such a fun surprise. I started cracking up when they played the first chords, cause I couldn't believe she was going to play that, and the friend I was with thought I was nuts. In any case, here's a photo I took. She came out to a stage right by me for a while, then out into the audience. It was a really awesome show. She's back in the area on Feb. 20 in Baltimore, and I have half a mind to get tickets and go again!

More Things I Love

2010-01-29T19:39:00.005-05:00

We hit a huge goal at work today. A goal I was mostly responsible for achieving, and largely responsible for surpassing. Yes, surpassing, which was very exciting. Because we hit the goal and people were excited, the person processing the orders was told that she could leave work early. Um . . . all she did was process everything. So somehow due to her great processing we achieved the goal? I don't think so. Yet did anyone even think to tell me that I did a great job achieving the goal? Not a one. I didn’t get sent home early. Bastards. So I just left work early anyway.

Lady Antebellum New Release

2010-01-26T19:58:00.002-05:00

If I wasn't so annoyingly busy this week, I'd be purchasing Lady A's new CD, out today, Need You Now. My first free night is Thursday, so I guess I'll try for then. In the meantime I'll have to be satisfied with the sampler snippets on Amazon or iTunes. Sigh.

Things I Love: Another Installment

2010-01-26T19:57:00.000-05:00

I love it when your boss knows you probably haven’t done something and they really are asking you to do it, but for some reason they can’t just come out and ask you to do it. My boss last week came in my office and said, “I’m sure you’ve probably already done this, but the CEO is looking for blah blah blah.” Ok, now “blah, blah, blah” was never discussed with me, nor is it something we’ve ever really done before, nor do I see any great need to do it, so I don’t know why she thinks I would have already done it?

I just hate this passive aggressive bullshit. Just say “the CEO would like you to do X by X date” and be done with it. How hard is that?? I love work.

Peed Plumbing

2010-01-10T18:45:00.002-05:00

I saw a truck with this name on it today while walking my dogs. Really? Really! You gotta wonder if it's a family name, or just something someone made up who thought it would be clever marketing. I just think it's weird.

About My Staycation

2010-01-08T18:20:00.002-05:00

We're more than a week into the New Year already, where does the time go? I had an entire week off work for the holidays, and didn't have any plans, so I had a "staycation." I have to say, it was really awesome. Got to do some things I hadn't gotten around to in forever, saw family, and spent a lot of time with the dogs. We're working on training a lot right now, and it's pretty slow going. But it was still great to be home. I have to say, it really chilled me out and made me able to get back to work and actually be productive and not hate it as much. So yeah, staycations! I highly recommend them.

Merry Christmas

2009-12-24T12:54:00.002-05:00

I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday this year. Though I'm not really feeling it, I'm trying to get in the spirit by listening to Christmas carols. Check out my beautiful poinsettia from Funny Girl's mom. Can't wait for 2009 to finally end!

Country Christmas

2009-12-06T10:52:00.002-05:00

Well, 2009 has certainly been an interesting and terrible year, and it couldn't be over soon enough. I've been meaning to buy Christmas cards and start writing them out, but I realized that I have very little good news to share with people this year. Matter of fact, this year's events kind of read like a sad country song:

My old dog died
My boyfriend left me
My best friend Funny Girl moved hundreds of miles away

So I'm thinking about trying to formulate that into a funny little message somehow so people won't get my card and be severely depressed. Hoping for a creative inspiration!

Things I Love

2009-11-13T18:35:00.004-05:00

Here is another installment of Things I Love, my way of lashing out when I get really angry over something stupid that someone does at work. Today it's my boss being totally passive aggressive. She has no business even being a boss if she is as much of a chicken shit as what she showed today.

I wrote some copy for a promotion, and left it with her around 12. Around 12:05 she called a coworker into the office and closed the door. Paranoid, I assumed they were talking about me, but then thought I was being ridiculous and just dismissed it.

Around 1 I had a meeting with her and a different colleague about a different subject, but I saw the copy on her desk with comments written on it from her and the person she had a closed-door meeting with. However, she said nothing about any of this while I sat there.

I get back to my desk around 1:30 after our meeting, and there's an e-mail about the copy I had left with her. She said that basically my copy wasn't treating the audience with dignity (which in and of itself is completely not true), but she said it so sarcastically that ironically I felt I wasn't being treated with dignity. I was really upset, looked at the time it was sent, 1:03, probably just as I was sitting down with her for the meeting. If she had problems with what I wrote, why didn't she have the balls to say something while I was in her office? Instead she sends me a mean e-mail when she's sure I won't see it till after I meet with her.

And BTW, just because you use cute emoticons all over your sarcastic and mean message, doesn't mean it's going to soften the blow ;) :) Bitch.

A Dog Named Sundae

2009-10-31T10:03:00.004-04:00

I haven't posted in a while, but I've been busy fostering a new dog, Sundae, who I now plan to officially adopt. She has the sweetest disposition, and I think is actually helping to mellow out my crazy 10-year old dog. Check out her photo, isn't she cute? She needs some training, but hopefully she won't destroy my house :)

Call from the Angels

2009-10-19T21:13:00.003-04:00

I had the most exciting call today. I was in the middle of vacuuming and had just cut my finger. I was rinsing it and putting a bandaid on, cursing a lot, when the phone rang. Highly annoyed, I picked it up and was greeted by an unfamiliar British voice. I immediately was annoyed and asked impatiently who was on the line. It turns out it was one of the founders of Best Friends Animal Sanctuary! I had recently become a member and donated money, and actually went out there in July to visit. He was calling to thank me for my donation. We had a very lovely conversation about my pets and his, and he told me next time I'm out there I should ask for him as he's frequently around.

It was the nicest, most uplifting call. He was so appreciative of my efforts, when he's the one who started this amazing place that has saved thousands upon thousands of animals. Amazing. I got off the phone and just started crying because I was so touched. I'd heard rumors that the founders made calls like this, but I didn't quite believe it. What an amazing group of people!

Loving Chi-Town

2009-10-09T20:50:00.004-04:00

Boy, I have always loved Chicago, and this trip was no different. When I arrived Monday night, I had such an ordeal getting to my hotel that I immediately needed a drink and went to the hotel bar. I had a late reception to go to, then some girls and I went to Devon. Since I'd already eaten, I only had their complimentary biscuit, which was amazing, and immediately regretted my earlier dinner at the hotel.

I also went to a great sushi bar/sake bar called Izumi. My friend and I did the flight tasting of four different premium sake, and it was awesome. We also shared the spicy scallop roll, and it was just amazing.

I was in Chicago for a conference, which went pretty well, and included an architectural tour of the new building at the Art Institute of Chicago. What an amazing place, with a view of Millennium Park, which had been built long after my last visit to Chicago, and the new "Bean." I also finally got to see the "Married with Children" fountain, which I had somehow missed in previous visits.

I stayed at the Hilton Suites, right on Magnificent Mile, and really enjoyed getting to walk around Chi-Town. I had lunch with a friend I hadn't seen in like 12 years at Bistro 110, and my last day got some of Giordano's famous deep dish pizza.

I really, really wanted to go to Vosges Haut Chocolate, but in the end I had to decide between that or the American Girl store to get a gift for my niece who was having a birthday. Being the nice aunt that I am, I chose the latter. Sigh. But overall, a great trip. I just wish Chi-Town wasn't so cold, or I would have moved there long ago.

Back from Beach, Off to Chi-Town

2009-10-04T20:27:00.002-04:00

The beach was pretty nice, great weather and I actually got a tan. But even though it was relaxing and I was able to get away from it all, I wasn't able to get away from my own thoughts. I was going to try to post some photos, but I am having difficulties with my camera and can't get anything to download.

This week I'm headed to Chicago for a few days for work. I haven't been in many years, and I know a couple of people there, so I hope to be able to see them. And visit my favorite chocolate store, Vosges!

Beach Bound!

2009-09-18T20:42:00.002-04:00

I am finally, finally getting away for a vacation after more than a year. I'm headed to a beach in NC near Wilmington. Hopefully the weather down there will remain sunny and in the 80s. I have no itinerary, just beach, beach, beach. I can't wait! After the completely shitty year I've had--losing my dog and my boyfriend--I SOOOO deserve this.

Lavendar Moon Cupcakery

2009-09-13T22:53:00.003-04:00

Today I spent the day in Old Town at the Alexandria Festival for the Arts and enjoyed a very nice cupcake from Lavendar Moon Cupcakery. It was vanilla with lemon curd, yum! The cupcake was not too big, not too sweet, and just moist enough. And unfortunately better than Cake Love, which I have written about in previous blog posts. I can't find a website for it, but it's at 116 South Royal Street. Check it out!

My Birthday

2009-09-11T16:17:00.002-04:00

Today is my birthday, and it's always tough because of the date and what happened 8 years ago. I always take the day off and enjoy a pampering massage, and this year was no different. The difference I guess is that Jeffro and I have decided that living together isn't working, so he's moving out Monday. So happy birthday to me indeed. So our trip to BGR last night was probably our last dinner together and it made me really sad sitting there for the last time. I've been having a rough day today, but tonight I'm lucky my best friend Funny Girl Goes Blog has agreed to go out to dinner with me. We'll be off to the Carlyle for some good food and hopefully lots of wine.

The Burger Joint

2009-09-10T20:11:00.002-04:00

Tonight we went out to eat at a relatively new place in Old Town called BGR: The Burger Joint. We'd read about it in Washingtonian, and I guess the chef won a Throwdown with Food Network's Bobby Flay for his Greek (lamb) burger, so we'd been wanting to go there. I have to say, I was just dying for a burger, and it was good, but I am not sure I would go there again. The burger was salty, as were the fries. I don't object to the fries being salty, and boy they were awesome, but to me the burger was just too much so. Jeffro got the sweet potato fries, which were supposed to be incredible, but they were just pretty good. Unfortunately I would say there are other local and more convenient places I like just as well or better, so I probably wouldn't go there again, though I'm very glad I tried it.

Best News Ever: Thin Thighs Kill You

2009-09-04T17:39:00.005-04:00

This story has been flying around the Internet today: people who have thin thighs don't live as long as those with heavier thighs. Wow, that's the best news I've ever heard, as my thighs have been the bane of my existence since, oh, about sixth grade. Some of the theory has to do with the apple/pear theory, that people who carry fat in their core around their organs (apple shape) have more health problems than people like me who carry it in their thighs (pear shape). Read the story here then go have a Twinkie if you put on weight in your thighs.

Weekend and Macy's Goes to the Dogs

2009-08-30T14:15:00.005-04:00

I spent yesterday helping out a local rescue group A Forever Home at the event Wags 'N' Whiskers in Shirlington. It was fun, and luckily not too sunny out cause we had lots of dogs there available for adoption. We got at least a dozen great applications and collected a decent amount in donations. It was a fun day. Then we had Funny Girl Goes Blog and her sister over for dinner last night.

Today I went to Macy's to finish buying my nephew's birthday gift (party in 3 hours!). Below is an actual account of what transpired and the corresponding conversation. It never fails to amaze me how inefficient Macy's is every time I go, and I always wonder why I keep going back . . .

Jeffro and I stood on line while 3 Ukranian guys were trying to apply for a store credit card and things were not going smoothly. After we'd stood there forever, a manager walked by and saw our completely frustrated faces and told us there was an open register across the store. We get over there, and of course the register is no longer open, so she kindly decided to ring us up. Jeffro had some coupons that we wanted to use, so we were going to put the items on his store credit card to do so.

Jeffro: I'd like to use my "$10 off" coupon on these purchases.

Manager: Well, let me see. It looks like these are our "everyday value" items so the coupons would not apply.

Jeffro: Well, the coupon here says most brand names are excluded. So if most brand names are excluded, and "everyday value" items are excluded, what exactly can you use this coupon on?

Manager: (silence)

Jeffro and me: (snickers and eye rolls. Now, I don't normally laugh right in someone's face, but this was just too good and could not be helped.)

Kora Restaurant

2009-08-27T20:33:00.002-04:00

Monday night Jeffro and I went to Kora Restaurant by Morou as part of DC Restaurant Week. Morou is my favorite local chef, and I was very sad when Farrah Olivia closed (hopefully will reopen one day soon). In any case, the food at Kora was just about as incredible as I'd hoped. I started with the roasted red bell pepper, and Jeffro had the gnudi, which is a pasta. Mine was pretty good, but his was amazing. For the main course, I had the cannelloni with crab, fontina cheese, prosciutto, and sauteed spinach. I was a little worried that the crab would over power everything, but it was delicious and I just couldn't stop eating it. Somehow it was very rich, yet light at the same time. Jeffro had the halibut which was nice but paled by comparison to mine.

The menu at Kora is very diverse, some traditional Italian dishes, some with a twist like squid ink tagliatelle. Sophisticated dishes like pork shank ossobuco are offered, along with popular Italian fare like pizza. In other words, the menu offers something for everyone. I'm curious to see how it will do in this location, and hope that it fares much better than its predecessors.

Love and Theft Album Out Today

2009-08-25T08:09:00.003-04:00

My favorite new country group, Love and Theft, is releasing its debut album World Wide Open today! I've got their live EP and they are fabulous. They are three guys who met up when they quit their day jobs and moved to Nashville to try to make it in country music. I guess they found the power of three to be better than one, and formed an incredibly talented group with beautiful harmonies. Listen to their hit single Runaway and preview the entire CD at www.worldwideopenCD.com. Matter of fact, I'm waiting for a phone call from them this morning about the CD!

Keith Urban and Sugarland

2009-08-21T20:32:00.021-04:00

Last night Jeffro and I went to the Verizon Center to see Keith Urban and Sugarland. I'd been having a terrible day for a variety of reasons, and I hate to say it but the concert didn't lift my spirits all that much when it took us nearly 2 hours of metro delays and incompetencies to get home. It was infuriating.

Keith Urban and Sugarland themselves were great, though Keith didn't play many songs from his latest album, which is kind of odd. And Sugarland didn't play for nearly long enough. Unfortunately, we were sitting far away, so most of the pics were taken on the big screen as my stupid camera couldn't focus very well on the stage. But here are a couple of shots to enjoy.

Sugarland on the big screen.

Stage shot of Keith Urban--he went running around the Verizon Center and wound up sitting on a makeshift stage near the back for a while so I was able to get a decent shot, not from the big screen.

Shot of the tour bus outside the Verizon Center. They also handed out free posters to everyone. It was pretty crazy.

This weekend will be busy, we are going to some friends for dinner tomorrow, the possibly having some people over on Sunday. In between, I hope to get some cleaning up done, but we'll see if that happens or not . . .

Busy Weekend

2009-08-16T14:22:00.004-04:00

I got a lot done this weekend, including finishing up my deck project (with another run to Home Depot), cleaning the house, watching Mad Men, playing with puppies, and grilling last night. These are all good things, but what I really wanted to do today was go to the pool. Our neighborhood has a million pools, and although I went to three of them, I was too paranoid I would run into someone I know and I just couldn't stand the mortification of facing a neighbor in a bathing suit. So I just came home and I'm pretty bummed about the whole thing. I'm pretty sure today is the quintessential pool day. So I will just shower, run errands, and do some things around the house. Boy am I bored. Jeffro is not a big sun worshipper, so doing something outdoors today was completely out of the question.

Jeffro's Amazing Marinade

2009-08-11T20:03:00.002-04:00

Jeffro made this great marinade tonight for our grilled salmon. It was quite outstanding. Soy sauce, sesame oil, scallions, garlic, sugar, ginger, and red pepper. I added some wilted spinach and rice, and boy was it a great dinner.

And just when I thought I was having another tough day at work, I found out my neighbor has had this kind of a day:

Found out a dog she fostered died
Found out a fellow dog rescuer died
Found out a dog she fostered got loose and was running around

So I guess in comparison my day looked pretty darned good, though I got retested for allergies and found out some have improved slightly, but I have some new ones including a couple of food allergies. Fun!

Things I Love

2009-08-10T18:49:00.004-04:00

Here is another installment of your favorite column, Things I Love. It's just been that kind of day.

I love it when:

1. Your boss is off work but she frantically e-mails you in the morning with something that she forgot to do and you have to do it immediately. How is this my problem? Happy Monday!

2. You suggest something for work based on conversations that have taken place where people love the idea. When you actually put the idea down on paper for them to see, you get criticized that the suggestion isn't really a great one. Um . . . we all loved it so why is it wrong all of a sudden?

3. Someone in the office who you don't get along with sends you an e-mail with three attachments and no message. Now granted I know what I'm supposed to do with the attachments, but he couldn't have written "Hi CCHarmony, please edit these documents for me. Thanks. Sincerely, The Asshole." BTW, this is also the same guy as in #2 above. It's a lovefest at my job!

4. Your sister, who's mad at you, e-mails a diatribe on why she's mad at you with bullet points, examples, supporting documents, etc. The sister who's not mad at you, in discussing the situation, provides the same bullet point list as if I need to review it yet again. So now I'm mad at both sisters.

5. A telemarketer pollster calls and asks for me, but it's really my boyfriend that he needs to talk to. I tell him that said boyfriend is eating dinner and probably doesn't want to talk to him right now. Telemarketer asks "when would be a good time to call back" and you say "he probably doesn't want to talk to you at all" and he says "great, I'll try again sometime soon."

Boy that felt good! Now it's on to the Carlyle for some wine!

Highs and Lows

2009-08-08T14:11:00.004-04:00

There were many highs this weekend:

Finally nearly completed year-long project to clean and waterproof/stain my deck!

Finally discovered cool young singer Charice. I missed the Oprah she was on, apparently, and she's going to take the world by storm. Great voice, but not sure about first single choice.

Got to visit some very cute puppies. Check it out here then scroll down to "Golden Septuplets."

Accomplished nearly all of my "to-do" list.

And some lows:

My sister is mad at me, long story. So my other sister didn't call today, probably cause sister #1 is mad and she doesn't know how to not get caught in the middle.

I found out about a party that I wasn't invited to that I was last time around.

It is Sunday and I have to go to work tomorrow. I didn't have a good day at work Friday and wound up leaving while the rest of the staff was having a happy hour cause I didn't want to be with them.

RIP John Hughes

2009-08-06T20:46:00.005-04:00

John Hughes, my favorite 80s filmmaker, died today. My favorite movie of all time is Sixteen Candles, but Ferris Bueller is a pretty close second. This has been a very sad year for celebrity deaths. RIP, John.

Kora . . . Italian by Morou Is Open!

2009-08-02T18:41:00.004-04:00

Morou, my favorite local chef whose wonderful restaurant Farrah Olivia recently closed, has just opened Kora, an Italian restaurant/bar/lounge in Crystal City. This restaurant features cuisine by his brother Amadou Outtara. I can't wait to check it out! Make your reservation at Open Table. I'm pretty psyched, especially for the $20 Prix Fixe 3-course brunch! Morou, we're so glad you're back! (Don't forget everyone, DC Restaurant Week is August 24-30, featuring $35.09 fixed price dinners and $20.09 fixed price lunches, though Kora unfortunately does not seem to be participating.)

All About Dogs

2009-08-02T17:45:00.005-04:00

This weekend started off with a visit to the new Lost Dog Cafe, recently opened on Columbia Pike. Jeffro and I had been to the Washington Blvd location many times before, but this new one just opened a couple of months ago so we went to check it out. Nice location, spacious, and a great menu including tons of interesting beer selections. Our waitress was very well-informed about the beer, and I wanted help picking something interesting so she suggested Sea Dog Wild Blueberry Wheat Ale. I can't find any info about it on the Sea Dog Brewery Web site, but it's definitely a great summer beer, refreshing and not too sweet. As soon as I took the cap off I got a strong whiff of fresh blueberries.

The weekend continued with puppy sitting for a neighbor's foster puppies--seven cute lab/shepherd mixes that were little balls of fur. I've been around a lot of puppies, but these were the sweetest, most even-tempered little things I'd ever seen. I don't know how I would choose if I had to pick one. I'm kind of sad that the weekend is over and I don't have to take care of them anymore.

On the recommendation of NOAAgirl, Jeffro and I watched The Best Years of Our Lives, made in 1948. Generally, I don't really like old movies much, but I have to admit this was pretty good and sucked you in from the start. We had to stop watching it halfway (it was 3 hours long!) so I think it kind of lost its momentum at that point and the second half wasn't as good as the first, but still a solid movie. Then last night Jeffro went to see Paul McCartney, so I rented a chick flick at home by myself, Catch and Release. For some reason I just love Jennifer Garner.

Today, besides the puppy watching, was kind of slow since it rained all day and my dog refused to go outside. A nice break for me . . . now I'm wondering how the weekend went by so quickly and why I have to go to work tomorrow when Jeffro has the day off . . .

My Next New Car?

2009-07-26T18:59:00.002-04:00

Well, my wonderful Honda Civic is approaching 10 years old and the dealer keeps calling me to, well, make a deal on my next new car. It's tempting with interest rates as low as they are, but I just don't want a car payment. Plus I haven't really been that excited about any of the Honda models, and don't know if I want to get yet another Civic. However, Jeffro just sent me a link to a new car coming out in 2010, the CR-Z. It's a hybrid and totally cool looking, so if the price is right, I just might be thinking about purchasing a new car soon . . . I'm also sort of in love with their S2000 hard top convertible, which I keep seeing all over town, so you never know.

Trip to Utah

2009-07-25T10:45:00.015-04:00

I was in Vegas last week for a convention for work, but afterwards I took a little time to go to Red Mountain Spa in St. George, UT, and then to Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Kanab, UT. I had a great time and didn't really want to come back to the congestion and chaos that is DC.

Red Mountain Spa was awesome--very beautiful and scenic with lots to do. I took two long hikes and enjoyed a couple of awesome massages. Best Friends was an amazing place tucked into the mountains. I volunteered there one morning and got to walk some awesome dogs--Tigger, Rose, and Beau. Here's a photo of Tigger, he was such a sweet boy.

Vegas, Baby!

2009-07-11T20:37:00.003-04:00

Well, I'm off to Vegas for a work conference. It will be absolute hell. I'll be there through 7/18, then going to my dream spot: Red Mountain Spa (see left) in St. George Utah (I want to buy one of their condos!) then to Best Friends Animal Sanctuary

I am so excited about my post-conference trips I may never come back! Particularly if I win a lot gambling, I'll just quit my job on the spot! I have needed a vacation for a long, long time. Everyone have a great couple of weeks, as I won't be able to blog when I'm gone. Gotta get myself a laptop one of these days!

Happy July 4

2009-07-04T14:25:00.002-04:00

Boy it's been nice having a 3-day weekend, though it's been a really busy one so far. Yesterday we had someone come here to do a minor household repair, then I went to lunch with Funny Girl Goes Blog, got my hair cut, went to the eye doctor (might have found some contacts that work for me!), and then to a July 3 party. I can't believe how much I did! In between all this stuff, I discovered a slow leak in my tire and had to get it patched and bought some stuff for my impending trip to Vegas next week.

Today has been busy too, attended my neighborhood's July 4 parade, went out to lunch. Tonight is another party. Not sure what tomorrow will bring, but I have so much to do and not enough time to do it!

Beautiful Morning!

2009-06-27T10:18:00.004-04:00

Wow, what a beautiful morning. The sun is shining, a slight breeze, and not too humid. Hopefully this will last all weekend.

What a weird week it's been . . . I have to say I can't believe Michael Jackson died. What a tragedy. But it seems these sort of stars seem to flame out young . . .

This morning I decided (since I was out of cereal) to make blueberry muffins. Yum! Then I planted some things I've been meaning to plant for like 2 months. Tonight we're going to see one of my favorite singers, Holly Williams at Iota. She hardly ever comes to the DC area, so I am psyched she's going to be so close.

Tomorrow is a completely open book, so I may do more gardening that I've been meaning to get around to. And maybe grill?

Tragic Events of Late

2009-06-23T16:42:00.002-04:00

Boy, this has been a rough week, to say the least.

My brother in law's cousin, who was only 10, just passed away on Father's Day. She was born with a problematic heart and has had a pacemaker her whole life. So I guess there was always the chance something bad would happen, but she'd been doing so well, and having a fun, normal "kid's life" that you forget about the hand that fate dealt her. She had probably a heart attack this past week and passed away after about a week in the hospital on life support. She was a great kid--very kind and considerate of others, always willing to lend a hand. I would have liked to have seen the woman she would have been. I just got back from the funeral, and found out that prophetically she had told her grandmother that she didn't want to grow old, she wanted to die instead. Freaky.

The other sad news of the week is about the DC metro crash. I can't even imagine the hell they went through. My grandfather, who is 94 years old and still sharp as a tack, called me in a panic last night to make sure I hadn't been on the metro, remembering that I used to take it for work. Boy, that sure made me feel good that he cared enough to call, as he doesn't very often pick up the phone.

In any case, let's hope the week of tragedy has ended with the Ed McMahon trifecta . . .

Weekend Wrap

2009-06-07T16:24:00.003-04:00

Boy, it has been way too busy . . .

Friday night I got home later than I expected and barely had time to get dinner before Jeffro called. He'd gone after work to see a movie and needed me to pick him up.

Saturday was really busy, I took a makeup yoga class in the morning, then the evening was the annual Lawn & Dock Party at the Old Dominion Boat Club. Luckily, the clouds that had been plaguing the day disappeared and the evening was beautiful on the water on the Potomac. At the end of the party, we decided to head over to Ramparts to see Niki Barr, who is an awsome singer from Annapolis. It was an acoustic set, very different than the crazy footage on her Web site of her jumping around. We got home really late, and I've been wiped out all day.

Tonight we're getting ready to fire up the grill, then looking forward to the new season of The Next Food Network Star and a new Iron Chef America. I will be dead at work tomorrow.

Things I Love (About Working)

2009-06-02T21:04:00.004-04:00

As most people know, I am not overly fond of working. Things have been particularly bad at my job currently, and I'm actually worried about getting laid off. We'll see what happens with that. In the meantime, I'm going to occasionally post about "Things I Love."

1. I love finding errors in e-mails my boss has sent out without asking me to proof them first. She used to ask me frequently to proof things. Not so much anymore. So I just love getting to point out a big old error after something has already been sent and seeing the doh! reaction. (This one I'm serious about.)

2. I love when you do something one way, a new modern way, and your boss makes you do it over in a time-consuming, outdated fashion just because it’s “how we’ve always done it."

3. I love it when your boss assigns you something on a tight deadline that doesn’t really make sense for you to do—like pulling statistics when that’s not your responsibility or forte. Then when she doesn’t like how you did it cause you don’t really have the best access to the information, she asks someone else to do it over again and uses that data instead.

New Holly Williams on June 16

2009-06-01T21:33:00.002-04:00

One of my favorite singers, Holly Williams, finally has a new CD coming out on June 16! I am very psyched. Thanks to Jeffro for the reminder.

Back from Berkeley Springs

2009-05-24T20:00:00.005-04:00

Jeffro and I spent a nice relaxing weekend in Berkeley Springs, WV. We stayed at the Country Inn, which was a nice enough place I guess, central to everything and right next to Berkeley Springs State Park. The springs were not what I envisioned them to be, but it was kind of cool to think that George Washington had made the trek there hundreds of years ago to enjoy the mineral springs' restorative and healthy properties.

Friday we arrived at lunchtime and ate at Tari's, which also had a nice amount of local art to view. Dinner was at the Panorama at the Peak restaurant--excellent local food and a view to die for (see photo). We made a new friend sitting at the bar waiting, a very interesting "local cowboy" who, much to our surprise, liked Obama. But also said he couldn't tell many people that. Apparently WV just went non-smoking so he ran out about three times during our 15-minute conversation to smoke.

Saturday we went to Cacapon State Park and enjoyed walking along the lake to the dam/waterfall. Then we spent the rest of the day exploring the shops in Berkeley Springs and talked to a nice guy who owns a cabin nearby and told us we should have stayed at Whispering Hills. We wanted to see the Paw Paw Tunnel and the railroad bridge at Great Cacapon, but wound up unfortunately seeing neither. But the winding drive to get there was really fun. I wanted to eat at Lot 12 Public House, but there were complications so we weren't able to do that either. But I'll give them a plug here anyway since they had a booth at the farmer's market selling amazing-smelling food. When it started pouring that night, we found a great wine bar La Luna to enjoy a glass of wine and chocolate lava cake, as well as take in more local art.

Sunday we explored the local farmer's market, then discovered the beautiful Exline Iris Garden. It was tempting to buy some irises, but I don't think they would do well in my yard. Quite a spectacular place with hundreds of irises in bloom in every color.

Restaurant 3 Review

2009-05-21T20:12:00.006-04:00

Last night Jeffro and I went to Restaurant 3 for his birthday. I wanted to try someplace different, and thought I'd remembered him talking about it sometime. Even though the menu didn't seem to be quite his thing, I went ahead with it anyway. Boy are we glad we did.

We had some old fashioned cocktails to start with, I had a Raspberry Rickey and he had a Ginger Collins. Even though I don't really like gin much, my drink went down pretty easy. For appetizers we had the Tuna Lollipops and Fried Oysters (Funny Girl Goes Blog would love both of these!). The tuna reminded me of Carlyle's awesome Seared Tuna Salad, and the oysters were substantial, the cornmeal crust perfectly crispy and the inside melt-in-your-mouth creamy.

For dinner Jeffro had the Scallops and Grits and I had the Smothered Trout. I had been debating the Crab-Crusted Black Cod or Blackened Catfish, but when I asked the waiter which he would recommend he said the Smothered Trout was the best. Since I don't normally go for "smothered" food I was doubtful, but this wasn't a typical "smothered" dish. The trout was smothered with mussels and shrimp over a bed of grits, with a wonderfully fragrant tomato-based sauce. It was crazy good. To accompany the trout I chose the Ferrari-Carano Fume Blanc, which was divine.

Altogether a great, and very filling, meal. I would definitely recommend this restaurant to foodies everywhere. My only complaint is I would have preferred to sit out on the balcony.

Time Flying By

2009-05-17T12:34:00.003-04:00

This was another incredibly busy week. I had something going on just about every night, concluding with a neighborhood Pet Happy Hour I organized on Friday night. We had record turnout, probably close to 100 people came! Luckily the rain held off. The crowd cleaned us out food and beverage-wise. It was a great time.

The rest of this weekend I've tried to take it easy cause I'm so tired, but we did grill out last night between the rain. Awesome turkey burgers by Funny Girl Goes Blog, and great grilled veggies. Finally got arond to watching Sling Blade, I'd never seen it before. Today I'm just going to run some errands and clean up around the house. This next week will be a bit busy, but then next weekend Jeffro and I are going away for the weekend for his birthday! I can't wait to get away for a bit of R&R!

Gorgeous

2009-05-10T20:42:00.003-04:00

What fabulous weather this weekend, finally, after over a week of rain! The weekend went by way too fast, but I did enjoy grilling out, and I finally made my key lime pie, which I have to say came out quite well!

Tomorrow starts another day at work, and a crazy week of meetings. Boy do I need a vacation. Luckily Jeffro and I are going away next weekend for his birthday, I can't wait!

Weekend Goes to the Dogs

2009-05-03T17:19:00.002-04:00

As Funny Girl Goes Blog noted, I spent part of the weekend raising money to help A Forever-Home Rescue Foundation, an animal rescue organization that my neighbor is involved in. Our community had its annual spring yard sale yesterday, and a bunch of neighbors got together to donate "sellable" items, including me (yeah, cleaning out the basement!). Luckily Saturday didn't have much rain, so the turnout was great and sales were brisk. We made just over $300 (with the most expensive item being a $25 bike) in just 5 hours. It was a fun way to spend the day, visiting with neighbors and haggling over prices. At the end, even though we sold a ton of stuff, we still had a carload of items to donate to Goodwill and another carload going to a local church. It was a good day. I must say, though, that I missed NOAAgirl's presence at the yard sale this year :(

Today was completely rainy and gross but somehow that inspired me to cook. I'm making turkey burgers for dinner but a couple of other things too, and enjoying all of that creativity with a glass of Barefoot's new Pinot Noir. I bought key limes at the store and may even attempt a key lime pie! Pretty nice way to end the weekend.

Change: Farrah Olivia Now Staying!

2009-04-26T11:23:00.004-04:00

My beloved favorite restaurant Farrah Olivia by Morou was supposed to be temporarily closing and moving from its location in Old Town. However, now apparently they are not moving, at least not for the near future. Yeah! Apparently Balducci's originally was not going to renew the lease on the restaurant, forcing them to close and search for another location. So we'll have to wait and see what happens.

On a bright note, they are opening a new bar/restaurant in Crystal City in the location of Bebo, which I really liked, so it's kind of sad that they are gone too. The new place is called KORA, at 2250 Crystal Drive. I can't wait to check it out!

Busy Part Three

2009-04-25T15:15:00.003-04:00

This week has been nuts, I've had something almost every night this week.

Tuesday I had a neighborhood committee meeting . . . Wednesday I went to see a dog trainer (Best Behaved Dog) speaking, think I'm going to call her about my sometimes bad dog . . . Thursday I had a work event to go to . . . Friday I took the day off and accompanied my niece on piano for her viola competition, which is a whole story in and of itself.

Today I decided to sleep in and I've mainly been outside all day. Took a long walk with the dog, then gave him a bath, then did some gardening and planted the first few flowers of the season. Tonight we're going to break out the grill for the first time and have salmon and shrimp. Yeah!

Tomorrow I need to run some errands, but I'm enjoying a weekend with nothing "set" that I have to do.

Too Busy Still

2009-04-19T18:41:00.005-04:00

This was a crazy weekend . . . what did I do?

Friday night I saw Chelsea Handler at Warner Theater with Funny Girl Goes Blog. I got Chelsea's autograph!

Saturday I went to Solomon's Island. It was such a beautiful day, but unfortunately I didn't get to stay there very much and enjoy the weather. Long story, and stupid me. I didn't even get my annual drink at the Tiki Bar! Major bummer.

Sunday I went over to practice with my niece. I am accompanying her on piano when she has her viola solo judging. I also got my first pedicure of the summer!

This week is going to be even more ridiculous. I have stuff almost every night, including having to go to a black-tie thing for work. I am not excited and my one dress that fits is not even clean but it just might have to do as I doubt I can get it cleaned now. Luckily, I am taking Friday off, and boy am I going to need it!

Too Busy and Too Much Music

2009-04-06T19:04:00.003-04:00

Boy, I haven't really had much of a chance to write at all. Here are the highlights of what's been going on. And the month is just beginning, it's going to get worse before it gets better:

Washer's been on the fritz so I've had to deal with the home warranty folks to get a new one. Supposedly it's coming Wednesday.

To make room for said new washer, Jeffro and I have had to clear a big space in the basement, which is not easy to do. We're still working on that.

This past weekend was my niece's ballet. When did I find out about this opportunity to see it? The day before it happened. Luckily I had no real plans this weekend so I could make it.

Lots of meetings, meetings, meetings. I'm on a local board and that's been keeping me very busy. And poor Jeffro's gotten roped into helping. Hopefully it will die down a bit soon.

Music, music, music. Every week for the past few weeks one of my favorite artists has released a new CD. See my list to the right. This week Rascal Flatts will be added.

This coming weekend Jeffro's mom is coming for Easter. Luckily I have a 1/2 day off Friday to prepare after the washing machine debacle.

Next weekend I am going to see Chelsea Handler, then going to Solomon's Island the next day and another party that night too! I've been having to turn down invitations. When it rains it pours!

Anyway, all good stuff, relatively speaking, but I feel I haven't had a moment to breathe.

Survivin' Atlanta

2009-03-23T18:39:00.003-04:00

Well, I'm back from my travels, and they were about as difficult as I thought. Lots of work, and I'm exhausted today. I went in to work, but was told by the boss I could go home midday cause we worked so hard over the weekend. Which is great, but I would have liked to not get up early this morning instead . . . oh well.

The best part of my trip was Thursday night before things really got into high gear. The weather was like 70 and I walked around a bit before having dinner at a sushi restuarant near my hotel. I enjoyed my favorite new drink, the French martini.

Today on my half day off a repairman came over . . . the washing machine is on the fritz and it probably needs to be replaced. I have a home warranty, luckily, but I think I might want to upgrade to an energy-efficient model, so that's gonna cost me. I also cleared out the basement closet, and it felt so good! Part of my plan to finally get this place whipped into shape once and for all . . . wish me luck!

Work from Hell

2009-03-18T20:10:00.004-04:00

So today we have yet another staff meeting (after sitting there for two hours yesterday in staff meetings) but this was impromptu, and I was worried that someone was leaving the company. In this time when we are in the middle of a salary freeze, when they've cut our 401K contribution, they decided to have a big meeting with champagne to announce that four people are getting promotions! I love that in this time when I've been working late every night and the only one left in the building, in this time when I've exceeded our financial goals for sponsorship, not only am I getting little to no recognition, but I'm getting treated like shit by my boss every day and everyone else is apparently getting promotions and presumably a raise. Yippee for them.

The other good news is I have a big thing going on for work, so I'm bound for Atlanta for a few days. After working late most nights this week, now I get to go and work 15 hour days over the weekend. Boy am I psyched. I definitely need to find a new job soon, I can't take it anymore.

I wish I were going someplace cool, but man, Atlanta just sucks. Scary. But tomorrow at least I hope to get a little free time and order room service and a movie and enjoy the peace and quiet before the madness begins.

Grief . . . a Week Later

2009-03-15T20:33:00.004-04:00

The sad thing about our ridiculously fast pace of life today is that there is no time to reflect, to mourn, to grieve, to think about anything anymore. I remember when my grandmother passed I had to go to work THE NEXT DAY cause of various things going on. Everyone just moves on to the next thing like nothing ever happened. It just sucks.

The house has been very, very quiet and strange without Pepper. My other dog has seemed a little out of sorts. I think he and Pepper fed off each other more than I realized. He's actually stopped being my alarm clock these days and lets me sleep later than ever before. He also seems a little lonely and clingy, so I've been trying to give him extra attention as much as I can.

I did decide to take last Monday off (despite the surprising flack from my boss), but I just think it's sad that there is no longer any respect for the emotions of life. You're just expect to go on as usual no matter what happens.

The surprising thing about this week has been the reaction of friends and family. Here are some reflections about that:

1. Family. They have called a couple of times to see if I'm ok but no "gestures" as friends have done, like cards or flowers.

2. Friends. Some friends I never expected to contact me have sent me cards or flowers. It has been so sweet, but made me cry each time . . .

3. Boss. Despite our "friendly, flexible work environment" where everyone knows WAY too much about each others' business and supposedly everyone cares about each other and personal time off is allowed, my boss was very reluctant to let me have one frigging day off cause we had a big thing planned last week. The big thing was on Friday, and mind you I took Monday off, leaving plenty of time for the planning of Friday's big event. But she was literally trying to talk me out of staying home Monday, saying things like "how considerate my dog was to pass over the weekend," the implication being that I wouldn't have to take any time off. I couldn't believe it! Most people in my company take time off for important things like hangnails; however, I was obviously not allowed one stupid day to mourn my dog of 15.5 years. Assholes! So despite the disapproval, I did take Monday off cause damn I well deserve it. Let me tell you, if it weren't for this crappy economy, I would be so out of there . . .

RIP Pepper

2009-03-08T09:47:00.004-04:00

Last night I had to rush to the vet emergency room in the middle of the night. My 15-year old dog, Pepper, who has been sick with kidney disease for a year, seemed to have had a stroke or something and could no longer move. So I knew, unfortunately, the time had come.

I loved this dog like a best friend. She's been with me for most of my adult life, having moved to AZ and back with me. We had lots of adventures and she's seen me through thick and thin. The house seems so quiet already without her. I will miss her always and never forget how much she meant to me. RIP, Pepper, August 18, 1993 - March 8, 2009.

Smoking Ban in VA!

2009-02-28T09:26:00.003-05:00

I never thought I'd live to see the day, since Virginia is all about producing tobacco, but apparently the Virginia General Assembly has finally passed a smoking ban for restaurants and bars in Virginia, effective December 1. How excited am I? Check out the facts here and story here.

Loving Farrah Olivia

2009-02-18T20:13:00.004-05:00

Tonight, I finally collected on my Christmas present from Jeffro, a dinner at my favorite restaurants, Farrah Olivia. It was absolutely delicious--white grits, haddock, and mango with ice cream for dessert. Outstanding! And the coolest part is some guy was there from the Food Network filming for some upcoming special! How exciting would that be, me on TV in my favorite restaurant?

New Holly Williams and Martina McBride Coming Soon

2009-02-15T17:09:00.002-05:00

Two of my favorite artists are releasing new CDs soon. I can't wait!

Martina's CD Shine will be available March 24.

Holly Williams, daughter of Hank Jr., was on an independent label but just got signed with Mercury. Her new album is coming out this summer and you can play her single, Keep the Change, on her MySpace page.

Valentine's Day Treat

2009-02-15T16:59:00.003-05:00

Last night Jeffro and I went to Del Merei Grille for our Valentine's dinner. I had filet mignon and Jeffro had rockfish and we split an order of their famous Frickles--fried pickles, a Southern delight. Peppermint brownies for dessert. Yum!

Weekend Goes Too Fast

2009-02-08T18:26:00.002-05:00

Yet another weekend coming to a close. It was a fairly good one, but way too quick. I did love the sunny warm weather, what a treat! I didn't do a whole lot this weekend, just some stuff around the house (finally got the bathroom set up after 2 weeks!), a party at the neighbors, and out to brunch with some friends. But I am completely exhausted and feel like I need another weekend to get some rest. My older dog has been getting me up a lot at night to the point where I feel really tired and run down.

Balmy and 40?

2009-02-01T11:48:00.003-05:00

You know it's been a very cold winter when you think sunny and 44 degrees is a real treat! I am so excited, the air even had a sort of spring-like smell today. We're supposed to hit 50 so let me go find my bathing suit.

Bathroom Gets a Facelift

2009-01-31T20:24:00.003-05:00

I'm so excited! Jeffro and I are "remaking" the bathroom with a brand new color scheme. We just bought new shower curtain, rugs, and towels which are in the wash. We hope to get everything up tomorrow. Then I just need to find curtains and we'll have a completely new look with a cool blue "spa-like" color. I can't wait! I've been wanting to do this since I re-did my shower a couple of years ago.

Best Worst Cookies

2009-01-25T16:59:00.005-05:00

Oh. My. God. Jeffro bought us the best--and worst--cookies ever at the Italian Store last night. They're called Bergers and they are the most delicious things I've ever eaten. The minute you bite into it, you just can't help but make a deliriously happy noise. Of course, at 140 calories and 4 g of fat a pop (1 saturated and 1 trans), they are probably also the worst cookies I've come across in a while with lots of terrible hydrogenated stuff in them. So while they are delicious, definitely be careful not to overdo it!

1-20-09

2009-01-18T15:17:00.003-05:00

Here in DC, it's all-inauguration, all the time. If you're happy about it, like me, check out this countdown until Bush is finally, finally out of office!

www.bushslastday.com

Check out the site for 75% off promotional items like t-shirts, mugs, etc. As far as my weekend goes, I'm staying far away from DC. Doing errands, having dinner with friends, and most importantly, today I'm getting a massage!