silence is golden

I love silence. It's good for my soul. It keeps me sane.

One of the worst feelings....

Our house was broken into. Luckily, the thief didn't get away with much but he did get away with blurays and most of my good jewelry. So much for wanting nice pieces of jewelry, I think I'll stick with the crap I buy on clearance at Target.

Daisy is ok, she had a blanket thrown over her.

Knowing that someone could have the nerve to break down your door and go through all your stuff, your most private and/or most sentimental possessions and just throw them to the ground or take them was the worst part.

Then the paranoia sets in. Every noise and person is suspect. Every time Daisy growls and barks I wonder. I hate myself for letting my emotions get the best of me that way.

But now I'm done. Stuff is stuff and as long as this thief or thieves doesn't hurt us they can take whatever else they didn't get in the first round. But good luck to them because we aren't just keeping the door wide open for them. I have hopes of building turrets and getting moonbuggies and maybe a cyclops or two. (Watch Gentlemen Broncos if you haven't seen that yet)

Merry Early Christmas to Me!

Zac completely surprised me last night with a new MacBook! He had talked about getting me one but I didn't take it seriously and now I actually have one!

My poor little Dell just wasn't cutting it anymore. I would get so frustrated waiting for things to load that I would just give up in frustration. I only used my old computer to check facebook, email, shopping sites and the news because anything else would mean me spending a ridiculous amount of time waiting.

So here I am in the living room with my pretty little MacBook. I'm going to have to get used to this and I feel like I need to wear gloves so that I don't get this thing dirty.

Oh boy!

need more long weekends

Right now I'm sipping on a peppermint latte and waiting for this dumb headache to go away. I'm dreading having to work tomorrow. Oh to be retired...that is the dream.

This weekend was quite nice. Thanksgiving Day was filled with good food and we got to see 2 of the 4 munchkins. When we went out for our post-Thanksgiving meal walk a little doggy joined us from out of no where. On our little adventure we went to the wash and on our way back we looked for pottery shards. Friday was spent relaxing and I started on my annual Christmas puzzle. I don't actually know if I have done a puzzle every year but I'll pretend I have. This year I'm working on a 3-D puzzle and it's a bitch. Friday I also woke up to some nice little emails telling me about wonderful sales. So when Zac woke up telling me he bought something the night before I told him "that's nice, because I just spent $50 on some cheap shoes, cheap pants, a cheap cardigan and a cheap skirt." See how I used the word cheap...makes everything ok. Later on that day we puppysat for our friend Shelly. She just got her dog the day before and didn't want to leave the puppy alone while she went out shopping. Daisy was instantly intrigued but didn't understand why this puppy wasn't playing with her. We also think Daisy was jealous when we were giving all of our attention to the puppy. Saturday I was invited to a Gingerbread Decorating Party by some ladies that I used to work with. Zac and I went and attempted to decorate the house. It was fun but it was pretty cool to see what the others were doing. Today we finally went to go see Harry Potter in the IMAX theater...my first time. It was pretty cool! Can't wait for Part 2! I think I need another week off!

But this coming week will be exciting too! Thursday is the Territorial Cup game. UA vs. ASU and we'll be attending!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I'd like to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you all are spending it with family and if not with family enjoying the day regardless! And for those of you that have to work, I feel for you but hopefully it won't be so bad!

We are off to my parents house with very little sleep. Daisy hasn't been feeling so great but hopefully she's all better now and will be ok for the rest of the day.

So I hope that today less people are on their social networking sites and instead are enjoying the day watching the parade, Christmas movies, and/or football, eating good food, and resting up! Because tomorrow is Black Friday and I need you all to go crazy and buy everything. And if you are looking for something for that older woman in your life or women's shoes please shop online at Old Pueblo Traders, Bedford Fair, and Coward. Thank you!

tasting jewelry

Jewelry talk is in the air and you can't help but see a stupid Kay Jewelers ad every commercial break. So I started thinking about my tastes in jewelry. I know in fine jewelry my birthstone is my favorite-diamond. In cuts I like princess and emerald. Other stones are beautiful too but I don't like those fabricated rainbow looking stones. I don't really wear much jewelry but I always feel like I don't have any classic pieces to wear on fancy occasions. I'd love some basic diamond studs and someday a diamond tennis bracelet. Some day in the future I would also like a pearl set and not the urban dictionary definition of a pearl necklace. I think a good rule of thumb is if it looks like something Tiffany & Co. would carry I'd probably like it, like the heart keys that are so popular now with all jewelers. With all gemstones I like simple designs, nothing to crazy.

Now if we are talking cheaper jewelry then I'm all for being crazy. I like bangle bracelets but it's hard to get them on your fat hands so usually they have to be a little bigger or have a hinge. I also like cocktail rings. Those are fun to wear when going out.

I also like original and creative pieces that you might find in a little shop on that funky/hippie street in your town or at the street fairs. I love the stuff they have at PopCycle and have bought from DDco Design when I go to the street fairs.

What I don't really like is the cutesy stuff with the animals....except for owls...I'm not sure why but I think owls on jewelry are cute. I also don't like the big hearts and what drives me crazy is that open heart necklace by Jane Seymour. She makes it look like it took a genius to come up with that design.

And just so I don't feel like I'm some materialistic snob who only wants expensive jewelry I would totally rather have the cooler cheaper stuff made out of recycled stuff. I mean really...how many times do I dress up fancy?

It's boot season

I have an outfit in mind and I need boots to complete the outfit. I'm not sure if I'm brave enough to actually wear the boots out in public seeing as I'm not really a boot kind of girl but still I like to pretend. My boots of choice are Soffts-Balmoral in Kenya Brown or Naturalizer's Causeway in brown leather/suede.

jimmy crack corn

During lunch today my coworker and I went to the tortilleria across the street. While we were waiting in line there was this tiny girl ordering. She had this cute little haircut and was wearing a cute sweater, cute cropped jeans and cute Coach purse. I kept checking her out to see what cute shoes she must have on....ugly clear plastic flip flops and *gasp* the worst looking feet EVER! Her feet were dry and ashy, her toenails were disgusting and her heels were so cracked and dry that they looked so dirty. I couldn't stop staring. I turned to my coworker and had her follow my gaze and then when she saw what I saw she said "YIKES!"...then we both couldn't stop staring.

Geesh....I don't get fancy manicures or pedicures but I still know how to use a good old fashioned nail clipper, pumice stone and lotion! And if I don't have time to do that stuff I don't wear flip flops in public!!!!

sparkle motion

Courtesy of a Nordstrom's email ad I just received I was able to have a peek at the UGGs classic sparkles boot. For the lady that loves the bling this is just perfect. I encourage everyone to buy these boots.

worst commercial ever

there is life after AMO

The company I work for keeps restructuring and in restructuring they let people go. It sucks but it's all business. I've been looking through some people's Facebook pages and people that were let go from the company before come in droves saying "there is life after AMO" of course there is. Why would your life stop with being let go? It's driving me crazy. I know alot of people have been there for years some even 30 years but that kind of stuff is a thing of the past.

If you think AMO is your life then you gotta be nuts.

layoff round number.......

Another round of layoffs today. It sucked. We lost one of our cubemates and it was hard to say goodbye to more people that you spend most of your time with. I've speculated this would be coming but it's still tough.

I'm still planning on sticking out this job though. I really like it even with all the ups and downs we've had. I do have plans that can be set in motion if I get the axe soon or if I decide to move on.

Well tomorrow is a new day...we'll see what happens.

a crystal ball that tells your past

It's already November. It's crazy that Thanksgiving is next week!

The last real post was about my oldest brother celebrating his birthday. So what else happened in October. Oh yeah Halloween! Unfortunately, I did not feel the Halloween cheer this year. No decorations went up and my decision to dress up for work was last minute. But I did pull off Dora the Explorer and won 2nd place at work. On Halloween Eve I carved pumpkins with a friend and her grandson and then I got sick. Halloween was spent with a horrible sore throat and sneezing every 10 seconds. That night we went to an Of Montreal concert that I think I would have enjoyed immensely if I were feeling better.

November started with a wedding and a reason to buy a new dress. I found my dress at Eshakti online and it was awesome because it had pockets! The wedding was beautiful too!

The newest thing I'm obsessed with....TOMS!

Defriended

A co-worker recently defriended me on Facebook. I'm a little bitter.

happy birthday big bro

I don't think my brother reads my blog but today is his birthday. I called him to wish him a happy birthday and we were invited to go out to dinner with them at The Native New Yorker. When we got there Gigi and Saul were pretty happy to see us. Gigi was too busy coughing on and bugging Zac to notice anyone else at the table while Saul kept me busy playing I Spy.

It was a fun little night.

October hike #1-Mt. Lemmon

We'll see how long we keep these hikes up. One is a good start, right?

Today we decided to head up to Mt. Lemmon. We started out in Marshall's Gulch and started up a trail with Daisy leading the way. It seemed like forever going on this trail that only went UP!!! I hate going UP! It was a tough hike, for me anyways, I think Zac could have been skipping and running and he wouldn't even break a sweat. We finally got to the saddle(new term I learned today), and we headed back down the mountain. Along the way we saw many doggies and most were nice! Daisy also got pooped along the way and whenever she had a chance she would just plop down on the ground. Finally we got back down to the parking lot and looked at the map. We started on the Aspen Trail and then took the Marshall Gulch Trail back down for a total of 3.9 miles.

I think the trail took us 3 stinkin hours. I just looked at the Sierra Club website and they time it at 1.5 hours if you start at Marshall Gulch go up and then go back down using the Aspen Trail. Double that time for me when over 2 miles was spent going up first. This trail is also rated C in difficulty.

Daisy and I definitely got a workout. Daisy is passed out on the couch and I can hardly wait for tomorrows aches and pains!

september

I don't even remember September anymore.

We went to an 80's themed birthday party. It was fun.

The new season of tv shows started up. I watch The Event, Community, The Big Bang Theory, S... My Dad Says, Bones, Raising Hope, Running Wilde, The Office, 30 Rock, Weeds, Dexter, and The Big C. We are very busy people.

The 3rd Season of True Blood ended. All I can say about this season is that I love who they got to play Alcide Herveux.

Took Daisy on a walk at Reid Park, she had fun chasing after the ducks until she got the poop scared out of her when the fireworks went off in Hi Corbett Field.

Question of that night: How do the animals in the zoo react to fireworks? They are literally right under those fireworks and during the summer fireworks go off every Friday night for the baseball games. I am perplexed.

The Good Egg with Bad People

Saturday Zac and I hopped over to a nearby breakfast/lunchy place named The Good Egg. While waiting for 20 minutes to get in we were reminded that all the college students were back in town and 11am is the time that all these college students decide that it's the perfect time to ruin my lunch. A group of frat boys and two girls were waiting around and all the guys had on a tank and shorts like the one pictured above. Along with their cool tank tops they had on vans or tom's shoes and those cheap black plastic sunglasses with the neon colored sides. I hated them all instantly. They ruined my life.

These boys also like to grab their crotch a lot. I HATE THAT! So does your crotch itch so much that you have to constantly scratch? You do know that there is treatment for itchiness. Do you have to constantly check if your peepee and balls are still there? Is it some obsessive nervous habit like biting nails or tapping your fingers against the table? The next time I see a boy that I actually know grab his crotch in front of me I will smack him. I might just start carrying a ruler around with me. And for girls if you start grabbing your boobs or scratching your crotch I will smack you too!

i wonder if.....

Today while working REALLY hard I started wondering what kind of celebrity I would be. Would I be a good girl and work and try to give my free time to charities? Would I be friends with the geeky Asian girl from Knocked Up and Paper Heart? Or would I be a bad girl and get drunk with LiLo?

It would be a tough decision.

FB annoyance

I have an old high school acquaintance on FB. Her husband just left for military duty and for the past couple days she keeps writing how much she misses him. The annoying part is she keeps sending him kisses by typing "muha". Every single time. Muha.

That is annoying.

sometimes i really think you hate me

Today I had a meeting. When I walked in the room our VP said "here she comes, silent but deadly."


My immediate reaction....do I smell like farts?

nothing like a hot shower!

I love hot showers! I don't care if you think I'm crazy. First thing in the morning a hot shower is the best!

It's been over a month now that we haven't had gas for our water heater and stove. We have either been grilling or cooking out of our microwave. I've been washing dishes with cold water.

The only reason it took so long is because we went the alternative route. When we found out how much the gas company and plumbers would charge us we had to find out another way where this would cost us less than $1,000. Before the 4th of July, family helped dig up the trench. Then we lost two weeks because some family members went on vacation. When we heard they were back in town the next part of installing the new pipe started. Then the pressure testing roller coaster started. It seemed that the pressure tests held for everyone but Zac. The minute the other people would walk away the pressure started to fall. Zac found the leak and the pressure testing continued. When he was finally satisfied and sick of it he called for the inspector. It passed. Zac still wasn't satisfied with the pressure and we left it alone for the rest of the week. Finally, Zac decided to wrap up the pipes and let the gas company decide our fate. After the left over gas pipe tried to attack Zac we were all done with this gas thing.

I ended up staying home yesterday to wait for the gas guy. I don't think Zac trusted me enough to be able to write down or remember what the gas guy might say. Whatever.... The guy finally showed up around 11:30 and left about 15 minutes later. He then told me the glorious news...you are all set and you should have hot water in half an hour!

I texted Zac to tell him we have gas. He texted me back...already? did they check anything?


I think the only one that will be sad to have this whole ordeal be over with will be Daisy. She likes to jump over the open trench and roll around in the dirt.

Daisygirl

Daisy wanted to wish Zac a happy birthday back on July 21st! She is a good doggy!

Parraz for U.S. Senate!

Sunday afternoon I went to my first ever political fundraiser. The same friend that has kept us posted on all the rallies and activist news is also a big supporter of Randy Parraz. Through facebook we were invited to a tardeada for Randy Parraz. I was interested in the event because everything I have read about this man sounds so different from the other candidates running. I felt like going to this event would be a great way to hear him speak and meet some other people that support Randy. We didn't really know what to expect and so when we got there we scouted out our table along with some friends and waited for the festivities to begin. We met some new people, we ate a yummy plate of mexican food that we only paid $5 for and we got some music to dance to. Not bad for only paying $5 for a plate of food and a suggested donation of $10. We met a couple of other candidates running for office and we also heard a few speeches from some entertaining guest speakers.

It was really interesting to be involved in something like this. Now I'm just waiting for the phone calls to get me to volunteer. Alls I know is that I'm not doing the phonebanking thing!!! I refuse!

what up g.....

Sometimes at work I can't help myself. It's fun to mess with people.

1)So this is the first message I got. So casual.
-----Original Message-----
From: Service Desk
To: Teresa
Cc: Service Desk
Subject: FW: WRN-WEBM-IS-02.ObEsps.Internal\ObEsps.Internal:createEspsFile Company=005

fyi T,
PO: 5008542, 43, and now 47 are outstanding.


Thank you,
__________________________________
Sam
Service Desk
-------------------------------------------
Company=005 PO_NBR='5008547' BUYER='S4'

SERVICE DESK: Create a problem ticket and assign to BUYER. Determined to be a UPC Vendor and either a SKU is mising a UPC number or it is an invalid number of zero.

Notified: WEBM_PROD

UPC Errors encountered error listing below.

C46457 66YA 10 M 1598 UPC lookup result =
C46457 66YA 10 W 1598 UPC lookup result =
C46457 66YA 11 M 1598 UPC lookup result =




2) My first response, I couldn't resist!

-----Original Message-----
From: Teresa
Sent: Friday, July 30, 2010 5:18 PM
To: Service Desk
Subject: RE: WRN-WEBM-IS-02.ObEsps.Internal\ObEsps.Internal:createEspsFile Company=005

Hold on...what's going on S?

5008542,43 belongs to me-Teresa---S7

5008547 belongs to Mary Jo-S4

I figured out my problem and will fix it now.

Thanks,
T

Teresa




3)Oh what happened to saying T for my name?
-----Original Message-----
From: Service Desk
Sent: Friday, July 30, 2010 2:33 PM
To: Teresa
Cc: Service Desk
Subject: RE: WRN-WEBM-IS-02.ObEsps.Internal\ObEsps.Internal:createEspsFile Company=005

Teresa,
My apologies, I didn’t look at that correctly.
I re-routed this one to MaryJo.

I will close your tickets for PO: 5008542 and 43.
Sorry.

Thank you,
__________________________________
Sam





4)I started to feel bad.

-----Original Message-----
From: Teresa
Sent: Friday, July 30, 2010 2:38 PM
To: 'Service Desk'
Subject: RE: WRN-WEBM-IS-02.ObEsps.Internal\ObEsps.Internal:createEspsFile Company=005

Sam,

It's ok...just having some fun. Mary Jo and I sit right next to each other so it's no biggie.

Teresa




5)bESTFriends Again!
-----Original Message-----
From: Service Desk
Sent: Friday, July 30, 2010 2:38 PM
To: Teresa
Cc: Service Desk
Subject: RE: WRN-WEBM-IS-02.ObEsps.Internal\ObEsps.Internal:createEspsFile Company=005

lol :) ok,
They say the less you type - the less chances of carpol onset, so ...

I thought for a minute there I actually got on your wrong side :)

Thank you,
__________________________________
Sam
Service Desk

"you might not understand"

Stories that are prefaced by “you might not get this till you’re a parent” automatically make me angry. If you tell me a story about your kid just tell me the story don’t start with some idiotic statement and then go into telling me a story about how a kid says something that is so literal. Or how the kid hit a big milestone. I get it’s a big deal to you. I might not know the joy you are feeling at the moment but it isn’t rocket science. Most importantly I can handle a story about your siblings, parents, friends and I can definitely handle stories about your kids or grandkids. I get happy when Daisy does something cute. I don’t go around and say “you might not get this till you own a dog” I could care less if you own a dog or not. I just want to tell you my story.

And besides you don't use that phrase for anything else. You might not get this till your parents die. You might not get this till you lose a leg. You might not get this till you are able to travel into space. I'm just a little miffed maybe I'm jealous...but really is it necessary to point out to a person that you know doesn't have kids that they don't have kids? Or to say to the person next to you "i have a cute kid story that I want to tell you because you're a parent and you'll understand" and then go into telling a story about a kid puking.

Are you having a laugh?

I just remembered a few key quotes from my dad from this past weekend.
1)
"I looked online to read about sex in eight."

umm what did you look up online?

"Sex in eight!"

ohhhhhh Section 8.....enunciate

2)
"I bought a movie for 99 cents the other day and it was soft porn. It was from Brazil so you know....what do you expect for 99 cents."

3)
Some lady was asking what his job was before he retired and he told them he was a cement mason and she wrote down semen mason. When he looked at the application he said something like "cement like the stuff you put on the ground"




I love my dad even if he is a bit pervy.

we will not comply

All day I've been checking facebook for updates on the protests in downtown Tucson. Even though a judge has blocked parts of the bill there are many that believe the fight isn't over. Read about it if you want.

So while at work I kept looking for updates. One of our friends has recently become a big activist here in town. Usually through this friend we find out about the protests, rallies, charity events and other political going ons in Tucson. Around noon he kept asking for people to show up soon to the protest because something big was going to happen. The big event was bringing the peaceful protest out in the street. The local news stations were all devoted to the protest for the 5 and 6pm newscasts. It was amazing! Some protesters were arrested and those arrested peacefully went with the cops. After a while of arresting people one by one the bicycle cops started using their bikes as a blockade to move the protesters back to the street corners. As the people went back to the corners the cops were trying to figure out their next step. The next thing we see are 20 or more people on bikes riding down one of the blocked off streets and riding around in circles almost taunting the cops to come get them. Things calmed down after that.

The protests were meant to get attention and to show the state that the fighting isn't over.

While showing live footage of the protest the news anchors were reading emails, tweets, and fb postings from the viewers. One of the most common things I keep reading and hearing is "for all the illegals to go back home". "All the illegals" include people from every race, ethnicity, religion, size, shape, color, as well legal and illegal.

tuna noodle casserole

tonight was fend for yourself night and i grabbed this out of the freezer. it's not really that yummy to begin with but it doesn't help that your husband tells you it smells like crap a few times that when you eat it all you can think about is giving it to the neighborhood cats and wanting to barf it up.

no heart

It's getting ugly out there. What happened to compassion? Do I have to prove to you that I'm a legal citizen before I'm allowed your respect? Do I have to show you my birth certificate to prove that I'm a human being? Does today's politics make it OK to go up to a darker skinned kid of 10 and based on that alone tell him/her to go back to Mexico? If you agree or disagree with illegal immigration you are entitled to your opinion but under what God, faith,belief and/or moral system is it OK to treat human beings less than what they are? I'm not looking to argue with anyone. I don't want to hear about why you agree or disagree with the laws taking place. There will always be exceptions to the rule but you better have a damn good reason to teach and speak hate.


I was going to post this on my facebook this afternoon but I couldn't do it. I don't want to argue with people and I know that is what I'd get. It's just horrible to hear what is happening right now. It's like this law is making it ok to be racist.

see what happens

Money is the root of all evil. We decided to go on a little spending freeze for the next couple months. Get ourselves out of the hole and back on track to saving money and spending money! Our biggest downfall is eating out. Our challenge to ourselves is to go all month without eating out...unless it's a birthday dinner or a planned outing with friends/family. Yesterday we went to the grocery store early in the morning with the intention to eat lunch before going to see Predators. Before heading out for the movie I pulled out the big purse and stuffed an already popped minibag of popcorn, a package of red vines and a nalgene bottle of water. As I was pondering whether or not to put strawberries in my purse Zac asked me when I got so Mexican. I said "when you told me to stop spending money". Zac said let's be white again. Hehe...this time he did ask me to wait for the lights to go down before I pull out my bag of popcorn. He didn't like when at Eclipse I pulled out a baggie of licorice while waiting for the movie to start. He's convinced I'll get us kicked out.

I had told Zac earlier in the day of an experience of going to the movie theater in Juarez a long time ago. I was staying with my aunt for a month and we went to go see cliffhanger. I remember my aunt popping two big bags of popcorn and grabbing bananas, oranges and a few sodas and putting them all in her purse. Not knowing what movie theaters in Mexico were like I was certain that we wouldn't even make it in! Once in the theater I noticed everyone was pulling stuff out of big bags/purses. It was the norm there. And since the movie was subtitled everyone talked and made a bunch of noise.

Well I haven't gotten us kicked out yet but we'll see what happens next time.

when crazy meets drunk

This night was planned for quite a few months. Christina, (the one we call Charlotte), was back in town for visit. She's originally from Casa Grande but now lives on the east coast and it's been a long time since we've all seen her. This night out we managed to get about 5 of us together that met back in 1999 when we were all at the UofA together. We talked about how we met and then we caught up with each other all while doing a lightrail pub crawl in Phoenix.

Friday afternoon Zac and I drove up to Phoenix and checked into our fancy hotel at the Doubletree in Scottsdale. I didn't know Doubletree's could be considered resorts but I guess if it's in Scottsdale then whatever. Around 6pm, Zac dropped me off at Dave's Electric Brew Pub where I downed a nice cold coke. Haha! We took the light rail to some place called Rose and Crown where more people joined us and I think most of us got a bit tipsy off the electric lemonade. It was probably 10pm by the time we were at our 3rd bar and most of us were ready for sleepy time. I think we all felt super old for being so tired so early. After Seamus we went next door to Hotel San Carlos where the others kept on drinking and I stopped but started dancing. I wanted to dance dammit!!!

I ended the night at Hotel San Carlos and called Zac to come get me. I needed to eat something before I threw up on everyone! When Zac arrived I got up to meet him with the intention to introduce him to the group.Well another girl that I met that night immediately went after him and started asking him about his shirt. Zac was representing wearing wildcat gear in scum devil territory! This girl pretty much pushed me out of the way and I just thought it was funny the big fuss she was making over Zac. Another girl I met that night asked me who he was and I told her that was my husband. The girl that asked me tried to get the other girls attention to cut it out but I didn't get it until the next morning that she was doing that. The girl making a hot fuss over Zac then asked him "who are you here with?" that's when I said "he's my husband" the girl was like ohhhhh....she was already trying to set him up with her roommate and Christina's friend Jen. Jen and the two other girls then went on to take pictures with Zac while making fun of his shirt. Jen is an ASU alum so she was making puking faces. I can't wait to see those pictures.

I can't take Zac anywhere!

The next morning after getting some sleep we went to the hotel pool before checking out. We then had lunch at Scottsdale Fashion Square and stopped at Ikea on our way back to Tucson. It was a fun little get away but now back to reality and the stupid gas line that decided to die.

the best thing ever

There is really nothing like getting a good night's sleep.

I love sleep.

random things i think about

i hate to see people biting their nails. i've seen how bad some people are when it comes to this and their fingers look disgusting. i also get a mental image of dirty fingernail parts swimming around with food in your stomach. gross.

band aids make me think of tequila and tequila make me think of band aids. i have this weird smell/taste thing. tequila tastes like what band aids smell like. doesn't make sense but there is a connection in my head.

for some reason i REALLY want a yellow shirt. my mom once told me yellow makes me look anemic or jaundiced or something like that...it was mean whatever she said. she was probably jealous of how good i looked in yellow...now that i think of it

i love flip flops but i hate that they aren't work appropriate. my mom once told me i have lizard toes so i've always had this weird thing about thong sandals...i'm afraid that my toes will spread out so far that people will stare and point.

i've always been afraid of my teeth falling out.

it seems cool in a movie when people talk while eating. they make those smacking noises that i always thought sounded so grown up. but when people talk while eating in real life it's disgusting and annoying. the same thing with kissing.

i got my first ever pedicure for my 30th birthday. i loved it...now i'm trying to figure out how i can justify the cost and keep getting pedicures for the rest of my life...along with manicures and personal masseuse.

i bought a new curtain rod for the living room. i can get rid of that horrendous metal tube that has been acting like a curtain rod for almost two years. i barely noticed the imposter about 6 months ago.

it's not easy being a bitch sometimes

At work there is a not so nice lady. Evil lady has called me obstinate. Ever since that day that I was obstinate to her I've tried to avoid her. It was pretty easy when we worked in different buildings but now she works in the same building about 20 feet away from me. I see her all the time.

Do you know how hard it is to ignore her existence when she walks by me 20 times a day? Sometimes I say hi to people I don't know and there have been several times I've almost accidentally said hi to her.

Not cool.

She irks me.

Prop 100

Blargh!!! Because of my laziness I never updated my voter registration card with my new name. So when I tried to get an early ballot I was denied. I signed up for the new card but I didn't do it in time.

Today is voting day and I'm missing out.

But not next time!!!!!

this is howie do it

Sorry to disappoint if you were looking for a post about Howie Mandel.

This post is about work. Did I just lose everyone? Well it's a good thing I'm the only one that reads this so I've got my attention!

A part of the average work day is bitching about being at work and having to work. In my little world at work there are 6 of us ladies that work pretty closely together...really it's 7 but the seventh is new to the team so we'll just forget about her for the moment. Anyway. We are like a little family that laughs and cries together and ever since we've had some big changes we've become even closer.

The past few weeks have been strange and pointless with a lot of downtime from our system. Yet of course we have tons of stuff to keep us busy I think other team members within the IP group don't have much work to do and so they are able to help out with other projects. Maybe my team is slow but whatever...Our system finally came up and so we've been working hard to get what needs to get done ASAP. Throughout the day we get various emails from our managers and vP's about getting all this stuff done. The VP wants this done tomorrow, the VP wants this done by Friday. We've had a working system for a day and it's like we've been twiddling our thumbs all day just waiting for someone to tell us what to do....nevermind the mounds of files we have sitting on our desks because things keep changing.

So around 1pm today my cubemate and I started complaining about an email our manager sent us wanting to know when we expect to be all caught up. We started joking around saying that we were going to write back next year. I turned around and asked our other cubemate if she emailed him back. She nodded that she had and then she said "I'm all caught up....I've been caught up since before the system went down."

Well that shut us up. Now where is the fun in being caught up?

Crap....I need to stop being on facebook while at work.

nothing like watching a dog take a crap at a party

Saturday was fun. We made a trip out to the Friends of Pima County Public Library book sale and we left the place with 3 bags full of books. For someone that hated going to Bookman's I've become somewhat of a book whore lately. But unlike my husband, the real book whore of Pima county, I can't buy books knowing that I have 10 more I still need to read at home. I especially can't buy these books at 7-9 bucks.

BUT....when books are fiddycents I will buy as many books as I want!!!!!

I found two Mad books while checking out the sale. Xavier was a huge Mad magazine collector growing up. He had tons of them. My mom even threw a bunch away as punishment but yet he was still left with an impressive collection. I remember reading them all the time not getting most of the jokes until I got older but I always loved spy vs. spy. I'm pretty sure Xavier had the Mad's Look at Modern Thinking. When I found two of the books at the sale it just took me back. It was a lot of fun to go to this booksale and I can't wait for the next one!

Saturday night we made our way over to Danny and Mia's house to celebrate Mia's graduation and her Masters in Social Work! Yay Mia!!!!! We had fun watching the festivities, eating burgers, and avoiding Danny when he was making tequila shot rounds. At one point this one couple joined the party with their rather large dog. The dog chased Siva around and then it stopped probably 5 feet away from where we sitting and left his gift. Oh man....nothing says love like a big steaming pile of ......... It was pretty funny but it was quite stinky! It was fun catching up with some friends and it was also fun watching Mia open her graduation presents and shooshing everyone so they could all hear her music cards.

It was a nice day!

sunday dinners

This is the second Sunday that Zac and I have made the trip to Marana bringing gifts and foods. Since my mom has had shoulder surgery she hasn't been doing so well. The pain is too much for her and since she can't do much with one hand she gets easily frustrated and down on herself. I've called her a few times and she just sounds like she's on the edge of breaking down.

This week we brought over some KFC and some Krispy Kremes for dessert. They never had Krispy Kreme donuts and I think they really enjoyed the treat! We spent the rest of our visit showing my parents how to use the dishwasher and then watching my Dad tear the house apart looking for the dishwasher instructions because he decided it was taking too long. When Zac found the manual online and at the same my mom found the instructions Zac pointed out that the first time the dishwasher is run it will run two extra rinse cycles to get the sensors in line. Once we told my dad that he was finally satisfied. We stayed until the end and I think that experience convinced my dad that washing the dishes by hand is faster and easier! It was pretty funny!

I hope our visit made my mom a little happier. I hope at least the donuts made her smile!

things to hate tonight

-people that put 200-300 picture albums up on shutterfly of a weekend at home ....with 20 pictures of their kid looking off into space....unless it's a wedding or something big you don't really need 200 pictures of your family in pj's

-people that only talk to you so that they can start talking about themselves

-people that try to make funny comments on your facebook posts and all it does is annoy me...to the point that I delete the facebook post so that I can feel some sort of satisfaction since I don't have it in me to say "shut the f...up!"

-shoes that cost $60

-shirts that cost more than $10

-couples that talk about how much they love each other on facebook....get a life...there is one girl on facebook that has had 2 or 3 love fights with her boyfriend over which one loves the other the most. barf!

-pimples behind your ear

-pimples on other people

-other people

I think this is enough hate for the night.

Did you know?

At work we have meetings every once in a while to get the group of clowns together and get everyone on the same page. We can either bring up things we found on the system that might help others or we are told about some new report and blah blah blah.

Today we had one. I found parts of it amusing. One girl asked a question and one of the managers that is known to be a bit on the difficult side immediately went on the defensive. She's a lady that likes to argue but only if she can yell the whole time. Her face went from a normal lady shade to nice red color within minutes of trying to prove her side. The funny thing was that the question was asking for guidance from our management when the VP said she'd ask around, the manager lady was only fighting for one side. The original idea of having these meetings were started with good intentions but really the meetings end up being an hour and half of information half the team has already heard 4 times and the rest of the meeting is people just talking over each other. Most of the time it's just too funny and I would enjoy it more if the room were better ventilated with some high power AC running through it.

Last Friday at work we had a townhall meeting where our President talked a bit about the company and wanted us to ask questions. He gave the option to write our questions down and submit it anonymously before the townhall. So like the good little soldiers of hell that we are our group submitted quite a few questions. Several questions were regarding our sometimes functioning system and other questions were regarding our "somewhat difficult" manager lady. The president or his secretary thought ahead and summarized our paragraph long questions and nicely edited/censored our questions. Heehee! That was kind of fun to hear what he decided to read and what he decided to leave out.

In the end it was worth it because even though we had to wait out in the heat we got a free lunch after the townhall.

gobbledygook

Happy Mother's Day to all you mamacitas! We went to Marana to go see my mummy. She's been a bit on the downside since having her shoulder surgery. She's in pain and doctors have told her she'll be in pain for a month. She hasn't been up for leaving the house unless she has to for appointments or groceries so going out to eat was no good. I called her yesterday and told her not to make anything that Zac and I will come over and bring dinner. This afternoon we decided to order a Chili's fajita party platter and before we paid for it I called my mom to confirm just in case anything had changed. My silly mom still made a "small" pot roast and beans. She told me to bring the food anyway that way they'll have leftovers for the week. We arrived with a meal fit for hungry people! The fajitas were tasty and a meal that was supposed to be for 6-8 people was enough to feed 3 people and a hungry Zac! We stayed and chatted for a while then we came home by 6pm knowing that it was getting close to my parent's bed time! haha! I think my mom still enjoyed her day even if she was in pain.

Now my random rants....
-The dvr did not record the Glee Madonna episode. Instead it recorded American Idol or whatever lame ass show was on.
-I love Betty White. She is awesome and I think this past show was one of the best ones in a while.
-I feel like me and Will Forte are best buds since I've seen him in person.
-I finally watched the DVD from Netflix that I've had out since April 8th.
-I still have to watch the rest of Doctor Who and give the DVD set back to Shelly.
-We bought a couple movies for my mom and one of them was StepBrothers. We watched the movie with commentary last night and then we decided to keep it. Sorry Mom.
-I've been trying to buy a curtain rod for the living room for the past month. Why is it so hard to pick one?
-why do I smell beer right now?

part dos

We went camping!

On Friday the 23rd we made our way to Madera Canyon for a quick weekend camping trip. A couple days before a storm rolled in dumping some snow in the mountains. Even though Madera Canyon is lower elevation than the Catalina's it still got some good snow.

We were lucky enough to get to spots across from each other and we set up camp. My parents, aunt, uncle, and grandmother had one campsite while zac and I and my brother and his family had the other campsite. Friday night we dined on quesadillas, green chile with porkchops, and beans. That night was cold. No one slept well. The next morning the senior citizens were ready to go home. Note to self: Don't take an elderly woman camping! While I was somewhat disappointed that the first night didn't go well I wasn't about to get upset. The senior citizens decided to leave the campsite after lunch that day and go back to Marana. Good thing Madera Canyon isn't too far from town. For breakfast we had chorizo with potatoes, eggs and beans. After breakfast we went on a hike from hell because it was all up hill! It was great hike when it ended but oh man I paid for that hike dearly! For lunch we had steaks and pork chops, corn on the cob and some of the hottest jalapenos I've ever had!!!
After lunch the old people were just about ready to head out when my mom brought out a cake! Sunday was my mom's birthday so we celebrated both of our birthdays.

We said goodbye to the oldies. In the meantime my SIL had to go into Green Valley to get some diapers and while she was gone she picked up some breakfast food and made a couple phone calls to some friends to come join us for the night.

We entertained ourselves playing loteria and setting up our campsite better. For dinner Saturday night we made buffalo burgs, regular burgs and hotdogs. We ate like kings. Around 8pm our friends made it and we had more fun talking around the campfire. Poor Saul was waiting for the smores and when he finally got one he fell asleep sitting in his camping chair! Payment for that hike was due and my knees were screaming on fire! oh that arthritis! I think I finally went to bed around 10pm. At some point I heard wood falling on the ground and a drum?

In the morning my brother started getting the breakfast and coffee going. As we all slowly started to wake up I went in search of ibuprofen when my brother asked me if I had that all along and then it occurred to me that I heard something weird when I was waking up. I heard my brother say "yeah that midol and southern comfort really knocked me out". Turns out midol was all that anyone had the night before. After breakfast we played another few rounds of loteria. Our friends took off and then we slowly started breaking down camp. We didn't leave till the last possible minute on Sunday and not before grilling some chicken for lunch.

Even though the weekend didn't quite work out the way I had hoped for, I still had fun.

birthday extravaganza!

My birthday has now been over for a few weeks but I thought I should write down what happened before old age sets in.

Friday morning I woke up to a decorated living room! Balloons and banners decorated the living room and kitchen. Good job Zac! Waiting on the table was a basket that had some assorted goodies like chocolate, cookies, Voss water, and champagne. Zac told me he made the basket at CostPlus. Very cool! I said bye to Zac while I waited for Danielle to make an appearance! I took the day off of work....who wants to work on their birthday? Danielle flew into Phoenix, grabbed her mom's car and drove down to Tucson to spend the weekend with me! We started the weekend festivities by eating at Beyond Bread. As college roommates we lived down the street from a Beyond Bread and ever since it has been a must go to place whenever she is in town. After lunch we went to the mall where she treated me to a pedicure. While she went to get a new watch battery I quickly got a hair cut. We then did a little shopping along the way. By the time we got home Zac was already home so we vegged a bit before going out for dinner. Zac made reservations for us at The Melting Pot. Pretty fancy! While on our way out the door Zac surprised me with another gift! He got me an ipod nano! I'll be sure to keep this one out Daisy's reach! Once at the restaurant we had a lot of fun stuffing ourselves silly while drinking drinks and talking about who knows what....although I do remember "butt sex" being talked about! After dinner we came home where the intention was for everyone including Zac to do a facial but instead we all fell asleep to some dumb movie.

Saturday we made it out for lunch at Choice then we went to the UofA to bring back the good ol memories and for Danielle to buy a shirt. We decided to grill that night so we stopped at the grocery store to buy some foods and I called my brother up to see if they would want to stop by for dinner and cake. Both Zac and Danielle bought me cakes! I can't even tell you how many cakes I've had since then! Later that evening we started up the grill and ended up having a little party with some extra friends coming over as well. Zac and Danielle were the first ones out while they watched cartoons with Saul!

Sunday we had a quick breakfast at The Hungry Fox and then said our goodbyes to Danielle! Even though I didn't have a crazy blow out bash I have to admit this was one damn good birthday! Our day wasn't over yet. We had to go back home and change into our Sunday finest and head over to Benson. My nephew/godson Adrian was having his First Holy Communion. Zac and I went to church and then went to Dave and Brandie's house for some lunch, cake and rockband wii Beatles style. My nephews are obsessed with The Beatles right now. OBSESSED! After that we came home glad that the weekend was coming to an end.

But wait!....Monday I went back to work to my desk completely decorated. My coworkers bought me an awesome garden gnome, Gomez. That week my team also took me and my manager (his birthday was the 17th) out to lunch at Beyond Bread. It just so happens that my favorite sandwich is also my manager's favorite sandwich. Weird. That afternoon we also had cake and ice cream.

While I was celebrating my birthday another coworker (steff) was celebrating her retirement from the company. It was a week long celebration...after all she had been with the company over 20 years. I kept telling her I'd miss her lemon bars and "by default" she brought me some! She meant to take it to another event she forgot them and so by default I got them! That same day another random coworker made me a cheesecake! Holy cow! Not only that but we had pizza day potluck with cake for a company wide retirement party, then we had a death by chocolate day for steff that ended with Shirl's famous chocolate cake. This cake can kill!

The cakes at work did not end either! Last week we had an upside down Hawaiian cake? And then this week we've had cake everyday so far celebrating someone's birthday! Tomorrow is another birthday! Oh god....just say no to cake!

It was still a great birthday and the festivities weren't even over yet! To be continued.....

I want one!

The bean bag....not the girl.

It looks really cool. Better than the bean bags every one had back in college.

si se puede!

I would hope by now those who actually read this piece of crap blog know about Arizona's uproar against SB1070.

One opinion is that as a state we need to go above and beyond what the federal government can help us with when it comes to our borders. As a state we need to make it a crime to be here illegally. We need to make sure all those illegal aliens know who is boss even if it's at the expense of US citizens. This seems like a wonderful idea if you believe in this bullshit.

My opinion is a bit different. On illegal immigration I believe in reform. I believe that businesses need to comply with all laws when hiring people. I don't agree with fraud and so I don't agree when undocumented workers are given fake social security cards and identification cards. I don't want someone to steal my identity. I don't agree with the coyote system of smuggling humans across the border. I don't agree with human smuggling period. I am however fine with undocumented children in our schools. I personally do not mind someone trying to get a better education. And as for our healthcare system. I'm already paying a shitload for insurance I hope someone is able to benefit from it. If someone were to come to me hurt I wouldn't ask them for their papers or insurance card so if someone needs help I would give it to them.

Immigration is not a topic that only concerns the United States. All countries deal with these issues. All countries have laws and regulations. Why is it such a hot topic here? Living in one of the most powerful countries will attract people. People want to go where they hear that you can get a job, where your politics and religion can be accepted. People want the American Dream. We don't hear about Mexico having immigration problems but they have just as many issues with people trying to get into their country, using Mexico as a stepping stone to America.

People say that illegals bring in the drugs and crime. Guess what people....the drugs are for us! Americans! Americans that love illegal drugs! BUT not all illegal immigrants are drug runners coming here to shoot up our cities and kill our kids. Many of these immigrants are people looking for a better life. People sick of dying in their small towns with families to support but no jobs and no money to bring home. The bravest of these families seek out ways to cross the borders. Walking hundreds of miles through the Sonoran desert in a hundred degree heat. These people might pay coyotes hundreds to thousands of dollars to be smuggled across the border only to be beaten, raped, mugged or left for dead if the coyote so desires.

I find it funny that we honor the brave people that "founded" our country. The people that left Europe because of religious persecution. People that left a land in search of hope and dreams to raise a family in a better place. But when people try to do that now we consider these people the lowest of the low, disgusting people that we don't want in our country. People that we will only welcome legally. Coming here legally sometimes takes up to 10 years and can cost a lot of money. If you have the help and support it might be easier and faster but what happens to people that lack education and the support? They figure things out the only way they know how.

Now what is the big deal with SB1070? We aren't causing all this commotion because of illegal immigration. We are furious that this senate bill turned into law by our Governor allows for probable cause which in plain language is racial profiling. This law allows our local police to ask for citizenship (not just identification) when in lawful contact. Some people think that if the police pull you over for speeding they of course have the right to ask you for identification but that isn't what we are fighting against. Lawful contact is so broad that really it can mean anything. As a US Citizen I shouldn't have to carry my birth certificate around to prove that I belong here. Does this mean that if I happen to be standing outside of Home Depot next to the group of day laborers that I will be asked for my papers because I'm brown? What if I don't have my birth certificate on me will I go to jail until the appropriate papers are brought in? It might seem like a stretch but is it really?

Groups like the NeoNazis are already planning Cinco de Mayo as "Report an Illegal Day".

Yeah that's the kind of world I want to live in.

Before anyone says "if you don't like it get out" I say to you...this is America and as an American I have the right to fight for justice. Even if I'm not vocal as some of my family members and friends and don't march in the rallies, I know what I believe in and believe me I'll be voting Jan Brewer out! I'll be voting against John McCain!

I'm proud to see all those that have spoken out against SB1070. It's amazing to see people come together to fight this. Our local police are against this. Our city council is against this.

Arizona is a beautiful state and my home and I intend to stay here!

setting small goals

This week has been a week of getting stuff done! This means doing research on new doctors and calling a bunch of people.

I think I've mentioned before how much I hate calling people! I hate it!

Yesterday or this morning...I can't remember anymore...my coworker told me she thought I was talking to myself when I was on the phone. I rarely talk on the phone. Email is my preferred way to do business. I also hate, hate, hate making personal calls while at my desk. I can hear everyone else when they have personal calls and I eavesdrop....I don't want nosy people listening to my conversations.

So I've been so proud of myself for making phone calls this week. One was to the dentist. Those evil evil people tried to bill me $600. They didn't have my new insurance card. Taken care of!

Today I called Walgreens to get my prescription filled earlier than the autofill date. I was expecting this whole ordeal but it was super easy and fast.

I called my mommykins. She's the easiest to call because I call her once or twice a week. I had to ask her about camping. For my 30th I decided I wanted to go on a family camping trip. The weekend of the 23rd we'll head to Madera Canyon. My parents have been so excited and my mom invited my aunt and uncle along. They had asked what my mom was planning to do for her 60th birthday which is on the 26th. On Sunday, when I called my mom she told me that my aunt would bring my grandmother too and would probably stay in a cabin. I got the impression from that phone call that my mom wanted to stay in cabin now too. I have to admit I was pretty bummed my plans were changed so today I decided to call my mom again and figure out what exactly my parents would be doing that weekend. Turns out my parents are fine with staying in tents but my mom is happy that there are cabins nearby for the other family members.

I also called my brother....ugh...this was the hard one. My brother and I have grown apart over the years and I've been trying to make the effort to call him every once and a while. I had emailed him about a family event and the response from the emails have been somewhat hard to figure out. Being a girl, I over analyze everything and then I feel like I said something wrong and I offended him and now he hates me. So for the past couple weeks I've had this nagging feeling. Today while starting to write that last blog I took my own advice and I called my brother. It wasn't that bad! We talked for a little bit but I hung up the phone feeling a lot better.

Communication is always the key but damn that phone!

let me tell you....

It seems like lately I've been hearing quite a few people talk about life changing plans, ideas, goals and/or dreams. Maybe it's because of Facebook(I always blame FB) that more people are discussing issues that would normally be kept private or that this is just the new way to reach out to people. In one way it's good because I believe everyone should express themselves but it's kind of bad too because everyone becomes a therapist/psychologist. I'm just as guilty as the next person. You tell me about family/friend drama, work gossip or celebrity news and I'll tell you how I feel and what that person needs to do. It's always so crystal clear from the outside. From the outside you take out the emotion and what you are left with are statements. When the statements are put together it's obvious what the answer is to the eventual question (the question that more than likely we haven't been asked).

But then when we look at our own lives and try to figure out what is going on or how to get things back on track and all of a sudden things aren't clear anymore. It's almost like we become blind when it comes to our own lives. We either just don't see it, we make excuses, or we accept it and do nothing about it. If we are honest with ourselves we acknowledge whatever "it" is and we try to do something about it. Everything is so much harder and scarier when we have to do it on our own.

With a big birthday coming up soon I keep thinking about what I'd like to see happen within this next decade. Is it time to start a family? I'm not sure yet. Is it time to go back to school for a master's degree? Maybe.

What I do know is that every once in a while you have to do a self evaluation and figure out where you are at and where you want to be. Whether it be married with kids within the next couple years, buying a house in two weeks, or leaving a bad relationship it's all about what you want and need. So here is a list of what I like to live by and every now and then I have to remind myself about not being afraid.

1. Do what makes you happy.
2. Don't be afraid.
3. Get rid of toxic people.
4. Learn to stand up for yourself.
5. Live your life.

I forgot to add this to my last post.

This is the Kokeshi Massager. A personal massager cleverly disguised as a souvenir doll.

Get yours at Pyramid Collections today!

Pyramid Collection Catalogs

I get random catalogs all the time but the other day I received the Pyramid Collection catalog. It caters to women that like to explore the gothic chic in them. There were a couple cute dresses and jewelry items but what really caught my attention were the shoes. Skulls and roses on boots! How awesome and tacky is that? If I were crazy enough I'd get these!

Pictured above are Lame Leggings. I don't think these should ever be sold. The women that can wear them don't and the women that shouldn't wear them do.

These are the black widow shoes and I'm thinking I should get these for Halloween!

The catalog has a ton of "interesting" items in it and I'm just curious how the buyers plan for these items. How many can they buy per style? My minimums run about 180 per color to about 360 pairs. Is there really enough demand to make these shoes somewhere? I wonder if they sell stuff to places like Hot Topic? I think I want to work for this catalog.

right on sister

I'm on a horror kick right now. Doesn't mean I want to kill you or anything.
-Zac

Thanks.

I'm on the second book by author Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez and I'm not sure why I'm reading it. I remember now. My SIL told me that the first book The Dirty Girls Social Club was a hilarious read similar to Laurie Notaro books. Yeah parts were funny and the fact that it's centered around Hispanic/Latina women kind of makes things a little more interesting but it wasn't a funny book. The book followed a group of Latina women that are friends and have made a pact to meet a few times a year after college. All these girls are successful in jobs but not in love. They care more about their appearance than themselves and one of the characters is practically beaten to death because her husband had to prove how manly he is. The second book isn't much better but I have to finish the book and then the 3rd book because I already bought it. After this book I'm gonna have read something better. Any suggestions?

If you haven't tried the new 3 Musketeers Truffle Crisp Bars you are missing out. They are delish! Shelly got me hooked on them.

While perusing pictures on facebook one girl had posted pics of her latest adventures and in some of the pics the girls are so drunk they look horrible. I find it quite amusing because I'm sure when taking that pic they thought they were so hot.

I need to find a doctor soon.

Pulling weeds sucks. While in Vegas the weeds grew like weeds and our house was an embarrassment to embarrassing houses.

Our orange and lemon trees are blowing up with little flowers. It smells nice but it's so overpowering and my allergies are going nuts.

I find it funny that as soon as Zac puts on a movie and relaxes, which means not on his computer he falls asleep instantly. He put on Halloween and now he's asleep.

I'm gonna go read my lame book.

Vegas (and overall trip) deconstructed

Highlights include:

The weirdest Sonic experience ever. Bill isn't one for going out to fast food so when it was time to pick a place to eat we tried to think of a place that Bill might like. After hunger and starvation started to set in we finally decided on Sonic. Conversation turned into Bill asking "why can't I just get what I want?" and the meal ended with us tipping the car/table hop a few dollars just to prove a point. This was in Casa Grande....we weren't even in Phoenix yet.

In Phoenix we made it to the Rhythm Room and found out as we were getting out of the car that Bill wasn't going in with us. He was fine though, he had his computer, the keys to the car and nearby McDonalds.

The concert had some of the nerdiest douchebags ever. The stupid people that think they are so cool because they can shout something out to the band and have lame conversation were in attendance that night. One guy was such a douche that he thought it was appropriate to set his drink next to the MacBook that was being used by the soundcrew. Dude, you paid cashmoney to get into this concert why would you want to to try to possibly ruin the concert by spilling your cheap ass beer on the bands equipment just so you can text on your phone.

To keep Zac awake I popped in a Mars Volta cd and that woke us all up! Zac sung along to all the songs. He knows all the words and all instrumental parts as well. There was also a lot of quoting of movies and Terminator references.

State checkpoint was fun. Bill was sure that having a bottle of Diet Pepsi was the only reason why we were let through with no problems. That was a joke throughout the trip.

Viva Las Vegas! The lights and awesomeness that is Vegas is not lost in the wee hours of the morning. The drunks were winding down, the cleaning crews were out, and the strip was at the quietest you'll ever find it. We walked a bajillion miles to the hotel room and then another bajillion miles to NYNY for our other room. We slept a few hours but for me it wasn't enough.

Wednesday we wore our finest greenery and got ready for the insanity of St. Patrick's Day! While waiting for the MGM lions to strut their stuff at 11am two guys were walking around wearing green feather boas, oversized sunglasses, green hats, beads and giant cans of Coors.


By 5pm I was Mrs. Grouchy Pants! I needed a nap and thankfully I was left alone long enough to get some much needed sleep even if it was only an hour or so. I woke up to Zac calling me asking if I wanted to join them for dinner at Margaritaville. Somewhat rested I joined them for dinner.

Margaritaville has good food and yummy drinks. We all had some alkyhol and some of us had more than others. Bill ordered the License to Chill and it was hilariously awesome how he ordered it. Zac's second drink was the Perfect Margarita. The Perfect Margarita may have just tipped Zac over the edge. But it wasn't enough to stop him from buying an Eiffel Tower drink. He kept telling us how he couldn't feel his body and how his feet didn't hurt him while the rest of us were ready to crawl back to our rooms.

Thursday highlights include chilling in the hotel room while ordering room service and watching LOST on the laptop. We went to the Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay. That night we checked out of our 3rd hotel room at the Stratosphere. We never stayed in the hotel but the guys were determined that we needed to mess the room up to make it look lived in. Zac and Bill were really getting into it and as we were done messing the room up Zac had to make coffee and Bill wanted to knock down a lamp. The Stratosphere gave us a free suite and $50 in free play. Not bad. After checking out of the hotel we made our way to the Rio to check out the Show in the Sky. It was fun trying to collect beads and it was fun for the guys to see the girls shake their bon bon. After dropping Elyse off at the MGM the rest of us continued on to NYNY for a little gambling. I lost the guys and sat at a slot machine for an hour turning my $15 into $75. I finally made myself leave and go to bed. Turns out as soon as I leave Zac's side the women in Vegas can't control themselves. Zac told me how woman were stealing his beads and wanted their picture taken with him. Sluts.

Friday we started our journey home. We had Diet Dr. Pepper this time but we were let back into Arizona. On the way home we stopped at the nastiest bathroom in the whole wide world. And finally around 9:30pm we were back home with our DaisyGirl.

Other random things-Zac kept singing that odee-oten-day song in the elevator.

Zac makes coffee in his hand. It's the fast way.

Subway sells a $5 footlong for $8.

The Bellagio buffet is yummy except the desserts weren't that great.

I found it quite funny the next morning when Zac was hungover.

it's the spring to the break

This year we found ourselves planning another fun filled and busy Spring Break. Even though I technically don't get a Spring Break I do have PTO that I can use whenever I want. This time around, Zac's sister wanted to come out and spend a nice relaxing week in warm AZ! Boy was she in for a huge SURPRISE! A month ago or so, Zac came up with the idea that we should go to Vegas while she was here. He knew she had never been and it would be a fun surprise for her.

Saturday we picked her up at the airport and headed over to eat some breakfast. While at breakfast we finally told her the big news. No one fainted but she was pretty excited! The rest of the day was spent taking naps, watching the sunset over at Gates Pass and eating dinner at Red Robin.

Sunday we spent most of the morning and afternoon at the UofA. We went to the dissolution ceremony for the mandala and then out to the UA Mall area for the Tucson Festival of Books. We had lunch at Guero Canelo and went grocery shopping.

Monday while I worked Zac and Elyse headed to the hills. They spent the day at Sabino Canyon hiking through icy water and on Mt. Lemmon trudging through snow. That night Elyse made a delicious dinner for us.

Tuesday while I worked Zac prepared for the trip. Once the rental car was packed and ready to go they picked up Bill and then came for me at work. Woo hoo! We were on our way! We stopped for early dindin and then we made it to the Rhythm Room early enough to stand in line waiting for the doors to open like the true fans we are. Even with our anticipation of going to Las Vegas, once Matthew Good went on stage we were mesmerized. The show was awesome and the time just flew by when he was on stage. While the giants were standing towards the back of the tiny club I made my way to the front and had an excellent view of the set list, the awesome guitarist and of course Matthew Good. On any other night we would have loved to rock on all night but that night we were itching to get going. By 11:30ish we were on the road.

Shortly before 4am we rolled into Vegas. The strip was dead but there were still quite a few hard core partiers gambling or crawling to their hotel rooms. And the girls were half naked with their stilletto heels hanging from their hands. We checked into our rooms at MGM Grand and New York New York and slept as best we could for a few hours.

My computer is stupid so I don't have any pictures readily available for blogging purposes. Be patient...

i don't think it's supposed to make that clunk clunk noise!

A couple weekends ago my big update was that we bought a rug/carpet thing for the living room. Last Wednesday, the 4th day we owned that damn rug little miss daisy left us a giant poop on it. NICE! She left it some time during the night so that I could wake up to it. She is so considerate.

As we left the house that morning the car started making a clunkety clunk noise. Let's just say Wednesday sucked! The night before Zac and I had talked about our finances and we must have just jinxed ourselves! While the car was in the shop we still had to go to work and school....stupid work and school.

This past weekend was spent fixing stuff. Zac worked a bit on Mr. Y and I made a half assed attempt to get rid of the weeds. The most exciting part of this weekend was buying a new toilet seat to replace the ancient wooden toilet seat our hideous bathroom came with.

We just need to get through this week and we'll have our first house guest of the year. Zac's sister will be staying with us for the week and we have a ton of stuff planned!

weekend update

big news first....we bought a rug at costco! yay!

we also bought tons of food.

i finally changed my last name at the bank and we added each other to our bank accounts. i still have to change all my other accounts with my new last name.

went to starbuck's twice!

went to the uofa to check out what zac's been working on. the mandala creation is pretty interesting and i'm glad zac shared that with me! if you haven't seen zac's link on facebook he's been helping with the tech stuff, he's not the guy creating the mandala.

and we are having another rainy weekend!

Portland is for lovers

Our journey....

Friday (2.12.10)

Tucson International Airport-Nice and quiet in the morning but Zac didn't like his coffee and muffin and the bastards burned my bagel!

Salt Lake City International Airport-Sucks big time! It felt so crowded there. And I could tell all the Mormon's were judging me. We had a gate change about half an hour before our flight boarded and when we finally got to the right gate this guy walked right in front of me. This guy was once Danielle's coworker who eventually became my friend too. He travels a lot and was going home to Portland. We were on the same flight and we exchanged numbers to hang out later that weekend.

PDX airport-Such a calm airport

The Nines-This place is a bitch to find but well worth it! It was so fancy we didn't know what to do with ourselves. Immediately I felt underdressed but I got over it because you know what....I'm staying at the hotel too! Once inside your hotel room you forget about the crazy city surrounding you.

Rite Aid- Great for incidentals and looking at bums.

Bartini-Original plan was to eat at Urban Fondue but apparently you need to make reservations for every damn meal in this city especially when it's Valentine's weekend! When Tina and Ross met up with us I told them we couldn't get into Urban Fondue and so we went next door to Bartini! They share kitchens but not the same decor. We had two rounds of martinis and we all shared. We had a good time over martinis, cheese fondue and hummus! Just what we needed after a long day of traveling!

Tiger Bar-Very cool rock bar. It reminded me of a new-ish dive bar. The decor was dive bar-ish but not disgusting to the point where you are afraid to touch anything. We got there in time for Strip Bingo. I saw some man chest and man ass. I took a picture of man ass. We ordered ourselves some Stella Artois and Tina and Ross shared a plate of sweet potato fries with us. Yum!

Saturday (2.13.10)

Voodoo Doughnuts-This voodoo was tiny and the girl that helped us acted like a snot. Like we were wasting her time of picking donuts when that is her job! Zac didn't have the balls to order the cock and balls donut in front of his mom. I had the capn crunch with crunk berries donut. It was delish! Later on Sunday night we saw a huge line of people just waiting to get donuts.

Starbucks-Of all places to get coffee we went to Starbucks. It's OK though, I had a gift card.

Mariott Hotel-This is where Bonnie and Phil stayed. Their hotel not as cool as ours. We ate donuts and drank coffee in their room.

Powell's Books- Awesome and amazing. One of the rooms is supposedly haunted. The place is huge and I found the next two books in the Sookie saga.

Pambiche-"What does Pambiche mean?" Phil-"Cubans couldn't say Palm Beach". Me (in my head)-racist! Waitress when we asked her-"Cubans couldn't say Palm Beach so they called it Pambiche."

The restaurant was this brightly colored tiny little thing. We managed to snag a table inside and ordered te helado and a pina drink and we also ordered the sanwich cubano and something else that I can't remember right now. We were lucky to come on their anniversary weekend so we also got free dessert! I'll have to give Cuban food another try...we'll just have to go to Palm Beach or Cuba to get the real deal.

Multnomah Falls-Waterfalls galore! We stopped at a visitors center that was super windy and then we visited the falls. Bridal Veil kicked our ass because it was a seemingly harmless hike but the way back up was a beast! Especially after you've eaten Cuban food. I think I was just racist there. Whatever...

Macy's-the first 5 or 6 floors of our hotel was a freakin Macy's! For some "me" time I browsed and shopped. When I was finished I walked back outside to the sidewalk turned left walked 10 steps and went back into the reception area to our hotel.

Doug Fir Lounge-Concert venue, bar, and restaurant. Similar concept toHotel Congress. Was once a Denny's and a Howard Johnson but is now way cool, way hipster, and has good food but it took forever to get a table! The band area was awesome! And the beasties were amazing. I think I'd leave Zac for one of those guys. All they'd have to do is talk a lot and change the lyrics from hooting and howling to bluetooth and howling.

Sunday (2.14.10)

Portland Coffee Company or Roasters-I don't remember the name anymore. We met up with my friend Andy and his girlfriend and caught up over coffee. I ordered a Mexican Mocha and when I told Andy what I got he said "You didn't? Did you?" I said "Yeah I want to know if they are being racist". It was pretty good and it didn't taste like Mexicans at all.

Pioneer Square-We took a group picture by umbrella man. The square is an area that holds outdoor concerts and movies and just a big gathering place for events.

Andina-I think this was the best find! A facebook friend suggested this restaurant and I think it popped up on a few searches of places to eat while in PDX. While texting with Alison on places to meet for lunch I told her that Zac and I still wanted to eat at Old Town Pizza and we heard that Andina's was good. Alison looked it up and they decided Andina's would be the better choice! Alison's fiance and mom joined us and great times were had! Zac and I arrived early and so we were seated which gave us a chance to look over the menu. I ordered the Inca Cola and Zac ordered the mojito and the sacsayhuaman. We shared tapas of conchas a la parilla and chicharron de langostinos. For an entree we shared the lomo saltado. Everything was delicious!

Chinese Gardens-From Andina's we walked to the Chinese Gardens. While walking we saw a huge SUV back into a spot hitting the car behind it. The SUV pulled out and drove away. We turned the corner only to see the SUV try to park again and it looked like it was going to take out the lamp pole. We ran into Bonnie and Phil at the gardens. The gardens were packed because Sunday was Chinese New Year. We were given red envelopes with coins in them for good luck and we stayed to watch the dragon show. Not much to the gardens...I would only go again if it were free. I left my lucky envelope to the cleaning ladies at our hotel....I left them a nice tip.

Old Town Pizza-It's supposed to be haunted yo! Zac and I shared a small pepperoni and green pepper pizza. Bonnie and Phil had the Dragon Lady pizza. After eating we looked around and went to where the old elevator shaft used to be and the people eating there showed us where Nina's name was scratched into the brick. I didn't have a ghostly experience but it was still cool.

Tube- Tina and Ross had told us about Tube in their many recommendations of bars. We were intrigued when they told us the bar was in an old subway car. The place was pretty cool and the reviews promised us hipsters and so as we were sitting at the bar chatting up the bartender and barfly I made the mistake of asking them if they were hipsters. Apparently, hipsters don't like to be called hipsters! I found out that Hamm's is the equivalent of PBR and it was good like PBR but then I had to have a Tecate!

Powell's Books-Nothing like going to a bookstore when you are drunk to use their bathroom. Zac is still perplexed that there was a condom machine in the man's bathroom. Perhaps Powell's is a mecca for gay bathroom sex? You gotta be safe right?

Jake's-Andy told us his brother worked at this place and that happy hours are amazing here. So after a night of hitting up happy hours we decided to give Jake's a try. We were seated at the back bar which so happened to NOT have happy hour! Instead we shared a plate of lobster tail, steak, and mashed potatoes.

Monday (2.15.10)

Urban Farmer-This restaurant was located in our hotel lobby. We kept spying on the people eating while in our room and even analyzed a couple eating dinner on Valentine's night. We had breakfast and I had eggs benedict while Zac had a regular egg, taters, ham and toast meal. The coffee was strong, the portions were huge and the iced tea was great!

Willamette River-a nice park ran along the river and you could see the bridges up close. While on our way to cross the bridge we were fortunate enough to see the bridges go up to let a barge go through.

Fred Meyer's-clean bathrooms

Bagdad Theater-awesome! Eat pizza and drink beer while watching a movie!

My Thai Bistro on Hawthorne Blvd. We shared crab pillows, spring wraps with peanut sauce, chicken pad thai and green curry with chicken. I also ordered a Thai iced tea and everything was delicious.

Mount Tabor has lovely views of the city and we were able to see Mount Hood in the distance. The park was just awesome.

PDX airport-nice, calm and relaxing.

Gustav's in PDX airport for swiss cheese fondue with bier sausage and cubed bread and rosemary garlic cheese bread.

Starbuck's for a caramel frappucino and coffee crumb cake in LAX.

Tucson Airport-finally home again!