The End of Vacation

Cabin number two was more remote than the first. It was in the Stevens Pass area in the Cascade Mountains. Being a kid from the Plains I haven’t had much experience with mountains. Sure, I drive through Pennsylvania plenty of times but that was about it. These mountains were beautiful our ears popped continuously and Tony was a little scared of my driving. I wasn’t going above the speed limit (was below it plenty because f the rain), was keeping with traffic and was being perfectly safe. He just wasn’t as sure about all that as I was. I was having a blast on those curves. We had a little problem finding our turn off because Tony didn’t realize the directions were two pages but that was solved relatively quickly and we made our turn and came upon this.

Yes, that is a one car at a time wooden bridge with a 5mph speed limit. I wasn’t scared driving on winding roads up and down mountains in the rain but that bridge kind of freaked me out. The rest of the drive up to the cabin was pretty scary. Lots of turns and dirt roads and places where you could fall in ditches. We made it and all was well. I didn’t snap a shot of the outside of this cabin as you drove up which is a shame but the real beauty of the place was the view. You have the views from the living room, the balcony, and the other side of the living room. Unfortunately, it rained the whole time we were there and we didn’t get to hike around like we wanted. Someone from the area might not have been bothered by the rain but we city folk weren’t having it. We did have a rainy hot tub experience and it was fun but very cold upon getting out. I wished that tub had a cover over it like the other one.

While our first spot was all about luxury, this one was all about being in the woods at a good old fashioned log cabin. We made a fire in the big fireplace, kept the fire going in the pellet stove, and sat down with board games and an extensively random VHS collection. It was quite the cozy time. The second night I made a wild mushroom alfredo on this scary old fashioned stove that was just delectable. I used Lobster mushrooms, chanterelles, and a chef’s sampler of all kinds of random mushrooms. I caramelized an onion and then threw them in the skillet, how yummy is that? After they had cooked down I dusted them with flour, poured down some milk, and dumped in some Gouda. The plate was garnished with fresh chives and we sat down to look at the river and the mountains to eat. I had taken a really great picture of the plate but it didn’t download for some reason so you get us making faces and tucking our napkins into our shirts while we eat instead.

The last morning I woke up and was leisurely cooking breakfast when the maid drove up…WHAT? Apparently checkout was at 11. I thought it was 3. I told her I thought it was 12. I woke tony up and we rushed out of there. We got a motel on the road to shower and catch some more sleep since our plane wasn’t until 11:30 that night. It is very strange to drive up to a motel and tell them you need a room for a few hours. Oh well. The rest of the way back was rather uneventful. We stopped at a mall somewhere to try to find a book. There was no bookstore in the mall…WHAT? We went to a casino by the airport but there were no slot machines, only real games…WHAT? The flight was uneventful and we made it to our apartment at 5something the next morning. We proceeded to sleep for days. We still haven’t unpacked. So it goes.

Vacation Part 1

So I am back in the real world after 12 days of no alarms, very little required things to do, and lots of hanging out in bathrobes. Needless to say I am somewhat sad to have returned.

We flew into the Seattle/Tacoma airport on Saturday the 4th and had a very uneventful trip, rented a car and got on our way. We headed to the Seattle to get on the Bainbridge island Ferry. My impression of Seattle was, WOW. Hills. Kind of scary to drive down a hill and not be able to see the bottom. That’s about all we saw of Seattle though. We get a glimpse of the space needle from the plane and from the ferry deck and I feel that legitimized the trip. We drove off the ferry directly onto the road we needed to be on and followed the directions to the best grocery store ever. Oh, Central Market, Poulsbo. How I miss you. I never expected to find a 24hr grocery store filled with tons of gourmet produce and the biggest selection of vegetarian meat type products I have ever seen in the middle of nowhere Washington but I did. We walked in to a cart of fresh chanterelles and lobster mushrooms. I knew that I would be making a mushroom alfredo at some point during our trip. We stocked up and headed out to the Maplebrook Retreat.

The directions we had were a little…confusing. We spent a VERY long time looking for Front Street and never found it. We even stopped and asked someone where it was, they seemed to know exactly but their directions didn't help us much either. I think it’s a fake name. We started to think that maybe this place did not really exist and that some people made a website to direct unsuspecting people to the middle of the woods and kill them, or simply to take their money for a nonexistent property. We soon found the street after Front Street on our list of directions and took that, hoping that we weren’t heading to our deaths.

The next direction told us to look for an old bus stop around mile marker 2 with some mailboxes in front of it and turn onto the dirt road. I’m a city girl. To me a bus stop has a bench, a sign, and maybe a little enclosure to shield you from the elements. We drove and drove on a barely lit 2 lane highway at speeds of 50mph so as not to get hit by cars around us looking for a bus stop. We found mile marker 2 but no bus stop. We found the street that let us know we had gone too far and needed to turn around. We drove back and forth between mile marker 2 and the street that was too far for a while. There were a couple of dirt roads with mailboxes but no bus stops.

“There it is!” Tony shouted, and pointed to a small shack. “What do you mean?” I replied. I saw nothing resembling a bus stop. He explained that there was an old warming house for kids to wait for a school bus and I was passing it. I supposed he was right and we turned around to turn up that proper dirt road and look for the property. I turned on the brights (or held them on because I couldn’t figure out how to make them stay on) and we looked for our property number. We were still terrified. It was a scary place. We found the property number and turned up the drive.

As soon as we made the turn we were greeted with small lights leading up a winding drive to a very well lit cabin. The thoughts of death started to abate. As we pulled in fully we saw a covered, and well lit, hot tub beckoning us. We opened the door and were greeted with dim lighting, soft music, and wonderful smelling candles. We walked through the cabin and found the most luxurious bedroom, opened the closet to find cushy wonderful bathrobes, and quickly decided that we were certainly not going to die and were instead going to have a wonderful time.

In the day, everything was much, much, less scary.

Boring Meme of Nothing

The brain is filled with thoughts of vacation and thoughts of making sure everything is in order at work before I leave for vacation. All else has been pushed to the background. 3 days of work left and 4 till the plane leaves. It's almost here. Rental cabins here we come!

Therefore, I give you meme that Monica tagged me with. She has nothing to say either.

1. What are your nicknames?
People used to call me Nat. That doesn’t happen too much anymore. My sister calls me Head, no one else is allowed to because coming from anyone else it would be gross and wrong. Sometimes Tony calls me Bearface. We like bears, they are cute, its ok. Mizzle calls me Nizzle and that is also fine. Most people should just call me Natalie though.

2. What game show and/or reality show would you like to be on?
Lingo, Wheel of Fortune, Who wants to be a Millionaire, that’s about it

3. What was the first movie you bought in VHS or DVD?
I have absolutely no idea. It was probably Kuffs or Universal Soldier or The Great Muppet Caper.

4. What is your favorite scent?
Delicious food

5. If you had a million dollars that you could only spend on yourself, what would you do with it?
I would pay all my debts, buy a house and furnish it, buy a car, and go on a very long vacation. Anything left over goes into retirement accounts.

6. What one place have you visited that you can't forget and want to go back to?
I haven’t gone anywhere al that great since Friend and I went on after college trip. Maybe after Washington vacation in 4 days I’ll have more to talk about.

7. Do you trust easily?
Depends on who is talking. If they are a friend then yes.

8. Do you think before you act, or act before you think?
Both. I usually think too much about things I should just do and not enough on things that I should think about more

9. Is there anything that has made you unhappy these days?
Not too much, things are pretty good

10. Do you have a good body image?
Reasonably so

11. What is your favorite fruit?
I ate fresh figs the other day, they are not my favorite but they are pretty good. I think I like mango the most

12. What websites do you visit daily?
My various emails, facebook

13. What have you been seriously addicted to lately?
Thinking about vacation

14. What kind of person do you think the person who tagged you is?
Mizzle is a bitch

15. What's the last song that got stuck in your head?
“Plastis Wafers” of Montreal, cause I am a huge predictable nerd

16. What's your favorite item of clothing?
My navy blue cardigan, it makes me oh so cozy

17. Do you think Rice Krispies are yummy?
I have, but I have been wrong

18. What would you do if you saw $100 lying on the ground?
Take it. Although, like Mizzle said, if I were inside that would probably change

19. What items could you not go without during the day?
computer, TV

20. What should you be doing right now?
This is fine

PACKIN MY BAGS GOING AWAY

Tomorrow I am getting on a plane and flying to Minneapolis. I hate the journey to the airport but I love when the doors to the plane close and we take off. I know I’ll be home soon.

This trip is a pretty big one. Mom is graduating with a Masters degree in something that I don’t understand and took her about three sentences to explain to me and I still don’t get it. I think it has something to do with education and community development. Needless to say, I am incredibly proud of her. If I recall correctly this is actually her first graduation. I could be wrong but I don’t think she walked in High School or for either one of her Bachelor’s degrees. This is a pretty big deal and I am so glad I get to be there.

I love Minneapolis. It’s a great time of year to be there. It would be better in about a month but this will do. The city is beautiful and I can’t help but smile as I drive around and see all the green and the blue. They weren’t kidding when they called Minnesota the land of 10,000 lakes. Even though there is a big old lake on the East side of Chicago I don’t get the same watery satisfaction here that I do at home. It’s a serene place.

I’ll hang with the family, see some friends, and relax as much as possible. It should be a good couple days. Sometimes I wish that Minneapolis was as close as Evanston but most of the time I am glad of where it is because I can truly go away and still feel at home.

1. I know I should get next to you/ You’ve got a look that made me think you’re cool/ But it’s just sexual attraction/ Not something real so I’d rather keep wackin’. Why Bother, Weezer. Identified by Monica

2. Now for all ya’ll who ain’t heard of me/ Mr. M-O-E the Barre Baby/ I’m a South Side living legend/ A third ward /bone hard/ Street veteran

3. Oh Baby Baby how was I supposed to know/ That something wasn’t right here/ Oh Baby Baby I shouldn’t have let you go. Baby One More Time, Britney Spears. Identified by Brooke.

4. Make of our hands one hand/ Make of our hearts one heart/ Make of our vows one last vow/ Only death will part us now. One Hand One Heart, West Side Story. Identified by Mom.

5. They sentenced me to twenty years of boredom/ For trying to change the system from within/ I’m coming now I’m coming to reward them

DANG THAT LOOKS GOOD

I gave my first Financial Fitness workshop today and it went just swimmingly. I had seven people initially sign up and Brenda got three emails saying people canceled but three came so I was happy. I hear we have a 50% show rate anyway so I was only expecting three. I had some very minor technical glitches but nothing that disrupted the presentation as a whole.

Glitch 1. To get the presentations on the computer that hooks up to the projector you have to email them to yourself then download them onto that computer. I did this with no problem. However, I neglected to close out my email when I was done. Therefore, every time I got a new email during the presentation a window would pop up that said “you have new mail”. It would go away after a few seconds but it was slightly embarrassing.

Glitch 2. Not only did I not close out my email, I didn’t close out anything. Therefore, when I needed to go to a website during the presentation, I had to sift through all these mucky windows to get there. I thought it made me look a little technically incompetent. I also flubbed the should be seamless transition back into the slide show.

Glitch 3. This is actually not a glitch, I just thought it was. There is a remote thing by the computer that I assumed you were supposed to operate your presentation with. I couldn’t’ make it work so I operated the presentation by mouse. I guess that is just how it works.

Needless to say those errors are really minor. On a scale of 1-5 I received one 4 and two 5s for the presentation and two people said they planned to take action on what was discussed so that is a good thing. I was even able to answer all questions. Tomorrow’s presentation may be another story. While the material is easier only three people signed up. We’ll see what happens.

Although I haven’t had a Foodie Friday in some time, I thought now may be a good time for some foodie stuff. Why? Because Mom sent pictures from Christmas and that means you can see the Christmas Pizza. Yes, my family eats pizza for Christmas dinner. We never had a tradition and one year my sister said she wanted pizza and fudge. It stuck. Shoshana and her friend Will handled the crust, cheese grating (mozzarella, romano, provolone), and ingredient chopping while I made the sauces and picked ingredients. This year we made some beautiful pizzas.


Pesto
3 cups fresh basil
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1 clove garlic
1 1/2 cup + (or so) olive oil (add more if needed)
Squirt of lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste (All this stuff is really to taste)

Toppings
Artichoke hearts
Spinach
Feta
Onion
Fresh Basil

The lemon juice was a totally new thing to my pesto making but it really hit the spot. I tasted it and thought it needed citrus but wasn’t sure but Shoshana suggested it and I knew she was right. It was delicious.


Red Sauce
1 big can of whole tomatoes drained
1 clove garlic
1/4 cup fresh basil
Dash sugar
Salt and pepper to taste

Toppings
Mushrooms
Onion
Fresh Garlic
Fresh Basil

I think we ended up adding some of the drained out tomato juice to the sauce for volume but you can’t blend it all together, then you don’t get the nice chunky quality.

1. When the Witch Doctor Life/ throws his silent bones/ some are crowned kings/ while others lose their thrones

2. Hot Cha where are you/ Everybody’s eyes are closed/ I can’t see why I miss you so/ So Hot Cha where are you. Hot Cha, They Might Be Giants. Identified by Monica

3. Little bag of bones been out all night/ Little bag of bones been out all night/ Can you hear him scratching at the screen door. Kitty, The Presidents of the United States of America, Identified by Jason.

4. On a rooftop in Brooklyn/ One in the morning. Watching the lights flash/ In Manhattan

5. Look on yonder misty mountain/ See the young monk meditating/ Rhododendron forest/ Over dusty hills I ask you. Epistle to Dippy, Donovan. Identified by Monica

RINGING IN THE NEW YEAR

Being back at work after many days off is never an easy thing. Luckily, I have plenty or organizing and planning to do and it doesn’t involve an extraordinary amount of brain power. Mostly I just have to read lists and then put the information in different places. Good times. My office is freezing. I think I need a heater. When I get home I am totally sitting in front of one.

Since my last post the year has changed. I had a fantastic New Years Eve and a very slow New Years Day. So it goes. Tony and I got all dressed up at around 5pm and left the house at six for our 7pm reservations at MK. We got there at 6:55 and were promptly taken to our table, which was nice and private but still in the middle of everything. We were thoroughly overwhelmed by the wine list and asked the waiter to recommend something, he did and it was delicious. I have no idea what it was. All I remember is it was Spanish and white and had an apricot aftertaste.

Our meal started with an amuse bouche. I had some salsify with a few sprigs of what was either very large sprouts or very small greens, a lemon sauce (we’ll call it a reduction to be fancy), and some black truffle shavings. It was delicious. Tony had some kind of shooter in an oyster shell. I think there was something cucumberish about it. He said it was nice.

Course two was an endive and field green salad for me and a lobster salad for Tony. Endive is an interesting food. It is very bitter and yet somewhat sweet, almost licoricesque. The dressing was light and lemonish and complimented the bitterness of the salad very well. There were also some baby croutons and orange slices in there that went perfectly. Tony said the lobster salad was good.

The third course was, in my opinion, the highlight. I had a sunchoke soup that was poured tableside over two small piles of diced endive topped with an orange slice. It was creamy, just the right temperature, and had the most delicate flavor that I’ve had in quite some time. However, it still really stuck to the ribs. The tiny orange slices were the icing on the cake. The way they just burst apart and complimented the soup was exceptional. Tony had the squab which was served over lentils. His face lit up when he tasted it and seemed to enjoy it most of all. Monica later told him that squab is pigeon. He still thought it was tasty.

My main course was a risotto trio. The first didn’t quite seem like a risotto as it appeared to be made of diced endive (a common thread) but I could be wrong about that. It was topped with baby carrots and delicious carrot foam. I was ecstatic about getting foam on my meal. It just made me think of Marcel and smile and laugh. I was surprised at how carroty and delicious the foam actually was. The second risotto had a delicious parmesan flavor and was topped with I believe oyster mushrooms that were cooked to perfection. MMM delicious. The last was a black truffle infused risotto with an abundance of black truffle shavings. Also divine. We ordered some pomme frites with the main course and they were served with a white truffle aioli. Those were some killer fries. Unfortunately, we were fat too full to eat all of them. Tony had turbot which he said was tasty but he was getting too full to really enjoy it anymore.

The dessert course was also a highlight for me. I ordered the lemon dessert while Tony opted for the chocolate. I was so glad I had the lemon. The chocolate wasn’t bad; warm chocolate cake with some chocolate moose type stuff on the side. The lemon was heavenly. I had a very light custard that just melted on the tongue and it had these sweet lemon curls of wonder on top. Then there was the lemon tart with a caramelized crust on top and a flaky wonderful crust on the bottom. Although I couldn’t finish it I most certainly wanted to. Although we took longer than the 90 minutes we were told we would get the staff didn’t rush us out at all and were more than accommodating throughout the meal. They were an absolute delight.

Then it was into a cab and over to Dave’s place. He assured us that the march to the lake would be optional so we didn’t need to go home and change first, which was good. I don’t know if I would have made it back out had I been able to enter my cozy abode. In true Dave fashion there was a plethora of delicious looking food at his house, sadly we were far too full for anything although I did sneak a couple handfuls of popcorn and a forkful of enchilada at around 1 or so. I did help myself to the rum and hot apple cider though. MMMM. After a march around the block (although some continued on to the lake) and some more chillin, Tony, Brooke, and I headed home and proceeded to drink some wine which I think helped me feel very lethargic on Monday. I went to bed around 3 while Tony and Brooke stayed up until about 7. Crazy. Tony still managed to get up around 9, take a shower, and head to the store to buy breakfast. What a goofball.

I forgot my iPod today, although I did remember to bring my iPod speaker to the office. No songs today.

FOOD FUN AND FRIENDS

You gotta love friends being in town. After I spent Thursday recuperating from my trip home by lazing in my pjs, doing puzzles, and sleeping Friday was a time to get out and get going. I planned to meet Monica and Brooke for lunch downtown but that didn’t quite happen. Brooke came over after lunch and we got to chat a little bit and then headed to the train where we met Dave and then were off to Ba-Ba-Re-Ba for some Tapas and Sangria. Monica and Lakeiya met us there. Hooray for lots of friends! After four pitchers of sangria and delicious tapas, one of which looked like a caramel covered nutty poo (but was incredibly delicious) we though it would be an excellent idea to travel far out west for Karaoke.

Sadly, I had forgotten my check card but since I was with friends they made sure I wasn’t too thirsty during the singing festivities. That’s what friends are for. Brooke and Monica’s band, The Obnoxious Hollering Assholes, made their official debut, which is funny because I am kind of the only friend who isn’t in the band in some way shape or form. Apparently you have to ask them to be in the band and I thought they should just ask me because I am so obviously talented. Guess not. On the way to karaoke Dave became the costume designer and Lakeiya became their lawyer. I was still just chillin. Anyway, I am now at least something since I had a fairly large part in the debut. Our first two numbers were a complete group effort (Brooke’s first time up on the karaoke stage) and were both completely Asshole type songs.

Lakeiya had to go home at around ten because she is a sleepy little girl who likes to go home. Plus she lives in the suburbs and it takes her a while to get anywhere. I guess it was acceptable. Monica and I both did atrocious solo songs. We both decided not to do those songs again. I should have sung The Letter instead. We should know better then to get up and sing when we are afraid. We are never afraid to get up there. It was a sign. Dave and Brooke did an awesome rendition of a karaoke staple, which sealed the deal for Brooke becoming a full fledged karaoke lover. We then closed out the night with a very fast song with hard to pronounce words. I can’t believe we sang it as well as we did. Our voices were totally sore and horrible when we were done but it was totally worth it. 2am it was and obviously time to go home.

It took us a while to get out of there, being that the place is in the middle of nowhere, and it was rather extremely chilly but cabs came and we got in them and then were able to get to our homes. Today should also be a good time. We plan to eat burgers and drink bad sangria (not to be confused with the delicious sangria at Ba-ba-re-ba) at Moody’s. Should be a good time. I have once again made a post and it isn’t yet 2008. However, as I got an awesome laptop for Christmas, it makes posting wile doing other things much easier and therefore possible.

For the songs today I will use the ones we sang for karaoke in the order of which they were sang. This does mean six songs instead of five but it just seems right. Obviously, Monica and Brooke have no business answering these.

1. I pulled into Nazareth/ I was feelin' about half past dead/ I just need some place/where I can lay my head. (sung awesomely by the Obnoxious Hollering Assholes) The Weight, The Band. Identified by Johnny Yen.

2. He went out tiger hunting with his elephant and gun/ In case of accidents he always took his mom (sung awesomely by the Obnoxious Hollering Assholes). The Continuing Story of Bungalow Bill, The Beatles. Identified by Johnny Yen.

3. He came from somewhere back in her long ago/ The sentimental fool don’t see/ Tryin hard to recreate/ What had yet to be created once in her life (sung quite poorly by Monica) What A Fool Believes, The Doobie Brothers. Identified by Johnny Yen.

4. Heard of a van that’s loaded with weapons/ Packed up and ready to go/ Heard of some gravesites/ Out by the highway/ A place where nobody knows (sung quite poorly by Natalie). Life During Wartime, The Talking Heads. Identified by Johnny Yen.

5. Twenty-five years and my life is still/ Trying to get up that great big hill/ of hope/ For a destination (sung incredibly awesomely by Brooke and Dave). What's Up. 4 Non Blondes. identified (with the wrong title) by Mom.

6. Harry Truman/ Doris Day/ Red China/ Johnny Ray/ South pacific/ Walter Winchell/ Joe DiMaggio (sung surprisingly well by The Obnoxious Hollering Assholes (although Lakeiya had left)). We Didn't Start The Fire, by Billy Joel. Identified by CS.

THOUGHTS ON 07

2007, it was a year. A year full of stuff and things. A year full of times of various types. It was a year that brought some changes and I have a feeling will be one that will serve to lead me into the next chapter of life, or something like that.

Despite going from Ma’am to Miss I feel that I have done a lot of growing up this year. I feel like I have come to realize that the time for not knowing and just kind of muddling through life with absolutely no direction may be coming to an end. The end isn’t around the corner or anything, probably down the street a few blocks, a mile or so south, and somewhat east. Either way, it is a lot closer than it was before.

Making a career change has been something on my mind since I made the failed change in late 2005 and went back to Jobs For Youth, albeit in a much better position, in 2006. I think the change I have just made is a good one though, one that will not only help me to better construct my life in many ways. I think I am actually around people who want me to grow and change and transform rather than people who just want me to do what I do and do it well. It’s refreshing.

It was also a good year for fun. I’m not the type of person who loves to get out and do things and 2007 provided me many opportunities to have fun without going out and doing things. The PS3 came into my life. I fell in love with Attack of the Show and Ninja Warrior. I was made incredibly happy by two Of Montreal shows. TV was particularly enjoyable this year. I also did get the chance to get out on a regular but not overwhelming basis, which was quite nice. I even got Tony to play a decent amount of scrabble.

Pretty good year.

1. Today was the day/ For dancing and for singing/ The birds in the trees/ And all the bells are ringing

2. My head’s been lying dormant like a sleepy little mouse/ What I have inside me it’s enough to fill a house

3. Repair the hull/ Replace the sail/ The monkey wrestles with the ghost

4. City bird/ Haven’t you heard/ hasn’t anybody told you/ the city blocks can hold you/ Your place is in the sky how can I show you

5. A wanna be gangster thinking he’s a wise guy/ rob another bank he’s a sock em in the eye guy. If You Have to Ask, Red Hot Chili Peppers. Identified by, Jason.

REUNITED ONCE AGAIN

As I was driving to my friend Jenny’s house I had a strange sense of calm. This part was going to be easy. All the people that would be there were certain to be happy to see me. The only twinge of nerves that I got was in trying to find a parking space. It wasn’t hard but I was determined not to have to parallel park and spaces I thought I could fit in were just a little too small. I planned on arriving fashionably late but was the first one to arrive. No worries, Jenny and I were friends and we would have plenty to talk about. It isn’t every day that you get to sit down with someone who is about to go help build governments in Liberia. Soon after they all trickled in; Emily, Sarma, Miako, Mara, and Jasmine I had seen most of them since High School but none in the last four years or so. It was like no time at all had passed. We caught up, looked at old pictures, and Emily pointed out that none of us had peaked in High School. Good to know. Then it was time to head down the street and over to the actual reunion.

As I walked in my stomach clenched. I was sure that by rolling seven deep all sense of nerves would easily disappear, I was wrong. I looked into the room and saw a sea of faces that I mostly remembered. Jasmine looked at me and let me know she just got nervous herself. I felt a little better. I saw my friend Evelyn who was on the badminton team with me and went to say hello. About twenty seconds into the conversation I realized I was not talking to Evelyn and had no idea who I was speaking to. I got out of there fast but no one seemed to notice. Why wasn’t she wearing a nametag and why did she look at me when I said Evelyn? Oh well, crisis easily avoided. We went to get a drink because you always look less out of place in a bar with a drink in your hand and then scanned the room for people I actually wanted to talk to.

Surprisingly, there were some people of interest. People I hadn’t thought about in ages but who I had shared some good times with. They were the ones who I was most interested in talking to. There were some that got a nice nod or a quick hello but others who I wanted to reminisces with, people who I was actually interested in. Granted they were few and far between but seeing them really meant something. I think I managed to put off only one person. The last think I said to this guy was, “I might never see you again and that is ok with me.” I didn’t mean any offense by the statement, it was simply true. He actually nodded. We talked briefly and he mentioned that he was engaged. I said, “good job,” and he looked a little offended. Emily told me I probably shouldn’t say things that sound like I am surprised anyone would want to marry someone, I guess she has a point. I got to tell a good friend’s wife about the day we ha in High School to “honor” him. See he used to wear his flannel shirts all the way unbuttoned and tucked in. He kept the shirt open about four inches, two on either side of his belt buckle. Emily and I came to school dressed that way one day. I mean how do you tuck in an unbuttoned shirt with precision and not expect people to pay homage? His wife thought it was the funniest thing ever and vowed to have a similar day of her own.

I have friends doing really interesting things; moving to Liberia to help get the government up and running, running a biology lab, working in non-profits, going back to school, finishing up residency, etc. They also seemed really interested in what I did, which was nice because I sometimes take the good I do for granted. My only complaint was that you don’t charge people $15 for a function and then only have an open bar for an hour. No that it mattered to me because I was driving, but still. All I can say is that I am very glad that I went and hope that some people will be true to their word and come visit me. The rest I’ll see in 2017.

THREE DAYS OF WOODSY FUN

The main point of our vacation was to spend some time at my friend Stephanie’s cabin. Her great grandfather built this place way up north in Minnesota and her grandfather added a second cabin so he could have some peace and quiet when all the grandkids came. It is now a getaway that her family shares. We planned for three days of boating, floating in the lake, and general fun in the sun. After the four-hour drive up North (complete with traffic for no reason) we parked and then it was straight onto the boat! I’m glad we did it because it would prove to be the only time we would get out on the water.

(Steph, Ryan, and Rachel on the boat)

It was cold at the cabin. We hadn’t packed for it. Luckily I took a few long sleeved shirts from my father before we left because without them it would have been horrible. There were a few hoodies in the cabin as well and they also came in handy. A few times we even resorted to wearing our bathrobes because they were one of the few things with sleeves that we had at our disposal. Despite the cold, we were able to eek out a good time.

Steph’s cousin, Christian, who once lived with Monica and I for 9 days and deserves a special place in the roommate horror stories was also at the cabin with five of his friends. Steph and I had tried to coordinate with Christian so that our stays would not overlap, and they weren’t supposed to, but then the day before we were going up Christian called me to say how excited he was that we would be up at the same time. I tried my best to remain jolly sounding on the phone. Not that I am anti-Christian, that time has passed. However, we were bringing six people and two dogs up there and it just didn’t seem like it would be as comfortable. I figured they had been up there for seven days already so….

It turned out ok. Christian’s roommate Rachel was a blast. She was pretty sick and tired of her group so new blood was welcome. She came out on the boat with us and Ryan taught her how to skip rocks. She saved the pair of goggles that Ryan dropped in the lake trying to do a Navy Seal type dive off the boat making her utterly awesome in our opinion. The first night there was a BBQ and plenty of ruckus campfire fun.

(The second cabin and our usual haunt, the fire pit)

Christian’s group was leaving the next day but not until midnight, which seemed strange to me, but whatever. They spent most of the day sitting around doing not much and not cleaning up all their mess and leaving us to handle most of it in our one remaining day at the cabin. For some reason that didn’t seem quite right but, whatever. Tony and Ryan went for a hike and I made them yesterday sandwiches for the road. They were gone for hours and I thought they may have died but eventually they wandered back. Ryan is an eagle scout and all.

I tried to put together an incredibly difficult puzzle because I thought it would make me seem smart. I shouldn’t have been so ambitious. It was a round puzzle with a painting of wolves on it. The entire thing was various shades of brown and a few shades of green for pine needles that were scattered throughout. Every piece looked the same. It was about half done by the time we had to leave the cabin. To my credit, Christian’s group had started an easy puzzle and left the identical sky pieces unfinished. Roxanne and I tackled that in no time.

(Getting started on the wolf puzzle)

Steph’s boyfriend, Aaron is a master at fire making. Without him we would have froze even more than we did. He had a great method of drying out logs on the side of the fire pit to add when they got just right. He tended that fire like it was his child. We also made excellent food the whole time we were there. In retrospect, it was a pretty great time after all. Not what we expected, but it worked out fine just the same.

BACK IN THE REAL WORLD

Vacation was a great time. It did not go entirely as planned but it was truly awesome. Being back from vacation, however, sucks buttholes. There will probably be many posts detailing the stages of vacation but I got to start somewhere so I’ll start at the beginning, Minneapolis.

The drive to Minneapolis was rather uneventful. I got in the car and drove. I stopped as little as possible. We left later than I had wanted to and we had dinner reservations at The Dakota for my parent’s anniversary and my Uncles Birthday because they are on the same day. Note to anyone who knows me: If you get married on June 5th you are a dick and I am not your friend anymore. Thanks to Mommy changing the reservations we had a very delicious dinner. I got a drink that made me a little wack-a-do (champagne, pomegranate liqueur, and vodka) but then it wore off really fast and I was completely sober. The couple at the table next to us hated our party because we like to laugh and do not always have inside voices. Whatever, the man had a bright red suit jacket on and they were lame. Ryan, Tony, and I left the club and went bar hopping in the Uptown area. Actually, they hopped and I drove. I’m so awesome.

Bar 1. Rudolph’s
This place is real ok. It would be nice after work or something. It has a bit of a big cushy booth feel to it. Ryan and Tony were convinced they had ordered $8 beers because they were huge and full of Guinness. I reminded them that they ordered the special and we were in MN. They didn’t believe me until we got the check.

Bar 2. Mortimer’s
This place is real great. They have every single bar game imaginable and some. We were incredibly excited to play air hockey (Tony and Ryan were very excited about $8 pitchers) and got three games worth of quarters. Tony and Ryan played the first round and I was to play the loser. Then this group of ruckus looking individuals put some quarters down on the table claiming the next game. That was ok. While they were playing we put our quarters down. Somewhere during the game I think the quarters disappeared. That was to be expected though because one of the guys was playing like a madman. He was slamming the puck left and right. When they were done we were going to play but noticed he left the thing you hit the puck with quite bloody. Never mind.

Bar 3. Was supposed to be Liquor Lyle’s but ended up being the C.C Club
I was at this bar for my 21st birthday. It is still a great bar. The people are chill and a motley crew, but in a good way. It’s a place where bikers, emo kids, and hippies can hold pleasant conversations. We enjoyed ourselves. We would have liked to be at Lyle’s but I haven’t been in Minneapolis for a while and was on the wrong street. Oops. Never fear. Lyle’s stories will follow.

Bar 4. The Bulldog
This bar used to be one of my favorite restaurants in the Twin Cities, The Mud Pie. While I was growing up it was the only Vegetarian restaurant around. I could be wrong about that but it seemed like it. They had awesome enchiladas and a great Middle Eastern platter. It had the most wonderful smell. Sadly it is now a bar but at least it is a nice seeming bar. While there Ryan suggested to Tony that they take a biking/rafting trip. They would bike somewhere and then raft down the Mississippi for a while like Huck Finn. I thought this was hilarious. Tony knew it was slightly hilarious. Ryan thought it was totally doable. They did bike from Chicago to Milwaukee after all. I was talking about how horrible their trip sounded because it wouldn’t have bathrooms and showers and beds and this girl at the bar likes what I had to say. I think she liked Ryan too.

We then walked back to the car and I drove the scenic route home taking the boys around the lake where my friends and I used to drive and drink, but not at the same time. We would trade weekends and one person would drive around the lake and the others would drink from the huge gallon jug of amaretto. The boys laughed at how responsible that was as I relived the experience. Then we went home.

As we opened the bed it must have been caught on the plug for the table lamp because when we laid down there was a loud thunking sound and the light went out. The next morning I looked and it appeared the bed had somehow broken the outlet in half. I realize as I am typing this that I neglected to tell my parents this. Mom, Dad, this is why there is a broken outlet sitting on the bedside table in my old room. Sorry.

End day one.

Oh, no random songs because my iPod won't go to the menu and all I can listen to is Billy Idol. I have 9 Billy Idol songs. This thing better fix itself soon.

MANIC MONDAY- MISS

The Manic Monday word for today is MISS. To view other Manic Monday participants check out Mo at It's a Blog Eat Blog World.

There are a lot of things that I miss. Some of these things them are people, some are places, some are inanimate objects, some are feelings. People and places can be visited. Inanimate objects can be brought out of storage. Feelings, however, can rarely be recaptured once they are gone.

The feeling of summer vacations, carefree and unending left at about age eleven. After that summers got to be too long. I ran out of things to do. The warm days lost their interest and a cardboard box no longer held hours of entertainment. There weren’t enough stations on the television to keep my interest and the friends I spent past summers with we no longer next door. I could recapture glimpses of that carefree feeling in the summers that followed. Some days felt like they could go on forever as if I would never again have to do anything but the feeling was fleeting and I would realize that I wasn’t being “mature” or maybe would be distracted by a cute boy.

I miss those days. I think that vacations as an adult carry almost a desperate quality to them. The idea that you have to regain a snippet of that carefree unending feeling of weightlessness before you are forced to return to the daily grind pushes you to relax to the point of exhaustion. You know your time is limited and you know what you are returning to. By the time you are able to lose track of the date you have to snap back quickly because the date of your return is right around the corner. It doesn’t stop us from trying though. Any mere taste of that childhood freedom is a beacon of hope. That the feeling still exists somewhere out there, you just need to grab it.

I miss flying. From seven to seventeen I could fly, metaphorically that is. I could always escape on the ice. The cold wind blasting into my face brought tears to my eyes. They weren’t tears of sadness or even tears of joy; they were tears of speed. There came a point where that feeling of flight became a chore and I lost the joy. I knew it was time to quit. But I missed it. In college I tried to recapture that feeling, the tears would still come but not as often and not as strong. I couldn’t fly as fast or jump as high and the work that I would have had to put in to recapture that feeling was too much for me to handle at that point. I simply didn’t have the time. Even today I toy with the notion of getting back on the ice but I know I would be even more disappointed than I was seven years ago and I have even less time to bring that feeling back.

Not to say that there aren’t new feelings that I feel privileged to have and that I am sure I would miss just as much were they to leave. They are everywhere. Some are very comforting. I guess the feelings I miss are the ones that leave you wide open. I miss not being a grown up. Even though there is a lot in my life that is still wide open, I know that the time I have to take advantage of all that life has to experience is slowly fading. Even though I don’t know all the specifics, I have a general idea of where I am going. I like that general idea, it feels good, but I miss not knowing and I miss having all the time in the world to make up my mind.

I put 90% of my music back on my iPod. The only things that I couldn’t put back were things that I got before my computer crashed so they aren’t saved on my hard drive and were only held in the iPod itself. At least I know what those things were so that I can get them again. At least there is enough on there to have a proper shuffle game. Here we go.

1. Hey Mr. Tough/ Don’t you think we’ve suffered enough/ Why don’t you meet me on the dance floor/ When it’s time to time time. Mr. Tough, Yo La Tengo. Identified by Monica

2. All aboard/ The night train/ Miami, Florida/ Atlanta, Georgia, Raleigh, North Carolina. Night Train, James Brown. Identified by Johnny Yen

3. Good morning Worm, Your Honor/ The crown will plainly show the prisoner who now stands before you/ Was caught red-handed showing feelings. The Trial, Pink Floyd. Identified by Johnny Yen

4. I’m so happy cause today I found my friends/ They’re in my head/ I’m so ugly that’s ok cause so are you/ Broke our mirrors. A song by Nirvana that my Mom doesn't know the name of but then recalled that it is Lithium.

5. Sittin in a park in Paris, France/ Reading the news and it sure looks bad/ They won’t give peace a chance/ That was just a dream some of us had. California, Joni Mitchell. Identified by Mom.

CONFESSIONS OF A DUMBASS MIND

Yesterday I did a stupid thing. I erased my MS Office at work. Before you decide I am the worlds biggest fool and click off my blog forever, let me explain. I was trying to uninstall useless programs. When I looked at the add/remove programs screen it said that this particular MS Office hadn't been used since Jan of '06. As I use MS Office everyday, I thought that I must have an outdated version installed in addition to the one I always use and that I could get rid of the extra one. That was not the case. I called the IT guy and, after laughing at me a lot, he said he would fix it. Yet, when I got to work this morning, it had not been fixed. The IT guy is not in the office today. Because I know a tiny bit about computers (although it may not seem so after what I did) I had a good idea where to look in the shared files to find the office installation program. I did end up asking for help from the Computer Instructor but I was really close to the right spot so I was fairly pleased with myself. I got the program all ready to go and then it asked me for the product code. Now I have installed enough programs to know that this was coming but the Computer Instructor told me that usually the codes just pop up for you. No such luck for me. I emailed the IT guy and am hoping he can either tell me the code or let me know if it is saved in a file somewhere.

I must apologize for any spelling mistakes in this post because I typically write in Word and do all my spellchecking from there. I don't have Word right now so I am winging it. I have some reports I need to send off to the State for my contract that are due on the 15th. I can't access them and there is a little more that needs to be done before they are ready. I know the 15th is a little ways off but I am going to be out of work the 8th-12th hanging out with my Mommy (YEAH) so I had really hoped to send them off before I leave. That way, if there are any problems (and as it is my first time preparing them there may be), I can have that fixed before the 15th.

There are times when I would welcome only being able to access the Internet and our internal system. It would mean I would have a lot of nothing to do. Typically that doesn't bother me as much. Today, for some reason, it does. Maybe I only want to get down to business because I can't. I do have some phone calls to make though so at least I have something I can do. Maybe I'll clean up my office. That never gets enough focus. Maybe not having MS Office is a good thing. Maybe not. I think there is a spare computer in my old office that I could probably sit at if things get too dire. If this hasn't been resolved by tomorrow after I get back from the National Testing site I will try that option.

I am incredibly excited to see my Mommy tomorrow (hi Mom). Let's all send her happy wishes and safe driving for her journey. It will be so nice to have her around. Neither she nor my Daddy (who sadly isn't coming but maybe he will sometime not too far away) has been to my apartment for about two years. I've been to see them, they've been to see my sister, we've all been to see my sister, but no one hs been to see me. It will be fun. We have two things planned and they are Radio Golf (August Wilson) at the Goodman on Thursday and Pan's Labyrinth on Saturday. We will also do other fun things like eat good food and go to Target. I can't wait.

Song time.

1. She’s outta my life/ She’s outta my life/ And I don’t know whether to laugh or cry/ I don’t know whether to live or die. She's Outta My Life, Michael Jackson. Identified by Ern

2. Hey pig/ Yeah you/ hey pig piggy pig pig pig/ All of my fears came true. Piggy, Nine Inch Nails. Identified by Brooke.

3. You went to school to learn girl/ Things you never never knew before. ABC, The Jackson 5. Identified by Ern

4. You are subtle as a window pane standing in my view/ But I will wait for it to rain so that I can see you. Anticipate, Ani DiFranco. Identified by Brooke.

5. No New Years Day/ To celebrate/ No chocolate covered candy hearts to give away. I Just Called To Say I Love You, Stevie Wonder, Identified by Ern and Michael C. I just have to say when I was young a friend and I had our own version of this song that we thought was hilarious. "I just called to say I hate you. I just called to say that I don't care. I just called to say I hate you. And I mean it from the bottom of my butt. In my defense we were quite young.

2007 HAS ARRIVED

It feels oddly normal to be back at work. Seems almost like the last week never happened. Sometimes travel does that to me. There is something very surreal about not doing what you normally do. Maybe this doesn’t happen for people who don’t work the 9-5, maybe it does. I’m not sure. I just know it happens to me. There wasn’t enough time of vacation to have it feel like my normal life so instead it feels like it never happened. Let me quickly sum up vacation. Ok came back here at end of post, this is not going to be quick at all, sorry. Damn my long windedness.

Minneapolis was wonderful. I saw family and friends of family (although not all the friends I would have liked to see) and we had good times. We had good times Christmas Eve when the Jews in the family came over and we ate copious amounts of snacky wonderment (hummus, bean dips (mild and hot), cheese plate (mmm cheese brie in particular), olive varieties, broccoli pie, veggies and dip) and get festive. The fact that we made broccoli pie specifically because my youngest cousin hates broccoli was particularly great. The next day, we continued to have good times despite the fact that Christmas was ruined. See, Daddy had the nerve to get up and go downstairs before Shoshana and I woke him up and said he could. Mom kind of let us tell her when she could come downstairs but wasn’t really having it. Didn’t matter, Daddy had already ruined Christmas. Actually, I ruined it because I was up and on the phone with Tony (or maybe I was reading because it would have been early for him but I really think I was on the phone) when I heard Dad get up and go downstairs. If I had any sense, the second I woke up I would have got my Sister and we would have woken our parents and had a proper Christmas morning. Maybe it is odd for a 27 and a 24 year old to wake up their parents for Christmas in the first place. We had wonderful breakfast at the Christmas Cafe and then enjoyed presents. Eventually, we made our way to a friend of Shoshana’s house for a party and drove around looking at a few lights since we hadn't had time on Christmas Eve because of watching Figure Skating and cooking and stuff. We returned home at about 10pm to make the Christmas Pizzas, which were delicious although not ready until midnight in true Daniels fashion. Despite being ruined, Christmas was great fun.

I returned to my home late Tuesday night after a delayed flight and the fact that they left a baggage cart with my bag on it (and about 1/5 of the rest of the flights bags too) on the runway and decided that I was going to splurge on a cab home because no way was I getting on the train for 2 hours at that point. Cab wasn’t cheap but was much needed. I was very happy to see Tony and open the adorable gift bag his mom left me.

Wednesday morning disaster struck. I was making breakfast after being horribly woken by Peapod delivering the wrong kind of gift certificates, when I pivoted my heel right on top of a piece of glass in the kitchen. I felt it screw into my foot and knew I was in trouble. It was in a place I just couldn’t reach and Tony was sleeping. When he did try to get it out there was no finding the thing. Maybe it was already out? Maybe it bored so deep into my foot three was no finding it? I debated the Dr. but knowing that they just dig around in the foot and may or may not find the glass I decided against it. I decided to simply stay in bed. I had planned to spend my vacation in bed anyway and with the new RF modulator my folks got me I could even play video games and hook up the long since useless DVD player. Bed was good. Warm soakings of the foot were good. Dressings of the wound were good. I was calm.

Friday I was coaxed out of bed to spend Best Buy gift cards and look for a furniture piece for the kitchen and buy some groceries. We were hungry. Got my foot bound up tight and set out into the world. Bought a bunch of games at Best Buy and some snacks to eat on the way to the grocery store. Didn’t tell the sales associate that he didn’t ring up one of the games. Started to say something but Tony looked at me like a crazy person. I remembered that the gift cards would no longer cover the cost if he rung up the game (something we were already aware of but had accepted), remembered I was poor and decided to keep my mouth shut. I obviously still feel a wee bit bad about the whole thing. Realize that I am probably lame for that. Foot started to hurt a little cause of the glass and the walking and all that. Was happy to be hom and have food to eat. Dave came over to make us dinner because he had left his pan at our house at Thanksgiving time. That was cool.

Saturday spent in bed/couch again playing new games. Sunday spent in couch/bed as long as possible then went off to Dave E. Wo’s fantastic New Year’s Gala. Brought him his pan. He tried to make us arrive earlier with threats that all food would be gone otherwise but we didn’t believe him and there was plenty of food to be had at 11 when we arrived. In true Wo fashion we had to then walk to the beach to watch “fireworks” for the New Year. Now Fireworks are at Navy Pier and Soldier Field about 500N and 500S respectively (I’m guesstimating don’t get all down on me people who live here) Dave lives at about 5600N (again a guess) so the point is that although you can see the fireworks they are miniscule. Also in true people I know fashion we were running late so the group is running down to the beach with a almost able to walk Natalie and her trusty Tony lagging behind. If he hadn’t been there I probably would have had to stop and cry because I was so far behind everyone. It did allow for a more private turning of midnight though which was nice. We caught up with everyone about 12:02 or so and had some champagne. After returning to Dave’s he made pizza (I knew food wouldn’t be missed) and we hung out until about 2 when we went home. Note to self, cabs home from Dave’s w/tip are under $10 don’t stress about it if you are there late you can handle that.

Yesterday was spent back in bed/couch and today my foot is 98% normal. Hooray! However, that doesn’t mean I didn’t have signs that this year may not be fantastic. The first sign was that at about 4am this morning, after a week of no alarm sleeping bliss I sat straight up and had to sneeze uncontrollably. Then I thought about hw the alarm would eventually go off. Then I couldn’t sleep at all and kept having to sneeze. Someone’s body didn’t want to go to work this morning. After my morning pee I thought I was going to have to call the ambulance. Then I remembered that before peeing I had emptied out my soggy cereal and milk in the toilet so I wasn’t having a serious medical emergency. Merely a serious lapse in memory. So this year I am predicting will be full of not wanting to go to work and scaring myself for no reason. Oh, before anyone thinks of asking, I have no resolutions. Happy 2007.

Dumb, Nirvana- Man I like this song like it was 1997 even though it came out way before that. Can you believe that was 10 years ago? I can't. I was all little and shit then. Thought I was grown. Now I think I was dumb.

Doomsday, MF Doom- When I was at home playing Marvel Ultimate Alliance with Dad I thought a lot about MF Doom. Why? Cause we were battling Dr. Doom of course. Duh. I love MF Doom's mask and the music is pretty good too.

Swing, Ani DiFranco- Ok so my beef with this song is probably the same as everyone's. It is such a fantastic song and then she goes with that whole rap thing and the guy comes in and it suddently sucks. You had to get the single to get a version without that mess. I suppose I could download it and replace the crappy album version with the better one on my iPod. Sounds like a lot of work.

KIND OF BACK

The conference was fantastic and the hotel was the most surreal place I had ever been. The picture shows only a little bit of the madness, check out the site for the full horrific effect. It felt like you were either in a movie set or a dollhouse. Some liked it, I found it terrifying. 9 acres of strange gardens, a river complete with boat rides, and a bunch of people who choose to vacation in Nashville (sorry to anyone who really likes Nashville) is not somewhere I tend to find myself. I can’t wait to write about all the fun things I learned. I do have to say that (as far as I know) no one has been surprised to discover I was not a lesbian since I found out Ben Carroll (who has no idea who I am but I just discovered he has a blog so why not put in a link) thought Brooke and I were a couple at Sarah Lawrence. The ladies made me feel pretty. Oh, the hotel is also called the Gaylord Opryland and that is a real funny place to hav a LGBTQ conference. Anyway, I won’t write about it now because I am completely exhausted. On the almost nice hour drive home last night (it took seven to get there) it stormed the entire way, I ran into all kinds of traffic, got back too late to return the van, and had to drive to work this morning during rush hour and return the car. Then, when I got to work I had the biggest customer service class to teach that I have ever had. My last two classes had four people each. This one has sixteen. It’s not huge but it makes a difference. I left work as soon as class got out and hurried to my bed. I hope that I will have time and energy to post something of interest tomorrow but maybe I wont. I can barely hit shuffle to get some new songs. But I will.

1. Cars and girls are easy come by in this day and age. Laughing, joking, drinking, smoking, till I've spent my wage.

2. A pretty girl is like a minstrel show It makes you laugh It makes you cry You go

3. You don’t care about me I don’t care about that. You got a new fool, ha, I like it like that. Fire, Jimi Hendrix. Identified by Brooke

4. Because mutiny on the bounty is what we’re all about. I’m gonna board your ship and turn it all out. Rhymin' and Stealin', The Beastie Boys. Identified by. Bionic Buddha

5. Before I go to sleep can I be excused from dreaming?

BACK ON THE BLOCK

I feel like it has been forever since I have posted anything. Granted I was out of town and, since being back, have been very busy at work and a little under the weather so I guess I shouldn’t feel too bad. I’ll start my return with a quick recap of the NY trip, which was great fun.

Thursday- Parents pick me up at the airport after having a hell time renting a car. You know when everyone before you in line takes like half an hour to do the same transaction that takes you two minutes, that’s what happened to them. I was fine because the weather was nice and I had a fantastic book to read. Pick up Shoshana and tool up to Tarrytown, a.k.a Sleepy Hollow to visit relatives. Have a very nice time. Eat delicious NY pizza. Oh how I wish they would make it for me here in Chicago. Bastards. Drive home. Realize that I have to share covers with Shoshana. I don’t even share covers with Tony. Complain. Resign myself to the fact and deal. It was fine.

Friday- Wake up to yummy croissants from delicious bakery by Shoshana’s house. Shoshana goes to work. I go back to bed. Eventually get up and experience funniest shower since Amsterdam at Shoshana’s house. The spigot is on the long wall of the tub and the curtain had been taken down to be washed. As I was the third person in the shower it was a veritable lake by the time I got in. Still enjoyed the shower. Go visit family friend Jason who recently moved to NY from Mpls. and has a nice place with a normal sized bathroom, which is a rarity in NY but no furniture. Jason mentions how he can’t find a good slice of pizza in NY, HUH?? Go to the Cloisters. If anyone has a chance to go to the Cloisters they should. They are beautiful and old and wonderfully peaceful. Hooray for that. Take picture of mom passed out like a bum, won’t post here because I would be disowned. Convince mom that waiting at the Cloisters for Shoshana is a bad idea. Instead meet her at her apartment and eventually go eat at Mario’s, which I am told is the restaurant where the scene in the Godfather where he gets the gun from the bathroom was filmed. Have a hilarious waiter who looks like Vince Vaughn but much younger and has a great NY Italian accent and gives little bits of advice such as “Always let the lady pick the wine. That way, if she doesn’t like it, she can’t blame you,” and “Give the lady the wine but give the check to the men.” Eat fantastic smoke mozzarella ravioli in a delicious sauce and Penne A la Vodka (Shoshana and I shared I did not eat two entrees). Pop over to delightful Italian pastry shop on the corner where the desserts are cheap and delicious. They actually give you cookies as appetizers. Feel fat. Go to Brooke’s house where we do nothing. Well we sit and drink and watch Oliver! This activity is actually not nothing. It is exactly the kind of thing we enjoy doing most. Plus it was Anya's first time seeing Oliver! and that is always fun. Great time.

Saturday- Drag my ass back to the Bronx and get in the car to York, PA for cousin’s wedding. Drive is 1.5 hours longer than Yahoo tells us. Park at 2:59 (wedding starts at 3). Delightful ceremony and yummy cake. Cousin Elise looks beautiful. Get back in car and drive to Bronx. Sleep.

Sunday- Wake up late. Eat fantastic brick oven pizza with eggplant and mushrooms. Did I mention how much I love NY pizza? Go back to Tarrytown and hang out. Drive to Chelsea to see “Little Miss Sunshine”. First stop and eat at a fantastic place that I believe is called F&B and they have many varieties of veggie dogs. I eat one with mushrooms and sautéed onions and some sweet potato fries. Delicious. Movie is also wonderful. Go home and sleep.
Monday- Wake up and say goodbye to Shoshana. Parents drive me to airport. I get on a flight two before mine SCORE. Get home and fall into couch. Tony makes me food and tends to my sickness.

All in all a great vacation.

Now, I am back at work much less sick although not better and have a start date for my Customer Service Class. Oct 5-6. Wish me luck. I am now seeing if I can fit my entire curriculum into the 2 days. Hopefully I will have students for my class. So far one has signed up. But I have time. Today must stay late to attend Jr. Board meeting even though it isn’t my job anymore. Person whose job it is has other meeting. It’s ok. Unfortunately, it is Top Model and Project Runway night and I really want to go home on time. If I didn’t have DVR this meeting would have to be cancelled. Since I do, it will be ok.

Oh, it’s back to the song guessing game time. I really like that time. In case you are new or forgot, I will put up the first line/lines of a random song from my iPod and then you put the song title and artist in the comments section. I will then add a link to the guesser's blog. Fun for everyone.

1. You turn the screws you tear down the bridge. Flimsy as it is, it’s business like.

2. I got a bad disease. Far from my brain is where I bleed. Insanity it seems has got me by my soul to squeeze. Soul to Squeeze, Red Hot Chili Peppers. Identified byMonica

3. This pig harassed the whole neighborhood. Well this pig worked at the station. This pig he killed my homeboy so the fucking pig went on a vacation.

4. You’re so gorgeous I’ll do anything I’ll kiss you from the feet to where your head begins you’re so perfect you’re so right as rain you make me make me make me hungry again. Why Can't I Be You, The Cure. Identified byMonica

5. I guess I should have known by the way you parked your car sideways that it wouldn’t last. Little Red Corvette, Prince. Identified by Mom

ON WASTED TIME

Have you ever spent a really long time on something that you just didn’t have to? I just found out yesterday that the 91-page Customer Service curriculum and 72-page student workbook. I created could have been avoided completely. I went online to check out the skills standards of the National Retail Federation (NRF) (see the aim of this program is to pass their test and I wanted to make sure I was covering everything) and was almost immediately contacted by an NRF rep. She started telling me that to teach their curriculum I would need to be trained by one of their staff. I explained that I had created a curriculum that was based on both their workbooks and other research. She essentially said oh, we could have saved you a lot of time. Yeah, it probably would have. I am wondering if I should get their training anyway, it seemed to be free and probably wouldn’t hurt the credibility of our program.

I really enjoyed writing the curriculum and it is a great skill/experience given that I want to be a teacher and all. I just wonder why no one seemed to know about this possibility. One cool thing about working on a brand new grant is that you get to figure these things out yourself. I assume, that if I ever get another new grant, that I will do a little more research on other options before putting fingers to keys for a good month. All in all, I learned a lot so it isn’t at all a bad thing.

I’m leaving for NY tomorrow for a cousin’s wedding and visits with family and Friend. I have gifts to prepare, packing to do, and CDs to burn. It is going to be a very busy night. I’ll most likely be out of commission until next Tuesday so don’t be shocked that my ever-reliable posts are on hiatus. Maybe I’ll come back with tales of wonderment. Maybe I’ll come back with more of the same old shit.

Oh, speaking of shit, Penn and Teller had this really great show last week about swearing. Personally, I love swearing. There were some people on the show, however, that did not. One thing I learned from these strange nonswearing people was the “full turkey.” See, this woman who hates swearing made up all these things to take the place of those nasty words. Instead of swearing she says things like Scuttle bucket and Santa Vaca. Essentially I deducted that the woman LOVES swearing but doesn’t want to look like she does. However, I digress, this woman is a Drivers Ed instructor and she wants to discourage people from flipping the bird because it is vulgar and awful. Instead she teaches them the “full turkey” You cannot do the “full turkey” while driving so she says that only the passenger can do this gesture. One could also do it at a stoplight. To administer the “full turkey” take your left hand, thumb pointing inward, and spread your fingers. Then ball your right hand into a fist and stick up your thumb as if you were hitchhiking. Place the flat side of your fist against your open palm and there you have it, the “full turkey.” You can flip off the world without being the slightest bit vulgar.

And now, some songs to remember me in my absence.

You Are Not Alone, Michael Jackson- See one day I was having this odd Michael Jackson moment and wanted to download all these bad songs of his, so I did. This was one of them. I can’t play it of like this is an excellent song. It is bad. I still enjoy it.

Magnolia, Apollo Sunshine- This song sounds oddly old. It isn’t. Although it sounds nothing like Blur’s Tender, it has that same “way after it’s time quality.” This band is fantastic. Thanks Monica.

Pass The Peas, The J.B.’s- The JB’s just are fantastic for a jamming groove. There is no better way for me to go on hiatus than this. You can just imagine me walking down the jetway to this tune. In case you were wondering, I look really cool.