weekend update.

it's been a great weekend... i mean, the time is too short, but i have been incredibly thankful to spend time with some good friends... see a good show, eat some good food, watch some great tv...

it's been amazing to spend time with some people who know me and who love me...

highlights:
time with friends, in general
butch walker show
us border cantina
nashville flea market
hello kitty waffles
otter's
mckays
an incredible music swap
gilmore girls

lowlights:
the somewhat crazy weather
my feet not being prepared for long walks in flip flops yet this year
not being able to spend as much time with people as i want to

it's been a good weekend... but it's not over... and i still have a long drive tomorrow and more friends to see...

the first of what i'm sure will be many...

so there are a lot of things that i want to write about... the bachelor, my bad experience today at the job, an annoying lady at the bank, potential layoffs happening soon, the song "Africa" by Toto, pandora.com, the song "Taylor the Latte Boy" by Kristin Chenowith, the interesting people at the gym that i see at least 4 times a week...

but for tonight, i will focus my attention on something that happened recently...

i was on my way to work last thursday... i had just been to the dmv where i had a minor crisis/heart attack scare/panic attack... it all worked out, and i left the dmv and drove up the road to make my way to work... i stopped at a stoplight and looked in my rearview mirror to check my makeup (i gave up putting on makeup on my way to work a month ago... so i was NOT putting on makeup - seriously.)... and i saw something that i haven't seen before...

sticking out of the top of my head (not laying down) was a greyish-white hair... not only was it being rebellious by turning a different color (that i'm not fond of), but it was also being unreasonable by sticking up rather than laying down like the rest of them...

now i know that by pulling out that one hair, i was ensuring that "2 more would grow in its place." but i am pretty sure that is 1) a lie, and 2) not something i want to think about when i have one sticking out of my head... i had lost the ability to think about it logically at that point... i also needed to make sure it was real and that i wasn't just imagining it (i am feeling older these days)...

i didn't pull it out and discard of it... instead, i carefully clutched the teenager-ish-rogue-greyish-white hair between my index finger and thumb for the rest of the car ride and all the way into the building, up the elevator and to my desk. i then placed it on a green post-it and put tape over it, much like a mother would do with a baby's curl after a first hair cut... this is one memory i don't want to forget... i want to be reminded daily that life is short... i must make the most of it... and that i must remember to buy hair color the next time i go to wal-mart.

bus driver... move that bus...

it was time for my blog to have a bit of a face lift... and i guess it got a little more than a bit...

but i like it... and it could go hand in hand with my company/business ideas... so here it is...

no more simple ellipses... now i can be more defined... (of course, i will still use ellipses... but there will be a better title)

thoughts?

i still might change it up a little, but for now, i like it.

plus, now that i can see how many times i've written in a year for the last 5 years, i'm determined to write more than 15 (or 23) times this year... maybe not 274, though!

i hope to be more committed to writing in 2009 than i have been the last couple of years. we'll see how it works out.

what happened to January?

January was crazy. I know people say that things are busy when they may or may not be… but january was crazy for me… between work and other obligations and some minor crises (and work being nuts because of the break), I didn’t have time to think, much less blog…

So things have slowed down considerably… and I just realized that it’s almost been two months since I stopped to put a few words on screen of what’s going on in my life… or of what I’ve been pondering…

I had a birthday. 29. I had to be at work early the day before, the day of, and the day after my birthday… and when I say early, I don’t mean 15 minutes – I mean 2 hours! Originally, I was supposed to be there at 5:30 – but after the first day, we realized I just needed to be there by 6… On any ordinary day, I’m still very much in REM sleep at 6 a.m.

But I did have a chance to celebrate my day. Friends from work made the day special, and then the night after, I went out with friends from church and had a great time. Alyssa sent me great presents from afar – a luggage tag that was shiny and pink and said “comes with baggage.” – that was my favorite – that and the disco ball car air freshener with HILARIOUS packaging…

I’m pretty sure that all my feelings of being old and more tired are just my imagination (running away with me)… but I do feel older… I am making a concentrated effort to go to the gym at least 4 times a week… I’m in week 2 and have been successful so far. (I know that’s not saying much… but if you know me, it is!)

Valentine’s Day is just a few days away… I typically hate this particular holiday… I like part of it – the simple wishing well to friends and telling people that they are important to me… and I like crafts sometimes, so hand-making holiday cards is kind of fun (if I can finish them on time!)…

But it is seriously out of control. There is so much emphasis placed on it that it makes people crazy… to hear ladies be so disappointed because their husbands won’t do enough and decorations everywhere… It’s just a lot.

Maybe I’m bitter.

I looked on Wikipedia and found some old cards that are kind of funny… and I’ll post them
below for fun.

I don’t really have anything else of note right now…

My hope is that I’ll do a better job at actually keeping up now that things have slowed down some!

on the one with the big face, it says:

"A Simpering Miss,

The smile that on your face appears,

Stretching your mouth to meet your ears,

You think, no doubt, as sweet as honey,

Whereas, dear girl, it's only funny."

that was my favorite part about it.

christmas time is here.

i have been such a slacker about posting anything... i am not really sure why... 

there's a quote from the movie "you've got mail" where tom hanks questions the lyrics to the joni mitchell song "river" - and he questions the meaning of the song...

man, i love that movie... and part of me really loves that song... there's just something sober about it - how in the midst of what could be such a joyous time, there is a desire to escape... i know how it feels to not really feel "in the mood of christmas" - i've been watching the movies... i get a little teary-eyed at the hallmark channel christmas movies and love the cheesy abc family ones... 

i just saw that hershey kisses commercial - it's been on since i was a kid, and in so many ways, it represents the holidays for me... i managed to get the "christmas" box out of my hall closet... the one containing about a dozen ornaments, a rocking horse and my favorite decoration ever - the music box with the dancing santa/mrs. claus... 

and, yet... i wish i had a river i could skate away on...

there is a part of me that gets really contemplative and isolated during the fall and the holidays... i withdraw from people a lot... and keep to myself... i can get really sad... not for any reason in particular... maybe wishing things were different... maybe having a pity party... not really sure...

i like christmas... i like helping other people and the way that everyone seems nicer... more loving, more open to others... i like the fact that it's a chance to celebrate Jesus - His life and the hope that He brought to the world... 

and, yet... i wish i had a river i could skate away on... 

It's coming on Christmas, they're cutting down trees.

They're putting up reindeer, and singing songs of joy and peace.

Oh, I wish I had a river I could skate away on.

But it don't snow here, it stays pretty green

I'm going to make a lot of money, then I'm going to quit this crazy scene.

I wish I had a river I could skate away on.

I wish I had a river so long, I would teach my feet to fly

Oh, I wish I had a river I could skate away on.

I made my baby cry

He tried hard to help me, you know, he put me at ease

And he love me so naughty, made me weak in the knees.

Oh, I wish I had a river I could skate away on.

I'm so hard to handle, I'm selfish and I'm sad

Now I've gone and lost the best baby that I ever had.

Oh, I wish I had a river I could skate away on.

I wish I had a river so long I would teach my feet to fly.

Oh, I wish I had a river

I made my baby say goodbye.

It's coming on Christmas, they're cutting down trees.

They're putting up reindeer and singing songs of joy and peace.

I wish I had a river I could skate away on.

nanny jo...

since the first time i was told i looked like jo frost aka supernanny, i've wanted to dress up like her for halloween... i hadn't ever really looked for a purple suit or the right kind of shoes, but i thought that it would be impossible...

this afternoon, i thought i'd give it a chance... i went to the goodwill that is close to my apartment... it was about 3:45 or so... in less than 30 minutes, i left with all but one element of the costume in hand - and all for about $10... i was so excited about it... it's not all "perfect," but it's really close - and it was inexpensive... i think it was a pretty amazing occurrence to find a purple suit that (almost) fit... and shoes that fit - all at a goodwill store that, to be honest, wasn't very full of quality stuff... i did see this random pair of pointy-toed heels that were neon pink and made out of the same material as jellies were made out of in the 80's... and recently... i almost bought them, but wondered when i would actually have a need for them...

i think the only time i'll have use for this purple suit and these shoes are when i feel like dressing up as jo...

here are pictures:

did you ever watch friends? no, i don't have cable.

last thursday, i was working at sbux... this guy walked in and in typical sbux fashion, we asked him what he wanted us to start for him. he informed us that he was waiting on someone... he looked rather impatient, grabbed his cell phone and made a call...

some time later (i kind of forgot about him), he was joined by a young woman... and they ordered drinks and then sat down and started drinking their coffee and talking... i like to observe people a lot of the time... and i realized rather quickly that this was either a first date or very very early on in the relationship... i later learned through minor eavesdropping (while i was on my break) that this was the first time they had met - but knew each other through some online dating site... 

i mentioned it to the people i was working with - they agreed that they thought it was a first date and we were all watching them... we quickly got irritated at how much the guy was talking... and were thinking of ways to help the girl to have an "out." 

i laughed a lot as i watched these two interact... the awkward exchange between the two... he talked A LOT... and she laughed awkwardly and a little too long at things that really weren't that funny... seeing people on a first date is one of my favorite things ever and it happens from time to time at sbux... there's just an expected awkwardness as two people sit down and try to get to know each other with questions and answers... nothing too personal, but more than just surface questions...

i sometimes wonder what people think when they might overhear my conversations and watch my interactions... i'm sure it's pretty hilarious... they may even be writing about me on their blog... i can only imagine... how ridiculous... 

i have nothing good for a sunday night... and i didn't even develop that story well... i also, at some point, would like to talk about the lady who lives downstairs and has plastic on her furniture... will i be her someday? 

need sleep.