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.