bored

ok...so i'm bored...and have only a computer to keep me occupied while i should otherwise be working. so here's something i found on another's blog and thought would be fun to do. :)

[a is for age:] 27
[b is for booze of choice:] redlight raspberry wheat beer, grenache shiraz wine, or 7&7. Margaritas make the cut too.
[c is for career:] currently working in the mutual funds industry...not such a bad way to earn a living...most days...
[d is for your dog’s name:] um...dont have a dog. My parents have a dog, does that count? He is a golden retriever & his name is Riley.
[e is for essential items you use everyday:] My cell phone, my wristwatch, ponytail holders, my eyedrops. without any of these things my life would be pretty much very uncomfortable.
[f is for favorite song(s) at the moment:] am anxiously awaiting the release of Jack Johnson's new cd...Sing-a-longs & Lullabies for the film Curious George. I heard one of the songs from it on the radio and LOVED it, altho i cant remember the name now. Other songs: am digging anything Cake these days.
[g is for favorite games:] any board games...drinking games (except quarters--i SUCK at that game!)...spider solitaire or bejeweled....hide & go seek with my nephews is fun too. :)
[h is for hometown:] O'Fallon, MO
[i is for instruments you play:] piano, although not exactly very well.
[j is for jam or jelly you like:] anything made by my grandmothers. Grandma Ruth makes incredible strawberry preserves, Grandma Alice makes really good grape jelly & gooseberry jam.
[k is for kids:] none right now. would like to have a big family one day though.
[l is for last kiss:] hmm..dont remember (how sad is that!) although knowing me, the guy was bad news and it's better i dont remember him anyways. :)
[m is for most admired trait:]I most admire people who are kind and courteous of others.
[n is for name of your crush:] I dont think i have a crush right now...other Dr. McDreamy from Grey's Anatomy.
[o is for overnight hospital stays:] I dont think i've ever had to stay at a hospital overnight, at least not since i was a baby. I had some hip problems at like 6mos old so i was in traction for a few weeks....but I dont remember it so i guess it doesnt count. [p is for phobias:] the dark; being alone in the dark; monsters under the bed; basements; spiders; ghosts.
[q is for quotes you like:] "Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference." --Robert Frost "My son, my precious child,I love you and I would never leave you. During your times of trial and suffering,when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you."--Footprints by Mary Stevenson
[r is for biggest regret:] i dont really have regrets...i figure my mistakes have made me who i am today, and i have learned about myself from them. what's to regret about that?
[s is for sweets of your choice:] right now? conversation hearts. yum!
[t is for time you wake up:] on a workday--6am, 610, 615, 620...and so on until 8:20 when i get up. on a day off--whenever i get up, anytime between 11am and 4pm. :)
[u is for underwear:] yes.
[v is for vegetables you love:] lol!! for anyone who knows me this question is a joke. i love NO vegetable.
[w is for worst habit:] being moody...esp towards the people i care about most. not sure why that is...but its a constant battle. :(
[x is for x-rays you’ve had:] a lot at the dentist. i've also had several of my hips b/c of a joint problem. had some of my neck after an accident.
[y is for yummy food you make:] the people at work really like my Monkey Bread, and I've received several complements on my chocolate chip cookies. I also like my beef stroganoff recipe. YUM!!!
[z is for zodiac sign:]Scorpio. Totally.

side note (shocker)

oh yeah! i almost forgot to mention--i had peas & carrots for dinner last week and actually enjoyed them!!!

dont go getting ideas though...vegetables and i are still on the outs... :)

running, running, running...

So when i said in the description that you'd find a comment 'every so often' it was definitely not a lie! Guess i just havent felt very chatty lately...or maybe i just havent felt motivated enough to actually write anything...prolly cuz i've been worn out from all the other things i've been accomplishing! :) (yeah right...whatev...) Anywho, sorry it's been so long since i've posted.

About a week n a half ago I started running tuesday and thursday mornings with my friend rachel. She comes to my apartment in the morning at 7:30, drags my butt out of bed & we go run. Yes...it is as painful as it sounds. For goodness' sake, it's not even daylight when i get up!! That is just wrong. Still, it's good for me, I'm growing out of my clothes, and something drastic must be done.

So, of course we're not easing into this, but jumping right back on the wagon, flabbiness, ill-fitting jeans and all. The first run was just murder...i was wheezing (damn smokes), huffing & puffing my way through 2 miles at the pace of a snail, all the while running in the same neighborhood my coworkers have to drive through to get to work. woohoo! talk about keeping up an image...i cringe to think of what i looked like as they drove past me. yikes. Still, determination & positive attitude have prevailed, even if a bit grudgingly. :) Fortunately we've kept at it...all thanks to rachel! We've worked our pace up a bit, now we can run comfortably without that "man...i shouldve brought cab fare with me" thought running through our heads constantly. I know i'm back on the wagon now b/c I actually enjoyed my run this weekend!! (i know...i'm sorry...you dont have to keep reading this lunatic's blog if you dont want to...) Rachel & I, our friend Tobi, and my coworker Danica went up to the Parkville nature sanctuary and did around 4 miles on the trails there. It was an incredibly hard workout, running over hill & dale, dodging branches and mud puddles, but it was a blast. The weather was around 55 degrees, it was clear & sunny, JUST BEAUTIFUL!!! I think the best part about the trail run was that there were times, running through the woods, that it was sooo quiet...you could barely even hear our footfalls on the soft mulch of the trail. We even got to see a waterfall. I think that was the most stress relieving thing i've done in a long time...will have to make a point to do things like that more often.

So yeah, all these things i've accomplished? Getting my butt moving again was definitely one of the big ones. This last weekend i was able to cross a lot of things off my to-do list...did my taxes, filed my FAFSA (one step closer to going back to school...woot!), finished laundry, ran a few errands that have been haunting me for awhile...it was great! I still have a backseat full of crap i need to take different places (film to be developed, clothes to the cleaners, trash to the dumpster) but at least it's in the backseat of my car instead of on the counter in my apartment staring at me, pleading to be taken care of. :)

K..so before I sign off, i just want to mention that this upcoming weekend is going to be a stressful & emotional one for me, both in good and bad ways. I'll explain more in a post after the weekend is over, but in the meantime please keep me & a special intention of mine in your thoughts & prayers.

Hugs to all,
kt

bankers monday

Today is MLK Jr Day...and aside from the obvious reasons this is a day of note, I also have the day off from work since it is a bank holiday & the stock market is closed. Woot! :) Yeah, not so fast...i have to go into work anyways. Boooo....and i'm not going to get overtime for it...double booo....oh well, life's a bitch isn't it? It'll be nice to get some stuff done at work for a change though, and i'm hoping tomorrow will be better for it. we'll see.

So my super duper cousin sarah tagged me for the below. I love things like this, so i'm posting it! If you've been tagged i hope to see yours posted soon. feel free to leave yours in the comments section of my blog too, if you dont happen to be a blogger (gasp!).

hope everyone's week is off to a good start!

THE FOUR THINGS MEME
Four Jobs I've Had
1. chicken fryer/deli schmuck at Texaco (ew)
2. buffet attendant at Ponderosa (double ew)
3. summer/sub-in janitor at a school district
4. bank teller at Bank Midwest

Four Movies I Can Watch Over and Over
1. Christmas Vacation
2. Shawshank Redemption
3. Kate & Leopold
4. When Harry Met Sally

Four Places I've Lived
1. O'Fallon, Missouri
2. Kirksville, Missouri
3. Lenexa/Mission/Overland Park, Kansas (i was on the border of all of em)
4. KC MO

Four TV Shows I Love to Watch
1. Grey's Anatomy
2. Prison Break
3. Seinfeld
4. MXC Elimination (on spike tv...hilarious!!)

Four Places I've Been on Vacation
1. Hamilton, Bermuda
2. Milan, Italy
3. Panama City Beach, Florida
4. San Diego, California

Four Blogs You Visit Daily
1. Pink is the New Blog
2. 3. 4. and 5. see links at right.

Four of Your Favorite Foods
1. Ice cream, all flavors.
2. Chili con queso. (velveeta & chili...yum!!)
3. Denise's spinach artichoke dip.
4. Chocolate.

Four Places You'd Rather Be
1. in StL
2. in bed
3. in Chicago
4. on vacation in ____. (i leave the blank because i'm not picky...vacation anywhere is better than hum-drum life here!)

Four Musical Artists You Love
1. Dave Matthews
2. Josh Groban
3. Jack Johnson
4. Tori Amos

Four Vehicles I've Owned
1. 1985 Chevy Celebrity (aka "the tank")
2. 1987 Oldsmobile Calais
3. 1987 Chevy Caprice (aka "p.o.s. car" as in the adam sandler song)
4. 1998 Saturn SL1

Four taggees
1. Leslie
2. Brad (see link at right)
3. Amber (see link at right)
4. Denise

killing time

ok...so i've played with the colors...like them better now than before but they're still not exactly right.

Stay tuned... :)

new format

i'm playing around with the template on here...i'm not liking the colors so much on this one but i like the format. any suggestions on how to change the colors?

Spring cleaning...in January...

Today I woke up feeling more positive than I have in a long time...not sure if it's because I finally got enough sleep or what. Not really wanting to question it though...I've been in a funk for the last month or so i think. Just wanting to sleep all the time, not really wanting to be around many people, and trying to eat myself out of house & home & my favorite jeans. Today, I hope, is the beginning of change.

Yesterday I was reflecting on all the projects i have started, and all the things I have intended to do, but have not yet finished or done any of them. So i made a list, and am going to try to keep a steady effort to get them done...by the end of 2006. :) (It's a long list!!) One of the items on the list was to rearrange my living room and put away my christmas decorations. I did that, and did some MAJOR cleaning. Omg...there was sooo much dust....i was sneezing by the end of the night. After that, I went through my desk and put away all my 2005 financial stuff, started a new file for 2006, and cleaned out the general clutter on my desk. Just doing those things, which happened to take all night, seemed to make a huge difference. When i got done it was around midnight, and then i stayed up till about 3 watching saturday night live, crossing jordan, and crocheting. This morning I woke up to a beautiful clear blue sky, the sun shining, and it being juuust warm enough to crack open the windows in my apartment and air out the place.

I guess sometimes the best way to get out of a funk is to change things up and shake off the dust. I'm starting to wonder if there isnt something to this feng shui (sp?) business...

Happy sunday all. :)
xoxo

a day off

Today started off somewhat roughly...I woke up with an earache, a majorly sore throat and a headache. All signs point to sinus drainage, but since I've had such run-ins with tonsillitis in the past (have since had them removed) the sore throat thing always freaks me out. I was determined to not call in, but after taking a shower & starting to get ready for work I was just exhausted.

As a child I was raised with the 'don't be a wuss' work ethic...pretty much unless you are dead or dying, you need to go to school/work. Don't be fooled though, I faked my way into days off from school or skipping classes my fair share of times...but now that I'm actually in the workforce I pride myself on the fact that I don't call in unless I'm legitimately sick. When did I gain a conscience?? from time to time I've been known to say or think "I'm totally calling in tomorrow...I need a day off!" but then when I wake up, the guilt sets in...everyone else will have to do my work, on top of their equally heavy workload....and I am not one to loaf around while everyone else suffers. I intend to call in, but my guilty conscience gets me to the office every time.

About a year and a half ago, there was a turn of events....this turn of events was that I caught strep from someone at work and suffered through 3 days of upset stomach, chills, fever and sore throat...while trying to repaint my apartment and move into a new one. YUCK. After that I no longer have such admiration for the people who are at work no matter what. I work in a cube farm, so it's easy to pick up those nasty cooties from someone who just wont take a day off and stay home to recover. That was the thing that kicked in with me this morning...I may not be contagiously sick...but what if I am? Then I'm that person! No way! So I called in....and then crawled back into bed and was sound asleep by 10am. I didn't wake up until 3pm. And then took another 2 hr nap after a cup of tea & bite to eat. Maybe I'm not contagiously sick, but am glad I stayed home anyways...if my body was saying "you need another 7 hours of sleep after already getting 7 overnight" who am I to argue? :)

oh wait...but now it's like 1am and i am still awake...could it be because i slept all day? d'oh!

winter doldrums?

yeah...so i'm ready for spring now....I decided today that i am tired of the cold weather. It was supposed to be mid-50's today, but the crazy weather people here revised the forecast & so (yes, i'm blaming them, not nature :) ) it was snowing like gangbusters by noon, sleeting by 3, and snowing AGAIN (big, FAT flakes) by 5. It mightve been worth it but unfortunately all that only amounted to like 1/4" of snow on the ground. Not enough to have fun with, but just enough to really dirty things up.

I do have something interesting to write though, aside from complaining about the weather. :) About a month or two ago my friend Leslina taught me how to crochet and started me to making this pretty afghan...it was of varigated (sp?) yarn, in white, blue, tan and green. I caught on pretty quick, and was happy to have a project i could take with me when i went to Chicago that following weekend. However...i think i was too good because i crocheted through a whole skein of yarn, and was only halfway through my weekend. So we went to walmart (oy...) to look for the same kind of yarn...which they didnt have. So we picked a color that went with what i was using, a pretty blue....but made the mistake of only buying one skein. Now i'm back in kc, crocheting away, and start to run out of yarn. I decided to crochet the whole thing in blue, and then use one of the other skeins of matching varigated yarn to crochet a matching strip on the other end of the afghan...beautiful! Oh wait...once i got a look at the afghan in natural light, i realized that the blue i had purchased in chicago was not the same shade of blue i had purchased in kc. D'oh! Right there on the label it says "no dye lot" which i interpreted to mean "this will be the same color blue no matter what part of the country you buy it in" rather than "we dont care enough about the color to make sure they're all the same." To the makers of this yarn i send a big "WHATEVER!!" It's just a smidgen of a shade off...just different enough that it's noticeable. Aww mannnn!! And the funny thing is, the one i bought in chicago doesnt exactly match the blue in the varigated yarn either...but i figured it'd be so close nobody'd notice it. Yeah...until i decided to come up with a different shade altogether.... it kinda feels like this project is slowly going awry. :)

Here's a pic of the handiwork...and of the offending label. :)

new year, new fave...

Today was the first day in weeks that i felt comfortable taking an hour for lunch...it was incredible how much of a difference it made getting away from my desk for an hour in the middle of the day. We went to this mexican restaurant called Ponak's and it was delicious! They have really good pork burritos with red sauce...i think it's one of my new favorite restaurants. I know they also have very good margaritas (and by very good i mean very strong! lol)...unfortunately i was unable to partake since i was on my lunch hour. boo...


In other news...i think i have my annual new years restlessness coming on...i have this urge to look for a new car, a new apartment, new furniture, a new job, a new project, a new haircut, etc, etc...hmm...sensing a trend here, i think i just am needing something to spice things up for the new year. i've already gotten my hair cut--whacked off about 5 inches. so maybe i just need to reaarange some furniture in my apartment to make it seem new, and get my car detailed. perhaps that will help? sounds like a lot of work...maybe i'll just wait and see if the restlessness wears off. might turn out to be cheaper and less tiring. :)

Happy New Year!

Well, the new year is off to a pretty good start i think. I was at my parents' house this last weekend, and slept in until around noon or 1 i believe. Then (i know, can it get any better?) I was off from work yesterday, so i slept in AGAIN until like 11am, and didnt even change out of my pj's until 2pm. I am learning that heaven is getting to wear your pyjama's 24-7 and never having to get out of bed before you are good & ready...and then only to shuffle into the living room to watch tv. :) I hope the rest of the year goes as well...it certainly started off on the right foot!

On another note, I believe I have decided to go back to school. (gasp!) I've been thinking about it for awhile, but every time i get to the point where i apply for federal aid, i start having flashbacks of how stressful my last few semesters at Truman were, start hyperventilating, and end up having to go to my happy place. :) ok, maybe it's not that bad...but still, i cringe even thinking about having to write another stinking term paper...or having to participate in another group presentation....BUT...I am determined for this time to be different. No longer will I be juggling 5 insanely busy classes along with trying to decide which is more credit-card-worthy: the electric bill or the bar tab. I like to think i have my spending habits and my living expenses a little more under control now, and hopefully a clearer picture of what i want to do with my life & why i really am going to school (other than that it's just the next step). So the question is, go back for a new and entirely different degree, go back for an mba, or go back and get a masters in accounting? Those are the options i'm weighing....i'm not inclined to start in on a whole different degree, so i think the first option is out. As for the second...i am inclined to shy away from that because it seems like 'everybody' is doing it (i have a whole slew of friends who either just graduated with their mba or are working on it) and i'm not the kinda girl to jump off a bridge just b/c everyone else is. Even so, a friend of mine recently suggested getting an MBA concentrating in accounting, which i may consider...but right now i am leaning strongly for the last option, a masters in accounting. I'm wanting to go the way of auditing or at the very least work for a public accounting firm...so i'm up for whichever degree will get me to that point, but think that the masters in acct is the best bet.

First step is scheduling the GRE ($250...oy...must be some test...), then applying to schools, and then crossing my fingers that i get in to at least one of the places i apply.

What am i getting myself into? :)

Merry Christmas

I subscribe to this website that emails you an inspriational quote every day (well, with my work email filter it's more like 2x a month...), and today the below message actually made it through. I figured, of all the things to not be filtered out, this one was a pretty good one. i thought i'd share...it puts things into perspective i think.

Merry christmas everyone...

"And the Grinch, with his grinch-feet ice-cold in the snow
Stood puzzling and puzzling: 'How could it be so?'
It came without ribbons! It came without tags!
It came without packages, boxes or bags!
And he puzzled three hours, 'till his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before!
Maybe Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store.
Maybe Christmas... perhaps... means a little bit more!"
-----------Dr. Seuss, 1904-1991Beloved Cartoonist and Children's Book Author

Deep down inside we know
that the best gifts
don't come from catalogs
or shopping malls
They don't come in brightly-colored packages
or fancy envelopes
and they're not sitting under a tree somewhere...
The best gifts come from the heart.
They come when we look at each other
REALLY look at each other
and say 'You mean a lot to me'
or 'I'm so glad you're a part of my life'
A gift like that will never go out of style
or be forgotten
or be returned for a different size.
A gift like that can change the world.
----------Ron Atchison Inspiration Peak

Woot!

Hey everyone! Woot! This is a term that has somehow made its way into my vocabulary as of late...not exactly sure when it arrived, probably around the same time I started using the word "ginormous." :) Usually when people ask me what it means I tell them it is an expression of joy & excitement, but i found a website that defines it further. Even if not informative, i thought they were at least entertaining! Here are the best of what's listed on the site (i believe theres like 60 definitions on there...):

WOOT
Pronunciation: 'wüt (similar to "hoot!" but with a 'w' instead.)
1) An interjection similar to "YAY!" or "Woohoo!" used to express joy or excitement, usually about some kind of accomplishment. Primarily used by gamers, spreading rapidly to anyone who chats online. Gaming origins: We Owned the Other Team or Wonderful Loot (Everquest gaming slang) Example: "Woot! I got an A on this test!
2) To express agreement. Example: Robyn: Eric is such a dork. Let's put packing peanuts in his desk. Stefanie: woot!
3) As an acronym, can mean Waste of Our Time or Way Out of Topic (online forums) Less common.
4.) The Canadian way to say "What." Example: "Woots that aboot??"
5). A greeting, for close friends or people you have been expecting. Special note: When the person you are awaiting appears, it is customary to offer a long "WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT!" The only appropriate response to said Woot is two short, emphatic "WOOT WOOT!"
6.) The name of an internet website that sells an item a day. Getting really popular, and has some really great deals at times. Website: www.woot.com


Next topic...lots has happened since i blogged last! Lets see...last wednesday night it snowed gangbusters...friday i took the day off from work and traveled to Chicagotown with my friend Denise Deniserson. (Woot!) :) It was a crazy & interesting trip up there to say the least...the bad weather we had on wed nite traveled to Chicago thursday evening, and one of the Southwest planes landing at midway slid off the end of the runway, through the wall at the end and into an intersection on Central, i believe. Scary! Same airline we were flying...same airport...within like 12 hrs of when we were sposed to be there. Yikes. Anywho, our flight out of KC was delayed like 2hrs because of the accident, also b/c the runways were bad enough that only one runway was open....talk about congestion! So yes, 2hrs late, we arrived...and spent the weekend relaxing, shopping (YAY IKEA!!!) & shopping some more. If youre interested, ask me & i'll email you about the life-changing bra-fitting i had at a lingerie store Oprah recommended (i mean, if Oprah recommends it, you have to go there, right?) on Michigan Ave...yikes! But i digress...the trip was just loads of fun! Underlined how much I still really like the town, and still would love to live there...even in spite of the insanely cold weather...

So now i'm back...yesterday was monday...blah...and my first day of the south beach diet. The 1st 2 weeks of this diet i pretty much have to cut out all sugar from my diet. Well not all, but like 99%....being that i get so crabby when my blood sugar gets low, i was a little, shall we say, less than chipper yesterday. Today was better, and i'm sure tomorrow will be better still, but this is tough! When i was in the grocery store & walking past the orange juice, my mouth just started to water...i could almost taste it!! But no, i was strong, no sugar-laden OJ for me. I did cave and get a case of Coke Zero tho...tastes just like Coke, but with no sugar. I will have to write to the company thanking them for their life-saving invention. :)

P.S. some of my friends are coming to kc to visit this weekend...i am SOOOO excited! I feel like it's christmas or something, just absolutely can't wait. WOOT!!! :)

Winter Wonderland!

Imagine if you will, a snowglobe, with kansas city in the middle of it....now imagine that snowglobe being 1/2 filled with snow (much more than the average snow globe), and then being turned upside down & shaken. That's us right now!! We're getting TONS of snow, and it's just swirling around, just like in a snow globe. It's beautiful!! :)

So far we have around 5 inches, but they're calling for something around 8 by the time it's said and done...and all i can think of is, wonder if they'll have any sleds left by the time i get to the store? I know, I'm 27 and maybe sledding may be a bit juvenile...but darnit! there are some good hills around this place (i know, because i've had to run up them in my training runs!!), and with 8 inches of snow they most definitely should not go to waste!

La, la, la, let it snow! let it snow! let it snow! :)

**Sigh**

You are reading the post of a very tired girl...the last 4 workdays have been H-E-L-L...loong days at work, being busy nonstop from the time i get in till i leave, not getting to eat lunch until 4pm on a regular basis, guaranteed stress headache by 3:00 everyday. Booo....yes, this is me whining.... I want one day, just one, when i'm not asked to do 10 million things with the clear expectation that i will have time to do those 10million things when really there's only time to reasonably to 1 million of those things. no no no more!!! i would also like a day when i can comfortably get my job done and still have time to leave my desk to use the restroom or get lunch without someone standing at my desk when i get back with SOMETHING ELSE for me to do!! NO MORE!!! AAARRRGGGGHHHH!!!!

Have you ever seen that cartoon with the duck standing over his computer with a big sledge hammer? That's me, only its not just my computer, its the whole desk...computer (complete with zillion unread emails), phone (complete with blaring red light of voicemail doom), and papers strewn about. The whole kit & caboodle.

Ok...i'm done whining now...i think i got it out of my system...

On another note, happy st nicholas day everyone! I brought in cookies & fudge to work today to celebrate, although i believe i may be the only person in my group, possibly the whole company, who celebrates the day. heathens... ;) j/k.

On another note as well, I am taking a long weekend and going to Chicago this friday for a little R& R with my friend Denise. Cant wait!! Even though i know it is going to be INSANELY cold there, i'm so excited to have a weekend where it is my job to relax, spend some money christmas shopping, drink some margaritas and have some fun. Woohoo!! i seriously cannot wait...less than 72 hours!! Once we get there i may just hide in the Marshall Fields and not come back. It's a big department store...surely it wouldnt be THAT bad to live in...

christmas time!

Ok. I confess...I have finally succumbed to the christmas fever! (if you are a grinch, probably would be less painful to stop reading after paragraph 2...)

Now that it is finally december (actually i should be saying, it's december? already?) I feel like yes, we can now sing christmas songs with a clear conscience! It seems like every month has its holiday, so it's just wrong to celebrate a holiday before its date is due...kindof like celebrating your birthday a month early, there's something just not right about it! :) I started seeing christmas stuff out as early as September (sigh...it's going to be a long season...), and one of the KC radio stations started playing christmas music as early as october (scandal! it's not even halloween yet!), and then of course putting up the christmas decorations on thanksgiving in november (what?? I'm still drowsy from the turkey!!). BUT it is now december...so...deck the halls!

I've changed the ringer on my phone to the dance of the sugar plum fairies, put the few christmas decorations I have up in my apartment (it is a-dazzle with blue & silver-gorgeous!), started writing christmas cards, and am starting to accumulate christmas gifts for the chosen few I can afford to buy/make for. Plus, as if we need another reason to enjoy the season, how can you NOT get excited about all the great christmas movies out there!!! A Christmas Story ("you'll shoot your eye out!"), Miracle on 34th Street, It's a Wonderful Life, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Its a Charlie Brown Christmas, aand...my all time absolute favorite (no matter what season)...Christmas Vacation with Chevy Chase & Randy Quaid. Just thinking of that movie makes me laugh!! I can't even choose my favorite scene, every part of that movie just makes me giggle and laugh like i was 10 again & watching the 3 stooges...pure happiness...

So...grinchy people of the world beware...24 days & counting till the big day!!
Ho Ho Ho!! *<:D
(that's supposed to be santa btw...)

I love going to the Dentist!!

hehe...yeah, thought that title would be an attention grabber! :) Today I had an appointment with my dentist to get a cavity filled....ho hum...necessary evil. It was kindof a hassle actually, because the appt was in the middle of the day and since we've been CRAZY busy at work this week it was tough to get away. The actual appointment was at 3, but for some strange reason i thought it was at 2:30, and for some even stranger reason I was there at 1:30. For those of you that know me, my being on time is a rare occurrence & being early (let alone an HOUR early) is unheard of! So i'm there...sitting in the waiting room... irritated with myself for wasting time being early when I could be at work getting stuff done...when the receptionist lets me know they can get me in early. sweet! So, as i'm going in, i see this sign about new spa services being offered. Struck me as a strange thing to offer at a dentist's office, but it was a fleeting thought. Probably just an advertisement or something.

I go in, sit down, & the dr comes in with his big needle of fun (novacaine)....which by the way, has NEVER hurt in all the time i've gone to this dentist. Can't think of more than one time i've been in pain at this doc ever, and never from the numbing stuff-stellar! Anywho, he fills the tooth, bing, bam, done! Less than 15 minutes and it's over. As the dental assistant is finishing things up (i'm still laying back in the chair btw), this lady comes in leans over me and says "Hi! I'm Dr. So-and-So's staff massage therapist. We give complimentary facial massages to our patients after their treatments to aid in the numbness going away and to speed healing. Would you like one?"

The look on my face mustve read something like "duhhhh...." or maybe that was the novacaine...whatev. :) Needless to say, i was flabbergasted. Shocked. If i hadnt been laying down you couldve knocked me over with a feather! Here I am staring at the ceiling trying to gauge how long it'll be before i stop drooling b/c of the numness, and suddenly i'm offered a free massage? At my dentist's office? Sign me up!! :) I have to say, it was the BEST!!!! While I was walking out, I kept thinking to myself, "Dude! Did that just happen?? Did i actually have a pleasant experience getting a tooth filled?? Maybe the novacaine is going to my brain..." Incredible...whoever thought of that service to go with dentistry deserves a raise. :) I think i might have to start coming up with excuses to go to the dentist!

Telling my mom about it this afternoon she wanted to know who this guy was, and if they accepted hers & dads insurance! :) That really must be a good dr, if people are willing to drive like 3 hrs for an appointment!! (ps...if you want this guys name/# let me know, he's the BOMB!) :)

Gobble Gobble!

GobbleGobble! :) My thanksgiving holiday starts tomorrow...I took tomorrow off from work in order to head back to the Lou a little early for the holiday. I'm hoping to get on the road by 8 or 9am so that i can beat all the crazy holiday travelers on I-70...cross your fingers for me!

In my next to last post I mentioned that my sewing machine had been fixed, and that i was itching to make something. I came up with some good ideas, and decided to make a table runner & some placemats for christmas decor in my apartment. Figured, how much easier could it get, pretty much i'm just sewing in straight lines, right? Wrong!! :) I had to go & make it complicated...BUT....i think it turned out beautifully! The original pattern called for one long strip of fabric with some sheer borders on each end. I chose dark blue damask silk and then silver sheer borders...and then purchased silver thread to use for finishing touches. Well, after i had it partially put together, i decided that it needed to look more like the picture! In the picture the solid fabric had embroidery on it...i have a feeling it was already like that when the fabric was purchased & sewn in rather than being put on it afterwards, but whatever...i thought 'i can do that!' and set to work. (this is a phrase that has gotten me into more unfinished projects than i care to count. ) So, i drew some vines & leaves on the blue fabric with chalk, and then set to work with the sewing machine & my silver thread to trace out the chalk lines. After a few minor setbacks, learning how to adjust the tension on the machine, fine tuning the start/stopping process, i was rather proud of the finished product! The pictures really don't do it justice. It's also reversible, the other side is solid blue from one end to the other, with a silver sheer band in the middle and an outline of silver thread around the outside seams. The furniture in my apt is blue corduroy, and the candle accents i have are polished sterling silver, so the fabrics coordinate rather well. What do you think? :)
There's more where that came from...there are 2 matching placemats that are cut out, just waiting to be put together. Can't wait. So what should I make next??

Well, i'm off to pack & do laundry for the road trip tomorrow. I hope everyone has a happy and healthy thanksgiving....

Interesting...

Thought I'd post an interesting commentary I read in Newsweek on Senator Murtha's recent comments that we need to expedite withdrawal of troops from Iraq, and the general situation in over there...

TGIF!

Thank goodness tomorrow is friday! This has been a very tiring week at work so I'm looking forward to some downtime this weekend....all i really have planned is going for a run on saturday morning, and then to a friend's 40th birthday party that night (seriously, am i really old enough to have friends turning 40??) :). Other than that-I think i may just plan to lay on the couch and watch some dvd's netflix probably thinks i'm trying to steal. I've had napoleon dynamite and one of the Smallville dvd's for about 2 mos now, still havent gotten around to watching them. I think this may be just the weekend!

So tonite I picked up my sewing machine from the repair shop, and am very excited to start using it! Some time ago my mom gave the machine to me as she inherited my great grandmothers' sewing machines, and to be honest the most i've used it for is to hem a dress. I think i tried to make a skirt with it once, but that turned out to be a scary thing, and I think maybe it got thrown away. Anywho, when i hemmed the dress i noticed that the machine was having some issues with skipping stitches, and since then it's just been collecting dust, probably for over a year now. After a weekend watching my good friend Leslie learn how to use her new sewing machine, and after reading all these blog entries from my cousin Sarah & how crafty she's gotten with her sewing skills, I figured maybe it's time to break it out & try again. I took it to a repair shop here downtown early last week & the guy there said with a little oil and a tune-up the baby will be purring again in no time. (almost exact words there...not kidding...is this a car or a sewing machine? lol) While he was writing up the work order we got to talking about whether a treadle sewing machine or an electric one is better....the whole time i kept thinking, am i really having this conversation with a guy?? (btw, he looked to be about my age.) Not that guys cant or shouldnt sew, it's just not that often (ok...never) that i run into a guy who is interested in that. I guess it could be a new take on picking up chicks...although i dont think many 'chicks' frequent sewing stores, so perhaps this isnt the most clever idea on his part as far as career choices or catching a girl. :) Anyways, i'm excited to start using my new 'old' machine, although i doubt i will be turning out much more than patchwork quilts these days. Any ideas on simple fun projects to do?

p.s....Considering the previous blog entries about my partying habits, does it strike anyone else as funny that I changed the subject to how excited I am that my sewing machine just got out of the repair shop?? Kindof makes me laugh....guess it's not a bad thing to have a wide range of hobbies...but still... :)