to this day for so long.  Start of vacation.  After several strenuous months at work, I hit a major milestone on a project.  I feel good.  Much was accomplished and now I am rewarding myself with a vacay.  Was even able to leave by 3pm and go to afternoon class!  A little exercise before a long flight was just what I needed.  Vacation preparation rituals completed ( packed, call family,put hold on paper), and now just chillin' at the house before departure. Hitcha' back in a week.

 

 

 

Oh my gosh.  This msn spaces background is AWESOME!  Scroll down for maximum effect.  Check out the groovy dancing . You can just barely see the  red vinyl LP and record player. Why have I never noticed this one before?   Do you think all the dancers are Indian?

 

I am so confused by this image.

As previously mentioned, I'm fond of singing hip hop to the dog. I like to modify the words to customize them to the dog's situation. I usually do this when I first get home b/c I typically listen to KUBE on the commute so the songs are fresh in my head.  Lately I can't get that crappy E-40 song out of my head.  Last night I was singing "Ghost Walk the Roo" per a modified E-40 lyric and realized I have no idea what "ghost ride the whip" meant in the song.  This is why urban dictionary is so cool.  I can't believe that this song is about doing such a stupid thing.  Well, I guess I can believe it since so many songs are about flashing your bling, wearing jewelry on your teeth, and otherwise demonstrating how rich/important/sexy/etc the artist is.  Why is doing donuts in your car (while outside the vehicle) the hot, hip, activity to brag about?  I just don't get it. It isn't cool at all. 

Why is it that I am 'morally' opposed to eating veal but I find lamb delectable?  I always used to say that the reason why I don't eat veal is because I don't want to eat babies...but I am finding that we eat lamb fairly regularly now and I have no issues with eating those little guys.  Like tonight's meal: Lamb Burgers. Yummies. Maybe I should try some veal, I hear it is quite succulent.

 

Two mini blogs about food means I need to eat some lunch.

When it is a Gelato Ice Cream Cake!  We just had a work bday celebration with a raspberry gelato cholocate mousse cake.  Oh my! It came with fresh fruit, chocolate shavings, and dollops of whipped cream on top.  I'm in gelato heaven...and it was the real deal gelato too. None of that fake american gelato shit.

• Crunch 'n Munch
• Munchos
• Munchies
• Munch'ems

• Junior's sizes are odd numbered sizes like 3, 5, 7, 9 but never even numbers. I tend to wear a lot of juniors clothes
• Women's sizes are even numbers like 2, 4, 6, but never odd numbers
• Petites are smaller cuts of women's sizes for shorter/smaller ladies. I can wear a lot of petite pants for work b/c of the shorter length.
• Sometimes clothing sizes are combined for juniors and women's and so the label will say: 3/4, 5/6, 7/8, 9/10, etc
• The clothing isn't based on bust size
• Pants are rarely based on length/waist size like men's pants.
• Lots of times women's clothes, particularly shirt and blouses are simply XS, S, M, L, XL
• My size ranges from a 2 to a 6, typically.  It really varies.  For example, as of this year I can now fit into a women's size 2 pants (which I have never been able to do), but I consider myself more of a 5/6 and have considered myself that size since high school. I can wear a 2, but I can rarely can fit into a size 3.  I can wear size 4 in some pants and skirts, depending on the length and cut.  If the option is size 3 or size 5, I wear a 5 almost exclusively.  I may be a size 5 at one store, but I can be a 2 in another store or even an 8, depending on the brand (Roger found this the most shocking, the sheer range of sizes that I might fit into depending on brand).
• I am typically an S or an M for shirts/t-shirts.  I have to look at the cut and whether it is 100% cotton to decide which one will be best.  My shoulders are broad and so sometimes a small is too tight under my armpits and I have to wear a medium. If it is a stretchy fabric then I can wear a small. If it is 100% cotton and small then I can't put it into the dryer. This is why we bicker when he tries to do laundry and shrinks my clothes. He has no idea which ones need to air dry and which ones are acceptable to go into the dryer. Honestly, it isn't his fault it is so freaking confusing. After many fights and crying episodes where 'my favorite X' was destroyed, his default is to now air dry anything that seems suspect....or just let me do the laundry instead.
• The size standards vary by country. For example, I am actually a size 10 or 12 in Australian sizes.

The other night we were watching Veronica Mars (which is the best show on TV in my opinion) and the episode involved a Sadie Hawkins dance.  I noted that none of the couples were dressed alike.  What's up with that? That isn't a real sadie hawkins dance.  At my high school there were two 'rules' to sadie hawkins dance: 1) the girl asked the boy and 2) the couple dressed the same.  Yeah, it is kind of silly, now that I think of it, but I did in fact go to three sadie hawkins dances and for each one I dressed the same as my boyfriend at the time. It was fun to go shopping with them and find something that both parties wanted to wear.  I asked Rog what they did at Reno High and he said they didn't have sadie hawkins dance. WTF! 

 

 Here is my question for my blog readers:  Did you have sadie hawkins and if so, did you have to dress the same as your date? Was that just some weird thing my high school did?

• No breakfast
• Drinking excessive amounts of coffee (I was up to 4 large cups of rotgut a day)
• Drinking lots of soda (one a day after shifting from the coffee)
• Eating lots of sugar to help keep me awake and alert
• Eating crappy food (fast food or few veggies because I 'don't have the time' to eat better)
• Drinking beer when I get home to drown away my worries. I'm not talking excessive amounts of beer or binge drinking, but regularly 1-2 pints a night.
• Sleeping less than 6 hours a night
• Little to no exercise

• Started eating breakfast. Even if it just a roll, a piece of fruit, or a packet of flavored oatmeal I eat at my desk.
• Dropped my coffee consumption to 1-2 moderately sized cups of coffee.
• No soda in the afternoon. Anytime I crave a soda or coffee, I instead drink a glass of water or juice instead.  I had one soda last week and none so far this week.
• No sugar.  Current vice is excessive amounts of 'light' popcorn. Not as satisfying as 'buttery' popcorn, but at least I get this stuff for free at work and it isn't sugar. That said, I gorged myself on candy last weekend while watching the Final Four.
• Eating a good sized salad at least once a day for lunch or dinner or both, plus some veggies or at least a piece of fruit at lunch.
• Occasional beer.  Also use the approach of drinking a glass of water first before having a beer to prevent dehydration. I still have a beer, but only a couple of times a week.
• Still not getting much sleep, but at least have decided to not set the alarm before 5:30 a.m. anymore.  I have been chronically snoozing this week and all it does is irritate Roger.  I am trying to get at least six hours of sleep a night and get at least 7 hours of sleep a night on the weekends.
• Go to class in the evenings, even if it means I have to work from home that night.  Eh, this one I've been 'hit or miss' with. Sometimes I can't leave in time, but at least I am going 1-2 x's a week now plus tai chi.  At least that is 4-5 hours of exercise a week in addition to any dog walking I do in the evenings. I was skipping class all the time last month. I am now leaving work at 5:30 so I can make it to class...Whee!

Groan. It is baseball season.  I used to think baseball was an ok sport, and yeah, it is fun to watch live in a stadium. After moving to Seattle and experiencing Mariners fans, I have to say I now despise baseball.  I don’t know why, but I find Mariners fans totally annoying.  I don’t have the SODO Mojo or any of that crap.  Once baseball season starts, that is all anyone seems to want to gab about, and I just don’t care.  Enough already.  I’m glad that it seems they will have a crappy season, so I don’t have to hear about them.  Afterall, nobody gives a rip about Seattle sports except for people who live in the NW.   I know these feelings of hatred toward Mariners fans are not reasonable.  That said, Mariners fans ruined baseball for me. The only thing that might be worse than a Mariners fan is a Huskies football fan.  Huskies fans are near rabid about the team.  They can't seem to stop talking about dem Dawgs. 

 

I write these things and it makes me seem like I don’t like sports or support the local sports teams.  That is not the case. I quite enjoy watching sports.  I have been a solid Sonics and Seahawks fan as soon as I took up Seattle residence.  It isn’t Seattle sports teams I have a problem with. It is the fanatics who support the teams.

 

Now that it is spring and daylight savings just happened, I am actually getting home while it is still light out.  That is nice.  Just got back from a walk with the dog.  There were these huge, gray, ominous storm clouds charging across the sky.  They looked so layered, textured, deep gray, and visibly moving toward the Lake.  The new 'hood allows for many opportunities to gaze at the sky or nature at work.  I spend a lot of time looking up at the clouds that hover around the Lake and hillsides that fringe it.  We seem to have a microclimate here with the water and undeveloped acreage at Seward Park.  Windy stormy conditions drop down right before a heavy rain.  A couple of weeks ago, I sat on the couch and watched lightening strike twice  in Seward Park. 

 

I never really looked up at the sky that much in the old 'hood--except to look at planes flying overhead or to glower at the crows that would taunt Roo.  My gaze was much more at the ground level, surveying my surroundings and all the activity along the street and sidewalk.  Down here, it is ok to just let my gaze wander because I don't have to worry about getting hit by a car or running into someone on the sidewalk.  Instead I can keep a look out for birds or ducks, check out the clouds, or let my eyes wander the surface of the lake.  A very peaceful way to end a busy day. I noticed today that I even walk slower around here than I did in the old 'hood.  I just naturally stroll,  even when wet and stormy.  As dark as it can get during a storm, it is vibrant blue and green around here when it is sunny.  I can't wait for summer. Let's get to it already so we can start swimmin'!