Thursday, October 6, 2011
Monday, October 3, 2011
August
Okay, it's time to stop kidding myself.
I'm never going to find the time to give my birthday and my Tahoe posts the attention they deserve, so let's go old school and just throw all the pictures up on the www and if words come out to accompany them, YAY! And if not, you're getting a hodgepodge of August events.
(And for reals, this is hardly proofread AT ALL and probably isn't all that interesting so please forgive me for being so lazy but it's past my bedtime and I have a busy day at work tomorrow and this is all I can offer you right now, Internet. Plus, by posting these pictures I'm officially all caught up and I can get back to not feeling like a crappy and out of date blogger.)
Up first, TAHOE!
One of our favorite places for lakeside salad-bar-and-Irish-nacho'ing is a place called Jason's:
More Jason's:
Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh Tahoe Biltmore...we love you (but your $2.99 buffet SUCKS).
Preparing to contribute to the Biltmore's profit for the evening:
I can't find the photos from the olden days, but we've had photo shoots in this room at the CalNeva casino more than once. The CalNeva used to be one of our favorite haunts but the casino is gone so now it's just a really quiet, really empty hotel lobby. It sits right on the state line, so that particular room is half California and half Nevada (and we know from previous experience that they don't really like you to WHIZ over the state line in rolling chairs).
My heart belongs on the Golden State side:
My right foot was happier than my left, I can guarantee it:
We went mini-golfing another night.
Mini golf ambiance:
Christa and Jeff making the mini golf ambiance more romantic:
I have no idea what our photographer had in mind here, but Carrie and I followed her instructions and now we know what we look like sitting in front of a giant fiberglass tree:
Re-enacting a photo from 2005:
The 2005 version:
I don't know...we weren't even drinking:
Glamorous photo shoots aside, Carrie takes her mini golfing very seriously now that her boyfriend is a full-size golf fiend:
The damn blowy parts wouldn't come off the damn blowy thing!!
I cropped the rest of us out of this picture (mainly because it forced me to make a mental note to throw out the swim cover up that is three sizes too big), but Miss M here was the best part anyway:
We had dinner again...this time at a place called Gar Woods, a place known for a cocktail called a Wet Woody. They're very potent and I MAY have had a few that night.
And finally, Carrie chops onions in style:
AND NOW FOR MY BIRTHDAY!!
I was flattered that so many of my people came out to Stockton on a 100 degree day to watch the sprint car races:
My darling nephew got to ride one of the racers' kid's "Rusty" (Lightening McQueen to everyone else):
Lesley got to strike a pose in one of the cars!
Those of you on my Christmas card list know that my 2008 and 2009 Christmas cards were pictures of me on tractors, so IMAGINE MY GLEE when I realized that the race track had its own tractor!! And because my brother's neighbors are the ones who own this track, the tractor guy got called over and I got myself a little tractor photo shoot! This isn't the shot I'll be using for my Christmas card so it's safe for me to show you that I celebrated my 35th birthday by mounting a tractor in a flowy top in 100 degree heat:
I'll also note that trying to use the exhaust pipe as leverage for climbing up on the tractor is not advised, particularly when the tractor has been running because HELLS BELLS, that exhaust pipe is hot.
Live and learn.
There was cake and nachos and a tractor and mud flying in my hair and 100 degree heat and I'm pleased to report that I had a great birthday.
So anyway, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME! (Six weeks ago)
This part is from September and not August, but OH WELL:
My SILs and brothers and my miracle niece and my darling nephew and I went to Carmel to see our Aunt Suzy in a production of Annie.
I don't know what this look is about:
My miracle niece enjoyed the performance:
I love this picture. One day that tiny boy is going to be taller than his dad:
Carmel is usually less than 90 minutes away but GOOD GOD the traffic sucked and it took us two and a half hours to get there. I wont blah blah blah about the trials and tribulations of a journey that took so much longer than planned and about how we didn't have time to stop to pick up lunch because we were afraid of missing the whole thing and about how I was the only one who brought lunch (even though we'd agreed in advance that we'd BYO lunch) and about how my SILs are not ladies who handle being hungry really well and about how the snack bar had EXTREMELY limited offerings and about how my SIL Who Does Not Wear John Deere Pajamas, and who is also a vegetarian, was thiiiiiiiiiiiis close to taking me up on my offer of half my chicken salad sandwich, but I will tell you that when Annie was over, our crowd was HUNGRY.
And then there was the whole Sarah-standing-outside-the-car-and-putting-my-miracle-niece's-seat-in-the-car-and-our-car-door-getting-clipped-by-an-old-person-in-a-gold-Seabring-and-scaring-the-crap-out-of-all-of-us situation.
And then the whole finding-a-regular-restaurant-in-downtown-Carmel thing.
But we did eventually settle into an oyster bar and crammed everyone plus a car seat around a table for four and had cocktails and fish and a good time together. I believe I even commented that there was no place I'd rather be at that moment, than crammed around that little table with that exact group of people.
I was less in love with the moment on the drive home because it featured:
1) More awful traffic
2) One screaming baby
But for reals, I like my family a lot.
I'm never going to find the time to give my birthday and my Tahoe posts the attention they deserve, so let's go old school and just throw all the pictures up on the www and if words come out to accompany them, YAY! And if not, you're getting a hodgepodge of August events.
(And for reals, this is hardly proofread AT ALL and probably isn't all that interesting so please forgive me for being so lazy but it's past my bedtime and I have a busy day at work tomorrow and this is all I can offer you right now, Internet. Plus, by posting these pictures I'm officially all caught up and I can get back to not feeling like a crappy and out of date blogger.)
Up first, TAHOE!
One of our favorite places for lakeside salad-bar-and-Irish-nacho'ing is a place called Jason's:
More Jason's:
Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh Tahoe Biltmore...we love you (but your $2.99 buffet SUCKS).
Preparing to contribute to the Biltmore's profit for the evening:
I can't find the photos from the olden days, but we've had photo shoots in this room at the CalNeva casino more than once. The CalNeva used to be one of our favorite haunts but the casino is gone so now it's just a really quiet, really empty hotel lobby. It sits right on the state line, so that particular room is half California and half Nevada (and we know from previous experience that they don't really like you to WHIZ over the state line in rolling chairs).
My heart belongs on the Golden State side:
My right foot was happier than my left, I can guarantee it:
We went mini-golfing another night.
Mini golf ambiance:
Christa and Jeff making the mini golf ambiance more romantic:
I have no idea what our photographer had in mind here, but Carrie and I followed her instructions and now we know what we look like sitting in front of a giant fiberglass tree:
Re-enacting a photo from 2005:
The 2005 version:
I don't know...we weren't even drinking:
Glamorous photo shoots aside, Carrie takes her mini golfing very seriously now that her boyfriend is a full-size golf fiend:
The damn blowy parts wouldn't come off the damn blowy thing!!
I cropped the rest of us out of this picture (mainly because it forced me to make a mental note to throw out the swim cover up that is three sizes too big), but Miss M here was the best part anyway:
We had dinner again...this time at a place called Gar Woods, a place known for a cocktail called a Wet Woody. They're very potent and I MAY have had a few that night.
And finally, Carrie chops onions in style:
AND NOW FOR MY BIRTHDAY!!
I was flattered that so many of my people came out to Stockton on a 100 degree day to watch the sprint car races:
My darling nephew got to ride one of the racers' kid's "Rusty" (Lightening McQueen to everyone else):
Lesley got to strike a pose in one of the cars!
Those of you on my Christmas card list know that my 2008 and 2009 Christmas cards were pictures of me on tractors, so IMAGINE MY GLEE when I realized that the race track had its own tractor!! And because my brother's neighbors are the ones who own this track, the tractor guy got called over and I got myself a little tractor photo shoot! This isn't the shot I'll be using for my Christmas card so it's safe for me to show you that I celebrated my 35th birthday by mounting a tractor in a flowy top in 100 degree heat:
I'll also note that trying to use the exhaust pipe as leverage for climbing up on the tractor is not advised, particularly when the tractor has been running because HELLS BELLS, that exhaust pipe is hot.
Live and learn.
There was cake and nachos and a tractor and mud flying in my hair and 100 degree heat and I'm pleased to report that I had a great birthday.
So anyway, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME! (Six weeks ago)
This part is from September and not August, but OH WELL:
My SILs and brothers and my miracle niece and my darling nephew and I went to Carmel to see our Aunt Suzy in a production of Annie.
I don't know what this look is about:
My miracle niece enjoyed the performance:
I love this picture. One day that tiny boy is going to be taller than his dad:
Carmel is usually less than 90 minutes away but GOOD GOD the traffic sucked and it took us two and a half hours to get there. I wont blah blah blah about the trials and tribulations of a journey that took so much longer than planned and about how we didn't have time to stop to pick up lunch because we were afraid of missing the whole thing and about how I was the only one who brought lunch (even though we'd agreed in advance that we'd BYO lunch) and about how my SILs are not ladies who handle being hungry really well and about how the snack bar had EXTREMELY limited offerings and about how my SIL Who Does Not Wear John Deere Pajamas, and who is also a vegetarian, was thiiiiiiiiiiiis close to taking me up on my offer of half my chicken salad sandwich, but I will tell you that when Annie was over, our crowd was HUNGRY.
And then there was the whole Sarah-standing-outside-the-car-and-putting-my-miracle-niece's-seat-in-the-car-and-our-car-door-getting-clipped-by-an-old-person-in-a-gold-Seabring-and-scaring-the-crap-out-of-all-of-us situation.
And then the whole finding-a-regular-restaurant-in-downtown-Carmel thing.
But we did eventually settle into an oyster bar and crammed everyone plus a car seat around a table for four and had cocktails and fish and a good time together. I believe I even commented that there was no place I'd rather be at that moment, than crammed around that little table with that exact group of people.
I was less in love with the moment on the drive home because it featured:
1) More awful traffic
2) One screaming baby
But for reals, I like my family a lot.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Look what I found in the pocket of a pair of jeans I was going to put in the Goodwill pile
Look what I found in the pocket of a pair of jeans I was going to put in the Goodwill pile, originally uploaded by dumpstar_drummer.
A washing machined $20 bill! I'M RICH!
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
I didn't want a pink stuffed elephant doll. And: Baby Girl Skywalker.
We had a work event at Dave & Buster's tonight. The food sucks and I'm not into the arcade AT ALL so I'm never JUMPING! UP! AND! DOWN! to go, but I did end up having a good time for a three reasons:
1. I got to watch two chicks I work with, including the Amazing Race Winner, play Dance Dance Revolution.
When we first got there, there were 10 or so geeks watching the current players (dancers?) and it was unclear who was next. The Amazing Race Winner just walked right up to one of the dudes, smiled real big, and asked him if he was in line.
I was FASCINATED to see that she was like hot oil in a frying pan because DAAAAMN, the geeks all SCATTERED as soon as a gorgeous girl in figure-hugging suit asked if she could play next.
I'll also say that this chick has many talents, but DDR'ing isn't one of them. (XOXO SS!)
2. I had 20 or so tickets after playing a few rounds of Deal or No Deal and *I* sure as heck didn't want any of the prizes available in the "store" so I gave them away to a pre-teen who acted like I'd just given him a million dollars.
So sweet. Made my night.
3. While I was watching some colleagues play skee ball (an awful value in terms of ticket winnings), I swiped my card on one of those machines where you drop a coin in the slot and hope to make other coins fall off the edge and then you get tickets based on how many coins drop off the edge.
It started with just me and one other chick killing time by dropping coins, but then we figured out the strategy and the tickets just came pouring out. It wasn't too long before all six spots of this otherwise totally unpopular game were filled with a bunch of us, all in our professional ensembles in a sea of Raiders jerseys, trying to knock coins off the ledge.
I ended up with a huge pile of tickets at my feet and I was sort of excited to go find another pre-teen and make his day with an armload of free tickets. One dude I worked with really wanted my tickets for himself but DUDE, YOU WORE A DOLCE AND GABANA POLO SHIRT to last night's crab feed -- you don't need my tickets.
And then another chick I work with thought I should give them to one of our peeps so he could get something good for his kid.
But no, I wanted to go make some stranger kid's day.
So we walked around, looking for the recipient of my riches but it had gotten late and most of the people in there were too old or too non-fresh-faced-and-adorable to earn my tickets. I did find one kid who I really wanted to give them to, but realized that he was VERY BUSY playing some sort of machine gun video game where he had to kill swamp creatures or something and I didn't want to interrupt him. I tried to wait him out, but he never died and realized that I was the 35 year old woman standing around, "watching" a 12-year-old play a video game and THAT'S not flattering, so I gave up on him.
I did eventually find a chubby 12-year-old who looked like he might appreciate my tickets so I offered them to him but he looked like a deer in the headlights and wouldn't take them and called for his mom.
Damn.
But I couldn't just walk away because that would have been weird too, so I was like "Dude, I'm just trying to give you my tickets. I don't want them" but my generosity was VERY CONFUSING.
His mom eventually came over (with a decent handful of tickets already) and I had to explain that I was just trying to get rid of my tickets. She was surprised and happy to take them, but it just wasn't the same as the pre-teen GLEE that I experienced earlier with my measly 20 tickets.
BOO for not just giving them to Dolce & Gabana, but I guess that kid's mother should be pleased that her kid doesn't take candy (tickets) from strangers.
----------
In other "I Work With Interesting People" news, another chick I work with told me today that her college roommate was Luke Skywalker's daughter.
1. I got to watch two chicks I work with, including the Amazing Race Winner, play Dance Dance Revolution.
When we first got there, there were 10 or so geeks watching the current players (dancers?) and it was unclear who was next. The Amazing Race Winner just walked right up to one of the dudes, smiled real big, and asked him if he was in line.
I was FASCINATED to see that she was like hot oil in a frying pan because DAAAAMN, the geeks all SCATTERED as soon as a gorgeous girl in figure-hugging suit asked if she could play next.
I'll also say that this chick has many talents, but DDR'ing isn't one of them. (XOXO SS!)
2. I had 20 or so tickets after playing a few rounds of Deal or No Deal and *I* sure as heck didn't want any of the prizes available in the "store" so I gave them away to a pre-teen who acted like I'd just given him a million dollars.
So sweet. Made my night.
3. While I was watching some colleagues play skee ball (an awful value in terms of ticket winnings), I swiped my card on one of those machines where you drop a coin in the slot and hope to make other coins fall off the edge and then you get tickets based on how many coins drop off the edge.
It started with just me and one other chick killing time by dropping coins, but then we figured out the strategy and the tickets just came pouring out. It wasn't too long before all six spots of this otherwise totally unpopular game were filled with a bunch of us, all in our professional ensembles in a sea of Raiders jerseys, trying to knock coins off the ledge.
I ended up with a huge pile of tickets at my feet and I was sort of excited to go find another pre-teen and make his day with an armload of free tickets. One dude I worked with really wanted my tickets for himself but DUDE, YOU WORE A DOLCE AND GABANA POLO SHIRT to last night's crab feed -- you don't need my tickets.
And then another chick I work with thought I should give them to one of our peeps so he could get something good for his kid.
But no, I wanted to go make some stranger kid's day.
So we walked around, looking for the recipient of my riches but it had gotten late and most of the people in there were too old or too non-fresh-faced-and-adorable to earn my tickets. I did find one kid who I really wanted to give them to, but realized that he was VERY BUSY playing some sort of machine gun video game where he had to kill swamp creatures or something and I didn't want to interrupt him. I tried to wait him out, but he never died and realized that I was the 35 year old woman standing around, "watching" a 12-year-old play a video game and THAT'S not flattering, so I gave up on him.
I did eventually find a chubby 12-year-old who looked like he might appreciate my tickets so I offered them to him but he looked like a deer in the headlights and wouldn't take them and called for his mom.
Damn.
But I couldn't just walk away because that would have been weird too, so I was like "Dude, I'm just trying to give you my tickets. I don't want them" but my generosity was VERY CONFUSING.
His mom eventually came over (with a decent handful of tickets already) and I had to explain that I was just trying to get rid of my tickets. She was surprised and happy to take them, but it just wasn't the same as the pre-teen GLEE that I experienced earlier with my measly 20 tickets.
BOO for not just giving them to Dolce & Gabana, but I guess that kid's mother should be pleased that her kid doesn't take candy (tickets) from strangers.
----------
In other "I Work With Interesting People" news, another chick I work with told me today that her college roommate was Luke Skywalker's daughter.
Monday, September 26, 2011
Wub You
One of these days I'll get around to telling you all about Tahoe and about my birthday and about how I still haven't gained my juice fast weight back and about how I haven't had caffeine in like 38 days or something and about how I still have pretty awesome focus and about how I'm going to wait until I donate blood again (next month) so I can have my blood pressure taken so I can see if the caffeine-free living has a positive impact on that and if it does, then adios forever caffeine, but if not then I'll probably break at some point and even if I do continue with the caffeine-free living, I'll have to get a decaf pumpkin spice latte because HELLO, IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO AUTUMN WITHOUT ONE!
Also:
1. Work is killing me. KILLING ME. Dead. I will stop working 12 hour days on October 19th though so cross your fingers I make it that long.
2. Married people continue to be flabbergasted that someone as wonderful as ME could be single, but I'm tell you guys, there's like a force field of man-repellent around me.
3. I'm moving back into my parents' guest bedroom in a few weeks, but I SWEAR TO YOU, it'll only be until February so I can get through Christmas and Guam without having to pay rent.
4. Oh hey, I'm going to Guam! In January! To visit my friends Aly and John! And Carrie is coming too! And I'm hoping to get an overnight layover in Tokyo so we can get our passports stamped and check Asia off my list of continents (though I totalllllly recognize that "Asia" shouldn't be checked off with one 14 layover in Tokyo, but it's good enough for me...also...I'm not sure if Japan counts as Asia as in the CONTINENT because Japan is an island, so I'll most likely talk myself into going back one day).
4a. And Danielle, YOU BET YOUR BRITCHES that if we go to Japan I'll be bringing home a suitcase of weird Kit Kats!!!
5. And speaking of Danielle, I am going to visit her and her husband Mike and their baby Will in like TWO WEEKS! Jordan is coming to represent Team Texas too! HOLLER!
6. And I'll have to be sure to do the whole Tahoe/birthday/juice fast catch up crap SOON because if I get into October and I haven't told you about August yet and I have a trip to recap, I'm NEVER gonna get back to August...so I'll add that to my to list along with the "Work 10-12 hour days every day except for Friday when I can still be up sending emails to people at 1AM because I don't have to get up at the ass crack of dawn the next day so I can make it into the office early so I can get some PEACE AND QUIET ALREADY" and the "pack up the house and move again" and the "try to keep my life in order" items that are currently sucking up my time and giving me gray hair and wrinkles.
6a. The good news is that there's hardly anything to report for September because I was too busy going to work, coming home, eating dinner standing by the kitchen sink, going to bed and then going to work again. Rinse and repeat.
6b. Also on the To Do list: Ask boss if I can expense Botox for the increasingly deep concentration line forming between my eyes.
7. And btw, the thing that is keeping me tied to my desk at all hours was SUPPOSED TO BE a one time thing but I've heard rumors that it's going to happen again, at which point I might have a stroke.
8. UNICORNS AND RAINBOWS!
9. And then just so I can post something not worky-whiney -- My niece and nephew are perfect and wonderful and I adore them. My miracle niece is much less serious in her old age and my darling nephew can MAKE MY WHOLE DAMN DAY by running over and giving me a hug and a kiss.
OOH! And the other day I told him that I loved him (for probably the 75th time that day) and he replied "Wub you" and I nearly died. (In the good way and not in the "life being sucked out of me by work" way.)
I will be so sad when he gets older and is embarrassed by his Aunt Elizabeth saying "I love you, my precious darling." BUT HOW CAN I EVER STOP??!!
10. Also: Nevermind the context, but I just got this text from Ho Ho Lo:
Pretty soon you are going to be hitting on Jersey-esque douchebags and I'll be drooling over bearded, socially awkward dudes...What's happening to us!?
And then I ELL OH ELL'D.
Also:
1. Work is killing me. KILLING ME. Dead. I will stop working 12 hour days on October 19th though so cross your fingers I make it that long.
2. Married people continue to be flabbergasted that someone as wonderful as ME could be single, but I'm tell you guys, there's like a force field of man-repellent around me.
3. I'm moving back into my parents' guest bedroom in a few weeks, but I SWEAR TO YOU, it'll only be until February so I can get through Christmas and Guam without having to pay rent.
4. Oh hey, I'm going to Guam! In January! To visit my friends Aly and John! And Carrie is coming too! And I'm hoping to get an overnight layover in Tokyo so we can get our passports stamped and check Asia off my list of continents (though I totalllllly recognize that "Asia" shouldn't be checked off with one 14 layover in Tokyo, but it's good enough for me...also...I'm not sure if Japan counts as Asia as in the CONTINENT because Japan is an island, so I'll most likely talk myself into going back one day).
4a. And Danielle, YOU BET YOUR BRITCHES that if we go to Japan I'll be bringing home a suitcase of weird Kit Kats!!!
5. And speaking of Danielle, I am going to visit her and her husband Mike and their baby Will in like TWO WEEKS! Jordan is coming to represent Team Texas too! HOLLER!
6. And I'll have to be sure to do the whole Tahoe/birthday/juice fast catch up crap SOON because if I get into October and I haven't told you about August yet and I have a trip to recap, I'm NEVER gonna get back to August...so I'll add that to my to list along with the "Work 10-12 hour days every day except for Friday when I can still be up sending emails to people at 1AM because I don't have to get up at the ass crack of dawn the next day so I can make it into the office early so I can get some PEACE AND QUIET ALREADY" and the "pack up the house and move again" and the "try to keep my life in order" items that are currently sucking up my time and giving me gray hair and wrinkles.
6a. The good news is that there's hardly anything to report for September because I was too busy going to work, coming home, eating dinner standing by the kitchen sink, going to bed and then going to work again. Rinse and repeat.
6b. Also on the To Do list: Ask boss if I can expense Botox for the increasingly deep concentration line forming between my eyes.
7. And btw, the thing that is keeping me tied to my desk at all hours was SUPPOSED TO BE a one time thing but I've heard rumors that it's going to happen again, at which point I might have a stroke.
8. UNICORNS AND RAINBOWS!
9. And then just so I can post something not worky-whiney -- My niece and nephew are perfect and wonderful and I adore them. My miracle niece is much less serious in her old age and my darling nephew can MAKE MY WHOLE DAMN DAY by running over and giving me a hug and a kiss.
OOH! And the other day I told him that I loved him (for probably the 75th time that day) and he replied "Wub you" and I nearly died. (In the good way and not in the "life being sucked out of me by work" way.)
I will be so sad when he gets older and is embarrassed by his Aunt Elizabeth saying "I love you, my precious darling." BUT HOW CAN I EVER STOP??!!
10. Also: Nevermind the context, but I just got this text from Ho Ho Lo:
Pretty soon you are going to be hitting on Jersey-esque douchebags and I'll be drooling over bearded, socially awkward dudes...What's happening to us!?
And then I ELL OH ELL'D.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Saturday, September 17, 2011
The Foursquare mayor of my car wash
I'm not sure what's going on here, but it sure looks exciting.
Also noteworthy: He is also the mayor of a tanning place and a 24 Hour Fitness.
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