New Martina Duet

With Alan Jackson, "Never Loved Before." Kind of an odd but cute little ditty. Download it here. Check out the CSI-inspired video here.

Summer Must Read

I came home tonight from a late night (work reception, at least there was free wine and beer) to find the coolest surprise gift from (I'm assuming) Jeffro: a copy of Chelsea Handler's brand new book Are You There Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea. How hilarious! I didn't even realize it was out yet! Considering I loved her My Horizontal Life: A Collection of One-Night Stands, I'm dying to get started reading!

New Martina McBride Live CD/DVD

For your purchasing pleasure, Martina McBride today released her first live CD/DVD. Guess what I'll be ordering as soon as I get paid?

ihasahotdog.com

Brought to you by the same folks who created http://icanhascheezburger.com/ there's now a dog version!

http://www.ihasahotdog.com/

Enjoy!


Thanks to MJ for the tip.

Please Come to Boston

I just spent 4 days in Boston on business, after not having been in over 10 years. What a great city! I had forgotten how awesome it is. If only it were so friggin cold in the winter. However, we had beautiful 70+ weather, and I had the chance to hang out with a very flamboyant gay guy who's lived and worked there for like 30 years, who showed us a great time at . . .

Union Park, right near his office. I also loved the Public Park.

Aquitaine restaurant, enjoying steak au poivre.

Banq bar/restaurant, with its hip/chic architectural details (see photo).

Pops with awesome Mums iced tea and Italian sausage sandwiches.

Picco with amazing pizza and ice cream, supposedly hense the name (P=pizza, IC=ice cream, CO=co).

Stephanie's on Newbury with its great people watching and mac 'n cheese.

We also managed to go into the Copley Fairmont and visit Catie Copley and get a book signed and visit with Catie.

I also bought a pair of Switch Flops at Copley Flair, a great store right near Newbury.

What a great city, what a fun time! I would love to go back when I have more time.

Solomon's Island Weekend

This weekeend I went to Solomon's Island, MD, for our annual trek to celebrate a friend's birthday. The pattern is the same every year, but the players change each time. We had a group of about 20 people this time. Late lunch at Stoney's followed by drinks at the infamous Tiki Bar. Yum! It was a beautiful day for the trip, lots of sun but not too hot. Just far enough to feel like you're getting away from DC, but close enough to wrap it all up in a day. A very fun time.

Today I spent the day cleaning in preparation for my mom visiting. We had a nice dinner at Carlyle. I leave Tuesday for Boston for the better part of the week, so happy week, everyone!

True Arrival of Spring

I know spring has truly arrived, cause my allergies have finally kicked in full force. Seriously, though, I love finally not having to wear a jacket outside so I guess I will try my best not to complain.

I've been exceedingly busy, as usual. Somehow I got sucked into running a local neighborhood pet event in May. On top of that, I've been having to deal with my taxes, which are a nightmare because of the freelance work I did this year. Did you know that freelancers are considered small businesses, and all are taxed an extra 15+ percent? How is small business expected to thrive in this economy? I actually sought the advice of a really evil accountant, who made a mathematical error on my first round of taxes so huge even an idiot like me caught it. We finally got it straightened out, but the bottom line is I am still paying thousands of dollars to the IRS and VA government. Gotta love it.

Next week will be as insanely busy as this past week, with something going on just about every night. Then the following week I leave for a work trip to Boston. In preparation--cause I won't have any other time to do it--I spent today getting my hair cut and my first pedicure of the season.

Tonight we're going to see local favorite band Catfish Honeymoon at Jay's Saloon in Arlington. Tomorrow's fairly free, but I need to clean up my garden so I can recycle the debris in this week's special recycling pickup.

PS - I just have to make a comment about American Idol this week. I was shocked and horrified that Michael Johns got kicked off and David Cook was safe. I usually love David, but this week's performance was absolutely the pits and he should have at least been in the bottom three. And it's not fair that Syesha and Kristy have been in the bottom three at least three times now and was safe and Michael, who has never been in the bottom, was kicked off. Totally a bummer.

Total Teenybopper Weekend

I truly felt like I was back in high school again after attending the Rick Springfield and The Hooters concerts. I got to meet RS after the show, much to my complete excitement. The concert was amazing, as was the Hooters' show the next night at the Birchmere. I really liked their new album, and they signed it after the show, so I got to meet all of them too (and got a kiss on the cheek from the drummer!). The only thing that was a bummer is the bass player who was with them back in the 80s had left the band, and he had been my favorite. But otherwise, a stellar evening, despite having apparently not saved the photos correctly, so I have nothing to show you. Check out Jeffro's photos and video clip here.

80s Weekend Planned

This weekend I'm headed to NJ to see Rick Springfield at the State Theater where Jeffro's dad works. I think he's going to be able to get us backstage to meet Rick, and I am trying not to get my hopes up.

Then Saturday we come back home to go to the Hooters at the Birchmere. They have a new album out and I'm curious to see what they will sound like after all these years. I saw them about a million years ago.

Anyway, here's a little music from them, courtesy of Jeffro. Enjoy!
MP3: Love Somebody – Rick Springfield
MP3: All You Zombies – The Hooters

So I stole this idea from Jeffro to see what celebrity I look like. What a weird list! Every time I do something like this I wind up resembling Indian or Asian celebrities even though I'm Italian. Weird! This is even weirder, with my number one look-alike being Catherine Deneuve! If only I looked like Catherine, my life would certainly have been much better! I don't even know who half these people are, and I don't have time to research for you. So if you're curious, you can Google them yourself.

Latest Health Crisis

And boy, this one's a doozy. It seems that ever time I go to the doctor I have a new problem. I have an ongoing thyroid condition (nodules) and now the latest test results show that I need to get a biopsy to determine what is going on. It is very likely that no matter what the biopsy shows, I will have to have my thyroid removed in the near future. Even if it's benign, the chances are that these bad changes that are occurring will continue to occur, leading to something worse. I'm on thyroid medicine anyway, so my thyroid isn't really "working" anymore, so the best option is likely just to take the damn thing out.

Ups and Downs (Mostly Up)

Well, it seems that my dog's new kidney meds are helping. Her appetite seems better, and she's now mostly agreeing to take walks, albeit sometimes short ones. So I'm pretty happy about that. The holistic vet is putting her on another kidney support in the next couple of days, so we'll see what that does. Plus she's going for accupuncture again next week. This has been a much better week.

I'm working from home today, which is nice. Have a big project to finish and it's too difficult to get done in the office.

Been Gone So Long

Sorry that I haven't written in a while, I have really been in a funk. My 14-year old dog is rapidly deteriorating in health, and I've been sort of focused/obsessed with that and haven't felt at all like writing. I don't feel I have anything good to say right now, so I guess I'm on a little hiatus until I feel a little better about things. It's been a really rough couple of weeks.

New Mattress Tomorrow!

Well, yesterday we finally went out to buy a much-needed new mattress. Our old mattress is actually hurting my back, so it's definitely time for a new one. I'm so excited! I think we wound up with a Sealy Posturepedic. It's being delivered tomorrow, so I will get to leave work at some point, which is also very exciting . . .

Your Update

I just realized I haven't blogged all week. Guess I'm feeling a little uninspired. But here's a few tidbits to catch you up:

1. Opie seems to have recovered well from his surgery and is fully back to his old antics.

2. Pepper is still ambling along, doing maybe a little better this week due to an increase in meds.

3. Jeffro has just purchased a new car (see above).

4. I've been suffering with terrible allergies for no apparent reason--this is not my bad time of year and despite daily meds and twice-monthly allergy shots nothing's helping. Guess I might have to go back to more frequent shots. I'm also officially on a diet, well during the week that is.

So there, now you know everything going on over here.

NFW

I'm having a not fun week (NFW). Opie is recovering quite well from his recent health crisis, but today he refused to allow the dog walker to put his cone back on, so I had to come home early from work and may have to stay home tomorrow to supervise him.

My older dog is not doing very well. Her stomach is very sensitive (she threw up today) and she doesn't seem to want to walk much any more. It's just a rollercoaster with her. One week she's better, the next week she's worse. Sigh.

Oh, and Jeffro's car is totaled and he has to get a new one. . . And today my toilet started acting up, so I have left a message with my fix-it guy. I need a vacation . . .

Weekend of Woes

This is probably more than you ever wanted to know about my life, but my poor dog Opie has developed an abcess in his anal gland and had to go to the emergency vet last night and stay overnight for some minor surgery to lance it. I picked him up this morning and he is one sorry dog. He keeps crying even though I took the Elizabethan collar off him, and he's following me around everywhere. His butt is a complete mess, as they left the site open and it's totally disgusting. I don't know how he's going to poop, it looks really painful! I have to go back and pick up some chewable pills, as he won't take what they originally gave us. I also have to apply a warm compress to his butt, which is going to be mighty interesting. The things we do for our pets. And poor me, this procedure and drugs cost me over $500. Sigh.

Then Jeffro hit a parked car here on the street on his way back from the grocery store. He said his brakes failed . . . the hood of his car is pretty much needing to be replaced, plus he said his radiator is leaking. The other car didn't have much damage and of course the owner can't be found right now. He's on the phone with insurance right now. (He was not was injured.) This has been one expensive weekend for both of us.

Work Rant of the Day

It's been a while since I've had a really good rant on my blog, so here goes. Enjoy.

People in this world need to learn to have one friggin ounce of patience. As I was on the phone today, my other line rang and since I was on the phone I didn’t pick up. So they dialed “O” to go to the operator and got someone else in the office, who then also tried to call me and I didn’t pick up. Then my coworker who got the call emailed me and copied the guy who had called. In the meantime, the guy tried to call me again, didn’t get a message, and pressed “O” again and someone else appeared at my door to try to get me to answer the phone.

After I emailed the guy the answer, he called me again about 10 minutes later asking me something I'd written in the email, which he claims he never got. Geez!

This was a VERY non-urgent matter, and I can’t believe people can’t either:
1. Leave a message and get a return call in a few minutes
2. Wait for the return email with the information they are requesting.
3. Stop friggin calling every five minutes if you don't get an answer.

It just blows my mind and pisses me off that everyone has to have everything RIGHT THIS MINUTE! I am busy, leave me alone! I will get back to you in a timely fashion when I am able! What is wrong with people and what is wrong with our society that people can no longer wait for anything?

Valentine Surprise: Morou

Jeffro surprised me last night with dinner reservations at Farrah Olivia, which is one of my favorite local restaurants. I’ve chronicled the appearances of Owner and Executive Chef Morou, who has appeared on Iron Chef America and was a contestant on Next Iron Chef America, many times on my blog. It’s no secret I’m a big fan. Well, last night at the table next to us there was a family, and the little girl and mother kept looking to the kitchen door like they expected Morou to walk out. Which he did. Somehow he had connections to that family and went over to say hi. Then he stopped by another table. I was getting discouraged that I wouldn’t be able to meet him, so as he was walking back to the kitchen I shamelessly went over and introduced myself, telling him I was a big fan, loved his restaurant, and thought he should have been the next Iron Chef. He was very nice and down to earth, and insisted on meeting Jeffro, who was still back at the table. So in addition to eating and my favorite place and getting some cool gifts from Jeffro, I got to meet my favorite chef!

Urgent Care

Well, today I had a weird episode of something undefinable that felt like I was having a heart attack or something. I decided to go to Urgent Care and spent 3+ hours sitting there waiting for an appointment. I really liked my doc, though, she was very thorough and I should have test results in a few days. I honestly think it was a case of too much coffee causing grave heartburn, sadly enough. So tomorrow, no coffee for me!