Another Weird Thing

i've been having a lot of bad dreams lately. it's been going on for the past couple of weeks. can't say why as it's not like i'm watching horror movies or bad tv (unless you count "the hills"). the strange piece is that i can't remember any of the nightmares. i should be writing them down in some kind of dream journal, but by the time i get to work i can't even remember what the dreams were about.

it kinda bothers me. i mean, what is my subconscious trying to tell me? my feeling has always been that dreams, especially nigthmares, are the subconscious' way of working through issues or things bothering me. but none of what i dream about, that i can remember, make any kind of sense. it's odd. really odd.

i've never been a fan of dreaming. oh, i do plenty of living in my imaginary world during the day. if only that translated into my sleeping life. in fact, i would rather not dream at night, as most of the time it doesn't seem fun or pleasant. for example, why can't i just be flying around in my dream? or on vacation with the adorable one?

it's neve rthat easy. my brakes in my car are always conveniently going out. or something is trying to break into the house or wherever i'm at. it's really unsettling. i think that while i do have an overactive imagination, there should be an explanation for the bizarre dreams.

A Strange Phenom

i love my bathroom. anyone that really knows me knows that. granted it was decorated in the 1950s, so the adorable one has dubbed it "barbie bathroom" due to a large amount of pink, but hey, it's perfect. i kinda consider it a sacred place because i'm the only one that ever uses it, unless we have guests over, like my parents who can pee like every ten minutes given the opportunity.

anyway, the previous owners, carrie and dave, took out the window and put in glass block, which is fine by me as a window in a bathroom can be a freezer in the winter and a furnace in the summer. not to mention wood rot, which could have been the case since my window is in the shower.

the thing is, as much as i like the glass block, i think between that and the low ventilation leads to the bathroom being an icebox in the winter and a wee bit warm in the summer. oh, i have a vent, but it never seems to cool the bathroom to my comfort level. which granted is a heckuva lot cooler than the average person. i mean, i like it pretty cool, especially in the bathroom. in the summer. and nice and toasty in the winter. of course, with me, the bathroom is just the opposite.

which is why my next bathroom will most definitely have a ceiling fan. and be well ventilated and insulated. and bigger. much bigger.

good thing i'm not picky or anything, huh?

Great Stuff, Hard As Hell To Get My Hands On

and yes, it's not lost on my that they are totally unrelated. doesn't change the fact that both are elusive as the yeti. maybe i'm just not hanging out in right places, huh?

I Wish I Could Explain It

but i've been unquestionably and unconscionably irritable since monday. i'm not pms-ing--that was over last week. i'm just unequivocably crabby. and i would love to say that i could turn it off like a faucet, but i'm just super pissy.

don't know if my body has metabolized the paxil prescription, but i am not a happy camper of late and there's absolutely no reason for it. work is good, i'm in love with the adorable one, there's loads of tv to watch and books to read.

i don't get it, but sure wish i did.

Holy Cow

so there's no better burger on the planet than the ones grilled by the adorable one. from the barefoot contessa, we learned to use ground beef with some fat (like 73% lean) and put a pat of butter in the middle, which makes for a very moist burger. of course, he seasons it with sea salt and fresh cracked pepper.

but if we had to eat a burger in cowtown no less, there's only one place we would indulge. and let me say, as a burger expert, we have found mecca and it is called blanc burgers + bottles.

beyond squish, our favorite meal could be summed up as follows:

Yummee!

I'm Sure I'm Not The Only One

that thinks the new julianne moore flick "blindness" looks like crap. and the sad thing, it has really good people in it. the trailer is so beyond unappealing that i think i would rather go to a meeting than watch that piece of drek. and knowing how much i totally loathe, hate, and despise meetings--that's saying something.

Easy, Breezy & Yummy Chicken Recipe

i may have finally discovered a chicken recipe that is simple and tasty. i know, i can't believe it either. it's almost like getting to mecca or something. anyhoosa, i think it will go on the regular rotation. per usual, the photo is not mine as i have not mastered the art of capturing what little success i have with cooking dinner. which always gives me something to strive for, no?

Pretty Damn Good = Pretty Damn Addictive

Hoo Boy

so "gossip girl" is finally back--back with the snap, the sizzle, that intangible "it" quality that is oh-so-addictive. and it also introduced me to a song i never would have discovered on my own that i totally love, love, love. and yes, listen to over and over and over.

let's hope the rest of the season shows as much promise as monday night's episode--that was killer. watching dan getting socially alienated to the tune of "shove it" was nothing short of brilliant. yowsa.

It's All In The Muzak

i love my garmin nuvi 660 (i even named the guidance voice after my hideous 3rd grade teacher from richmond, virginia). the problem is that i love the music from the tomtom commercials. i don't get why garmin doesn't have a catchy tune like that. i mean, if garmin had a fun tune like tomtom, i could go around humming it all day. really, is it too much to ask?

Routines

i'm a creature of habit and i like it like that. i'm fond of my routines--they give me comfort and structure. what i find most interesting are the things that we do every day, even every week. for example, every wednesday, i put the pajamas in the wash that i've been wearing since sunday. every sunday, i put on a fresh set, and so it goes.

every thursday i do at least one load of wash so it's not overwhelming on sunday--which is when we do sheets, towels, and the rest of our weekly laundry. i mean, what drives me to be like this? i have no real idea, but i love the simple fact of telling people our laundry routine.

or how about the fact that i do everything in the same order every work day from when i get up, with the exception if i need toilet time before heading out. and how the first thing i do, after letting the girls out on the porch when i get home is to immediately change into my pajamas. man, they are so comfy. i need a job where i can either wear shorts and t-shirts, or better yet, pajamas. that would be so cool.

i think we all relish in our routines. yes, they seem dull, but i know we would be lost without them. i think how much our routine is changed when, for example, the adorable one and i had to carpool due to inclement weather last year. the adorable one, i think genetically, just doesn't seem to be a morning person, which is actually when i am most alert and functioning.

on the other hand, whereas i am happiest being in bed at 9:30 p.m., the adorable one is the proverbial night owl. through routine though, the adorable one has converted to my bedtime way of thinking. which personally, i don't think is a bad thing. but hoo boy, do i get reminded of the adorable one's glory days of staying up to all hours, on school nights no less (that means work nights), that he would stay up to watch really dumb movies.

oh yay, where was i? routines, yes. sometimes i think about the people whose lives are massively disrupted, like hurricane victims. how do they re-establish routines? i'm sure it's just something you do. people have been doing it since the beginning of time. but i always wonder about it.

thankfully, i'm not such a routine freak that i can't bend the rules occasionally. like hey, staying up past my bed time. now, if i could just get back into the routine of going to the gym, i would have it made.

Here's Another Memo I Missed

it seems like there is at least one person, normally more, that exist to just get in my way. yes, i get it--it sounds ridiculous and narcissistic. but i swear, i swear, it's true. today, i was simply trying to grab a few napkins and some butter spread at panera (yup, my fav lunch spot), and this woman, just wouldn't get the hell out of my way. she just worked it to where no matter what i was trying to get to, she was in the way. must be a special course they teach.

last week, me and nancy (my best work buddy) went to quiznos for lunch and i must say that first of all, it's a good lunch spot. overpriced, but good. i'm partial to the prime rib and peppercorn sub--pretty delish with the creamy horseradish sauce.

anyhoosa, there was this woman who was like a character from "seinfeld", i kid you not. okay, granted she didn't get in my way. but my god, the woman wanted to attach herself to me--she had no concept of personal space. none. like zero. zip.

i kept moving away from her, and she kept trying to latch on. if i didn't know better i would think she wanted a piggy-back ride or something. so weird. i kept saying stuff to nancy and lord knows my voice carries. i mean my inside voice is most people's outside voice. i know this because pretty much everyone, including the adorable one, will regularly tell me to lower my voice.

like sometimes, i think even my whisper is like a normal person's inside voice. i really don't get it, because it doesn't seem loud to me. but whatever.

anyway, i've decided that the next time someone tries to invade my personal space, i'm going to be prepared. and whether people around me can hear or not, i don't give a flying fig.

not sure what is going on in the cosmic universe, but i seem to be a magnet for annoying people. and no, i don't like this. not one little bit.

Have Ya Noticed

that there are certain days at the grocery store. for example, yesterday was geriatric day at our local grubstore. every aisle seemed to be chock full of geezers with hearing aids, rolled up jeans, and grandpa shoes. don't ask--i can't describe.

when the adorable and i lived in midtown, we shopped at the "have/have-nots" grocery--half the people were on food stamps, the other half could afford things like the pricey herbs and pomegranate juice. then there was a small minority (us) that got the basics and occasionally splurged on big-ticket items (like chocolate milk or bottled root beer). yes, yes, yes--i get it, when we spend big, we really go all out.

anyway, at that store, we usually had at least one day that was dedicated to couples, lesbians, and lesbian couples. or total and complete scum.

we occasionally frequent a small grocery store that is by our house, but significantly costs more, even with a savings card. and that store seems to only admit people that all know each other, as every time we go there, it's like a high school reunion . . . of super richy-rich snots. or people that like to park their cart right in the middle of the aisle. i think they actually grow people who excel at that skill.

maybe there are assigned days and the adorable one and i just didn't get the memo.

The Hard Part

about writing late in the day is that all the brilliant ideas that were swooshing around your head in the shower are long, long gone. i probably had at least three good posts this morning and god help me they are toast.

i'm thinking this is another sign of growing old. next thing you know, i will have to write everything down. fric!

The Very Definition of Total Losers

and to tell you the truth, i'm not sure it can get much better . . . unless these pansies go 0-16. that would be a dream season!

Lest You Think

that all i do is watch TV, i assure you, i do read. books. lots and lots of books. and of course, entertainment weekly and my fav crack mag, which has had some wretched cover stories of late (anna nicole's crappy kid? yay, who the hell cares? not me, thanks!).

but i must confess that the somewhat insecure, yet overly label-obsessed stylist show, the rachel zoe project, has me already and most sadly addicted. maybe my tastes have gone down the past few years, but at least i haven't gone to the dark side and watch those retarded "extreme home makeover" shows and their ilk.

i sure as hell don't like rachel's partner, taylor, who is permanently crabby, but it's quite a fascinating look into the hollyweird life of a major stylist. who knew that picking the right dress for red-carpet dresses was a life-and-death issue? maybe these people should go to work for a global engineering firm and compare notes, as they seem to believe in the same type of philosophy.

thank god that world is not for me!

If You Aren't A Fan Yet

of usa network's "burn notice", you are seriously missing out on a smart, funny, and thoroughly enjoyable show. it's has the same kind of snarky, sharp sense of humor as "veronica mars", and the main character, michael westen, played by the very talented jeffrey donovan, is a million times smarter than everyone else. we love that!

of course, it doesn't hurt that jeffy is very easy on the eyes. just not as much as the adorable one!

Looky What We Scored At Target!

It's Rare

that i find one song, let alone four on a cd these days. thanks to pandora, i've downloaded the following fab tunes:

1) nothing in my way
2) a bad dream
3) crystal ball
4) the frog prince (probably my fav, next to #3)

and in my usual fashion listen to them over and over and over and over. pretty darn heavenly if you ask me!

This Looks Cute & I'm Intrigued

I Think It's Kinda Weird

that i haven't even talked about the bathroom at my new job. i mean, i'm a gal obsessed with bathrooms! and let's face it, the only one i really like and feel safe in is my own. anyways, the bathroom is alright--it took them a month to upgrade the thing with new tile or something, cuz it sure as heck wasn't the toilets, which for the four of them are all different models. i know this because they all have different flushing mechanisms (the adorable one calls it a plunger, but i know that's not right).

and all the toilet bowls have weird spots like someone dropped paint in the bowls. don't want to think that it's anything else.

did i mention that there are only four stalls? and that there is a phantom faucet that turns on by itself? all the faucets are motion activated, so i think they set it to be too sensitive. anyway, i kinda like it that it goes on and off by itself, quite randomly. i like it the same way that my dad and i like it when animals like shamu act up during a performance.

so where was i? oh yay, the bathroom. i've been mostly lucky that when i've had gastric distress, i've had the joint to myself, but i know that won't always be the case. i have even found a few bathrooms at the main hospital (being in marketing, we are located in crown center) that are nicely remote and always empty.

i just still dream of the day when i have my own bathroom. ah well, at least our bathroom has a lock that requires a number to be punched in to access to keep out the riff-raff.

I Know It's SO Wrong

but i so seriously love the new "90210" show. and rob estes? he's looking f-i-n-e. i don't know about you, but i think "silk stalkings" went into the tank when he left the show. darn it all if the usa network isn't trying to be all respectable with decent shows like "burn notice" and "monk."

man, i miss the good old days!

Two Really Great Books I'm Reading

1) "the invention of hugo cabret" by brian selznick
2) "the lightning thief" by rick riordan

yes, these are considered "young adult", but they are sure as heck entertaining. and i got both from our neighborhood library.

even more interesting is that when i was looking for a good link to use for the hugo cabret book, i came across this news item. let's just keep our fingers crossed gore verbinski doesn't screw the flick up the way he did with the two "pirates of the caribbean" sequels. yikers seriously.

Who Decided These Were In Style? Sucky, I Say. Sucky!

The Adorable One Gets Yummy

i am a damn lucky princess to have such a fab hubby take a chance on a new recipe and make a delish dinnah. and no, i did not take the picture--i have still not mastered the art of photography, let alone food photography.

but the super-easy chicken casserole i made last night turned out pretty decent--i added lots 'o garlic powder, which may explain why i was overly gassy last night. possibly moreso than the adorable one, which is quite a feat if you know my favorite gaseous planet. and i say that lovingly! anyhoosa, new recipes = good recipes.

My Regression Knows No Bounds

i was a teenager in the 1980s and quite the geek. i just loved cartoons like "thundercats", "transformers", "he-man", and my all-time favs, "g.i. joe" and "voltron." so just imagine my delight when i was flipping through the channels and found that the boomer cartoon channel is running the entire voltron series from the start.

personally, i thought the leader keith could do better than that drippy princess allura, but there were no other chicks in the cartoon other than the homely nanny and the witch hagar.

and before you think i've gone off my rocker, rest assured, i get it now what a dumb, silly show it was. just can't help myself from enjoying a wee bit of nostalia.

On The Other Hand . . .

there's no reason for target to have crappy christmas stuff out for sale. for god's sake--it's not even october. and don't get me started on michaels, which is already playing creepy christmas musak. wtf?

I'll Say This For Target

they have seriously cool halloween stuff. damn!

Hurray For Fridays!!!!!!

It's That Time Of Year

sometimes i think this time of year is harder than winter. which if you know me is a pretty severe and bizarre statement, as i hate winter. and when i say i hate winter, i loathe and detest it. i dread it every year. i get sad when the leaves start to turn and then fall off the trees. i can't stand it when the grass turns brown and goes dormant, although the adorable one is relieved not to have to cut it. regardless, it seems to get harder and harder to make it through the winters--this last one really hung on for dear life until May.

i know what's coming. it bothers me that it's pitch black in the mornings now and totally dark by 8:00 p.m. and as soon as the idiotic daylight saving time (and it is saving, not savings people!), it will start getting dark at 4:30 p.m. i'm just not ready. not ready for fall and sure as hell not ready for winter.

maybe because at heart i don't like change. i never have. this time of year makes me sad. if it was up to me, summer would last year round, which is why i think the adorable one and i will relocate to a warmer locale, like sunny florida.

i don't give a flying fig about hurricanes, i really don't. i won't miss the seasons. i won't miss the leaves falling off the trees or the grass turning brown. i want to live where it's eternal summer.

because summer, in my mind, is the best time of year. i can remember being younger and getting up early on a summer day, walking around in the yard, barefoot, while the dew was still on the grass. seemed like the days used to last forever, not like they do now, where if you sleep until 10:00 or 11:00 a.m., it seems like you've already lost a good chunk of the day.

when did time start flying by in a blink? i know it's because i'm getting older. hell, i'm hitting the big 4-0 in just about a month. and the problem is, i don't want time to keep speeding up, because that's what it seems to be doing. is that what happens as we get older? because it's sucky, really sucky.

i don't really have anything else to say on the subject, but i had to get this out of my system. at least for now.

What's The Deal With GG?

i was a big fan of "gossip girl" from the get-go last year--the show started out a little trite, but quickly found its stride, as no one as all good or all bad. it was actually a fun show to watch. and i say this as someone almost 4o!

anyhoosa, the first two episodes of the new season are lackluster at best. where's the snap? the spark? the smirky smarm? i need my fix people!

Just Checking

does anyone actually think the overrated ohio buckeyes have any chance of beating the usc trojans, especially in los angeles? i didn't think so either. go usc!

Granted It Was The Houston Texans

but happy, happy, joy, joy on the pittsburg steelers returning to form.

What I Want To Say

i took over a year off from writing in this blog, which i really loved. and missed. and there were what seemed like a million times i wanted to write, to get back to the blog. but i didn't. maybe it's because i felt like i was in a dark hole with no chance of ever seeing the sun again.

i should have believed in the adorable one. he's the one who always says, "the one thing you can count on is change. nothing stays the same." and even though there's no one i believe more in the world, it's hard to have faith when you feel like you are going to be in prison until you are 90 with no chance of reprieve. and sadly, that's exactly how i felt. with me, there's no logic, no rationale. i'm just all emotion.

so i still feel like i have a lot to say about the last year. there were lots of good things that happened including fun trips to key west (a favorite place for me, no question), las vegas (my first time!), san diego, and puerto vallarta (delightful), as well as getting to hang out in the company private suite for the garth brooks concert (man, that guy is the pied piper of hamlin), an arena football game, and nascar races.

but there was a lot of tough times. like my hair falling out, requiring steroid injections to my scalp. i don't really know if i want to get into everything, as it's in the past, but i don't believe in stuffing everything under the rug either.

not sure where this leaves me as far as posts, but it's probably fair to say that there will be times that i will revisit memories of the past 12 months. and maybe that's not such a bad thing.

Can't Complain

one of the benefits of living in the midwest, and cowtown no less, is the fact that we can get away with eating a lot of comfort food. so unlike those health freaks in sunny california, we can indulge in fried chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans with chunks of ham hock, and cinnamon rolls for dessert.

yay, it's a heart attack on a platter, but we wouldn't have it any other way. take that you bastard lettuce lovers!

Beautiful, Deadly & Fascinating

when we meet people from other parts of the country, they always ask if we have seen or experienced a tornado, to which we always reply, "nope." i always try to say something to the effect that tornados need lots of wide, open space to form and don't hit densely populated urban spots, but since twisters barreled through Salt Lake City and Utah in the last ten years, i know that to be a false statement.

regardless, the adorable one and i love talking about the weather. doesn't matter if it's sunny, rainy, snowing, hailing or whatever, we find the weather fascinating. i think we both secretly wish we were meteorologists or at least had high paying jobs where we could be wrong 95% of the time. anyhoosa, when there is a weather event, we are glued to the tv like you wouldn't believe. or maybe you would.

the point i have been trying to say is that while we get that hurricanes cause massive amounts of damage, we enjoy watching the coverage like football games on tv. which is wrong, i give you that. but, i betcha anything there are tons of other people that feel the exact same way.

our favorite, of course, is armageddon jim cantori on the weather channel. that guy would have us all believing the world is ending tomorrow due to hurricanes. but damn if he isn't good tv. and i'm sure, unfortunately, that's what it's all about.

Is It Me?

or does nicolas cage's hair get scarier by the year? tom hanks seems to fall into the same spookass category. yikers.

Yes, It's True. The Call Of Jason Statham Is Just Too Hard To Resist

Quote Of The Day

"vampires like it windy."

-- dr. john "j.d." dorian (scrubs)

The Very Good Book In My Car CD Player

which is coming to a theater next month starring bill murray. fingers crossed that hollyweird doesn't screw it up.

Get Addicted Like Me

one of the cool docs i interviewed for a story turned me onto pandora, a delightfully free music site. in the process, i got beyond addicted and pretty much listen to it every day at my desk. essentially you can create music stations that will play your favorite artists and similar musicians. so, if you like coldplay, they will also probably play u2. in fact, it's thanks to pandora that i am in love with "crystal ball" from keane's under the iron sea cd.

well that and "lucky" by britney spears. yay, i know--nobody said i had taste.

Wow, Have I Been Gone A L-o-n-g Time

so the deal of it is, i've been a bit of a recluse since last april. it was during the early part of the month last year that i applied for a promotion at work, they told me i could apply, and then in typical fashion, pulled the rug out from under me, and told me i wasn't qualified. i was pretty upset, so i told my supervisor (jerk of the year)that i was leaving for the day to get myself pulled together. and what did the jerkwad do? that's right--he fucking wrote me up. unfucking believable.

anyway, i spent the remainder of the year working on super shitty projects that caused my hair to fall out (true story). i ended up having to see a dermatologist that injected steroids into my scalp in different points. total yuckers.

but by the grace of god, i swear by this, and i prayed and prayed and prayed like nobody's business, i got a new job about a year later, almost to the day. i did take a significant pay cut (like $5k--severe, i know), but it was so, so worth it.

i feel like a new person. i get to write every day. i love the type of work i get to do--such a wonderful variety. and the hilarious thing about it is, nothing we do is a "life and death situation", even though it's a pediatric hospital. which was not the case at the shitfest i used to work at. life is ironic, no?

i'll write again soon. i just needed to get back on track.