Merry Christmas!

whether it be white, green or brown...have a very merry Christmas!

(mine's white...and 30 degrees today...yay!)

pick-up line

if you were crime, i'd take a bite out of ya.
*growl*

twins

it seems everyone in california has a twin in minnesota. i continually see people " have to figure out if i actually know them - where am i " where are they? california or minnesota? it makes me giggle.

i haven't embarassed myself, yet.

minnesota

my 10 minute commute this morning was great...except for the negative four fahrenheit temperature. oy. how did i do this for so many years?

another difference - i got here at 8:10. in california, that's a front row parking spot. here, i'm at the end of the row. the cold must wake us up early, or something.

how fun to be back!

leaving

my final sucked " i did pretty poorly on it. i'm thankful for the A i got on my midterm...should pull me through.

and now my bags are loaded on the plane " i'm waiting in the airport for the plane to take me to supersnowy minneapolis. ya-hoo for the holidays!

studying

now i'm going back to studying. and packing. and not blogging.

presents

i get more excited about little presents than the big, huge, expensive ones. don't get me wrong...i love getting big stuff...but i really love getting little things. it's probably part of my "the little things are what count" philosophy. plus, it means less money was spent on me (there are better causes to put money towards than me).

roommate becki started the four days of christmas yesterday, and has left me little trinkets in the morning. it's been very exciting.

i truly am just as happy receiving a $5 starbucks card as a new ipod. not that i'm getting a new ipod. i'm just sayin'.

in awe

once again, i am completely in awe of the incredible people that have contributed to my life. perhaps this studying has sent my mind over the edge, but i'm just so thankful for each " every person, and for all that i have in life. i am fortunate. thank you for being who you are! my heart feels ready to explode with all the love i have for you.

christmas is just a great time to reflect. (and studying causes my mind to wander...no doubt about it)

firetruck!

an amazing thing just happened, so i must blog:
a firetruck drove right past my front door. 'twas beautiful.

(i'm at home studying for my final today...oy)

merry christmas & happy new year!

i know it's early, but i'm leaving town in two days, and think i'm gonna take a break from blogging...unless something amazing strikes me...which is possible. 'tis the season.

my schedule...track me down, if you can:
wed, dec 14 - fly to mpls
thurs, dec 15 - drive to tremont, il for roommate anne's wedding
sun, dec 18 - drive to mpls, stoppin' in cedar rapids
mon - thurs, dec 19 - 22 - work in roseville " see peeps
fri, dec 23 - ski at Wild Mountain, head north to ely
sat - thurs, dec 24 - 29 - ely!!!
thurs, dec 29 - sun, jan 1 - giants ridge in biwabik
sun, jan 1 - drive to mpls to fly out at 10pm

fun with people

i dyed my hair again last night. brunette. yeah, it's dark. for all those lovers of blondes, i apologize. for all those who want me to be blonde, i apologize. i understand i have a 'blonde' personality, and it 'just suits me,' but it ain't natural. and i'm too low maintenance to continually fix my roots. though in about 3 weeks it'll be washed out " blonde-ish again, which is where i find solace.

so it's kinda fun to see the reactions of people. i put it up in a pony today so it wouldn't be AS obvious, but it's still dang obvious. i fully expected everyone to hate it, so i've been pleasantly surprised by those who dig it. it's fun.

in general, chicks dig it, guys hate it. again, we find that guys dig blondes. makes me giggle.

i'm curious to see if my personality changes. i tend to think it does...

(a special apology goes out to lercher)

another pet peeve

u sux

i hate it when someone types that " thinks it says, "you suck!" 'cause it doesn't. it's "sucks." and that's just not right.

venting session over.

npr

i love it when i pull up in the parking lot " someone is sitting in their car waiting for the story to end on npr.

icee

i heart the blue icee.
target has them. yum.

dentist

i HATE the dentist. always have, and always will.
i realized this morning my main issue is the scraping sound. scraping has always given me the chills, and having it come from my own mouth is the WORST. and it hurts. and there's blood. and i tense up " squeeze my hands together so they " my forearms are sore for the rest of the day. it's just a terrible experience.

but i have no cavities.

dork

today i'm lookin' pretty professional. i'm wearing a black turtleneck sweater, a long, gray skirt...and then i've got Goofy Christmas socks. ridiculous.

some could think it's cool...others would say i'm a complete dork. i'll have to show our vp...she once gave me the up-down for wearing flipflops at work.

windshield

i had to scrape my windshield this morning. i'm the only one on my block, and probably my whole town, with a scraper, but it came in handy today.

i think it was 37 degrees.

a moment

last night i had a moment of "holy crap, i'm an adult." i was in the kitchen and the fact that i live in a cute, little house i call home " am fully responsible for myself hit me. i'm a grown-up. kinda funny.

i have no explanation for why this hit me, and steve looked at me like i was an idiot when i told him...but i think it's cool.

oh, christmas tree

we put up a christmas tree this weekend! i'm only here for another week " a half, but, man, it's awesome to have a tree.
i heart christmas.

cookies

i am wiped out after an evening of baking cookies. wild, eh? we thought it'd be so easy, and we'd just whip out a few dozen cookies. unfortunately, we only got halfway through " were too exhausted to finish it off. oh, well...we still have tons of cookies to give away for christmas.

grammar

it makes me sad whenever i make a spelling or grammar mistake. especially when they're pointed out to me (thanks, john). i know the difference between "your" and "you're," i promise. and "brake" and "break" has apparently become difficult for me.

i think i get sad 'cause i once dumped a guy after receiving a few emails from him. suddenly, i'm super-hypocrite.

marital bliss

my college roommie, rivers, got engaged over the weekend. superduper exciting, as she's found the perfect man!

and then muffin became my hero -
muffin: so chuck and i got married in vegas
kristie44: are you serious?
muffin: i'm serious
muffin: chuck surprised me
kristie44: YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
kristie44: i'm so superduper excited
muffin: thanks! i'm excited too.

awesome thanksgiving weekend

this is the gate to Neverland Ranch, home of weird michael jackson.

i was in santa maria, which is central coast california, and it was beautiful. spent a day eating yummy Thanksgiving food with steve's supercool family, a day in solvang, and a day at the beach. so super cool.

Happy Thanksgiving!

enjoy your long weekend

habits

i want to know what makes a habit hard or easy to break or pick up. i mean, i started using my parking brake every time i park my car, and it only took a couple times to become habit. it seems like other habits were really hard to make habit.

of course, i can't think of any right now.

vikings season

i find a vikings season to be complete " satisfactory any year they beat the packers twice.

the perfect morning

1. i slowly woke up " rolled out of bed
2. i popped my Charlie Brown Christmas cd into my car
3. i drove to Club One for a good, solid workout
4. i strolled over to Starbucks for a morning treat
5. i have only two days left to work this week

life is good for me

thanksgiving week

i love the holidays. i love that i get to decorate for christmas soon, and i love that i get to eat " eat " eat for a month straight. and i get to see friends " family. give some gifts...get some gifts. yay!

i was in israel for thanksgiving in '98, and every hour i made everyone name one thing they were thankful for. it was awesome. we just have so much. so there's an idea for you " your long road trips this next weekend...you can entertain yourselves by listing things you're thankful for.

(i've got a 3 1/2 hour road trip i'm preparing for...ideas are welcome...my attention span is not very long these days)

november 18, 2005

i played sand volleyball over the lunch hour outside 'cause it's 70 degrees " sunny. life is good for me.

running

i love to run. i need to remember that when i'm super crankily getting out of bed in the morning to go...

not only is it good for me physically, it's a total refresher for my mind. i have all these super great, deep thoughts...chat with God a bit...process life as it is...enjoy my cute, little neighborhood " the view of the hills far away...

it's just good for me. i need to do it more.
(yes, i'm feeling much better today than yesterday)

cranky

for about two weeks i've gotten too much sleep, have been very lazy in the workout area of life, and have eaten whatever the heck i wanted. i'm pretty sure this all contributes to my crankiness today. i'm lethargic, my tummy hurts " i'm snapping at everyone.

man, am i backwards. i'd think most people want more sleep, to be lazy " to eat whatever they want.

it doesn't help that i have to fork out the deductible to fix my car " the other lady's. oh, well.

back in the shop

Pitter is in the shop for the second time in her life. and they gave me a crappy cavalier to drive while she's there...nothing electronic or automatic but the transmission. and it drives like a box of aluminum. though Pitter may be intimidated right now 'cause she's surrounded by Lexus' " Porsche's, she's going to feel like a Beamer to me. you see, she's at the foofoo autobody shop. i was impressed.

OOH! and an extra bonus to this deal is that the dent in my bumper from when my guy backed into me will be taken care of. they think it happened last thursday. hee. ALMOST makes the accident worth it.

being grown-up

this morning i had to call PG&E to come check a gas leak in my oven. i then had to sit at home " wait for him to show up. a half-hour later, my car insurance company called me to chat about a claim. yes, i got in another accident, and yes, it was my fault. aside from that, i was grown-up " knew exactly how to handle the call. Pitter will be fixed by this weekend.

i was just talking to lercher about being grown up when it's necessary, and he said, "almost as important as buying a house was the fact that I beat a video game this weekend."

this is brilliant. we have moments of adultliness (word stolen from lercher)...but the kid in us still shines through.

people

today i realized my life is unbelievably awesome, and it's because of the people in it. i mean, i've got a good job, great car, a cute house (i rent)...but what makes my life so good is the people involved.

i had a great weekend hangin' with supercool friends " the guy i spend oodles of time with. included in that was a couple hours with roommate ashley, who's back in the hospital because MS is takin' over her body for a bit again. her attitude " Faith blow me away...the nurses all want to check on her because she's so happy all the time. i walked out of her hospital room thinking about how blessed i am to know her...which led to thinking about all the amazing people i know.

if you're reading this blog, there's a great chance you're one of those amazing people. warm fuzzies to you.

wireless tivo

this is fantastic. i set up wireless internet in my house...and then got my tivo to work with it. all by myself. i am a technical genius.

i admit, i made a few calls " chatted with a few people to get through the process, but in the end, it was all me. everything i did worked...i just needed patience for it to start. calling people gave the stuff time to work itself out.

i'm even more proud because last week SBC made me crabby with their processes, so i cancelled my account with them " found a better deal with comcast internet. now that everything is resolved, i'm quite pleased.

jo team revisited

so the team i picked...that i was so excited about...has changed dramatically. 5 of the 12 girls i wanted backed out on me. i don't know what they're thinking...i'm the coolest coach around " we win. ok, maybe not...but i like to think so.

it's going to be an interesting year. a fun challenge. we're gonna have heart " have a great time...that's for sure.

one of my favorites from last year made the team...and i actually begged her to play...but she got offered a spot on a better team, so she's gonna play for them. she's so sweet she called me tonight " started with, "this is going to be really hard for me to say..."

my heart is a little broken. i was spoiled last year.

stupid people strike again

my email to the employees:
Sent: Wednesday, October 19, 2005 2:09 PM
Subject: Subsidized Flu Shots

Subsidized FLU SHOTS!
Don't let the flu keep you from spending time with family and friends.
Eligible Employees: U.S Full-time employees
Not Eligible: Contractors/Temps and Dependents
Flu shots will be given on a first come first serve basis

NUMBER OF FLU SHOTS AVAILABLE: 204
DATE: 11/16/2005
TIME: 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM
PLACE: Conference Room

Who should get a flu shot and what should you know about the flu shot season?

For more information on Flu Shots please go to HR Online and view the Wellness section.

#1 Question Asked by Stupid People in response:
Kristie,
Are spouses eligible for flu shots?
Thanks,
[I deleted his name}
Director, Mid-Market " Enterprise Marketing Programs

this cracks me up…i didn’t know i was so passionate about this

Your Blogging Type is Artistic and Passionate

You see your blog as the ultimate personal expression - and work hard to make it great. One moment you may be working on a new dramatic design for your blog... And the next, you're passionately writing about your pet causes. Your blog is very important - and you're careful about who you share it with.

What's Your Blogging Personality?

new JO team!

yesterday i had tryouts for this year's 14's team that i shall coach. i am superduper excited 'cause they're so dang cute! and talented. though i haven't gotten everyone to commit that i want, i'm sure we'll have a solid year " a ton of fun.

of course, i put on a great show of how much fun i am as a coach...i think some cheerleader moves came out of me that i didn't know i could do. who wouldn't want to play for me, after seeing that???

i admit, it was stressful at times, too. i hate telling girls they didn't make it. and i hate the politics involved with parents/club directors/other coaches. grrr.

Go Eclipse 14black!

fan of the opposition

i got to go to a Wild/Sharks game tonight in San Jose. it was super exciting, and fun to be at a hockey game, but it still remains hard to be a fan of the opposing team. you see, whenever the fun music or cheers start, i feel like i shouldn't participate. i love to scream " yell " make a fool of myself like we did at Twins games...but not for a team i'm not cheering for. and it's tough when i'm the only one clapping for a good play.

of course, a part of me enjoys being different, stickin' out in a crowd, cheerin' for the "other" team.

career personality test

Career Inventory Test Results Extroversion |||||||||||||||||||||||| 80% Emotional Stability |||||||||||||||||||||||| 76% Orderliness ||||||||| 26% Altruism |||||||||||||||||||||||||||| 90% Inquisitiveness |||||||||||||||||| 60% You are an Inspirer, possible professions include - conference planner, speech pathologist, HR development trainer, ombudsman, clergy, journalist, newscaster, career counselor, housing director, character actor, marketing consultant, musician/composer, artist, information-graphics designer, human resource manager, merchandise planner, advertising account manager, dietitian/nutritionist, speech pathologist, massage therapist, editor/art director.

Take Free Career Test
personality tests by similarminds.com

acknowledgement

it drives me absolutely crazy when someone can walk right by me " not acknowledge my existence. i understand there are safety concerns, and you're not supposed to look someone in the eye...but, sheesh! if i'm in the hall at work and pass by someone, i'm going to acknowledge them...especially if they're alone. and i force them to acknowledge me. we're all just people. we deserve a little acknowledgement.

i wonder if this is my northern minnesota upbringing - we say hi to everyone we see...even if we don't know them. it was an adjustment when i moved to minneapolis to not say hi to everyone i passed while running or walking on the street. but i've since decided i'm just going to do so. ain't no harm in offerin' a smile " friendly greeting.

i could go on " on on this topic, but am going to stop here. except for this - i will one day be that super cool old person that walks the trail " says "good morning" in the most cheerful voice possible. that dude made my day while running lake harriet.

gas

i did a happy dance when i saw gas is only $2.69. my tank is happily full for a few dollars less. yay!

bobbing for apples

fun event. note the costume change...suddenly, i was a '70's chick.
i could not get a dang apple to stick in my teeth. just about everyone else could, though...ah, well. 'twas fun tryin'.

best costume

saturday night’s party

here's the band we threw together saturday...we rocked!

halloween day - company party

we found out yesterday that my company goes crazy with halloween. you see, we'd entered the costume competition as a rock band 'cause we thought it'd be fun " entertaining. and low key. little did we know, departments go all out for this event. there was a beauty pageant, gilligan's island, and other little skits " fun events. we scrambled, and ended up making fools of ourselves headbanging to AC/DC on stage in front of 200 peeps. niiiiiice.

i LOVE the time change

this morning's 7:00 call wasn't nearly as bad as it has been in the past.

it took me a while to figure out what made it so easy to get up in the 5's this morning...but then i realized it was 'cause my brain felt like it was in the 6's. getting up in the 5's just ain't right, so i'm glad my body got a little break.

otherwise, yesterday just took FOREVER to get through. which, actually, was quite convenient as our Halloween party was a BLAST on saturday night.

pumpkin carving

i admit i wasn't the artist, but i took part. and i baked the seeds. not bad, eh?
Happy almost Halloween!

i have arrived…again

while out on my run this morning, i ran by someone i knew. you know you're a local when you run into someone you know while out " about.

she was biking while her husband ran. i gave her a hard time for it.

precedent

i may have set my scholarly precedent a bit too high, but i got an A on my first midterm! ya-hoo!
i had to hold back my little dance when i pulled my test out of the pile " saw a big fat A written on it. 1 of 6 out of 31 in the class to get an A.
it's good to be smart. (my head may explode soon)
unfortunately, this does mean the expectations of myself are fairly high now. if i woulda just got a B, there woulda been less pressure for the next 3-4 years.

Vikes/Pack

though the vikes let me down with their stupidity on a boat a couple weeks ago, they came through for me while i was sitting between two packers' fans today. i won't rub it in too much...just enough to make it sting a little.

giving up a 17-0 lead is tough, though, eh?
at least the brats were quality...the day wasn't a total loss for some packers' fans.

red couch!

about a year ago i went couch shopping with a friend and began to dream of furnishing a den or living room with a red couch. dreams can come true!

while cruising the street with steve yesterday, we passed a church bazaar and i noticed a red couch in the middle of the parking lot. steve, being the very patient man he is, listened to my waffling about whether we should go look at it " turned around to go look...then he listened to my waffling about whether i should take it, or not...and ended up loading it in his durango to bring home for me. what a guy. you see, when we walked up to it, the nice man said, "want the couch? it's free. either you or goodwill gets it." how can i pass that up?!? it was pretty dirty, and the base is broken, but the covers came off for the washing machine " the base was repairable. at least, with handy people around, it was repairable. i'm so happy when i walk into our living room " see my red couch. life is good for me.

typing test

This is one of my new fun things to do when really, really bored.

104 wpm was my first result.

bittersweet

sweet - i hit a home run last night in softball, and a 3b that shoulda been. i caught a couple flies while out in left field.
bitter - i let a few go by me when i was at 3b, and a couple went over my head in left field.
sweet - i scored the winning run, too...with a slide at home. we won by 1 in the bottom of the 7th. exciting game.

bitter - just before i left my house for softball, i got a call from roommate ashley. ashley has MS, and hasn't lived with us for about 6 months. her MS kicked in a while back and because she can't move so well, she's been staying at her dad's in san jose. it's been very frustrating " trying for all of us, as we want her back in our house and she wants to be home. but her Faith is amazing, and she's kept a positive attitude through almost the whole thing. however, yesterday afternoon her counselor had a chat with her. ashley was hoping to make the modifications to our house so she could live there...but her counselor said it probably wasn't a great idea. on her good days, she'd be totally fine. but on her bad days, it'd be a struggle. she needs to be somewhere that can accomodate all days. ugh. tough news to take.

so she called our landlord and explained the situation. and gave her notice.

then she called me. she was tough, and didn't crack until i said, "are you ok?" of course, i had tears in my eyes, too. she's struggling...moving home was her dream " what she held on to for hope. she gave that up. of course, time will heal this, and she'll find hope, but it sucks for now.

as we hung up, she said, "hit a home run!" i said, "just for you, babe."

sweet - look what i did. i call that God-action. i mean, i don't normally hit like that. and, in that, i find hope for Ashley. God's got this wicked cool plan laid out for her, and she's on her way to finding it.

here ends my preaching for today.

more thoughts after a run…

i noticed on my run this morning that there are very, very few two-story houses. i bet the reason is earthquakes, but i'm just not sure. maybe it just gets too hot upstairs if you have more than one floor.

i do live in a very cool neighborhood with a variety of super old houses " some new. 'tis fun.

powerball

the powerball made the news in CA, and we can't even buy tickets here. however, they said ticket sales are extremely high on our borders with...sheesh, i'm not sure which states border me. arizona? nevada? i'll go with that for now " check it after posting.

anyway, i'm thankful for my peeps in MN who include me on the ticket buying. my fingers are crossed.

celebrity status

i'm gonna be a celebrity!
we went for indian buffet today, and Bay Area Backroads came in to take some pictures for a feature they're doing on the indian community in the Bay Area. i can't wait to start signing autographs!!!

wardrobe

last year at this time i was still wearing flipflops " summer dresses 'cause it's 75 " sunny. i was still minnesotan.
this year i've busted out the sweaters " cords 'cause it's 75 " sunny. but i still ain't californian.
i'm excited to wear my sweaters for more than two months this year...as a minnesotan, i had a fair share.

lingo

no one will ever guess where i'm from based on my lingo. i say "wicked," "ya'll," "pop," "righteous," etc. ok, maybe not "righteous," but i'll work on incorporating it in my vocab.

anyway, i just went to get a pop " said, "i'm going to get a coke." i came back with a diet pepsi.

rewarding myself

i tend to reward myself for doing things i should be doing, but that take a little extra effort. generally, it's things that make me feel like a responsible adult. paying my bills, cleaning my house, doing my job well...and now, studying. today i have eaten whatever i wanted " had two starbucks because i crammed all day. you see, i have a midterm tomorrow. oy.

normal things just seem more exciting if you reward yourself. as roommate anne just said, "it's great to hear you're doing these grown-up things, yet still getting really excited about them in your kristie-way." yay for the little things in life, i say.

feet

isn't it kinda interesting that feet rarely are actually washed while taking a shower? i understand that all the water runs down " around them, anyway, but feet generally get pretty stinky throughout the day. why wouldn't we put a little soap on them?

i thought maybe i was just never taught to wash my feet in the shower, but asked a couple people " they don't do it, either.

thought for the weekend.

fun from another blog

5 things I plan to do before I die:
1. backpack Europe for a couple weeks
2. coach an experienced volleyball team – HS varsity…maybe college
3. live on the East Coast for a couple years, then decide where it’s best to live
4. run at least a half-marathon, maybe a full
5. let my hair grow out to its natural color

5 things I can do:
1. talk to just about anybody
2. play volleyball
3. run at least 6 miles
4. laugh at myself
5. eat a wide variety of foods

5 things I cannot do:
1. play an instrument
2. clean gross things without gagging
3. say "bag," "gag," "aggrevate," "dragon" like non-Ely people
4. stay mad at someone, or even get all that mad
5. sit still for longer than one movie length

5 things I say most often:
1. that's awesome
2. sweeeet
3. grrrrrrrrrrr
4. ain't
5. i hate stupid people

5 Celebrity crushes:
1. Matthew McConaughey
2. Joshie Hartnett (who i was very close to at a movie premiere)
3. Doug Mientkiewicz
4. Ashton Kutcher
5. I'll say Brad Pitt 'cause of Oceans 11 " 12

caffeine

for the gazillionth time, i have overcome my slight caffeine addiction. the cycle cracks me up, to be honest. i'll give it up for a couple weeks...slowly get hooked again...get nervous 'cause i depend on something...go cold turkey " be miserable for a couple days...stay off it for a couple weeks...and the cycle continues.

this time, however, i had a worse headache than ever before, AND i found it VERY difficult to focus in class on Monday night. but i do miss my morning coffee breathe.

cooking

i'm still venturing into the world of cooking. it's a VERY SLOW process, but i figure i should start makin' headway. and my budget thanks me.

tonight i'm having a couple people over " said i'd make tacos for dinner. i'm thinkin' the basics - shells, meat, tomatoes, lettuce, cheese and maybe some salsa. suddenly, i get requests for refried beans, olives, sour cream, guacamole and anything else i can think of. who knew it could be this complicated?

now i'm gonna have to get bowls to put all this crap in. sheesh.

Fleet Week

we got to see the Blue Angels at Fleet Week in SanFran on Saturday. very cool " it was a perfect day in the City.

height

i forgot to mention that even without heels, i was still one of the tallest people in the club friday night. people are just short in these here parts of the country.

clubbin’

clubbin' in san jo' is not like any other clubbin'. unless it's just 'cause i've been out of the scene for so long....but i don't think so.

last night i went out with a couple girlfriends to the new, trendy, hip club Studio 8. we got there early, 'cause we're kinda old, so we watched everyone come in. it was like one of our parties in Minnesota, as for every 1 girl, there were at least 4 guys. i kinda feel bad for the guys, but it's damn fun to get a whole lotta attention. unfortunately (?), i wasn't very friendly, so i walked away with no digits. even still, it was a great night - good music, good drinks, fun friends - what more could i ask for?

ladies, if you're single " ain't opposed to computer geeks, move to silicon valley.

weather

weather has always been one of those topics anyone can talk about...so i feel it's overused...and feel a little guilty for talking about it so much on my blog...but i've always got something to say about it!

today is the first day i'm wearing close-toed shoes, long sleeves " pants. i hate it. i want my summer back.

i say this knowing it only gets down to 50 degrees at night, and the highs are still near 80. so silly. especially after just being told it's 37 in minneapolis. i'm spoiled.

take note

that's two entries in a row that make it sound like i'm growing up.
1. i like school
2. i went grocery shopping

groceries

a while back i made a goal to have a clerk at the grocery store recognize me. this would mean i've been to the grocery store enough for that to happen. unfortunately, i've failed miserably. tonight was the first time i actually went grocery shopping in months. good news - it felt great! hopefully i got some food that i'll eat...at home...saving money...

i tried to get lunch food, but that's tough. i'm not really a sammich person. i got some soups, lunchables, and snacks...any other suggestions on easy things to cook up for lunch?

school

i walked out of class last night in a super good mood. i finally enjoy being back in school. it took me a few weeks, but i now understand how my professor teaches " find it easier to listen. pickin' up on some legal lingo has helped, of course. i've also met a few cool people. heck, i even like reading my textbook. learning ain't so bad, afterall.

i'm even thinking about taking more than one class a semester. talk about bein' a schoolie.

gym

i joined the gym a couple weeks ago through work ('cause it's free " i got bored with running around my neighborhood), and finally made it there yesterday. it's at the super yuppy shopping area where all the beautiful people hang out. and it's a chichi/foofoo gym. i like hangin' with the beautiful people of the world...and am entertained people-watching.

the coolest thing about the gym is that each treadmill has its own tv screen. it made time fly.

now if i could only keep up this working out at the gym thing. running's been pretty easy to maintain...'cause i enjoy it...but going to the gym is a different story.

they don’t make trees like this in MN

lunch in MN vs CA

in minnesota, when i go out for lunch with the work clan, it's mainly guys...and me.
in california, when i go out for lunch with the work clan, it's mainly girls...and me.

why am i still living in california?
oh, yeah...it's 80 " sunny again today. i guess i can accept the fact that i work in HR " not development.

fantasy football

it's tough. i didn't realize picking guys from the same team was a bad idea, but...dang! i think the fact that the Vikings sucked for the first couple weeks bit me, too. ah, well. lesson learned. and very little money has been spent. i think my team is set to make a move up the ladder now...after i accepted some advice from a fantasy football pro.

also, after a couple weeks of watching the NFL ticket, i've realized i know very little about the NFL. i know some stuff about the Vikings, and understand the game pretty well...but have no clue when it comes to other teams " players. good thing i'm a fast learner.

fantasy footballers - watch out next year!

whine

i'm done whining. life is gooooooooooooooood.

busy

i feel like i'm too busy " need to cut back, but i don't know what to cut back on. sunday night i coach " make a couple extra bucks. monday night is class. tuesday night is women's volleyball, which i love. wednesday night is currently open, but there's a softball team that often needs me. thursday night is softball. and then it's suddenly friday. i don't have much time for friends...or this new guy. humph.

any suggestions? i was ready to quit volleyball until i played tonight. i think i enjoy it too much. and i can't quit school again. softball's free, and superfun. perhaps i just suck it up " keep going.

penguins

i've always found penguins fascinating, but after seeing March of the Penguins, they're even cooler. the crap they put up with reminds me of living in Minnesota...only it's worse in Antarctica (whodathunkit?). anyway, i really appreciate the fact that they can plop on their bellies " push themselves along instead of walking on their short little legs. that rules. then again, i've recently acquired this thing for bellies. i have no explanation.

yay, penguins!

salad dressing

i have not found a CA restaurant, yet, that serves french dressing with their salads. it's what i grew up on, so i find it a little frustrating.

in other news, i struck out in slow pitch softball tonight. completely whiffed twice in a row. no ball contact whatsoever. i'm still in shock.

work

work has become pretty dang crazy lately, and today i made the decision to rely on caffeine until i get through it. next week i should be caught up " ok again...i think. at that time, i'll reevaluate my need for caffeine.

day off

muffin " i took a day off yesterday to go hang out...we went shopping at berkeley " then to the A's/Twins game. 'twas way wicked fun.

my favorite purchase: pj pants that say, "I *heart* boys a lot."

it's so cool that i can take a day off " go shopping in berkeley.

thunderstorms

we be havin' thunderstorms today. it's totally rare, so everyone's freakin' out a little bit. "i don't like loud noises," i hear.

i think it rules. we never get thunderstorms out here, so it's a little taste of home for me.

which brings up another question - how many "homes" could one have?

coolest negotiation story ever

the volleyball club i coach for emailed me last week to firm up my contract for 2006. they said they generally raise salary $50/month per year, but that was negotiable. i read this as "ask for more money." so i did. but i only asked for a little more money. to my pleasant surprise, i received a reply that said, "we're going to double what you asked for. sound ok?" (RIDICULOUS!)

in the meantime, i emailed another club who was advertising for coaches to see what they paid. it's less than i was paid last year, so i know i'm doing ok. the other club then said they'd heard great things about me and would love for me to coach for them. i declined, as i love the club i work for...but dang, it's good to know my name's out there.

school

i made it through my second class. i kinda wanna quit, but i won't.

i'm intimidated. the prof talked way over my head, but all the other students' books looked broken in, and mine is still brand new. i'm hopin' using it catches me up.

what have i done to myself?

a typical Ely back yard

antsy

it’s so dang hard to sit still for four hours on a plane after driving four hours in a car. this is why I usually fly on no sleep or hungover.

nose

please don’t ever pick your nose while in your car. there are people around. they’ll see you. K " I got to witness some fine lad drillin’ away on our way to the airport. oy.

thoughts on home

You gotta know I grew up in Minnesota…but you may not know it was in a small, northeastern town called Ely. I got to spend a couple of random days there over the weekend with my family " a whole lotta memories came flooding back. First of all, it’s awesome that I grew up in an itty bitty town. I knew everybody, everybody knew me. Unfortunately, this means everyone knew my business " I knew theirs…still do, as a matter of fact. My mom stays up to date on EVERYTHING.

First, a short description of Ely, MN. It’s an old mining town of about 4,000 people. The mine’s are closed now, so all that’s really left is tourism. It’s one of the gateways into the Boundary Waters Canoe Area. There are three stoplights on the main street, and the town is about 2 miles long. One of the main streets has the local hardware store " Pamida…and it’s two blocks long. The main-main street has the touristy knick-knack " outfitter shops…and it’s about 6 blocks long. There are a few restaurants, at least 8 bars, just as many churches, and two little grocery stores. It’s a cute, simple little town. Hard to believe I grew up there…

Anyway, thoughts I had as I strolled through town with my mama:
-one of my favorite things is that you can run to the store " back within 5 minutes. you just can’t get to Target " home within 5 minutes. No matter what.
-everywhere you go, there is someone to say hi to. if they don’t know me, they know my parents…or at least my last name. I had three siblings, so there’s a good chance of connection.
-when you go to the store, you leave the keys in the car and windows " doors open. I often lock my keys in the car ‘cause I try to be local, yet can’t break the habit of locking my car. (this is a huge help in the winter, when it’s so freakin’ cold)
-a girl I graduated from HS with cut my hair at my old hair place. The hair cut " style is $15. I really don’t think it looks much different than the $60/haircut I get in Palo Alto.
Some things have changed:
-there are a bunch of new shops opening to try to diversify the town –a cheese shop that sells CA products, a surf shop opened by a guy from Florida, a t-shirt shop opened by a Greek guy, a Chinese restaurant, an actual coffee shop called the “Front Porch” (mom bought me a t-shirt)
-Pengal’s doesn’t sell Ely Timberwolves stuff, anymore
-I definitely don’t recognize very many people anymore. Some doubletakes, but rare. I also look pretty different " people never recognize me.
-Dairy Queen tore down another house to expand its parking lot

The new Charlize Theron movie coming out called “North Country” was filmed an hour from my home town. It’s even about mining. Ya’ll should go see it Oct 7!

accent

I don’t fit in anywhere. In MN, I sound like a southerner or west coast girl. In CA, I sound like a Midwesterner. I’ve got a little of every accent in me, so I just don’t fit in.

i’m back!

i don't think i can match my 9 entries in 35 minutes, but i've got a couple.

it's good to be home. it was an awesome, awesome week " i'm so thankful i got to spend time with my family...but it's good to be home. i got to sleep in my own bed last night.

toronto

i'm off to toronto early in the morning for work meetings, then heading to Mpls wednesday night. i'll be in roseville thursday, heading north thursday night. back in mpls sunday afternoon for a couple hours, then back home. that's right, home. california.

SKYDIVING!!!

I highly recommend you try skydiving at least once in your life. it is an incredibly awesome experience that really just leaves you speechless.

in brief:
the place we went was a DIVE. a warehouse filled with couches, people in jumpsuits sleepin' all over, some packin' up their parachutes, dogs layin' around, etc. it was awesome. totally laid back " carefree. they got us up in the air within 30 minutes of getting there, so we didn't have much time to get nervous. the guy i jumped with was an older, superfunny gentleman. he quit his job in san jose to move up north " jump out of planes for a living. i totally respect that. he cracked me up. sandra got the hot, young guy strapped to her. so we walk out to the airplane, and the sketchiest lookin' people ever were fillin' it up " flyin' it. for some reason, i wasn't nervous. we went up 14,000 feet, which took 10-15 minutes...and then it was time. we were third to jump out. i'd paid for pics to be taken, so a chick jumped out right before us " took all these awesome pictures. they'll be on hegman.com soon. so when we jumped out, i let out the SCREAM OF DEATH. after getting over that, we were free-fallin' for a good minute. the parachute was opened " we took another 4-5 minutes to get to the ground. SO AWESOME! the free fall was amazing. i could see for miles, and my guy was totally pointing stuff out to me. we took a couple sharp turns...at one point he said we were going 2G's (i think). he let me fly the parachute for a bit, and then we were on the ground. kinda surreal, but it was so incredibly exciting, i know it actually happened. i can't wait to go again. i got all sorts of people excited to go sometime...

adventure

yes, i went skydiving yesterday. most awesome thing i've ever, ever done. i'll blog more tomorrow when i have pictures to post.

this morning i'm running another 10K. I haven't stuck with running as much as I should, so hopefully I can run the whole thing...in under 60 minutes. it'll be fun, and is benefiting a good cause, if nothing else.

what a life i lead. jump out of a plane, run 6+ miles...oh, and i added red to my hair last night so i have kool-aid head.

myers briggs

Your Type is
ENFJ
Extroverted Intuitive Feeling Judging
Strength of the preferences %
89 38 75 1

Qualitative analysis of your type formula
You are:
very expressed extrovert
moderately expressed intuitive personality
distinctively expressed feeling personality
slightly expressed judging personality

skydiving

that's right...i've got plans to go skydiving on saturday. oy.
sandra's had it as a life goal forever, so i said i'd go with her. it's a tandem jump " only 5 minutes, so it shouldn't be too bad.

i'm not really thinking about it 'cause it freaks me out - i'm just gonna drive up there on saturday " do it. no thinking. it'll be great fun.

one of the biggest decisions i have to make is whether to get the VHS tape, 35mm pictures or a DVD...or a combo of all. money, money, money.

weirdness

though it's been over a year, i still have "holy cow i'm leaving a voicemail " my area code is in california" moments. i don't think it'll ever go away. it's just weird that i actually live in california. whodathunkit?

fortune cookies

Fortune Cookie #1:
You are bright " witty.

Fortune Cookie #2:
You are the center of every group's attention.

Fortune Cookie #3:
Be careful of extravagance.

I love fortune cookies. And I really love places that let you take as many as you want.

long weekend

i have had a superfantastic long weekend. i'm house/dog-sitting up in the hills away from it all...i love that. i'm not ready to live it, yet, but i love having mini-getaways. and now i'm actually willing to say i may move out of the city some day. it's just so dang relaxing to wake up " go have a cup of coffee in the backyard to listen to all the little animals scurry " birds sing. (wow, i'm getting old)

i had a few ladies stay over the other night, and sonja had a good point in the morning. she said she never travels on long weekends...she just stays home to chill 'cause there's really little reason to travel - it's more expensive on holiday weekends, traffic's bad, everyone's trying to get somewhere, and it's only three days. best to stay home " chill out. which is what i've done - lay around until 2 or 3 in the afternoon, then do something. :-)

i love my life.

livin’ in a cube

today i am conducting an experiment. i've been really distracted at work with all the commotion around me " need to buckle down " get stuff done, so i'm putting on my ipod " rockin' out in my headphones.

wish me luck!

(yes, i used the term "buckle down")

calendar

there is no better way to start my month off with than a picture of Joe Mauer on my Twins calendar.

i love september.

i stole this from kruck

he's the bomb when it comes to finding cool stuff online.


width="240" height="180"
alt="Kinetic Robotic Individual Skilled in Thorough Infiltration and Exploration"
border="0">

more high school…or elementary

i sat down in class last night and put my purple sunglasses down on the table. i then pulled out my purple pen and purple notebook and wrote in purple ink.

i even filled out the "all about me" form for the professor in purple.

high school

let's say there are three people who become good friends at work. two girls and a guy. suddenly, one of the girls decides the guy is treating her like crap, and cuts him out. the other girl is stuck in the middle, but has no idea how to resolve much of anything. the girl is tired " a bit cranky all the time, and the guy continues to push buttons. they're not going to see eye to eye. the other girl likes both of them, and tries not to take sides. it's impossible.

i'm in high school again.

first night of class!

i made it! my first class is over. i'm totally freaked out by the thought of going back to school " how long this is going to take me to get a degree...but it should be worth it.

pros:
- i get to go to campus. tonight the band was practicing outside " there were students everywhere. i even drove by a frat house. it rules.
- mba programs are majority male. i was 1 of 4 girls out of 40.
- my professor is an actual lawyer who has some great stories.
- i'll meet some cool people, i'm sure.
- one day, i'll have an MBA.
- my professor talked SJSU up without us even askin'. maybe it's not such a crap program, afterall.

cons:
- parking sucks.
- i have homework.
- i have to go to class once a week, which means i sit in one place and listen to one person for 2 hours " 45 minutes.
- it's gonna take FOREVER if i take one class a semester, so someday i'm going to have to suck it up " make school more of a priority. i might have to give up a sport. (ah!)

one year!

yay, me!
if i was more awake, i would write this long ol' entry about the past year and what it's meant to me. instead, i'll just say it's been an awesome year, i'm so glad i moved out to california, and i look forward to the years to come.

and school starts tomorrow. zoiks.

twins outfield

what the heck? all three get injured within a few weeks? i don't get it.
at least the team is still fightin' for somethin' this season. i can't wait 'til they come back to oakland. this time, i'm puttin' a real wager in.

advice

live like you ain't got nothin' to prove.

sometimes when i'm running i have these profound thoughts. i rarely share them, but this is interesting. seems i've met a few people lately who act like they have something to prove, and it effects the way they deal with me (and life). it's frustrating for me...i wish everyone was confident enough to be themselves " not worry about proving anything to anyone.

then again, we gotta prove ourselves to get anywhere in The Man's world. huh.

i also realize i got a double negative in there, but i'm gangsta. deal wit it.

california

i love my mini-revelations. not sure i've shared any out here, but here we go!

i'm coming to minnesota for a quick weekend on my way back from toronto in mid-september. this is very exciting, as my bro-in-law is turning 40 and my nephew is turning 1. plus, it's always fun to go back. i've only got a day in minneapolis, but i'll see as many folk as possible.

anyway, i'm thinkin' about it. and i'm thinkin' about the fact that i'm hitting one year here. and i realize that when people ask me how i'm doing out here, i can still say i'm doing great...and i love it...but i don't have the enthusiasm i used to have.

my revelation was this: life is becoming normal. not as much is new " exciting, anymore, so i'm not AS excited as i was. but it's all relative, so don't doubt that i love my life out here.

i guess this just makes me feel better about my level of excitement on california life.

the end.

anniversary

i am quickly approaching my one year anniversary with california. it's on sunday, and i'm havin' a bunch of people over for a MN BBQ. what makes for a minnesotan bbq, you may ask? i picture hot dogs, brats, burgers...mom's baked beans...rice krispie treats...Twins " Vikings jerseys all over...what am i missing?

boys

i've made a promise to myself that i won't blog about boys out here...but when a new one comes along i just can't seem to think of anything to blog about. it's like i can think of nothing else but him. so fun, yet a bit disturbing.

as sandra said, we're simple girls - boys make us smile.

Back to School!

class starts monday...i sure hope i'm ready for this. :-)
i'm starting my MBA. first class - Law " the Gen'l Mgr
(i realize my full name is on this, but it doesn't take much to figure it out...i trust no scary crazy stalker people read here)

weather

i don't know what i was thinking yesterday, but it ain't cold outside. in the morning " evening it's chilly, but the afternoon still brings 80 " sunny. i'm a whiner.

it's monday! here's to a great week!!!

fall

we are experiencing fall-like weather here in the Bay Area, and i don't know how i feel about it. actually, to be honest, i hate it. i want my sunshine " 80 back! this summer went way too wicked fast.

i imagine we'll get some more superwarm weather before the rain comes again, so i will comfort myself with that thought. i'll also remain comfy in sweats " long sleeves.

niece ashley’s birthday

i just went shopping for my niece's 5th birthday, and found it a little tough. i mean, she loves Barbie, so i'm all for getting her one...but they're all superskank. i have a hard time buying a skanky Barbie for my 5 year old niece.

in the end, i found a pretty dang cute, somewhat conservative, Barbie. phew. i am old.

introducing dave golbitz

as you may have noticed, i've been getting more frequent comments on my blog...i dig it, and i owe most of it to dave! it seems only fair that i introduce him...

i met dave at lercher's wedding back in july, and we all had a great weekend hangin' out, celebrating an awesome marriage. go lercher " jami! anyway, dave's a cool guy " lercher's best friend.

dave's blog is at: http://1031productions.blogspot.com/. i'd put my own comments on it, but you have to log in " i can't remember my log in or password. call me blonde.

softball

my batting average is sucking lately. it's frustrating. i won't even tell you where i stand right now. fortunately, my last hit of the game tonight was nice...tomorrow night will be better.

it was cold outside tonight. i'm officially a whiny californian. i think it was 60 " i was freezing. weird.

on a different note...my headache is almost completely gone.

international pop overthrow

last night i went up to san francisco with a couple friends to watch some local bands play in a divey bar. i always enjoy kickin' back while listening to the locals. it's tough in the beginning because the bands ain't so good...but by the end of the show, the bands were really fun. we went to see Smith Point, but saw a few others 'cause it was the International Pop Overthrow. i decided i don't really like "power pop" music all that much...but they were also at the beginning of the night, so maybe that's why.

i hate caffeine!

i woke up with a migraine today. it's my second one within a few months, and i've never gotten them before in my life. i blame the fact that i've had too much caffeine and alcohol, and not enough sleep and water. a stupid twenty-something mistake.

taking a day off ain't so bad, though. i slept until 12:30, and have papa john's on the way.

half-birthday weekend

what a great weekend!!!
the Twins took the series. we dropped one yesterday, but it just don't matter. there's nothin' better than watchin' A's fans in the 9th when they're about to lose. heehee. i love the Twins!
pretty much, that was my weekend. baseball. i miss it...hot dogs, nachos, cotton candy, beers " pop.

My Boys!

My boys are coming to town! I am fully decked out in Twins apparel, and have more in my car waiting for me to put on " distribute. Ya-hoo!

Tonight I have sweet seats " it's fireworks night, tomorrow a group of us are sittin' in the bleachers and on Sunday hometown girl Lisa " I are going to sit in decent seats. I can't wait!

On top of all this, today is my HALF-BIRTHDAY!!!

door

get this. roommate becki " i left our house at 5pm tonight to get some dinner " go to my softball game. we just got home at 10pm, and our door was WIDE OPEN. we pulled in, saw the door was wide open, and all i could say was, "well, my tv is still there." we rolled through the house " no one's in here and nothing's missing. both of our laptops were right inside the door.

california is way wicked safe. that's my conclusion.

A’s game

i went to an awesome A's game last night against the Angels.

not only was it an exciting game - the A's fans totally rock. they're all rowdy " into the game. we did the wave at least 6 times...and the section i was sitting in actually started it a couple of times. it was hilarious! the dude said, "we're setting a world record! i'm serious! the wave just keeps going! all our names are gonna be in the book!" too funny.

in the end, i'm once again tempted to lean more towards supporting the A's than the Giants. it's hard 'cause they're in the AL and some of my close friends are Giants fans who hate the A's...but the games are just more fun. and the Twins slaughtered them in 2002, anyway.

i'm still trying to decide what song i would have play as i walk up to the plate to bat...do you know what your song would be?

cars

i followed three Beamers into our parking lot this morning, and realized i generally don't even think about it. i now expect every car around me to be a bmw, mercedes or lexus...or a hummer. california is crazy about expensive cars.

is it because the salt on the roads would ruin the nice cars in minnesota, or is it truly a status thing? maybe a combo? i've noticed Bay Area folks are pretty status-driven.

i'm going to pretend Pitter is a Lexus from now on.

caffeine

the debate begins.
i am thinkin' 'bout givin' in to caffeine " becomin' addicted. in the Bay Area, there is a starbucks on every other corner. coffee is free at work, and pop is only $.25. my new roommie makes coffee every morning, and it smells so tasty. i generally become superproductive after a cup.

what will it hurt? why have i held off becoming a caffeine-addict?

worst t-shirt ever

firemen - i failed

i failed to see the firemen yesterday.
it's hard to write about.
basically, the friends i was with didn't understand the importance of this event, and took their time getting there. i was too dang polite and stayed with them. the crew was packing up the show when we arrived...no firemen in site. except for one hottie with two girls already talking to him.
my roommate got a t-shirt from them " gave it to me out of pity.

firemen festival

Fremont is having a wine " cheese festival this weekend that I've dubbed the Firemen Festival. Reasoning, you ask? The site.

There is a firefighter competition going on all day. I can not wait. Pictures will be taken. Especially if I drink wine.

lesson learned - Pitter

i have learned not to leave my car in the bar parking lot overnight. pitter got her first door ding. sad.

breakfast

every day should start with white chocolate espresso cheesecake with caramel. oh....my....goodness.

the dome

there's something about the Dome that brings on the warm fuzzies.

i watched part of the game last night on tv, and though my Twins are pretty terrible right now - currently losing to a Bay Area team - i was comforted by the sights " sounds of the Dome. it caught me a bit off guard, but hearing the intern play the organ, the cheers from the fans in blue " red, reading the ads " signs i've seen so many times, recognizing the players...it all brings on the warm fuzzies. it's one of my new happy places. :-)

i know torii's in good hands, as kendra's by his side. get him back in shape, girl!

size

i am huge, relatively speaking.
i went shopping in a foofy mall tonight, and there were little people everywhere. and the clothes were little. i'm not even that tall. or that big.
i've mentioned before that it seems i'm above average height in the bay area, and it was way evident tonight. i think i could see over the top of 90% of the peoples' heads. it's craziness!
i want to live around big ol' scandinavians again.

bugs

spending time on the lake reminded me of how fortunate i am to get to live in california...mainly, we have no mosquitos, gnats, or flies in california. there's nothing more annoying than having to go inside on a beautiful evening because the bugs are so nasty.

my family

i love my family. i love that we have two vacations a year where everyone in my immediate family gets together to hang out. it feels a little bit surreal - how many families with 4 children can get together for a week at a time " enjoy the time together? 6 kids who are 9 months to 8 yrs and 9 adults makes for a whole lot of chaos.

i felt like i could have used more time with them, but as john mentioned...i could never get enough time with my family. having a family as strong as i do makes it easier to be so far away. seems backwards, but it's how i feel.

lercher’s wedding

it was beautiful. i had a great time getting to know his family " friends, and was honored to be a part of it. and to be named "tb"...what a privilege. jami was a fantastically calm bride, which made it easy to be her personal attendant. i truly was honored.

i love going to weddings that i know the couple is perfect for each other, and will live happily ever after.

pics are up, within the MN Summer '05 link.

Twins game!

I had a great time at the Twins game on Friday, July 1. It was fun to be back at the dome with K, A, Rachel " others...good memories. We sat right behind Shannon Stewart " Torii Hunter, and screamed for all the others. I do like the outdoor ballparks a lot better, but the dome has it's endearing characteristics. Ice cream in the little hat, Dome Dogs, pop, etc.

changes

it's interesting to move away for about a year " come back to find some people have changed quite a bit, some have changed a little and some are exactly as i left. i struggled the first couple days with how to deal with this, as i've changed a TON since i left...but, in the end, everyone's happy, and that makes me happy.

bachelor party

i throw a kickin' bachelor party. the groom, lercher, was quite pleased with how the night went, which is what matters.

as the rule says, what goes on at the bachelor party stays at the bachelor party. however, the bride knew everything that happened, as well as the best man " his parents. unfortunately, this is all i'm saying to you. pics are up on my site, i guess.

i’m back!

what an awesome, awesome trip to the homeland. i squeezed in a ton of fun activities, saw a million people, and still felt it was fairly relaxed " unhectic. (is that a word?)

today has been crazy. i got home at 1 am, dumped my stuff on the floor of my living room, played around online for a bit " tried to sleep. this morning i had to hang at home waiting for the cable man while i did emails, then came in to my new office for my new company, manager " job. i'm totally clueless as to how to do much of anything, so i basically unpacked my cube. it all fits! i had my doubts, as the higher up the corporate chain i go, the smaller my office gets. anyway, it's the end of the day, and i'm going for a drink with my coworker. i don't really want any alcohol, but i want to catch up.

several blog entries are to come on this most excellent trip to MN.

off to Minnesota!

I'm leaving for Minnesota on the red-eye tomorrow night...so I think I'll take a blogging break. I'll miss it...but I'm sure I'll have much to report upon my return.

I'm a little sad to be leaving California, to be honest. It's starting to feel like home. I'm missing out on some activities " fun...and this whole merger deal. Plus, it's usually a little tough once I get back to California to accept that I live here. Minnesota is still "home," whether I accept that, or not. At least this time I have good friends to convince me I like it here.

Farewell, friends! Here's to the return of my Minnesotan accent!

MLB Ticket

They need to create such a thing. I would buy it " watch my Twins.
I've got another wager going on...the Twins face the Brewers in Milwaukee. Here's to more free beer for me!

Oops...just found out there's Extra Innings. I just don't think I can get it.

accent

i'm giving part of a global training over the phone at work, and all my coworkers can say about it is, "you have no minnesotan accent left in you."
it breaks my heart.
thank goodness i'm coming home for 12 days to build it back up. i'm counting on you to help me!

pop

i am enjoying my first pop in three weeks. i'm getting over the guilty feeling of giving up on this tremendous feat by consoling myself with the fact that i don't NEED it. i merely WANT it.

now i want Starbucks, too.

santa cruz

i love the beach.
and yesterday i went to the Mystery Spot...it's so wicked cool! all guests of mine will be encouraged to visit in the future.

’80’s day in HR!

karin (muffin), jeff (yoda), me, robyn, nancy, esperanza, dan
totally tubular!

california earthquakes

all this action, and i haven't felt a thing.
no worries, mates.

i made it!

Yesterday marked two weeks without pop or coffee. I am proud. And life really hasn't been that bad. I'm drinking a whole lot more water...but I think that's about the only benefit. I guess I feel better, too.
That whole giving up alcohol thing didn't last, though. I think it was about 7 hours. Did you notice the happy hour blog entry right after the "giving up" entry? Not good.
It was hard not to stop at Starbucks this morning, but I made it all the way to work...unfortunately, I'm cranky 'cause I really want a Starbucks. Resolution? Maybe tomorrow. I'm thinking maybe I get Starbucks on Fridays. Seems like a fair reward.

dougie

I get to see my Doug tonight!
The Mets are comin' to town, and I'm goin' to see 'em! Unfortunately, I can't find any of my "I DIG DOUG" goods, but I did break out my SuperFox jersey!

the Boys are back!

I'm goin' at lunch to pick up my CD.
(i listened to it...it's not all that great...but i'll give them time to grow on me)

blog

this blog has become more of a "kristie's thoughts on life" than a "california vs minnesota" thing. i think it's kinda fun, but let me add these comments to make myself feel better...
- bro-in-law bill was amazed that there are no bugs out here
- the grocery store i go to is called Albertsons, and sometimes i hit Safeway
- there are still stray cats everywhere
- the weather has become boring again - 80 " sunny every day. tonight i was talking to lercher " he brought up the tornado warnings. i got excited 'cause i miss that crazy weather.
- i still find it amazing that i live in California
- this whole MBA thing is also makin' a big commitment to CA. it takes a few years to get through it.
- back to the weather - i didn't go outside today 'cause i know there will be several more beautiful, sunny days to come. sounds pretty local to me.

new goal

i have a new goal in life.
i want a clerk at the grocery store to recognize me. that means i've been at the grocery store enough for someone to realize it, which feels like a good thing.
i will let you know as soon as it happens!
(of course, now that i've set this goal, i will be overly friendly to every clerk i meet to try to get them to remember me)

Nephews visit!

we had a GREAT weekend. we're all completely exhausted from our nonstop activities, but we had a good time. the boys saw the ocean for the first time, we rode some great rides at Great America, got to see Alcatraz, and swam in the hotel pool. i miss 'em, but am a little thankful for this break.

i’m a grad student!

wa-hoo! i've been accepted to San Jose State U's MBA program for this fall. it ain't the best program in the area, but it's cheap " good enough. i just want an MBA. and i'm in without having to take any prerequisites. that rules.
i'm goin' to grad school!!!

visitors!

My sister " her family get into town today, and I am so excited I can barely stand it. We're going to Great America, the Santa Cruz boardwalk, Alcatraz, and swimmin' at the hotel. Best of all, I get to hang out with my two nephews!!! They're so fun. AJ, the 3 year old, told his day care yesterday that he FINALLY gets to go see his Auntie Kristie in California. SO CUTE!
I love my family.

5 years!

I hit 5 years at my company last Saturday, and totally missed out on celebrating. That's crazy! I never miss a reason to celebrate.
Guess I'll make up for it for the next month...

Giants game!

I got some sweet seats from the parents of one of my girls for the game last night...it was awesome! The fans kinda suck 'cause they're all stuffy " businessy, but I still clapped " sang along with the organ player. The Giants got creamed, too, but I'm not really a fan, so it was ok. Yay, outdoor baseball!

season

my team frickin' rocks! we ended the season by taking first place in the silver bracket of a HUGE tournament. they played AMAZINGLY well today. i even teared up i was so proud.
and then they got me a volleyball they all signed " a big ol' gift certificate to the mall.
i'm going to miss this part of my life, but i sure am excited to have weekends off.

dinner

i bought a few frozen dinners last time i was at the store, and have found them quite enjoyable. an almost satisfying meal. unfortunately, i feel like an old, lonely man eating them.

reality tv

Reality TV is making a comeback in my life.
Hit Me Baby One More Time is absolutely freakin' brilliant.
Strip Search is also at the top of my list.
Well worth your while, both of them.

happy hours!

i'm setting up happy hours again! i feel like i've finally arrived, and am settling in. i have people to invite over for bbq's, people to invite to happy hours, friends to call last minute to meet me out for a drink, volleyball teams to play on...

getting to organize events brings me that much closer to calling this home.

drugs

i'm going to give up alcohol, coffee " pop for two weeks.
that's right, i called it pop.
mainly, i'm feelin' wicked unhealthy lately, and it may be caused by overdose. it's worth a shot to see how i feel after two weeks. plus, i should cleanse my system before my MN trip.

best advice i’ve ever been given

a few years ago i was having a freakout about some silly life event, and my daddy shut me up for a few seconds to say, "don't take life so seriously."

it was the wisest thing i've ever heard, and often pops into my head to chill me out. i thought dad deserved some credit on the blog for that.

my life rules

June is going to be fantastic!
My schedule:
three 4-day weeks in a row
one full week
two days, and then a flight to MN for 12 days

My sister " her fam are comin' out next weekend to see the sites...which also means I'll probably swim in the freezing cold Pacific...but my nephews will make it worth it. I can't wait!

Star Wars

my favorite SanFran Fun Fact:
these crane things are in the SanFran Bay " gave George Lucas the idea for the big machine monster things in one of the Star Wars.
i realize my description could be better, but hope it's enough for you to work it out...

breakfast

i totally made breakfast this morning. scrambled eggs, bacon " toast. i even shredded my own pepper jack cheese for the eggs. and bought salsa.
i've never touched raw bacon before. it's disgusting.
look at me all growin' up!

spiders

there are big, scary spiders in california, and one is running rampant through my room. i was too lazy to get out of bed early this morning to kill the gigantic black thing, so it is now hiding. yuck.
(it has no red spots, so i think i'm ok, even if it touches me...besides the trauma)

american idol

yes, i watched this season. i was an idol virgin, though. and i walk away disappointed.

i mean, i kinda knew carrie would win the popularity contest, but i still had hope...i had hope America would realize what they were doing...that they were going with the flow, yet again...but they failed. they went with the unoriginal choice.

guess i shoulda voted.

Borders

I'm the worst person in the world to hit on...or one of them.

So I went to Borders to pick up He's Just Not That Into You so I can participate in a friend's book club. I walked up to the checkout " gave my cheery "Hi, how are ya?" The dude behind the counter gave me little in return, so I decided he was a loser. Seconds later, as he was putting my book away, he said, "well, if he's not, I am." Niiiiiiiiiiiice line. But I got all flustered " walked away mumbling nothing.

One of these days, I will give out my email, or somethin'. Perhaps I'll just start buying the book at different book stores " see what I can get...

california-ism - it’s been a while

Apartment complexes in California generally have outdoor, separate entrances to each apartment. (there's an easier way to say that, but i can't think of it right now)
Anyway, in MN, we shared a hallway with every other apt in the building...well, on our floor. Made it very interesting during dinner time, as we were a diverse little complex...yes, even in Minnesota.
I have my own little house out here, but I've noticed that all apartment complexes in my 'hood have separate entrances. That'd be kinda cool.

my older brother

is a big shot.
i am so proud.

Regionals

My rockin' 14's team took second place in the Northern California Volleyball Association's regional tourney!!! We beat the team that usually beats us to get into finals, and then took finals to three games. It was fantastic! I totally teared up after beating the team that usually beats us, and there were parents with actual tears streaming down their faces. The girls were on fire, and there was just no stopping them. Fun!
A great end to a coaching-filled weekend. Now if only someone would do my laundry " clean my house.

wager

I've got a wager going on my Twins this weekend. You see, a friend of mine likes the Brewers and thinks they are going to win. Somethin' about growing up in Milwaukee.
Winner gets a six pack of their choice...if it's a sweep, it's doubled.

Go Twins!

(I've got an eight pack of Guinness at my desk now...it's Tuesday afternoon)

did i say i went to the beach??? oh…i did. life is good.

white

some girls shouldn't wear white...yet still try. it takes about one hour in the day to spill something devastatingly obvious.
for example, i apparently dribbled coffee down my front today. not cool.

star wars

star wars iii is brilliant.
it's especially brilliant when it's subsidized by your company " you get the morning off to go. i only had to stand in line for 15 minutes " wait an hour for the movie to start. those poor fools that had to move so i could get my car out of the lot were waiting for the 8:00pm show...and it was noon!
no less, it's definitely worth seeing.
oh - the popcorn " icee were an excellent breakfast, too.

stupid people

there is a population of stupid people in the world, and they frustrate me. however, i think i've finally learned to just stand up " not take any stupidity. it feels so great! i kinda shove it back in their faces.

thank goodness i'm generally not one of the stupid people. they really do bug me.

and thank goodness my friends aren't stupid people, so you don't need to be offended.

sun

i got a sunburn before may 16. my life rules.
(it's not a terrible, cancer-causing burn...just a reminder that i was in the sun this weekend)

64man tourney

A close friend " confidant (who wants to remain anonymous) and I have come up with a brilliant idea...I will organize a 64man tourney...much like March Madness. The last guy to come out alive wins a great prize - ME!

I have a couple people in mind for this...and others (Nate-dawg) have requested entry forms. Wa-hoo! Let the games begin...

weekend

i went to the beach this weekend. what'd you do? hee, it was wicked chilly in Mpls. i texted Nicole that i was at the beach, and she replied with a "you b*itch." i don't blame her, but it sure feels good to be me.

ooh, the bbq with my vb families went really well, too. weather held out for us, food was good " i found a dad to bbq the burgers. they were all so grateful " excited to get together, it caught me a bit off-guard. but then one of the mom's said, "this is so not california." i then understood...i'm bringin' minnesota nice to the peeps of california.

job

i just received a new task at work - i am to come up with a million cheap or free things a group can do to improve morale. Picnics, movies, afternoon at the beach, etc...

i get paid for this. so if you want to help me out with some ideas, please jot them in the comments. :-)

friday

I will admit, I'm on one of those obnoxious highs that makes me a bit too happy. I may annoy you. I am currently finding the good in EVERYTHING...even the crap.

I almost forgot it was FlipFlop Friday, but remembered as I was about to put sandals on. Unfortunately, none of my flipflops coordinated with my outfit, so I had to change my shirt to match. Not really a problem...I still look good. :-)
I'm very excited for the coming weekend because it's supposed to be beautiful outside, I have fun friends to hang with, and I'm throwing a bbq for my team " their families on Sunday evening. It'll be a bit stressful, as I really have no way to accomodate all those people, but it'll be fun. I've asked them to be flexible.

Question - What is the song, "Brass Monkey" about? I tried to listen to the words this morning, and didn't catch it...

blonde

once again, i have gone blonde. it was meant to be highlights, but we got carried away. actually, sandra got carried away. it's all good - i live in california. though i feel i should move south to LA...perhaps the beach this weekend will help.
and i was doing so well with the "going natural" thing.

shopping

i discovered that while shopping i will buy anything that's on super sale as long as it's "ok." to buy something at full price, i must LOVE it. a $5 shirt that fits pretty good is worth it. a $50 shirt that fits pretty good doesn't stand a chance. a perfect $50 shirt is maybe worth it.
unfortunately, some of the super sale stuff is cheap, which is why it didn't sell " i waste my money, anyway.
ya just can't win.

accent

apparently i have developed a stronger southern accent since i moved out here. i worry that i'm overcompensating for my minnesooooota accent, but i don't know. i got the southern comment a couple times in minnesota, but it's definitely more frequent out here.

the jamba girl said, "wow, you SO have an accent."

bam!

and, bam! it's the weekend.
time is flyin'. i don't know how to feel about it. it's fun, but i don't want life to whiz by me. perhaps this weekend i will stop to smell the roses. i do have some, ya know...my landscaper takes care of them. :-)

little things

i know it's going to be a good day when i've only been awake an hour, yet...the first outfit i put on this morning worked, there was a hot fireman " real firetruck next door this morning (for no other reason than to make my day), i got a venti hazelnut latte, one of my favorite songs came on the radio, it's still raining, which means it'll stay green longer, and i have plenty to do at work. yay.

M&M’s

I'm trying the new dark chocolate M&M's. I don't think I like them...they just don't taste like M&M's. But perhaps I can get out of my M&M mindset " accept the change as something good.

Wow, I have been through too many change management courses with this whole merger thing.

phone calls

i refuse to answer my phone at work before 9:00am on a Monday morning. really, it should be 10:00 'cause my brain doesn't function before then...but i'll push it back to 9, just in case it's important.

just to prove my point, the chick behind the counter at Starbucks tried to talk to me this morning, and I could only grunt. and smile...a little. i just ain't ready to talk at that time of the day.

fortunate

after a weekend of touring " hanging out with the girls, i have to sit back " realize how fortunate i truly am. first of all, i've got three great girlfriends from college who are able to get together at least once a year. yeah, we've all changed...but we're working through that, maintaining strong friendships.
secondly, i live in the bay area. i mean, there's so much to do here, and it's so dang beautiful. napa is 1 1/2 hours away, the beach is closer than that, the mountains are magnificent, and the wine flows freely. :-)
we had a great weekend full of quality friendships " fun.

college roomies

my college roomies are coming to town tonight for the weekend!!! i can't wait...rivers lands first, then nicole, and finally stephi! we have got quite the weekend planned. napa, the City, the ocean, Tainted Love, and whatever else comes our way.

hydration

It is next to impossible to stay hydrated in this state. I ran into the problem when I first moved out here, adjusted " drank a ton of water, and was ok. Lately, I've been lazy about my water " it ain't good. I just can't catch up...
I don't understand it...the ocean is 30 miles away.

sunday

going out on a sunday night is a rough way to start a week. rougher than i could have imagined...i didn't think i was this old.
ah, well. it was fun to see the Roseville peeps out here for the con.
now, if i could just focus a little bit to get a little work done this week.

home

at this point in my life, home is wherever my laptop " cell phone are.
i'm housesitting this weekend, and it doesn't feel a whole lot different than being at my house. i've got my laptop plugged in, and my cell phone works great. who needs all that other stuff i have?
;-)

Dougie

Dougie hit his first career grand slam last night.
I miss him.
(the video is of his grand slam today...may not be there tomorrow)

flip-flop friday

it's official. i will wear flipflops every friday from now until "winter."
though my "bright shirt monday's" didn't last long.

caffeine

I made it all week without coffee. At the most, I had a soda in the afternoon to get me through the day.
However, this morning I had some coffee " my production level just increased dramatically. If I'm going to get this much more work done, just by having a cup of coffee, it's worth it.
Here's to the caffeine gods!

‘hood

i live in the 'hood.
as i got to my block tonight, i drove by two cops all decked out in their "can't shoot me dead" gear with their guns out " pointed at the ground, surrounding a house half a block from home. my roommate knows someone at police dispatch, so i tasked her with finding out what was happening, though i never heard gunshots.
i'll keep you posted.

scratch

i just learned the value of "i'll scratch your back, you'll scratch mine." i had an exception i needed processed after a deadline, and they did it for me. mostly because they know i'd do the same.
sweet.

the girls i coach

they're so fantastic. we took second again in our tournament on sunday, and they played their hearts out. they've improved a ton in the past few months! we shoulda won, of course, but...

anyway, i just received a request from the team we've lost to twice for a scrimmage. i think it totally rocks that i coach a team that other well-respected teams want to scrimmage.

this morning

I'm sure ya'll will be surprised, but my car acquired an unhealthy stench over the past couple days (enough detail), so I left the windows open a crack last night to air it out. At 5:20 this morning, I woke up to a car alarm going off in my neighborhood. Immediately, I was convinced my car was bein' ripped off. I stealthily walked through the living room to look out the blinds of my front window, all worried I was gonna get shot by the robber. I didn't see anybody, so I flicked the lights a couple times. Still no one. It was then that I realized I don't have a stinkin' car alarm! Ugh.

SportsCenter

Once again, I'm watching SportsCenter to find out what's happening with my Twins. It's wild to me that enough time has past that it's on to the next season...when I moved out here I watched SportsCenter for the same reason. Time flies when you're havin' fun.

new cd

I finally got Will Smith's new CD tonight, and I am excited. The first few songs I got to listen to are fantastic! Wicked entertaining. The first song I heard was for dude's who can't dance...in the second, he made fun of himself for doing movies, fresh prince, old cd's, etc. I love it,and I'm in love with him.

lazy

I have gotten quite lazy, and am starting to accept it. In the mornings, my alarm goes off early enough for me to get up " go running or to the gym. Even if I am wide awake when the alarm goes off, I think to myself, "But, Kristie, you're lazy. Why go today when you probably won't go tomorrow? And, really, do you want to put forth that much effort this morning?" These conversations with myself crack me up, and then I go back to sleep.

mini-vacation

I just got back from a great weekend south with my parents. We took off Friday morning and hit the Monterey Bay Aquarium, which is amazing. We then drove down Highway 1 along the coast to San Simeon, a baby little town near the Hearst Castle. First of all, the road was crazy windy, and dad let me drive. Probably to make it more exciting. The cliffs " ocean were absolutely beautiful. I can't imagine a prettier place. I loved it.

After a few hours in the car, we got to San Simeon. The place is a po-dunk town in the middle of nowhere along the coast of California. Hearst Castle is the only thing for miles, but is worth it. Let me start with Friday night, though. Dad checked into our rinkydink hotel, and the guy behind the desk said, "Elvis is in town tonight," with a straight face. Turns out an Elvis impersonator was going to be at the hotel bar next door. It was my parents' 38th anniversary, so I decided to pull it off as my gift to them. They were pretty excited. Plus, not only was Elvis going to be there, but Roy Orbison was, too! My dad's two favorite singers. Around 8:30 we walked over to the bar to get our table...and they put us right up front. It was fantastic. The scenario - the ocean is across the highway, there are quite a few tourists in town, including the Corvette club " several bikers, and all are at this hotel to see Elvis. The bar is decorated in Egyptian stuff, which seemed a bit random. The menu was a mixture of any possible ethnicity, which made it suspicious. Turns out our suspicions were right - the food was terrible. Bar staff was running around like crazy trying to get the stage ready - a crate " towel became a table for Roy " Elvis' water, lights were checked " the mic's were ready. Around 9:15, a "back-up" singer introduced the show. She's in her mid-forties, wearing a slinky black dress, super high heels " bright red hair. Ready to strut her stuff. In the back were a piano player (about 70), a guitar player (mid-twenties, obviously lookin' for any type of work), and an emotionless drummer. First up was Roy. Being as close as we were, I was able to notice his guitar wasn't plugged in, and he was barely hittin' the strings. He had a strong voice, and cracked a few jokes in between songs, so it was enjoyable. Oh! We decided the musicians were mostly for looks, because Roy sang to a karaoke machine. The back-up singer had accompaniments " I'm not sure we could hear the guitar. At one point, I used the restroom " could hear how OFF the keyboard player truly was. Not sure what he was listening to, but it didn't match the karaoke music. Finally, Elvis came on stage. Oh, Elvis. Elvis was a 50 year old dude wearing a white sparkly suit that was WAY too tight for him. He sure enjoyed givin' a show, though. I mean, he was INTO it. He only had one leg that would really move like Elvis did, and I'm not even going to touch what he looked like when he tried to shake his pelvis Elvis-style. Ugh. Of course, Elvis was wearing a scarf like the real Elvis used to - he would wipe his sweat " then toss the scarf to the ladies. Well, our Elvis took to walking around the bar to hand out his scarves. You guessed it - I got one. I was a prime target - mid-twenties chick hangin' with her parents at a bar in San Simeon on a Friday night. He wrapped it around my neck, sang a couple lines " gave me a kiss on the forehead. I was dyin' of laughter, but tried to be polite. Turns out the scarf is a witnessing deal, so I gave him a little more credit - every scarf had a Christian saying on it. To top it off, they had a strobe light set up in front of Elvis so when he got down on one knee, he could pretend he was movin' like Elvis. The facial expressions were PRICELESS. The dude enjoyed what he did. And we, the audience, died laughing. He was hilarious.

Friday night made the trip, but the Hearst Castle was well-worth the drive, and we ended up going further down the coast to Pismo Beach, staying overnight in Morro Bay. It was a pleasant little ocean town with a farmers market, excellent italian food " a little strip of stores to walk around " shop in. It was beautiful.

This morning we got up, walked around Morro Bay a bit, and headed north to San Jose. I miss vacation.

new vb team

I got to play great volleyball last night! It was my first night with my new coed team, and they're a blast. They're all Asian, so they mumbled in Chinese a lot, but they kept reminding each other to speak English so I could understand. It was pretty funny - though I did mention that they could teach me a thing, or two. :-) Overall, the team has a great time while being competitive. The perfect mix.

Coed out here is 4 guys, 2 girls. Makes it a little more challenging.

I'm just excited to be on a good team. We went 3-1 for the night.

minnesota twins

it sure would be cool if someone went to the home opener this weekend " got me one of those schedule magnets " buttons they hand out.

mexican food

I am currently eating the BEST burrito in the WORLD for lunch. It came from some rinky-dink little Mexican store with a burrito place in the back. I love that I have access to such quality " real Mexican food...no offense, Minnesota. :-)

tivo

i've got a tivo, yet have little to watch when i actually sit down to spend quality time with the tv. i need more shows to record...suggestions?

i did scrubs, but that's only 30 minutes once a week.

beach boys

you know that song..."i wish they all could be california girls!"
yeah, that's me. :-)

color

it has been over a year since i completely dyed my hair. i believe it was my last birthday (which would be february '04, of course) that i went dark red...and nothing's been done since then. i did add some lowlights in december, but i don't count that.
i must say, i am proud. wonder if it'll go blonder in the california sun. :-)

thoughts of the week

i've been wicked busy at work...and in life...so i haven't had time to get my thoughts out here. and i have several. so, here we go...

1. When talking to California friends, I say, "back in Minnesota." When talking to any other friends, I say, "back home." I think this is improvement on my acceptance of this move. At least to some I associate with, California is home.

2. I took a Managing Through Change course from my company. It's all pretty basic theory stuff we've heard before, but good to hear again. Mostly about the upcoming acquisition we're going through, but I couldn't stop from applying it to my personal life. The stages are denial - resistance - exploration " commitment. I decided I'm currently between exploration " commitment. Finally beyond the denying, "i'm going to make my Minnesota crazy busy life in California. I will play lots of volleyball " work with my kids at church." Just beyond the "but I like Minnesota " all it has for me" phase. And into the "what am I going to do here? what are my options" phase. One day I may decide I actually live here. We'll see. That's commitment.

3. The weather has improved. Today was sunny " seventy.

4. I've been asked to play competitive volleyball finally. I subbed on a women's team for a couple weeks, and one of the girls asked me to play on her Coed A team. Yay! I start Wednesday.

5. I had social events every night this week with different people. And last weekend was a wonderful mirage of different events " friends. It feels good to know I have a few friends I can call on out here.

6. Mom " dad land tomorrow afternoon for a 10 day visit. I'm really excited to see them and show them around a bit more. It's the first time dad's been back since he moved me out here, so I have lots to show " talk about. At the same time, I'm thankful I have to work during the week so we all get a little space. :-)

Happy Friday!

snow > rain

Ten out of twelve days of snow is much easier to take than ten out of twelve days of rain. Overcast is becoming my mood.

mom’s Easter gift

My mom sends me the best gifts ever. For Easter, I got the same beanie baby bunny I got two years ago. Now I have one for home and office.
I also got a bag of gummy bears. And a very sweet, "you're the best daughter ever" card.

caffeine

once again, i'm trying to give up coffee " soda. with how badly i'm currently craving it, it's a good thing. i shouldn't need it this badly!
then again, why do this to myself? it's an evil cycle i just keep going through - give it up, slowly get hooked again, go through the agony of giving it up, slowly get hooked...

new fun website

This is my new favorite tool online. It's super fun to see how rich I'd be in Mexico, etc. :-)

I'm sometimes a dork, too.

Happy Easter, everybody!

fast food

this is why i gave up fast food.

fotune cookies

Generally speaking, the fortunes I get from VCafe have been awesome. I've collected several of them, and they're hanging in my cube. Here are some examples:
Golden hours are coming to you.
You are next in line for promotion in your firm.
You will enjoy good health, you will be surrounded by luxury.
You will make a change for the better.
Your life will be happy and peaceful.

Today, I received this fortune:
You are a happy man.

Turnin’ Californian

I gotta admit, it was weird driving into work this morning knowing I had CA plates on my baby car. The fact that it's rainy " sad doesn't help. More pics of the dreary ceremony are available on hegman.com, of course.
Non-dreary part - I got to use that cool wrenchy thing I have in my toolset. I forget what kind of wrench it is, but you turn it " it clicks back without unscrewing, then screws, then clicks back without unscrewing, etc. Socket wrench, maybe? (sometimes I pull this girl thing off so well)
I have very little left that says, "I'm from MN!" The DMV guy told me yesterday he was glad I didn't have that MN accent, so I don't even have that to hold on to.
The acceptance process continues...

CA DMV

My time with the CA DMV has come to a close. I wrote a monster check out to them this morning " received the license plates I've been longing for, and the most recent DMV employee I worked with was quite friendly " helpful. We even joked around a bit.
I do feel I've learned from my mistakes on this whole moving to another state deal, and may begin a consulting firm to help others. It'd almost be worth it if someone learned from my mistakes. Plus, I could charge a bit to cover my losses.