live well. laugh often. LOVE much.

so we had this thing happen at my lab and now everyone at work is calling me "mama." it's a long and funny story, but anyway, that's my new nickname there.

andy and i didn't work today. we decided to play hooky. lol... i wish it were that easy, but no, we're not working today because we're going to the court date of the guy who stole andy's truck. andy's pretty laid back about it all and feels like he's just glad to have his truck back. i don't think i'd feel that way, but who really knows.

did i tell you guys we're supposed to go to puerto vallarta in june? i'm so excited! andy's dad and stepmom have a timeshare and they invited us to go with them. i haven't been on a vacation-vacation in a while. well, maybe when we went snowboarding to seattle was the last time. but i don't think that's really a vacation, i'm talking about lounging and vegetating and chilling out. gee, have i ever done that? :) anyway, flights right now are damn cheap, i hope andy's stepmom gets back to us on whether or not we're buying our tickets ourselves (she says the timeshare-or someone, i'm not exactly clear-might take care of our flight arrangements, too). oh, but i am so ready for it.

i'm starting to get the reprints back that i ordered from costco from the wedding pictures. ouch, the reproduction price of those is BRUTAL. and i've only gotten half of them back. and, not to mention, that i'm making my own album. i just made a ton of reprints of pictures of people that i'm actually going to be giving because i hate it when people take pictures of me and i never see them or get a copy. anyway, i'm in that process, so that's that.

i made reservations for valentine's day for me, andy, neneng, ronald, my mom and julena. and guess what, everyone forgot that it was on a monday and andy and ronald have a basketball game. i tried to change the reservation but no-can-do. also, i tried another restaurant that i've been wanting to go to and they are booked. valentine's day is going to be SO fun if we end up watching their game and going to keith's restaurant afterward! no, not really. it sounds like other people might not be there, so maybe they'll forfeit.

okay, i got up early today even though i didn't have to so i could get stuff done and not waste my day off. wish us luck today and that justice will be served... okay, it's not THAT dramatic.

i either have a pimple or a sty on my eyelid. either way, it popped and now whatever is oozing out of it is clouding my vision. pretty nasty, right?

i was thinking about that wonderful little place today. i'm not sure why. but it's funny cause i was thinking about how not only did we LOVE eating at that place, but also about how i've associated some strange moments in my life to that place. for example, that's where i was when i saw one of my best friend's mom's with her secret lover. and like the innocent 11-year-old that i was, i walked up to her and i was too young to even pick up on how uncomfortable she was when i said hi. i figured it out later when my friend told me that her mom was having an affair. tough moment to have when you're 11. also, that's where we were when neneng saw lice in my hair. oh, the run-in chef. what fond memories i have.

i would chop off my left arm for a krispy kreme RIGHT NOW. my period has been rough on me this time around. it's confusing me. i was debating on getting cold stone for lunch even though i had a delicious sandwich waiting for me back at work. i made the wise decision and ate the sandwich.

so, here's a quick story. we have a funds manager for our project who oversees where our federal grant money is being spent. anyway, she royally screwed some things up. and here was what she had to say for herself "oh, i hate it when people say this and use it as an excuse, but it was because of my period." WHAT??? christ almighty, ladies, do not use this as an excuse for anything, namely in the workplace. i told andy this story and he goes "see, that's why women don't get any respect in the workfield." well, no shit. men say women can't be in positions of power because we "get too emotional." ugh, and then a woman like her goes and uses an excuse like THAT. see, if you act like your period is this thing that completely disables you, men will continue to treat women this way. unbelievable.

ugh, it's usually never going to be a good day when i drink coffee, my lips fail as beverage catchers and i get a nice, brown beverage on my shirt. why? why do i have to be accident prone? it's really unfair when i think about those people who have great poise and almost never spill food/liquids, bump body parts on walls, or trip over their own feet.

this month is almost over. how does that happen? when people told me that time flies when you get older, it really is true. it's like you wake up one day and you are turning 27 in 4 1/2 months. what's that about? i'll really be in my late 20's. wow.

sometimes my co-workers are really funny. cause look at this. it's a long story, but we laughed about it.

anyway, what about thumbmaster on saturday? what's everyone doing???

i've been eating a lot of chocolate lately. more than usual. i think that i must be going thru some subconscious stress because i don't usually turn to chocolate as a comfort food. one of the interns brought each of us one of those big symphony milk chocolate bars and a box those ferrero rocher chocolates. i couldn't stop eating that symphony bar. and now that it's gone i've cracked the other box of chocolate open. also, i keep getting these kinks in my neck and back sporadically ("it means once in a while - why don't you try using it in sentence"). yep, the only thing that does this to me is stress.... but i don't know what it could be.

i've been feeling out of whack lately. i've been a regular old CP. like i don't particularly want to talk to or see anybody, i've been short with andy and the dogs. hmmm... it's a mystery.

anyway. we're driving to arizona tonight. at least the weather will be like it is here. and i'll get to read my new book that i ordered from borders.com. i guess it has some plusses. i'm leaving work early.... i'm almost done and i'm out... oh, and at least it's a 3-day weekend. you can't beat that.

i decided to do a second post cause i was just reminded of something. on my way to work yesterday, i passed a debbie gibson song on kyxy.

and i thought.... "hm, i remember the days when the women in music that we looked up to were girls like debbie gibson, and tiffany and paula abdul." see, that's the thing. that's not who the girls, and i say girls cause they are in fact, almost all little girls and not in fact women, that are in music today are not the debbie gibson type. yes, debbie gibson was even too straight-laced and wholesome for her own good then, but look how different that was... and it was only 10 years ago. how is that? it boggles my mind. am i really that old?

yes, i'm quite the liberal woman and i truly love that because that is who i was raised to be. it tickles me when my own husband and i are watching TV and a guy on TV goes "well, i'm the husband so i'm going to decide" and andy looks at me and says aloud 'hm, now if that were MY wife, i would hear 'oh, i don't THINK so.'" and it's true. and andy has accepted that about me, too (most of the time at least LOL).

my point being is that the girls that are to be idolized today are not the kind of women you want to be. WHEN DID IT BECOME OKAY TO BE AN AIRHEAD WHO DRESSES LIKE A HARLOT???

me and crissy have talked about this and i know i have this really high expectation of the girls that i know to want more in life than the role that women are given. and it's most likely unrealistic to want that of everyone, but for some reason, that's who i am... and that doesn't necessarily mean that's who i think you should be.

there is more to life than having a hot body, giggling, and tossing your hair to get boys' attention. life is too short to be that superficial.

be somebody. go DO something. be a person whom your children will admire.

.....i say this as i step off my soapbox.

i've been really clumsy lately. clumsier than usual, if you can believe it. i was putting water into meya's bowl today and dropped the cup and the water splashed all over the place including on me and on my glasses. that's how my day started. super, huh?

i've also been really tired lately. just kinda running around unecessarily, i think. i just need to chill out at home for a while.

work's been busy. but the new year has been better than the way last year ended, at least workwise.

one last thing... pens.com is lame. not just as a basketball team, but as an actual company, too.

okay, so guess who does "moose!" JULENA. me and andy taught her and it's hilarious. you should see. she's not at 100% response rate yet, but she's getting there.

andy and i watched "lemony snicket's a series of unfortunate events" and it was really good. we also watched "farenheit 911" last night and it was alright. i didn't even really want to watch it, but andy did. it just made me angry.

this weekend was a good weekend. nice and relaxing for once in a very long while. we watched a couple of movies, slept in on both days, and just didn't have to do anything too taxing and house related all weekend. oh, those dump runs are a killer. but finally our house is normal and livable and i can actually make dinner now (as opposed to when our kitchen didn't have a dishwasher, thus no hot water, and when our refrigerator was in the living room).

so, we're going to arizona this coming weekend to bring andy's mom and nieces and nephews their xmas gifts. i don't particularly feel like it, but it's a 3 day weekend so we might as well. and we should be getting back early on monday since andy and ronald have their basketball game.

ugh, i wish neneng's lasagna would just be cooked already. i'm so hungry. poot.

last night andy and i watched "tupac: resurrection." what an interesting movie. have you watched it? i recommend.

i'm still a little sick. but i came to work anyway. i've been busy all day, too.

i hear it's snowing in boston. hmm.....

does anyone else watch "lost"? andy and i do. we're addicted. it's good. and poor matthew fox. i told andy last night that i think i've seen him cry on TV more than any other man.... he used to cry like a baby on "party of five." but so did scott wolf.

i just took my hair out of the pencil that it has been wrapped up in all day since this morning and my hair looks fly. damn, right after haircuts my hair is the bomb. i can't wait for my color touch up when my highlights will be blonder and redder. ooooooh, nelly!

i have to pee one last time and then i'm leaving work for the day. happy 1 year anniversary to me!

i'm sick... again. what else is new? i swear, this virus dealio is going to take out my temporal lobe or cause me to have testicular cancer. i stayed home from work today to get some rest and get better. i did rest and i do feel a little better. i'm breathing out of my nose again which is a conquered feat all in itself. but i am almost out of tissue. and i haven't taken a shower today.

i'm gonna work tomorrow, in an attempt to make the sickness go away. at least it will be humpday and only a couple of days left to the week. it's good that i have so many sick days for work.

i really should have gotten a flu shot, especially me... duh, duh, duh.

hey, who else is up for another game of thumbmaster this weekend besides me, j, and andy????? put your names on the list.

it's all over, thank god. we got thru christmas, we got thru new year's eve, julena is a year old, and my house is a lot cleaner than i thought it would be post-holidays. me and andy slept today until 1:30 PM, it felt soooooo good. i'm still tired and now i'm sneezing, i really hope i'm not getting sick again.

i can't believe i have to go back to work tomorrow. it doesn't feel like i didn't work all week, i was working my ass off at home, so that wasn't much of a break. i was sleeping late and getting up late, but i don't think i'll have any problem going to bed early tonight. i actually think i'm ready to go back to work. me and my co-workers finished the "project" we were trying to finish before the end of the year, so that is a weight that has been lifted off our shoulders. oh, and come to think of it, i'll have been at my job for a year on january 5. neat.

well, i was just checking in. good luck with the move crissy and matt. too bad you guys are gonna be in a different area code now. we'll miss you. but all the things that are happening... good for you! it must be nice.... and i say that cause i'm happy for you.... AHHHHH, just kidding. we really are really happy for you. see you two around the block.

happy new year.... i'm sure my cousins are going to read this and wonder when i did this. ahh, you were all dowstairs suckers. and that was a rousing game of thumbmaster. thank you for attending. hello 2005..... no wammies, no wammies... and stop!