On This Harvest Moon....

New Favorite Snack

2012-01-24T21:25:00.003-06:00

I have very little time to refuel during my school day. I start on one side of the campus, run to the opposite, and then run back to where I started. Luckily my Spanish teacher doesn't yell at me for shoving a few snacks in my mouth during class. One of my new favorite snacks to take in my bag is grape tomatoes and Kashi Original Seven Grain crackers. I just toss a handful of tomatoes and handful of crackers into a container and then pop them in my mouth when my teacher is asking someone else to habla espanol. :)

Sarah Lawrence Siren Song

2012-01-12T10:56:00.002-06:00

When I was in high school my dream was to go to college at Sarah Lawrence in New York. I had an old, wrinkled pamphlet that I'd found amongst a crate full of college brochures and catalogs in a summer school classroom. Eventually, I realized that this dream wasn't going to come true. Depression continually derailed me from my educational track, and the public school system did what it could to help it. I became apathetic, at best, and resentful, at worst towards the idea of any type of formal education. Clearly since I didn't start my college adventure until the age of 29, that mindset lasted for quite a while. I don't even know what happened to that old brochure.

Last semester I was able to join our campus's chapter of Phi Theta Kappa, which is a two-year college honor society. Now I occasionally get e-mails and mailings from colleges looking to recruit PTK members. Imagine my surprise when this weekend I got a packet in the mail from Sarah Lawrence College. After getting the mail I climbed back into bed, and started thumbing my way through it. At first I was thrilled to receive it, even though it was just a bulk mailing. By the time I'd turned the last page, I was a bit depressed. A little sad to think about what I might have missed out on all those year ago.

Yesterday I got an e-mail inviting me to Sarah Lawrence's Transfer Days coming up in February. I'm starting to feel like my old dreams are just flat out haunting me now. The cost of attending this school is astronomical in comparison to my plans at UNT. And they don't have the same degree plan that I've been planning on. And I'd have to move to New York. And when I bemoan feeling stalked by things I can't have, Josh suggest that I can have whatever I want. But that ship has sailed, in all logical and realistic ways.

It's only $60 to apply.

Weekend Bits

2012-01-09T16:11:00.003-06:00

This weekend I took things fairly easy. Who am I kidding, I take most weekends easy. Sleeping in is always featured heavily, as is plenty of couch time. But I did manage to get 30 minutes of driving practice in on Saturday, and without crying- bonus. I also reorganized the kitchen pantry, and as a result the spice cupboard got a little tidying up as well. Falling under the "Use What I Have" resolution category I made good use of spare containers I had in the kitchen for my pantry reorganization. I had two large plastic containers that I had bought ages ago for freezing leftovers, but had decided I didn't like very much and since then had only occasionally used. I transferred my powdered and granulated sugar into each of them which makes for much better storage than the bags I had them in, and is much easier to stack and keep track of on the shelf. I also got rid of some old cake flour that I never seemed to finish using, and I'll use that jar to hold my corn meal now. I dumped out some old flavoring extracts, slowly peeled the labels from them and had Josh wash the little bottles up. I'm looking forward to trying my hand at making my own vanilla, or maybe a small amount of flavored oil. Whatever I make, I'm sure I can find a cute use for them. And of course, now that everything is much more organized I can actually SEE what I have, making it much easier to USE it.

That was the most productive part of my weekend. Sunday I caught a $5 matinee of Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy with my pal Holly. It was an excellent mystery; they gave nothing away until the very end. I'm hoping I can go see it again with Josh, or maybe my mom. After an afternoon of grocery shopping my cousin Angie came over and I made a quick version of Shepherd's Pie and some Pumpkin Bread Pudding for our little Downton Abbey premiere viewing party. We had such a good time she's going to come back next Sunday to watch the next episode again. I can't wait!

Twenty Twelve

2012-01-02T00:08:00.003-06:00

I didn't put much too much thought into resolutions for the new year. Really I just jotted down a few things that I'd like to work on. Things that were already on my mind, and I had already been starting on. So, here are the things I'd like to accomplish in 2012:

.Drink 40 ounces of water a day: The number sounds a little random, but I have a 40 ounce plastic bottle that I take water to school in. I've been having headaches and breakouts lately, and I think dehydration might be a key part of the problem. One bottle a day is the goal.
.Drive: With the changes in jobs and school I need to work harder on getting my license. I signed up for an online Driver Ed course which I'm almost halfway through; passing the test for it will exempt me from the written test at the DMV. And today I spent about 30 minutes practicing my driving with Josh. Sure, I am so tense during it that my whole body aches now, and I might have had a small cry when I got home, but I guess stuff like that is normal when you're trying to conquer one of your worst fears.
.Be more involved on campus: With the changes in work I'm hoping I'll have some more time available to be more active on my campus. I have enjoyed working for DSS so far, and hope to be able to go to more Historical Society and Phi Theta Kappa events this semester. The vice-president of our campus told my TX Government professor that he thought I was one of the strongest students on the campus, and I'd like to do what I can to earn the high opinion he's bestowed upon me.
.Use what I have: I have so many things that I don't use when I could, and yet I'm always looking for something new. So, one of my goals this year is to use what I have. I mean that in reference to many things- from getting creative with the wardrobe I already have, to cooking through my freezer and pantry instead of constantly stocking it. Last night Josh and I pulled out the Beatles Rock Band instruments to enjoy something we already have. Today I finally cooked a chuck roast I've had in the freezer for quite some time. We had delicious shredded beef tacos and there's another dinner's worth in the freezer for the busy school nights ahead. I want to make use of the resources I have at hand, not constantly look for new resources.
.Read 20 books: This goes hand in hand with the last resolution actually. I have easily 20 books around the house that I've bought or received, but haven't read yet. I honestly don't know how attainable this goal will be on top of school, but there's no reason I can't try.

via pinterest

A Change is in the Air

2011-12-20T14:51:00.004-06:00

Well, it's been over two months since I last blogged. Life got the better of me and I just didn't have the energy to update. But, I wanted to make sure to post something before the year was out. Hopefully I'll get back to blogging a bit more soon. Since October we've gone on that little cabin getaway I mentioned, and it was lovely. Hoping we'll get to go again sometime in the new year, maybe around Spring Break.

I managed to host my first family holiday in our home when we had my mom, brother, aunts, uncles, and cousins over for Thanksgiving. I couldn't have asked for things to go more smoothly. My only regret is that now the "grown ups" are getting older, so things don't run as late as the family holidays of my youth. But the dinner was great, everyone loved the food, our house, my simple decorations, and thanks to Steph I was able to seat everyone in our dining room around her 6 foot folding tables! My cousin Traci's kids both said at different times in the evening that they wished they could stay the night at our house. When the kids don't want to leave I think you can feel like you've done a good job, right?

The Monday after Thanksgiving my boss unfortunately passed away. He had been sick for quite sometime, and we all knew that it was coming, but it still manages to feel very sudden when it actually happens. I'm still working at the office for now, because there is a lot to do before we can close up shop. It's strange after working for him for 10 years to not have him humming around the office, or ringing up to have us connect him to a client from his cell phone. We're helping his wife keep things in order, find attorneys to cover his current cases, get client files together to return to old clients, etc.

My boss's passing was definitely a distraction in the last few weeks of school, but I managed to do well on my finals and got the A's I wanted for the semester. I also joined the Phi Theta Kappa honor society on my campus, and volunteered with the Lone Star Film Festival this semester. I've got most of my classes scheduled for next semester, and hopefully I'll be able to pick up a lot of students in my note taking gig, to make up some of my pending lost income.

On a brighter note, I got a second part time job too. In fact, I was officially told that I'm hired earlier this morning. Starting sometime shortly after the new year I'll be blogging for the local furniture and upholstery company Simple Things. I'll be coming at it from a blogger angle, whereas the employee who has been running the blog thus far was already with the company, so I'm looking forward to learning about their business and suppliers and integrating my knowledge of blogging and familiarity with popular design blogs and social media into their virtual presence. Once they start getting their new store established I'll also begin photographing store vignettes for the blog as well, which is very exciting for me!

We're less than a week away from Christmas and I can hardly believe it. With all the above-mentioned stuff going on we've hardly had time to decorate. My brother and his wife are hosting our Christmas morning this time, which takes a lot of the pressure off. We got a small fake tree this year, which normally I'd be completely opposed to, but we just didn't have the time and energy for a real one this year. I can always leave this faux five footer packed away and get real trees, but it's nice to have something in the attic for hectic years such as this one. And, it was a mere $30 pre-lit. Can't argue with that. I need to start wrapping presents tonight. I mean, I seriously have to start wrapping presents, there's like 30 of them.

So, there you have it, a brief recap of the past few months, and what I'm currently most excited about in the new year. Also, I'm so happy to have spent another year with Josh. He's been so supportive of me while I'm working hard at school, with the loss of my boss, and he is almost as excited as I am about this new job opportunity, even though it likely means less money in our pockets. At least for a while, anyway. I couldn't ask for a better partner.

Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
via

5

2011-10-06T19:10:00.004-05:00

Today is our fifth anniversary! It's hard to believe that we've been married a whole five years already. The time has flown by, and I'm so lucky that it's been spent with such a great guy. Today I decided I'd look up what the traditional anniversary gift is, and it turns out it's wood. Ironically, this week I booked us a weekend at a cabin near Beavers Bend Park in Oklahoma. We don't get to go until November, but a quiet weekend at a cabin with a hot tub is worth the wait. Especially when it'll be spent with my favorite husband. You can tell I'm excited because I made a Pinterest board dedicated just to our trip. We plan on spending plenty of time in that hot tub I mentioned, but there will also be marshmallow roasting, star gazing, domino playing, french toast eating, and champagne drinking. Not to mention cold beer, hot stew, and lots of hand holding. I can't wait. I love you, Josh!

Source: google.com via Jessica on Pinterest

I Declare October to be "Good Music Month"

2011-09-22T13:12:00.004-05:00

I am so looking forward to October. For the cooler weather, the pumpkins everywhere, and most definitely for all the good music that awaits me. Calhoun, one of Josh's bands, will be playing at the Fort Worth Music Festival on October 1st. Later that evening, none other than Dawes will be taking the other stage, with lots of other local bands preceding them as well. Should be a great day of friends and fun!

Calhoun:

That's my husband on drums, isn't he a cutie? On October 13th, the girls and I are going to see Dawes again at Club Dada. Can you believe our luck? Two Dawes shows in two weeks! It's a Halloween miracle!

Dawes:

That alone would make October a pretty rockin' month, right? But October 24th we'll be headed right back to Club Dada to see Deer Tick. We saw both Deer Tick and Dawes on the same bill on St. Patrick's Day of this year, and I'm really excited to get a chance to see Deer Tick again so soon.

Deer Tick:

And then, there's this show which I must admit at the moment I am most excited about. Calhoun is opening at KXT's 2nd Anniversary show on October 26th, and headlining is Fitz and the Tantrums. I really loved them when they were on Conan earlier this year, and I am very much looking forward to seeing them live.

Fitz and the Tantrums:

Goodies

2011-09-11T13:44:00.006-05:00

While Josh is in the UK until the 19th, I've got a lot of free time on my hands. Surprisingly school work has been slow to pick up. Holly came over yesterday and we went to lunch and then to check out the new J. Crew store over by my office. Luckily there weren't any sale items out yet to catch my fancy. Somehow that didn't stop me from spending too much though, as we also went to Anthropologie and Old Navy. I got two of the striped sweaters, the other one in black and cream. Everything but the last top is from Old Navy. The roll-necked tee is from Anthro. I also picked up a 40's style teal sweater there, but can't find a pic of it.

A Few Checkmarks

2011-09-04T17:04:00.003-05:00

I got a few more things checked off my to-do list over the last week or so, and thought I'd share my completed project. I mentioned before that I'd finally gotten my Pottery Barn wall organizers up. The space I wanted to put them up in was too small to use their rail system that they insist you buy to hang them. So, I removed the rail pieces from them and attached picture hangers in their place. In addition to that I used 3M Command Strips for extra support, so now they hang great and look like they're just floating there. Above them I put an Ikea Ribba picture ledge to display several of my favorite cookbooks and I also framed one of my grandmother's recipes, for brownies, to put up next to it. I'm so pleased with how it came out!

For some reason I went wandering around etsy looking for trophies (honestly, I can't remember what gave me the idea, ha) and stumbled across these blue spray painted trophies and loved the idea. I have been trying to think of things to liven up our entertainment center and this was just perfect. My family was big into bowling, so I stopped by my mom's house to see what was laying around. I found an old bowling trophy of my Grandpa's from 1971, and she gave me the go ahead to remove the top portion for my project. All this idea cost me was a $3 can of spray paint. I love how it turned out and it's the perfect pop of blue on our shelves. Plus it has genuine family value to me!

And then this week I finally checked a huge to-do off my list- my family photo wall. I've been working on this for over a year and I was finally motivated to get off my duff after coming back from seeing all the family in Iowa. Again, instead of using nails to make a bunch of holes in my hall, I turned to those 3M Command Strips. For reals guys, I love these things. Josh helped me to try and make sure my arrangement looked good and everything was symmetrical and level. I'm going to change out two of the photos, but what is in there for now looks great. The frames I got from Pottery Barn. Not as cheap as the Ikea ones I usually opt for, but our hall is quite narrow and the PB frames were thinner. I really love how this turned out, and my only regret is it took me so long to get it done!

Hey Dude

2011-08-25T16:19:00.003-05:00

What a crazy summer it's been! I managed to survive my summer classes, even making a 100 in Statistics (miracle), and an A in Film Appreciation. Fall semester starts Monday, and I have no clue how I'm going to get up for my 7:20 AM class. Last Wednesday, two of my uncles, my cousin, my mom, and I made the trek to Iowa for my cousin Jon Tumilson's funeral. Jon was one of the Navy SEALs killed in the August 6th helicopter crash in Afghanistan. It was very sad circumstances that took us there, but I am very glad that I went and got to see so much of my northern family that I hadn't seen in so long.

In the little time that hasn't been occupied by school I've been trying to take care of projects around the house. I purged my old Christmas boxes and wrap, which were still laying all over the guest bedroom floor. I got some new plants, finally made some progress on my spice storage, and put up my Pottery Barn daily system organizers (which involved some MacGyvering on my part). I'm working on a couple other projects that I hope to finish this weekend before it's back to the classrooms for me. I'll try to take some pics to share soon.

I'm also seriously considering hosting Thanksgiving for my family this year. By "seriously considering" I mean I've already been obsessively planning it, but I don't want to 100% commit just yet. :) That is in part what is spurring me to wrap up some of the household stuff. One of the biggest pieces of the puzzle that needs to be in place before I can commit to turkey day is a new oven. Our oven started smoking from between the unit and the wall when I started preheating it one day back in July. Our extinguisher was out, so I had to call the fire department. Luckily the oven shorted out before anything too bad happened. Josh's uncle came by a couple weeks later to inspect the damage and we realized it was the wiring to the oven that had caught, not the oven itself. We were very lucky the whole house didn't go up, especially when Uncle Gary discovered the firemen had turned off the wrong breaker and there was still a current available to the wiring. So, for now my old oven sits in the garage in pieces, and I fantasize about when I'll be able to have Gary install the new stainless steel double oven of my dreams.

Favorite Things

2011-06-27T14:33:00.002-05:00

I'm such a slacker. I totally forgot that I was the featured Friday Favorites on Molly's A Few of My Favorite Things a couple Fridays back. Click here if you'd like to take a gander at what I consider to be a few of my favorite things. :)

Photo via.

Turn the Page

2011-06-08T13:29:00.003-05:00

Since school has finished I've finished four books. Two of them I started before school ended, but I finished them once on "break", and started and finished two more since finals were done with. I'm feeling very proud of this fact, despite that we aren't talking about War and Peace or Moby Dick here. They weren't big books, but they were good books that I enjoyed, so I declare it a total win. What's up next? I still have to peruse my shelves of the unread to decide, but here's what I've just finished up and loved. And if you want to see what else I've got on my to-read list (besides what's listed in my sidebar here) you can click over to my pinterest board of books.

Howdy

2011-06-03T08:17:00.005-05:00

Long time no blog. I was so busy with school, and Josh being in FOUR bands now that something had to give and it was this little space. I had a great, if a little stressful, end to the Spring semester. 100 averages in History and Government, 98 in Comp II, and a 94 in my last Mod Math course. I got 100 on my History, Government and Comp II finals. But, my favorite part of the last week of school was getting a 100 on my third Comp II paper, "The Ruins of Greek Tragedy in the Comedy of Woody Allen." My professor had told me earlier in the semester that he didn't give 100's at all, so when I discovered my grade online, I went running to his cubicle to confirm it wasn't a mistake. I got the first 100 he's ever given! So pleased that I was able to write about something I love, like Woody Allen, in an analytical way that really impressed him.

Enough about what a gigantic nerd I am. I'm done with classes right now, except for the fact that I'm working roughly 16 hours at school each week as a note-taker for Disability Support Services. I applied for the job to freshen up my resume, since I've been in the same job for the past 10 years, and to get some on-campus stuff on my transcript. Disability Support work looks pretty nice on applications and such. Of course, I got assigned the most boring classes- Accounting and Business Law. So much for a brief respite from legal stuff! And I'm still at the law office in the afternoons after these classes and all day Fridays. Booooring stuff all around. But even if I just stick it out for the 5 weeks left in this summer session and don't do it again, I've at least accomplished my goal of having something more recent to put on my resume.

Aside from that I've just been busy going to Josh's shows. Two weeks ago was the busiest, when he had 7 shows, plus a TV appearance, in 5 days. The last three shows were a real beating, as we went to Austin for a Friday night show, then drove to Addison for an outdoor festival gig in the early evening Saturday, and then hightailed it to Texarkana for the last one. Phew! Of course I don't have to go with him, but sometimes if I don't tag along on stuff like this I would never see him, ha.

And, under the category of miscellaneous information, I'm on Pinterest now. So, if you wanna check out what I'm pinning lately, you can find me here- http://pinterest.com/jawsgirly/

Tonight Josh is playing at First Friday on the Green, so I'm leaving work early to run home and put on a sundress to beat the heat while I watch him play. Hoping to have some yummy tacos or a delicious mezze plate and some beer in the evening sun while digging some good tunes. What a nice start to the weekend that will be!

P.S.- While I've been quiet over here, I've still been sharing recipes at Small Time Cooks, so check it out. Oh, and you can follow that blog on Twitter now- @SmallTimeCooks.

Hi

2011-04-21T14:32:00.003-05:00

Things have been quiet here for awhile. I've just been busy with school and stuffs. That last blog post was pretty depressing, and lately things are a little more positive, but still stressful. Uncontrollable blushing, swings in body temperature, and hives are my current companions. I talked to my doctor and I'm going to try the lowest dose of an anti-depressant once school is done for the semester, and see if that won't help me some. I hate the idea of taking medication, but after managing on my own for a long time and 6 months of therapy last year, the idea is starting to grow on me a little bit. Anyway, let's not dwell on the yucky stuff like hives and the two papers I have due in a week (yikes). I'm looking forward to having a break from school- my first summer class doesn't start until 6/13, and even that is just online. My on-campus class doesn't start until July. Here are a few things I'm looking forward to doing with the dribs and drabs of extra time I'll have before I start back to school again.

-Reading! I have so.many.books to read. I got a lot of books at Christmas, and I just ordered three more a few weeks ago, so I am definitely going to spend some of my formerly homework-filled evenings hitting the fun kind of books.
-Photography. I need to get some a couple rolls of film developed from my Holga and Canon AE-1P that I shot ages ago, and see if I actually knew what I was doing with those new flashes. Plus I've just gotten completely out of the habit of photography, and I'd like to fix that.
-Exercise. I know I'm always saying this, and I'll probably always be saying this, but I need to be exercising more. I guess I should only worry if I stop having this as a to-do, cause I've probably given up in that case.
-Driving. I didn't have the time or mental health to tackle this during the school year, but I'm going to get back on the ball, including a 6 hour online adult driving course that'll exempt me from taking the written test at the DMV. Then it's just a matter of lots of practicing with Josh so I can pass the actual driving test.
-Projects. We've got lots of half finished projects around the house that need finishing up. Plus that place just needs a good cleaning. Cat tumbleweeds everywhere!

Just gotta keep my eyes on the horizon and keep chugging along, I guess.

Underwater

2011-03-08T13:54:00.002-06:00

I am doing less than well today. And this week. And more or less this month. Honestly, this year has been pretty crap. I spend a lot of my time feeling like I'm just treading water, but lately it feels like the water is above my head. I'm exhausted most of the time. I either don't sleep, or sleep and wake up feeling as though I haven't. I'm currently fighting an invisible foe- I think we either have fleas or bed bugs. Not sure which, but I'm treating it as though it's bed bugs just in case. I have over a dozen big, itchy welts. Vacuuming, spraying, slip-covering, washing, cleaning, and starting all over again to try and get whatever is biting me in check. I've got several tests over the next few weeks. I am not sure what my next step is with math, confused as to what is needed for my major. Realizing I have to take a foreign language. I need the intermediate credits, which means I get to spend $300 and two semesters taking the basics just to get to the intermediates. And I can't possibly keep my grades where I feel I need them to be with all of this. Josh's day job is tenuous at best, and his evening job has been bringing in a lot less money for the last year. My job is still around, and I still don't like it. The house still needs foundation repairs, which I haven't had time to schedule. I'm blushing uncontrollably now, sometimes just if I think about blushing. My leg cramps have returned.

I'll get by. But I'm definitely considering living in a van by the river right now.

They Say It's My Birthday

2011-02-04T18:43:00.002-06:00

Today is my birthday- my 30th birthday! And we're having a very low-key evening. Of course we've had an incredibly low-key week because of our winter weather here. Monday night it started raining in the evening, then turned to sleet, and then snow. Schools were closed (not that I have class on Tuesdays now anyway), and the boss man said to stay home. The thing is, it never got above freezing Tuesday, so the ice and snow stayed right where it was. Wednesday classes were canceled. Work was a no-go. Then it was the same game Thursday. We did leave the house Thursday, to pick up my prescription and some Sonic, but that was it for me. Josh went in to work for awhile, but regretted it, as the roads were not great and the people on the road were even worse. And then, last night, it started snowing again. The 2 or so inches that had fallen Monday night hadn't gone anywhere, but they were quickly covered with a fresh layer. Just under 5" fell over last night into midday today. So, I got another snow day for my birthday! The sun came out at last and the temperature actually just reached 32 degrees this afternoon, so a little melting occurred. It's finally supposed to get above freezing tomorrow, so hopefully everyone will be able to dig out of their hibernation holes.

I should have been way more productive with this time off. I did some homework, and of course I still have the weekend, but I could have done more. I did find out that I was off a bit on some of my due dates, and in my favor, so that was helpful in alleviating a little stress. And this winter weather will postpone my Government test that I was concerned I might miss while we're out of town, so that's good also. And we'll gloss over the fact that I did absolutely no cleaning, nor did any household projects get done. I did make pancakes Tuesday morning, with enough to last me two weeks of school mornings. So, I guess it's not all been wasted, ha.

Mostly Josh and I have had lots of hanging out time. He's played lots of video games, I did some cooking and baking, we've had movie marathons and watched a LOT of Simpsons DVDs. We've obviously lost some income, but we've gained some rest and relaxation. Of course, we'll get some more of that when we go on vacation next week. Birthday cruise! Today I made grass-fed sausage and french toast with bananas for my birthday breakfast. We ventured out for beer, snacks, and pizza for my birthday evening, some of which has already been consumed. :) Oh, and I bought myself one other birthday present too.

Birthday Snow

Not Dead Yet

2011-01-28T15:51:00.003-06:00

Jeez, it's been forever since I had something to say. Thanks to school and a cold I've been pretty busy. I slept something like 15 hours yesterday, thanks to Nyquil and the illness that necessitated it. Since I last posted I've started school {hate it}, had the house's foundation examined {gotta repair it}, celebrated Josh's birthday {huzzah}, and seen The King's Speech three times {love it}. Okay, technically I've only seen it twice, but I've got plans to see the pre-noon showing with Mom tomorrow. We're smuggling in donuts {shhh}. I'm actually hoping {needing} to get a lot of stuff done this weekend. Tonight will be math homework, but I'm hoping it will be accompanied by a side of pizza or queso. Post morning movietimes tomorrow will be birthday shopping with Josh. He said he wanted clothes for his birthday. I also need to do some reading {Comp II and Govt}, some research, and some writing {History}. Our Service Learning Project this year is writing to an authority on behalf of a local historic building in need of preservation. I also desperately need to make a big batch of pancakes {Cinnamon Oat, mmmm} to stock the freezer for school days. There's the usual grocery shopping and laundry to be done {oh joy}. And on top of all that we need to get to work on a home inventory. There have apparently been several break-ins in the neighborhood, so that is on the urgent list- along with replacing the burned out bulb in the backyard and safety latches on the exterior doors that don't have them yet. It's beautiful and in the 70's outside today. I wish it could stay like this long enough for me to enjoy it, but it's supposed to be back to winter tempt by next week {sigh}. I'd love a picnic right about now.

Resolutions, Past and Present

2011-01-06T20:58:00.002-06:00

With the start of a new year it's normal to look back over the last. 2010 was sort of an intense year when I think about it. I made big changes in the way I thought about myself and what I wanted to do with my life. I went through some dim days in the beginning of 2010, feeling like I just didn't have a purpose or a direction for myself. And then, thanks in part to two of my favorite people in the world- my incredible husband, Josh, and one of my personal heroes, Conan O'Brien, I finally was able to see how I could make a connection between my interests and my skills. It seems almost absurd that I didn't put it all together before, but I'm just thankful that I did. Somehow, along the road of life, I had come to think that there were certain things that a person could and couldn't do. And now I'm realizing that you, as an individual, can decide whatever your life should be. I know it sounds silly to only just be realizing that as I'm approaching 30 years of age, but it's true. I hope over time I'll impose fewer and fewer of these imaginary limits on myself.

I'm also so thankful to have had another wonderful year with Josh. He is my best friend, and the best husband. We're always so happy to spend time together, we make each other laugh, and obviously he's been a huge support for me through all these changes. He's also been great through all my weird health problems this past year. Circulation problems, glaucoma, endometriosis, crazy pill adjustments, therapy, my usual FM grumpiness, and my toe injury- he's been great through it all.

And for me, the cherry on top of the whole year was getting to meet my hero, Conan. Meeting him and his staff on tour was sincerely the best day of my life. I really don't care how silly that sounds to anyone, because it's the truth. And again, that Josh let me make this dream come true speaks to how awesome he is.

So, once you've looked back over your year, it's also typical to make a resolution for the new one. But, I've decided I'm not really going to make any resolutions this year. I made a big list for 2010, but then with all the changes that happened, they practically became moot. They were all fine goals, and things that in theory I would still like to accomplish, but my overall goals changed and I had something bigger to work towards. If I were to choose a resolution for 2011 it would be "Keep up the good work". Did I make progress on everything I wanted to in 2010? No. But I did make progress. And that's the goal I'll be striving for from now on. Keep going, keep learning, keep stretching as a person. Keep making friends, taking chances, looking for new experiences. Keep showing my husband how much I love him. Keep trying to be a slightly better me.

Despite not really working much on my resolutions once I'd made my big school decision, I'll still go through the list and see what I was able to accomplish.

2010:
.Read 20 books- Probably read 8-10, couldn't list them all if I tried.
.Exercise at least twice a week- Bahahaha
.Improve my eating habits- Um, yeah, not so much.
.Be a better listener- I think I am getting a little better at this.
.Learn to drive- So, worked on it, but not enough. Need to get on the ball.
.Get a full physical/gyno/bloodwork- Totally done. Sure, I found lots more problems, but better to know than not.
.Learn some tactics for handling stress- Check this one off too. 6 months of therapy and I've got a better (not perfect) set of skills for handling my anxieties.
.Start a vegetable garden in back yard and container herb garden in side yard- Well, I did plant a few things, but they weren't very successful.
.Learn how to develop my own black & white film- Nope.
.Have clothes hemmed- Nuh-uh.
.Finish family photos for the hallway- I have at least made progress here, and will hopefully have something on the wall soon.
.Get my Beatles tattoo- Done. I lurve it.
.Be more like Diane Keaton, Jane Birkin, Linda McCartney, Katharine Hepburn, and Audrey Hepburn- This is pretty vague, isn't it? I guess if you look at these women as being good examples of people knowing and being themselves, then I guess we could say I've gotten a little closer to that this year. Eh?
.Rent a cabin- Well, I reserved our cabin on my birthday cruise, ha. But we never did get a chance to run off to a little woodsy hideaway.
.Finish organizing my office- I'd say done. Not perfect, but pretty much everything has a place and when I remember to put stuff in it, then we're good.
.Cross 2 things off my Life List- Honestly, don't think I did this, but also honestly I need to reevaluate that Life List now that some of my goals and values have shifted.

New Year

2011-01-05T09:46:00.003-06:00

Well, it's a new year now, isn't it? Josh and I spent NYE day celebrating the 1st birthday of our best friends' twins, and then spent a quiet evening at home watching Simpsons, snacking, and doing laundry. Exciting I know, but there's nothing else I would rather have been doing.

New Year's Day was a marathon shopping day. Holly picked me up and we grabbed some breakfast before heading to Stephanie's. I got to play with the twins a little more while she finished getting ready. Then we headed to Home Goods, Ikea, and lunch at Chili's. Steph went home, and Holly and I moved on to Anthropologie and Target. I got several cute things at Anthro, including the Hop, Skip, Jump skirt that I wore to work today. At Target I got some great basic sweaters on sale, a second pair of jeggings, and a new belt, all of which were paid for with gift cards. Then we went back to my house and I forced Holly to help me make some new outfits with my purchases so I knew I didn't waste my money. Holly left, I tidied up and went to bed.

Josh had been in Houston for a show and driven back w/ a bandmate, arriving home early in the morning. We both slept in Sunday, however I got up before him and worked on framing up some photos for our bedroom over coffee and some Bob Newhart Show. Once he was up I had moved on to watching some Simpsons and started putting together the new drawers I'd bought for my closet at Ikea. I went to work installing them, which led to a reorganization, which led to some closet purging. I worked on Josh's side a little bit too. It took me quite a while, but I finally got things just the way I wanted, including a new pull out peg rack that stores my necklaces. I showered and we made a late run for groceries. So, all in all, the first weekend of the New Year was pretty darn productive.

Oooh, aaaah, organized.

Merry Post-Christmas

2010-12-28T12:09:00.002-06:00

I hope everyone had a great holiday! I know I sure did. Christmas Eve was filled with lots of family, fun and food. I was up late playing Santa, divvying up candy and filling stockings. Christmas morning we had a great breakfast and everyone loved all the presents they got, including me. Josh and I opened our gifts to each other after my family left. I already knew he had spoiled me because he "forgot" our gift count limit of 5. Along with all sorts of movies and books I wanted he got me a new drive & battery for my laptop, and a brand new netbook! I can't wait to be able to take notes so much quicker in class next semester! He spent his personal money on it. I don't get to tell him how he should spend that, and though I keep telling him he shouldn't have I'm still super glad to have a cute white netbook to use for school. And on top of all that, yesterday a package came for him from Cypress. He was confused, but when he opened it he realized it was the necklace I'd wanted from Etsy. He hadn't even noticed that it hadn't arrived yet! On top of all that I got a few of the things from the wish list I shared here too- those cute boots, the flash for my Holga, the movies, etc. I am so blessed to have people who care about me, and showed me that through picking out thoughtful gifts and wrapping them up sweetly.

Josh loved his presents, especially his super soft robe and the graphic novel. And our mom was really happy to get her new coat and the little peanut pendant necklace I got her at the last minute. But, I'd say the home run gift this year was the vintage hypnosis book we got for his stepdad, Jack. He really seemed impressed that we'd found something so neat that fit his interests so well. Etsy scores another win!

Christmas night we spent at Josh's dad and stepmom Ann's house. Along with siblings, uncles, aunts, and some of Ann's family in from Rochester, we had a wonderful evening with lots of good snacky food, fun games, and a warm fire. Again, left feeling super blessed to have so much wonderful family in our lives.

Simply Having a Wonderful Christmas Time

2010-12-23T10:23:00.003-06:00

First off, I don't care how many people speak ill of it- I like that Paul McCartney Christmas song. Now that that's out of the way, I can share that I got my final GPA for my first semester- 4.0! Woohoo! I'm not a dullard! But, on to more important things like Christmas. Tomorrow is Christmas Eve, can you believe it? This year has whizzed by so quickly. All of our gifts are wrapped and under the tree. This year I got Josh a new cozy robe, some pajamas, a hilarious graphic novel from one of my new pals on Twitter, a video game he had on his wish list, and the second season of Kids In The Hall on DVD. I'm excited to see him open all his presents! And he wrapped up lots of goodies for me, so I'm excited to open some too.

Tonight we'll be having dinner with our awesome friend Diggy, in for the holidays from San Francisco. I can't wait to watch his latest short film that he's bringing to us, and pepper him with questions all about his next big idea. Tomorrow I've got to get some groceries for our holiday festivities. I'll do a little baking and then we'll be headed to Josh's mom's for Christmas Eve dinner.

Christmas morning my mom, brother and his family will be coming over for breakfast and gift opening. Then Josh and I will have a little time to relax and marvel at how blessed we are before we head off to his dad's house for even more blessings! Some of his stepmother's relatives will be in from Rochester and we'll have a nice evening of snacks, champagne, visiting, and Bananagrams. My father-in-law has been talking big about how he's going to kick all our butts, so I've got my game-face ready to meet his challenge!

I hope that everyone has a great holiday, with friends and family close and lots of wonderful memories made!

My 2010 Christmas Wish List (plus some other stuff)

2010-12-15T09:53:00.004-06:00

The other stuff is that I am 99.9% done with school for the semester! I took my last math test and History final yesterday. Thanks to several extra credit opportunities, and actually studying, I got a 120 on my History test! My average for the semester came out to 107.4. Woohoo! And, despite it taking me forever, I got a 90 on my math test. I am more than pleased with that, since I sat struggling with 4 of the problems for quite awhile. I finally remembered what I was supposed to do to solve three of them, and guessed on the 4th. Funnily enough, the one I guessed I got right! I can't convey the bliss of coming home, making dinner, and having the freedom to do pretty much whatever I want. I watched 3 hours of television Monday night. It was awesome. Tomorrow I have to turn in my final Comp 1 paper, but I'm intending on heckling my teacher into grading it right then and there so I can know what I'm making. I also want to take a copy of the graded paper with me. These analytical papers on films might come in handy later, what with me hoping to major in Radio, Television, Film.

Now that school is out of the way, I really have to get on the ball for Christmas. I've got 30 gifts to wrap, and I need to do a couple of them ASAP to get them in the mail. I realized last night that I'm nowhere near having enough Christmas cards, so I need to pick some more of those up. And now, to share my Christmas Wish List for this holiday season.

Play:

Fujifilm Instax Mini 7s Instant Film Camera- I love my Holga, but I wanted something fun to play with that came with a little instant gratification
Holga Manual Mount Flash- Speaking of my Holga, I asked for something to up my shooting ante
Pottery Barn Wood Gallery Square Frames- You don't really play with frames I guess, but I recently ordered some of these and need more to finish my family photo gallery for the hall

Read:

Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk by David Sedaris- Dying to read Sedaris' latest book. Especially after hearing him talk about it on The Daily Show
The War for Late Night by Bill Carter- Carter's latest book, about Conan, that big chinned dude, and the whole Tonight Shot debacle. I think it's pretty obvious why I asked for this. :)
Woody Allen: A Biography by Eric Lax- I loved the previous Allen book by Eric Lax that I read, so I'm pretty sure I'll enjoy this one. Lax has a great grasp on who Woody, considering he's been interviewing him for over 30 years.

Wear:

Mossimo Western Boots- I'm working on growing my boot wardrobe. These are from Target.
Enamel necklace from etsy- Don't tell me if you click this link and it says sold- I'm being a good girl and not peeking!
The Looping Lanes and Soft Bow belts, both from Anthropologie- both also appear to be gone form their website, so really hoping somebody bought me at least one. Fingers crossed!

Watch:

Mystery Science Theater 3000: I Accuse My Parents- one of my favorite MST3K flicks. It's amazing how few of these I own, and yet how much I adore them.
Star Wars Trilogy- Yeah, I don't even know why we don't own this yet. I routinely don't buy the movies we love. I'm crazy.

Well, that wraps up my 2010 wish list. Technically there's a bunch more stuff on my list, but these are some of the highlights; the things I am most coveting.

Heralding the Holidays

2010-12-10T17:00:00.004-06:00

Ah, I've finally reached the weekend. Things haven't gone just as I was hoping this week; still lots of work to be done on my final English paper and put my Math test off until Tuesday, so I've got a lot of school work to do this weekend before things get wrapped up next week. Yesterday was so rough that by the time I got home I was completely done in. I showered, put on my pajamas, and immediately got into bed. Josh got home to find me reading the new issue of Real Simple that had come in the mail. He did chores, gave me some snuggles, then fed me yummy Spinach & Feta pizza. That husband of mine really is the best. And of course last night's Conan episode really cheered me up too. Did you guys see She & Him? Totally amazing.

I managed to finish almost all of my Christmas shopping this week, and almost all of it on Monday as a matter of fact! Between a BIG Amazon order, which should be arriving today, and a shopathon with Mom I pretty much just have stocking stuffers left to buy. I do however still have all those gifts to wrap- yoinks! But that'll be waiting until I'm done with my school work next week.

Today has been quite a bit better. I got some work done and it's been quite in the office. But, even better than that, this evening Josh and I are going to participate in one of my favorite holiday traditions we've started. We'll be getting our Christmas tree after work, and we decorate it while watching The Muppet Christmas Carol and over a dinner of fish & chips, Old Speckled Hen, and some bread pudding for dessert. The Muppet Christmas Carol is one of my most favorite holiday movies (although I do have a lot of favorites, ha) and I haven't even let myself watch it yet, so I get to see it for the first time this season. I hope everyone else is having fun getting into the holiday spirit!

News and Shoes

2010-12-03T14:14:00.004-06:00

Hey duders! Things are really getting hectic around here these days. We managed to survive our three Thanksgiving dinners last week, and we're headed into a busy weekend. I go in for my 6 month glaucoma exam this afternoon. Really not looking forward to that- especially since I'm well aware of what all it entails now. Lots of poking and poofing my eyeballs, and the darn dilation drops that make me soooo sleepy- they contain a decongestant. They conveniently don't tell you that part, so thought I was going crazy when I felt all drugged up after the first time. Following the eye exam we'll be heading to a surprise party for Josh's stepbrother Alec. That should be fun on the sleepy eye meds, ha.

We have our nephew, Alec's son, Griffin's birthday party early tomorrow morning and have to leave it a little early to make it to our haircut appointments. We adopted a Fort Worth Zoo animal in his name for his present. Josh tells me that he's going to put the Christmas lights up on the house this weekend, so I'll probably put the other outdoor decorations up too. We were invited to another party tomorrow evening, but it's not looking likely that we'll have time to attend. Oh, and I have to write a short paper with 2 outside sources analyzing portions of the film Wag the Dog. And History notes to catch up on. And about 5 loads of laundry. And grocery shopping. Haha, I can't wait until the semester is over, so I'll actually have some time for all the housework instead of homework.

This week I got an A+ on my Network paper for English, and a 100 on my Service Learning Project in History. Josh had me put my English paper on the refrigerator, haha. :) And I paid for my next semester's classes, so aside from books I'm all ready to go for the Spring.

So, that's the news portion of this post. For the shoes portion- well, it's technically the boots portion- I got these great gray boots in the mail this week. Ordered them from Piperlime and they came quickly and well-packed. And, best of all, only $69. I lurve them.

Weekend Roundup

2010-11-22T14:30:00.004-06:00

Haven't done a real Weekend Roundup in ages, so how's about I do one now?

Friday:
-Work, blech
-Stop by store on way home for dinner supplies
-Read and watch TV, waiting for Josh to get home
-Change into our warm jammies
-Make big tray of bean & cheese nachos
-Nacho Pajama Party, commence!
-Watch Eddie Izzard dvd over nachos, chips, salsa, guac and beers
-Hit the hay

Saturday:
-Sleep in a little bit
-Shower and get ready
-Hit Target for Rylee's birthday present
-Hit traffic on the way to Rylee's party
-Birthday party it up, love on Hadley & Logan a bunch, visit with parents of party-goers
-Home for a short rest
-Stop by office to print design
-Elite Tattoo Gallery for my Beatles tattoo!
-Back by the house to grab some brews
-Hang at Matt & Ashley's, eat Mexican food, have funtimes
-Home, clean tattoo, go to bed

Sunday:
-Sleep in
-Coffee in bed, thanks to Josh
-Clean tattoo
-Get ready
-Grocery shopping
-Lunch of Greek salad, cuban panini, and rugelach- super ethnic!
-Fall asleep watching TV in bedroom
-Shower and clean tattoo
-Watch a couple of docs on the Documentary Channel
-Make nachos
-Watch White Christmas
-Fall asleep watching some Simpsons

*Excuse the lack of make-up, pic taken with phone after I was all ready for bed*

EmilyStyle Schools Me

2010-11-19T09:06:00.003-06:00

My blog-pal Emily, over at EmilyStyle, created one of her awesome What To Wear posts to teach me how to incorporate more tights into my wardrobe. I'm looking forward to using her examples to spice up my fall & winter style! Check out her great advice here.

This Is a Raid

2010-11-17T13:48:00.003-06:00

So very busy, all of the time, it seems. This past weekend I went out and had a fabulous time Friday night for my pal Holly's birthday. The Levon Helm show the night before that was fantastic too. Then, the rest of my weekend can be more or less summed up with Network. I have a paper due tomorrow, analyzing several scenes from that movie. I ended up watching it THREE full times, plus re-watching several scenes. I guess if I'm being honest, there were also quite a lot of potato chips involved in the weekend too. But snacking was the easiest meal when I'm stuck in full movie mode.

I'm registered for my classes for next semester now. I'm taking Comp II, History 1302, U.S. Government, and my next batch of developmental math- Intermediate Algebra. My current math teacher, whom we all really like, is only teaching one class next semester. I changed my whole schedule just so I could stick with him, so it better be worth it, ha. Instead of the Tuesdays and Thursdays I've been doing this semester, it'll be Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. I'll be at school an hour later too, but I start an hour later, so there's some pay-off there. I'm just going to need to be more rigorous on keeping my work hours up due to this change. My math class has a great vibe, and hopefully some of the other students are going to be continuing with Dr. Stewart as well, so maybe that'll carry over to next semester. Plus, he's the VP of Teaching & Learning Services on our campus, and got his Masters and Doctorate from the university I'm hoping to transfer to- hello, recommendation letter.

The semester is coming to a close; I finish up in just one month. Naturally, I can barely keep up with all the ideas I have for my free time over winter break. And naturally, there won't be nearly as much as I think there will be, ha. I've got a few frames arriving today from Pottery Barn so I can finally make some progress on putting family photos up in our hallway. And I'm hoping to clear out the freezer, and then restock it with a lot of casseroles and the like for next semester. Of course there's the obligatory Christmas shopping, decorating, and 3 family celebrations. Also, probably absurdly, hoping to push a reset button on my health. I haven't been exercising lately, and my eating habits have definitely gone downhill (see potato chips above). But I'm looking forward to veggie-filled soups and at least making an attempt to get into a bit better shape before our cruise in February. I know that is pretty unrealistic in the season of gingerbread and candy canes, but it can't hurt to try, right?

This song has very little to do with all the crap I rambled about above, but I am so in love with it, and am enjoying the whole album. I'm really connecting with this tune lately and decided I should share it for that reason alone. It's Mavis Staples and Jeff Tweedy performing "You Are Not Alone", from the album of the same name.

Dirt Farmer

2010-11-11T16:41:00.004-06:00

This week has been packed with work, school, and CONAN! We had a premiere party Monday with some friends which was tons of fun, but the best is that every night I get to watch Conan before I go to bed. It's like my life is finally back to normal!

Tonight Josh and I are going to see my all-time favorite drummer, Levon Helm. I'm super excited! Here's a video of Levon on Late Night with Conan O'Brien. Like how I worked both bits of this post into one clip? :)

Whoa

2010-11-05T10:00:00.002-05:00

Wow, I haven't updated at all this week. I've been busy with field trips, voting, keeping Josh and I fed, belated grocery shopping, and the past weekend was full of Halloween parties. I got an A on my second English paper, a 95 on my Math test, and I'm impatiently awaiting the grade for my second History Essay, so all is going smoothly with school. Tonight I'm going out for tacos with the girls, and most of this weekend will be spent cleaning house. Conan returns to TV Monday night, and we'll be hosting a dozen or so friends to watch the premier. So excited to be able to see my favorite funny fella on my television again!

In other news, in a short two weeks they are opening an Anthropologie store across the street from my office. Look for my declaration of bankruptcy about two weeks after that, ha. They are also bringing an H&M to the area, but it will be in Dallas so it's not as much of a threat to my financial stability. Such pretty things will soon be so closely within my reach. Well, of my hands. Not so much of my pocketbook. ;)

In A Halloween Spirit

2010-10-29T14:58:00.002-05:00

I really love Halloween, but sadly I have had almost no time to decorate for it so far. So, I thought I'd decorate this post instead. :) Here are some Halloween/Fall decorating ideas I love from Martha Stewart.

Small Time Cooks Giveaway!

2010-10-27T09:18:00.002-05:00

Hey gang, I'm hosting a giveaway over on my food blog, Small Time Cooks. Just drop by and leave a comment here before midnight 10/31/10 and you could wind up winning a copy of Everyday Food's "Great Food Fast" cookbook and a jar of my favorite pancake mix!

Still Dawesome

2010-10-25T12:47:00.005-05:00

Saturday night Holly, Stephanie P, Amanda and I went to Sons of Hermann Hall to see Dawes. You might remember that name from when I gushed about seeing them the first time back in July. I seriously, seriously love this band. LURVE. Last time the girls got pics with some of the guys, and I was stuck taking most of them. This time around I made sure that I got pics with the cute boys. Amanda and I even got to chat with the singer/guitarist Taylor while we were standing out in front of the club before they played. I told him he was so cute that I wanted to pinch his cheek. So, basically, I came across as crazy. But whatever, it's true. I was right up front for the whole show, making some major eye contact with him, and singing along to every song (except for a couple of the new ones which I only half remembered from the last show). Snagged the pics after the show, and then we all made our ways home. Holly and I grabbed some late night grub from Whataburger, since we didn't eat before the show. And I fell asleep with pretty songs in my head. :)

Top to bottom: me & Taylor (guitar/vocals), me & Alex (keys), me & Griffin (drums) , and me & Wylie (bass)

A Room With A View

2010-10-21T16:44:00.002-05:00

The weather here in North Texas has been freakin' fantastic lately. Warm, but not the sweltering temps of summer. Fall in Texas is sort of like the spring we were dreaming of 6 months ago. Except even better because sometimes you spy a tree full of autumn shades, or get to crunchily walk through some fallen leaves. I've been enjoying the weather even while I'm sick by throwing open the bedroom windows. While writing this post even, I'm sitting in bed feeling a slight breeze and just moments ago heard the sounds of wind chimes. There's nothing like an open window on a pleasant day, right? One of my favorite things about our house is my view out the window while laying in bed. Our yard full of Live Oaks makes for some pretty scenery.

Slowly, But Surely

2010-10-19T21:53:00.002-05:00

I feel like all I ever get to do on this blog is run in, rattle off a list of stuff I've done since I last updated, and then run back out only to repeat the process. Which, is basically what this post is. the title of this post is in reference both to my current state of health and school. I am currently about halfway through a cold, and am slowly crawling my way to recovery. And this week I took my history midterm, so I'm at the halfway point in my first semester. So far everything is going along swimmingly. It's stressful, but half of that is self-induced, because I haven't had any real reason to worry so far. The lowest grade I've made in my history class is a 100, and I've got an A for my first MathMod, and also got that A on my first English paper. I turned in my second one today, and I'm hoping for a B. My lowered expectations can be chocked up to the fact that I finished it in a nyquil haze. I'm pretty sure it was coherent. Well, at least to me!

I'm super excited though, despite my current poor health, because today I booked us for a cruise for my 30th birthday! We decided just a quick, 4 day shoot to Cozumel and back would be the best way to go. If I can get a Tuesday/Thursday schedule again next semester then I'll only miss one day for our trip. It's hard to imagine a nicer way to celebrate my 30th birthday than hanging out on this beach. Wouldn't you agree?

And The Days Go By

2010-10-14T12:07:00.002-05:00

Okay, haven't updated in a week. Let's recap. Wednesday of last week we did the anniversary thing. Thursday I had school and went to the Writing Center after class to get help and extra credit on my history paper. Friday I worked, and Josh was off in Florida for a Back In Black show. My plan was to do homework, but it turned into eating junky and watching stuff off the DVR. I did however pick up "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People" when I stopped by Half Price Books after work. Saturday I did a little housework, and spent a good chunk of the day in bed with the windows open, reading and watching the Rangers game. Josh got back and had another show that night, so we spent the evening grabbing a bite to eat at Benito's and at the Chat Room for Fate Lions. Sunday was some more chores, baking, grocery shopping, etc.

This week has been similar. Monday I went to work and made a big bowl of pesto pasta for dinner. Did some homework and watched/live-tweeted Hoarders. Tuesday was a rough day at school. The teacher read half of my paper aloud, luckily as a good example. It was anonymous, but it was still awkward. History class was canceled, so I had some waiting around to do. Then math class was super hard. I just wasn't getting it that day. Luckily that night when I got home from work I took a walk, ordered some pizza, and tucked in to my math homework- and it was easy! I don't know what my problem was in class, but I managed to even work a whole section ahead rather easily. Yesterday though I stayed home most of the day, only coming in to work for a bit in the afternoon, due to a lack of sleep induced headache. Worked a bit more on my next English assignment last night, and then relaxed by getting caught up on Glee! (I can't WAIT for the Rocky Horror episode!) That brings us up to today, when I got even more work done on my paper in English class, found out I got a 110 on my history paper thanks to that extra credit visit to the Lab, and breezed through a quiz and got out of math early.

Now I just need to make it through today and tomorrow at work. I'm looking at this weekend and I'm seeing lovely things. Possibly:

-a bike ride
-a museum visit
-a trip to IKEA
-Fall/Halloween decorating
-hanging out with some friends
-playing some badminton
-a teeny, tiny, smidge of homework

Fall in Texas, I think, brings the best weather of the year and I love being able to enjoy it when we can!

Four

2010-10-07T14:58:00.003-05:00

Yesterday Josh and I celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary! We slept in, grabbed some donuts and went to the duck pond to enjoy them. Then we went to the zoo, which we thoroughly explored. We had ice cream cones, and enjoyed the beautiful day. For dinner we went to Texas de Brazil, which we had a gift card for. It's expensive, so this special day seemed like the perfect occasion to use it up. Salad bar, 6 kinds of meat, beer, and chocolate cake put me into a coma, but a delicious one! I go to bed every night and wake up everyday so glad to be married to such an awesome dude!

TGIF

2010-10-01T12:15:00.003-05:00

What a long week! Lots of studying for my math test, which was beyond frustrating. And then yesterday was just the pits. I overslept and missed my first class. I rushed to school just in time for my second class, only to discover it was canceled. And then there was the math test. I actually did great on it, which turned out to be the high point of my day. Then work, therapy (where I impressed my doctor with my neuroses, can't be good) and tons of traffic while trying to run errands. I was able to make a nice dinner, and do a little housework, so I suppose we can add that to the good list. But Josh didn't get home until almost 11, so that put a damper on that stuff a bit.

In other words, whine whine whine, ha. BUT! Tonight should be much better. One of my errands post-work yesterday was picking up some goodies for this evening. My pals Steph and Holly are coming over for some snacks and drinks, hopefully on the deck, before we head to the bar Steph's bro works at for more (and cheaper) drinks. Yay for girly fun times that I need so badly after this week!

Weekend Roundup

2010-09-27T15:06:00.002-05:00

This weekend was more or less a bust. I barely saw Josh at all, and other than making some really delicious donuts I got very little done.

Feeling very bummed about how busy we are lately. Mostly because it's the kind of busy that leaves you feeling like you've actually gotten absolutely nothing done. I am getting into a heavier workload at school, dislike having to show up at work each day, feel like I've got a million projects around the house needing to be done, and a decent night's sleep is a foreign concept to me.

We've got that $500 to do something with, but haven't decided what. Our anniversary is next week, we've got what appears to be a free weekend in October and a couple more in November, and then my 30th birthday is in February. Times ripe with opportunity for an escape, but if we can only afford one, which one do we choose? Or should it be spent on those nagging projects? What about fall clothes? Or should we not spend our windfall at all? Jeez. Doesn't seem like getting extra money should be stressful, but trying to decide what to do with it sure makes it feel that way.

Help Needed, Inquire Within

2010-09-22T13:22:00.003-05:00

At this moment I'm just a little overwhelmed with work. Every variety of it- school work, house work, work work. Tonight I need to fill out some calendars for school, so I can get a better picture of my deadlines and know when I'm under a time crunch (as well as 5 sections of reading and Cornell notes, woo). Time is always slipping through my fingers lately. How do you successfully manage your time?

Josh "inherited" $500 from the sale of his grandparents' house. We haven't been able to decide what to do with it yet. It's sitting in a savings account right now, but that certainly isn't it's permanent resting place. Some ideas are to put it towards a short & sweet trip, split it 50/50 to each spend on what we wish, use it to finish up household projects, decide a savings goal we'd like it to go towards. If you received an surprise $500 what would you use it for?

If there is one thing that I just don't get about fashion it is accessorizing. Shoes, bags, belts, jewelry- all generally confuse me. Tights, those seem to throw me for a loop too. Feels like I'm failing as a woman sometimes. Also, despite being almost 30, calling myself a woman feels super weird. I'm just a girl, right? Anyway, are there any hard and fast rules that could make this easier? (The less these rules cost me, the better.)

So, what say you dozen or so people who might read this blog? Any tips, tricks, advice for me in any of these areas?

Cowl-necked Confession

2010-09-14T14:16:00.002-05:00

It's barely out of the 90's here, but I am yearning for lots of comfy fall fashions. Loving this sweater from Old Navy, as well as about half of their other new sweaters. Alas, I can only window shop for now. My pocketbook will thank me. It better!

Weekend Roundup

2010-09-13T09:06:00.003-05:00

I am actually feeling a little closer to death today. Headache, FM aches and pains, and the fact that I slept horribly are making this a very rough Monday indeed. Here's what this weekend looked like at Casa de Hoovers.

Friday:
-Say goodbye to Josh, off to Cleveland
-Work, yuck
-World Market and Central Market after work
-Elliptical workout
-Salad and half a sandwich for dinner
-History homework
-Get ready for bed
-4 episodes of The Bob Newhart Show
-Sleepytown

Saturday:
-Sleep way in
-Coffee in bed w/ 4 more Newhart episodes
-Spend hours revamping Small Time Cooks, go take a look please!
-Josh gets home from Cleveland
-Skype with Daniel to finish the last of the blog updating
-Grab some Sonic for dinner
-Eat and watch a Simpsons episode with Josh
-A little more TV
-Bedtime

Sunday:
-Sleep in
-Coffee and juice
-House cleaning
-Shower
-Cheese toast
-Make grocery list and menu plan
-Bowl of cereal
-Some television while Josh mows the lawns
-Grocery shopping
-Pizza for dinner while watching a PBS Ed Sullivan special
-Hit the hay

Not Dead Yet

2010-09-10T08:52:00.002-05:00

Not dead, just busy. Busy with school, busy with household stuff which is becoming the norm. Also busy trying to lose this stupid weigh gain. I'm worried I'm not going to be able to get these few pounds off no matter what I do. I haven't been eating all healthy, all the time, but I'm not really eating any worse than I was before I gained the weight. I am pretty sure it's just from the birth control pills I take to control my endometriosis symptoms. I'm counting calories and using the elliptical, but not much seems to be helping. It's especially annoying since fall is creeping up and I can't fit in my favorite corduroy pants. And let's not even discuss my khaki slacks. Sigh.

On the positive side, they announced they are accepting internship applications for Conan's new show. That's my big, numero uno goal so now the task is to make myself the best internship candidate I can possibly be. I won't be eligible for a slot for a couple of years, but just knowing that the opportunity I most wanted is an actual option was very exciting. Need to get to work joining clubs, volunteering, etc. to pad out my resume and transcript.

My sleep patterns have become absolute crap lately. I'm not really having any trouble getting up for school, but I am not sleeping well, and I certainly have trouble dragging my tush out of bed on workdays. I remarked to Josh last night that I just don't think I'll ever be a morning person. No matter how early I get up each day, I'm still tired all day through until evening when I perk up and am ready to do stuff. Always been a night owl, and guess things won't be changing.

So yeah, not dead and now you're all caught up on what's been up with me.

A Break In The Weather

2010-09-03T16:33:00.004-05:00

I don't want to jump the gun, but I think we've possibly made it through another Texas summer. The ten day forecast here has highs in the upper 80's. That's damn near fall, right there. I might even be tempted to sleep with the windows open, if these 60 degree lows turn out to be fact. These temperatures have me looking forward to the weekend. I'll be doing homework tonight, but think I'll be doing some of it while lounging on the deck. While I'm at it, maybe breakfast will be enjoyed on the deck this weekend too. I've got chores and the like to get done this weekend, but no reason I can't fit plenty of outside time in there too. Actually I could probably get a few outdoors chores done as well. And I'm thinking a bike ride will be in order at some point. Josh's playing at the House of Blues tomorrow night and I'm excited because Stephanie & Rodney are going to come hang out with us. We'll get into some backstage shenanigans, no doubt. And I'm looking forward to the extra day off, even though Josh will be gone to play in Houston Sunday night. Yay outside times! Been cooped up all summer long!

Schooling

2010-08-31T13:37:00.003-05:00

Well, I survived my first day of school. My English Comp I class should be pretty good. We'll be focusing on writing about popular media, so it's nice that it has a connection, if ever so stretched, to what I'd like to major in- Radio, TV & Film. And the professor bears what I call a "bargain basement" resemblance to Colin Firth, so I should be able to stay focused. History, there's a lot of class participation which I'm not crazy about. Debates and the like, along with a service project and field trips. I get embarrassed having to speak in front of people, but I need to remind myself I'm there for me, not them- so who gives a crap what they think, right? Easier typed than done, ha. And then there's math. Algebra to be exact. The regular kind, cause I have to relearn it. Oy vey. I am not a fan of math, particularly Algebra. As soon as a big jumble of letters and numbers are written on the board, my mind just becomes foggy. I can never remember what to do first. Or next. Or last, for that matter. But I keep trying to re-frame it in my mind. Every time I say to myself "I hate math!", I adjust it to "I don't like math.", and then eventually I'll shift that to "I like math." And once we get there we'll consider it a miracle. Gotta hit from every angle. I'm hoping my decent writing skills will get me through the first two classes without too much of a struggle, so I can really put the effort into math that it's going to require.

But, the important part is I survived! Day one, at least, ha.

Never Lacking in Ideas

2010-08-26T16:36:00.003-05:00

As I have previously mentioned, I have a knack for mentally starting a new project before I've even really gotten under way on my current one. So, naturally, as I start school next Tuesday I have spent a good part of today thinking about redecorating my bathroom. I tell you, a dreamer's job is never done.

*Please note this bathroom is not my bathroom, and has barely anything in common with my bathroom. Other than, you know, a toilet and a bathtub. Photo here.

Weekend Roundup

2010-08-24T08:43:00.003-05:00

Yesterday was all around sucky. My practice driving was stressful and started my day off poorly. Only one of my school books was available to rent, and one I had to buy new, so that cost more than I was hoping it would. I got a lot of paper cuts while reorganizing the file room at work. I got home and the cat felt like it was his duty to harass me, and then claw me. Then I sliced my finger while chopping onion. My Arrabiata sauce wouldn't stop splattering the stove top. Overall it was real Monday-Monday. So I didn't get around to doing the weekend roundup yesterday.

Friday:
-Wake up around 4 to say goodbye to Josh, have trouble falling back asleep
-Sleep in a little bit, get ready
-Work, yuck
-Home
-Elliptical time
-Burrito, chips & salsa for dinner
-Watch some Andy Barker P.I. while Skyping with Conan friends
-Hit the hay

Saturday:
-Sleep way in
-Bowl of cereal, accompanied by sudden nose bleed (wtf?)
-Lots and lots of house cleaning
-Shower
-A little TV time
-Get dinner snacks ready
-Josh gets home from Kalamazoo
-Watch Batman while having cheese, crackers, chips & jalapeno poppers
-A little more TV
-Hit the hay

Sunday:
-Sleep in
-Cinnamon Oat pancakes and fruit smoothies
-Laundry
-Tidy my office
-Make meal plan and grocery list
-Grocery shopping
-Fancy sandwiches for dinner
-Finish laundry
-A little reading
-Bedtime

More Cowbell

2010-08-20T16:37:00.003-05:00

Josh left for the airport very early this morning. He's in Kalamazoo, Michigan with Back In Black. They're opening for Blue Oyster Cult. Which I think pretty much obligates me to post this video today. :)

More Cowbell! - watch more funny videos

Five Small Things

2010-08-19T11:42:00.002-05:00

Five small things that make my everyday life more pleasant:

-My wooden clothes hangers
-Quality pair of tweezers
-The alarm clock app Josh got me which let's me wake up to the music I want to hear
-My soft bed sheets
-My morning cup of coffee

Photo by Ellen Silverman

Weekend Roundup

2010-08-16T08:54:00.002-05:00

Friday:
-Rise and shine
-Check in and free breakfast
-Long morning at school orientation
-Lunch with new friend Danielle
-Campus tour
-Team building activities
-Done for the day
-Get the very, very sad news about beautiful little Margot passing
-Head home
-Lay around until Josh gets home
-Grab some Taco Cabana and chow down
-Crash on the couch and watch some Make 'Em Laugh
-Head to bed early after a long day

Saturday:
-Up early
-Shower and get ready
-Head to Steph's house
-Head to Carraba's in Plano for Foodbuzz Tastemakers event
-Lots and lots of yummy free food
-Back to Steph & Rodney's for a little bit
-Home, immediately change out of sweat drenched clothes, blech
-Crawl into cool bed to and spend most of the afternoon/evening reading magazines and watching HGTV
-Read over the brochuers, pamphlets, and handouts I got at school orientation
-Some Team Coco Skype chat late into the evening
-Josh gets home from Fate Lions
-Bedtime

Sunday:
-Sleep in
-Work on menu plan and grocery list in bed
-See Josh off to help his dad w/ a fallen tree at their house
-Chips & salsa for lunch
-Watch entire Faces of America series on PBS
-Pop a cheater's peach tart in the oven
-Get ready
-Josh get's home w/ the elliptical I'm borrowing from my bro
-Return his dad's truck after removing the elliptical
-Grocery shopping
-Fancy sandwiches for dinner
-Pick up my prescription at Walgreens
-Shower
-Peach tart and ice cream for dessert
-Watch an old episode of Jools Holland
-Hit the hay

Holgas

2010-08-12T12:16:00.002-05:00

Horseshoe Falls, Niagara

Jerko & Drew before a show

Burger Palace

More here.

Bad Blogger

2010-08-11T09:12:00.003-05:00

Oof, I've been a bad blogger lately. I guess I've just been preoccupied with other things. I did end up going shopping this past weekend, but did not end up walking out with those shoes or the plaid top. I did get the chambray shirt though, along with a corduroy vest and a $19 pair of jeans. Not too bad, I guess.

Tonight I get to leave work a bit early so Josh and I can get to Dallas for the Telegraph Canyon/Built To Spill show. It's the Granada Theater's 6th anniversary and they invited a bunch of local bands/music scene people for free. And I mean FREE- free entry, open bar for the hour before the show, free food, and a couple of drink tickets for during the show. Very excited!

Friday I've got an all-day orientation at school. Feeling a little awkward about it. I still feel a bit like a character from 21 Jump Street, as if my youthful looks are merely a tool for my nearly 30 year old self to get the inside scoop. Except I don't want the inside scoop. I just don't want the cool kids to make fun of me, and I think I'll be fine from there. (Are there cool kids at a community college? Besides the ones in that TV show, I mean.)

And Saturday me and my bestie Steph get to go to an event at a Carraba's in Plano, thanks to Foodbuzz. We'll get the inside scoop on their kitchen, recipes, stuff like that I guess. And some yummy food, for free.

Actually, now that I think about it, I get a free lunch at orientation too. Free food seems to be the theme of this week! And insides scoops, since I've used that phrase twice in this post, ha.

Back To School Shopping

2010-08-05T15:40:00.002-05:00

I technically don't need much more than my textbooks and a big notepad. Lord knows I've got plenty of pens, notecards, highlighters, and such around my house. But that doesn't stop the intense urge to do some back to school CLOTHES shopping. Realitiscally is doesn't stop the urge to buy a bunch of pretty highlighters either, but I can manage to deny those urges. I'm really liking these items at Old Navy. I might have to stop in and pick up the chambray shirt. I've been dying for a J. Crew one, which would probably be a bit nicer than the ON version, but at a quarter the cost I think I can live with a little less quality. :)

Weekend Roundup

2010-08-03T11:43:00.002-05:00

I had a busy and yet lazy weekend. Two great music shows made it a lot of fun. Yesterday was very busy at work and home however, so I didn't get a chance to post. Quick synopsis of my weekend:

Friday:
-Work
-Shower and get ready
-Load in at The Cellar
-Dinner at Fuzzy's Tacos with Niki & Veronica
-Calhoun show at The Moon with Holly
-Back to The Cellar for Fate Lions
-Home to bed

Saturday:
-Sleep in
-Coffee
-Lunch
-Watch Girl With a Pearl Earring
-Shower and get ready
-Head to The Kessler Theater
-Load in, a lot of waiting through soundchecks
-Some Holga shooting
-Opening act/The O's/Sunward/James Hall & Futura Bold show
-Hang with Holly and loads of other peeps who came out for the show
-Grab Jack In The Box on the way home, eat
-Crash into bed

Sunday:
-Sleep way in
-Menu planning and grocery listing
-Chinese food and some TV in bed
-Get ready
-Start laundry
-Grocery shopping
-Unload cargo
-Eat sandwich, olives, chips & salsa for dinner
-Shower
-Finish up laundry
-Hit the hay

Long Days

2010-07-29T11:59:00.003-05:00

I've had a long week so far. Not terrible, just long. Although I've been sleeping horribly, so that part hasn't been so great. Monday night I managed to push myself to make dinner, despite my general exhaustion. I'm glad, because it was a really good new recipe that I'll be sharing soon on Small Time Cooks. I'm reading a good book that I started on Monday and am already almost done with. For such a slow reader like me that is quite a feat. My house is still pretty darn tidy after all the cleaning I did this weekend. We all know how nice it is to come home to a clean house. Tuesday I was having a very rough day, I barely slept at all the night before, and ended up leaving work midday to go home for a nap. I worked a bit from home that afternoon, and used the rest of the evening to get my photos ready for the exhibition in August.

Yesterday was like a marathon. I slept in just a smidge, got up and got ready and had a big breakfast and coffee. Then it was off to the community college campus to take my placement test. Did great on the essay and reading portions, did poorly as expected on the math. They said I can keep working on my math though, and take another placement test right before school to see if I can move ahead in the developmental classes some more. Once I was done, they luckily had a few spots left in that afternoon's new student group advisement that is required before you can register for classes. So I wasted some time by walking to Jamba Juice and back, and then went through that orientation. I've enrolled in two classes online, and I have to go back by the school to enroll in the developmental math course I need. Once I've done that and paid my tuition (yuck) I'll be good to go, I guess. After 12 years, I'll be a student again. Yoinks! I feel like I'm there undercover or something. I was definitely older than everyone else in the advisement class, but I look so young I don't think anyone could really tell. It such a weird feeling, ha.

Weekend Roundup

2010-07-26T08:27:00.003-05:00

Friday:
-Work, yuck
-Get home, and get ready to clean
-Quick dinner
-Lots and lots of house cleaning while Josh is in Denton for show
-Late night snacks while watching Manhattan Murder Mystery
-Josh gets home and gets cleaned up
-Hit the hay

Saturday:
-Totally oversleep
-Shower and get ready
-Have to skip school festival thanks to oversleeping
-Head out to IKEA
-Get two benches, clock, and frame for exhibition photo
-Back home, unload cargo
-Bowl of cereal and a couple of eggs for a late lunch
-Watch a little HGTV
-Head to Stephanie & Rodney's
-Visit with the babies for a little bit
-Everybody packs in to the mini-van to head out for some drinking and golfing
-Drinks, food, laughs, and some hits at the driving range
-Back to the DeMeglio casa for some cake and games
-Head home
-Crash in to bed

Sunday:
-Up early to finish household tidying
-Shower and get ready
-Dad & Karen come by to see the house
-Lunch at Pappadeaux's, such good alligator
-Goodbye's and back home
-Menu planning and grocery listing
-Grocery shopping
-Unload the goods, clean and prep veggies
-Start some laundry
-A bit of reading, finish Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter, while Josh mows the yards
-A little Newsweek reading
-Start an episode of Make 'Em Laugh
-Grab some Rosa's for dinner
-Eat and finish Make 'Em Laugh episode
-Do muscle relaxation exercise homework
-Interwebing, Skyping and re-watching Manhattan Murder Mystery
-Finish laundry
-Bedtime

Gimme Money, That's What I Want

2010-07-21T15:22:00.002-05:00

As I mentioned before we recently picked up a new car. We still kept our little troublemaker, the VW Bug, and after some repairs it is back at the casa. It's sitting in the driveway however because we had a bunch of junk in the garage in it's place. Our garage is actually pretty tidy, but it is lacking in cohesive organization. I got my mom to take back her shop vac, we bought a wall bike rack (don't ask about it though, turning out to be a pain in the behind), and I've been chucking stuff on Craigslist to try and get some more space. A side benefit is that from the stuff I sell, I get to put that cash back into the house decor. This week we got rid of the biggest piece we had sitting around, our old entertainment center. It was a nice piece, but we had no space and no need for it, since our new living room came with a whole wall of built-in storage. I almost got enough from the sale of it to get the two benches I want from IKEA. I didn't mention in that earlier post that I want two benches, but I do. Still patiently waiting for someone to take me up on a cheap metal bed frame that I myself picked up off Craigslist, but which turned out to be too small, along with a lamp, some curtains and other miscellaneous items that don't work in the new house. Anyway, looks like I'll get to make that trip to IKEA this weekend, because I also need to pick up a frame for one of the prints I'm preparing for an exhibition in August. Two chores killed with one hop, skip, and jump to IKEA! And then my dining room will be much closer to done and maybe I'll even share a picture or two.

Weekend Roundup

2010-07-19T08:10:00.002-05:00

Friday:
-Work, yuck
-Home to get ready
-Jason meets us at the house
-Head out to Dallas, make the boys listen to Dawes on the way
-Load in at The Cavern
-Hang out, meet Neff, good music and drinks
-Talk with some of Josh's Southpeak boys
-Hit he road, after a pit stop for gas and pringles
-Home, de-club myself
-Pretzels, chips & salsa while watching some Simpsons
-Hit the hay

Saturday:
-Sleep in, intermittently dozing while waiting for Craigslister to pick up a lamp
-Haircuts
-Errands for Mom's birthday present
-Fish and chips for lunch
-Catch up on some dvr'd Rick Bayless and peruse my new MS Living issue
-Help Josh in the garage, get some photos of the old tv stand
-Shower
-Get ready
-Head up to meet the guys at The Moon
-Grab some Fuzzy's Tacos with Niki
-Back to The Moon for Tony's solo show, awesome second band, and then Fate Lions
-Visit with Mel, Brian, Niki & Veronica for awhile
-Head home
-Get ready for bed
-Chips & salsa w/ some more Simpsons
-Bedtime

Sunday:
-Sleep in
-Try to do some menu planning, but still so tired
-Doze for another hour or so
-Grab some food
-Do some real menu and grocery planning
-Put entertainment center on craigslist
-Get ready
-Grocery shopping
-Put everything up
-Start laundry
-Shower
-Spinach & Feta pizza for dinner
-TV while finishing up some computer stuff
-Finish laundry
-Snooze time

Three Things

2010-07-16T15:32:00.003-05:00

I think these three things would have my dining room nearly finished. Of course, I don't have any money for these three things, so only time (and scrimping) will tell.

Dawesome

2010-07-15T21:36:00.003-05:00

Feeling much better, thinking that I just had a bad allergy flare up. I rarely have allergies, but after a whole weekend of cleaning and organizing dusty, neglected spaces and Josh mowing the front and back yard, I think it got my sinuses going.

That isn't the point of this post though. The point is that you need to start listening to this band, NOW. I went to Casa Manana with Holly, Stephanie, and Amanda last night to see Telegraph Canyon, which I've shared about here before, and an up and coming band from LA, Dawes. If you listen to KXT, then you're surely already familiar with them. And perhaps you're already familiar with them through some other vein. But if you aren't, you need to be. Gorgeous songs, reminiscent of The Band, and to my mind just a tinge of The Grateful Dead. Luverly alt-country-folk-rock. That's a wide description, but just listen and enjoy. I couldn't embed any of their official videos, so you can go here to see them. Here is a decent video of "When You Call My Name", which is a favorite of the KXTers.

Sickies

2010-07-13T15:46:00.002-05:00

I can't believe it, but I'm actually sick again. It's the super pits right now. I can't miss anymore work after my foot injury, the last time I was sick, and our trip to NY. My boss has a compromised immune system due to his cancer treatments, so gets to work from home while I get to come in and be miserable all day, ha. Hoping this crud will be over much more quickly than it was last time. I would love nothing more than to curl up in bed and watch some old movies while I wait this bug out, but looks like that just isn't an option this time.

Weekend Roundup

2010-07-12T14:52:00.002-05:00

Friday:
-Work, yuck
-Josh at show, so on my own
-Toast w/ avocado and egg, chips & salsa for dinner
-Watch "Dial M for Murder"
-Small batch of popcorn, "Sense & Sensibility" and some Conan Skype chat
-Josh gets home
-Hit the hay

Saturday:
-Sleep waaaay in
-30 minute walk
-Weights
-Shower
-Whole wheat pumpkin pancakes for lunch
-Josh off for rehearsal
-Start beef stew in the slow cooker
-Clean out and organize guest bedroom
-Break for frozen burrito
-Back to cleaning
-Josh gets home
-Beef stew for dinner
-Grab a well deserved jr. sundae and small coke
-Conan Skype chatting
-A little "Simpsons"
-Bed

Sunday:
-Up at a decent hour!
-Menu planning and grocery listing
-Coffee, cereal, and fruit smoothie
-Get ready
-Michael's to look for frames, nada
-Container Store for a bike rack, score
-Masterworks and Ansel Adams exhibits at the Amon Carter, fantastic
-Grocery shopping at Target and Central Market
-Drop Conan/tattoo pic off at shop
-Unload the cargo
-Eat half a cuban sandwich and a few chips
-Start laundry
-Clean and prep veggies for the week
-Make Goodwill donations
-Tidy a few things in the garage
-Shower
-Some popcorn and Masterpiece Mystery's "Murder on the Orient Express"
-Finish up laundry
-A couple episodes of "Good Neighbors"
-Bedtime

New Toy

2010-07-09T16:57:00.003-05:00

This week Josh came back from his Dad's house with a present for me. It was a lovely brown case, containing an even lovelier gift. Ann brought back her dad's old camera from NY for me. It's a Canon AE-1Program, a 35mm SLR from the early to mid 80's. There was also an extra lens and a flash in the case. And several film canisters, which I'm nervous to open. I don't know if they've been exposed yet, and I don't want to ruin them if they have. I'll have to take them by Barron's and have them checked out. There was another roll still in it's box, so I might pop it in the camera and just see what happens when I start pushing buttons. :)

To See

2010-07-08T17:07:00.002-05:00

There are two photography exhibits that I'd love to see at the Amon Carter Museum right now. Masterworks of American Photography: Popular Culture and Ansel Adams: Eloquent Light both look fantastic. We haven't been to the museum since December! Going to try and squeeze in a visit this weekend since the Masterworks exhibit is ending July 18th. And the exhibit American Modern: Abbott, Evans, Bourke-White that starts in October looks good too. I'll have to put a reminder on my calendar for that!

Esther Bubley (1921–1998)
Humble Camp, Gene Tanner and his Dog, Sergeant, Tomball, Texas, 1945

Sink or Swim

2010-07-07T11:44:00.002-05:00

I'm feeling very overwhelmed lately. We had a nice weekend, in which I got a few things done. But it just seems that there's never going to be a way for me to get all the the things done that need doing. Money is really tight right now, and I need all the work hours I can get. I'm doing good on getting to work early so far. But at the same time I really need to go take the placement test for school. Time is dwindling and the longer I wait the harder it's going to be to put together a decent class schedule. Taking the test means missing work though.

On top of the school/work/money thing is the driving thing. We got the new car, in part so we'd have something I could more easily learn on, and drive on days I have school. But I haven't had a chance to drive it yet. And beyond that is the stress of actually getting my license. And then the increase in our insurance and gas costs come up, which swings us back around to the money side of things. Add to that the everyday stuff like I don't like my job, housework, cooking, and insomnia.

And let's not forget the icing on the cake- I've gained at least 6 pounds since my foot injury. Half of my pants don't fit. The expensive pairs, naturally. So I'm on a heavy rotation of stairs, jumping jacks, pilates, walking, and hand weights. Also counting calories and measuring food portions. I can't afford to buy a bunch of new clothes, not to mention that I don't want to. It's all my favorite pants that aren't fitting!

I know people have problems way worse than mine, but it doesn't stop these things from stressing me out. Guess it's a good thing I'm doing all this exercising for stress release, huh?

Mean Reds

2010-07-06T12:23:00.001-05:00

I've got a bad case of the mean reds today. Be back tomorrow.

Weekend Hopes

2010-07-02T16:07:00.003-05:00

Here are a few of the things I'm planning, or at least hoping, to find time for this holiday weekend. Happy Fourth!

.Make some Whole Wheat Peach Muffins
.Measure my NYC map for framing
.Do breathing exercises twice
.Do pilates thrice
.Get a Small Time Cooks blog post up
.Finish reading 2 books
.Grocery shopping
.Bit of house cleaning
.Hang out time with Josh
.Hang out time with friends. Possibly a party?

Friday Conezone #16

2010-07-02T14:15:00.002-05:00

Hey guys! It's finally Friday! This week has been all out of whack for me, with us being gone Monday and Tuesday. Wednesday felt like Monday and things have been off-kilter ever since. But it's finally time for the weekend. As I've mentioned before I like to try and keep things a little topical when it comes to the Friday Conezone. Today I found out that two of the three photos I submitted were accepted for an August exhibition at the Fort Worth Community Arts Center. Naturally I'm very excited! So, for today's Conezone clip I decided to share Conan's photoshoot experience at Teen Beat magazine. Enjoy!

Resolutions Update

2010-07-01T09:27:00.002-05:00

I can hardly believe we are already at the halfway point for 2010. It seems like every year passes by faster and faster, doesn't it? Figured that today would be the ideal day to take a look at the progress, if any, I've made on some of my goals for the year. Let's see if I've gotten anything done, shall we?

.Read 20 books- Bahaha. I've read three. I'm reading a couple right now, so maybe I can catch up on this one. Doesn't seem very likely though.
.Exercise at least twice a week- I was doing great on this one until I injured my toe. I'm trying to get back in the ballgame now, especially since I have weight to lose from being off my feet for so long.
.Improve my eating habits- Again, not so awesome. Trying to get back on the ball, and then I could still use some more improvements.
.Be a better listener- probably failing at this one, though I keep trying so that's a partial success, right?
.Learn to drive- I've driven Josh and I twice this year, and now that we've got the automatic Honda Fit I can make much more progress. I look forward to doing some practice driving this weekend.
.Get a full physical/gyno/bloodwork- I may have discovered 4 new health problems to deal with, but this one is a big checkmark. None of these problems are life threatening, so what are some eye drops and daily pills compared to living a long, healthy life?
.Learn some tactics for handling stress- I'm going in for another appointment with my therapist tomorrow to work on my biofeedback, and learn how to adjust my body's response to stressors.
.Start a vegetable garden in back yard and container herb garden in side yard- I planted some cilantro, basil, and a tomato, pepper, strawberry, and cantaloupe plant. The cilantro is dead, I've eaten one tomato I've grown, and have one pepper to show for my efforts so far. We'll see how the plants fare the rest of the summer before I decide to go further with the veggie garden idea.
.Learn how to develop my own black & white film- a whole lotta nada going on here
.Have clothes hemmed- again zip, not sure why this task is so difficult for me
.Finish family photos for the hallway- zero progress made
.Get my Beatles tattoo- I got my Conan tattoo first, but I'm hoping to get this one before the year is out.
.Be more like Diane Keaton, Jane Birkin, Linda McCartney, Katharine Hepburn, and Audrey Hepburn- I should probably think up some more specific ways in which I can be following the example of these fabulous ladies.
.Rent a cabin- I'm thinking the Holiday Inn Express we just stayed in doesn't cross this one off my list.
.Finish organizing my office- More or less done, although I make it messy every week, so it's constantly in need of re-organizing.
.Cross 2 things off my Life List- Hmm, I need to actually take a look at my list again and see what all I can consider done. I think I had visit Niagara Falls on there, in which case we consider this resolution half finished.

So, there we go. That's what I've managed to get done in the past 6 months. Of course I've also met one of my biggest inspirations in person, made a lot of new friends, decided on a path I'd like to follow, and applied to school. We'll see where the next 6 months take me as I move more down that path and actually start school in the fall!

Catching Up

2010-06-30T09:55:00.004-05:00

Phew! We had a long, busy trip to NY. A lot of airport frustration and early mornings. When we got back yesterday I took a four hour nap, and then managed to still get about 8 hours of sleep last night. But we had a lot of fun and visited with a lot of Josh's step-family. Plenty of good food and rounds of Banangrams. Also, last Wednesday before we left for the trip, we went out and bought a car. I can't tell you how grown-up that made us feel. We must be adults now, right? We have a mortgage, a retirement account, and we just paid cash for a car. We bought a used 2007 Honda Fit. It only had 39K miles on it though, which is quite low for a 3 year old car and for a Honda, infamous for their long lifespans. It's cute, will allow us to fit a third person in even once it's packed with Josh's drums, and most importantly it's an automatic so I can learn to drive more easily. I haven't gotten to take it for a spin yet, since we took off for NY right after buying it and just got back in yesterday. But I look forward to doing that soon! We feel pretty good about the price we paid, just under 15.5K, after TT&L and a complete warranty through to 100K miles. Not bad, right?

As for the rest of my news, we went to Niagara Falls and the George Eastman House while we were in NY, but due to all that sleep I needed I haven't uploaded any of my pictures yet. Hopefully I'll get around to that this week and I'll have something to share soon!

Getting Ready

2010-06-22T12:10:00.002-05:00

I was too busy to get to a Weekend Roundup yesterday, but what a busy and fun weekend we had. Hang out time with Josh Friday night, followed by a late night on the skype chat with my Conan friends. Saturday had a late sleep-in, lazy morning, and then getting ready and heading first to Fate Lions rehearsal and then to The Granada for their show. Veronica and I left the fellas at the theater and headed on foot to get some refreshment from the heat. We grabbed Jessaica as she was just checking out at Buffalo Exchange and hit up Blue Goose for margaritas, mojitos, and Mexican food. Mmmmm. It was funtimes chatting with the other FL ladies, although minus Delia. The show was great, Josh's sister and husband came out too, and I had a real blast while we all hung out on the front porch of the theater gabbing the night away. After the show we went back to Jason's for eggs, potatoes, and more talking. Sunday I spent a good chunk of the day being lazy, which included afternoon relaxation in my new inflatable lounging pool. I spent a little time in it Friday and Saturday, but took advantage of having free time during the sunniest part of the day on Sunday. I'm gonna love getting to soak in the sun this summer.

And now this week is also super busy with planning and preparation for our trip to upstate NY. Lots of laundry, cleaning, and packing to be done. And we have a long stop in Detroit between flights, so some reading materials will be essential. I'll be stopping by the book store this evening. Thinking about picking up these goodies. Don't judge!

Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Green

Girl With a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier

Mr. Darcy's Diary by Amanda Grange

The Word of the Day...

2010-06-17T12:10:00.001-05:00

...is Escape.

Weekend Roundup

2010-06-14T11:13:00.003-05:00

Friday:
-Work
-Home to watch some Ghost Whisperer while waiting for Josh
-Grab some dinner from Chick-fil-a, spicy chicken sandwich two thumbs up!
-See Josh off to Back In Black show in Flower Mound
-A couple glasses of wine and internet chatting with Conan friends until late into the night
-Josh gets home from show
-Bedtime

Saturday:
-Sleep in late
-Coffee and granola bar
-Clean house
-Josh leaves to rehearse with Matt
-Shower
-Salad and nectarine for lunch
-Watch a bunch of HGTV while cruising home decor sites online
-Josh gets home with some grub
-Finish getting ready
-Head to Josh's mom's house to visit with his sister & family newly arrived from Washington
-Pizza, beer, Wii bowling and two rounds of Cranium late into the night
-Head home and crash into bed

Sunday:
-Sleep in late
-Work on menu plan and grocery list some
-Eggs and whole wheat banana pancakes from the freezer for a very late breakfast
-Finish menu plan and grocery list
-Shower
-Get ready while Josh finishes changing his drum heads
-Grocery shopping
-Finally get the inflatable pool and pina colada mix for the white trash weekend I've been dreaming of
-Unload groceries and eat
-Water plants, harvest tomato and pepper, and tidy kitchen while Josh cleans the car and mows
-Josh's sister, bro-in-law, and niece come by with grub to see the house and hang out
-Lots of catching up and Beatles Rock Band
-Get ready for bed
-Lots of insomnia, restless sleep, and cat interruptions make for a rough night, boourns

Back to the Conezone

2010-06-11T13:03:00.003-05:00

Just because I've met my favorite dude in the flesh doesn't mean I've crossed him off my list and moved on. He's still my numero uno funny man (aside from Josh of course). And I still plan to share some great Conan clips here to keep the laughs going until he's back on the boob tube in November. I like to try and keep what I share topical when I can and Josh and I have been discussing looking for a second car. It will not be a Ford Taurus SHO, sorry Conan, but all the same this seemed like a good clip to share today. Enjoy!

Back in The Land of the Living

2010-06-10T14:15:00.003-05:00

Oh boy. I have been so sick, y'all. Like, pretty much dead since last Tuesday. I had a mega-cold. A cold like I hadn't had for quite some time. It really knocked me for a loop, but I'm feeling much better now. Still have a cough and some congestion remains, but nothing like the past week. I blame my poor eating habits as of late. The foot injury brought on a lot of convenience foods. And I'd already been a bit lazy in the kitchen as of late. This week I've been trying to get my immune system back in order. Lots and lots of fresh fruit and veg. Salads for dinner this week. Yesterday I had a homemade salad/salsa comprised of black beans, red/yellow/orange bell peppers, and an onion for lunch with some tortilla chips, then a big salad for dinner chocked full of bell peppers, onion, zucchini, yellow squash, tomatoes and cucumber. I followed it with a few strawberries, a big wedge of watermelon, and half a banana. The other half went into a smoothie I had with my fruit, along with a handful of spinach, 3/4 cup of oj, and a cup of frozen pineapple. It comes out green, but it tastes like pineapple- fun! If I keep it up I should be back in virus fighting shape in no time. And who knows, I might just drop the couple pounds I gained during my gimpy weeks too!

Craving

2010-05-26T12:18:00.002-05:00

I have such a big craving for a sandwich today. Unfortunately I can't think of anywhere good nearby to get one. I'd love a nice Cuban though. Mmmm.

Feelin' Funky

2010-05-25T14:05:00.002-05:00

But not in a good way. In a bit of a funk lately. A mood, if you will. Might be my body trying to adjust to these new birth control pills. Might be the lack of exercise thanks to my stupid boot. Who knows? Not me. What do you do when you're feeling a bit down?

Weekend Roundup

2010-05-24T08:42:00.002-05:00

I've sort of fallen off the face of the blogosphere lately. Can hardly think of anything worth writing about, and haven't even been reading that much either. I've got 144 entries in my Google Reader to catch up on. But it's a Monday morning at work, so that probably won't take long. ;) This weekend was jam-packed.

Friday:
-Podiatrist appointment, toe not fractured, soft tissue damage, more steroids and boot time
-Back home, try repeatedly to upload video to youtube, fail
-Shower and get ready
-Head to House of Blues in Dallas
-Lots of waiting around
-Boys are finally done with sound check
-Eat dinner
-Everybody else gets there
-Watch the Rock School kids for a little bit
-Hang out in green room
-Watch some of Appetite for Destruction, GnR tribute band
-More hanging out in green room
-Back in Black time, station myself on the side of the stage
-Get accosted by Slash impersonator
-Back In Black finishes up
-Load out and head home
-Grab some Jack In The Box on the way
-Eat, get ready for bed
-Hit the hay

Saturday:
-Sleep way in
-Get ready
-Head to Clif & Duane's for Jason's surprise birthday party
-Party down with everyone, eat, drink and be generally merry
-Head to Josh's mom's house for pizza and movies for his brother's birthday
-Watch Life of Brian and MST3K: Boggy Creek
-Head home
-Ready for bed
-Crash

Sunday:
-Sleep in
-Shower
-Get ready
-Grocery shopping
-Lunch
-Lots of TV and computer time
-Get ready for bed
-Fall asleep watching Kids In The Hall

One Foot in Front of the Other

2010-05-19T11:40:00.003-05:00

I completed my school application last night, and got my transcript ready to mail to them today. It's just community college, but it's the first step. Unfortunately there are so many more steps to follow! I'm feeling really good about this though. I've decided my big, ultimate, dream goals are to either work for Conan/Jeff Ross/Conaco Productions or to work at the Paley Center. I'll be lucky to get a job in the television industry at all, probably, but it doesn't hurt to have something big to shoot for, right?

I'm feeling a little low and frustrated at the same time though. When you finally figure out what it is you think you should be doing with your life, you kind of want to be able to start doing it right away. Trying to exercise patience is not going to be easy, but it must be done. I'm also on the downside of the high that was last Thursday. I get sad after Christmas, post-vacation, etc., so the comedown from the greatest day in my life is a bit rough. I'll manage though. I'm already looking at internships with TBS/Turner/Time Warner/Warner Bros., as well as the Paley Center. And Conan's new show is set to start November 8th. So there are some things to look forward to. ;)

One Day All My Dreams Came True...

2010-05-17T13:17:00.003-05:00

...and my heart exploded into a million tiny joy-filled pieces.

Next Big Thing

2010-05-12T17:15:00.002-05:00

So, I'm totally pumped for meeting Conan O'Brien tomorrow, despite the stupid boot on my foot! However, I am prone to getting pretty bummed out once I get passed these big-huge-exciting moments. Luckily we're going to upstate NY at the end of June, so I've got something to look forward to. The reason for the trip is unfortunate- memorial service for Josh's step-grandfather who passed away earlier this year. But the experience is shaping up to be more a celebration of life, including a bus, keg, and scratch-off lotto tickets on the way to the service. And while there we are going to go to Niagara Falls!

Weekend/Sick Roundup

2010-05-11T13:58:00.002-05:00

Well, I'm still on the couch with my leg up. Toe is still a bit swollen, despite steroids, ice and trying to keep it elevated. I probably was on it too much over the weekend. We did a little grocery shopping, had dinner at Pop-in-law's with the Hoover clan for Mother's Day, and Chinese and Wii Golf at the Mom-in-law's. Went in to work yesterday and there was an incident with a file cabinet nearly crushing my injured toe. So here I sit, because I apparently I can barely move without nearly killing myself. And I'll be damned if I'm not going to make it to Thursday night. Two days until I get to see and meet one of my biggest inspirations!

Lazy Daze

2010-05-09T14:18:00.004-05:00

Getting a whole lotta couch/TV time these days, hence the MIA blogger. Not to mention the pain killer haze.

Happy Birthday Audrey!

2010-05-04T14:04:00.004-05:00

"Nothing is impossible, the word itself says 'I'm possible'!"- Audrey Hepburn

Weekend Roundup

2010-05-03T14:08:00.003-05:00

Friday:
-Work a couple hours in the morning
-Eye doc for my glaucoma test, early glaucoma seems to be the diagnosis
-Back to work for the rest of the day
-Home, wait while Josh mows the yard and gets cleaned up
-Borders for the TIME 2010 100 people issue, Conan's #2 in the "Artists" category!
-Dinner at Blue Mesa
-Target for some ice cream
-Home for the evening
-Horrible eye drops
-Bedtime

Saturday
-Sleep in
-Clean house and do lots and lots of laundry
-Josh leaves for rehearsal
-Chips, dip and The Bank Dick
-Finish up laundry and play a little Glee catch up
-Get Josh to download the Immaculate Collection after watching the Madonna episode
-Terrible eye drops
-Bedtime

Sunday:
-Sleep in
-Walk
-Breakfast
-Shower
-Coffee while getting ready
-Quick grocery shopping
-Head to Rob & LeAnn's to visit and see little Violet
-Hang out and catch up
-Watch 60 Minutes with Conan on their giant projector screen, awesome!
-Say adios and head home
-Quick bike ride around the neighborhood with Josh, I'm doing better!
-Chips and dip and My Little Chickadee
-Awful eye drops
-Hit the hay

Friday ConeZone #14

2010-04-30T15:49:00.002-05:00

Time for another installment of Friday ConeZone! This week I'm sharing a remote shot during the Writer's Strike in 2008. Conan decides to go to the doctor when he has a sore throat, mostly to mine it for material for the show. I had my follow up eye exam today to check into my high eye pressure. Turns out I likely have very early Glaucoma. Fantastic. So when trying to think of a clip to share today, this one immediately came to mind for this reason. This clip is "mirrored", which is done to try and keep the web spies off the track of hot Conan clips. Doesn't affect the funny though.

Come On In

2010-04-29T16:04:00.002-05:00

I reallyreallyreally want to paint our front door red. It's a big wish on my house project list. I have to figure out the right shade, if it's possible to protect it from sun fading (which is a current problem with our front door), and how you go about painting your front door without your house filling up with bugs. Young House Love has a tutorial on painting your front door red, which I'm sure I will rely on when I'm ready to take the leap.

New Math

2010-04-28T10:10:00.002-05:00

Today I wanted to sing the praises of social networking sites. In particular Twitter. I've mentioned on here before that I've decided I want to start college in the fall. I haven't been in school for over 10 years. That's a pretty long time. I took a practice placement test online a while back and failed the math portion horribly. Ten years is a long time to be expected to remember geometry and algebra II, especially when you have used it a grand total of ZERO times since high school. Anyway, I'm trying to refresh my math skills before I have to take the real-deal placement test for school. What does math have to do with Twitter? Well, here's the story:

I follow Mindy Kaling, like many people do, on Twitter. She made a couple of jokes based on fake band names. I followed suit and made a couple of jokes on fake band names. Because I'm nothing if not original. Someone cruising the tweets with that hash tag found me, enjoyed my tweets, and started following me. Then days, maybe weeks, later I tweeted about how I hated algebra. And this guy informed me that he works for a company that makes software to help prepare math-challenged students for for-credit classes. And he set me up with a free download of the software this weekend. I worked through two lessons last night and it's actually really neat, developed in part by staff from Carnegie Mellon University. So, I got free, fancy math software all because I made a couple of jokes on Twitter.

How Does My Garden Grow?

2010-04-27T13:38:00.003-05:00

I finally FINALLY got my veggies into some dirt yesterday evening. I planted my herbs a while back, but had been planning on getting some different planters for the veggies, which was the cause of the hold out. I can never find just what it is I'm picturing in my mind. But when I realized that my strawberry plant was actually growing tiny little strawberries I figured I'd better get them in some earth and I can transfer them to the bigger, better containers of my dreams as soon as I can hunt them down. I had a strawberry, a pepper, a tomato and, as it turns out, a cantaloupe plant to get arranged. The cantaloupe came as a surprise. I thought I had picked up a squash plant. Unfortunately it was an unwelcomed surprise because I hate cantaloupe. I stuck it in a pot all the same, but if it actually grows anything you can perhaps look forward to receiving a cantaloupe from me because I won't be eating it. I deadheaded my two rose bushes while I was outside too. Here are some pics I snapped!

Wee strawberries

Tomato tot

L'il pepper

Roses

Weekend Roundup

2010-04-26T13:30:00.003-05:00

This weekend went by far too fast, partly because I worked on Friday and partly because Persuasion arrived in the mail and I had to watch it repeatedly. Yes, I said "had to".

Friday:
-Work, yuck
-Walk
-Get ready
-Load in at The Moon
-Grab some Fuzzy's Tacos and chow down at home
-Fate Lions at The Moon with Holly
-Beers after at the house with the guys
-Crash

Saturday:
-Up at 8 to start math software download, back to bed
-Sleep in
-Walk
-Try our bikes out, oy that's gonna take a lot of practice
-Shower
-Cheese & crackers for lunch with Josh
-Install math software
-Start Persuasion
-See Josh and the boys off to Denton and Oklahoma
-Nearly finish Persuasion before Holly arrives
-Grab some grub at Central Market for me and Fuzzy's for Holly
-Watch a couple of W.C. Fields shorts and Groundhog Day
-See Holly off, get ready for bed
-Finish Persuasion
-Fall asleep watching some Simpsons

Sunday:
-Sleep in
-Clean up cat vomit, oh joy
-Work on menu and grocery list, while watching Persuasion
-Walk
-Shower
-Bowl of cereal and finish grocery list
-Grocery shopping
-Salad and sandwich for dinner
-Josh get back from OK
-Clean and prep veggies for week
-Sweep house
-Finish the rest of the W.C. Fields shorts
-Get ready for bed
-Watch Persuasion one more time, clearly I need help

Friday ConeZone #13

2010-04-23T17:21:00.002-05:00

Lucky number 13! Three weeks until I'll be in the real life ConeZone. I can barely think of anything else people! Anyway, had a busy day today so popping in to share a classic Conan moment before I start my busy weekend. I love it when Conan tries new things and participates on the show. That definitely includes his hilarious attempt to learn to swing on a stripper pole after interviewing Sheila Kelley about her pole dancing workout program. Enjoy!

Resurrected

2010-04-22T09:49:00.002-05:00

Phew! I'm back in the land of the living. Finally feeling better after a week or so of sore throat, runny nose, sinus headache and coughing. A little congestion left in my chest, but nothing I can't get through the day with. We had a good time at our party Friday night, I'll try to share a few pics this week. They're on my home computer, so I don't have them on hand just now. I've barely left the house since last week. Most of my time was spent watching old movies and some TV on DVD. I managed to do two hours of math work yesterday, although as long as it takes me to figure things out two hours doesn't equal a whole lot of progress. Anyway, that's why things have been so quiet here. Now that I'm more or less back to being a functioning human being here are some of the things I'm looking forward to:

-Fate Lions show Friday night with Holly
-Getting my veggies planted (They're still unplanted but have stayed watered so doing alright for now)
-Taking our bikes for a spin
-Getting caught up on the new season of Glee
-Watching some W.C. Fields shorts
-A bit of house tidying
-Plugging away at more math
-Three weeks until Conan!

Friday ConeZone #12- Party Edition

2010-04-16T13:14:00.002-05:00

Our Conan birthday party is tonight so I'm busy tidying house and getting things ready. I'm a little too busy for a full ConeZone post today, so here's a cute Conan pic instead. I used this for the FB party invite. Also, if you weren't already in the know, you can get the inside scoop on what's going down with Conan's tour by checking out the Teamcoco. com Blog, updated by Aaron Bleyaert. All sorts of little tidbits you can learn about the tour experiences they're having. Have a great weekend and I'll fill you in on our Conan party next week!

Under the Weather

2010-04-14T12:45:00.002-05:00

I went to bed last night with a sore spot in my throat and it was still there when I woke up. I went ahead and stayed home. Not 100% sure if I'm sick, it's allergies, or something I ate might have scratched me even. But when you're boss is undergoing chemotherapy it's important to not compromise his immune system and best to play it safe. Unfortunately I was planning on taking Friday off so I could clean house before the party. Which means today's sick day has also become today's cleaning house day. And hopefully I'll be feeling fine for work tomorrow and can do a half day on Friday so I'll still have time for some party prep. I have to say it is hard to motivate yourself to clean when you aren't feeling tip-top (hence the blog post, procrastinating), but then I remember I'd prefer if kitty tumbleweeds weren't meandering past our friends Friday night.

Weekend Roundup- Conan News Edition

2010-04-13T10:08:00.005-05:00

This one is a bit slapdash. This weekend went a little something like this:

-Plant herbs
-A few errands
-Steph's birthday at Top Golf driving range
-Laundry
-Grocery shopping

That pretty much sums it up. We got a late start on Saturday so my chore time was almost nil, then my lady problems had me laid up most of Sunday, so a little laundry, watering my plants, and grocery shopping were about the extent of what I got done that day.

I didn't get around to posting yesterday because there was all sorts of excitement in the nerdy world of Conan fans. Conan will have a new show on TBS starting in November! And yesterday was the first day of his 30 city tour! Last night he kicked things off in Eugene, Oregon and the show included special guest Jack McBrayer and musical guest Spoon. I wonder who the guests might be in Dallas?! So much excitement!

Additionally I've been doing some party prep the past few days. We're having a party on Friday in honor of Conan's 47th birthday, which is this coming Sunday. I had the idea to carry through on the message of his final Tonight Show speech, so we're having a "Be Kind" Shindig. We're asking our friends to each bring a can of food, which we will donate to the Tarrant Area Food Bank. In addition to that we're starting with a total of $47 (for his age) and for every guest that comes we will add $5. That money will be donated to Labels Are For Jars, a hunger charity in Massachusetts which Conan is on the committee for. We'll have some Conan clips playing on the TV, but aside from that it's just a regular party and a good excuse to hang out with our friends. Looking forward to partying!

Friday ConeZone #11

2010-04-09T15:27:00.003-05:00

Guys, I have to tell you that I am very excited. I know it's still 5 weeks until I get to MEET CONAN, but the tour starts on Monday in Eugene, Oregon. I am so excited to see what kind of tidbits and behind the scene videos Aaron Bleyaert will be sharing on Teamcoco.com once the tour kicks off. I am so excited for Conan to get out there and feel the love from his fans in person. And I'm so excited that the sooner the tour starts the sooner he'll be here for the Dallas gig! In honor of being on the road, I thought today I'd post a remote from his trip to San Francisco a few years back. He did a week of shows there and took a little trip to visit Intel, who underwrote the show being in California. Enjoy!

The Incompleter

2010-04-08T15:10:00.003-05:00

If I was a "New Character" on Conan I'd be "The Incompleter". I am terrible at finishing things I start. I always have a million ideas and never enough follow-through. I stopped by Lowe's yesterday after work, as I said I would. I picked up a couple packets of moonflower seeds, two basil plants, a cilantro, a small tomato, a strawberry, a dwarf pepper, and a squash plant. I also got some soil to mix with my regular soil and compost, and two planters which I've already decided I'm going to return. I'm going to go to Handley Feed Store on Saturday to find bigger ones. Anyway, I don't even have anything planted yet, and today my mind has already moved on to trying to figure out what I'd like to do with our bedroom. We never got around to painting it, since several straight weeks of painting had completely put me off doing any more when it came time to do the master and spare bedrooms. There's nothing wrong with our bedroom. It just isn't finished. The furniture is all taken care of. I'm fond of our bedding although it could use some finishing touches. I finally found bedside lamps awhile back that I liked and would work alright with our space. I dislike the wall color, although it's just a beige, so not technically offensive. We have nothing hanging on the walls. And there's the fact that I insist on watching television in the bedroom, which means I need my big black satellite/DVR and dvd player too, naturally. Hmm, I wonder how long I'll be pondering this one before I've moved on to my next purely-in-my-head project?

P.S. Don't worry, I'm totally gonna get those veggies and herbs planted. They may not live long while I'm off staring at paint samples and pillow shams, but at least I'll have half-finished the job. Which is a lot more than I can say for most things I take on, ha.

Garden Party

2010-04-07T17:22:00.002-05:00

I'll be leaving work shortly and I'll be stopping by Lowe's before heading home. I've decided the time has come for me to start my plans for growing some herbs and veggies before we get too far into the season. Of course I would decide the time to do this is the week/weekend before we're throwing a party. A party which I will fill you in later, but I have done almost no real work on, aside from jotting down my to-do list. Luckily it's gonna be a loosey-goosey sort of hang out, but with my penchant for planning everything down to the last, itty-bitty detail I'll still manage to make it a monumental task.

Lowe's has some fruit and vegetable plants on sale and I already needed to go by there to look for some larger pavers to support our rain barrel. Hoping I'll find some decent tomato, pepper, and strawberry plants on sale. Oh, and some basil. My life just might be complete if I can manage to not kill some basil. Okay, maybe not complete, but certainly slightly more delicious. The list of projects inside the house has certainly not gotten that much smaller, but it's just the time of year when your mind wanders to the outdoors, isn't it?

Photo from Real Simple

Weekend Roundup

2010-04-06T12:31:00.002-05:00

Friday:
-Work, yuck
-Make dinner
-Eat: salad, salmon burgers, oven frites
-A little jazz and a cold beer
-Hit the hay

Saturday:
-Up early for haircuts
-Lowes for screen door and look at sheds
-Leftover salmon burger and chips while menu planning and grocery listing
-Help Josh work on putting my bike together
-Grocery shopping
-Chipotle for dinner
-More bike work
-Bedtime

Sunday:
-Sleep in
-Breakfast and coffee
-Shower and get ready
-Head to Doug's place for pre-show rehearsal
-Deep Ellum Arts Festival for Sunward show
-After party at Doug's w/ band and Omar
-Home, Wendy's on the way
-Pass out on couch for the night

Monday:
-Stay home to recuperate from partying too hard
-Post hangover junk food and TVathon
-Shower
-Clean and prep veggies for the week
-Pizza for dinner while looking at vacation ideas
-Bedtime

Friday ConeZone #10

2010-04-02T16:17:00.002-05:00

Hello and happy Friday! Time for another ConeZone. Can you believe it's been 10 weeks since I started sharing a little Conan love to get us ready for the weekend? Time is flying by. Hopefully that means it won't feel like much longer before his mandated banishment from television is over. Like I said last week, I try to keep my ConeZone posts a bit topical. So in honor of Easter this weekend here is Conan's appearance on The Martha Stewart Show. It was her 500th episode, too. They decorate Easter eggs and, um, glitter a ham. Now you just have to watch it, right? How can you not be intrigued by a glitter ham? I LOVE Martha and Conan together, it is always a guarantee for laughs. So, enjoy and happy Easter!

2010 Resolutions: 1st Quarter

2010-03-31T17:28:00.003-05:00

Well, three months of this new year have gone by. Can you even believe how quickly time passes? It seems like it moves so slowly when you're a kid, and the older you get the faster is starts to fly by. I've done so-so on the resolutions so far. Admittedly I think I might have to rethink a few things. Some of my priorities have definitely shifted since I've made the decision I want to go to school. But for now let's see what I've been able to get done.

.Read 20 books- I've read one book complete, listened to one audiobook complete, and have half-read 4 books, ha. Not a lot of progress, but progress nonetheless I suppose.
.Exercise at least twice a week- Now that the weather is warmer I'm really making progress here, although it's most just walking. Walking however is my favorite form of exercise and I'm taking 3 to 4 walks a week now. And our bicycles were delivered today!
.Improve my eating habits- Sadly not doing a whole lot better here. But I've been putting a lot of thought lately into what changes I can make here.
.Be a better listener- Think I'm not doing well at this one at all, unfortunately.
.Learn to drive- I drove around the neighborhood a month or so ago, and last week I drove myself to work with Josh's help. This was in other people's cars though, since I can't yet manage the standard VW. I've got a defensive driving DVD that I've watched some of, and we think we've found a good parking lot where I can try to learn to use our car's stick shift.
.Get a full physical/gyno/bloodwork- I've had my full physical and gyno exam. My bloodwork came back great, we've been able to identify some of my quirky little problems, and I have to decide what I want to do about my endometriosis. I also got my eyes checked and I have to take a glaucoma test at the end of April.
.Learn some tactics for handling stress- I'm trying to push through the urge to stress eat and panic when I get stressed. I'll probably be finding a therapist through my insurance agency that can hopefully help me with this resolution.
.Start a vegetable garden in back yard and container herb garden in side yard- Now that we've likely had our last freeze I'm hoping to get these plans underway
.Learn how to develop my own black & white film- I've made no progress on this whatsoever, but I got one of the chemicals I need to develop for my birthday so part of the puzzle is there. I just have to get the other pieces.
.Have clothes hemmed- nada
.Finish family photos for the hallway- pathetic
.Get my Beatles tattoo- Well, I ended up getting my Conan tattoo first, but still plan on getting this one.
.Be more like Diane Keaton, Jane Birkin, Linda McCartney, Katharine Hepburn, and Audrey Hepburn- Pretty pathetically not managed to be as awesome as these ladies yet.
.Rent a cabin- We haven't had an opportunity with as busy as we've been. Josh and I are looking at our calendar though because we could definitely use a break. Might end up going camping before we rent a cabin, but there's still 9 months left, right?
.Finish organizing my office- More or less done. Could be better, but it's looking pretty good.
.Cross 2 things off my Life List- nada.