olate

the worth of time

2011-04-28T12:07:00.000-07:00

quotable 2010

2010-12-31T19:07:00.000-08:00

these are quotes i have been collecting this year ... some i've seen on friends' blogs (thanks); others i've just run into. enjoy! if you have one to add, let me know.

"as an individual undertakes to live by borrowing, soon finds his original means devoured by interest and, next, no one left to borrow from; so must it be with government." -- abraham lincoln
"when one door closes, another opens. but we often look so regretfully upon the closed door that we don't see the one that has opened for us." -- alexander graham bell
"pride is spiritual cancer. it eats up the very possibility of love, or contentment, or even common sense." -- cs lewis
"for attractive lips, speak words of kindness. for lovely eyes, seek out the good in people. for a slim figure, share your food with the hungry. for beautiful hair, let a child run his/her fingers through it once a day. for poise, walk with the knowledge that you never walk alone. people, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed; never through out anyone. remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you will find one at the end of each of your arms. as you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands; one for helping yourself, and the other for helping others." -- audrey hepburn
"o segredo nao e' correr atras das borboletas ... e sim cuidar do jardim para que elas venham ate voce." -- unknown
‎"don't accept your dog's admiration as conclusive evidence that you are wonderful." -- ann landers
"the measure of a man's real character is what he would do if he knew he never would be found out." -- thomas babington macaulay
"in the end, people either have excuses or experiences; reasons or results; buts or brilliance. they either have what they wanted or they have a detailed list of all the rational reasons why not." -- anonymous

the holidays have arrived

2010-11-10T16:14:00.000-08:00

i discovered these last year -- don't know how i missed out on them for so long -- but they're back! candy cane joe-joe's. for those of you that haven't ever tried them, my heart cries for you. they're only around during the holidays, so go get some!

even though my chiropractor will curse me out, i purchased 3 boxes of them last night when i discovered them on the shelf at trader joe's. hey -- they don't have any hydrogenated oils. i think that makes them okay. doesn't it?

and, for the record, i haven't eaten of them yet. i'm actually a little paranoid that they're gonna run out too quickly, so i want to save them ... i think i may have a problem. a pepperminty and chocolatey problem.

halloween shock

2010-10-29T15:05:00.000-07:00

flynn called this morning:

"stinna, are you coming to church for the chili cook-off tonight?"
"yep -- i'm coming!"
"okay, and you have to wear your costume."
"oh. i don't have a costume."
[short pause]
"... you don't have *any* costumes??"

it's shocking, i know ...

cut off

2010-10-23T22:13:00.001-07:00

i haven't been able to check my email for almost 24 hours now because they are upgrading the servers or something. i know it's saturday. but this is killing me.

fallin' for you - colbie caillat

2010-10-23T15:49:00.000-07:00

i don't know but
i think i may be
fallin' for you
dropping so quickly
maybe i should
keep this to myself
waiting 'til i
know you better

i am trying
not to tell you
but i want to
i'm scared of what you'll say
so i'm hiding what i'm feeling
but i'm tired of
holding this inside my head

i've been spending all my time
just thinking about ya
i don't know where to
i think i'm fallin' for you
i've been waiting all my life
and now i found ya
i don't know where to
i think i'm fallin' for you
i'm fallin' for you

as i'm standing here
and you hold my hand
pull me towards you
and we start to dance
all around us
i see nobody
here in silence
it's just you and me

i'm trying
not to tell you
but i want to
i'm scared of what you'll say
so i'm hiding what i'm feeling
but i'm tired of
holding this inside my head

oh i just can't take it
my heart is racing
the emotions keep spinning out

i can't stop thinking about it
i want you all around me
and now i just can't hide it
i think i'm fallin' for you

i'm fallin' for you

ooohhh
oh no no
oooooohhh
oh i'm fallin' for you

friend suggestions

2010-10-19T15:54:00.000-07:00

i don't know how facebook arrives at suggested friendships. well, some are obvious: my sister's friends -- hey, if i know my sister, it is possible i know her friends, too. others, i just don't see the link. let's just face it, facebook is amazing.

well, it took almost 3 years, but facebook finally decided i should be friends with pharmacy boy. interesting. apparently facebook is stalking me on my trips to the pharmacy.

umm, ignore.

put your records on - corinne bailey rae

2010-10-08T18:42:00.000-07:00

three little birds, sat on my window.
and they told me i don't need to worry.
summer came like cinnamon
so sweet, little girls double-dutch on the concrete.

maybe sometimes, we've got it wrong, but it's alright
the more things seem to change, the more they stay the same
oh, don't you hesitate.

girl, put your records on, tell me your favourite song
you go ahead, let your hair down
sapphire and faded jeans, i hope you get your dreams,
just go ahead, let your hair down.

you're gonna find yourself somewhere, somehow.

blue as the sky, sunburnt and lonely,
sipping tea in the bar by the roadside,
(just relax, just relax)
don't you let those other boys fool you,
got to love that afro hair do.

maybe sometimes, we feel afraid, but it's alright
the more you stay the same, the more they seem to change.
don't you think it's strange?

girl, put your records on, tell me your favourite song
you go ahead, let your hair down
sapphire and faded jeans, i hope you get your dreams,
just go ahead, let your hair down.

you're gonna find yourself somewhere, somehow.

'twas more than i could take, pity for pity's sake
some nights kept me awake, i thought that i was stronger
when you gonna realize, that you don't even have to try any longer?
do what you want to.

girl, put your records on, tell me your favourite song
you go ahead, let your hair down
sapphire and faded jeans, i hope you get your dreams,
just go ahead, let your hair down.

oh, you're gonna find yourself somewhere, somehow

mission: accomplished

2010-10-06T09:20:00.000-07:00

i just realized that i have gravely forgotten to make a very special announcement. as you will note, this news is long overdue. and i apologize to all who have been negatively impacted by my gross oversight. those closest to the subject were informed immediately, but i feel the need to give public recognition for this awe-inspiring achievement.

let it be known to all who are connected through this vast world wide interweb, that on saturday, july 22, 2010, my manager mark finally fulfilled his dream of becoming #3 on my google favourites.

it was at times a difficult, yea even arduous, battle that required his constant time and attention. and my patience. many long hours were spent reading accounting literature out loud, pontificating on remote accounting principles, and stretching out the smallest of insignificant small talk. with brazen disregard for phone call etiquette and cunning creativity mark persevered in finding reasons to call multiple times daily, from the wee hours of the morning to long after what should be bed time. yet, despite his travail, at times i was unsure that his focused effort would pay off.

but triumph was destined to be his.

congratulations, my friend: you have done well.

a meta

2010-10-05T13:35:00.000-07:00

my goal this week is to bring my lunch to work everyday. for two reasons, mostly:

i am cheap.
i have zero self control when french fries are on the menu.

so far, so good.

but, it's only tuesday ...

sunshine

2010-09-21T14:14:00.000-07:00

my manager mark calls me sunshine, y'know, as in, "good morning, sunshine!". it's his way of reminding me that he has already battled an hour and a half of traffic and is in the office long before i even hit snooze on my alarm clock.

as a special treat, every once in a while, he will sing "you are my sunshine" to me. he usually loses the words somewhere in the middle of the first verse though, so today he put in the effort to google the full lyrics.

and because we used to sing that song about my brother when we were all kids, i knew most of the words ... until it took a sharp southward turn at louisiana. did anyone else know this song was about crawfish gumbo and jambalaya?

you are my sunshine
my only sunshine.
you make me happy
when skies are grey.
you'll never know, dear,
how much i love you.
please don't take my sunshine away
the other nite, dear,
as i lay sleeping
i dreamed i held you in my arms.
when i awoke, dear,
i was mistaken
and i hung my head and cried.
you are my sunshine,
my only sunshine.
you make me happy
when skies are grey.
you'll never know, dear,
how much i love you.
please don't take my sunshine away.
i'll always love you
and make you happy
if you will only say the same
but if you leave me
to love another
you'll regret it all some day;
you are my sunshine,
my only sunshine.
you make me happy
when skies are grey.
you'll never know, dear,
how much i love you.
please don't take my sunshine away.
you told me once, dear
you really loved me
and no one else could come between
but now you've left me
and love another
you have shattered all my dreams;
you are my sunshine,
my only sunshine.
you make me happy
when skies are grey.
you'll never know, dear,
how much i love you.
please don't take my sunshine away.
louisiana my louisiana
the place where i was borne.
white fields of cotton -- green fields of clover,
the best fishing
and long tall corn;
you are my sunshine,
my only sunshine.
you make me happy
when skies are grey.
you'll never know, dear,
how much i love you.
please don't take my sunshine away.
crawfish gumbo and jambalaya
the biggest shrimp and sugar cane,
the finest oysters
and sweet strawberries
from toledo bend to new orleans;
you are my sunshine,
my only sunshine.
you make me happy
when skies are grey.
you'll never know, dear,
how much i love you.
please don't take my sunshine away.

c.r.i.m.e.a.i.d.

2010-08-31T17:01:00.001-07:00

i just got this memo from our office building management.

of all the things to steal ... the back seat of the car?

magic show

2010-08-30T10:40:00.000-07:00

put on a concert at magic mountain on saturday for church public affairs. it was really a lot of fun. really made me miss helping my dad put on concerts in salt lake ...

anyway ... the show was a lot of fun. and the line-up was ... (yes, i stole the bio's from our mc's script. but only because i am lazy.) ...

matt abernathy (i loved this guy -- you should check him out)

our first performer recently attended an alex boye' workshop for musicians in salt lake city, utah, where artists were privileged to learn powerful performance insights. an audition was held at the conclusion of the workshop, with the winner having the opportunity to perform here at magic mountain today. matt abernathy was chosen due to his unique earthy style and powerful raw vocal talent.

for this singer/songwriter, there's truly no greater privilege than to unleash his deeply sincere and well crafted original songs; born to reflect a deliberate celebration of life's triumphs, as well as its sometimes very difficult trials.

the musical climate in america is a far cry from his birthplace on an island in the south china sea. matt abernathy is the product of a vibrant & complex culture. "hong kong will always be home to me," says matt. "it's hard to not miss my 20 years in the far east. there's simply no place like it anywhere." abernathy is fluent and literate in two chinese dialects, mandarin and cantonese.

after moving to america, matt abernathy performed as a solo act in many venues throughout the san francisco bay area. occasionally his vocal talent brought him to sing the lead with various members of the marshall tucker and elvin bishop bands. he has also been featured on two southern utah singer/songwriter association special edition cd's and has performed on kutv news in utah. he is very thankful for the opportunity to be part of this magic mountain concert and grateful to all who are in attendance!

alex boye

alex boye' has been entertaining audiences worldwide for over 15 years. alex was born and raised in london, england,and has had hits in over 15 countries, selling over half a million cd's and has performed alongside such groups as bryan adams, george michael, simon garfunkel, mc hammer, vanilla ice, n'sync, jay-z, the backstreet boys, jordyn sparks, dancing with the stars winner derek huff, missy elliott, mary. j.blige, david archuleta, and the smashing pumpkins to name a few.

alex served a mission for the mormon church in bristol, england, and, upon suggestion of his mission president, decided to pursue music as a career.

he has performed in many notable venues across the nation including the mgm grand in las vegas.

in acting, alex played a walk-on role in cbs's hit sitcom, how i met your mother. alex has had music featured in several movie soundtracks including charly, the dance, baptist at the barbecue, suits on the loose, and church ball.

he loves to laugh, and says some of the highlights in his life have been giving a book of mormon to prince charles, joining the mormon tabernacle choir, and marrying his wonderful wife julie.

alex recorded two solo songs on the new tabernacle choir cd "come thou fount" which has garnered rave reviews reached #1 in the billboard classical charts. he performed the 2 songs recently on the mormon tabernacle choirs' sold out midwest tour, and at the pioneer day commemoration concert in the conference center in salt lake city even receiving a standing ovation from the mormon church's president thomas s. monson.

jericho road

whether performing in a japanese concert hall, a radio station in alabama, or a halftime show in front of 65,000 football fans, jericho road continues doing what they do best – giving their fans great music with catchy melodies, tight harmonies, and positive lyrics. since they jumped into the music scene in 2001, abe, brett, dave and justin continue to be one of the most sought after groups in christian music, performing at universities, youth conferences, corporate shows, firesides, and sporting events all around the world. they have sung in more than 35 states and five countries. this year their schedule takes them everywhere from anaheim to orlando! they just finished recording a new cd that will be released in october! but for now, we're happy to have the guys here at magic mountain!

don't ask

2010-08-24T21:45:00.003-07:00

i hit myself in the face with my car tonight.

no problem

2010-08-20T16:34:00.000-07:00

it is possible that i have been chatting / texting too much recently. one of my co-workers just said "thank you" to me and my reply was, "np".

yes, i said the letters.

best sandwich ever

2010-07-30T11:29:00.000-07:00

i know i've been too lazy lately to post anything, but ... some things are worth making the effort. and this sandwich is.

tomato, avocado, green onion, garlic powder, black pepper, basil, and cheese. eden's copyright.

i'd eat it everyday.

if she'd make it for me everyday.

fruits of my labors

2010-05-20T13:28:00.000-07:00

this is what i have been doing:

RLOC

and this:

424(b) Prospectus

at 3:30 this morning, i became a free woman.

... for the time being, anyway.

carpe diem

2010-05-11T20:36:00.000-07:00

today:

i got to work before 9am.
i wore a skirt *and* did my hair.
i bought a gym membership from costco.
i branched out and bought a chocolate chip frappuccino with peppermint for happy hour half-price frappuccinos week -- not as good as my regular mocha non-coffee frap.
i tried bayer (aka "the wonder drug") for my back pain -- verdict: works better than tylenol (and since i'm not donating blood until saturday, i'm okay to take it).
my co-worker got called "laura webb-ensen" for not taking a lunch break.
i learned how to fed-ex at work.
i hand wrote out 42 percentage calculations on one sheet of paper.
i locked myself out of my office after everyone had already gone home, and then spent an hour and a half chilling with the security team waiting for the admin to come back and let me in, rather than pay a $300-fee to have them open the door for me.

big day.

reverse thinking

2010-05-09T23:17:00.000-07:00

arb

2010-04-30T01:37:00.000-07:00

for those of you that don't want to read a bra story ... stop reading. for everyone else ... i can only say that it has been a long day / week / month / year ... [sigh]

about 2 hours ago, i took a break at work to run to the restroom. as i dried my hands, i did the once over in the mirror and realized that i could read the size and fabric composition print on my bra through the back of my shirt. heh. funny i never noticed that about this shirt before.

i got back to my desk and commented to my co-worker that it's a good thing i was wearing my sweater most of the day.

when i got home a half hour ago, i changed into pajamas and realized what was wrong: my bra was inside out.

[shakes head]

yes

2010-04-28T20:56:00.000-07:00

resolutions, v. 2010

2010-01-03T14:09:00.001-08:00

i wasn't going to make resolutions this year.

but i found a bit of hope in a rather commonplace text received shortly after midnight, on new years day: "happy 2010! make it a great year."

at first i didn't think much of it -- i'm sure i have received a similar text or email or something every year since bread was first introduced to peanut butter -- but, i read it a second time and it hit me that *i* can make it a great year. immediately, the cynic on my shoulder chimed in with a "well, you can try ...", followed by a "but you can't control most things anyway."

i decided i am tired of that faithless argument. and i'd like to ride the wave of hope a little longer.

so, here we go:

de-stress. i intend to keep a longer-range perspective on time and other commitments. i know that because i am who i am, i need to keep my calendar full; however, i can't keep over-filling it. i will make conscious effort to more realistically fill my calendar, allowing time for the unforeseens. additionally, if i think i've mis-estimated, i'll adjust.
exercise. as is the case every year, with busy season looming, i hesitate to set a specific goal for this, but if i don't do it now, i never will. i'd like to get out and jog or run twice a week: monday and tuesday. pronto.
scripture reading. i've been out of this habit for far too long. i'll work my way through the Doctrine & Covenants, one verse at a time until i can pick up more momentum.

my stress level just increased, so i better stop. if any of y'all have suggestions, i'll take 'em. thanks!

quotable 2009

2009-12-31T17:15:00.000-08:00

these are quotes i have been collecting this year ... some i've seen on friends' blogs (thanks); others i've just run into. enjoy! if you have one to add, let me know.

"as an individual undertakes to live by borrowing, soon finds his original means devoured by interest and, next, no one left to borrow from; so must it be with government." -- abraham lincoln
"we can aspire to anything, but we don't get it just because we want it. i would rather spend my life close to the birds than waste it wishing i had wings." -- patient, on episode of house
"a friend is someone who knows the song in your heart, and can sing it back to you when you have forgotten the words." -- donna roberts
"to many people, free will is a license to rebel not against what is unjust or hard in life but against what is best for them and true." -- dean koontz, in the darkest evening of the year
"going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car." -- unknown
"some people are like slinkies. they don't really have a purpose but it still brings a smile to your face when you push them down the stairs." -- unknown

moving up the ranks

2009-12-14T22:09:00.000-08:00

i told my manager mark that he was now my #4 favourite, according to google. one month ago, he was #6.

he is now determined to become #3.

he'll have to beat out my mother for that spot.

pretty sure i'd have to seriously evaluate my life if that happened. maybe quit my job.

assault on the streets of l.a.

2009-12-11T19:53:00.000-08:00

i had a meeting in l.a. about fas 157, fair value measurements (or whatever the new codification number is -- why do they have to renumber stuff??). my manager mark was the instructor, so i was particularly concerned with arriving on time.

training started at 8. i got there at 755. perfect.

after 2 hours of stimulating discussion about all things fair value, mark and i drove back up to the client's office. we drove separately.

the first half of my drive deserves no commentary herein. shortly after i passed white oak on the 101, though, things got interesting.

i had been driving in the next-to-fastest lane, singing along to the radio and enjoying a mid-morning drive. i came up behind a blue suv and because i don't like to be behind anyone, i flipped my left blinker and changed lanes. as i got settled into the fast lane, i saw a car in my rear-view mirror that looked like he had wanted to be right where i was, but he changed his mind and merged the other direction.

i watched as this white car with beige hood and faded black bumper went around a couple cars, crossed in front of the blue suv, and merged into the fast lane right in front of me ... aaaand ... slammed on his brakes.

so i slammed on my brakes.

then he sped up again. dummy.

so, i accelerated again. he was still in front of me. he slammed on his brakes again.

really?

i gave him the universal shoulder-shrug, palms upturned and a mouthed "what?", to which he responded with several arm motions out his window that looked like he was telling a story about a snake and a bunny to 4-year-old. except for that last part -- that last hand gesture was not intended for a 4-year-old.

[eye roll.]

so i signaled to merge to my right. if he wants to be in front, let him. but ... he changed lanes right along with me, slamming the brakes again. so i changed lanes back. again, he was right there with me.

i fell behind a little, trying to get some space between me and the psycho. then i hit my right blinker and gunned it. he mimicked, cutting me off again. and again. at this point i was in the almost far-right lane, and he was in the lane to my left, a little ahead of me. so i let off the gas entirely, slowing to about 40 mph and got behind a big rig. he kept a close distance, to my left and one car length ahead of me.

we drove like that for a few minutes. i tried slowing even more, thinking he might get bored and leave me alone. no luck.

his driver-side window was rolled down and he started waving his phone out the window.

what?? what does that mean?

is he trying to get my number??

this is the *worst* pickup line e-v-e-r.

once again, he waved his phone out the window. i tried to look like i wasn't paying attention.

he slowed down to get right beside me. i didn't look over. in my periphery, i could see that he was trying to get my attention. i didn't give it to him.

he slowed down more and got behind me. he was on his phone now (illegal in california as of 1/1/2009).

we came up next to another big rig, i saw my chance. as soon as i was able, i quickly changed lanes in front of the 52-footer. unfortunately, mr. ugly car also snuck past him.

very annoyed at this point, i couldn't even enjoy the music coming from my radio. my exit was coming up. certainly this dude wouldn't follow me off the freeway, right?

right?

wrong. we reached the bottom of the off-ramp; i turned right. he turned right. he pulled up next to me on the shoulder of the road. he was talking at me and still on his phone. figuring he wouldn't leave me alone until he got whatever it was off his chest, i rolled down my window.

"hello? hi. i just wanted to let you know that i called the police and gave them your license plate number. you were speeding and driving recklessly," he announced. he seemed a little too pleased with himself.

i replied with a simple, "umm, thank you." what else was i supposed to say?

his retort? "you're welcome." and, as i rolled up my window, "you're welcome for a ruined day!!" an inkling of exasperation in his voice.

oh, my heavens. the light turned green, so i hit the gas. he cut off a few people to get right behind me again, still on the phone.

we approached the road to my client's office. i turned right. he followed. there was no way i was going to show him where my car would be all day. so i passed the entrance to my client's parking garage, and pulled up to a red light. great. he pulled up beside me again, yelling again.

"i called the police and you are going to get a ticket for reckless driving and for speeding. you cut me off and then you were driving recklessly!"

because i don't take accusations as well as i could, i replied, "i didn't see you. you were blocking me in the lane and i was trying to get away from you --"

"you didn't see me because you are a woman!! and women never see men, they just run all over them!" he cut me off.

oh. my. goodness.

*what* is this about??

the light turned green, so i put the car in first and pulled forward, he paralleled me. while leaning out the window, one hand on his phone, one on the steering wheel and neither eye on the road, he yelled at me about my reckless driving.

looking for somewhere to shake this guy, i saw another parking garage coming up on the left. with him on my right, i waited almost too long before making a sharp left into the parking garage entrance: no way this guy would pay for parking just to continue harassing me.

when i got to the gate, i quickly pulled a ticket from the machine and the mechanical arm raised. i turned to my right as i put the parking ticket in my purse, put the car in first and looked ahead to pull forward. suddenly mr. ugly car was standing right next to me, leaning into the car, his arm blocking my window from rolling up.

"i just want you to say you were wrong and that you're sorry. say that you're sorry!"

i could have peed my pants right then.

i didn't.

"admit you were wrong! just admit it," he insisted.

... uhhh ... "if you think i did something wrong, then okay, i'll admit it." pretty sure i was shaking. still didn't pee my pants.

he straightened up, held out his hand for a handshake and said, "thank you." he walked back to his car.

too shaken to think clearly, i slowly eased into the parking garage. the mechanical arm of the gate lowered behind me. i didn't even see the guy pull away.

i sat in the parking garage for a few minutes, then proceeded to the exit and drove over to my client's office.

as i entered my client's office, my manager mark lifted his head and commented, "boy, you drive slowly."

uhhh ...

find a penny

2009-12-11T14:39:00.000-08:00

if it's in the bathroom at a t.g.i. fridays, though, is it good luck or bad luck?

(p.s. -- i washed it. don't worry.)

not proud

2009-11-18T14:28:00.000-08:00

i'm sorry, but i cannot deny that i like this song:

when it comes on the radio, i actually turn the volume up. obviously, this is serious.

can we still be friends?

martha

2009-11-16T09:38:00.000-08:00

this is what i made yesterday:

these are why:

never underestimate the demands of a great shoe.

google favourites

2009-11-07T17:20:00.000-08:00

so, my google phone flags my contacts as favourites based on frequency and length of phone calls. i'm sure there's some fancy algorithm behind the calculations here so, i mean, this must be scientifically accurate information.

here are my top ten "favourites," according to google:

cute guy
my sister
my mom
my manager john
college boy
my manager mark

eerch!

hold on. what? what did that say? really?

yes, friends, you read that right: two of my managers in my list of favourites.

in the top ten, no less!

my managers are my favourites?! does that mean work is my favourite?!?

i can't go on with the list. this is just too sad.

...

i think i am going to go eat some ice cream ...

it's a sad, sad life i lead ...

the gravy

2009-11-06T21:46:00.000-08:00

my boy jerry takes care of me. when i visited the woodworths this summer, mike made fun of me for how in love i am with my jerry jetta. but i cannot deny it: he is amazing. pretty, fuel efficient, powerful, acclaimed, sporty ... without belaboring all the features that i have already mentioned, i must tell you about some that i have grown to love over the past 3 months:

sunroof. pretty sure i have already mentioned it, but i had to say that i *love*, love, love my sunroof. there is never a time when i drive without it open. man, that was a great choice, christianna. really. good job.
courtesy blinkers. they blink, blink, blink and then turn off when you change lanes. talk about awesome. i will no longer ever be one of "those" people, driving down the highway unaware that my blinkers are confusing drivers on all sides.
heated seats. now, i admit that living in sunny socal really limits the need for heated seats ... but ... i have horrible back trouble most of the days, and these heated seats provide the right amount of relaxing warmth for my whining muscles. ahhh. not the manufacturer's intended purpose, i know, but perhaps all the more valuable for it.

okay, ryan, i'll stop rubbing it in now. hope you get yours soon.

lasting impressions

2009-11-04T20:45:00.000-08:00

chatting with a co-worker tonight, griping about the same old office complaints ...

... i got an unexpected glimpse of the impression i leave on some people:

"i'm starving and talking to you made me think of jerry's."

[nose wriggle]. funny.

...

what do i make *you* think of??

pump gas much?

2009-10-28T11:02:00.000-07:00

so ... it's been a while, okay?

i stopped at the shell last night to refuel.

as i sat for about 5 minutes, waiting for the outside "stalls" to free up (since they are the only pumps with diesel) i realized that my tank was on the other side of the car and promptly pulled into the empty diesel stall in front of me.

i put him in park and climbed out. i swiped my card and waited. and waited. oh, i have to put in my zip code. hmm ... where's the key pad? oh. found it.

i grabbed the nozzle and put it into the tank. when i squeezed the handle, nothing happened. huh? oh, i have to push the fuel type button.

i squeezed the handle again and the diesel started flowing.

finally.

i didn't remember that refueling was such an ordeal ...

thanks, jerry, for being so fuel-efficient.

workaholic

2009-10-24T12:25:00.000-07:00

i left my client's office at 9 last night only because i had to pee and i have no key card to get back into their office. i went home and worked until 4am.

c'mon, who's jealous?

my greasy lover, bacon

2009-10-08T18:58:00.000-07:00

i wonder if you really could travel back in time ...

good boy, jerry

2009-10-04T04:25:00.000-07:00

welp, after entirely too much concentration wasted on work endeavors, i had to check yahoo one last time before hitting the sack tonight. on the main page, yahoo! finance was featuring an article called "The 5 Best Low-Cost, High-Mileage Cars", which conclusively and with authoritative finality answers the question, "what car would you buy that is well made, gets good gas mileage, and doesn't cost much?".

of course i had to check out the lineup. and guess who's number one, friends!

i couldn't agree more: jerry, you're awesome.

(in case you wanted to ask: no, i don't know who else made the list. i got carried away in celebration for my boy and stopped reading at #1.)

been around

2009-10-03T23:02:00.000-07:00

when i was talking to my mom the other night, she said she had a great idea to set me up with a guy she works with.

only problem is ...

... i already went out with him.

like 5 years ago.

man, i've been around too long ...

a mutual error

2009-10-02T23:35:00.000-07:00

i was in chicago for work, participating in a team-building activity called "planks" at the time the 2-hour house season premier aired. the activity was kind of an interesting puzzle thing, and i like puzzles, but my team didn't win or get any prizes. *and* i missed house.

i was so annoyed.

so i got home from my trip around midnight on monday this week and turned on the tv to catch up on my house-watching, only to find that direct tv had recorded the episodes but wouldn't replay them! can you believe it? what's the point of recording the show if it can't be replayed? the dvr just sat there "searching for authorized content" for 5 minutes, then asked me if i want to delete the show.

uhh ... no! i don't want to delete the show! i want to *watch* the show! seriously, people.

i answered "no", and tried again. but same thing. and again.

i was even more annoyed than plank night.

but -- what can you do?

[grumble]

so tonight, i watched house online. my first time online. kinda cool set-up: fox.com posts the full episode 8 days after initial air. means i have to wait a week -- but it's not like i have oodles of time to just sit around watching house all day anyway.

the only really annoying thing, i suppose, is that each full episode is sponsored by a single advertiser -- which means that each regularly scheduled commercial break consists of only one commercial -- but it's the *same* commercial every 15 minutes. and you can't skip or fast forward or anything.

in tonight's case, the advertiser was northwestern mutual. life insurance. blah-blah.

on the third time through this riveting juxtaposition between baseball and blah-blah, i noticed something interesting in the commercial: the company can't even spell their own legal name right.

ha ha.

well, in all fairness, their tagline is, "put our strength to work for you." they said nothing about putting their spelling skills to work for you.

okay.

what i did this summer

2009-09-30T19:43:00.000-07:00

in case you haven't noticed, i haven't been blogging much. not for lack of things to write about, but for time to write about them. not only has work swallowed me alive, but i have been insistent that i wouldn't allow work to consume all my waking hours.

lately i have taken advantage of the opportunity to use some of my pto before work gets even worse and i am completely unable to take the time off. and i have been busy!

so, in honor of school starting up again, i thought i'd do a quick, "what i did this summer" post for all.

jun 6 - 7 visit woodworths in tahoe, ca
jul 2 - 9 visit all kinds of family in ogden, ut, and eagle, id
jul 30 - aug 5 visit inge & jared in houston, tx
aug 8 - 9 california all-state ysa conference in santa monica, ca
aug 14 - 15 becky's wedding in las vegas, nv
aug 21 - 24 visit woodworths in san jose, ca
sep 3 - 8 bumbershoot in seattle, wa
sep 11 - 13 help mom & dad pack in ogden, ut
sep 20 - 23 annual training for work in chicago, il
sep 23 - 28 visit eden & clint, et al, in boston, ma

i'll elaborate on the details in the coming weeks -- when i find time to post some pictures. because a picture-less post is hardly worth the read, let alone the write.

chegou!

2009-09-28T23:41:00.000-07:00

finalmente.

recognition

2009-09-10T08:41:00.000-07:00

got the following email from a client today, at the end of our 2008 audit:

"Had a good time, too. Next week I'm visiting my proctologist and I'm sure that will bring back fond memories of the 2008 GT audit. LOL"

thanks, dude. it's nice to get a little recognition for a job well-done.

computer expert

2009-08-31T11:29:00.000-07:00

every morning, when pat asks me a computer question, this is actually *precisely* what i do.

lookie!

2009-08-19T14:04:00.000-07:00

okay, ryan -- hope this is enough to tide you over until i find another 37 seconds to post more.

enjoy.

i am.

p.s.

2009-08-18T21:27:00.000-07:00

oh, yeah. this is what else came in the mail ...

well, i mean, *i* didn't come in the mail.

just the ticket did ...

but, you got that.

right?

snail mail

2009-08-16T15:58:00.000-07:00

i haven't opened mail in over a month. i haven't had time, people! lately i get home from work, grab my mail off the table, walk it to my room, and *lovingly* place it in the "mail pile" on the floor in front of my dresser before crashing on my bed.

(incidentally, the mail pile sits right in front of the clean-and-folded-but-not-put-away-because-i-still-haven't-had-time-to-unpack-from-my-utah-idaho-texas-and-vegas-trips clothes pile. i am considering implementing a new no-flying-until-you-unpack-from-your-last-trip rule. but then i might never get out of this place.)

so today after church and church, i came home on a mission. my mission: to open and deal with everything in the mail pile. the clean-and-folded-but-... clothes pile would have to wait for another day.

but it was definitely time to get through that mail pile. i mean, for all i knew, my long-lost lover had written me the most beautiful, poetic, sugary, sticky love letter pen ever put to paper ... so ... obviously ... i couldn't keep him waiting any longer.

it took me about an hour, but i made it through the whole stack. the mail pile brought adventures and intrigue. behold:

3 surveys. people want my opinion! they do!

monitoring the future survey, from the university of michigan. (been filling that one out annually since high school.)
equal employment opportunity survey, from cal state northridge. (to be a part-time instructor.)
customer service survey, from my bank. (i bank online; why can't the surveys be online, too. i'd probably get to them faster that way.)

an apheresis award from the red cross. so i logged in to my account where i found out that i have donated 35 times since moving to los angeles -- 35 times! just imagine how many lives i have saved!! :P
and while i was on that roll, i went ahead and called to set up a new appointment for next week.
1 check that i have been awaiting for about a month. hmmm. maybe i shoulda gone through this stack a while ago ...
3 letters from my car dealership, congratulating me on my purchase. i feel pretty special to have received 3 letters. no, none of the letters included a get-out-of-jail-free card on the car payment. drat.
an official letter from the state board letting me know that i passed my tests! guess they didn't hear my joy. that's okay -- let's celebrate again!

and ... umm, that was it. with all that and a (large) handful of statements and credit card offers, i had dug it down to the carpet.

and there was nothing else.

no love.

no poetry.

no sugary, sticky.

what's up with that?

who even invented snail mail?

voicemail

2009-07-23T20:04:00.000-07:00

i got a message today:

"so i'm standing here, washing dishes, minding my own business ...

and flynn says,

'mom, if you would be christianna, you would have crazy hair.'

so ... apparently, good thing i'm not you."

thanks, bud.

it's here!

2009-07-21T11:18:00.001-07:00

now i just gotta figure out how to drive two cars home ... suggestions?

(more to come)

(and pictures)

sitting, waiting, wishing ...

2009-07-10T19:53:00.000-07:00

i have wanted one of these for a while ...

0 to 60 in 8.2 seconds
2.0 L
140 hp
236 lbs-ft torque
in-line 4 cylinder turbocharged clean diesel engine with common rail direct injection (tdi)

my little sister texted me one day back in april, asking if i would sell reggie to her. in the midst of recovering from busy season, her text only served to stress me out ... but, the more i thought about it, i realized that this provided the perfect excuse to do some shopping!

tdi
manual transmission
blue graphite exterior
anthracite interior (who names these colors?)
sunroof (if i can negotiate a good price)

http://www.vw.com/ is so much fun! try on different colors ... check out the rear spoiler ... add an ipod hookup ... (create a child) ...

okay. so my sister lives in utah. as such, one detail of the sale would need to address reggie's transport across 4 states. the most obvious solution was for me to drive him up there ... and since i'd be up there and car-less ... the most obvious solution to that situation would be for me to buy a new car there and drive him home. sounds pretty perfect, right?

what's even more perfect was the timing: my other little sister and family were going to be visiting in utah at the beginning of july. *aaand* some good college friends were putting together a rocking reunion over the 4^th of july weekend.

i was soon in the makings of a pretty perfect plan!

so i went about seeing what was possible. found a utah dealer. check.

now, to find a car ... well, the color i wanted, proved to cause much headache. apparently there were no blue graphite in the state of utah. so ... the utah dealer had to transport the car in from portland or vegas or somewhere. whatever, i don't really care!

we'd leave socal after work on thursday, july 2. drive up to utah. spend the weekend with friends and family. drive back to socal with my new car!

ba-da-boom. ba-da-bing!

so ... last thursday matti flew in from utah to drive up with me. she called me as soon as she landed -- super excited to be a soon-to-be-car-owner. and i was super excited for her. and for me!

about a half hour later, i got a call from the utah dealer:

"hi, christianna. the car just got in," he stated flatly. shouldn't he be excited? i was.
"great!" probably shoulda tried to hide a *little* bit of that enthusiasm.
"well, kinda ... it's an automatic."

-- wha- what?? --

"you're kidding." please be kidding ...
"um, no."

-- pause --

-- didn't include this in my calculations --

-- pause --

he continued, "so ... if you'd like to take the blue graphite automatic, it's here and ready for you. or i've got a manual in silver and red. or, i can see if i can get a manual in the blue graphite from the east coast; the shipping would just be more."
"but ... umm ... -- can i call you back in a few minutes?" too much to think about. too much.
"sure. just let me know what you want me to do."

i hung up and immediately called my mom. no answer. called again. no answer again. grr! where could she be at a time like this!!?

okay, deep breath. what to do?

i then dialed up 3 other car dealers i had spoken to previously. none of them answered. none. -- what kind of no-work-thursday vortex had i woken up in??! -- i dialed 3 car dealers. i left 3 messages.

then i called eden. she always knows what to do.

she listened to me whine. she offered advice.

the other 3 dealers started calling me back. so began the stressful day ... ...

by noon i still had no answers. i called the utah dealer back and asked him how long it would take to get the car from the east coast. he checked and it would take 7 business days. which would put the car in utah a full week *after* i was supposed to have left.

around 230 i spoke to a dealer here in california. he found 2 -- one was marked "sold", the other wouldn't be available for 3 weeks. oh, man. well, i told him to see what he could find out. at least it was something.

he finally called me back at 530. (half an hour after i was supposed to have been on the road out of town.) the one marked "sold" was actually sold. so the other one ... could be here in 3 weeks ...

so ...

3 weeks it is!

now, we wait.

(it's already been 1 week ... so ... 2 weeks left!)

but i know i have good things to look forward to. and i'm getting a better deal on this one than the utah dealer was giving me. for the exact same out-the-door price, i am getting upgraded mats and trunk liner ... and a *sunroof*. i *love* sunroofs! (err, uhh ... sunrooves?? whatever.)

7 ate 9

2009-07-08T17:39:00.000-07:00

i am in utah on vacation. heading home in the morning. i'll post stuff and pictures then ...

enjoy the anticipation.

off the face of the earth

2009-06-23T18:42:00.001-07:00

some of you probably think i fell off the face of the earth. in fact, i have been asked precisely that.

well, i am back now. it was a lovely place, but i am glad to be among the living again. i'll have to tell y'all about it sometime.

but not right now. right now i am packing up so i can watch transformers with my nephew.

tchau!

c'est fini

2009-06-22T08:43:00.000-07:00

i've had the phrase "c'est si bon" in my head for days. from the (old) yoplait commercials (they don't use that tag-line anymore, mmeh). so i wanted to write a post and call it that. but ... "c'est si bon" doesn't quite fit. "c'est fini" fits better ... because ...

... i passed all my tests!

c'est fini. it is finished.

i got my last score early on saturday morning and have been floating up in cloud ~~nine~~ ~~eleven~~ ~~fourteen~~ one hundred thirty-six since.

you know what this means? i mean, really. do you know what this means?

i get reimbursed for test fees (though, the firm only reimburses one round of tests -- about $1,000)
i am eligible to be promoted to manager (in a couple years)
my employer will stop asking me for a progress update
i get to be a cpa

but ...

most importantly ...

i don't have to take any more tests!

c'est fini. and ... *it* *is* *so* *good*!

here's the final report, for posterity's sake (need a 75 on each section to pass):

work-related injury

2009-05-20T23:11:00.000-07:00

so, i'm working, right?

computer out.

spreadsheet open.

outlook open.

sitting on my porch at the mission inn hotel in pismo beach.

for an hour or two.

working.

on the porch.

working.

think i can get worker's comp?

oh -- in case you want a better shot ... here you go ...

okay. stop laughing now.

(and yeah, this post is more than a 6 weeks delayed. don't worry: i still have the tan lines. as someone described it the other day, "it looks like you are wearing granny knee highs that are falling down a little.")

mmmm

2009-05-11T13:05:00.000-07:00

the one redeeming quality of an overly-air-conditioned office with an adequately-supplied break room is that i get to curl up with a warm cup of soup in the middle of a 90-degree day. mmmm.

stars, diamonds, and shower curtains

2009-04-28T22:12:00.000-07:00

how do you rate a hotel?

the star classification system is a common one for rating hotels. higher star ratings indicate more luxury. the aaa and their affiliated bodies use diamonds instead of stars to express hotel and restaurant ratings levels.

but what criteria do they use to rate hotels? room size? friendliness of the concierge? size of the flat screen? luxury of the sheets?

me? i use shower curtains.

more specifically, shower curtain rods.

a good hotel has a round shower curtain rod in the bathroom.

the rounder the better.

i mean, look at this:

i'm definitely gonna have round shower curtain rods in my bathrooms when i grow up. and all my house guests will herald the luxury, opulence, splendor, and bliss that it is to visit me.

they will.

paranoia

2009-04-26T13:01:00.000-07:00

sometimes i have this recurring, somewhat totally unfounded panic: that my car is being stolen at that very moment.

now, i have never had a car get stolen. i always make sure to lock the doors and set the car alarm, which not only makes an incredibly annoying sound (especially when i accidentally set it off in the middle of the night -- an all too frequent occurrence), but it disables the ignition if not deactivated properly. i live in a pretty safe neighborhood (despite the drug dealers we got arrested middle of last year because they set up shop out in front of the house -- ssshh, don't tell my mom).

but really, this stolen car panic hits me out of the blue too frequently.

and usually, i run through a pretty consistent train of thought:

"did i lock the doors?"
"i think i remember clicking the button ... and i think i remember hearing the alarm set."
"yeah, pretty sure i saw the headlights turn on."
"okay."
"well, but wait -- do i have anything valuable in there anyway?"
"computer's at the house ..."
"do i have any client files in there?"
"no, i think i took all those to the office."
"okay."
"okay."
"..."
"what about in my trunk?"
"anything valuable in there?"
"the glove box?"
"sitting in plain sight on the passenger seat??"

that's the point when i realize how ridiculously paranoid i am being. and i try to force myself to forget about it and not rush out to check.

of course, i am always quite happily relieved to walk out (run?) to the car when it's time to leave and see little reggie sitting and waiting for me. he's such a good boy.

today was one such panic.

i arrived at stake conference about 17 minutes late, found a great parking space, and hurried in, all the while attempting to text guilt trip one of my friends into coming to stake conference, to no avail. oh, well.

i found a seat next to a cute couple in my ward and settled in to listen to the talks when the panic started.

so ... here we go ...

"did i lock the doors?"
"i think i remember clicking the button ... and i think i remember hearing the alarm set."
"yeah, pretty sure i saw the headlights turn on."
"okay."
"well, but wait -- do i have anything valuable in there anyway?"
"computer's at the house ..."
"do i have any client files in there?"
"no, i think i took all those to the office."
"okay."
"okay."
"..."
"what about in my trunk?"

and that's when i remembered that i already catalogued the trunk. [*sigh* *of* *relief*!]

now, if anyone actually does steal my car, i already know what to claim on my insurance!

wait -- does insurance cover trunk contents? hmm.

well ... if not, i guess i have a shopping list for replacing all that stuff myself!

my eyes, my eyes!

2009-04-06T20:29:00.000-07:00

there are two things i put on my face with a cotton ball:

eye makeup remover	and	toner

i mixed those up this morning.

ouch.

always prepared

2009-04-05T13:07:00.000-07:00

wondering what to put in your trunk? well, as i disassemble mine in this pictorial essay, take note. have you forgotten any of this?

fuzzy jacket, pillow, and blanket -- it's a cold, cold world.

72-hour kit, toilet paper in a zip-loc, an empty grocery sack, and *2* first aid kits -- you never know what could happen on the 405.

tire pressure gauge and tire inflator -- first you check your tire pressure, then you inflate the tire. in that order.

a beach ball, a frisbee, a towel, a tank top and shorts, sunblock, and *2* bathing suits -- it's spelled c-a-l-i-f-o-r-n-i-a.

3 types of pass-along cards, copies of the Book of Mormon (spanish and english), mormon pamphlets, and a Temple bag -- you might be inspired to do something with those.

printer, hole punch, and luggage roller -- for the auditor extraordinaire.

and holes -- where there is a hole puncher ...

how'd you do?

i am sure that if the boy scouts were to have a patch for the always prepared trunk, i would win it for sure. (you win patches, right?)

stay tuned, friends, if you're lucky we may soon venture on to the treasure trove known as the glove box.

all good things ...

2009-04-02T16:38:00.000-07:00

not only was yesterday april fools day, but additionally and perhaps more importantly, yesterday marks the official end of busy season. yea! i made it through another one!

and for the record, this busy season was definitely the most stressful i have had. yet. ... maybe i shouldn't say that.

some of this year's busy season highlights:

january: make-up client in glendale. this client was not ready for us when we came as scheduled in december, so we had to push the work forward by about 3 weeks, which of course meant that we were butting right up against the start date for other clients. of course, make-up client didn't care about that and expected us to push the schedule in order to accomodate their needs. at the same time, make-up client to this date has not clearly defined the scope of our work. i am sure i will be back out there sometime this summer. yea.
february: toy manufacturer in costa mesa. this was my first out-of-town client in my public accounting career, which was fun. of course, the fact that i was staying at a hotel down the street from my client meant that there was an expectation of working early to late. but not a bad set-up otherwise. unless you want to count the fact that both of the staff i was given for this engagement had just been hired in september and this was their first busy-season client. oh, and we had a brand new manager on the job, too. so yeah. and what added to the "appeal" of this job was that it was actually work performed on an international subsidiary of a client of our hong kong office, which meant that we were answering to hong kong. kinda made communication difficult with the 15-hour time difference. but we did it.
march: make-up client in glendale for a week with still no answer to many of the open issues. but because of funding issues on their end, we pulled out of the field to await a resolution.
mexican food distributor in cypress for a week. cypress is not near my house, but not far enough to warrant a hotel stay, so take the minimum 11-hour days and tack on 2 hours of traffic in the morning and 2 more at night. the engagement team on this one, though, was fun and made the difference.
the mexican food week was also the week that i threw out my back somehow. i don't know what happened but i woke up with a bit of a sore back on friday of the week before, which i tried to manage with what was available in the medicine cabinet at the office. the next couple days i tried to just cowboy-up and deal with the pain by walking slowly, sitting straight, and throwing back an ibuprofen or two throughout the day. however, tuesday i was in agony. laying down hurt. standing up hurt. driving hurt (yes, i mean actual pain from moving my right foot from the gas pedal to the brake, which happens frequently when driving through l.a., as you can imagine). walking hurt. sitting hurt. pulling myself up from my chair using my arms hurt but was the only way to do it. i got home that night and managed to sleep somehow, though not well. wednesday morning i called my physical therapist friend and begged for some advice. he offered to see me at his office, but that would mean an early early thursday morning. i was okay with that. so thursday he stretched me and pulled me and beat me up pretty bad. but, oh my goodness, it was fabulous. he gave me some exercises to do (which i have been doing) and i was much better.
for added kicks, i decided that that thursday would be a good day to get sick. so i did that. and i have been arguing with my cold and personally financing the manufacturers of advil cold & sinus since then. i finally got some antibiotics last saturday. i am starting to feel better now.
slime manufacturer in grover beach. my second out-of-town job. i'm getting the hang of this by now and i've pretty much got my packing strategy and weekly laundry routine figured out. this job is pretty good. though the client is brand new to me, i am working with some people i know and can trust, which is great. one perk is that we get to wear jeans every single day. i *love* it. plus we are a stone's throw from the beach. and one of these days i am going to go to the beach. especially now that busy season is officially over and we can work less than 55 hours a week without repercussion. yea!

wow. march has been eventful. thank goodness it's over. thank goodness busy season is over!

what's under your bed?

2009-03-31T22:40:00.000-07:00

cleaned out under my bed the other day.

so ... would you say that i *am* or *am not* the type of person who is used to packing up and moving at a moment's notice?

resolved for the better

2009-03-30T20:33:00.000-07:00

last week, i went to the hotel gym for an hour each on monday, tuesday, *and* wednesday. then i went running in my neighborhood on saturday morning.

the week before, i went to the hotel gym for about 45 minutes each on tuesday and wednesday, then went running in my neighborhood on saturday morning.

i had oatmeal 2 or 3 times a week the past couple weeks. plus now i am doing the vegetarian day thing.

i think i am doing much better with my new year's resolutions than previously anticipated. and it feels good to be doing something good for me.

upward and onward, friends. upward and onward.

look how they grow!

2009-03-28T14:08:00.000-07:00

i mostly took this picture so my mom could see how long my fingernails are. but i figured that all of you would want to see, too. i mean, why wouldn't you?

see, mom? i can let them grow ...

this is what happens when i am working out of town so i can't have weekly harp lessons (which require short nails). plus, i guess i haven't been stressed enough to chomp them off. though ... looking back at how this busy season went ... not sure how i can claim to not have been stressed ...

i didn't really even recognize how long they were getting until my sister commented on them last weekend. yeah.

okay. now i am going to go cut them.

they clack on my keyboard keys.

that gets annoying after a while.

vegetariano por un día

2009-03-27T21:16:00.000-07:00

my sister called me on tuesday with the latest and greatest fad diet for me to try for my cholesterol woes:

vegetarian for one day a week

so here's how the gig goes:

choose one day a week to eat no meat.

okay, maybe i didn't really need to explain that, but ... i did ... live with it.

anyway, so i thought i could give it a try in order to add some structure to my resolution número uno.

being that it was tuesday afternoon that my sister called and told me, the week was about half over before i even knew about my resolution. but because i wanted to get a jump-start on this, i planned for a wednesday vegetarian day. but then the client had brought in yummy mexican food with chicken and steak burritos for lunch. so wednesday was out.

thursday was the next option. and i did really well through all of breakfast and most of the morning. then my co-worker suggested that we sushi it that night and run the charge through. well, can't go to sushi and eat vegetarian. it would be a waste. so ... thursday was out.

and today is friday. gotta do it today. because a vegetarian weekend certainly spells n-o f-u-n. it really does. i looked it up. anyway, i was delighted when my co-worker suggested that we work through lunch and take off early. that meant that i could spend the day un-tempted by restaurant menus and un-influenced by what others are eating. plus, i am way better at maintaining some food self control when i am not eating with others. (don't know why. hmmm. that might be fodder for another self-analysis blog post.)

so today my diet consisted of oatmeal, eggs, hash browns, and o.j. for breakfast. then yogurt with granola, edamame, and (of course) chocolate through the noon hour and the afternoon. i got home from san luis obispo around 9 and i had a grilled cheese sandwich. (on wheat! woot!)

look at that! i did it! a vegetarian for one day!

here's to a great start. check back for updates. y'know, if this is the sort of thing that interests you. yeah.

quotable 2008

2009-03-15T12:44:00.000-07:00

okay, following the precedent started last year ... only a little delayed this year ...

these are quotes i have been collecting this year ... some i've seen on friends' blogs (thanks); others i've just run into. enjoy! if you have one to add, let me know.

"wheresoever you go, go with all your heart." -- confucius
"never let your failures go to your heart, or your successes go to your head." -- anon.
"a wise man learns by the mistakes of others; a fool by his own." -- latin proverb
"to keep your marriage brimming with love from the loving cup, whenever you're wrong, admit it. whenever you're right, shut up." -- ogden nash
"being in a relationship is like eating ice cream with chop sticks: you're not sure why you're doing it, but you wish everyone would just leave you alone about it." -- unknown
"life is best enjoyed when time periods are evenly divided between labour, sleep, and recreation... all people should spend one-third of their time in recreation which is rebuilding, voluntary activity -- never idleness." --pres. brigham young
"whenever i'm about to do something, i think, 'would an idiot do that?' and if they would, then i do not do that thing." -- dwight schrute
"a government big enough to give you everything you want is strong enough to take everything you have." -- thomas jefferson
"it's better to be on the ground wishing you were in the air, than in the air wishing you were on the ground." -- interesting nasa guy on the airplane, (explaining the benefits of flight delays)

resolutions, v. 2009

2009-03-14T20:52:00.000-07:00

so it's the middle of march. shoot me.

i can still make resolutions.

yeah, huh!

okay, so this year, i would first like to announce my great success related to my prior year resolutions. whereas my cholesterol did not go down as much as i had hoped ... i successfully complied with my resolution for one year.

i deserve a pat on the back.

*pat*, *pat*, *pat*

okay, and now on to the main event:

this year's resolutions!

red meat and cholesterol - i think i started a theme last year. so we'll see about continuing in that great cause. however, i will not limit my red meat intake to weekends only anymore. because ... well ... just because. so ... this year, i am eating red meat whenever i choose, though not as much as i did in the pre-2008 years. if my resolution last year had any impact on me at all (besides 4 points lower cholesterol, thank you), it has broken my addiction to red meat. don't get me wrong: i still love the stuff. but it is no longer the only thing i eat.
i am trying to work oatmeal into my diet as a combatant to high cholesterol. i freely admit that this resolution this year is not as well-thought-out and thoroughly defined as last year's. but ... it's busy season. i hardly have time to think about anything. but here's the general idea: eat oatmeal. yeah.
(if anyone has suggestions for helping me get this goal into action, let me know. keep in mind that i don't have time for breakfast, so oatmeal will be an evening meal. hmm: oatmeal ... evening meal. interesting.)
exercise - there was a month a while ago that i went jogging / running 3 times a week. really. i calendared it -- yeah -- i can show you. so ... i think i'm going to do that again. jogging / running 3 times a week. it was easier when i had a buddy, but yeah. no more excuses.
until busy season is over, i can't promise anything more than maybe 15 minutes at a time, but that's something at least. when summer gets here, we'll talk about maybe stepping that up a notch.
spiritual - my stake relief society released a new program called the personal righteousness program in which we make goals around 7 different values and the complete a 15-hour project. it's kind of like the personal progress program in young women.
as of this moment, i have read through the suggested goals for exactly 1 of those values. i'll remedy that. and then i will do those goals. (if anyone wants more detailed information about the program, let me know. i have a pdf of the whole thing i can send you.)

okay, i think that is all the burden i can pile on my own shoulders right now. i am getting a bit overwhelmed just re-reading all that. [deep breath] just gotta remember that i have the rest of the year to work on these things. yeah.

anyway. there you go. someone once said that a goal not written down is just a wish. so these are my goals: they are written down.

d-i-y car repair?

2009-03-06T11:08:00.000-08:00

reggie sounds like an orca whale ... again.

i think it was november that i took him in for a check-up and my mechanic fixed him up real pretty, even changed the power steering fluid tubing because it had a leak.

about a month later, he started squealing at me on cold mornings whenever i turned the wheel. so, after text-consulting a car guru friend, i took him back to the shop. my mechanic tightened the belts and added a super-powered-additive-juice-something to the power steering fluid. pronto! reggie stopped complaining.

until a couple weeks ago. the orca whale is back.

(oh -- i don't actually know what an orca whale sounds like, as opposed to a regular whale, but i presume it says something like "ooorr-caaaaa", which is what reggie says, too, so ... there you go.)

i texted my car guru friend again. he says it might be expensive to fix. so i was thinking of trying to fix it myself. because, y'know, i *am* a fan of do-it-yourselfing it in general -- i mean, if you *can* do it, why not? besides, i figure learning how to fix cars is a good thing.

which is, i am sure, what the owner of this vehicle thought:

see the funniez? yeah, i captured that perfect shot that on the way home a few months ago. heh.

a sign

2009-02-20T22:12:00.000-08:00

last night i did not sleep well.

last night i woke up 17 times. okay, maybe not *17*, per se, but many times. and i like the number 17. so there you go.

after an ridiculously exquisitely deep-fried monte cristo at jerry's famous deli in costa mesa, ca, i returned to my hotel room and turned on the tube. on the night before the last day of fieldwork, it seemed like the appropriate thing to do. that was at 10 o'clock.

i fell asleep somewhere around 10:30, if i made it that far.

then for some reason, i was looking at the clock again at 11:43. weird. if you know one thing about me, you know that i sleep well. i am a good sleeper: i fall asleep quickly; i stay asleep. it's kinda my thing. (not exactly a "thing" i can put on my resume ... but my thing nonetheless.)

so waking up only an hour after zonking out was kinda weird.

mmeh, didn't think too much about it ... because i was back to sleep before the clock turned to 11:44.

but, boy, was i restless. i actually remember being asleep and thinking "i'm restless. this is weird." my eyes fluttered open several times over the next couple hours, but i insisted on being asleep.

trying to get past the restlessness, i thought it best to start dreaming. let's see ... what to dream about ... ? summer? maybe. boys? maybe. chocolate. hmmm. that could work ... i sweetly drifted off to a luscious land of flowing chocolate rivers and strawberrys 'a plenty.

at 2:14 i came screeching into consciousness. with a heavy breath and a racing heart, my mind was swimming with spreadsheets; the remnant glare of a computer screen lingered in my semi-conscious mind.

was i ... no ... ... wa- was i ... dreaming about ... work??

no ... couldn't be.

... could it?

as i thought more about it, i started to piece together some of the storyline. i was at my computer. okay. what was i doing? a spreadsheet. yes, i was looking at a spreadsheet. hmm. okay. i, umm, like spreadsheets. okay, no biggie. but what's going on? i looked more closely at the spreadsheet. numbers. some words. hmm. okay. so ... what's the big deal?

i clicked on cell A43, but suddenly my mouse wouldn't respond. excel didn't quite seem to be feeling well. i tried clicking cell E40: nothing. i couldn't click on any cells? umm ... what about the arrows? nope, those buttons didn't work, either. scroll? uh uh. oh no ... switch to something else, let's come back to it: Alt + Tab wasn't working. Ctrl + Alt + Del did nothing! what is going on!? click click, click click!

and *then* ... and *then*! ...

... *then* the spreadsheet started scrolling autonomously. first down about 2,000 rows, then it started scrolling right *and* down. what was it doing? where was it taking me?! i tried to click out of it. i tried Alt + Tab again and *nothing*! arrows? no. Ctrl + Home? okay, that takes me back up to the top left ... the scrolling paused ... maybe it's okay? maybe? ... *nope!* we are headed southeast again! stop! stop stop!! click! arrow! Alt + Tab! stop!! please stop!

and that, friends, is when i opened my eyes to see 2:14 become 2:15.

as my breathing began to slow, i could feel my heart jump back out of my throat. [sigh]. okay. it was just a dream. it was just a dream.

...

i submit that this *could* be a sign that it is *possible* that i am working too much.

google accident

2009-01-22T06:23:00.000-08:00

what was shiny and new but a short 2 months ago ...

is no longer ...

... shiny and new, that is ...

(note: artist's rendering, in order to show detail.)

i had a google accident today. my google phone now has a google crack in the google screen. i google dropped it while google crossing the street to go to google lunch yesterday.

*cry*

*google cry*

evidence

2008-12-18T19:36:00.000-08:00

i mentioned previously that my favourite shows of late include csi and house. probably most of the appeal of these shows to me is watching the characters figure out a problem based on evidence collected. (well, that ... and i have a secret really-mean-doctor-crush on hugh laurie. sshh -- don't tell.)

yesterday something happened after work. see if you can figure it out based on this evidence ...

my elbow:

my pants:

and here's my leg:

any guesses about what happened?

... ...

the weather in socal has been kinda crazy lately, like in many other places this year (hello -- 10 inches of snow in seattle in a single day?). it was actually 39° here yesterday morning. but because i have been living in utah for a number of years recently, of course i didn't grab my coat. i mean, c'mon: this is california. no one from utah needs a coat here.

yeah, i decided that *before* freezing cold rain started falling. great. oh, well.

after work, i made my way to my car with my computer bag on one shoulder and an armload of papers in the other arm. i tried to appear non-chalant and completely comfortable in the sheeting, half-frozen rain. after crossing the unusually busy street to get to the parking lot, i said hello to the only other person out in this weather, as i stepped off the curb onto the asphalt.

just then my ankle wobbled a little, but i caught myself. phew!

with a nervous smile in the general direction of my cold compatriot, i snickered a little to myself as i imagined the carnage and destruction that would have ensued were i not so coordinated. and cool. yeah, i'm cool.

anyway, unfortunately, at that precise moment, a gust of biting cold wind came howling from the north.

my overly arrogant attitude and underly stable stance came into direct conflict in my war against the wind. it was a losing battle. time slowed and i watched helplessly as the ground got closer and closer. soon i was laying on my left side in a polluted parking lot puddle.

i thought i was cold before. it was much colder sitting in water. (as a side note: my grandmother has a sign hanging above her toilet that reads: "if we were meant to sit in cold water, we would have been born with webbed feet." heh.) well, since i don't have webbed feet, i didn't sit there long. standing up was a bit tricky with my inconvenient cargo, but i did it.

as i made the rest of the way to the car, i couldn't contain my laughter. oh, the irony: the very fate that i had but moments earlier presumed to have narrowly avoided became a very cold reality. literally.

how come no one i know is around when i do stupid stuff like this? it's much more fun to laugh with someone else.

anyway ... that's the story. is that pretty much what you thought, having looked at the evidence?

the results are in (again)

2008-12-14T07:11:00.000-08:00

last year, i set a goal to limit the amount of red meat i was eating in order to decrease my cholesterol. it's been difficult and i have whined a lot, as you may recall, and i have had to really expand my ... umm ... horizons ... ? (something. can't think right now.)

anyway. i got my lab results back today. here are the highlights:

	PY (2007)	CY (2008)
triglycerides	97 mg/dL	82 mg/dL
cholesterol, total	215 mg/dL	211 mg/dL	(should be less than 200)
- hdl cholesterol	60 mg/dL	58 mg/dL
- ldl cholesterol	136 mg/dL	137 mg/dL	(should be less than 130)
glucose	80 mg/dL	83 mg/dL
sodium	138 mmol/L	138 mmol/L
potassium	4.0 mmol/L	4.3 mmol/L
white blood cell count	5.9 thousand/uL	5.7 thousand/uL
red blood cell count	4.91 million/uL	4.71 million/uL
hemoglobin	13.0 g/dL	13.4 g/dL
hematocrit	38.4 %	39.0 %
platelet count	283 thousand/uL	308 thousand/uL

okay. so ... my cholesterol is still a high. grr. it went down 4 points. woohoo. but ... honestly, i kinda expected more. i mean, i cut my red meat consumption by roughly 73%. so ... yeah, i kinda expected more. [sigh.]

so now what? as i see it, there are a few options:

continue the red-meat-on-weekends-only regime.
amend the rules such that i can have red meat on any 2 days of the week. i mean, c'mon, it went down 4 points: that deserves some kind of reward.
eat oatmeal everyday (or on some regular schedule) to fight this with a little proactivity instead of just restraint.
give up entirely and eat red meat whenever i darnwell please since it's not making any difference anyway.

anyone care to vote? c'mon, we all did it a month ago ... let's exercise our right to vote again!!

one redeeming quality

2008-12-05T11:00:00.000-08:00

tonight was the relief society Christmas dinner at the ward building. i love my relief society. i go to a family ward and so there are sisters there from every walk of life ... and they are so much fun!! i love it. so tonight was a great opportunity to see all of them outside of the sunday church atmosphere and enjoy some delicious homemade soup and salad.

when i noted the menu, i will admit that i was a little disappointed. despite the myriad of amazing-looking soups -- from clam chowder to turkey bisque, from chicken chili to homemade dumplings, it was a splendid spread -- i wasn't very excited to dig in. (isn't that horrible for me to admit?)

you see, as i previously explained: i don't really like spoons. i think they are ugly and i think they as not nearly as useful as a fork.

however, the chicken tortilla soup that one of the sisters prepared tonight made the use of a spoon not only necessary and forgivable, but totally and completely encouraged. seriously.

there you have it, friends. the spoon's one redeeming quality: chicken tortilla soup. amen.

the emerald city

2008-12-01T22:36:00.000-08:00

one of my favorite people followed suit with so many others in my life ... and moved to seattle. i like to think that they are all just making the exodus with the intent to prepare that promised land for me. i'll end up there someday, mind you: just you wait. just you wait, henry higgins. (sorry, that sentence was just asking for it.)

in celebration of his outset to a new life and to to help him make the transition, i joined a team of 2 others in taking on the task of picking up matt's whole life and transplanting it to the emerald city.

aside from the almost unbearable, all-in-one-day, 18-hour car-ride, it was a fabulous trip to my previously-declared favorite-city-in-the-whole-world-that-i-have-never-lived-in. (think that's a long title? just imagine having to fit that on an 8½-x-11 ivory certificate. not an easy thing to do, my friends.) (oh, and please note that the car-ride is herein described as "almost unbearable" simply for its length: sitting in a car for that long should be legally, ethically, morally, and chocolately wrong. the adventure and the company was quite pleasant otherwise.)

(i don't think i have ever used so many hyphenates in one post before. nor so many parentheses. this is quite a monumental post!)

after dragging the dregs of matt's stuff to the cars, we scooted out of santa monica at the butt crack of dawn on friday morning, august 29. being so early in the morning, this meant, of course ... no makeup for me:

mattso didn't wear any, either.

the road trip was filled with adventures and sights such as these:

now, i'd imagine that there aren't a few of you guys out there who are feeling a bit left out at this point, but don't worry: it wasn't anything you can't recreate. all you need is a vw golf crammed full of stuff, a location that is 18 hours away, and a dave. gotta have a dave.

we got to seattle around 2 am and crashed (on our beds).

saturday started too early. but saturday started with a bang. dave showed me the most amazing stuff: debacterol. it's awesome. it cures canker sores. all you do is put the sulfuric acid on your tongue (or wherever the canker sore is) for 10 seconds, it burns like a race horse, and then your canker sore is just a bit of dead skin you wait to fall off. (kinda gross, i know. sorry.) as you can see from the picture, it wasn't as bad as it sounds.

after such excitement so early in the morning, i suppose you wouldn't expect much else in the day ... but ... then we rounded up the troops and headed to ... bumbershoot!! oh, my heavens, what an amazing time was had. after waiting in a 4,000-mile-long line, we got into the gates around 11, i think. my old friend brad met up with us for most of the day (hi, brad!). we walked all over the place seeing everything that was there and making plans for what we just had to see before the day was through. after some discussion, we decided on a game plan of (1) eat bratwurst and french fries, (2) wander around for a couple hours, (3) watch modern dancers in the water fountain, (4) watch part of lucinda williams, (5) watch band of horses, (6) get high from second-hand smoke while waiting to watch beck, (7) watch beck, and (8) tucker out and go home.

sunday was a day of rest. as it should be. kinda. church started at 9, where we met many cool people! then we went on a beautiful drive and a bit of a hike up near (in?) issaquah. the weather was a bit damp, of course, which makes everything so green and beautiful so it's okay. here's the group in front of lake sammamish ("yeah, i'd say that lake is pretty sammamish."):

while there, matt taught us about the life cycle of salmon. we learned a lot, and, having been thus educated, we were ready to go to the university. and so we did. we drove out to university of washington to walk around a bit. last year when i was there, the cherry trees were in bloom and it was just absolutely gorgeous. this year, the ducks were in bloom -- this meant more poop than cherry blossoms. not quite *as* gorgeous, but not bad, no. i was able to do about 17 cartwheels in the quad and didn't get any duck poop on my hands.

from the university, we went to a ward-member's house and had all kinds of yummy desserts at a "dessert potluck" in which the hostess prepared all the desserts, (don't really think that qualifies as a "potluck", at least where i'm from, but ... it's seattle -- who knows?), after which we headed to st. mark's cathedral to hear the episcopaleon monks perform gregorian chanting. that was an *amazing* experience.

monday was officially dubbed "moving day": early in the morning, we drove matt's stuffed car to his new place to unload ... 2,374 armloads from car to apartment later ... all of his earthly belongings were safely stashed in his new seattle station.

from there, we had to officially re-seattle-ize mattso with the purchase of ... dun, dun, dun ... a northface fleece from rei! oh, behold the re-seattle-ization (okay, now say that quickly 4 times and note the excitement on mattso's face.):

being now appropriately equipped, we headed out on an even greater adventure! after a deep fried seafood lunch at ivar's, we drove down to the water and to take a ferry over to [ insert name of island here ] island. we didn't have to wait too long before the ferry arrived and we boarded. i love ferries. i love being on the water. i love standing at the front of the boat and getting almost blown away and then standing at the back of the boat and feeling the calm ... ... love it. i think they should put more in l.a. -- ferries, that is -- not fairies. heh.

after arriving on the island, we started driving. and we drove and drove and drove. it was *bea-u-tiful*! we drove up to deception pass and had to take a hike: it was sunset and it was awesome.

after hiking down to the water and back up again. we drove to the top of [ insert name of island here ] island and to another ferry pier to wait for the next ferry. i love ferries. i think they should put more in l.a. -- oh, wait -- we already did that joke ...

umm, tuesday morning found us atop of the space needle. well ... tuesday mid-morning found us there: we were on vacation, afterall. but it was lovely. the city is beautiful from up there. and it's just so cool to be 605 feet up! cell phone reception was surprisingly really good at that height.

after returning to sea level, we checked out some other tourist staples in this fair sea city. such as ...


i love this waterfall tunnel.	there's a pig in pike place market!	look who we found.

we capped off the day with yummy pizza with new friends. pretty good day, i'd say ...

wednesday morning we went to japan:

and then china:

and then we had lunch in seattle's international district (aka, "chinatown") at the uwajimaya village. that was not bad chinese. (while in china, i also found a chinese grocery store that had colored tapioca. little pink, green, and yellow tapioca balls. so cool! and even more fun to eat than the boring white stuff!)

our fearsome foursome split ways shortly after lunch. dave and nastia got back in the golf and started south. mattso and i had a couple more small adventures in seattle before i flew to utah the next morning: we went to gas works park and spent some time in the sunshine, then we went home furnishings shopping at target ... which was sorely needed for his otherwise barren abode.

farewell, seattle! i'll miss you dearly! --

err, uhh --
i mean ...

farewell, mattso! i'll miss you dearly!

gone are the days

2008-11-23T16:09:00.000-08:00

i like my new haircut, i do. but i have to say that this has been a transition.

gone are the days of ...	and in this new day ...

get out of the shower and go. (so what if that's what it looks like i did ... that is what i did.)	blowdry. everyday.
flat iron on my bangs: pronto.	curling iron burns on my neck, ears, face, and fingers. (don't really know what my problem is.)
up, down, half-up, bun, half-bun, braid, knot, low knot, high knot, chignon, ponytail, curly, messy, wavy, straight.	part left, part right.
100 strokes of the brush before bed.	haven't picked up a brush in weeks. (okay, not really.)
rubberbands, sticks, claws, bobby pins, clips in my purse.	more room for chocolate in my purse.
wind blowing long beautiful blonde locks in my face.	wind blowing long beautiful blonde locks in the face of a cancer patient.

okay, that last one makes it worth it.

...
alright, and the more-room-for-chocolate-in-my-purse thing, too.
...

(oh, honestly. i'm such a whiner. you'd think i've never had short hair before in my life. sheesh, christianna.)

half-way

2008-11-19T14:02:00.000-08:00

two down (again):

two to go (again):

creative work

2008-11-17T14:09:00.000-08:00

my little sister inge and i made some stuff:

hers took 9 months. mine took about a year and a half ...

... obviously, mine was a *little* more complicated.

love and marriage

2008-11-11T22:28:00.000-08:00

(i've debated with myself about whether or not i should post this here, primarily because i don't want to propogate a political debate on my blog, but i feel strongly enough about the issue and want to get some knowledge and thoughts out there. if you'd rather not read this, that's fine. yes, it's about prop 8.)

i read an article today that expressed well a few ideas that i have had rolling around in my head. whereas this article doesn't articulate everything rolling around in my head, the author explains clearly a few key points. here are some excerpts from the article:

"The debate over whether the state ought to recognize gay marriages has thus far focused on the issue as one of civil rights. Such a treatment is erroneous because state recognition of marriage is not a universal right. States regulate marriage in many ways besides denying men the right to marry men, and women the right to marry women. Roughly half of all states prohibit first cousins from marrying, and all prohibit marriage of closer blood relatives, even if the individuals being married are sterile. In all states, it is illegal to attempt to marry more than one person, or even to pass off more than one person as one’s spouse. Some states restrict the marriage of people suffering from syphilis or other venereal diseases. Homosexuals, therefore, are not the only people to be denied the right to marry the person of their choosing.
"I do not claim that all of these other types of couples restricted from marrying are equivalent to homosexual couples. I only bring them up to illustrate that marriage is heavily regulated, and for good reason. When a state recognizes a marriage, it bestows upon the couple certain benefits which are costly to both the state and other individuals. Collecting a deceased spouse’s social security, claiming an extra tax exemption for a spouse, and having the right to be covered under a spouse’s health insurance policy are just a few examples of the costly benefits associated with marriage. In a sense, a married couple receives a subsidy ...
"Some argue that homosexual marriages serve a state interest because they enable gays to live in committed relationships. However, there is nothing stopping homosexuals from living in such relationships today. Advocates of gay marriage claim gay couples need marriage in order to have hospital visitation and inheritance rights, but they can easily obtain these rights by writing a living will and having each partner designate the other as trustee and heir. There is nothing stopping gay couples from signing a joint lease or owning a house jointly, as many single straight people do with roommates. The only benefits of marriage from which homosexual couples are restricted are those that are costly to the state and society ...
"The biggest danger homosexual civil marriage presents is the enshrining into law the notion that sexual love, regardless of its fecundity, is the sole criterion for marriage. If the state must recognize a marriage of two men simply because they love one another, upon what basis can it deny marital recognition to a group of two men and three women, for example, or a sterile brother and sister who claim to love each other? Homosexual activists protest that they only want all couples treated equally. But why is sexual love between two people more worthy of state sanction than love between three, or five? When the purpose of marriage is procreation, the answer is obvious. If sexual love becomes the primary purpose, the restriction of marriage to couples loses its logical basis, leading to marital chaos."

i think we forget in all of this hype that is currently taking over my tv and my city that marriage is not a civil right and was never purported to be. love whomever you choose: there is no legal restriction on that. but align yourself to the notion that the definition of marriage does not encompass all love relationships.

grammar

2008-11-10T11:34:00.000-08:00

does anything about this sentence bother you?

"Back problems are one of the commonest reasons for time off
work and early retirement due to disability in the USA."

that grammatical gem was included in a health & well-being report from blue cross blue shield of illinois.

makes me wonder which is commoner: back problems or grammar problems.

... okay, i just looked on dictionary.com. when did "commonest" become a real word? and who didn't tell me?

oh, honestly ...

2008-11-06T19:20:00.001-08:00

i just got the following email message from my stake:

"Due to protesters, the Los Angeles Temple was closed this evening.
They ask that before coming in tomorrow you call first to see if they will be open."

that's disappointing.

on the news last night, they showed the marches that were happening in santa monica/hollywood until late in the evening.

i read that there have already been lawsuits brought with the primary premise being that this matter was fundamental enough to require not only a constitutional amendment but a constitutional revision and that such action requires a 2/3 passage in the state congress before it can be brought for a popular vote. we'll see what comes of that.

we live in a country where we are free to do so many things, including vote. and yet there are those who would wish to take that vote away when its results oppose their point of view.

those who are requesting tolerance, do not tolerate. those who speak of rights, do not recognize the rights of others.

i have mixed feelings.

part of me has a knee-jerk reaction that they are just being poor losers. at the same time, i don't imagine that they are feeling very differently than others who are refused something that is so important to them. i am disappointed, however, that they do not behave with the respect that they themselves desire.

feel that fire - dierks bentley

2008-11-01T17:41:00.000-07:00

she wants her nails painted black
she wants the toy in the crackerjack
she wants to ride the bull at the rodeo

she wants to wear my shirt to bed
she wants to make every stray a pet
'n drive around in my truck with no place to go

[chorus:]
but she needs to feel that fire
the one that lets her know for sure
she's everything i want and more
a real desire, and to know i'd walk alone out on the wire
to make her feel that fire

she wants a cabin in the woods
she wants to stand where nobody stood
and someday she wants a couple kids of her own
she wants to make love on a train
and somedays she only wants a break
hey, she wants what she wants, but man i know, i know, i know

[chorus:]
she needs to feel that fire
the one that lets her know for sure
she's everything i want and more
a real desire, and to know i'd walk alone out on the wire
to make her feel that fire
yeah, feel that fire

so as long as there's a breath to take
a smile to share, a prayer to pray
a chance to hold her hand to fan the flame

[chorus:]
she's gonna feel that fire
the one that lets her know for sure
she's everything i want and more
a real desire, and to know i'd walk alone out on the wire
to make her feel that fire
ohh, feel that fire

she wants her nails painted black
she wants the toy in the crackerjack
she wants to ride the bull at the rodeo

disappointment

2008-10-29T10:39:00.000-07:00

as required by california state law, i went to a 2-hour sexual harassment training yesterday.

turns out it was sexual harassment awareness and prevention.

what a disappointment.

electoral

2008-10-28T09:38:00.000-07:00

*this* is why my vote won't matter in this presidential election:

(this map was put together by liz green for her blog post, "looking for the magic number 270? turn your eyes to the state polls" for yahoo news.)

as many of us may not remember, the presidency is not decided by popular vote. it's decided by the electoral college. we vote on nov-4; they vote on dec-15 this year. the candidate who gets a majority of the electoral college votes wins, so we really only need to be concerned with what collection of states a candidate can put together to get to 270 (a simple majority; there are 538 total electoral college votes divvied up among the states as shown above).

which then just becomes a math game ...

(i know, "math" and "game" aren't usually used together in a sentence, and certainly don't usually denote anything fun ... but stick with me here.)

okay. come tuesday, i won't actually be voting for obama or mccain, i will be voting for my state's electors. california has 55 electors in the electoral college, the most of any state.

according to wikipedia, "electors are technically free to vote for anyone eligible to be president, but in practice pledge to vote for specific candidates and voters cast ballots for favored presidential and vice presidential candidates by voting for correspondingly pledged electors. ... the ticket that receives the most votes statewide 'wins' all of the votes cast by electors from that state."

what does that mean? except for in two states in the union, each state's electors are all or nothing. which means that whichever ticket wins a majority of the popular vote in the state, wins all of that state's electoral votes. so ... whichever ticket wins a majority of the popular vote in california, wins all 55 electoral votes. as few as 50% of the california population plus 1 person can vote blue and all 55 of my state's electoral votes go blue. hmmm.

which is why my state has usually been blue and will probably be blue for the foreseeable future. the same is true of states like utah (whose 5 votes almost always go red), texas (whose 34 votes also usually go red), and new york (whose 31 votes usually go blue).

as you can see, unless you live in one of the "swing states" (which are denoted as grey in the map above, and this year they are colorado, florida, indiana, missouri, nevada, new mexico, north carolina, ohio, pennsylvania, virginia, and new hampshire), the decision is generally already made for you. i hope you swing staters realize this and get out and vote; make your voice heard.

my intention is not to encourage a lack of participation in our country's election, nor an indifference or sense of disempowerment. i am frustrated with the way the system works. i can believe that when the electoral college was set up, it was necessary in order to conduct an efficient and effective election that provided for the interests of both the individual citizen and the states. i don't believe we need it now. i believe that we do not so much define ourselves as citizens of states, but as citizens of this country. i believe that the electoral college represents better the voices of states over the voices of individual citizens because i believe the system as it is now blocks my voice from being heard at all.

...

and i know that unless obama, mccain, and all the 538 members of the senate and the house of representatives read my blog and think i actually know something of which i speak, none of this ranting will matter. but i just can't hold it in any longer!

don't think less of me.

please note that, yes, i am going to vote. despite all these frustrations, i believe that we should vote. i have already received my absentee ballot, which i am going to mail in tomorrow. as my mom always says, "if you don't vote, you don't have room to complain". and i like to complain! ha!

(ps -- if anyone has input or enlightenment to share with me as the necessity of the electoral college and the purpose for its existence in our nation today, i would really like to discuss. really.)

yes

2008-10-27T10:18:00.000-07:00

in case anyone is looking for some info online about prop 8 here in california, here's a collection of vidoes and stuff i just got in an email. with the upcoming election, i thought i'd get this out there for anyone interested ...

yes on 8 youtube videos

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vI-GjWY-WlA -- this is one of the best: proposition 8 in plain english (especially good for kids... and adults)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kKn5LNhNto -- 1st ad from protectmarriage.com (gavin newsom)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PgjcgqFYP4 -- 2nd ad from protectmarriage.com (i can marry a princess)
https://www.icontribute.us/protectmarriage/initiative/schools-web -- 3rd ad from protectmarriage.com (it's all about schools)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2JOe04h1pI -- ad showing the slippery slope of how marriage becoming everything to everyone will make marriage nothing to anyone
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ko2-EQss0V4 -- party a & party b spoof ad
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1815820715?bctid=1822459319
-- frc mini documentary on the parkers in massachusetts
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1352578267?bctid=1784553601
-- frc on black race vs. sexual preference
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1352578267?bctid=1784521903
-- frc parkers and wirthlin on massachusetts gay education
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1352578267?bctid=1749436976
-- frc about the importance of voting
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puI4pfRB0w0 -- parkers in massachusetts
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xx-glEL5SHE -- uk warns us "don't follow our lead"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDwIy3mT1Po -- vote "yes to proposition 8" (same sex marriage) / part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXjrULY3RMw -- vote "yes to proposition 8" (same sex marriage) / part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsiZ3crfXXc -- vote "yes to proposition 8" (same sex marriage) / part 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeUJd4y87iU -- support prop 8 - newt gingrich on judicial tyranny
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjC4lQ90Sas -- governor romney on gay marriage
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8EwbEh8EKo -- catholic bishop speaks in support of prop 102 (arizona)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_V76Gbrpys -- tom minnery of focus on the family introduces glenn stanton
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZk5lew9vMA -- glenn stanton preface to his 10 questions and talks about how to engage this issue
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sL2MJ6hah-I -- glenn stanton question 1: how will my same-sex marriage hurt your marriage?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p81mkYOtJMU -- glenn stanton question 2: is same-sex marriage like interracial marriage?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZEL0f2yuqLo -- glenn stanton question 3: where does it stop?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dF6w2ILsyUA -- glenn stanton question 4: can't we have religious marriage and civil marriage?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9cYmAGbREA -- glenn stanton question 5: what public good does marriage provide?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5QYnJwQttQ -- glenn stanton question 6: is it healthy to experiment with children?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8P3x0UsTNQ -- glenn stanton question 7: haven't experts said same-sex parenting is fine?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tx3IqxKFCp4 -- glenn stanton question 8: how do we know what kind of families kids need?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDOJdIQbGIE -- glenn stanton question 9: are the needs of kids or adults more important?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YmONdhwXCg -- glenn stanton question 10: does gender really matter?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiX5APGCroU -- young adult video shown during prop 8 fireside with elders ballard, cook & clayton
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewXaVmfOj2w -- elder nelson on marriage
http://www.preservingmarriage.org/videos.html -- lds church's multi-media site on prop 8. this has lots of really good videos from church members
http://www.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/media/mediaplayer.swf?media=http://broadcast.lds.org/newsroom/video/flv/California_Broadcast_8Oct08.flv&type=FLV -- excerpts from the proposition 8 broadcast for california latter-day saints, october 8, 2008

websites

- http://www.blogger.com/www.ProtectMarriage.com
- http://www.blogger.com/www.Focusonsocialissues.org
- http://www.blogger.com/www.JohnRankin.org
- http://www.blogger.com/www.Standformarriage.com

the price of gas

2008-10-26T13:55:00.001-07:00

when i left for chicago on oct-12 (2 weeks ago, today), the price of gas at my nearby shell was $3.37. on the way home from church today, i saw this:

yes, friends, we have broken $3 in california. the good way. that's a decrease of 38 cents in 2 weeks. yea! that's more than an 11% decrease! in 2 weeks! annualize that and you get ... well, something only an accountant should know ... so i won't subject all y'all to it. just know that it's really good, okay?

what's the price of gas in your neck of the woods?

baby daddy

2008-10-22T18:24:00.000-07:00

volkswagen is brilliant. as part of the marketing plan that was launched for the new routan, they have made available to the masses a very valuable tool that allows us to see into the future. no longer do we need to wonder what future children will look like. we can find out ahead of time. with vw's help ...

all you need to do is upload a picture of mom and a picture of dad. press a few buttons and -- pronto! -- insta-super-powers! you can look into the future!

after first hearing about this from a friend of mine, i wanted to help those near and dear to me, so i ran a few for some loved ones ...

eden & clint, your child due in january:
inge & jared, after dodidley gets a little bigger, he's gonna wanna be a big brother to this lil tike:
(hmm ... apparently this one is going to spend a lot of time out in the texas sun.)

after forwarding the above results to eden, she suggested that i use this see-into-the-future tool to my benefit. she suggested that i use multiple possible routan daddies to then be able to see which one would give me the best looking baby. then i can go after that guy ... which is a *perfect plan*!

and now i am asking for your help. i have "made babies" with several young men using this amazing vw technology. what i need from you is to help determine which of these is cutest and should thereby be my baby daddy. please leave me a comment and let me know which routan baby is cutest. i've withheld the daddies names so as not to sway your votes.

number 1: number 2:

number 3: number 4:

number 5: number 6:

number 7: number 8:

and thank you ahead of time: you will be helping future generations.

square one

2008-10-20T15:26:00.000-07:00

i was ambitious when i first got hired here at grant thornton. within my first 3 weeks, i signed up for and paid the fees for all 4 sections of the cpa exam. and started taking them. my strategy: start with the easiest one first and work my way toward the hardest.

perhaps not the best strategy:

i passed BEC (economics, IT, and hodge-podge of leftovers), AUD (audit & attestation), and FAR (financial accounting) straight out of the gate.
REG (taxation) killed me again and again. and again. and again. ... and again. (please remember that, any of you that are thinking of asking me to help with your taxes this coming spring.)

and so this is where i stand:

back at square one. a clean slate. as if i haven't done anything yet. poised behind the starting line.

again.

ai ai ai.

wanted for murder

2008-10-19T17:53:00.000-07:00

the suspect:

the victim:

times two.

yes, two black widows in my house.

found and killed both during one weekend.

productive weekend.

romance

2008-10-18T16:53:00.000-07:00

(this story has been a long time coming, so hold on tight.)

the most romantic evening of my life was probably somewhere in the realm of "nerdiest evening" for most of all y'all normal people out there.

one day in early may, i was sitting at my client's office, working and minding my own business, when got a pleasant surprise. my phone buzzed and the following text message battle with an old friend ensued ...

the captain: christianna ... we need to talk.
me: what's up?
the captain: i posted something to your wall on facebook.
me: okay. lemme look at it.
the captain: fancy.

... i checked facebook and saw a somewhat long message that ended with "maybe i can take you to dinner next week sometime?" i responded via text.

me: dinner next week sounds great. actually, dinner anytime sounds good to me -- like to eat dinner at least once a week.
the captain: you are the awesomest. i think i owe you a year of dinners.
me: ha. that's a lot of dinners. just don't make me eat them all in one sitting. i'd just embarrass myself.
the captain: yeah, i don't want you to get fat. actually, you might die. i'll need to check with science on that though. also, i think you know exactly what i mean. i hope.

not really.

me: i don't want to die, so let me know when you hear back from science on that one. for now, i am going out of town on wed next week. so ... monday for dinner?
the captain: what about tonight? it'd have to be at 9:45 ish because i have to help fix someone's computer. but monday is still good.
me: tonight works better, actually. where do you wanna meet? or whatever?
the captain: don't wait to eat if you are hungry. we could probably just go get some ice cream cones from mcdonalds.
the captain: oh and i know this is very random but i can explain everything.
me: that works, too. you don't want to tell me what this is about? you okay?
the captain: i'm fine. i've had a rough week but i just think it's satan getting after me. no, wanting to see you is because i want to see you. i've been going the wrong direction for a year. sorry to be so deep or whatever.

ummm ... what does that mean? ...

me: okay. glad you're okay. i'll see you tonight. it *has* been way too long.
the captain: don't we know it.

and then i waited for the evening. totally and completely unsure of what was coming.

at around 930 i caught my first glimpse of what was coming as i opened the door and watched as a very anxious man walked up the drive trying desperately to pull *on* his red jacket. (as he was coming *into* the house? hmm, okay.) he got to the screen door and i was waiting for him there.

it was good to see him. i told him so.

i welcomed him into the house. this kid was nervous. apparently. he had some trouble mastering the function of the screen door, which, i know, is harder than it looks: guess not everyone is capable of timing it just right so as to *not* hit himself/herself in the face. so count yourself blessed and talented if you can.

having hit himself in the face with the screen door, the captain was rubbing his temple as he stepped across the threshold. but upon entering, he landed on me with a fabulous hug. after a little minute he asked, "hugging's good, right?" (p.s. little minute is a direct translation from the português minutinho. i haven't been able to shake that phrase in the past 4 years.)

"yeah, hugging's good."

we stood there a minute longer. then after the embrace that i didn't want to end, the captain took his red jacket off (hmm, okay) and asked to use the bathroom. i showed him the way and witnessed the second clue of his heightened nerves: as this young man walked past the bed to access the bathroom, he kicked the footboard (which is something i have done many a time), which tripped him and sent him headfirst to the ground (which i have *not* done many a time). oh, my goodness. i don't even know if i was able to contain my laughter. thinking back on it, though, i kinda hope i did, because, yeah.

the captain seemed to calm himself down a bit in there, because he came out more cool and collected. it was kinda late at that point, so we were going to just go grab some ice cream, but we just got to talking at the house.

i sat down on the couch and he asked, "can i sit by you?" okay, maybe he wasn't as cool and collected as i had thought. oh, well.

we talked for a while, just kinda catching up and other small talk. but soon he got a little more serious and was like, "well, i've known this for a long time ... and it was like a year ago when we first met. and i dunno, i kinda felt like there was something that could be there ... and then i was stupid and i went to idaho and got wrapped up in something that was really not a good relationship ...

"and you and i, we've been friends. and then i broke up with idaho and dated this other girl for a while back in february. but that wasn't right.

"and i was kinda wondering ... and i don't know if you liked me back then or what you think of me now ... but i was kinda wondering if there might be an opportunity for me to ...

"...
"maybe
"...

"have ... an opportunity?"

i had no idea what to say.

he continued, "i mean, i don't know what's going on with you at all right now ..."

as i processed all this information, the only thing that came out of my mouth was, "okay ..."

[stay tuned]

long awaited

2008-10-11T12:35:00.000-07:00

sorry for the delay, guys ...

... you wouldn't believe how crazy busy my life is.

but ... better late than never ... right?

wha' happtened?

2008-10-04T22:23:00.000-07:00

okay. i still haven't taken any good pictures of my new haircut to post ... so you're gonna have to settle for a listing of reactions thus far and just let your imagination run wild for another couple days. i promise to get something up here soon for ya.

sister: cute!
mom: i love it.
dad: you look like sandra dennis.
mom: who's sandra dennis? do you mean sandy duncan?
dad: ... you look like sandy duncan.
me: who's sandy duncan?
co-worker: oh my gosh. so cute!
co-worker: so you really did it? i love it!
friend: how do you do a cat call over text? looks really good.
co-worker: wow, it makes you look taller. [p.s. -- i was wearing 4-inch heels that day.]
co-worker: whoa. that's really different. like bad-break-up different.
joe wren [to my mom]: if she starts to think that she doesn't like it, you tell her that joe wren says it's cute.
co-worker: it makes you look ol-- uhh, more mature. yeah, now you look 24-ish. it definitely adds about 4 years. [p.s. -- i'm 28.]
co-worker: and i was just thinking, 'gosh, that girl looks like christianna.'
roommate: oh, my goodness! and i just invited a man i met on the plane over to have dinner because i told him you had long, blonde, beautiful hair!
sister: makes you look like mom.
nephew [pointing at my head]: wha' happtened?

one clue

2008-09-28T09:15:00.000-07:00

thursday

2008-09-25T08:01:00.000-07:00

in celebration of today being thursday, i wanted to share a couple memories of thursdays past ...

the epic mr. thursday

in my parents' ward, there lived a very good looking young man. uh huh.
i had met this guy before my mission, so when i returned, we caught up quickly/briefly my first sunday back in the states. after church that day, my little sister's boyfriend suggested that i ask this guy out. for thursday. (please note that the suggested thursday was exactly one week from the time i stepped off the plane.)
i said okay.
so i quickly grabbed the phone and called him up. he was more than obliging and agreed that thursday would be an excellent day for a date. and it was.
thursday came and, for the date, we watched spiderman (the first one -- because the second one would be coming out in just a few weeks -- see? trying to set it up for an automatic second date) and then made churros, brazilian style. (pretty similar to the mexican treat, but just imagine those cinnamon-and-sugar-covered sensations filled with chocolate. mmm. drool, drool. those alone are the reason i gained 10 pounds in one of my mission areas. really.)
that thursday night, mr. thursday and i stayed up talking until 1. which was super late for a girl that just got off her mission a week ago! but so much fun!
mr. thursday and i went out a handful of other times after that. but it wasn't meant to be ... something i noticed when i unfortunately kept burning the kid every time we talked. it was awful. (and fodder for some follow-up don't-do-it-this-way posts.)
sigh.

naked thursday

a couple months ago, a friend and i decided that we would give up on becoming cpa's and instead start a promotional button-making business. y'know, the kind of buttons that we used to wear in high school whenever there were student elections coming up. (don't have any idea if kids still use those. do they? am i dating myself here?)
anyway, after coming up with some pretty snazzy slogans and clever commentaries, we decided that our skills could better be used in the t-shirt making business. that decision pretty much came as a result of this genius:
get it? ha ha ... get it?

there you go. happy thursday, everyone.

haven't drowned yet

2008-09-23T18:02:00.000-07:00

okay, this morning i drank 2 16-oz bottles of water during a 2-hour meeting. and left the meeting thirsty. this was after drinking 16 oz of hot chocolate before the meeting. with my lunch, i drank another bottle. and now, after lunch, i have drunk 2 more bottles.

let's tabulate ... that makes ... 6 16-oz bottles ... which is 96 oz of water today ... which is equal to 12 8-oz glasses.

how many do they recommend? nutritionists recommend 8 8-oz glasses per day. so far, during a period of 8 hours, i have had 12. that's 150% of the recommended. and ... since the water at home doesn't come in 16-oz bottles, i have no idea how much more i will have before the day is through.

yesterday i had 3 bottles before heading home, plus my 16-oz morning hot chocolate and 2 glasses of water with lunch. last week was pretty much the same about 3 bottles a day plus hot chocolate and whatever i drank at lunch.

and the interesting thing is that i don't feel like i am getting too much water: i'm not sick of pouring it down my throat. in fact, i only really notice how much i am drinking because of all the bottles i put in the recycle trash at the end of the day. and the number of times i get up throughout the day to grab more water bottles from the break room. and the fact that our socal audit practice leader (yeah, he's pretty high-up) made fun of my empty water bottles after the meeting this morning. yeah.

my questions are these: how much water is too much? am i going to drown from all this drinking? and would i know it before it happens? are there warning signs? and why can i not stinkin' get enough water in my body?

you know when you reach that point where you're just like, "oh, i cannot drink any more water"; when it just almost tastes gross because you have had too much? yeah, haven't reached that point yet. glug, glug, glug ...

(p.s. -- for all you eco-friendlies out there ... my firm actually just installed a water machine today. so i won't be filling any more landfills with my water bottle waste.)

news

2008-09-22T14:14:00.000-07:00

i don't watch the news often, as many of you know, and i have to admit it is because sometimes news reports actually seem to be this ridiculous to me ...

Breaking News: Series Of Concentric Circles Emanating From Glowing Red Dot

picture - kid rock & sheryl crow

2008-09-19T06:52:00.000-07:00

[kid rock:]
livin' my life in a slow hell
different girl every night at the hotel
i ain't seen the sun shine
in three damn days

been fuelin' up on cocaine and whiskey
wish i had a good girl to miss me
Lord, i wonder if i'll ever change my ways

i put your picture away
sat down and cried today
i can't look at you while i'm lying next to her

[sheryl crow:]
i called you last night in the hotel
everyone knows but they won't tell
but their half-hearted smiles tell me somethin' just ain't right

i've been waitin' on you for a long time
fuelin' up on heartaches and cheap wine
i ain't heard from you in three damn nights

i put your picture away
i wonder where you been
i can't look at you while i'm lyin' next to him

[together:]
(sheryl crow) i saw you yesterday with an old friend
(kid rock) it was the same old same 'how've you been?'
(together) since you've been gone my worlds been dark and grey
(kid rock) you reminded me of brighter days
(sheryl crow) i hoped you were comin' home to stay
(sheryl crow) i was headed to church
(kid rock) i was off to drink you away

[together:]
i thought about you for a long time
can't seem to get you off my mind
i can't understand why we're living life this way

i found your picture today
i swear i'll change my ways
i just called to say i want you to come back home

i just called to say i love you -- come back home

whine

2008-09-18T10:19:00.000-07:00

my back hurts.
i want to eat beef.
i don't get to go to texas this weekend (thanks, ike).
i can't seem to eat enough chocolate today.
too much work, not enough time.

okay, i think that will do for now. i'll let you know if i think of anything else.

2, 3, cha cha cha

2008-09-13T16:13:00.000-07:00

on my recent seattle trip, a friend of mine introduced me and the other road-trippers to cha cha. (yes, i plan on posting an entertaining seattle travelog for y'all soon.)

per the cha cha website,

"cha cha is like having a smart friend you can call or text for answers on your cell phone anytime for free! cha cha works with virtually every provider and allows people with any mobile phone device - from basic flip phones to advanced smart phones - to ask any question in conversational english and receive an accurate answer as a text message in just a few minutes.
"what’s your question?simply text your question to 242242 (spells ‘cha cha’) or call 1-800-2-cha-cha (800-224-2242) from your mobile phone to ask any question. what are you waiting for? ask away!"

sounds pretty cool. when my friend told us about it, she said that one of her friends had been heading to a job interview but got lost on the way, so she texted cha cha with her location and her destination and they texted her back with detailed driving instructions. i thought that was pretty cool. so we tried it out.

me: what is a bumbershoot?
cha cha: bumbershoot is an awesome music festival that supports the arts usually labor day weekend in seattle, wa.

well, yeah. we were just at bumbershoot the day before. but that wasn't quite the answer we were looking for ... rephrase!

me: what does the word "bumbershoot" mean?
cha cha: bumbershoot means umbrella. etymology: bumber- (alteration of umbr- in umbrella) + -shoot (alteration of -chute in parachute).

how about something a little more difficult ...

me: what is the next prediction of nostradamus in the timeline?
cha cha: nostradamus says that the earth as we know it will cease to be on dec. 21st 2012.
me: what percentage of the mormon church is composed of europeans?
cha cha: a very small percentage of mormons are europeans, probably less than 5% based on the top 10 countries with a mormon population.

hmmm ... well done! how about this?

me: what do you get when you cross an elephant and a rhino?
cha cha: a elephino! (a hell if i know).
me: how much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?
cha cha: the sad answer is probably none. woodchucks, better known as groundhogs, prefer burrowing to climbing trees.

wow, they are really on top of this stuff!

how about one more ...

me: how do i get out of paying child support?
cha cha: well, the best way to get out of paying child support is to stay with your children. if that isn't possible, then pay.

well, there you go!

poked and prodded

2008-09-09T10:21:00.000-07:00

"the veins in my left arm are tiny and blood flows slowly."

that's what i told the phlebotomist last time i went in. that's what i tell the phlebotomist every time i go in. the saturday morning phlebotomists already know me and know my veins, so there's usually no confusion. but this last time was a tuesday evening. the tuesday-evening phlebotomist didn't believe me.

"well, what about this vein right here?" she asked, pointing to a tiny vein in my left elbow pit.
"they usually can't get that one; it's too tiny."
"i think i can get it ... see it there?"
"well, you can try, but the last time they tried, they couldn't get it and it flowed too slowly."
"i think i can get it ..."
"you can try, but it usually doesn't work. usually they just poke this vein here in my wrist or the one in my hand."
"i think i can get it."

with that, she started sterilizing my left elbow pit with the iodine and betadine ... okay, we'll try it!

and she got the needle in! that was pretty painless. so she opened the valve and let the saline solution begin to flow into the vein. the vein was flowing slowly. interesting. and oddly surprising. i kinda wish someone had said that the vein is too tiny and flows slowly. wait -- i think *i* actually said that. lemme check ... yeah. i did. i said it. i told her. i warned her.

because the vein was so tiny and flowing so slowly, the saline started to fill my whole elbow pit area, forming a growing lump ...

so, as i sat there watching my elbow get larger as it filled with saline, i could do nothing besides just chuckle on the inside and listen as the phlebotomist suggested that maybe we poke the vein in my wrist or in my hand. which she did: she pulled the needle out of my left arm elbow pit and put a new one in my wrist, where i happen to have *huge* veins. pronto. the rest of the platelet donation visit was pretty uneventful. i watched the other boleyn girl (great movie), and enjoyed many snacks.

that night, i took the bandage off and the lump was still there. so i put the bandage back on. in the morning the lump was still there. and i started getting a big bruise. fun times! so i called the red cross, y'know, just to check. the phlebotomist told me that because "we" had ruptured the vein (i *love* how she included me as one of the culprits), i should expect the lump and the bruise to remain for about 10 days.

after 10 days, my elbow still looked like this:

so ... the bruise has now healed and my elbow has returned to mostly normal. there's still a bit of a lump in there. it's been a month. oh, well.

don't you fret, though: this experience isn't keeping me from donating platelets (i went again last night) ... but i *am* going to be more adamant with the tuesday-evening phlebotomists, that's for sure.

(p.s. -- is there an actual name for the "elbow pit"? i feel kinda dumb calling it the "elbow pit".)

meatatarian

2008-09-08T23:05:00.000-07:00

i just saw the most fabulous commercial for the new wendy's baconator.

there's a couple sitting in the wendy's dining room, enjoying lunch. the chick offers a bite of her salad to the guy, but he turns her down with an, "ah, no thanks. i'm a meatatarian." "a what?" "a meatatarian. y'know, beef, bacon. it's a personal choice. you gotta be committed."

friends, i am a meatatarian.

... i mean, i'm a recovering meatatarian.

... man, this is hard.

post script

2008-09-06T21:23:00.000-07:00

i just wanted to thank everyone for your comments on my last post. i am so blessed with good friends and family. thank you!!

also, just wanted to clarify something: even though i am happy with my life as it is and ... [insert text from previous post] ... i still like to get set up! i think it's so much fun to get to know new people! i especially appreciate knowing that my friends and family are keeping an eye out for me. so ... if any of y'all have any suggestions for me ... send 'em over!

a (runaway) train of thought

2008-08-27T18:32:00.000-07:00

cute guy said to me last night that he thought i had given up on getting married. he said that he thought i had said something at some point to the effect of "well, if it happens, it happens. but if not, that's okay." which, i guess may be exactly what i said, but not intending to mean that i have given up on the whole getting married thing. and i told him that. i told him that perhaps i had said that, but what i meant was that i know that it isn't all up to me. i know that if i do get married, i will. but if i don't, i know that i will be happy and be okay with it because i know Heavenly Father wants me to be happy, so that would be what makes me happy.

a few years ago, a guy that i had known for maybe a half hour asked me, "so are you one of those girls that wants to do her career first before getting married?" i told him quite assuredly, "no." i didn't express this to him at the time (because i like to just think about things for a while before forming and stating an opinion), but i really didn't like that he asked me that. i thought back over the brief conversation that i had had with him prior to his question, and i honestly didn't know -- and still don't know -- what i had said that made him think that.

but let me declare here and now that i do want to get married. i want to have a family of my own. i want to have kids. i want all of that. but i'm not going to stress myself out about it; i'm not going to be depressed that i am not yet at that stage in my life. and i add that comment especially despite the fact that "round" after "round" of my friends have gotten married and fallen into the married-people-don't-have-contact-with-unmarrieds hole.

i see the articles in the ensign encouraging the single adults in the Church to be anxiously engaged in activities and pursuing those things that will make them better servants in the Kingdom and better children of God all around. these articles make me think. these articles lead me to evaluate my life. these articles assure me that i am doing the right thing in pursuing the activities that interest me, in building friendships with (married and single) people all around me, in seeking to improve myself and my station in life. these articles encourage me to do better and to be better.

then i listen to friends who bemoan the curse of singledom, and i understand why our leaders are concerned for the single adults. and i understand why my mom mails me my own special copy of these issues of the ensign.

i don't feel a need to be concerned about *why* i am not married yet. i don't feel a desperation to "fix" the situation. i don't feel ashamed or embarrased that my life isn't like that of my older and younger (married) sisters. my life is the way it is. i have done so many great things with the opportunities that i have had. i'm not unhappy. i choose not to be. and it *is* my choice. i find joy in the experiences i have had and in the ones i look forward to.

i'm not saying that i am glad that i haven't gotten married yet "because it has given me the opportunity to have the experiences i have had". i don't say that because there is no comparison -- there is no conceivable way to compare my life to the one i could have had if i were married already.

which thought reminds me of a question i got many times as a kid: "so do you like having your birthday right before Christmas?" well ... my response: "do you like having yours *not* right before Christmas?" how do you answer that? have you known it any other way? or, another frequent question: "did you like moving around a lot as a kid?" well, "did you like living in one house the whole time you grew up?" can you really form a like/dislike opinion about something for which you have no basis of comparison? do you really know if you like chocolate if you haven't tried vanilla? like/dislike is a relative measure.

we all know the phrase, "the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence." it is greener because we don't live there. if we did live in that other very green yard, perhaps we would notice the weeds, the dandelions, the tufts of crab grass. if we did live in that other very green yard, perhaps we would know all the watering, weeding, and work it takes to make it *look* so green. if we did live in that other very green yard, perhaps we would look across the fence and see a yard that looks nice and comfortable, not perfect, but loved anyway; a yard that is unique; a yard that, perhaps at times, even appears greener than our own. that's the problem with comparing: we simply don't have the right perspective.

and so i cannot compare my life as i have had it with my experiences, trials, and joys to the life i could have had if i had been married already.

i wouldn't trade my life for any other, not because "i *love* my life" and "i wouldn't trade it for any other" ... but quite simply because i *can't*: i *can't* trade it for any other. my life is a blessing that Heavenly Father gave *to me*; it is *for me*. i am not bound to try and "return" such a gift. and i am not going to let Satan or anyone try to convince me that it isn't the "right" gift ... it's *my* gift ... from the One that knows and loves me the most.

when it rains - eli young band

2008-08-26T11:08:00.000-07:00

give me skies of black and blue, the way you make me feel,
give me skies of green and red, cold winds that make it real,
storms are brewing deep within of hurt and loss and pride,
it's good to see the world in pain when i take a walk outside.

[chorus:]
when it rains, i don't mind being lonely, i cry right along with the sky.
when it rains, i don't pretend to be happy, i don't even have to try.
when it rains, some people get down, they're sporting a frown, so i fit right in,
yeah, the sun may brighten your day but if i had my way, i'd take the rain.

i don't care about politics or the hypocrites on my tv,
i'm not mad at the girl who left because she couldn't be with me,
so make up your theories about the scandals and the lies,
start out depressed then everything comes as a pleasant surprise.

when it rains, i don't mind being lonely, i cry right along with the sky.
when it rains, i don't pretend to be happy, i don't even have to try.

healthy evidence?

2008-08-22T10:30:00.000-07:00

oh, no. look what i just found on the internets ...

"beef has a rep as a diet buster, but eating it may help you peel off pounds. in a study published in the american journal of clinical nutrition, women on a diet that included red meat lost more weight than those eating equal calories but little beef. 'the protein in steak helps you retain muscle mass during weight loss,' says study author manny noakes, ph.d. try to consume local organic beef; it's healthier for you and the environment."

i may have to re-think my new years resolution. afterall, i want to be healthy: the primary purpose of the resolution is health-related ... to reduce my cholesterol ... so ... hmmm ...

thanks, eden, for sending this article my way. i may be able to turn it into some sort of rationalization for ending my beef ban. hmmm ... 8-/

i'll let y'all know.

(p.s. -- i must admit that i didn't read anything further in the article after the beef part. ha. i got what i needed out of it. the rest of the article might really be interesting, though. lemme know.)