Mindless Meanderings of a Curly Haired Girl

Good Bad Funny Report

2008-04-28T12:01:00.074-05:00

GBF:

8.18.2008-8.19.2008
Good: Gym, wrapping Yassine's present, Canobie Lake Park, Spending the day with Yassine and getting paid for it
Bad: forgetting to take the patties out of the freezer and having to use a hot water bath to thaw the meat.
Funny: giving my canobie cash to some random chinese family who didn't speak english

8.15-17.2008
Good: Watching the Olympics with Yassine, Outlet shopping!, Hanging out with Matt and Andrea! First Little Bakers Challenge Completed! Meeting with a bride and groom (first step toward my own business)!
Bad: ... beyond words
Funny: "I shouldn't have stuck a pencil up Megan's nose because she could have gotten led poisoning" - My brother, age 7(ish) after my mother made him write a letter about why it was a bad idea to stick a pencil up my nose. I had to write one saying why it was a bad idea to let him. :)

8.14.2008
Good: EMILY! Dinner at Mr. Crepe (creepy) / Coconut Almond Ice Cream at jp licks (OMG! so good)/relaxing with Yassine
Bad: sleepy head
Funny: remembering i had a second ipod an hour after going to bed and getting up and giving it to yassine

8.13.2008
Good: gymming, making dinner with Yassine,
Bad: so sleepy
Funny: yassine throwing part of his salad on the floor, then spilling burger juice on himself, then me spilling my salad. :)

8.12.2008
Good: relaxing, buying super cute green shoes,
Bad: the gym really knocking me out
Funny: using the social networking feature of wishpot

8.11.2008
Good: 1 year anniversary with the man of my dreams! Beautiful roses, romantic card, and perfect cake to celebrate.
Bad: nothing bad on a day like this
Funny: me planning to make a cake for Yassine, Yassine surprising me with a cake :)

8.8.08-8.10.08
Good: We drink shampoo, I mean champagne! Beijing Olympics Party!!!! Gymming, chilling with Elena, great workout, New Bed, cuddling with my boopie,
Bad: terrible sunday. from bad to worse.
Funny: attempting to go to Arlington Center; waiting 20 minutes for the bus, arriving, it starting to rain 20 seconds later, taking the bus home, getting all rained on.

8.6&7.2008
Good: relaxing with Yassine after work / baking cookies for the Olympics' Party! / gym
Bad: being stinky on the bus / missing my boopie / wanting to murder the linksys people
Funny: blowing a fuse and having to finish mixing my dough in the pantry

8.5.2008
Good: GYM! delicious chicken stirfry
Bad: exhausted
Funny: "Hello" - Yassine when I put my foot up to his face like a phone.

8.4.2008
Good: Short day at work
Bad: The internet and the router both not working properly
Funny: "you're not going to believe it, but now the cable's not working" - me texting Yassine after trying to fix the router and the internet for five hours.

7.31-8.3.2008

We couldn't be happier,
Right, dear?
Couldn't be happier
Right here
Look what we've got
A fairy-tale plot
Our very own happy ending

Good: MOVING IN WITH YASSINE!!!! / My parents visiting the new apartment! / Taking Yassine on a surprise trip to Spy Pond! / late night tagine / late night walk
Bad: so sore I couldn't sleep
Funny: being saved by the Keystone First Aid Kit!

7.30.2008
Good: packing!
Bad: sneezing!
Funny: Natalie buying two trash barrels that don't fit under the sink

7.29.2008
Good: gym / talking to mom
Bad: why do i have a cold in the middle of the summer?
Funny: "she had a monster face and her hair was all crazy" - Kam on the time Natalie yelled at us

7.28.2008
Good: more packing / relaxing
Bad: roommates who turn on the AC while all the windows in the house are open
Funny: "you watching battlestar galatica has effected my life negatively in the following ways"

7.25-27-2008
Good: my first time making tagine / first time making potato salad / bbq at Grampa's / packing
Bad: sore throat and headachey
Funny: the image of my cousin kirk pulling the pin on the sidecar of a motorcycle and watching his fiance go flying.

7.24.2008
Good: Date with Yassine! Buying our first bed! Dark Knight
Bad: sooooooo much rain
Funny: "How will I know when the time is right" - Alfred "it's not sealed" - Rachel.

7.23.2008
Good: workout / earlier to bed
Bad: slow day at work, too much rain
Funny: Kam singing to Cindy over the phone

7.22.2008
Good: khabab called / good work out / relaxing evening
Bad: jack attack
Funny: the homeless ppl in porter square dancing to "keep me hanging on" by Kim Wilde.

7.21.2008
Good: lunch appointment with my Denver contact / packing more stuff / relaxing
Bad: rainy on my brainy
Funny: watching a movie where Natalie sang a song

7.18-7.20.2008
Good: wandering through ArtBeat / dinner at Bengal Cafe / Packing! / QT and labor with Aaron / Late dinner / Mama Mia with Andrea / dinner and cuddles with Yassine
Bad: being astounded by people's ineptitude
Funny: the flood pouring down the stairs at boylston / Kitty cuddling with me / Mama Mia

7.17.2008
Good: half day at work / best boyfriend ever / 'all clear' from the dr
Bad: brazilian bbq
Funny: "at least now when you're ready you know you'll baby have a perfect living room" :) / "What does this do" - Yassine as he presses the 'go to sleep' button on my laptop in the middle of our excel lesson.

7.16.2008
Good: gym, more packing, Yassine
Bad: still hot
Funny: kitty jumping in every box ever / "I thought you said 'nachos' and i was like 'um, no kitty does not eat nachos'" :) my confusion over yassine getting 'natural' catfood

7.15.2008
Good: gym / packing / the lease is signed!
Bad: still hot out
Funny: kitty jumping in one of the packing boxes.

7.14.2008
Good: Smokin Aces with andrea, chatting with emily & yassine
Bad: follow up dr's appt
Funny: "you look like I just asked you the square root of something... what did you say to him?" - smokin aces

7.11-7.13.2008

Good: Anniversary dinner and icecream with Yassine, exploring Arlington, Tagine dinner, Michaela visits! Cole Porter Review, Macy's shopping extravaganza! Buying a super cute dress!
Bad: people talking through all of the cole porter review / shuttle busses between kendall and park
Funny: When the annoying, loud, drunk woman "lost" her purse and yelled at the bartenders for holding it for her like she asked them to. / Kitty discovering himself in a mirror

7.10.2008
Good: looking at apts with Yassine, dinner at Za, Icecream! 11 months of unwedded bliss :)
Bad: my roommates using the AC when the windows in the house are open
Funny: me wanting to buy the camel that was really the finished product of a craft kit...

7.9.2008
Good: long steady workout, relaxing evening
Bad: hot as balls
Funny: Kenny being drunk when I called him at 9pm on a wednesday :)

7.8.2008
Good: gym, quality time with aaron, "Get Smart"
Bad: staying up too late
Funny: "Get Smart" / Panda Security / John McCain loving "take a chance on me" by ABBA

7.7.2008
Good: working out / making dinner with Yassine / chatting with mom
Bad: sweatiest workout ever
Funny: "what does this say?" - Yassine. "Cindy was here," me. "I know. What does this say?" - Yassine. "Cindy was here."- me "Ohhhh," Yassine. (Yassine on Cindy's "cryptic" message with our magnet letters.)

7.2.2008-7.6.2008
Good: NJ for the long weekend with Emily & Ben, Ben and Lindsey, etc / seeing Ben's store / hearing good news / meeting ppl from Syracuse (who know trevor) / movies and pj's / new purse! / Dinner with Yassine!
Bad: missing yassine
Funny: "Trevor Tamsen?" - me after the two syracuse ppl at the party mentioned 'trevor'

7.1.2008
Good: spending the afternoon with Yassine (a rarity indeed) / making dinner / getting icecream
Bad: my landlord being a douche
Funny: "did you talk to your parents?" "no, did you?" :)

6.30.2008
Good: gym, talking to my mom, talking to Yassine
Bad: hot
Funny: "he got to see how wacky we are and we got to see his sense of humor" - my mom

6.27.2008-6.29.2008
Good: Dinner at Forest Cafe & Dessert at Berry Line... Dancing in the Street! Dinner at John Harvards, Jazz at the CanTab, EuroCup; Spain Wins! Woot!
Bad: smoke alarms going off randomly in the middle of the night, no 83 bus ever
Funny: "It's never too late for a pitcher!" - Kam after drinking two pints / "there's no room for divas in a small company" - Cindy

6.26.2008
Good: gym / finally seeing Yassine / resting
Bad: wanting instant results
Funny: putting my hand in wet paint... :) /paper-rock-scissors with Yassine with 'international rules'

6.25.2008
Good: gym / busy at work
Bad: douchebag account rep
Funny: me beating the phone into the pillow to get yassine's attention

6.24.2008
Good: summer shack, working out, delicious dinner, resting
Bad: 85 degrees at the gym
Funny: Kam's story about the girl yelling "FUKC" over and over while being stuck in the buckets of rain / Jeruselum Artichoke Flour

6.23.2008
Good: Talking to Gillian, resting
Bad: sore throat keeping me up late
Funny: Running into Dave at the ATM and then running away so I didn't get rained on :)

6.19-6.22.08
Good: bowling with my parents in Maine, beach time, brunch at Becka's, BBQ at Aaron's, sleeping
Bad: sick day, sunburn
Funny: Bowling with my parents / my dad breaking the bathroom / One bowling pin, ah ah ah ah

6.18.2008
Good: getting a free one way ticket on JetBlue for flying standby on a flight that was 6 hours late! Gym
Bad: The golden compass
Funny: "he's just like forest gump with his shorts and his knee brace" - yassine on Kam's outfit

6.16.2008-6.17.2008
Good: Big Hotel Room and Complimentary Bottle of Wine! Easy day at the office! Celtics Win it all!!!
Bad: 7 hours to get to DC- diverted in Richmond
Funny: Frank, the flight attendant on the 7 hour flight / Scott being afraid of food poisoning / Kevin Garnett going mental, Yassine seeing Powe before the game

6.13-6.15.2008
Good: basketball/playground with Yassine! Me winning the free-throw competition, Going out for dinner at Not Your Average Joe's in Arlington, getting delicious icecream! River Festival with Natalie, Run outside, watching We Own the Night, Home for Father's Day! BBQ with the family!
Bad: tickle fight, celtics lose
Funny: me reenacting the face I made when I saw the manicurist's mole hair

6.12.2008
Good: dinner outside with Yassine, plus Celtics win!
Bad: lots of ants in the house
Funny: "it seems like the more time we spend together the more easily we can solve any problems we have" - me. "well that's obvious" - yassine

6.11.2008:
Good: 10 months with the man I love!
Bad: hurting yassine's feelings by accident :(
Funny: my basil plant dying

6.10.2008
Good: Dinner with Andrea at Passage to India!
Bad: so hot
Funny: my captions on Kam's GOL!!! photoset

6.9.2008
Good: catching the bus and not going to burning porter square, getting a lot done, Yassine surprising me with an outfit to wear on a 95 degree day.
Bad: so sweaty at the gym
Funny: "I've never had this problem before" - Kam on noise levels

6.6.2008 - 6.8.2008
Good: Brazil vs. Venezuela with Cindy, Kam, Natalie, Abby, and Yassine! Matt's commencement & dinner at Simon Pearce, Staying with Kate and Kye, Yassine surprising me at S. Station! Delicious dinner, Celtics win!
Bad: three hours getting home from Foxboro, wicked hot, awkward family conversation
Funny: Cindy making friends with the Brazilians, Kam giving the other Venezuelans friendship bread.

6.5.2008
Good: gym, home made pizza, Celtics win!
Bad: Yassine wanting to have play hour while I was trying to sleepy
Funny: "It's too much. The fun is over. No more games, the talking, the laughing, it's too much" - Natalie demanding Kam keep it down because she had gone to bed.

6.4.2008
Good: Yassine coming to make me feel better, Yassine making me dinner, Yassine making me laugh, talking to my mom for a while about issues of old, Emily making me feel better
Bad: knowing that my grandfather's wife will be at my bro's graduation dinner and having a nervous break down about it
Funny: wrestling with Yassine. <3

6.3.2008
Good: good eating, good workout, good resting
Bad: feeling sad for my baby
Funny: "give it to god" -natalie upon hearing that my omlette had a tumor / Trainer Dink

5.30-6.2.2008
Good: Celtics win!, AIDSWalk with Kam and Natalie, Dinner with Yassine
Bad: Sunburned shoulders
Funny: Crying at PS I Love You, Kam with a clown, me humiliating the "obey me" volunteers, realizing "Imp" stands for Impossible

5.29.2008
Good: spending time with my baby, getting a new cute picture of my license, relaxing
Bad: not finding any pants
Funny: Was the name of the travel agency "Fly By Night" - Emerick on the woes of my roommate waiting for his free trip to Floria.

5.28.2008
Good: going to bed early, relaxing on the couch, making fruit salad
Bad: no gym today
Funny: "They charged me $400 a month and a half ago, but I am still waiting for my prize" - Kam

5.27.2008
Good: making to the gym even though I was a sleepy bear
Bad: my pod dying and me running a mile with no music
Funny: 200 meter kbye

5.23.-26.2008
Good: Leaving work early, Birthday Party Time! Great Condo! Mountain Hiking with Yassine, Aaron, Steve, Jess, Emily, Cindy, and Kam! Then party time with Becka, Nichole, Elena, Seth, & Toni! BOOP CAKE, Superbad! Then sleepy time! Natalie, Hike of Death! 6 hours later making it back to the cars! BBQ time with Seth as Grill Master! 27 Dresses, Beerpong, Dance Party in the Basement! Jacu-Tuhb, Outlet shopping! Golden Arches!
Bad: longggg drive, hurting everywhere from my waist down, $8 spinach/chicken wrap

Funny: "you can fit two if you sit tugboat style" - Steve on the Jacu-Tuhb, Cindy singing, Skills for Life, "Kam, I'm disapointed in you" -Yassine, after Kam revealed that he cried after watching The Notebook. "Sunday, you can watch it Sunday, okay? - Kam on 27 Dresses. "okay, good thing today *is* Sunday." - me. "Team Culo vs Team Toyota!" Yassine making us climb up a river bed. Team Toyota losing the trail! Kam using the walky-talkies. "No laughing" - Toni, "no balls allowed in the backyard" - Natalie quoting Jack. Emily setting off her car alarm at 3:30 am to announce her arrival (accidentally). "For english press one" Toni's water shoes!

5.21-22.2008
Good: Gym, WAH, Yassine making me dinner
Bad: ?
Funny: "if you'd stop talking I could hear what was going on" - me after Yassine asked me what was happening on Top Chef. "If you'd stop talking, 'oh you were gone for three hours, oh you were alseep all day, oh this oh that' then maybe you'd know what was going on" - Yassine making fun of me. :)

5.20.2008
Good: great run, relaxing day at work
Bad: cutting my fingers with a knife
Funny: "Are you calling me?" - mom.
"no," - me
"Oh, well someone is calling me." mom
"not me." - me
"okay talk to you later then" - mom

5.19.2008
Good: studying my arabic, relaxing
Bad: loudest downstairs neighbor ever
Funny: nearly forgetting to eat my breakfast and jogging to the kitchen to scarf down my oatmeal while Yassine tied his shoes.

5.16.2008 - 5.18.2008
Good: Spending time with Yassine, Inman Square with Kam, Double date at Al Fresco with Seth and Elena. Natalie's concert, seeing Sarah & Betsy
Bad: bus being 30 minutes late
Funny: "it's true, yassine is like Bubblicious and Amy is like... sugar free trident" - me on some girl stuck on Kam like gum.

let's get it on
I'll make love to you
hips don't lie
secret lovers
... songs that may be Kam's ringtone for when a certain lady calls

Yassine watching the celtics game on the DVR... oops, last five minutes didn't record.

5.15.2008
Good: running into elena and seth at the gym, spending time with yassine
Bad: apartment anxiety
Funny: a girl at the gym losing her locker key in her sports bra.

5.14.2008
Good: chatting with toni
Bad: ?
Funny: "I thought you were like a size seven"

5.12 & 13.2008
Good: blowing off class to have Yassine teach me, Chatting with Gillian, Chatting with Katelyn
Bad: maybe not going to soccer game
Funny: yassine trying to take someone else's coffee / "happy five-twelve day'

5.8-5.11.2008

Good: Yassine making me dinner, relaxing, walking around Harvard Square, Salem with Steve
Bad: not enough sleep or time with my boopie
Funny: running into three people I know in Salem within a 3 hour time slot

5.7.2008

Good: Yassine surprising me with a visit, running into Zach at the gym
Bad: the worst workout ever
Funny: Somebody's growing up!

5.6.2008

Good: Gym, Chilling, Celtics win
Bad: cross-eyed from HSPD-12 spreadsheet updating
Funny: "she poked me on facebook" "i poked her two weeks ago" - anon

5.5.2008

Good: relaxing
Bad: boiling over
Funny: "how do you say 'pre-molar'" annoying guy in my arabic class

5.2.-2008-5.4.2008
Good: Indian delivery, bowling with Natalie, Dave, Gail, Aaron, John and Yassine, Brunch with Becka, Nichole & Natalie at S&S, Kite Runner on demand with Yassine and Kam
Bad: Not sleeping well
Funny: Kitty, Yassine kicking everyone's butt at air-hockey, "sorry the smell i made scared your cat" :)

5.1.2008
Good: gym, making dinner for my baby, relaxing
Bad: pinkberry commiting suicide
Funny: http://www.sexybeijing.tv/new/video.asp?id=15

4.30.2008
Good: being mentioned in the CEO's quarterly report
Bad: my phone not being a good time keeper
Funny: quote from indiebride re: decorating your reception space: "I can't use candles at all because my flowergirl is on oxygen and is highly flammable"

4.29.2008
Good: Dinner with Yassine
Bad: soooo rainy outside!
Funny: Paula commenting about two songs when everyone had only sung one.

4.28.2008:
Good: Productive day at work, learning more arabic, going to bed early
Bad: some of the morons in my arabic class
Funny: "Cucumber" School / Gay nun

4.25-27.2008
Good: Sheep Shearing Festival/Sheep Dog Herding/Lots of cute lil animals with Becka, Dave, & Aaron. Nile 'bar' with Yassine, running into Scott on the train, Fenway Tour with Cindy, Dave, and Aaron, relaxing on the couch with Kitty.
Bad: not enough sleep and some greasy food which meant no gym for me on Sunday.
Funny: being the only people without kids at the sheep shearing festival, and "do you like beef"

Going Green - Earth Day/Week Thoughts

2008-04-25T15:19:00.003-05:00

I noticed today on whdh.com that gas prices on Marth's Vineyard are $4.00/gallon. This immediately makes me furious, not over the price of the gas, but over the people in the Vineyard/Nantucket Region. A few years back, the nation's first wind farm was to be built off of Nantucket Sound (the area between the Vineyard, Nantucket, and Cape Cod). And do you know what happened? They refused to let them build because: "The problem is that they're going to be visible. And they're going to be visible at night and they're going to be visible during the day and they're going to be lit up," said State Senator Rob O'Leary. This folks, is what your "tree-hugging" democrats say when people propose a renewable energy source. The reality is that you would hardly be able to see the wind farm from the beach.

So, to be honest, I am happy that all those people have to pay $4.00 a gallon for gas.

See the problem is, that when it comes down to it, going green is only a priority if it's convenient. Am *I* the greenest person? No. Do I think recycling is a farce? 80% yes. Do I think it takes more natural resources to pick up, breakdown, and recycle most consumer product? Yes. But do I try to think of things logically? Yes.

For all of you who say I am not 'green' enough, talk to me after you've purchased a hybrid car. Or maybe it's not very convenient for you to do that?

I remain bitter that the very people who are supposed to be fighting for our earth pick and choose when it is a good time to be green. If everyone would buy a hybrid car, maybe we wouldn't have to keep going to war over oil -a resource we refuse to drill for in our own country because of the wildlife surrounding possible drilling sites. I love cute animals as much as the next person... but I'd rather have all our young men and women safe at home.

I know it's not as cut and dry as what I make it out to be. But it is a matter of convenience... I never saw Al Gore's movie "An Inconvenient Truth" but at least he picked the right word, "inconvenient" he is right about that... what a shame that the perfect view of your beach might be skewed somewhere miles off shore, that would be inconvenient indeed.

Until everyone (elephants and donkeys) focuses on what is important - the future of our earth... we're never going to be green.

Writer's Block

2008-04-17T11:44:00.002-05:00

I know I've been silent for a long time. I look at my friends' blogs and they update them a few times a week. I love to hear what they've been up to, but for some reason, I've felt blocked lately, with no updates to produce here.

Things with me are good, really good. Who has that quote on their facebook profile? I think it's Mike G... "I can't complain, but sometimes I do anyway"... forget who said that. Truly though, lately, I feel like things are just floating on by.

Yassine and I are still looking for an apartment for the summer time. We're going to move in August, so not much on Craigslist is posted for that time frame. I keep seeing pictures of beautiful places, but until he gets settled in a job, we're not going to make any kind of dollar commitment... especially since we want to save for a house.

I've been at the gym 5 days a week since January 10th... I am running just over 2.5 miles and soon will kick it up to three. I have some good weeks with food and some not so good weeks. I am trying to be better about shopping, cooking, etc. But sometimes after working all week, I just want someone else to do the work. I am in love with the grill pan that my parents got me for Christmas. I use that thing all the time. I never used to cook fish, but now, I am eating fish two times a week. I am going to try burgers on that thing this weekend I think...

What else... Birthday party planning is in the works. Another trip to NH for hiking and relaxing. Should be a great time... I am expecting between eight and twelve guests. It will be nice to get away from the city for a while.

The longer I stay here, the more frustrated I become with city life. Maybe it's just this city. Maybe it's just the end of winter in this city. People seem very cranky. Or is it me... is it me who seems cranky? Trying to make my way through Harvard Square a few weeks back I nearly went postal. So many people, just wandering... I become frustrated. I'd like to move away from the city, but I need the T to commute. I found an adorable 3 bedroom house in Bellingham... less than 300k... i want it. Oh well.

The truth is that I am approaching a transition period in my life. I can feel it starting to creep up on me. I want to reach out and grab it and embrace it, but it's inching closer and closer and remains just out of reach. The anticipation of this transition might be way I haven't felt the need to write. The exciting things that I know will be wonderful and challenging are just around the corner... so close.

PS - David Cooke had better win American Idol. Seriously.

And I couldn't be happier, right here

2008-02-22T14:19:00.002-05:00

So I am a bad blogger. I think we all already knew this. Okay, so it's been something in the ballpark of four months since I've blogged. There haven't been any major changes in my life since November, but I think it's worth it to at least share the minor changes, thoughts, concerns, etc.

In December I got a promotion. Maybe that technically happened in November, it's hard to say... but it's good, it's great actually. My promotion led to the excited February news: I got a PinkBerry.

December also shined as the 1st trip that I took with Yassine: to Paris and Belgium. I never wrote a comprehensive recap of that trip and I should work on that but to summarize: Traveling with Yassine is a wonderful experience. He is the most amazing man ever in the whole world. I know Paris is supposed to be the most romantic place in the world, but I think anywhere in the world with him would be the most romantic. It was great and stressful to spend 10 days exclusively with his family members who spoke varying amounts of English. I was completely grateful that any of them spoke any english because I speak 0 arabic and 0 french. That is changing however, starting in April I will be learning arabic. Wish me luck, because I don't think 5 years of Latin with Mrs. Schold is really appropriate prepatory work for learning arabic.

I decided to learn arabic for myself, not to make Yassine happy or to make his family happy, but to make sure that I am able to convey to his family who I am and how much I love their son. I was going to surprise Yassine with learning arabic in time to repeat my wedding vows in it, but I am going to need help and support and I know he'll give me both (as he always does).

In December, I got a new roommate. So far so good. He is a nice guy and I can stand living with him for another six months or so. :)

New Year's Eve was spent by the Eiffel Tower... sans fireworks. wtf.

February also marks Yassine's completion of his MBA!!! Now he is job hunting. Fingers crossed!

Anyway, I have no complaints about where I am in life right now.

and who would have thought
a fairy-tale plot
our very own
happy ending

Highlights and Sharpies

2007-11-26T14:25:00.000-05:00

So it's Monday. Monday after Thanksgiving. So I am about twenty pounds heavier than last week at this time and sluggish as all getup. However, today I religiously followed my nutrition program and so far I feel back in control. I would list the foods I ate over Thanksgiving, but no one would believe that all that food could fit in my belly... even over the course of five days. Tomorrow will be the first day with the personal trainer since the eating began... so that should be interesting... I may have to roll myself a mile and a half to her studio rather than running like I usually do. Every year I learn the same thing... being at my parents' house makes me lose control of my eating. Maybe in the future I'll just show up for the meal and then run away as to avoid all the other food that goes along with the feast.

In good news, my promotion becomes official this week. I am now a Marketing Manager. That's pretty cool considering a year and a half ago at this time I was crying at work on a regular basis, getting screamed at by my old boss, and maintained a generally miserable existence from 8:00 am - 5:30 pm. Thank god I left that place! So now, I am a happy little Marketing Manager! Woot! The best thing about that, so far, is that someone sent me a mini sharpie in the mail today trying to convince me that I should spend all my trade show budget on their trade shows. For a free sharpie, I'll do pretty much anything! I wonder which of my family members will get this free sharpie in their stocking this christmas.... they also sent me some clippy things... they are less cool and would make better lame gifts.

What else? Yassine and I have been doing lots of things together... things he's only done once or never. Bowling (candlepin, of course) was a first, iceskating was a second, 3-D movie (Beowolf) was a first, traditional Thanksgiving was a first, decorating a Christmas tree was a first,... yeah we're pretty much making him american :) He doesn't seem to mind, and he's actually a pretty good bowler. He's the most wonderful man in the world and I am happy to spend oodles of time doing all kinds of american type things with him!

He and I leave for Paris on the 29th of December to spend our first vacation together. It should be awesome and strange at the same time. For most of the trip, we're staying in Paris with his family, who does not speak English. It's not his mom and dad, but his aunts and uncles, but still no english. I wish my five years of latin could magically turn into french, but alas. He'll be doing a lot of translating. I am bringing his family small gifts from the US... I was thinking of bringing Maple Syrup. Anyone have any other ideas? The trip will be incredible and I can't wait to get over there!

Things I've learned about myself... i made a damn good lasagna- healthy even :)

Clippings and Spittings

2007-11-12T15:59:00.000-05:00

People who clip their nails while at their desk at work are gross. Personal, bodily hygiene should not be performed in a public setting. However private you may think your desk is, it's not. I don't need your nail clippings flying into my eye in the middle of the work day. While I appreciate your seemingly immediate need to keep your fingernails an appropriate and manicured length, I cannot condone such an activity while at your desk. The worst thing about being an at-work, nail clipper... everyone can hear it from all over the freakin' place.

This goes double for people who brush their teeth in the office kitchen sink. Also disgusting and completely inappropriate. Spitting into a place where people clean their food dishes, get drinking water, and wash their hands... and on top of that, little flecks of spit are shooting all over the counter top, faucet, and cabinets. Did your mother teach you nothing? There is a reason that bathrooms exist.

It's amazing how people can't get off their soap boxes about how we need more privacy in our lives... and yet some of the most personal hygiene activities are apparently appropriate for all over the work place.

Now I am friends with a lawyer

2007-10-05T08:49:00.001-05:00

A shout out to Jarad: Congrats on passing the Bar Exam. I knew you could do it! I am sooo proud of you!

Shape Up Somerville 5k

2007-10-01T10:27:00.000-05:00

On Sunday, September 30th, I completed my first 5k ever. Joe and I shaved four minutes off our practice time and crossed the finish line at 34 minutes. That works out to be just over a 10 minute mile, which I am extremely excited about! Yes, I had to walk a little bit here and there, but for short durations and we still finished in what I consider excellent time. Oh, and we didn't finish last, so that was good too... did I mention that we passed some skinny people? That also felt good. We were beaten by a speed walker and an 87 year old looking couple (who were previous boston marathon runners). But overall, I was really quite proud to compete, finish, and not come in last! We ran this route: http://www.shapeupsomerville5k.org/Map.html and made it up all the hills, even the long, gradual one that I was afraid of!

I am so proud of Joe for his effort and incredible progress since March.

We definitely couldn't have done this without each other!

Follow me down to Carlow

2007-09-12T14:48:00.000-05:00

I just returned from a week trip to Ireland with my momma. I have to say that I had a much better time traveling with her than I had expected. Until last week, she had never left the US, and I have been here and there, near and far.

We arrived in Dublin at 6am on Tuesday, September 4th and by the time we squared away the car rental it was about 7am. We picked up the car and I had to drive, on the left, to the hotel. We had poor, verbal directions, and no map that indicated the hotel's location in relation to the airport. Driving a long the road we come to a tunnel. Note: do not take any tunnels in Ireland. The toll for the tunnel was 12 euro... which is about $20. Awesome. The nice toll booth lady collected the money and directed us to the hotel saying "oh, you should not have taken the tunnel" (incidentally she was Chinese and it sounded more like "oh, you soud noah have taken da tunnel")

Upon arrival at the Regency Dublin Airport Hotel we were checked in to a OD room - for those of you who are not in the hospitality biz - occupied/dirty room. Yeah, I kicked open the door and scared the bajesus out of some sleeping people. Oops. So after getting lost in Dublin, getting checked into the wrong room, and being 6 hours ahead of our body clocks, we were pretty exhausted.

We took the bus into Dublin and walked around looking for breakfast. Breakfast on Grafton Street, at a Marks and Spencer's - total cost: 19 euro. awesome. We then walked to St. Stephen's Green, which was absolutely beautiful (like the public gardens in Boston). The weather was beautiful, sunny and warm – not like Ireland at all! J After walking around the city a bit, we made our way to the Trinity College Front Gate and went on a two hour walking tour of Dublin. Very informative and certainly good to help keep us awake. The bus home was quick and we grabbed dinner (early bird special only 40 euro for the two of us to eat a plate of chicken and rice- awesome).

Then Bed.

The next morning we had a nice buffet breakfast at the hotel and headed off to the Powers Court Gardens. More driving, near death, very scary. Road sign ten feet off the 60mph highway exit: N. Yeah, not an S like we tend to have here, an N road. Did I mention that the road was about the size of my driveway, no road markings, 40 miles an hour and two way traffic. Glad to be alive to be honest.

The gardens were awesome. Had a great time walking around. Went to the top of what appeared to be Rapunzel’s tower and took some photos. Spend a few hours walking around and enjoying nature. Back to the car. Mom drove, I navigated, no more getting lost- peace was found. We drove over the Wicklow Mountains and headed to Gelenlough- a monastic ruin. More walking, more walking, more nature. Mailed our post cards and headed to Kilkenny and found our B&B with little to no trouble. Ate dinner at Langton’s pub. I had delicious Irish stew. It was SO good.

Then Bed

In the morning we had a nice breakfast at the Celtic House B&B where we were staying and then walked over to the Kilkenny Castle where we took a guided tour. After that, we walked around the grounds and then headed to a small farmers’ market to get lunch. Fruit and scones? Sounds great. Total cost five euro! Woo! From there we walked to the Kilkenny Artisan Design Studios where I bought a beautiful pendant from a silver smith. Bought some other various trinkets and gifts as well.

We headed to the southern part of the country, Waterford, which I’d never go back to. Found the B&B easily with my eagle eyes and waited about an hour for the owners to get back and check us in. Got a great dinner recommendation from the B&B owner. Into the car we went (again) and drove to Dunmore East, a small village on the coast. We got to see some real “Irish looking coast line” and enjoyed a dinner on a table that used to be a sewing table (you know with the rod iron pedal at the bottom). We got to see some beautiful ocean scenes and I snapped a couple good pictures.

Then Bed

We fled Waterford with a quickness. On our way to Wexford we stopped at New Ross to look around. In Wexford we visited some abandoned church ruins and it was kind of sketchy. We did a lot of window shopping and I picked up a few items for friends and family. After our shopping trip we drove to the Irish National Heritage Park. This place was a neat idea. They built replicas of typical Celtic historic sites and put them all into a one hour walking tour. The seventeen year old who was our tour guide had the exact same hair that I do. It was creepy and my mom tried to take photos of the two of us together without him knowing what she was doing. After the tour was done was scurried off to our B&B in Enniscorthy. Out the window were sheep grazing, probably three feet from the window. Very cool! Dinner at a nice pub called Bailey’s.

Then Bed

At breakfast the B&B owner told us about a river that had a nice path down its banks. We walked down the river and enjoyed a 30 minute walk in the beautiful wooded banks. Then back to the car and we headed to the Timolin-Moone Pewter Mill. Guess what we found out? The Timolin-Moone Pewter Mill is defunct and is not open any longer. So onward we drove to Castletown. After going to the parking lot (in the middle of no where) we took a guided tour of this Palladian Castle that originally had 100 rooms. It was impressive, but not nearly as well restored as the Kilkenny castle. From there we walked around the grounds and watched a bit of an archery competition. We stopped at Carlow on our way to Maynooth to pick up lunch and take some pictures. Back to the car to the B&B. Maynooth was a nice little town and we enjoyed dinner and drinks at The Roost and watched the Euro Cup Qualifier Ireland vs. Slovania- it was a tie.

Then Bed

Last morning we woke up, enjoyed our breakfast, packed up the suitcases and drove with not a single wrong turn to return the rental car. Airport, plane, home.

Pictures to follow.

Thoughts on the trip:
Overall, driving on the left isn’t so bad if you have a navigator who can read a map. We were extremely lucky to have experienced not a single drop of rain the entire time we were gone. I didn’t need to bring NEARLY as many articles of clothing as I did (but had it been colder, I would have been glad to have it). B&B’s are a great way to travel, but early breakfasts make for early mornings. Sheep walk in the road and don’t care that you’re driving. The Wicklow Mountains were beautiful even if the roads were curvy and narrow. Ireland is expensive, much more so than I thought, even the small towns are very pricey. We spent about $60 each night for dinner. Even in the small town of Maynooth we spent about $50. If I were to go back I’d go back to Kilkenny and spend a few more days there.

Remember the Time my Identity Got Stolen

2007-08-17T09:55:00.000-05:00

I received a letter in the mail (at my parents' address) claiming I had requested in increase in credit. As far as I knew, I didn't have a Bank of America account, let alone request more credit to it. So i called the bank and apparently someone had been using my CC that i got freshman year of college and that I haven't used for 5 years. The person had used up all the credit, and the card was carrying a little over $3000 balance. I had to go to bank of america and talk to the man there, and he was very nice, made sure I was really who I said I was and then he called the CC Fraud Dept and they erased the balance and canceld the card. Now I will have to fill out a fraud afidavit and there will be an investigation. I found it interesting because they had the account marked as "possible fraud"

The reason I didn't know that I had a BOA account was because the Syracuse Athletics CC I had was an MBNA owned card and apparently it merged with BOA.

The card must have been mailed to my parents' house and stolen at some point between being sent and before my folks checked the mail.

They were very nice and they explained that once the afidavit is filled out that they remove all information about it from my credit report - currently it says "Fraud" on there, so apparently that is not that *I* was causing Fraud, but that they suspect fraud on the account so it most likely doesn't factor into my credit. Also, there is only one account - so I think it is most likely that the person who was using it only had the card number and my name - not my SSN or anything like that - because if he had that info he could have changed the mailing adress and what not - which obviously he didn't.

I think that overall things will work out just fine and that this happens to people all the time.

I will do a credit check in the next few weeks just to make sure and then I will do another one after the fraud investigation is completed.

BOA had no issues with wiping the balance of the card completely and didn't question me at all in terms of whether the charges were mine.

Salapropisms

2007-07-24T09:08:00.000-05:00

"You can have some flavor you can rinse out of your mouth" - 9.18.2007

"We dont want to jump their bones in front of the customer" - 9.10.2007

"One bite of the elephant at a time" - 8.20.2007

"I can fillet the data six ways to sunday" - 7.23.07

Harry Potter

2007-07-21T12:24:00.000-05:00

Dear Everyone :
I don't care about Harry Potter and I will never care about Harry Potter.
No love,
Me

Creative!

2007-07-08T18:36:00.000-05:00

Discover your passion! Here is what they said about me:

CREATIVE

You have a gift for expression. Whether it's writing, drawing, creating objets d'art or making music, you see the world in a unique way and are able to convey that to other people. No doubt you doodle on napkins and meeting notes, are always humming a new tune, have already read the latest fiction releases, and know all the local art galleries' schedules by heart. You might like hobbies like sketching, photography, sculpting, playing an instrument, singing, journaling, scrap-booking or designing clothing.

What's yours? http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2007/leisure/quiz/index.html

Do something for the 1st time every day

2007-07-02T21:19:00.000-05:00

I strive to do something new every day.

9.30.2007 - completed a 5k

9.29.2007 - Drove to Providence / attended show at Providence Performing Arts Center

9.15.2007 - ate Bangleshi food

9.14.2007 - Across the Universe and Korean food

9.10.07- First session with my personal trainer

9.9.2007 - First rehearsal with Cambridge Community Chorus / Took the 83 bus

9.3.07-9.9.07 - Ireland

8.26.2007 - Made guacamole

8.25.2007 - Visited Block Island

8.24.2007 - Ate at Tangerinos

8.14.2007 - Ate at Ivy

8.13.2007 - Saw Bourne Ultimatum

8.7.2007 - Had my Identity Stolen

8.4.2007 - Made dinner for Emily's family

8.3.2007 - Happy Hour at 89Bar / Babeland / Sleep Over with Cindy

8.2.2007 - Sat in Amtrak's "quiet car"/Visited Emily and Ben in South Orange

7.30.07 - Saw the movie "i know pronounce you chuck and larry"

7.24.2007 - Reno 911 The Movie

7.22.07 - Catapult at Six Flags

7.21.07 - Hairspray movie

7.20.07 - Lunch at Za's in Arlington

7.19.07 - Visited the ICA

7.17.07 - Not your Average Joe's with Aaron

7.15.07 - being picked up in a mustang convertible

7.14.07 - duck tour

7.13.07 - met joe's friend, BJ

7.12.07 - bought pants at city sports

7.11.07 - made a recipe from 'cooking light'

7.10.07 - Spirit with Steve!

7.9.07 - Co-worker laid off

7.8.07 - 1st girls' brunch (at christophers)

7.7.07 - Mini golf at Kimballs

7.6.07 - went to the fresh pond movie theater

7.5.07 - wore a new outfit to work

7.4.07 - in a car with Andrea while she drove

7.3.07 - met Elena's boyfriend

7.2.07 - drove a pick-up truck

Remember the time...

2007-06-30T11:26:00.000-05:00

remember the time I couldn't figure out how to get back to my blog because google bought my blogger program. awesome! I am back now. So there Toni - I am back to blogging and you can't stop me. :) At least one new year's resolution has come true! Check the GBF for yesterday's update!

She's Back

2006-08-13T09:46:00.000-05:00

Okay, I know... I haven't blogged in months. Strange, I actually have work to do these days. But I finally found some time to sit down and write.

My cousin got married in June. I was the co-maid-of-honor. It was a great time. The ceremony was nice and the whole family came out. It was the first time in seventeen years that all of my first cousins had been in the same room at the same time. It was quite momentus.

In July the friends and I took a trip to Lake George where Aaron's parents have a house and condo. Becka, Nichole, Dave, Gail, Aaron and I all enjoyed a weekend of boating, relaxing, dancing, and tanning. It was a beautiful weekend and a great time had by all. We came back for the Boston fireworks and were quite happy.

I just got back from a trip to Nashville with Kenny and Jarad. We'd never been there and we were psyched to spend some quality time as "then there were three." I would highly recommend Nashville to anyone - the music, although mostly on the country side, still had a good amount of pop and rock to round out the selections. Saturday night we were lucky enough to run into "Sean Hunter" from Boy Meets World - nothing like a D List celeb at a random dive bar in Nashville. It was pretty cool to see him there though - and that's a decent random celeb sighting. Sunday we went to visit Vanderbilt, where no one knew where the book store was located and apparently no one on was actually on the campus. It was about 105 degrees while we were there, quite refreshing- not. We also went to the Partheonon, for some unknown reason Nashville has a scale replica of the Greek Parthenon. Monday we visited the Opry Land Hotel (which I fell in love with) and the Grand Old Orpy... less exciting, but you have to go when you're in Nash. It was a great trip and with sadness I said goodbye to my boys - hoping to see them again in December.

Big changes in the apartment in the next few weeks. Paul is moving out tomorrow (*tear) and Christian is moving in either Tuesday or Thursday (yay). At the end of the month Shelly is leaving and then Kate is moving in. Yeah - big changes.

My life with Boys:

2006-05-19T13:07:00.000-05:00

from: http://members.aol.com/Snoopysk8r/nbf.JPG

Juke Box Bars and other such nonesense

2006-05-19T08:54:00.000-05:00

I have become a lazy blogger.

So remember the boy I met. Well yeah, that fell off as fast as it started. No worries though - he's not the first boy to confess his love for me, treat me like a princess, and then peace the f out randomly. Luckily for me I have realized that anyone who treats me like that isn't worth my time.

So do I give back the necklace that he gave me?

I have to take a moment to apologize to a certain journalist. "far superior" wasn't a fair description at all. After the showing on Saturday night - I am not sure I've ever had better. So perhaps YOU are the far superior one afterall. And I don't care if other people make fun of Erasure. They are a damn good band- and I will celebrate them until my dying day.

My birthday is a week from today. I am sure you'll all be celebrating with me! I really can't wait. Any excuse to celebrate/throw a party... maybe that's why I love hospitality so darn much - just a good time with good planning involved.

Oh, the ALL MOZART ALL THE TIME concert is finally upon us! Tomorrow at 5pm. Think of me around 5:50 when I'll be singing the wicked high german song. Yeah, I don't know the name of it. I am pulling a Barbara Tagg on this one... no idea- we just call it the WICKED HIGH ONE. It's an appropriate name for it.

Toni is coming to town tomorrow and Christian on Wednesday and maybe Kenny on Friday... I am the luckiest girl in the world. Who needs romance when you have such fabulous friends!

Could it be? Yes it could.

2006-04-17T07:46:00.000-05:00

What is this feeling
so sudden & new?
I felt it the moment
I laid eyes on you.
My pulse is rushing.
My head is reeling.
My face is flushing.
What is this feeling?
Fervid as a flame -
Does it have a name?
~~

It really has been awhile since I've posted anything. But here it is, Patriot's Day, I am stuck in the office; I might as well blog. The prolonged silence about my life is in now way an indicator of what has actually been happening. I have been either too tired, too exhausted, too busy, or too preoccupied to really sit down and focus. So here we go.

I recently learned of the death of a very good friend's mother. This situation has made me quite sad and has brought up some old memories from high school. The lady that passed away, Linda, was more than just a "friend's mom" - she was also heavily involved with the school as a substitute teacher, class aide, and local artist. She was a great lady and certainly didn't deserve to leave this earth in such an untimely manner. Her death reminded me of how out of touch I've been with so many people from my youth. While I did attend the five year reunion, it doesn't mean that I have talked to anyone with whom I reunited. I will always have Brie and Jenn - but other than that I couldn't tell you what anyone is doing these days. Good thing my Mom is a librarian because she gives me the skinny on all kinds of people. I mean I don't even talk to Mr. Byrne any longer and he was my mentor. I think he stopped caring about me when he found out I was a registered republican. I was a member of the GSA- just because I am a republican doesn't mean I agree with all of their social ideals - I used to think more of him, but once I revealed myself as an Elephant, he pretty much peaced out of my life.

I am waiting to find out when the memorial service is for Linda- as she has already been laid to rest in Florida. I will go back to Groton to support the family and show my appreciation for everything she did and stood for.

I also met a boy. And dare I say - I like him quite a bit... He's not the journalist, or the dirt biker... he is far superior to both of those. He is a kind hearted, tall, self proclaimed "mammal" who enjoyed his first taste of Redbones yesterday. He's hooked. I'm pretty hooked too, on him though. My mother keeps telling me not to go "100 miles an hour" as I tend to do with men when I have feelings for them. But I've learned that if you put yourself out there to be met halfway, it's pretty obvious if he's willing to meet in the middle. Are he and I going to have fights/frustrations of course we are. I am, for all intensive purposes, dating Frank. The creative mind is an incredible thing and he has an astounding one. He is great - and he makes me happy. I'll keep you posted.

In other news, Paul is leaving for sure. I have known this for about a month now, ever since he came back from Johns Hopkins - I knew there was something better out there for him, and that he had realized the same. But last week he officially told me - no dice on staying in Boston. I am pretty devastated by this turn of events. Not to say that I am not happy for him, or his choice - I think it's exactly the right thing for him to do. I am just devastated by the fact that one of my best friends will be leaving. Paul is my touchstone here, my sounding board, my lookout, my brother, and he has been a life changing influence for the last year. How else should I feel? I think devastated is a pretty fair assessment. At least he'll be happier, and that's all I care about. I'll still get to talk to him and email him... but who is going to be my sunday night movie date? who is going to threaten to kill any boy who hurts me? who is going to make me giggle and do mindless household tasks with me? I am certainly saddened about this.

I think Christian is moving in. My mind is churning in a million directions about what could happen in the next five months - but as it stands, Christian will be joining the 729 household on October 1st. I will be happy to have him back living with me - he's a great roommate and I am psyched to be able to offer him accommodations.

Momma's birthday was on Friday. I am taking her to see Wicked on Sunday as her gift, but last week the fam and I took her out for seafood at a local Davis Square location. It was delicious.

While things they are a-changing, I am feeling calm and in the midst of the upheaval I feel strangely settled.

Insert foot Into Mouth

2006-04-04T10:50:00.000-05:00

On Thursday afternoon, in the sunny 65 degree weather, I ventured out of my office to visit a client with whom I've done much business, but never had met in person. She was a short, roundish woman of approximately fifty-five years old. The conversation started off with me asking if one of her benefits of working at Harvard was having her kids go there for free. "Harvard doesn't do that," she told me. As the conversation continued I asked her if she even had kids - "nope" she replied. I couldn't have written this conversation to go in a worse and more uncomfortable direction. Before I know it, she's telling me all about how she recently got dumped by her fiance who she has known for forty years. Then she tells me that she once got pregnant and was so stressed out from working two jobs to prepare for the baby's birth that she was born prematurely and died.

Okay, so picture me, sitting on a bench outside with the sun beating down on my Irish skin trying to console this woman who is spewing one life tragedy after another. Each thing I said to try to put a positive spin on things caused her to delve further into her history to combat the positive with a bad luck situation. I asked her if she kept the engagement ring - she had, and she told me that she has four of them now from previous men. I told her she should sell them and go to europe, find a nice european man and have a good time with him for a while. She said, "if I did that I'd probably come back with some disease" - thanks, that's an image I didn't need.

I felt bad for her though- I mean, try recovering from fifty-five years of bad luck.

Alas. She's a cool lady and I hope that things work out for her. I am, however, a little scared to go out and meet any other clients. But I can't decide if I am the worst sales manager ever or the best. Only time will tell.

I like rain

2006-03-20T09:18:00.000-05:00

A quiet St. Patrick's Day landed me on Brian's couch watching a movie and sharing some Killian's. I have to admit, it was a much needed rest and decidedly the best idea Brian's ever had. Saturday morning up early to catch my bus to New Britain, CT to see my chick-friend Toni. I was bad and hadn't seen her new apartment yet, so I headed down for a brief overnight to hang out with her and enjoy some much needed relaxation with a girl who doesn't mind if I make a racist joke in between bites of girlscout cookie icecream. Delicious. It was really great to see her and I wish that she'd free herself from the bonds for CT and move to Boston so we can see more of each other - but the bus ride wasn't bad, and I'd be willing to do it again in the future.

There's nothing I like better than couching and eating icecream with my favorite blonde haired girly!

My Inner Child:

2006-03-17T11:51:00.000-05:00

Your Inner Child Is Happy

You see life as simple, and simple is a very good thing.You're cheerful and upbeat, taking everything as it comes.And you decide not to worry, even when things look bad.You figure there's just so many great things to look forward to.

Thank you Gerry

2006-03-17T08:24:00.000-05:00

Where the vale of Onondaga
Meets the eastern sky
Proudly stands our Alma Mater
On her hilltop high.
Flag we love! Orange!
Float for aye-
Old Syracuse, o'er thee,
Loyal be thy sons and daughters
To thy memory.
~~~~

Thank you Gerry for an amazing four years of Syracuse basketball. As a freshman you brought us a championship, and as a senior you brought us pride when we had none left. Your four years on the court will not soon be forgotten and we will always remember all the "overrated" Gerry McNamara, amazing game-winning three pointers. Thank you for carrying yourself like a true sportsman and never letting yourself get bigger than the game. Your legacy will live on and we will always be proud of you. Your poise under pressure has taught your team a great deal about patience and attitude. Your leadership will be greatly missed in the upcoming seasons and the team will be hard-pressed to groom another such athlete as you are. You are the embodiment of everything that bleeds Orange, and damn son, we're proud of you.
Sincerely,
Every Syracuse Fan, Alumni, Student, Past, Present, Future.

Reunited and it Feels so Good

2006-03-13T09:38:00.000-05:00

And then there were three.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Nothing has made me happier in the last four years than my three-way friendship with Jarad and Kenny. From the day we left the United States for Hong Kong the three of us have been insperable. Be it the bond of Hong Kong or just an unexplainable bond, the three of us have been sharing and caring about each other for a while now.

The coincidence of the Big East Tourney was a nice bonus to Jarad and Kenny's arrival in Boston. Thursday evening the boys rolled into town and we headed to the Burren. I knew Jarad would love the music and the three of us danced and got silly to many songs to which we knew all the words. The Swinging Johnsons were taking requests and scattered among the usual hits were a few random tunes that got us all dancing and happy... what cover band plays Black Betty? Dust in the Wind made me want to call Christian, but I refrained and sang along... 99 Red Balloons didn't last long because no one knew all the words, but it was fun none-the-less. Closing the night with More Than Words by Extreme was random, but fun. We stayed up late, talking about the old days and watching Syracuse highlights on ESPN. We crashed for the night to sleep in and head to Harvard to show Jarad all that Cambridge has to offer. Lunch at Cambridge Common was nice, and we all left with a full belly and a smile on our faces. From Harvard Square, we toured Boston, through the Holocaust Memorial, around through Fanieul Hall and back to Cheers to enjoy a beer (or icecream).

Back at 729 we watched and intense syracuse game while scarfing on Tacos Lupita... the pregame for The Harp was ridiculous. Did I really drink almost a whole bottle of wine? I think I did. And wait, whose pipe was that? Most of the kids came out to party - Dave, Aaron, Rich, Becka, Paul, Shelly - it was a good crew. The Harp was randomly playing almost all the same songs we had heard at the Burren the night before - but it was all good. We did some booty shaking and enjoyed ourselves.

Saturday we chilled on the stoop - and yes, I got a sunburn - yes, in March. My skin hadn't seen sun in MONTHS... and two hours on the stoop gave me a nice red burn to remember my weekend with the boys. Spirit was the bar of choice to watch Syracuse v. Pitt. A great game, a great victory - lots of G-mac highlights... and Dosoldorph played a great game too...

What a good time with my friends... I wish I could party with them all the time. Jarad was smitten with Boston and I am pretty sure I can get him back up here in the future! So that'll be a very good thing.

~

Some queer story

2006-03-09T10:02:00.000-05:00

So at choir, I was bored because we were working a lot in sections - so during break i thought to myself "oh, a crossword puzzle would be nice" so I go downstairs... oh I forgot to mention that we rehearse in the Council for the Aging... kind of a senior center of sorts... so i go down to the lobby area and grab one of the free newspapers and check to see if there's a crossword puzzle in it. There is, so I rip out the page and bring it back to the rehearsal room with me. I start doing the puzzle - I have this baffling realization... all the clues are about sex and homosexuality... they're funny, but nearly every single one is somehow related to sex. I am sitting there working on the All Mozart All the Time Songs, but all I can picture is some blue haired, 75 year old woman, asking "what's a word for when you walk fagged out'" and some little man with thick rimmed glasses and a cane replying "how many letters."

The Dogs are Sticking to the Sidewalks!

2006-02-27T13:14:00.000-05:00

And here it is, the coldest day of the year
it's simply freezing
the dogs are sticking to the sidewalks
can anyone explain that? no.
-----

Alrighty, so here it is another Monday. I have to say, since the last written update I've done a lot. I went to NYC to see Jarad, Kenny & Tom and Lisa. I had a blast, ended up seeing some old haunts from years past as well. It was nice to have a mini HK reunion. I was stoked to see Jared's band, finally after talking about it for six years, I finally go to see him play. It was a ton of fun. The highlight was when they played a hardcore cover of "Straight-Up" by Paula Abdul and only the 8 of us knew the words because everyone else there was 16 or something. It reminded me of the time I was at a RBF show and I leaned over and said to Trevor, "remember when we were younger and we'd go to shows and there would be that weird old guy in the corner? We are that weird old guy" A ton of fun though.

My four day weekend concluded with sitting on the couch with a glass of wine and a piece of (WW friendly) chocolate cake. Choir was good until Bag-a-douche wanted to be my friend and I was having none of it. I finally just told him "i don't want to see or speak to you any more ever, is that being clear" he responded with "as a whistle" which isn't even a phrase, but to me it just paralleled our whole relationship, him being on one page and me being on another. Alas, at least that is (fingers crossed) over with.

I went on a date with Spanish Speaking Boy on Thursday... it went well - better than one would have expected, except I met someone on Saturday night who might have stolen my interested entirely.

Friday evening I went to the parents' house for dinner. It was tasty, momma made a pot roast for me. I love her for that! We chatted for a number of hours before I headed back to The Ville to get some MUCH needed sleep. Too much time spend awake chilling with Aaron and Co. during the week, by Friday I was toast.

Saturday night Becka, Paul and I headed to Phoenix Landing for some much needed ass shaking. After making eyes at a boy for seven songs, I finally danced with someone else... very sad to leave my very cute wall-flower. After the song ended I told my dancing partner that I needed a drink (water folks, you know how I am) and he was like "okay i have to go find my friend" so I was like "fuck-you bye" (but really i just walked away). I walked directly to my adorable wall-flower and said "are you drunk enough to dance yet" and he said "i can't without a partner" and we pretty much stayed side by side for the rest of the night. Maybe he'll call, that would be splendid. He expressed interest in Friday's ICL event, so perhaps we can arrange that.

Sunday after a cardio session at the gym, working on 4 hours of sleep, and having danced for 3 hours straight the night before, I headed to Harvard Square with Julie my chick friend from fat club. We had a great time. It was nice to chill with her outside of the Fat Club world.

I took a nap at 7:30 on Sunday night, it turned out it wasn't a nap, it was bedtime, because other than waking up at 12:30 to take off my clothes, i slept through the night. Not bad, not bad at all.

The next three weekends should be fairly memorable:
3.3 - Iron Chef @ Felt
3.9 - Kenny & Jarad Roll into town
3.17 - Official Irish Drinking Day
3.18 - Southington to see Toni

Celebration & NYC

2006-02-22T11:41:00.000-05:00

Me and Jarad

Rob, Kenny, & Geoff

Me, Lisa, & Tom

Me with my new Tat!

Valentine's Day

2006-02-15T13:53:00.000-05:00

My entry for the cutest valentine story ever, as told by yours truly, about yours truly.

Valentine Kudos go out to: Mom & Dad, Jess, Zach, & Aaron with honoroable mentions to Shelly & Natalio.

But here's the bread and butter:

I walk to work - and have been doing so since August of '04. I walk down Mass ave to Harvard Square. Frequently on my walks I see the same people walking to wherever they go in the mornings. I started smiling at this one gentleman who also looks happy to see me, friendly and soon our passings progress to "goodmornings" "how are yous" and "have a great days" - we never really chat because we're both on our way to work. One day I stop and ask him his name because I think it's crazy that we always see each other and I dont' know his name. Elisea is his name. Then finally one day I see him on his way HOME from work - it's the week after Christmas and we stop to chat. I immediately start asking a million questions "how was your christmas, what are you doing for new years" etc. He stares at me blankly and blinks. "oh my god" i think, "he doesn't speak english" So I slow way down and start putting together simple sentences we talk briefly. Next time we see each other I ask if it's spanish or portugese that he speaks- so i know which language to learn. It's spanish. We chat about where he lives and what not. Then last week I finally am just like "we should go out" and he agrees and he takes my number. He doesn't call though. His english is basic and my spanish is nearly non-existent. But we get by with smiles, and easy topics. I am walking home yesterday from work and wondering if I'll see him today. I get closer to where we usually pass each other and he's there with flowers. I think "shit, he has a girlfriend" and I get closer and he hands me half a dozen roses. "for you" he says and leans in and kisses my cheek. I am shocked, I hug him and say thank you. He says "I lost your number" I give it to him again and I take his. I tell him I am going to NYC this weekend but will be back sunday and I am off work on Monday. I think he understands, but not sure.

One of the Four P's

2006-02-13T09:54:00.000-05:00

I am now officially a Sales Manager :)

"Because happy is what happens when all your dreams come true"

Tribute to Kathy Griffen As Written by Me for Vanessa

2006-02-07T16:05:00.000-05:00

i don't like dogs
i don't like cats
i don't like things with fur
i don't like things that mark their territory
i don't like things with fur that mark their territory
i don't like things that bark
i don't like things that scratch
i don't like things that "leave presents"
I don't like furry things that bark or scratch
I don't like furry things that bark while marking their territory
I don't like things i have to feed
i don't like things that require me to walk them
i don't like things that shed
i don't like things that shed while I am walking them
I don't like things that shed while marking their territory
I don't like furry things that i have to feed
I don't like things I have to pet
I don't like things that "leave presents" while i am petting them
I don’t like things that slober
I don’t like things that bite
I don’t like things that bite me while I pet them
I don’t like things that need carrying cases
I don’t like things that cost extra on a plane
I don’t like things that bite while I am putting them in their carrying cases
I don’t like things that learn tricks
I don’t like things that mate
I don’t like things that mate as a trick
I don’t like furballs, hairballs, spitballs
I don’t like things that bark while mating
I don’t like things that beg, shake hands, or play dead

Happy Birthday to Dave!

2006-02-06T12:42:00.000-05:00

Shelly & Al
Dave, Paula, Al
Dave & Megan

Aaron, Shelly, Al

Aaron & Megan

(Satan Eyes)

Pictures from ICL

2006-01-30T10:48:00.000-05:00

Aaron & Rich
Aaron & Dave
Twin Day
Aaron and Shelly
Megan & Dave

Saved by the Bell Cast Photo

Featuring: Dave, Megan, Cindy, Becka

The Steve Jobs Business Model

2006-01-30T10:02:00.000-05:00

Dear Steve Jobs,
I still hate Apple.
No love,
Me.

Okay, so I give the guy a lot of credit for saving his company and exploding his stock to levels beyond belief. By hook or by crook... well I think it's by crook. I was recently gifted a two-gig nano iPod for Christmas. I will admit that yes, it was my own faul that my pod got into an accident with the eliptical machine at the gym - and I wasn't looking for a handout. I went to the Apple store on Saturday to get a price quote on the cost of fixing the cracked screen (LCD panel) and perhaps the dent in the back... although I don't mind the dent, it gives it character. The cost of such repair, I was told by one of the "genuises" was $230 because they have to send it out to have it fixed and there is a service fee. I stared blankly at this so-called "genius" because he had just informed me that fixing the pod cost more than a new pod. I asked him if this was true. If I just walked over to the shelf and purchased a new pod it would be less than giving him my used pod to have it fixed? Yes.

Steve Jobs is a Genius.

Glad to have you back

2006-01-20T09:54:00.000-05:00

A few things have happened in the last two weeks that I feel I should share with the entire innerweb blog reading population. People who actually read my blog number around 2, perhaps 3... not sure. No one ever leaves comments, so I am guessing it's pretty much on the shoulders of Toni and Zach to give my blog attention. However, I will go forth with my raves and rants and other meaningless mumbojumbo that keeps me occupied during the workday.

The most important thing about the last month is that I am finally starting to feel like my old self. There are a few reasons that this has happened. chronologically, I reconnected with Dave, slowed things down with Dan, and recommitted myself to my weight-loss.

First, having Dave back in my life is so calming. I had been feeling for so long that some of my friendships in Boston were forced, strained, and just getting to be un-fun. Upon finding out that Dave was moving to Boston, I have to say I was relieved to know that he'd be close again. Seeing him after more than five years was something that wasn't awkward at all. We picked up exactly where we left off - although we had both grown-up, neither of us changed fundamentally. We still get each other on that level that you only share with a few people in your life. He's one of the greatest guys I know, and I am so grateful to have him back. But Dave isn't the only thing that has led to this change in attitude and outlook.

Although it probably took me a wee bit longer than it should have, I ended the three month stint with Dan. Not ended it all together, but took visitation rights down to once a week or less. There are no hard feelings between the two of us and I will be happy to see him next week at Iron Chef... but it is certainly freeing to not have to stress and worry about maintaining a fake relationship. I think we're both on the same page with how we want things in the future. We knew the whole time that "fun for now" wasn't going to last forever - not a a four night a week pace. Being free of that "commitment" made last weekend with Paul and Co one of the best weekends I've had in Boston.

Lastly, I've taken a long hard look at my weightloss journey and I've set some new goals. It's time to stop douching around, get myself back on program, and get rid of the rest of this weight. I am putting a plan into action to accomplish this by my 25th birthday - which is the end of May. It's going to be difficult and it will mean saying no to a lot of things I'd otherwise enjoy, but it's something that I have to do for me and for my health. So please don't get offended if I say no to going out, eating out, staying up late, or any other type of activity... I promise that once I am 15 pounds lighter that I'll go back to being the gregarious girl you know and love (i'll just be thinner and hotter). But for now please bear with me.

So thanks to Dave, Dan, and Weight Watchers for finally getting my head screwed on straight - or thanks go me for realizing the important things in life...

it feels good to be back.

The Filth Fest

2006-01-17T10:59:00.000-05:00

I have to start by saying this was perhaps the best weekend I've had in a long time. Obviously if it's worth blogging about, it was worth the lost sleep, stained carpet, the take out, the rumors, and the truths.

I knew it was coming... when Paul had told me his friends were coming to town... I knew it was coming - the Filth Fest. Friday evening started with a number of people enjoying Shelly's home made traditional Hawaiian dinner. Everyone seemed to enjoy it - it was nice to have people in our apartment again. Even though it was crowded and loud and hot... it was fun to chat with Dan and Al, catch up with Paula and rub shoulders with the others at the dinner.

Paul's boys rolled into town and we headed to The Harp. Dave and I laughed ourselves silly at the parking situation and I noted that perhaps we should take the Forge Village Bridge detour. The drinking began as soon as we arrived and the dancing lasted until the bar closed (well so did the drinking). The after party showed up at 729 about 8 deep or so - a good number. Dave bid me adieu at around 5:30 am and I think I finally went to bed around 6:00 am or so. The boys woke up at 10 am to make a McDonalds run. No shoes, no shirts... the 60 degree weather treated them nicely. A gallon of OJ got spilled on the carpet and the smell of greasy breakfast sandwiches wafted through the apartment. I pulled the blankets over my head and tried to go back to sleep. The failed attempt led me to the kitchen and to my breakfast. Hung over and defeated from alcohol, the boys couched and watched football for the majority of the day. Vinny drove me over to pick up my new glasses (which I am in love with). We stopped at Star Market to pick up some vitamin water for paul who had handed me a $20 dollar bill and said "get a lot" and when I inquired "like a whole case" he said "yes." The kid at the cash register looked sideways at me and Vinny as we put 25 or so vitamin waters on the conveyor belt.

Around 7:30 or so, I headed off to Sunny's to watch the first half of the Pat's game. The boys cleaned up and headed to Gypsy bar where we were to meet them later. At half time, Sunny, Don, and I headed to Elephant and Castle to meet up with my friends, and visit Dana and our other buddies who work over there. Once the game finished up Shelly, Paula, and I decided to head to Gypsy bar. Shelly ditched Jeff and Dan went home early - so we hailed a cab in the pouring freezing rain and made our way to Boylston. It was a very cold wait in the line and we were bone cold by the time we got in the bar. More drinks got poured more dancing ensued and we closed the bar and headed back home. Getting a cab was a chore and a half. After the two Kevins were unsuccessful I looked at Shelly (the only remaining female) and said 'i think it's on us' We get in the middle of Boylston and get a cab nearly right away. We grab two of the boys and zoom away. Our cabbie is extremely friendly and nice... we get home and change our clothes and warm up the left over pizza from earlier.

The boys place bets on whether they'll make their 9:50 am flight... as it is now nearly 3:00 am. I go to bed and tell them I'll surely wake up when they head out - they assure me that they will be like "stealth" and I won't hear anything. Right. I get up and say goodbye to the two kevins and go back to bed. Paul decides it's a good idea to go back to NYC with Vinny for the night and I bid the two of them farewell and get ready for my date.

The date could not have been more awkward. A nice guy on the phone and via email - and also nice in person, but more awkward than '06 ;) The Indian food was delicious - but he hardly ate any... he just sort of kept blinking and looking at me - anyway, needless to say, the mutual feeling of distaste was apparent when the farewell was a quick hug and a 'take care of yourself' - shelly thought i should have given him the fist-pound. I nearly died when she told me that. So funny shelly!

Monday I got on the train home and had lunch with mom and dad in nashua, then did some shopping and had some more QT with mom. The 2:07 am text from Paul that said "you don't even know" made me wonder if he'd ever come back to Boston... but he was sprawled out on the couch when I arrived at 729.

On a 1-10 scale... I'd give this weekend a 10 - even though the date was awful, it was one of the funniest experiences of my life. so yeah, overall - a bonafide 10~!

Two Sets of Interviews:

2006-01-03T12:40:00.000-05:00

Appetizer, entrée, or dessert?
Dessert: molten chocolate lava cake from The Chart House. It takes thirty minutes to bake... its ooey, gooey goodness is intoxicating.

A virus is about to wipe out your archives. You can only save one month. Which month do you save? I would save October. It was a coming of age month for me. Really getting over the heart-ache of the break-up and moving on to better things in myself and my life. If you look back, there were a lot of great October moments. It started with a HOT trip to Philly to see my boys and ended with a great Iron Chef- inbetween there were some memorable dumb-girl quotes, some musical theatre, a birthday celebration or five... and how could anyone forgot Serv-a-thon 2005 - Painting the margaret thatcher home for children with no scarves! Oh, and there's a picture of me looking like jack osbourne... we should save October just for that!

Give me a 10 song playlist that captures the essence of Megan:
1. Stop - Erasure - my dad
2. You Shook me All Night Long - ACDC - Hong Kong.
3. Instant Pleasure - Rufus Wainright - 329 Comstock Pl
4. Funkytown - ? - Brie Murray
5. Kung-Fu-Fighting - ? - Brie Murray
6. The Wall (whole album) Pink Floyd - Frank & Freshman Year
7. Rock DJ - Robbie Williams - Sharon & Crew
8. O Pato - Brazilian Traditional - WoCho: Marashfo, Tracy, D-Wise & B.Tagg
9. Alleluia - Randall Thompson - Fall 2005
10. Haven't got time for the Pain - Carly Simon - gym, life, etc.

01. What is your favorite word? dessert
02. What is your least favorite word? dishonesty
03. What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally? music/singing
04. What turns you off? negativity, self absorbtion
05. What is your favorite curse word? douche bag
06. What sound or noise do you love? laughter
07. What sound or noise do you hate? chalk-board
08. What profession other than your own would you like to attempt? Broadway singer
09. What profession would you not like to do? accounting
10. If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates? "welcome to heaven, we've been expecting you"

In 2006 I Vow To:

2006-01-02T10:37:00.000-05:00

1. Reach my goal weight
2. Get my tattoo
3. Get a new job

~~

I will have to say that this NYE was quite good. I have never been a huge celebrator of NYE, so I think this year may have been perfect. I started the weekend on Friday. I accomplished a lot.
1. Ordered my co-moh dress
2. Picked out new glasses frames
3. Picked up Paul's xmas gift
4. Picked up shelly's xmas gift
5. Picked up my Rx at CVS
6. Went to the gym
7. Window shopped

I would say that's a damn productive day. Oh, and I slept until 10 - so that was good too.

Dan and I went to Laurel for dinner- we were less than impressed. If I am going to drop $50 on dinner I expect that the server will ask me how the food is, if she/he could bring me anything else, if I'd like a dessert menu, or something above and beyond. At least the atmosphere was nice... And although it wasn't the best meal I'd ever had, it was okay. (Not $50 worth of okay).

Saturday Christian came! Yay! I was very excited when he finally arrived after making a wrong turn and ending up in Poughkeepsie, NY. We ate a quick bite at Uno's and headed over to Eastie to kick off the festivities with some Keg Miller-Lite. I nearly threw-up in my mouth at the taste of this gawd awful substance. It wasn't long before we cozied up to the bar at Elephant and Castle where Dana took very good care of us. Sunny showed up and the booze flowed smoothly. I ran into three kids I loved from high school! It was so good to see them, considering it's been five years! A nice surprise for NYE for sure. I got lots of hugs from them and although we didn't have long to talk and I was slightly inebriated, I still managed to give one of them my business card and told him to get in touch - and although he won't, I did make the effort.

After the stroke of midnight Dan headed back to Eastie and Christian and I stayed on a bit longer. I was glad the T was still running when we left the bar, and it was free! That was very good. I could only imagine the influx of people saying "Can I have one token, please." Tokens are going by the way-side anyway, and soon there will be nothing but cards! Thank god, I am sick of touching dirty tokens. Having T-hands is bad enough.

Sunday morning Christian and I headed up to Davis for some much needed food. The Rosebud provided us with a lovely assortment of omelets and carb-o-licious treats. I was glad we arrived when we did because the people behind has had to wait about twenty minutes longer than we did. Breakfast was delicious.

Characters of the weekend:
1. Teddy Rukspin: an older una-bomber looking guy wearing a bright neon orange hunting hat with one mini troll pinned to it, and one hairless troll (bear looking).

2. Mr. Dryell: From the waist up this coatless gentleman looked to be a tad chilly, but decently dressed... not until i glanced at his pantaloons did I noticed that he just took them out of a crumpled pile in the bottom of his closet after shrinking them in the dryer fourteen months earlier.

3. Fake fur coat with pink stretch pants and a hip pouch - 'nough said

Happy 2006 Everyone!~

Gawd Ugly Babies

2005-12-28T14:15:00.000-05:00

I just need to point out that two caucasian people should not be allowed to reproduce, because they make gawd ugly babies. I've decided only people of two different backgrounds should be allowed to reproduce.

example: my restaruant manager's wife... her mom is from Thailand and her dad is Irish... she is hot.

example: My front office manager's son Dylan, his mom is from New Zealand and his Dad is from Brazil- cutest baby ever.

example: another manager: he is a mut like me, but his wife is greek (her name is Olympia (could she be MORE greek? no)... their baby - winner of megan's cutest baby ever award... second only to the girl in applebees who I seriously almost stole.

white people should not be allowed to reproduce with other white people... my theory on adoption sounds better and better all the time.

Opinion Poll: Which is worse

2005-12-28T10:08:00.000-05:00

1. Thinking other people's children are ugly

2. Thinking other people's pets are ugly

My High School Reunion by Megan Poledick

2005-12-27T12:08:00.000-05:00

I will be the first to admit that I did not want to attend the five year high school reunion... that I almost laughed in my best friend's face when she said she was going... but then she convinced me that as her best friend, and voted "class inseperables" I was obligated to attend. So we called the other third of our tripod and convinced him to attend. I had a minor anxiety attack as I walked up the to the doors of our town's country club. Five years, no, that's not a long time... I know this... it was long enough that Jason Robert Brown wrote a whole musical about it though. And five years was long enough for me to lose 45 or so pounds. None of these people (minus my inseparable) had seen me in my new body.

As I walked in the door there weren't many people there. My whole class was only 97 people and by the end of the night maybe 35 had made an appearance... but it was early and only 15 or so were there. At one table sat all the dudes in my class... and i mean the dudes, all of them wearing the same basic button down shirt and jeans. I quickly figured out that you could tell what people were doing based on their attire. A collared shirt and jeans meant you had a degree in business and most likely you were working in finance. Anyway... one of the guys who I had been close with in elementary school said hello to me... I certainly thought that some of them weren't sure it was me right away... but I went over and sat down at their table and chatted with each of them.

It was awkward at first to find out where to begin when people asked "so what have you been up to?" But mostly people discussed what they were doing in their jobs and what was going on in post college life (for those who made it out alive).

Some people changed for the better, some for the worse. One guy showed up who left our school district after 8th grade... so it had been nearly 10 years since I had seen him... that was good and weird.

It was interesting to me to learn that the male half of our classes "Class Couple" had turned out to be gay... and it was interesting that none of our Class Superatlives had shown up except for myself, my best friend and our matching set of male best friends. For some, there was one half, but the other was missing... alas. The two sets of best friends had their pictures taken, so we could remember that even five years later we were still bff :)

It was odd to me at the very low attendance by the females in our class as well. I know that not everyone still lives around our town and there were circumstances beyond the control of others... but there were only 10 girls there... not very many at all... considering the girls pretty much ran the student council, activities board, etc etc. while we were in school.

I was able to reconnect with some people - found out that one of my buddies lives about two miles away from me and we're hoping to get together for drinks in the near future.

I am glad Brie made me go... because it was the most random funny event ever.

Syracuse Holiday Greetings

2005-12-21T15:47:00.000-05:00

Look at the Christmas card they sent me!

Free 411

2005-12-20T11:36:00.000-05:00

Marketing Genius! From my friends at boingboing...

"Free 411 service I know this has been around for a while, but I finally added 1-800-FREE411 to my cell phone's speed dial. My wife and I were spending up to $30 a month on Cingular's 411 service, which charges $1.29 per call. I'll never pay for 411 service again (it works on landlines, too). The catch? You have to listen to a 12 second advertisement if a related business has bought advertising. I'm willing to put up with that. Link"

Dumb Girl, I'll miss you

2005-12-16T10:10:00.000-05:00

Dear Dumb Girl,

It hasn't even been a year since you started filling my days with remarkably stupid and memorable quotes. You've opened my eyes, I never thought people as numb as you existed. I appreciate your honesty in asking questions like: How do you spell Massachusetts? and Does tomorrow have two r's or two m's or What is Roshoshona?

Sometimes you may have thought my silence after these questions was because I did not know the answer either, but in fact, it was because I was actually stupefied by the depth of your questions.

It is with sadness that I compose this letter, knowing I only have a few more short hours to spend with you and your semi-functioning brain. I will miss the countless instances of confusion that appeared on your face when people around the office used words like "implode," "rudimentary," or "Geisha."

Good luck Dumb Girl, it will be hard to replace you... very hard indeed.

In memorandum I have compiled a short list of your most remarkable moments in my life. They can be found here for your convenience. Please stay in touch, as I don't know how I will go on without you.

Excited for this Week

2005-12-13T11:04:00.000-05:00

This week is shaping up to have some serious fun potential. Now that things between Doug and I have been put to bed, I can close that chapter in my life and move along to the important things: fun!

Tomorrow I am headed to the Museum of Fine Arts to check out the Ansel Adams exhibit. This should be quite fun. I think I need to stop using the exhibitions at the MFA as an excuse to go on a date though - I think this will be the third time I've gone to the MFA with the latest guy in my life. Alas, it's a good time, and always fun.

Thursday is going to be an adventure. My best friend is coming to town and we are going to venture to Frog Pond to do some skating. This could be quite a funny thing. I don't know if frog pond has a web cam, but if it does, look for us falling on our behinds. Then maybe, just maybe I'll get to meet up with a friend for a night cap. Yeah, nothing like trying to get together for three months and being too busy on both ends.

Friday I am off to a holiday part at Cindy's house. Should be fabulous! I am sad though, because Mikey Mikes will not be in attendance and he's really the most fun person who attends these events (other than Cindy herself).

Saturday morning, off to the country home to do some shopping and time spending with Momma. I have three scarves I have to make, plus go and get fitted for a maid of honor dress, plus pick of a gift certificate for my secret santa. Should be a fun Saturday. I wanted to avoid Nashua all together this holiday season, but perhaps it's not possible.

Sunday there are possible plans to go to Grand Opening... we'll see. I don't have a lot of money to throw around on toys and what not, but still won't hurt to go look. Then off to Back Bay for a dinner party.

Yup, it's gonna be a good one!

Every day

2005-11-29T14:27:00.000-05:00

All I think about every minute of every day is going home to see if there is a letter from the Elephant. Hurry up and get here.

Being Alive

2005-11-29T11:24:00.000-05:00

Somebody, hold me too close
Somebody, hurt me too deep
Somebody, sit in my chair
And ruin my sleep
And make me aware
Of being alive.

Somebody, need me too much
Somebody, know me too well
Somebody, pull me up short
And put me through hell
And give me support
For being alive.

Somebody, crowd me with love
Somebody, force me to care
Somebody, make me come through
I'll always be there
As frightened as you
To help us survive
Being alive

~Being Alive~Stephen Sondheim

DG QOTD

2005-11-28T17:04:00.000-05:00

Tiffany: I got something for my dad out of this catalogue - guess what it was
DG: a subscription
Tiffany: to a catalogue?
DG: Yeah

DG: I have to go visit Gosia (pronounced GO-sha)
Me: Aww, memoirs of a gosia
DG: *blank stare*

Judy: By unanimous decision we've picked number 4 for our holiday card
DG: Oh, well what else did people vote for?

DG: Why aren't my smiley faces working?

DG: Do we recycle paperclips around here?

DG writes a note to be delivered to one of Michael Jackson's lawyer (a guest in the hotel)
Me: Did you put "ps- billie jean is not my lover"
DG: no, I should have just written: I love driving in my "little red corvette"

dumb girl: did you see the guys dressed up in the continental armystuff? with their cornets
megan: did you say cornets
DG: yes
megan: do you mean bayonets?
DG: they looked like cornets to me

Dumb Girl: How do you spell Massachusetts? I've never actually spelled the whole thing.

DG: what's the word when someone else starts the topic? it was 'blank' by someone
Judy: initiated?

DG: what's the word when you have pictures that could get you in trouble?

Vanessa: Mary doesn't strike me as a person who forwards cat emails
Megan: no, she strikes me as the type to turn her cat into a sweater
10 Minutes Later...
Megan: DG, it's Mary Donovan on the phone for you.
DG: Who?
Megan: Mary Donovan. You may remember her from such conversations as: the cat sweater.

DG: I am not sure if this is a real pocket or not

Dumb Girl: question: how do you spell ho?
Vanessa: what do you mean
DG: like pimps and hosVanessa: it's slang, so it's just h-o

DUMBGIRL (shockingly): Huh! Sheraton Framingham has the same hold music as us!

Dumb Girl: Which is bigger, kilometers or miles?

DG: what are those mountains called? The ones in upstate new york?

Dumb Girl: What is Roshoshana

Dumb Girl: What is E-S-Q?

Megan: did it implode
Dumb Girl: i don't know what that means

Dumb Girl: Is the Fogg Museum part of Harvard Law?

Washington, DC

2005-11-21T12:43:00.000-05:00

What a great trip... I am fairly certain I accomplished the primary mission of going down there. I will report more on this after I find out for sure.

On the metro heading to the hotel Dan and I were lucky enough to sit in front of the token metro singer. He was listening to his headphones but serenading the whole train car with his throaty renditions of debbie gibson tunes - or even better... random Rick James sounding songs or perhaps some weird love child of Ray Charles and Prince (formerly known as a symbol of a prince). Either way, this man was putting smiles on faces of children of all ages. He sang a rousing rendition of a song I will title "front and back" the lyrics contained three words and were strung together artistically: front and back and back and front. Perhaps he was listening to the audio of a Richard Simmons workout tape? Either way Dan and I, who had been traveling for most the day, found this man to be quite funny and we kept tossing knowing glances at each other thinking "we're gonna make fun of this guy as soon as we get off this train." Then to make matters funnier... a lady got on wearing a bird's nest hat. I could only find an image on the internet that was similar... so here you go:

After I took care of business, we headed to Metro Center to meet up with Dan's older brother, Brian and his girlfriend. After dinner, Dan and I headed out into the city to walk around and see the sights. We walked over by the Smithsonian, near the Capitol Building, and over to the Washington Monument... beyond that we went to the new World War II Memorial. It was very nice to do all of that by moonlight. It was a good walk and a beautiful night to be surrounded by all the history. Dan and I both made wishes into the fountain at the WWII Memorial, and then two feet later saw the sign that said "coins damage fountains" - I really feel if you're going to put a fountain you should make it coin resistant.

Saturday morning I woke up and walked over to the Hirshhorn sculpture park while silly sleepy was still in bed. I wondered around there for a while. After checking out of the hotel and into the Westin Grand, we headed over to check-out the International Spy Museum... but it was sold out. We wandered passed the White House and a good many monetary institutions as well. We ended up at the Hirshhorn Museum of Art... we got there so late in the afternoon we didn't have to pay, so that was fun.

Later that night, We cabbed ourselves over to the 9:30 Club where we met up with Brian and his roommates to take in the jam band: Galactic. It was a ton of fun. I am not one for jam bands, but the atmosphere was good and the five part horn section that cameoed was hot. Highlights of the evening included Dan's brother dancing with me, me and Dan singing "new orleans under water," the awesome horn section, and the most schwasted I've ever seen the sunshine of my life. When we got back to the hotel around 2:30 in the morning, Dan mistakenly ripped the phone off the bathroom wall. I laughed so hard I almost peed my pants. Luckily we were able to plug it back in the wall. Please note this was not an act of violence, just an act of good humor.

It was a great weekend. Business and pleasure both taken care of very neatly in a 72 hour period. It was awesome to be in DC since I haven't been there in ten or so years. I certainly wouldn't mind making it my home.

It's about Pride

2005-11-16T14:38:00.000-05:00

I am almost afraid to invite my friends and family to my choir concert this December. We have just two rehearsals left before we stand on stage and perform a myriad of songs that we hardly know. I love to sing, I have been in choirs for my whole life, and I can't tell you how frightened I am to dawn my black skirt and white blouse and sing. It's not as though I haven't been diligent about attending rehearsals and even practiced some of the songs on my own with my keyboard. But last night was just a nightmare. Working backward through the program, we squawked our way through several Christmas songs. At one point, our director said, "well, just do your best to sing a note in the chord so it doesn't sound totally wrong." Two rehearsals left. Later, Zach looks at me, as we're taking out Silver Bells and says, "Silver Bells? I don't even have the music for that- I didn't even know we were singing it." Two rehearsals left.

Then, if to make matters worse, our director scrambles us. "Go stand next to someone who is singing a different part." Now at least when you're in four sections each section generally stays together... If they make a mistake it is usually as a collective. All of a sudden we are forty people standing alone trying to sing a song that has two words: Alleluiah & Amen... Good luck finding your place if you get lost during this song.

Be it funny or sad our soloist sang his 'cantor' portion of one of the Jewish pieces for the first time. This was so hurtful to my ears that I actually had to stab Zach's leg and grimace while he sang. I wouldn't describe it as 'bad' more like 'awful' or 'worse than William Hung.' Doug was out of the room during this interesting musical interpretation of the song... When he came back in I mouthed the words "you missed it" and he mouthed back "oh, I heard it." Zach commented that he was glad he didn't audition for the solo and get turned down because his particular singer "nailed" it. I wonder if he nailed something else to earn the solo.

In other news, ticket prices for our concert have increased to $10. I am wondering really why we are making people pay to hear us. I don't even want to listen to us for free... And I certainly wouldn't pay for this. Granted, we have two rehearsals, and if David stops spending thirty minutes rearranging us, talking about whether we're singing the repeat piano or metzo forte, and asking who is singing the middle part - we might be okay.

Anyway - I hope to see you all on December 3rd at 7:00 pm at The North Prospect Church right by Porter Square on Mass Ave... it'll be great - promise.

Homecoming 05

2005-11-14T13:44:00.000-05:00

Graduate away for to stay a little while,
But homecomin' back if we go ten thousand miles.
Too drunk to tie my shoes
Too drunk to glove your hands
Not too drunk to kiss your ruby lips when you come back
~paying homage to WoCho

Client Quote of the Day

2005-11-10T15:45:00.000-05:00

From an email I recieved today:

I mis-spelled the name in room 7...its not Mellissa Ventura, its Mellisa Sanchez.

Map it Baby

2005-11-02T13:47:00.000-05:00

Add yourself to my map!

2005-11-02T13:34:00.000-05:00

Dear People Who Put Halloween Costumes on Their Dogs,

You're Mental

No love,

Me

Rare Glimpse of Truth

2005-11-02T10:54:00.000-05:00

Subject: Custody Case Syracuse, NY (AP) - A seven-year-old boy was at the center of a Syracuse City courtroom drama yesterday when he challenged a court ruling over who should have custody of him. The boy had a history of being beaten by his parents and the judge initially awarded custody to his aunt. The boy surprised the court when he proclaimed that his aunt beat him more than his parents and he adamantly refused to live with her. After two recesses to check legal references and confer with Child Welfare officials, the judge granted temporary custody to the Syracuse Football Orangemen, whom the boy firmly believes are not capable of beating anyone.

Given It Up

2005-11-02T10:40:00.000-05:00

I'm trying to decide between mind and my attitude
I'm giving up the things I wanna be me and be not like you
Shy nervous and quiet sitting in the corner that's no longer me
You wanna figure out this kid then you'll just have to see

I said I'm giving up, I'm giving up what I used to be
This time I'm clean
this time I just don't give a care
A whole new scene

this life I live this time must be fair

Had 18 years at 19 I began again
This time no fears don't ask me why I told you when
Cause to reach the top of which I lay my hope
My true friends knock to make sure I don't choke
One day we'll all make it through just fine
Those days we'll all make up for wasted time

What I was
To what I am
To what one day I might turn out to be

~Big D and the Kids Table (Given it Up)

The Trouble with The World Today (It seems to me)

2005-11-02T10:36:00.000-05:00

The cyclical nature of liberal thinking.

Thought 1: "Gas prices are so high, this is all Bush's fault"
Thought 2: "I love nature, I don't want Bush to drill for oil in Alaska"
Thought 3: "I need a new car, I am buying an SUV"

Happy Halloween

2005-10-31T09:57:00.000-05:00

Okay - so I guess I need to post something because I've been out nearly every night this week... so here goes with just the highlights.

Tuesday Night
As always, Tuesday was filled with fabulous choiring and some QT with Jess, Zach, and new friend Rebecca at the Burren. While I had to make an unplanned exit, I had a very good time while I was there. Rebecca is good people and I think I might keep her.

Wednesday Night
I went to the Comedy Connection with Dan and his roommates:

Benefit for Family of Leroy Alexander
"Comedy Connection house manager and booking agent, Ryan Cott, has set up the "Alexander Benefit," an innovative fundraiser for the family of Staff Sgt. LeRoy Alexander of Dale City, Virginia. Alexander who graduated C.D. Hylton High School in Virginia with Cott, was killed in Afghanistan after a bomb destroyed the convey truck he was driving. The 27 year old Staff Sargeant's wife and high school sweetheart, Marissa is expecting twins this month". - Comedy Connection

It was a very good cause and a very funny performance. I was excited because Joe Wong was there, but he wasn't in the show, he was just supporting the cause. Dan says Joe performs a lot there, so maybe we'll try to go see him.

Thursday Night

Where else would I be? I was at Iron Chef with Jess and Cindy. My "prom date" got sick, so it became a ladies' night. It was truly a fun time. The International was the hosting venue and none of us had been there before. It was a nice place and the DJ was having fun spinning some old 80's records and some new stuff too. The food, as always, was quite good. The individual pumpkin pies for dessert were the most tasty little things in the world.

Friday night

After a quick nap, a beer and three shots, Dan and I headed into the city to meet up with his friends. A quick stop at Beantown Pub (come on, it's tradition) got me my first shot of yager in quite a while. We headed to Trinity where I got to dance. I was intoxicated and dancing... I was a happy girl. Two more beers later, Dan and I were about ready to go home. The last time I remember on the clock was 3:00 am... and that was right after we got back to East Boston. A very good night. Nice to use a Go-Card too.

Saturday night

Paul and I headed over to Cindy's for some Halloween fun. I went as Jack Osbourne and Paul went as himself. Whatever happened to that Elf costume Paul? Oh well. I finally met Cindy's boyfriend: Mikey-mikes. He's a keeper and I am now on a mission to convince Cindy to stay in Boston and convince Mike to move up here rather than her moving to NYC. I then headed up Highland Ave a few blocks to Zach's party. I was home somewhat early and hit the sack for some much needed sleep.

Overall, a fantastic week!

The ROKR follow up

2005-10-26T09:50:00.000-05:00

If you bothered to read the actually intelligent post I wrote about the ROKR and its questionable success in the marketplace... here is a brief follow up from my good friends at Wired. For the most part, I think they second what I was saying, for a few different reasons... and a few I didn't think of. Apple doesn't want to cannibalize the iPod... didn't think about it in those terms. Definitely an interesting article to skim. There's also a snippet on boingboing.net.

Ling Ling's twin Brothers

2005-10-24T16:10:00.000-05:00

This is why Dan makes me laugh.

Click here for two chinese people lip synching to backstreet boys.

no, really.

Pictorals

2005-10-24T11:32:00.000-05:00

C$'s Boston Pics from Servathon Y2K5

FIRED UP

2005-10-24T10:46:00.000-05:00

October 22, 2005 marked the second annaul Megan, C$, Broser, and Andrea Servathon!~ This year's site the Margaret Fuller House located in Cambridge needed quite a bit of work. Luckily with 150 volunteers at our site, the work went quickly. We scraped and painted an entire side of the house with several members from Dyax's community outreach program. I certainly had a wonderful time doing this project. I would say it wasn't quite as fun as raking up leaves in the ghetto (Lena Park, Dorchester MA)... but it was still a good time.

The morning started early, with departure from Somerville Ave at 8:02 AM. We arrived at Government Center to load up on free bagels, waters, jucies, and Go-gurts (i remain to be scared of go-gort). We listened to Mayor Menino and several members of City Year (the parent organization of Servathon). We then got FIRED UP doing some Physical Training. We headed off with Alan, our core member, to the site. We got up and running and had our side of the house scraped in no time. The whole process seemed to move along quickly... and although I sustained a minor injury (and was awarded a Purple Heart), the day was great.

We escaped just as the rain started to fall. Servathon 2005 - SUCCESS! I certainly look forward to 2006, and hope that a few more people come out to serve. It really is a very fun time.

SU Athletics

2005-10-17T09:02:00.000-05:00

Any article that calls Otto a "Tubby Disoriented Outpatient Fruit" is worth a read. Go Orange

When you gonna ring it? When you gonna ring it?

2005-10-17T08:17:00.000-05:00

I've been thinking about my doorbell
When you gonna ring it?
When you gonna ring it?
~White Stripes "Doorbell"

~~~~

What a fabulous weekend. A few road bumps, but overall a good time. Friday, in the pouring rain, Cindy and I made our way down to Avalon to see Liz Phair. I only new a handful of songs, but live music is always a good time. I do not, however, love her more than life itself and hope that she shows up on my doorstep with a dozen roses. The funniest part about Friday night, was the man standing in front of me. If you've seen Forty Year Old Virgin, then you'll know exactly what I am talking about. This guy was wearing a purple and green plaid button down shirt, probably flannel, tucked in to his khaki dockers. His red hoodie was sinched around his waist so tightly, that I was pretty sure he wore a 28 inch waist. His hair was parted to the side and neatly combed over. Oh and he was wearing glasses. After the show got done, he turned to a large man wearing a blue sweatshirt and said "that was the best." Sir, you're clearly not getting laid.

Saturday was also a good day. I got up at 8:33 am... first early morning on a Saturday in a long time. I got myself to the gym and had a good, but tough workout. I had birthday lunch with Pete who is now twenty-five. We hadn't seen each other in a long time, so it was nice to catch up with him. We reconfirmed our annual trip to the brewery and enjoyed lunch at Uno's. I felt bad, but when bringing my change, the waitress brought me a five dollar bill, a one dollar bill, and some coins. Usually, I would have left a four dollar tip... however, because the waitress left me no choice but to leave the five... I left the one and the coins. I felt bad, but I felt like it was her own fault. I wasn't going to ask her to change the five, that's what she should have done as a professional waitstaff. Alas, I continue to be a service snob. Sorry server at Uno's, but you screwed yourself out of three dollars.

I headed over to Jess' to enjoy her new couches and watch a movie. Yeah, it was the ninth day of rain, so I figured some couching was totally justified. The Princess Bride is really quite a fabulous movie. It was nice to hang out with Jess and her homies.

Back at home, Paul and I got dinner, showered, and got pretty for a night on the town. The r'mates and I headed over to Tequila Rain to enjoy some drinking and some dancing. Other than the birthday girl having to leave early, I had a great time. Met some new fun people, hung out with some old fun people, and danced my pants off. Ass shaking never felt so good.

Sunday, the day of rest... lots of basketball, gym, and movie.

And so the week begins. :)

Fair Weather

2005-10-14T13:08:00.000-05:00

...the coldest day of the year. It's simply freezing; the dogs are sticking to the sidewalks; can anybody explain that? The Skin of Our Teeth by Thorton Wilder
~~~~

Did four years in Central New York make me hard and immune to the cold? Am I the only person who thinks that 55 degrees is comfortable? Yesterday I walked to work, took the T to Davis Square, walked home from the square, and walked to/from Tacos Lupita. I did not wear any of the following items: hat, scarf, gloves, mittens, coat. During my travels, however, I did notice that apparently 55 degrees is fair weather to dawn all of those items. To those people, I say, simply: "you're fucked." If you can't handle fifty-five degrees without bundling up inside a down jacket, woolen scarf, or knit cap, you're just fucked. It's not even freezing out, I can't see my breath, I can't see anyone's breath. There hasn't been one serious frost yet people are layering.

Layer like an onion, not a banana
Mrs. Kimpton, my 12th grade English teacher.
~~~~

To my catering manager came in wearing a coat yesterday, a long, thick coat.
YOU ARE FUCKED

A woman on the T was wearing a matching scarf and mitten set. Mittens? Are you serious? Are your fingers that cold? Do you really need to wrap your digits in a cacoon of lamb's wool? It's fifty-five degrees! YOU ARE FUCKED.

A man walking down Garden Street was wearing a knit cap. My only hope here, is that this man was bald. If you're bald, I can understand that perhaps you need a lil something there, but still, a baseball cap would suffice. YOU ARE FUCKED.

A woman on Elm Street: boots with the fuzzy tops, long sleeved shirt, long sleeved jacket, vest, scarf, long skirt, tights. YOU ARE SO FUCKED.

I expect to see these types of things when it's 32 degrees, or perhaps 0 degrees... but at fifty-five degrees, no, I don't think so. Put on your jeans and your hoodie and call it a day. Even with forty fewer pounds of fat to keep me warm, I am still comfortable in a hoodie. One must condition his/her body to prepare for the frigid months ahead. Middle of October

... still shorts weather in upstate New York.

And maybe they're really magic, who knows.

2005-10-13T11:38:00.000-05:00

If you know what you want,
Then you go and you find it
And you get it.
and you give and you take
And you bid and you bargain,
Or you live to regret it.
There are rights and wrong and inbetweens
No one waits when fortune intervenes

MotoROKR

2005-10-13T08:34:00.000-05:00

It's finally here. A fairly versatile phone that also is mp3 (i-Tunes) compatible. However, has the market missed its opporunity? Apple and its i-Pod have already saturated the market probably sitting around 70-80% of the market share. So let's say, conservatively, that seven out of ten people are proud owners of the i-pod in some form or another (full-sized, mini, shuffle, nano, etc). On average, let's say each proud owner has spent 200 dollars on this prized possession.

In comparison to this, let's briefly examine the cellular phone market. (I am a pseudo expert on this from completing an industry analysis on mobile phones during SOM122) On average these days, pimps with cool phones are spending an average of $150, with a monthly plan of $45. Market share in the mobile phone market belongs largely to VerizonWireless, with Sprint Nextel, T-Mobile, and of course Cingular Wireless (the communications portion of the new MotoROKR) sharing the remainder of the market in a highly competitive race.

I just don't see it happening. If you already own an i-pod and a cellular phone, are you going to purchase a combo pack. Priced competitively at $249, the MotoROKR is a great idea in theory. But what are the switching costs? If you subscribe to a service other than Cingular, you have to either (1) wait for your contract to end or (2) pay the fee to unsubscribe early. You then have to join a carrier who has not had the best reputation. Other than the early adopters, people will generally stay with things that make them comfortable. The fear of change can be enough to scare off even the most technie of nerds. Next, the big question - what do you do with your old i-pod? Do you sell it on e-bay/craigslist/amazon.com? Out of the 80 some odd percent of the market who does not subscribe to Cingular, and the 70% of the market who already owns an i-pod, I am guessing the overlap (ven diagram) between those two groups is huge. I see the switching costs as being too high for the average mobile or i-pod user. At least, switchers can keep their phone numbers. This lowers the relative switching costs, but the other considerations may be too large.

Is it convenient? Yes. But who is going to purchase this new product. The 15-25 year old segment would be the likely target. The group with the most disposable income... The early adopters, people who have been waiting for this technology? The first moved advantage on this product is huge. It could be the turning point for Cingular. It could be the wheels that Cingular will use to run over VerizonWireless.

The product does have a few things going for it. First, it's new - exactly what the market has been waiting for. It's the Blackberry of the young generation - the combination of two technologies released in one tour-de-force. Secondly, branding. Apple has done an outstanding job of branding its i-pod. Without question, the i-pod is the singular reason apple has not gone stem first into the ground. It has been a long time since a portable, digital technology has built the brand strength that surrounds the i-pod. Think for a minute how just a few minor changes have caused Apple to completely differentiate itself from all the other portable digital devices (both mp3 compatible and non)... Simply changing the color of the headphone was enough of a difference that an entire advertising campaign exploded around it. The headphones are so closely associated with the expensive portable device that cities have started campaigns to remind users to be weary of the notary brought upon themselves by dawning the white ear buds. Along with this brand strength, has come the rapid acceptance of the Apple user interface. People are comfortable with Apple's technology because they have been using it in their i-pod for years.

With the October release of this product, I am certain that Cingular is planning to bank on the Christmas/Chanukah. The ad campaign behind this product has to be in the millions. Apple has the advertising budget of a Goliath and isn't afraid to dish it out to reach the target. Then there's Cingular who can help sound the call of the new baby, handing out cigars to all targets great and small.

So here I am. Single, white, female, 24 years old. Verizon subscriber. Have been telling everyone that I will not get an mp3 player until it comes out in conjunction with a mobile phone. I am in the 30% who does not have an i-pod... will *I* be switching to Cingular?

Only time will tell.

I guess this is goodbye

2005-10-13T07:33:00.000-05:00

I guess this is goodbye, old pal.
You've been a perfect friend.
I hate to see us part, old pal,
Someday I'll buy you back.
I'll see you soon again.
I hope that when I do,
It won't be on a plate.
~Jack

Things I am looking forward to:
Swinging Johnsons with Dan
Liz Phair with Cindy
Lunch with Peter
Out with Jess

Shalom

2005-10-12T13:06:00.000-05:00

To all my friends who are observing Yom Kippor: Shalom

Dumb Girl Quote of the Day 10.12.2005

2005-10-12T13:01:00.000-05:00

Dumb Girl: Does tomorrow have two r's or two m's

Little Red

2005-10-12T12:40:00.000-05:00

And I know things now,
many valuable things,
That I hadn't known before.
Do not put your faith
in a cape and a hood.
They will not protect you
the way that they should.
And take extra care with strangers,
even flowers have their dangers,
And though scary is exciting,
Nice is different than good.
~Stephen Sondehim (Into the Woods)

Apple's Earnings

2005-10-11T11:53:00.000-05:00

The below is a portion of an article from CNN.com. The remainder of the article can be found here: http://money.cnn.com/2005/10/10/technology/apple_preview/index.htm

iPods still white hot
In addition to looking at how PC sales fared during the critical back-to-school season, analysts will also be paying close attention to iPod sales.

UBS analyst Benjamin Reitzes and his team estimate Apple shipped 6.75 million iPods in the fourth quarter. They based these projections on an estimated 10 percent growth in iPod sales from quarter to quarter and on solid shipments of both the iPod mini and its successor, the nano.

"Our checks indicate a very solid possible build plan ... that could top 10 million nanos (in the current quarter) alone," the analysts wrote. Through its innovative design, competitive pricing, and a knack for figuring out what it would take to get consumers to adopt digital music, Apple has crushed competitors. The question some are asking is when the iPod juggernaut will finally slow down, and what that will mean for Apple.

"There's a sense the iPod market is in full flood and not going to be much bigger than it is, (and that) we're at peak growth right now," said Roger Kay of Endpoint Technologies Associates, a market research firm.

But Michael Gartenberg, an analyst at market research firm Jupiter, said that the iPod may have caught on in urban areas, but it's far too early to call a time of death on its growth prospects.

"If you live in New York City, it's like one big Apple commercial," he said of Apple's dominance in the portable MP3 player market. "But if you're not in New York or San Francisco, you don't see this same level of technology penetration. Right now the market is Apple's."

And one more thing...

It's a news-heavy week for Apple. Interestingly, the company has chosen the day after its earnings report to make an announcement that it won't talk about but what many expect will be a video-enabled iPod, upgrades to its Power Mac and Power Book lines, or both.
Either way, Apple watchers note that trying to predict what Jobs is going to do next can be an object lesson in how to look foolish.

"When Steve Jobs says 'one more thing', that's usually pretty big; it's probably going to be an event of some significance," said Jupiter's Gartenberg.

Reitzes at UBS said that while Wednesday's event may not launch the video iPod, his firm believes one is in the works, along with changes to Apple's iTunes software that will enable users to download related content.

Reitzes added that he and his team believe Apple may be planning a Tivo-like product and service that could eventually serve as a home media hub. - http://money.cnn.com/2005/10/10/technology/apple_preview/index.htm

On the Deck of a Spanish Sailing Ship, 1492

2005-10-10T10:10:00.000-05:00

Lord, we take this journey
To find a promised land
Lord, we take this journey
To find a promised land
And we believe in your power
But the end is so close,

Lord, these men are hungry
There just hasn't been enough
And the journey's been so rough
And, Lord, these men are hurting
They implore me to go back
As the planks beneath them crack

And I know it's my responsibility
But I'm starving too
And I hurt, I do
And I'm lost
I believe in my responsibility
But I need to see
If the fruits will be worth the cost

So I'm begging you, Lord
You gotta stop, take a look
At your children who believe in this promised land
Have mercy, Lord
Stop their suffering and their woe
Stop, shine your light on these children
Who have faith in your guiding hand
I'm just begging Lord
‘Cause there's no place else to go

Lord, this ship is crowded
And the men are tired an worn
But another baby's born
And, Lord, this ship is broken
And the sails are ripped and old
But the winds are rough and cold
And I know it's my responsibility
When I ride the sea
These men turn to me for a sign
I believe in my responsibility
But I can't be sure
When it's time for your light to shine
~Jason Robert Brown (Songs for a New World)

Thank you Columbus, you found America, but didn't earn me a day off

2005-10-10T09:51:00.000-05:00

It's about one moment
That moment you think you know where you stand
And in that one moment
The things that you're sure of slip from your hand
And you've got one second
To try to be clear, to try to stand tall
But nothing's the same
And the wind starts to blow
And you're suddenly a stranger
In some completely different land
And you thought you knew
But you didn't have a clue
That the surface sometimes cracks
To reveal the tracks
To a new world
~

What a good weekend. I needed that... I needed to remember what it was like to be with someone and laugh. Laugh a lot... for someone to tell me I was cute, to tell me I was funny, to want to take me to breakfast. It feels so good to spend time with a guy who gets my sense of humor, doesn't take life so seriously, and is willing to laugh both at me and himself. I had forgotten that dating and getting to know someone doesn't have to be so heavy all the time. It was nice to feel alive again, to smile, to laugh, to enjoy myself.

Did anyone else see the announcement on Iron Chef Louie's website? The theme for the halloween bash is "my senior prom." I nearly peed my pants when I read this, after Brie had purchased me that fabulous book of old prom photos. Now I have some ideas! Should be a great time. Can't wait!!

Saw Camelot this weekend with Momma. It was good, lengthy, but it had been a while since I had seen "real theatre" so it was a nice change of pace. I didn't realize until today that Camelot was done by the same people who did My Fair Lady... but once I learned that, it all made sense... I was like "oh, THAT's why it seemed so familiar."

I managed to get Frank on the phone this Saturday to wish him a happy birthday! I miss him so much. I can't wait to get out to Chicago to visit him. He and Marcos moved to a new apartment, and I am dying to see it! Maybe sometime in the next few months I can put together enough scratch to go out there. Anyone want to go with me? Chicago is a freakin' great place. I am hoping the White Sox win the world series... if it can't be our sox, it might as well be their sox.

Harvard Law Recruiting is almost over, and soon October will come to a close. I am worried, our numbers don't look quite as strong as I remember last year's numbers being - but I suppose we'll see how they fall at month's close.

So does anyone want to head out to Salem to do some Halloween related things? I still need to find a day to buy and carve a pumpkin. Didn't get to do it last year, this year I will make the time!

Dumb Girl Quote of the Day 10.6.2005

2005-10-06T12:14:00.000-05:00

Judy: By unanimous decision we've picked number 4 for our holiday card
DG: Oh, well what else did people vote for?

Vacation Time

2005-10-06T12:01:00.000-05:00

~Pleasant day, pretty sky, life goes on, and here I lie. Not bad, not bad at all.~ Snoopy

As it turns out, I had the best five days off ever. Just the right balance of busy and quiet, friends and family, travel and downtime. After a truly exhausting week at work, I wrapped up my Friday afternoon and headed off to quite a good first date. Call me a loser, but my favorite first date place is still RF O'Sullivans. I think the way a man orders a burger and eats a burger says a lot. So after a delicious dinner of medium rare red meat (the burger, not the date) we walked up to Davis and enjoyed refreshments at the Some Day Cafe.

Saturday morning, got up early, showered and headed to the airport via the new Silver Line. My flight to Philly was flawless and the boys met me at the airport. Kenny had driven in from NYC and I had flown in from Boston and we couldn't find a bar within fifteen miles of Jarad's house showing the Sox Yanks game. Oh well, we spent some time at the local pub watching a myriad of other sporting events... Then back to Jarad's to watch the Phillys.

I had a great time seeing my boys. It really had been far too long since we had all gotten together and made each other laugh. We made a few decisions - Vegas in the spring and we again solidified our plans for Beijing in 2008 (where we will drink shampoo). It did wonders for me to spend a few days with Kenny and Jarad... I am sincerely appreciative of the escape!

Monday and Tuesday I spent with the parents, getting pampered with home cooking and parental lovin' .

I am refreshed, awake, and with new perspective on life, I am ready to move ahead (boldly). No more living in the past. I realized a lot this weekend. I am not afraid to move on from unhealthy relationships, to break connections with people who squash my happiness, or enjoy the company of those whom I enjoy. I would have to say - in the next six months you will see big, bold things happening in my life. I am ready, bring it on.

OH STAR

2005-09-28T09:34:00.000-05:00

We may choose something like a star
To stay our minds on and be staid.
~

I have been a bad blogger lately, not updating anything other than the Daily Dose, but work has actually been (ready for this?) BUSY. Harvard Law Recruiting is in full swing and I've been playing, what I would like to call an "intergral role" in this whole she-bang (Ricki Martin's She Bangs is a really good song). So here we go... blog away!

This weekend is the beginning of October... and as many of you may know, this means all the libras are having birthdays. That means I am in charge of sending birthday wishes to: Frank, Jenn-Jenn, Peter, Jason, Jessica, and ... hmmm I feel like I am forgetting some people. It'll come to me.

I am heading down to Philly to see my boys this weekend! It's been a long time since I've seen Jarad - April maybe, and a few months since I've seen Kenny... should be a great trip. Short yes, but great none-the-less. I am flying AirTran, which is funny because it's like the China Air of the United States... well the three of us flew China Air when we were in the HK, and part of the plane fell off inside the cabin - I can only imagine what's going to happen on this short jaunt to Philly. It'll be great to see those two silly boys.

Upon my return, I am free from the confines of work until Thursday, so I will be heading to the wonderful country hamlet of Groton to spend some time with the loving mom and dad. Will be a most needed and calming break from the constant buzz that my life has become.

I've had a Mad Caddies song stuck in my head ALL morning. I decided perhaps I should try to go see them, but they are touring in Australia until January... anyone want to go?

Things I am looking forward to:

Gym
Philly (two jews and a shiksa reunite)
Groton
Jess' Bday (A go-card most definitely will be used)

Dumb Girl Quote of the Day

2005-09-23T11:35:00.000-05:00

Dumb Girl: And then they went to that thing, you know, where there is a priest behind one door and you sit behind the other door and you tell him your secrets.

Vanessa: a confessional?

Caller of the Day!

2005-09-22T12:38:00.000-05:00

megan: it's a great day at the SCH, how may I assist you?

caller: Hi, I was told that all the rooms in the block for our conference were sold out, and that the hotel was sold out as well.

megan: yes.

caller: I was wondering if you'd be releasing anymore rooms for sale over those dates?

megan: Well the real trouble comes because it is not just your group block that is full, but the hotel is actually sold out over those dates as well.

caller: i see. so you won't be releasing anymore rooms?

I got a feeling there's a miracle due

2005-09-22T08:35:00.000-05:00

Maybe it's because I slept for more than 5 hours last night... maybe it's because it's been more than two weeks since the heart ache, maybe it's because it's a full moon... but whatever the reason - I am finally starting to feel like my old self again.

Last night, after weight watchers, I hung out with Adam and KerriAnn. It was nice to just hang out, spend time with them, and chat.

I realized that while my relationship was great, it wasn't right for me. Paul was right about a lot of the things he said. It's a bit frustrating to know I have to get back out there and do it again. (do or do not, there is no try). I do enough other things in my life right now - finding a life partner seems like a daunting task. However, much in the same way Doug came into my life, I am sure it will happen when I least expect it. So for now, I am just going to party like a rock-star, build the bonds of friendship with those I love, and remember all the things that make me who I am.

Tonight is another wonderful Iron Chef event. I hope to eat some great chow, do some dancing, and meet some new people. If those girls from high school are there this time, I think I'll say hi to them.

Things I am looking forward to:

Iron Chef!
Wedding Dress Shopping for My Cuz
BEN CLYMER (them shit's be hard)

Oh - and honorable mention to KerriAnn, who although does NOT look like any Disney cartoon characters, still had a great audition!

Remember the time...

2005-09-19T13:42:00.000-05:00

Remember the time that my corporate email account had been down since Thursday and I could not send nor recieve email from any clients and the message at the help desk said that there was "no estimated time" when the problem would be fixed and I had to create another gmail account so I could actually do my job? That was right now.

Oh Baby, Baby it's a Wild World

2005-09-19T09:14:00.000-05:00

Another weekend of fun, football, and festivities. Friday was kicked off with a quick jaunt to the gym where I did my wonderful forty minutes of cardio. After showering all the stink away, I got dressed and Paul, Adam, KerriAnn, and I headed over to Jenn's new apartment for the housewarming party. I immediately got a bad taste in my mouth when I walked in the door, started to introduce myself to one of the new roommates, and she walked away from me. What a bitch. Glad I don't have to live with her. While there were a number of people there, none of them struck my fancy, and though I mingled through the rooms and conversed with the other attendees, I was still left with a feeling of, "everyone here is a tool." I had a twenty-minute conversation with a guy that went nowhere. I was like "okay, I am going to go over there now. bye" The only redeeming thing about him, was that he knew Mitch Hedberg and Dane Cook. After watching the Red Sox win in the rainy tenth inning, we headed home where Paul and I couched for another few hours.

Saturday I got up and headed down to Milton with Jess to watch Andrew play soccer. It was fun. It was nice to spend some quality time with my chick friend. Although Andrew's team didn't win, they played their hearts out. I never knew eleven year olds could be so good at soccer.

Saturday night, the roommate's and I went to The Rack where we met up with Adam, KA, and my favorite: Zoltan! Zoltan lives in Boston now!! Thank goodness. We enjoyed the festivites of people trying way too hard (as Paul put it). I did get to do some dancing, so that was great! I still wasn't really feeling the scene, but I tried my best to have a good time with my friends. It was fun to go and dance and wiggle around the dancefloor. I would have to say though, that I don't think I'll be going back to The Rack anytime soon.

I am hoping some more dancing will happen on Thursday at Iron Chef!

Mega Megan-Isms (aka: stuff I say)

2005-09-16T12:08:00.000-05:00

and...

I'm not going to lie

I heart that

To Couch

To Blob

Keys, Wallet, Phone

I think I just threw up in my mouth a little

Remember the time...

That was a good story, tell it again

The Scientist

2005-09-16T11:44:00.000-05:00

Nobody said it was easy
It’s such a shame for us to part
Nobody said it was easy
No one ever said it would be this hard
Aww take me back to the start

I was just guessin’,
At numbers and figures,
Pullin’ the puzzles apart
Questions of science,
Science and progress,
Do not speak as loud as my heart

The Road Not Taken

2005-09-15T12:15:00.000-05:00

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood
and sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveller, long I stood
and looked down one as far as I could
to where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
and having perhaps the better claim
because it was grassy and wanted wear;
though as for that, the passing there
had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
in leaves no feet had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and
I--I took the one less travelled by,
and that has made all the difference

- Robert Frost

Saturday I Crashed Your Party

2005-09-12T09:25:00.000-05:00

Saturday could not have been better. After a completely solid 40 minute cardio work out, some delicious dinner, and a good hot shower - we suited up and headed to my broser's apartment to celebrate Andrea's birthday. While Andrea and I comiserated about our current employers, Paul watched some football, and Jess and Shelly enjoyed some libations.

We then headed out to The Harp. A good time was had by all. The music was fabulous, the dancing was hot, and the sea of button down shirts was blinding. Dancing for two and a half hours straight was perhaps the best stress relief I've come across since the Monday Night Disaster. I felt more like my old self on that dancefloor, and more confident and comfortable in my own skin than I had all week.

My mission for the night was accomplished and I was able to go home thinking "I'll be okay" and I will be. I have done single life for so long, I just need to get back into the swing of it - I will learn to enjoy it too. Paul's money is on six weeks before I really enjoy being single, maybe four if I am lucky. Either way, I'll be fine!

After four months, I finally got to see Cindy's apartment, which is awesome! We had some great pasta and salad. So good! It was nice to see someone else's walls, instead of staring at mine for another day.

This week should be great. Trying to reconnect with old friends, get some more pounds off this frame, and attending a housewarming party.

Silent Bob Says:

2005-09-09T19:08:00.000-05:00

"You know, there's a million fine-looking women in the world, dude... but they don't all bring you lasagna at work. Most of them just cheat on you."

It's alright, have a good time, 'cause it's alright

2005-09-09T09:44:00.000-05:00

"I've never forgotten for long at a time that living is struggle. I know that every good and excellent thing in the world stands moment by moment on the razor-edge of danger and must be fought for" -Thorton Wilder The Skin of Our Teeth.

~

Last night we celebrated Shelly's birthday! After a fairly exhausting workout, we all managed to get over to the Burren. A good showing was made... paul, myself, jess, mark, chad, kendra, and zach all made it out to show Shelly how we do things. A little sad that the usual band wasn't there and the replacement band made Paul go deaf and then was so loud that we had to evaucate the 'back room.'

Tomorrow I am going to my brother's girlfriend's birthday party. That should be fun. I think it's going to be mostly wine and cheese. That means that I'll eat and drink beforehand. I do have a 40 minute workout tomorrow though, so I might cheat and have some full fat cheese. We'll see.

Things I am looking forward to:
Couching
Mexican food
Birthday party
Going Out
Seeing Eddie from Ohio (i know, that's in november, but i heart them)

And so it goes...

2005-09-08T09:13:00.000-05:00

Today is Shelly's Birthday! Yay Birthday!! So where else would we go to celebrate? A lil Swinging Johnsons action at the Burren! Yippie! I think that some ass shaking is exactly what I need after the week I've been having. I am hoping the crew will come out in full force to show Shelly what birthdays at the 729 household are like!

Yesterday shaped up to be a decent day. Weight Watchers was good... a decent sized loss put a smile on my face, and an upbeat meeting from my leader helped me get through... the gym was tough but solid - running for 22 minutes at 6.3 miles per hour followed by 18 minutes on the new eliptical...thought i was going to die - felt GREAT! On the way home from the gym I found a September combo pass, which I would have returned without thinking if the person had put any contact info on it... oh well... it's mine now.

Can't wait for the weekend! :)

Good Bad Funny Report

2005-09-08T08:45:00.009-05:00

4.24.2008-
Good: beautiful day, making dinner, cuddling with Yassine
Bad: tre sneezy
Funny: Yassine asking a woman in Shaws where Chives are and them being right in front of him :) and "intestines in hands!"

4.23.2008
Good: Running, couching, beautiful warm day
Bad: a billion degrees at work, staying up too late
Funny: me wearing the keglove insulator icepack as a shawl to stay cool at work

4.22.2008
Good: romantic walk along the Charles with Yassine.
Bad: sore feet from said romantic walk
Funny: getting andrea sucked into kvetch.

4.21.2008
Good: great run at the gym, left over baked ziti!
Bad: Bruins lose, staying up too late
Funny: 'by gum'

4.18-4.20
Good: getting my nails done, making dinner, relaxing, running a 5k on the treadmill, hanging out with Aaron, late dinner with Yassine, staying in bed, Mile Away Birthday Lunch for Mom with the family, great weekend for Boston sports!
Bad: icky scratchy throat
Funny: my mom being buzzed after lunch, and us all telling embarrassing stories over our meal :)

4.17.2008 -
Good: icecream and dinner date with Yassine
Bad: Overcooking the fish
Funny: The Office

4.16.2008 -
Good: run, relaxing, steve visiting to watch the most awkward episode of the Office.
Bad: snobbish comments about my special day
Funny: card from Toni :)

2.21.08 -
Good: Emily and Ben coming for dinner at Not Your Average Joe's in Arlington with me and Yassine
Bad: serious back pain
Funny: Yassine

10.4.2007 -
Good: hour with my trainer, qt with aaron, watching the office, qt with Yassine
Bad: friends who are instigators, waiting for the bus for 40 minutes
Funny: Jarad leaving me a 6204 voicemail

10.3.2007
Good: Meeting David's new baby, fat club, gym, knitting, sleeping
Bad: wicked slow T
Funny: "it's a blanket for you boob" - Natalie on the current size of the baby blanket I am knitting

9.28-9.30.2007
Good: Evening of Jazz with Elena, Seth and Yassine, Providence for Pilobolous, 5k with Joe (finishing in 34 minutes, not coming in last!), The Office with Steve, Lunch/Dinner with Yassine, Mom and Dad got new kittens, sleepy time.
Bad: oops dehydrated
Funny: Yassine always says funny stuff, i have to start writing it down instead of laughing at it!

9.26-9.27.2007
Good: Surprise party for Aaron and Dave!! Yassine giving me his branded photo, day off to go to the DeCordova (Surprise for Yassine), beautiful day in the park, nice picnic, sharing fairy tales, Good training session, Babel (finally).
Bad: speaking without thinking (sorry baby)
Funny: "bye pig" / cat in the bag

9.25.2007
Good: trainer, baking, conway park with Yassine
Bad: major eff-up at work
Funny: "i'm going to make you do the face" - re: wedding vows / cat jazz hands toni sent me

9.24.2007:
Good: easy day at work, choir rehearsal
Bad: not seeing my baby
Funny: Sopranos, you sound like a strangled turkey/that lusty 6/8 - new choir director

9.21-9.23.2007
Good: relaxing after work, qt with Yassine, seeing my trainer, special trip to downtown, dinner with Jess, 2nd dinner with Yassine at Kaya, out at the Phoenix with Yassine, Aaron, Mel, and Morgen, sleeping in, Rock and Roll Circus at the Zero Arrow with Becka and Nichole.
Bad: So sleepy/spotty
Funny: girl with wrinkly elephant skin looking toes on the T

9.17.2007-
Good: Leaving work early, running into Yassine's friend in downtown and therefore seeing Yassine, good sweaty workout at the gym, choir with elena, stoop talks, sleep over
Bad: waiting 30 minutes for the bus
Funny: new choir director, robot boy at work (I'm so awkward)

9.13.2007-9.16.2007 -
Good: Personal Trainer, quality time with aaron and maggie, Movie date with the boy, quality time with Becka, Dinner at Bengal Cafe, Phoenix Landing, sleeping in, quality time with Elena: Lunch at Grendels and seeing Nanny Diaries, Quality time with Aaron and Dave at Spirit, talking on the stoop until I couldn't feel my fingers
Bad: Across the Universe
Funny: Dave in a yelling match with a Steelers fan and routing for the Browns even though they weren't playing.

9.12.2007 -
Good: Weight Watchers (losing 1.2 pounds while being on vacation - apparently I should eat nothing but bacon, eggs, scones, toast, lamb, and dessert. neat!), Talking to Khabab, shopping for treats for The Boy.
Bad: sore back
Funny: seeing the girl who looks petrified when she does the crossword puzzle (again)

9.11.2007 -
Good: staying on program/First session with personal trainer/CD Yassine made me
Bad: too much rain
Funny: Doing Yassine's homework / Chris: so my dad's coming to visit (after his dad was already there)

8.24-8.26.2007
Good: Dinner with Yassine at Tangerinos/Block Island with Yassine, Mell, and Aaron, gym, making guacamole
Bad: ?
Funny: Yassine :)

8.17-8.19.2007
Good: Weekend at the parents/father daughter day/japanese steak house/ice cream/spending time with some hottie
Bad: sore back
Funny: my dad explaining to me how it's easy for him to know how old he is.

7.31-8.16.07
Good: Visiting Emily/Ben, seeing Kenny and Cindy, Relaxing, Working out, PL, meeting a new boy, dating, crepes with jess, seeing zach at the gym
Bad: Having to say goodbye to someone I love
Funny: Sal as Rainbow Bright

7.30.07
Good: relaxing and seeing a movie
Bad: still not feeling 100%
Funny: Preview for the boop movie (again)

7.27-7.29.2007
Good: dinner with Becka, Family BBQ in NH, Celebrating Cindy's 25th
Bad: Feeling like poo on sunday
Funny: "this tastes like fruit loops" - me and my lil cousin separately regarding orange brownies
also: Cindy not noticing the guy buying her a drink only had one arm

7.26.07
Good: gym, relaxing
Bad: humidity
Funny: "I only know how to make a crane" - Eric on his oragmi skills

7.25.07
Good: Great gym, seeing my baby
Bad: small gain at the scale
Funny: threatening to ninja slava, and slava calling CA and saying "hello, is this Kah?" and hanging up when the girl said no.

7.24.2007
Good: work, date with Aaron,
Bad: where's squishy?
Funny: Reno 911 The Movie... bad funny, but funny.

7.23.2007
Good: healthy diet day, rent didn't go up too much, gym
Bad: sleepy
Funny: trying to knit a blanket

7.21.-7.22.2007
Good: Chillin' with Danny at Spirit, Hairspray with Steve, Six Flags with Steve, Chris, Dave, Zach, and Becka, kissy-face
Bad: six flags being 'out of salad' and having to eat fatty mcfat face food
Funny: Us trying to remember what Dave had said last year that was so funny when we went on Superman - it was "I can't see" / Lost Limb retreival fee

7.20.07
Good: Phoenix Landing with Becka, Chris, and Jen
Bad: Not seeing my favorite
Funny: "no one made me touch their penis!" - me on the men at phoenix landing

GBF 7.17-7.19.2007
Good: Dinner with Aaron at Not your Average Joes, Great workout, ICA with the girls
Bad: wanting to sleep all the time
Funny: "I feel really off balance being in here" - Becka re: ICA after I told her it was a cantilever

GBF 7.16.07
Good: Gym / finding out that Carly had her baby
Bad: bored at work / broken back
Funny:

Slava: I think Jason's dead. He answered his phone this morning, but now he's not
Megan: Yup, he must be dead then.

GBF 7.14&15.07
Good: Duck tour and trumpet/drum guys on newbury street, brunch with James, Dinner with Cindy, new store in Porter sells yarn, for cheap! Gym
Bad: feeling ill
Funny: duck tour driver, Cindy and her life plan

GBF 7.13.07
Good: Leaving work for an hour to play, gym, dinner with Joe and BJ, icecream, tv and couching Bad: spilling salad dressing on myself
Funny: starring contest with slava when i had to matrix myself to win

GBF 7.12.07
Good: training for a 5k
Bad: no second date because i am too self confident
Funny: me explaining the triple cripple collision to natalie

GBF 7.11.07
Good: making dinner with Joe and catching up on Big Love
Bad: uneasy feeling at work
Funny: "Megan, this is fun" - Joe trying to be sincere about making dinner with me

and

wheelchair lady crashing into a blind lady and a voicebox lady having to yell "look out" in her robot voice. no, seriously.

GBF 7.10.07
Good: busy at work, Spirit with Steve!
Bad: sad and ignored
Funny: "did he just say interpolate?" - Me re: our CEO.

GBF 7.9.07
Good: Gym, planning fun things, seeing Steve!!
Bad: tard face
Funny: "He always uses these phrases that don't have any real meaning" - Steve "I know, he just starts saying 'six of one, half a dozen of the other' or 'who is the pot calling the kettle black?' What does that even mean" - Megan

GBF 7.8.07
Good: Brunch with Becka, Morgen, Nichole, and Maggie. Relaxing for the remainder
Bad: eating like a piggy
Funny: Megan: Look, a wee ninja! Natalie: a Wii Ninja? Megan: W-e-e like midgie, not W-i-i.

GBF 7.7.07
Good: mini golf with Becka, Dave, Nichole, and Mike, visiting my parents, and going dancing with Becka!
Bad: heart broken and completely devastated
Funny: "are you giving him odds?" - chris, "70, 30 that he won't show" - me

GBF 7.6.07
Good: icecream with Natalie, and Knocked Up with Chris, Natalie, and Joe
Bad: water still tastes like rubber
Funny: The preview for the 'boop' movie

GBF 7.5.07
Good: Very good day at work
Bad: leaving things unfinished
Funny: Joe: just did your nails = trying not to type doesn't it?

GBF 7.4.07
Good: bbq with the fam, playing my piano, relaxing
Bad: not enough time with mom and dad
Funny: my dad dropping one of the burgers into the coals

GBF 7.3.07
Good: Going out for Becka's bday with Elena, Seth, Nichole, Aaron, and Mary-Ellen
Bad: T being broken, Dave smashing his face and having to go to MGH, and the over-priced restaurant
Funny: going to Uno's because Spirit was closed and seeing Danny and George there

GBF 7.2.07
Good: dinner with dave and gail, driving a pick-up for the first time, some qt with the roommies.
Bad: being chastised for making a call that I was told to make
Funny: Slava asking if Jason was dead because the website was down.

GBF 7.1.07
Good: Brunch with James, and the good company of steve and rebbie
Bad: Ratatouille
Funny: The thought of Rebbie getting hair extensions

GBF 6.30.07
Good: 4 mile walk, running into melvin, snacks with matt and andrea, catching up with katie-kates, seeing aaron for a moment
Bad: too many snacks
Funny: "is he a g-thug homie?" - my brother

GBF 6.29.2007
Good: pizza in belmont, beers in waltham, icecream!
Bad: guilt
Funny: almost texting toni: "i took a pic of your slave, will send soon." damn predictive text.

GBF 8.23
Good: dinner with morgen and becka, new suits, chillin with the husband
Bad: the toilet breaking (again)
Funny: my client being my friend on the facebook :)

GBF 8.21
Good: busy at work, clean house, good will
Bad: not so good tacos lupita
Funny: "thanks for coming to my birthday party" - my dad

GBF 8.17-8.20
Good: Manager's outting/RF O'Sullivans with Dave/Invader Zim/Waking up warm/Coogans/ Groton with the fam for Dad's bday
Bad: sore back = no gym
Funny: the mental people in the diner with me and Dave talking about Ancient Rome/the pope/ Russia/and other crazy things... all the midgies who were out on Saturday night/ Christian

GBF 8.16
Good: Gym, Deviled eggs, Nichole and Morgen, Project Runway
Bad: Utterly exhausted at work
Funny: Arbor Day :)

GBF 8.15
Good: Christian moved in!
Bad: long week
Funny: Christian and Morgen

GBF 8.14:
Good: dinner with Adam / Morgen's back
Bad: empty apartment/boy being mia
Funny: Shelly jogging down the street to find me

GBF 8.13
Good: waking up warm, couching
Bad: having to work/saying goodbye to Paul
Funny: Peanutbutter Jelly Time on Family Guy :)

GBF 5.12-18 - sorry i've become a bad updater
Good: movie with becka, hot "date" with Brian, Hi8us at the middle east, mommy's day at home with the fam, comp day!, dress rehearsal for choir, Spirit with Aaron and Dave and Becka (dave's last day of freedom) - the juke box at the bar, the bartender loving my musical selections, dinner at Orleans with Paul, out with Becka and Aaron.
Bad: --
Funny: Tau Episol Five

GBF 5.9-5.11
Good: choir with the crew, doug slapping my butt, mental health day, dinner with becka, sox win2 of 3
Bad: paul with the flu, wicked anxiety, rain
Funny: becka setting the countdown

GBF 5.3-5.8
Good: the burren, frisbee, jillians, jp licks, gym, bike ride, sox with aaron, lizard lounge with Paul for open mic
Bad: my boss posting my performance evaluation to the shared drive, being completely frustrated with the boy, my feet still hurting like a mo-fo
Funny: "what's whiffle ball" / "wait, you're mexican?"

GBF 5.2
Good: Choir
Bad: Cindy is going away sooner than I thought
Funny: "he doesn't look like he's very cuddly" - Doug on the boy

GBF 5.1
Good: busy at work / food shopping / gym hardcore / sleepy land
Bad: cold
Funny: Seven Signs Your Boss is Useless:
1. His name is SG
2. see number 1
3. see number 1
4. see number 1
5. see number 1
5. see number 1
7. see number 1

GBF 4.28-30
Good: Burgers with Paul / Temple Bar with Aaron, Adam, Paul & Zoltan / Home to see Momma and Brie / Uno's and shoe shopping / Gym / Enjoying the weather / Redbones
Bad: eating like a piggie
Funny: "we're never going anywhere else in Davis are we?" me to the boy while at Redbones

GBF 4.27
Good: beautiful day for sales calls /gym/ boondock saints with Aaron and Cindy / seeing my boy
Bad: both my roommates missing in action
Funny: cindy and aaron :)

GBF 4.25 & 26
Good: Enjoyable sales calls with my clients / escaping the dinner and getting dessert
Bad: lack of sleep / lack of boy / lack of dessert buffet
Funny: "then she said "f this" - well I don't know if that's really what she said, but I am guessing it's fairly accurate" /

GBF 4.21-24
Good: qt in cleveland circle /beautiful thank you gift / gym / burritos / eternal sunshine of the spotless mind / Wicked with Momma / gym / qt with aaron
Bad: empty handed after 45 minutes in newbury comics
Funny: "that's right, we're trying to get to Bora Bora" - bf to Aaron on paying me for my services

GBF 4.20
Good: waking up warm / QT with my favorite
Bad: 8 hours at the hospital
Funny: "posey?"

GBF 4.19
Good: gym / couching / sox win / cambridge common / fire dancing on the street / impromptu stoop party
Bad: work / weird guy at the bar who wanted to talk to me
Funny: "okay, we need to come up with code for when you need to hurry because there's a weird guy talking to me" - me to the boy

GBF 4.18
Good: choir fun / walk home with zach
Bad: 8:30 am ass reaming
Funny: "I read your blog, spill it" - Jess

GBF 4.17
Good: gym & couching with Paul
Bad: bad day at work
Funny: "the correct term is afro-american-diseac" - two and a half men

GBF 4.14-4.16
Good: dinner at Out of The Blue with Momma, Dad, Matt & Andrea / new clothes and new bra /Watching some hottie fire dance / Redbones / Some Day Cafe.
Bad: snoring
Funny: me not realizing why i wanted chocolate / "if he [jesus] sets it up for you, you can't deny it" - Pedde on me getting laid on Easter

GBF 4.13:
Good: waking up warm / going to sleep early / narrowing the search
Bad: not seeing paul for days
Funny: "you say tomato, I say tomato"

GBF 4.12:
Good: good gym / running into Elana on the T /seeing the boy's pad / meeting the chad /
Bad: lower back pain
Funny: girls in the office discussing circumsized vs uncircumsized boy parts

GBF 4.11
Good: waking up warm / choir
Bad: sleepy
Funny: not understanding how my new phone works

GBF 4.7-4.10
Good: bowling (finally) with Cindy, Becka, Aaron, Dave, Chef, Tim, Steve, & Cindy / Playing some much needed Air Hockey and pinball / Surprise Shower for Jessica!! Good grub / Playing Co-Moh / Early gym / Cambridge Common and walking tour of the 'ville with a certain hottie / Seeing my Momma/ picking up my dress / getting a new phone/getting flowers from the aforementioned hottie.
Bad: Tossing and turning Saturday night for hours
Funny: "Did I win even one game?" "maybe one"- my sad air hockey skills.

GBF 4.6
Good: great cardio / Frankie playing our song / talking to some boys
Bad: still no friday yet
Funny: Madame Chew Toy

GBF 4.5
Good: Great cardio session
Bad: exhausted
Funny: my bday card to jarad: 'I was an Asian baby'

GBF 4.4
Good: choir
Bad: not wanting to get out of bed
Funny: "i think the reason I don't really know this song is because I was in 7th grade mode when we learned it" / "can you open this? I don't think you're looking at what I am asking you to open"

GBF 4.3
Good: clean apartment / food shopping / gym
Bad: all alone in the apartment for the night
Funny: "this place is transformed" - Dave after he saw Luis' handiwork

GBF 3.31-4.2
Good: Party @ 729 / Hot date / Jersey Girl
Bad: Hardly remembering the party at 729
Funny: retelling the story of my client

GBF 3.30
Good: Manager's Outting / Aaron
Bad: no gym
Funny: "that's like a whole different v-card" - Aaron

GBF 3.28 & 29
Good: Choir / Gym / sleepy
Bad: still frustrated
Funny: loving in the morning loving in the evening :)

GBF 3.27
Good: Successfully wooing my first client!! Gym
Bad: Frustration
Funny: The New Adventures of the Old Christine

GBF 3.24-26
Good: roomdate with Paul/ Johnny D's with Cindy, Becka, Mikey-mikes, and Brian/ fantastic cardio workout/ Tequilia Rain with Paul, Becka and Rich/dancing!/Brunch with Brie / couching
Bad: Charlie's Kitchen
Funny: Jedi Mind Tricks / Paul making an airplane /

GBF 3.23
Good: Cardio / Couching with Aaron and watching The Weatherman/ sleeping
Bad: the perks of being a wallflower
Funny: Michael Cain saying "camel toe"

GBF 3.21 & 3.22
Good: choir / WW / Legal's with the fam
Bad: mouse in a wheel am I
Funny: Brian wanting me to kill his roommate's cat

GBF 3.20
Good: great food day / gym
Bad: gmail being down all day
Funny: Paul building a castle out of fake legos / getting an army man

GBF 3.17-19
Good: relaxing and staying in on St. Patrick's Day / Bus to CT / Christmas presents / Amazing.net / Girlscout cookie icecream / nap / Hitch / Monkey- Face / Seeing Toni - love that girl
Bad: royal pig out / oops, nap
Funny: quacking alarm / amazing / i like rain

GBF 3.16
Good: off day from the gym/ Spirit with Cindy /
Bad: Syracuse loss in the first round
Funny: Shelly spending 3 hours at the gym

GBF 3.15
Good: QT with Dave and Shelly, Aaron and Paul / Gym - not giving up
Bad: tired of WW
Funny: Drawn Together

GBF 3.14
Good: All Amadeus All the Time / Post game at the Burren for Birthday wishes to Zach / Seeing Kendra!
Bad: big waste of 2nd half of choir
Funny: doing another gay crossword puzzle/ sky sharks / a great big sea

GBF 3.13
Good: busy at work / good run at the gym / QT with the roommates
Bad: brooks only having one working register
Funny: Overrated?!

GBF 3.9-3.12
Good: Long weekend with my boys / The Burren / The Harp / Spirit / Syracuse Wins!
Bad: sunburn in march!
Funny: "sunchip, sunchip, sunchip" / being at an address of 6204 / "okay goodbye" / Cucumbers / "stairs, my worst nightmare" "i love stairs"

GBF 3.8
Good: gym / sleep over in Rozi
Bad: being negative 30 one night in April
Funny: teaching Marash about MJWSOM

GBF 3.7
Good: Choir
Bad: my boss being a 'tard
Funny: me and jess doing the 'gay' crossword puzzle during choir

GBF 3.6
Good: mmm indian food / gym
Bad: bad food day
Funny: a bull humping a midget / cash cab / Dave doing yoga with Shelly

GBF 3.3-3.5
Good: Vacating work early / Great gym / Pre-game / ICL @ Felt - Amazing Race style / Dancing with some homies / Post game / Couching / Ned Devine's with Brian / waking up warm / Breakfast on the house Commander Style / Bed @ 6pm
Bad: too exhausted for the gym/ Paul being sick
Funny: "i am about ready to be taken advantage of" - Paul / "it's okay, i think i won" - Brian

GBF 3.2
Good: Indian food / Walk the Line with Beck and Paul / making plans with Brian
Bad: didn't go to the gym
Funny: vanessa using the word "junk"

GBF 3.1
Good: WW / Gym / birthday "party" for Paul
Bad: no call
Funny: "if you don't have pride, what are you? you're a loser" - Joe G - Sheraton Brand Leader

GBF 2.28
Good: dinner/drinks with Trevor
Bad: no call from Brian
Funny: subzero tour of Boston with Trevor

GBF 2.27:
Good: Call from Trevor, light cardio, early to bed
Bad: Exhausted
Funny: "i am always in the GBF, you can't go a day without hearing me say something ridiculous" - Paul

GBF 2.24-2.26
Good: pot roast with mom and dad, sleeping, hardcore cardio session, indian food with Paul and Becka, Phoenix Landing (meeting some hottie), Tealux with Julie, couching wth Aaron and Paul, bedtime at 7:30 pm
Bad: aaron in a car accident, missing Grey's
Funny: Paul doing the "footloose" dance

GBF 2.23
Good: 1st date with Spanish Speaking Guy
Bad: too exhausted to go to the gym
Funny: me on a date with spanish speaking guy

GBF 2.22
Good: weight watchers / Gym / Couch time with Aaron / Sleep!
Bad: being in my apartment for like 45 seconds
Funny: "clear as a whistle" - Doug when I told him I didn't want to speak to him any more. Um... that's not even a phrase Doug.

GBF 2.16-2.21
Good: Champagne / Wine / Spicy Chicken Curry Rice thing by Chef McCauleyflower / The girl on girl action with the fake tat / The Burren with Aaron, Dave, Shelly, Paul, Dan, Al, Pete, Zach, Jess / Late night with some hottie / Gym / Fridays with Kenny and Jarad in NYC! / seeing Geoff, Rob, Jared, Christina, Tom & Lisa... eating in Little Italy at Lunella's in shifts / Great time seeing The Specs and Zox! / gym action / olympics with my favorite pillow and blanket/ being busy all day at work! / Choir
Bad: 6 hour bus ride to NYC
Funny: the fake tat / the non miller lite at fridays / "to drink?" - Server "miller lite" - Jarad "no, we have bud, budlight, harpoon, miller, miller lite" - Server "Miller lite" - Jarad.

GBF 2.15
Good: weight watchers / gym / dinner
Bad: oops, too much delicious food at lunch
Funny: "who here has kids?" my WW leader "no one has kids?"
"i think we need to go back to romantic celebrations" - Me

GBF 2.14
Good: roses from my spanish speaking boyfriend / call from natalio / card from mom & dad / valentine from Jess / Choir / "heart shaped pancakes" in the form of alcohol from Zach / Couch potato with Aaron.
Bad: Dear Bag-A-Douche, don't go thinking for yourself there. Fist Pound, no love, me.
Funny: vacating choir early, spirit, me and jess being 12, Commader Yeti Card from my Husband.

GBF 2.13
Good: new job / talking to Jay / great gym / couching with Aaron
Bad: my desk covered in piles of stuff
Funny: "i don't like things that ride monorails" / dear bronx science, although we are unable to house your students over Harvard Debate weekend, we have come across alternative accommodations for you /

GBF 2.10-2.12
Good: new sweater / Joshua Tree with Becka, Paul, & Cindy / Outstanding workout / bday gift for Broser/ a lot accomplished / Home for bday dinner / couching all day / Talking to Kenny and Jarad
Bad: no call, no show
Funny: my mom having 'yamo be there' on CD / Avis commercial with the old peeps in the hummer / "now let's pretend that you're a guy - which are you are, so that part will be easy, and you are a cycling enthusiast, no not "enthusiast" more a cylcing lunatic, and it is your birthday and your sister was going to get you a gift, what would you pick? It's a bit of a role-play if you're up for it" - me to the guy at city sports

GBF 2.9
Good: Visiting my homie / fantastic workout / QT with Shell Dawg
Bad: still exhuasted
Funny: "no love, fist pound, me"

GBF 2.8
Good: going to WW / Great workout / Talking to Momma
Bad: "where does the time go Wednesday"
Funny: I don't like things with reindeer jumpers" - n.torious

GBF 2.7
Good: Spanish speaking boyfriend /choir / couching
Bad: BAD trying to be friends with me
Funny: "did i mention he's hot" - me / "the rules are this: I don't want to be friends" - me / "i like when you touch my thigh" - me to zach / telling my enward about my spanish speaking boyfriend... oh pato

GBF 2.6
Good: talking to momma / gym
Bad: possibly needing a gum graft
Funny:
i don't like dogs
i don't like cats
i don't like things with fur
i don't like things that mark their territory
i don't like things with fur that mark their territory
i don't like things that bark
i don't like things that scratch
i don't like things that "leave presents"
I don't like furry things that bark or scratch
I don't like furry things that bark while marking their territory
I don't like things i have to feed
i don't like things that require me to walk them
i don't like things that shed
i don't like things that shed while I am walking them
I don't like things that shed while marking their territory
I don't like furry things that i have to feed
I don't like things I have to pet
I don't like things that "leave presents" while i am petting them

GBF 2.3-2.5
Good: Addis Red Sea for Davey's birthday / Jillians / late night with the neighbors / Gym / Couch / Staying-in / Dave and Natalio (double date) / Superbowl Sunday with Paul, Shelly, Paula, Dan, Ted, Aaron, & Dave.
Bad: eating like a fatty
Funny: "you know, the goats with legs" - Shelly / "How long can people talk about roads?" - Dave / "dear sirs, never wake me up in the morning. no love, me" / "That could have been awkward" - Dave after he found out I was naked. "was that a point in the lease you had to negotiate?" - Dave on the NO BIKES clause in our lease :)

GBF 2.2
Good: The tile guy /Fire & Ice / Hoffa's for the Sheraton Commander Party / Aaron being my back-up date (thank you seriously!) / Paul trying to be my back up date (love you!) / Watching the associates have a great time
Bad: Dan bailing on me (he's fired by the way)
Funny: "damn, i wish i wasn't married" - Tile Guy on how good I looked / "Hi, good to see you again" - Aaron introducing himself to people / aaron propensity toward the ladies

GBF 2.1
Good: Natalio / Weight watches / Gym
Bad: Snapping at Paul
Funny: Dave: Maybe I could have sex in Kevin's bed.

GBF 1.31
Good: choir / qt with shelly
Bad: my boss / gross sidewalks
Funny: me whispering: sorry paul. Paul: I can hear you. /
Notation I wrote in my music: faster than you think
Notation Jess wrote: just like jess

GBF 1.30
Good: gym / dinner / couch / talking to Tom!
Bad: my boss being an jackhole
Funny: me breaking the only working elevator in the entire hotel and the tile guy having to save me / my heel cap falling off and the tile guy glueing it back on / The new intern's name is Cat / Aaron and Paul.

GBF 1.27-29
Good: chilling at the valet / Aaron picking me up / Burgers / Gym / Adventures with Dave /Adam / Aaron making dinner / Caonlis / Out and about with Dave, Zoltan, Adam, KerriAnne, Paul, & Natalio / Gym / Cindy's for dinner
Bad: nearly asleep at work on Friday / sad shelly / Aaron driving home
Funny: The Steve Jobs Business Model / Carwash Amusement Park Ride / "i'm gonna get that bitch's number no matter what... awww, shit she's with her mom and her fucking sister" - 10 year old homie at Cambridge Side. / We could get a Teenwolf pinata /

GBF 1.26
Good: work / Iron Chef with Dave, Aaron, Rich, Becka, Cindy, Shelly, and Paul / Dancing up a storm!
Bad: way cold, legs way sore
Funny: "you come out here and bother my guys, they are making money every week you know" - One of the flooring guys "I guess they'll just have to buy me dinner then" - Me

"who came up with teen wolf?" - Cindy or Beckah

"I don't want to bang him, I just want to buy him a cookie" - Becka on Iron Chef Louie

"Shelly just said she wanted to see two guys dance, and i was like "i'm out" - Dave

It's a dance off! / It's like 'dancing with the stars

So wait, who did you hook up with?

GBF 1.25
Good: Weight watchers / Gym/ talking to kenny
Bad: crowded gym / my boss being a DB
Funny: Jarad calling and singing me the Jay and Silent Bob song on my voicemail.

GBF 1.24
Good: choir (all mozart all the time)
Bad: cramps
Funny: Jess: you're dirty... that's why we're friends / Zach: maybe at the gym? I'll whistle at you again and scare the other girls

GBF 1.23
Good: soup at lunch / gym
Bad: wet foot
Funny: playing Anne Harrington

GBF 1.20-22
Good: Gym / errands / Party at Megan G's with Brie, Dave, and Shelly / New friend / couching /football with Cindy and Dave
Bad: never ending hunger
Funny: Dave & Brie... Mark telling his "google/IBM story" / Olga mastering the microwave / "Libras are the sign most likely to be cross-dressers" me "oh, i have a story about that" - new friend aaron.

GBF 1.19
Good: gym / houstons / purple shammy with dave
Bad: not captain awkward, but not my prince charming
Funny: Three Virgins in the Brotherhood of the Moose / Coats made of people / "If I paid three dollars to get into a bar and they play my parents' wedding song, I think I should get my three dollars back." - Me

GBF 1.18
Good: inspiring weight watchers meeting / good phone call / clean apartment / early to bed
Bad: no more music at work... no more food at my desk
Funny: "I am going to change my last name to Boldpato" - me "g'night psycho" - melissa

GBF 1.17
Good: choir
Bad: PMS
Funny: "I won my bet tonight!" - Paul "how much did you win?" - Megan "five dollars" - Paul

GBF 1.12-16
Good: gym / Vinny and Kevin / Dinner with Shelly's friends / The Harp / Afterhours at 729 / football / Sunny's / E&C / Gypsy Bar / Couching / Home and shopping with Momma / Chinese with momma and dad
Bad: freezing cold pouring rain / Captain Awkward
Funny: Shelly with the fist pound / Know how I know you're gay? / Shelly and Kevin squared / Dan: there's a story? Megan: oh, there's always a story!

GBF 1.12
Good: Seeing the love of my life / Gym / cooking / early to bed
Bad: lil sleepy
Funny: http://www.qsleeper.com/

GBF 1.11
Good: WW / Dave's new place / couching / Project Runway
Bad: so sleepy
Funny: Warning Joe about possibly getting bird flu.

GBF 1.10
Good: kicking ass at the gym / Indian food with Zach / Couching
Bad: 547 people in line for cardio machines
Funny: finding out where the cute guy lives / Zach

GBF 1.9
Good: kicking it at the gym / running an event / couching / food shopping
Bad: tender throat
Funny: "there's almost enough in the swear jar for a rubber" me

GBF 1.6-8
Good: drinks at Bar 10, dinner at Joes, Jose Mcs, abbey lounge (QT with jess), Harper's Ferry, couching, football, working ipod
Bad: having to end a really good thing
Funny: megan: what are you laughing at? paul: capital one commercial. megan: the one where the guy gets hit in the head with the drawer? paul: yes! / Jess: What do you want to drink? Megan (inaudibly): he'll have a blue moon Doug: blue moon (some things don't change).

GBF 1.5
Good: quick gym / pre-game with Dave and Cindy / 40 Year old Virgin (again) / The Burren with my favorites
Bad: at work too long / no almonds at the store
Funny: "i don't want to cram my pimpage" - 40 year old virgin / The cover band at the burren playing Paul Simon's Call me Al / Dave bailing on work today :)

GBF 1.4
Good: weight watchers / tacos lupita
Bad: project runway elimination
Funny: Me: you want to come over? Dave: yeah, what are you doing? Me: watching football. Dave: never mind. / "i'll make our reservations under Mr. & Mrs. McNamara." - Dan

GBF 1.3
Good: Gym / Xmas Presents / early to bed
Bad: crowded gym
Funny: "you got me breakfast cereal!" - me on shelly's gift

GBF 1.2
Good: Paul's home/ xmas presents / football / cindy / indian food/ early to bed
Bad: avoided the gym to avoid all the new year's babies
Funny: vibrating snowman commercial

GBF 12.28-1.1
Good: sleeping in / gym / buying a dress / picking new frames / xmas shopping done (yeah shut-it) / dinner with Dan / my husband in town / Elephant and Castle with Dan, Christian, and Sunny / Rosebud for breakfast / Three trips to eastie in three days.
Bad: Missing Tom on NYE / The people who sang "Mrs. Robinson" at Karaoke
Funny: The voicemail Jarad left me /

GBF 12.28
Good: Gym / Couch
Bad: didn't go food shopping / my boss being a douche
Funny: C$

GBF 12.27
Good: making plans for Thurs / Talking to my brie/ Dan making me feel better / Shelly's home
Bad: still on the advil
Funny: Take the Money and Run / Southpark

GBF 12.23-26
Good: seeing Dave for the first time in ages / pizza with Brie, Dave, and Joe / GDRHS Class of 2000 5 Year Reunion / Spending time with the family / Everyone liking their presents / Bliss Spa Products / Santa bringing me and Christian the same present / talking to Jarad / Finishing the Hat... i mean scarf. / Mahi Mahi and then Filet Mignon - awesome! / Chillaxing / QT with Cindy
Bad: getting the flu / no call / ways people had changed
Funny: Dave/Brie/The Reunion/ "guys, wait for me" - my dad on me lugging my desktop replacement through China a number of years ago

GBF 12.22
Good: cleaning the apartment / waffles for dinner / early to bed
Bad: too tired for the gym
Funny: Toni having a twin dumb girl at her office

GBF 12.21
Good: Weight Watchers / Christmas present from Dan / West Side Lounge for dinner / Drawn Together
Bad: no time for gym
Funny: Drawn Together / "I heard you, I just wanted you to say it again" - Dan.

GBF 12.20
Good: Holiday Pops with Jess & Zach!!
Bad: laws of magnets still apply
Funny: "this is on my love-makin' CD" - Me regarding Santa Baby ... "this sounds like Under the Sea" - Me regarding the Pops' version of Mary's Boy Child

GBF 12.19
Good: early release from work / gym / dinner at Sauce
Bad: no kiss goodbye
Funny: "I should tell you, there's another Colin in my hotel life now" - me to Colin

GBF 12.16-18
Good: Gym / Roomdate / Gym / Knitting Factory / QT with Momma & Dad / Dress shopping / Seeing Ivana Vestri / Enchilladas / Dinner at Sunny and Dana's with Dan and Don
Bad: unable to find a gift for Andrea yet.
Funny: "Angel Blue Eyes McNamara - that's my gang name" - me.

GBF 12.15
Good: Brie Murray! / Calling Dave / Plans for Monday / Waffles
Bad: No time for the gym
Funny: Megan: Are you coming to the reunion? Dave: I don't think I was invited since I didn't graduate.

GBF 12.14
Good: mahi mahi at legals with the danster / Ansel Adams Exhibit at the MFA
Bad: Bag-a-douche calling
Funny: "well mrs. mcnamara, are you ready to go?" - Dan pretending to be Dan McNamara.

GBF 12.13
Good: vacating work early / gym / the danster
Bad: Paul being a sickie
Funny: "i hear Patti could use some clean urine for Christmas" - me on what dan should get his roommates. / "For the Yankee swap bring in some piece of junk/crap thatsomeone else might like, but you can no longer stand having around"... "You might have a tough time gift wrapping Jon" / Some gay kid I know: Please don't associate my name with the word dildo. Thanks

GBF 12.12
Good: ending ties with Doug / Burrito / QT with Jess / early to bed / Card from Brie
Bad: too late to play
Funny: "enjoy this festive holiday penguin" - Brie's Christmas card

GBF 12.9-12.11
Good: Roomdate with Paul / Gym / Sullivan's with Zoltan/ Whiskey's with old 'cuse kids and new friends / White Horse/ Dinner party
Bad: sleepy
Funny: "pussy gone bad smell" / "butt stuff" / Paul & Dan and our Cabbie

GBF 12.8
Good: couching / fro-yo / early to bed
Bad: no return call
Funny: "Are her nipples blurred out?" Paul. "Yes!" Jeff / Paul rolling the paper towels down the stairs. /

Email to Christian who attends College in Lake Placid, NY: http://www.anonymousphilanthropist.com/jots/yeti01.html
His Reply: I am very familiar with Yeti. They frequent the hotel in the winter months.

GBF 12.7
Good: Weight Watchers / Gym
Bad: Sketchy Exit made by the dude
Funny: LingLing on tv... "what do you see?" "two people who look completely different"

GBF 12.6
Good: Gym / Couch / Chicken Soup / Luis
Bad: Staying up later than I had intended
Funny: "why do I only have one sneaker" - Paul after Luis cleaned / http://www.zunta.org/blog/archives/004106.php

GBF 12.5
Good: Gym
Bad: getting the plague
Funny:
Dear Luis,
You've been replaced
Love,
Megan

GBF 12.2-4
Good: roomdate / I heart Huckabees / Gym / Productive Saturday / Concert - the four amigos together, JB, DC, ZG and me/Mom&Dad,Paul, Shelly,Dan / Cambridge Common - Running into Moose, Don, and Brian / West Side Lounge - way cool clover in the guiness / Temple Bar / Breakfast Rosebud style/ couching / Dinner party in Back Bay.
Bad: leaving the bar (getting sick). / Zach as a no show / Jess & James & Doug leaving early/ Getting lung cancer.
Funny: i heart huckabees / "you know how I know you're gay" / "why didn't we come here first" - Paul on Temple Bar. / Dan buying a four pack of dreidels

GBF 12.1
Good: Tree lighting / Elephant & Castle / The Girl Next Door
Bad: Having to use basic first aid
Funny: Children Exploding / Stealing Asian Babies / "I can't come out, I have a baby now, because of prom"

GBF 11.30
Good: Weight Watchers, Gym, PB&J
Bad: feeling "off" all day /foolish games
Funny: Dancing Swedish Girl / "no lights, no scores, sorry"

GBF 11.29
Good: quick gym, choir, roommate qt
Bad: Rich breaking the shower door
Funny:
Jessica: if Erik came back, we'd make him sing, not collect tickets.
Megan: He'd say, "but I don't know any of the music" and we'd say, "that's okay, neither do we."

and Paul going insane

GBF 11.28
Good: waking up warm, off day from the gym, invited to dinner, talking to Tom, Mom, and Christian
Bad: getting blown off
Funny: DGQOTD / Tom: Apparently I am walking through a Drum Corps rehearsal. Hold on/ Christian: When will you hear back from the circus tent

GBF 11.23-11.27
Good: Home for the holiday, Thanksgiving with family, finishing the scarf (to the tune of "finishing the hat"), crustless apple-pie, great wine in great packaging, out of work early friday, three great gym sessions, back on program, 7th Heaven marathon, Spanglish, Lunch & Concert with Momma, seeing the Danster
Bad: having to work on Friday
Funny:
Megan: When Daddy carves the turkey he is plump and proud and perky... wait. that's wrong.

and

Paul: How's Dan?
Megan: Dunno, haven't talked to him since Wednesday
Paul: That's shocking... i figured you would have caved by... Thursday morning.

and

Dan: how is a worm going to carry something?

GBF 11.22
Good: Gym / Choir
Bad: being flat and not being able to get through a whole song.
Funny:

Megan: I was thinking I might call Amy Maloof and see what she was doing
Brie: oh, okay
Megan: did you hear anything I just said
Brie: no, it was breaking up
Megan: yeah because you had no reaction to me saying I was going to call Amy Maloof
Brie: HA!

GBF 11.21
Good: talking to Momma / Gym with Zach / Cactus Club with Adam, KA, Abe, and Paul
Bad: Last night with Adam
Funny:

Paul: There is only one person allowed to sing in my car
Megan: Vinnie
Paul: Vin DiMarco

GBF 11.17-11.20
Good: Applebees / L'enfant Plaza Hotel / Meeting Dan's brother and his gf / moonlight walk around DC /Washington Monument/WWII Memorial/late night apple pie / Sculpture Park / Westin Grand/ Jacu'Tub /The White House / Smithsonian Art Museum (free) /Wine that may or may not have had alcohol/ Galactic at the 930 Club
Bad: Spy Museum being closed
Funny: "front and back and back and front" / Dan ripping the emergency phone off the wall /"New Orleans, under water"/ Skymall ad where the kid explodes the groceries in point two seconds.

GBF 11.16
Good: Weight Watchers Thanksgiving Museum / Gym / Catching up with Friends
Bad: food everywhere / bill from my dr.
Funny: blog post about choir / zach / my WW leader.

GBF 11.15
Good: getting my hair did / chatting with Doug and Zach / wicked tickets came!
Bad: being completely under-rehearsed
Funny: "just sing any note in the chord" - my choir director. / our attempts to get through our entire program.

GBF 11.14
Good: Gym / Uno's with Dan
Bad: Unexpected trip to the doctor
Funny: Coloring on the Uno's placemat... Green and Blue Kozuki with her Lightening Bolt pajamas... no love, hitler.

GBF 11.11-11.13
Good: 1/2 Day at work / Road Trip with Cindy / Two rooms for the Price of One / Pita-Pit / Cindy.Flying Pedde.Sharon.Jess.Brian.Ben.Dave.Dan.Trevor.Liz.Josh.Eric / Chucks/ Faegans / Euclid/ Egg Plant / Chunky Monkey / First Ride in a "silly car" aka A Hummer / Santanglos / Wine and more wine / Library Lounge /Free Desserts from Jeffy/ HUSBAND!!
Bad: throngs of people
Funny: Christian making me laugh while leaving Stephen a voicemail and me making Christian laugh while he was leaving Danielle a voicemail / the bartender at Santangalos hitting on me / The guy from Class of 97 at Faegans saying "i haven't seen anyone i know here"

GBF 11.10
Good: waking up warm / tacos lupita / Some Day with Jess, James, Zach, Paul & Adam
Bad: sore knee
Funny: "Oh, she stole the grapes" -me "and learned a trick" -jess

GBF 11.9
Good: Weigh-in / Chinese for dinner / Cambridge Common for Drinks / "the talk" / no more EF
Bad: no sleep 'til brooklyn
Funny: "i haven't chop sticked in a long time" - me "ew" - dan / "why don't you name it "no love, me" - Dan on Vanessa's blog.

GBF 11.8
Good: travel plans solidified /gym / choir / girl's garden / the burren
Bad: adam definitely leaving.
Funny: singing on 'boing' / marash: me boot is broke me frock is tore / something about bag-a-douche...

GBF 11.7
Good: Gym / Dinner / making moves
Bad: playing houseman at work
Funny: "i know that laugh" - Paul / "why did I write "sanction" I know what a sanction is" - Paul

GBF 11.4-11.6
Good: Great news! / Trinity with Dan / Celebrating Shanna's birthday / Rosebud for breakfast / Jarhead / Walk around Boston / Cafe Italia - bottle of white / sleeping late / Bickford's / Bomb the System / Mi Pubelito / East Boston Pier
Bad: no gym
Funny: "stoner clarity" / "we're having a romantic moment, it won't last long, just stand there"

GBF 11.3
Good: Gym / couching
Bad: too tired to go out and play
Funny: "Is that on the tardblog" - Shelly after Dave read a graphic account of a blowjob.

GBF 11.2
Good: gym / cooking
Bad: so slow at work / adam moving away
Funny: "I think there's a difference between freak and freaky"

GBF 11.1
Good: fudgy frenzy with Auntie Nessa / Open Mic
Bad: making phone calls
Funny: The collection of "You've been replaced" emails

GBF 10.31
Good: gym / relax / easy dinner
Bad: dessert buffet at work
Funny: the houseman at work trying to take home 50 cookies

GBF 10.28-30
Good: Trinity with Dan, Go-Card, Eastie, Breakfast, Surprise Party, Snow, Cindy's Party, Zach's Party, Sunday movie roomdate, sleeping.
Bad: missing jess & co two nights in a row
Funny: Robots (robots doing the robot)

GBF 10.27
Good: Iron Chef with Jess and Cindy! Great 80's party/music. awesome
Bad: my "prom date" getting sick
Funny: guy with the checkered tie striking out big time / running into Ross on the stoop again

GBF 10.26
Good: WW / Dinner / Comedy Connection Benefit Fundraiser / Meeting cool new people
Bad: so slow at work
Funny: comedy show / open letter to my ex boyfriend

GBF 10.25
Good: running at 7 for 7 / choir / making a new curly haired friend/ the Burren
Bad: a no show at the burren / bag-a-douche showing up at the burren
Funny: Jess: Aren't you supposed to flush the bag-a-douche when you're done with it? / Bag-a-douche flirting with a married girl.

GBF 10.24
Good: dinner date
Bad: man voice
Funny: chinese backstreet boy lip synching video

GBF 10.21-23
Good: My husband in town!/RF O'Sullivans/Disel with C$, Jess, Kendra, and the Chad/Servathon with C$, Broser, and Andrea (along with Christy & Monica) - Scraping and Painting/Lunch/Errands with Paul/Gym
Bad: poisoned caesar salad/sketchy dude hitting on Shell-dog
Funny: Margaret Thatcher House/SARS masks/

GBF 10.20
Good: hot date / "waiting" / running into the neighbors / Dave moving to Boston
Bad: No sleep 'til brooklyn
Funny: C$ calling me 'love bug' / ethnic coloring contest at Uno's: Ling Ling, Jerry Curl, Re-re, and Pochahantus.

GBF 10.19
Good: attending my meeting, getting pumpkins, gym, late night stroll
Bad: losing control to gain control
Funny:
Dear Katrina Relief Fund Updates,
UNSUBSCRIBE
no love,
me

GBF 10.18
Good: gym, choir, chick time, running into Shelly & Al, The Burren with james and timothy, dan not being dead
Bad: the awkwardness of seeing doug
Funny: "Al, this was a much more informative conversation than last time we chatted."

GBF 10.17
Good: relaxing, phone calls
Bad: feeling like crap and bailing on sharon
Funny: Sharon: "so yeah, I won't be seeing you tomorrow"

GBF 10.14-16
Good: Liz Phair with Cindy, Lunch with Pete, Couching with Jess, James, Kristian, and Andrew, Tacos Lupita, Tequila Rain, hoops with Shelly, phone with Toni
Bad: absence of certain people at Tequila Rain
Funny: "does my knee need a hat? no" - Paul

GBF 10.13
Good: hanging out with dan
Bad: equipment failure
Funny: reading "best of" on CL, and indian baby carriage.

GBF 10.12
Good: Shalom / Fat Club / Gym / Discussion
Bad: still grey outside / my phone not working
Funny: photos with scoots / Casey: I'll work on my vest later. Megan: Oh, you're going to beadazzle?

GBF 10.11
Good: Choir / The Burren
Bad: not enough time to chat with new people
Funny: "sounds like my weekend" - me regarding "boing boing boing"

GBF 10.10
Good: gym / relaxing / baseball
Bad: syracuse weather in boston
Funny: C$: "Excuse me, what is our assigned ghetto?"

GBF 10.7-10.9
Good: third date, camelot with momma, home cookin, baseball, gym
Bad: stormy weather
Funny: iron chef halloween theme

GBF 9.30-10.5
Good: First date / Philly / Jarad and Kenny / Uncontrollable laughter/ Vegas plans / China plans / mani pedi with Momma / baseball with Dad/ Seeing Breekers/ sleeping-in / QT with Jess / QT with Paul
Bad: not enough time with my boys
Funny: GOL!!! / "I really feel that naming yourself a derogotory word for your own people is inappropriate" (me regarding the girl named Chinky) / re-telling China stories.

GBF 9.29
Good: gym / salad
Bad: optical shop
Funny: DG lost her keys and engineering made her re-key every lock in the hotel

GBF 9.28
Good: gym / going to bed
Bad: water weight
Funny:Rich: "is that like "no thank you" meaning -no, i don't smoke pot and you should never ask me again?"

GBF 9.27
Good: pretending to be a sales manager for the day / choir rehearsal /QT with Jess / Zach making an appearance.
Bad: too sleepy to party like a rockstar
Funny: "dont go out for a chicken sandwich on those two quarter rests"- My choir instructor. / OH STAR / Calling Marash my enward :)

GBF 9.26
Good: gym / rest
Bad: PMS / face exploding
Funny: Zach: the hairdos in upstate new york were simply amazing!

GBF 9.23-25
Good: dinner with stephen, meeting "the chin", party like a rock star at Parris, awesome cabbie home, wedding dress shopping for my cousin, napping, out with BEN CLYMER, Adam, Z, KA, Jess, and Paul, awesome gym session, pizza.
Bad: Rough sunday
Funny: "I am glad you're comfortable with your ankles." - KerriAnn regarding Paul owning kapris

GBF 9.22
Good: nice cardio session / iron chef with cindy
Bad: lack of attendence at the iron chef event by my nearest and dearest
Funny: Roger at Iron Chef and the Random Older Dude / ballroom dancing and the chick with the crazy hair.

GBF 9.21
Good: WW / T ride home / couching with Adam & KA / Early to bed (finally)
Bad: sleepy
Funny: "OH SARS" a lovely combination of my collegiate life and myadult life

GBF 9.20
Good: gym / choir / chillin at the burren for a bit
Bad: calling Doug when I should have just gone to bed
Funny: Membership Guidelines: $10/year to be a member
Jess: Let's join "bag-a-douche"
Megan: I think Doug's already a member

GBF 9.19
Good: gym / fitting into a smaller size pair of jeans and wearing them with confidence / first date since the break up
Bad: super crowded gym
Funny: Megan: Lean back, you're making me nervous Todd: I can't see my truck if I lean back.

GBF 9.16-9.18
Good: housewarming with adam, KA, and Paul, Going out with Z-bot onSaturday night, The Rack with The R'Mates and some 'Cuse kids, Milton for QT with Jess
Bad: feeling like poo on Saturday afternoon / missing brie saturday night
Funny: Shelly "shopping" for a boy like he was an article of clothing

GBF 9.15
Good: meeting with my boss, couching, fro-yo, cake show on the food network, visit from jess
Bad: afterwork plans getting postponed
Funny: "OH STAR" - me singing about the giant star shaped cake

GBF 9.14
Good: weigh-in / gym / phone calls
Bad: Hours of pointless meetings
Funny: Dumb Girl: She was upstairs in the dungeon

GBF 9.13
Good: leaving work early / great gym / great choir / great talk
Bad: no zach at choir
Funny: 'bag-a-douche' music

GBF 9.12
Good: hanging out with Jay, Saturday-Night called, Nice relaxing evening.
Bad: way hotter outside than i had anticipated
Funny: "Yeah, I never really understood that category" - Jess on"before and after" on wheel of fortune.

GBF 9.9-9.11
Good: roomdate, gym, party at the brosers, the harp with Shelly, Paul, Jess and Rich (mission accomplished!! baby steps, baby steps), gym, dinner at Cindy's!
Bad: no kendra all weekend.
Funny: kid: do we have a problem? Paul: Yeah. / Me and Shelly dancing with Dave and Todd :)

GBF 9.8.2005
Good: emails from friends / gym / out for shelly's bday
Bad: caving & calling
Funny: mark's drunken 'woo' and paul saying "you look miserable. am i going to have to dance?" :)

GBF 9.7.2005
Good: WW meeting, Gym like Whoa!, talking to Momma, Finding a september combo pass on the sidewalk, endless support from the best friends (and mother) in the entire world.
Bad: still hurting
Funny: my weight watchers leader and my mom :)

GBF 9.6.2005
Good: endless support from the most wonderful friends in the world / choir
Bad: Crying until my contact lenses were blurry / having to be thestrong one / having to let go.
Funny: me still having my 'lost kid tag'

GBF 9.2-5.2005
Good: Icecream, Carlsberg on tap, Dancing, Walden Pond.
Bad: heart broken
Funny: Soy-Tergent

GBF 9.1.2005
Good: shelly moved in / 40 minutes of cardio / seeing frank and marcos/ tacos lupita

Bad: no more kitchen table

Funny: Frank: I can understand the looters taking diapers, formula, food,water... but DVD's?Megan: Maybe they're going to build rafts and float to safety? (Perhaps the visual of this scene is the actual funny part)

GBF 8.31.2005
good: dinner / frank's here!
bad: exhaustion

funny:

Dear Mike (director of sales),

You’ve been replaced.

Love,
Megan & Vanessa

GBF 8.30.2005
Good: gym / sauce / the burren / celebrating Kendra's bday / seeingthe crew / meeting Steve.
Bad: early pumpkin time
Funny:
Cindy: So where did you go to school?
Steve: UConn
Cindy: Utah?
Steve: Uconn
Cindy: Epcot?

GBF 8.29.2005
Good: 3 mile run / delicious dinner
Bad: restless sleep
Funny: Megan: you know how i know you're gay? Paul: because i want to watch the hottest 20 men show? Megan: yup

GBF 8.26-8.28.2005
Good: Gym / 21 grams / China Fair / Beantown Pub / 40 Year Old Virgin/ Cactus Club / Couching / Marinos / Entourage / The Burren

Bad: Blockbuster not letting Paul rent

Funny: Paul and Adam losing a drinking bet / Paul almost beating up anold guy on rollerblades / Adam's friends from Avon / Singing HappyBirthday - getting cake in return, MVP chant, shots with a stranger.

GBF 8.25.2005
Good: date night with doug / seeing The Last Five Years

Bad: No time for the gym

Funny: Our T conductor rapping, "I see black people" - Doug

GBF 8.24.2005
Good: weight watchers, down time, looking sexy, dinner with doug, jess, & kendra

Bad: work still slow

Funny: Ro blaming Doug for the binging / the "smutty" details of jess'second date

GBF 8.23.2005
Good: meeting the bf's parents / working out / sleeping

Bad: Slob face roommate leaving the apartment a mess

Funny:Me to my sales manager: You know I keep a list of all the dumb things she says.Sales manager: Where? On the shared file? / Zach sending me the 'noname' attachment twice :)

DG QOTD I & II

2005-09-07T14:20:00.000-05:00

DG: Why aren't my smiley faces working?

DG: Do we recycle paperclips around here?

Day Two

2005-09-07T10:39:00.000-05:00

I can't even begin to describe how much worse it feels to have to let go of someone for whom you love and care for more deeply than you ever thought imaginable, especially when you know they feel the same way about you. I will, however, like all those who stood here before me, be fine. However, fine is not what I want to be. I want to feel alive instead of frozen, excited instead of scared, and happy instead of devastated. "I want to be let back in the house."

"courage does not always roar. Sometimes it is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, 'I will try again tomorrow.'"

"Well, I'm gonna get out of bed every morning ...breathe in and out all day long. Then, after a while I won't have to remind myself to get out of bed every morning and breathe in and out."

Forget Regret or Life Is Yours to Miss

2005-09-06T14:06:00.000-05:00

I've heard it said that people come into our lives for a reason, bringing something we must learn. And we are led to those who help us most to grow, if we let them and we help them in return...well, I don't know if I believe that's true, but I know I'm who I am today because I knew you.

Please know I am forever changed because of who you are and what you've meant to me.

And I'm Still Hurting

2005-09-06T07:26:00.000-05:00

Jamie is over and Jamie is gone
Jamie's decided it's time to move on
Jamie has new dreams he's building upon
And I'm still hurting

Jamie is over and where can I turn?
Covered with scars I did nothing to earn
Maybe there's somewhere a lesson to learn
But that wouldn't change the fact
That wouldn't speed the time
Once the foundation's cracked
And I'm Still Hurting

Moving Day

2005-09-02T07:35:00.000-05:00

Luckily, I did not have to move, but the apartment has gone through a change. Jenn has left us and Shelly has moved in. Shelly is from Hawaii and she's a nice girl who works in the mental health profession. I remember when I moved in, in the end of December in the twelve inch remnants from the previous night's snow storm... And I couldn't decide if moving when everyone else is moving is worse, or moving in a foot of snow is worse. Either way, what's done is done.
We are glad to have Shelly as the latest addition to the 729 household.

I got to spend a good amount of time with Frank and Marcos last night after the gym (where I did my forty minutes of cardio). They drove from Chicago, arrived late on Wednesday. Frank is one of the few people in my life for whom I'd jump in front of a bus. He and I met during our freshman year at Syracuse, and have been close ever since. It's always a good feeling when a puzzle piece you've been missing suddenly appears at your doorstep. We hung out at the apartment and then ate some delicious Mexican food at a lovely eatery called Tacos Lupita. Later, we got some beer and couched for a while before they headed back to their hotel. Clearly not a long enough visit, however, completely worth while. I am hoping that as they complete their Eastern Seaboard Tour, they will find their way back to Boston at least for another day or two.

Happy Birthday Kendra

2005-08-31T08:11:00.000-05:00

Last night we celebrated the fabulous anniversary of Kendra's birth. It was quite a good time! Dinner was at Sauce, where we had entrees, tapas, and drinks. It was not long before the cake was brought out and we were all happily singing Happy Birthday (no MVP chants here). The party was attended by myself, jess, cindy, paul, zach, doug, steve, and of course kendra. It was a fun and lively bunch of people. I certainly had a very good time meeting Steve, who just returned to U.S. soil from a year in China. I am sure the next time we get together we will talk more about our experiences in the Far East. It was also good to spend time with Cindy, since we keep finding ourselves too busy to get together. Always a pleasure to see the rest of the crew, and Jess, Zach, and I talked about how it was our last Tuesday of freedom before choir starts again. In retrospect, joining choir was perhaps the best decision I made since I moved in the 'Ville. The Burren was good as well and I was sad that I turned into a pumpkin just as Ro arrived. However, I did manage to get his phone number so I can call him to hang out even when bf isn't around.

HBDI

2005-08-30T13:52:00.000-05:00

Okay, so when I was a senior in college, I took this amazing class called Imagination as part of my Entrepreneurship major. I know it sounds like some rocks-for-jocks type deal, but it actually was quite insightful and interesting. During the class we each took a test called the HBDI. Below is the interpretation of my results by my professor, Dr. M. Sonneborn. The graphic to the left is an example from the website of what the profile output looks like.

~~
You are triple dominant with a clear preference for organization and stability. You are also interested in reducing risks in decisions, liketo stay within budgets, and are able to function well within step-by-step agendas or implementation plans.

Your adjective pairs show that your back-up strategy (under stress) is the same as your normal strategy for dealing with decisions, issues, people, etc. Therefore, when you are under stress, you may need to tell colleagues that they need to leave you alone - since you don't let off clues that are different than when things are calm and relaxed.

Safety and security are likely to be important to you also. You probably look at safety features in cars before purchasing, and take into account risks when doing things like sky-diving - though you may steer far away from extreme sports and putting yourself in physical danger. However,if someone convinced you that the risk of physical harm was low, you might try it, especially if a group of friends wanted to try it (your red quadrant creeping in).

Right after the green quadrant, the red is your preference (human culture and issues, sensory and emotive). That is the strategy you move to after addressing issues with your organizational and safekeeping preference. Then you probably focus on how people feel about decisions and issues.

Your third preference is visionary, futuristic, and the ability to take risks after you have assessed them. You do not avoid analytical issues, but if there was a type of person in the work place with whom you might not agree, it would likely be ananalytical, past-oriented, statistics or data-driven person.
~~

DG QOTD - 8.30

2005-08-30T09:12:00.000-05:00

Dumb Girl: How do you spell Massachusetts? I've never actually spelled the whole thing.

A long-term goal is made up of many short-term goals

2005-08-30T08:57:00.000-05:00

I completed one short-term exercise goal of running three miles yesterday. Yay. I am going to up my cardio time to forty minutes from the thirty several times a week. The prospect of that is both scary and exciting, but I think my body is ready for it and my weight loss will benefit from it. I am doing my best to get to the gym five days a week doing the two days on and one day off schedule. With choir just around the corner, I am not sure how well that schedule will work, but I will see how it goes. Also, there is much less light now, which means it's nearly fall and that's my favorite season.

New Short-Term Exercise Goal: Work out 40 minutes at least 3 days a week
New Short-Term Food Goal: Eat out no more than twice per week
New Short- Term Weight Loss Goal: Lose at least 5 pounds by the end of September.

Things I am looking forward to:

Kendra's bday party
Stuff I bought for Doug getting delivered
Three day weekend

M-V-P, M-V-P

2005-08-29T08:34:00.000-05:00

A few highlights from the weekend. Saturday night Paul and I went on a "roomdate" this is a new term I invented that describes when you go out with your roommate and do something with just the two of you. It was hot, I am not going to lie. We started at the Beantown Pub on Tremont. The food there is good and it's convenient when you don't quite know what you want. I had a fabulous turkey dinner. The portions are enormous, which I didn't realize. We then headed off to the cinema to see some wonderful entertainment. I don't know which Paul liked better, the movie (40 Year Old Virgin) or the preview for the Sports Gambling movie. The movie was very funny, and I would certainly recommend it. It was good to spend a few hours working the funny muscles. The movie introduced the new version of "yo momma" jokes as "Know how I know you're gay?" Quite a funny scene. Paul and I both laughed and were merry.

The roomdate ended here, as we headed down Boylston to meet up with Adam and his crew from Avon, NY (a quaint suburb of Rochester). They had taken in the Red Sox Game and were pumped to continue their fun. We headed to Cactus Club and found a few more of Adam's crew. The fun didn't stop. Even though I was sleepy and sober, I still managed to have a great time. I was sitting at a table with Adam's three guy friends when one of the servers brought out some cakes with candles and started singing to the table beside us. The four of us, without thinking, chime with with a very rowdy rendition of Happy Birthday and we hoot and holler at the table. As a sign of appreciation, the table gives us the two dishes of desserts that were brought to them and the guys go nuts and start chanting "M-V-P, M-V-P!" I laugh at this as the guys enjoy their hard earned dessert. Someone decides it's a good idea to order shots of Yeager. Now, if this was another time, I would have thrown back with no problem - but as the drinking hiatus doesn't come to an end until Saturday... My shot sat on the table - everyone looked around at who was going to do two shots. "Give it to the MVP!" I say. Without hesitation, MVP comes over and throws back with the guys. Very fun!

A bit later in the evening, Paul's need for action comes out. I see him taking out his wallet and throwing a twenty on the table. I look over and watch one of the girls take her gum out of her mouth and try to toss it to our table onto a dirty plate. No dice. Paul is a gentleman though, and doesn't collect. Several rounds later, the couple, Dave and Sarah decide to challenge Paul and Adam to a drinking contest. Winner pays for both bowls. The bowls are the novelty sized margarita glasses full of a wonderfully alcohol concoction. With two judges, myself, and Marybeth, we watched Paul and Adam get their butts kicked as Sarah and Dave managed to suck down their entire bowl in under thirty seconds. Paul was not happy. Either way, everyone got very intoxicated and seemed to have a smashing good time.

Sunday I had two dates, one with Doug and one with Jess. Doug was back from his soccer tourney in N. Conway, NH and Jess was back from visiting her new niece in the middle of nowhere NY.

Pictures from Wednesday

2005-08-26T14:03:00.000-05:00

Me, Kendra, and Jess

Some hottie and his evil red-eyed girlfriend