yea! vacation day!!

i finally took a vacation day!! and i am actually going to do stuff for me!!

i guess getting your drivers license might not big kicks for most folks, but i am pretty geeked.

can you say "ikea visit??"

the best decision i made all week

i went to trader joes and decided against buying sangria.

this was clearly the best decision i made all week.

i probably wouldn't stop drinking until some point mid-week (next week)

gotta love work stress and trying to get your new georgia plates stress.

i can listen to these songs on repeat....forever.....

erika blogged today about songs she can listen to over and over again. i loved the entry. therefore, i will copy it. except i have a ton more to list. ****keep in mind, these are not my favorite songs, they are songs i can listen to over and over again and never get bored****

i have long, long, long been a fan of listening to songs over and over again. my earliest memory of the repeat phenomenon was my madonna 45 of "dress you up." it was my first record and i would just move the needle back to the beginning all day long. it was the only record i had. but, i do think i loved the song because i didn't get bored with it and switch to the radio.

then there is the high school classic mix tape story. in the 10th grade i made a mix tape that was literally a repeat tape. on one side was the cure's "pictures of you" and on the b side nine inch nails "something i can never have." i would have these dramatic evenings where i would wallow in my teenage angst and fall asleep to this tape. my mother would scream at me to turn that tape off. eventually i switched to headphones. to this day, i never tire of these two songs. they are, in my opinion, perfect.

songs from my toddler years that i loved (even in the crib.....there is documentation in my baby book)

my baby takes the morning train.....diana ross (was that her?)
red rubber ball......the circle
build me up buttercup...... (not sure who did this one)
the gambler...........kenny rogers
brick house.....commodores
the happening and impressions.........the supremes
black dog........led zeppelin
i saw her again last night........mama's and the papa's
me and julio down by the schoolyard.........paul simon
you can't always get what you want........rolling stones

other songs that hold some repeat records during my teen years include.....
stay....lisa loeb
the dangling conversation......simon and garfunkel
don't stop believing.....journey
let's go crazy.....prince (middles school years)
i think we're alone now......tiffany (middle school years)
ob-la-di ob-la-da..........the beatles
chorus......erasure
how can i tell you that i love you?..............cat stevens
november rain.....guns n roses (this also had a repeat mix tape. summer 1992)
all i want is you........U2
nightswimming.....REM
low......cracker
fake plastic trees........radiohead
all mixed up..........red house painters
stripped.......depeche mode
pour some sugar on me......def leppard(this was 6th grade)
jane says......janes addiction
so whatcha want............beastie boys
need you tonight..........inxs
we didn't start the fire...........billy joel
the crystal ship......the doors
desperado and take it easy........the eagles
dont let the sun go down on me.........elton john/george michael
old man.........neil young
head like a hole.....actually the whole pretty hate machine album...NIN
polly........nirvana
summer nights..........grease
please, please, please let me get what i want...........the smiths
take me i'm yours.........squeeze
running to stand still...........U2

As a grown up these songs could play on my radio everyday and I would love it

nobody's crying......patty griffin
32 flavors.......ani difranco
come pick me up.......ryan adams
ball and a biscuit........the white stripes
murder of one.......counting crows
el caminos in the west......grandaddy
everything is free.....gillian welch
redemption song.....bob marley
cello song......nick drake
deathly......aimee mann
touch me with your love.....beth orton
say hello, wave goodbye....david gray
where does the good go?..........tegan and sara
i will follow you into the dark...........death cab for cutie
any version of the song landslide by fleetwood mac
bloody motherfucker......martha wainwright
let there be rock.........drive by truckers
any version of river by joni mitchell
heavy metal drummer.....wilco
the morning after.......howie day
Why Georgia........john mayer
numb..........U2
so cruel..........U2
side........travis
12 bellevue............kathleen edwards
divorce song........liz phair
essence.........lucinda williams
portions for foxes......rilo kiley
american girl........tom petty
for the sake of the song........townes van zandt

and lately i can't get enough of

suffer in silence........the frames
still be around........uncle tupelo
panthers in crime.......thunderbirds are now!
you wreck me........tom petty
via chicago.......wilco
between the bars.......elliott smith
love you til the end......the pogues
everything you've done wrong........sloan
the golden state.......john doe
silverbell.......patty griffin

and of all time..........
where the streets have no name...........U2
when i hear this song, i feel like a camera is following me around for the story of my life.

kickball??

i was telling one of my tutors about this experience i had at the doctors a few weeks ago. the doctor gave me this lecture about getting out and meeting people and instructed me to join a gym. i wanted to smack her. i hate the gym. i had a free membership at school and i would spend 2 hours on the treadmill and then pass out. i am too compulsive for a normal exercise routine because i never know when to quit. but, i wasn't going to explain that to my doctor. i thanked her for her crappy advice and cancelled my follow up appointment.

so, my tutor theresa is a fun gal. she is a dietitian and nutritionist and has been after me to start taking vitamins and get some sort of regular exercise. she nicely extended an invitation to join her kickball team. can you imagine....me playing kickball??? i think it will be really fun and plan on going tomorrow.

really, i could give a flying fig about the kickball. i think i would rather watch. but, theresa is urging me to come because her co-ed team consists of a bunch of fun people and two other michigan transplants. atlanta has so much to offer in terms of new people and great activities. i guess i have to force myself to stop working and actually do some sort of activity during the week. i think it will help me remain sane with the added benefit of forced fun. and.....we get to go out for pizza afterwards. what more can you ask for?

i like to smell like me.

i ran over to the drugstore to pick up AAA batteries for my ever-failing wireless mouse. when i was there they had this fancy perfume that i thought i would try.

i don't smell like me. yuck. i have been wearing the same perfume for the last 8 years. nothing else suits me. i am getting a headache!

i guess my "love of change" does not extend to fragrance.

pandora....no fair

i am jamming to pandora.com this morning and just discovered that they bleeped Liz Phair's use of the f-bomb, but they don't bleep Ryan's f-bombs.

seriously pandora. that is not fair.

i can't stop thinking about it.

remember when that astronaut lady went wacko and drove hundreds of miles-with a diaper on- with the intention to do some serious bodily harm???

well, sam coined the phrase "crazy like an astronaut" at that time and i found it hysterical.

i think i have found a new "holy crap batman"

i guess my grandma is right

well, i know everyone knows that i think my grandma is awesome and super fabulous. so, i just wanted to say it again. she insisted that where ever i ended up would be the right place for me.

earlier this year, i was hell-bent on moving to some place warm and sunny. i decided that Tuscon was the home for me. but, then my new job came along and they asked me to move here. it is sunny. it is hot. and, best of all, there is no snow. so, it seemed good enough.....

not that i don't find confirmation that this was the right choice on at least a weekly basis, but this morning it was confirmed (yet again.)

i just had to hear the national weather forecast. sure, i don't mind a day or four of 100+ heat. in fact, i kinda like it. but, i don't think i would have made it with the scorpions (dean pointed this out many times.) guess i made the right decision. isn't it "peachy?"

and another reason my town rocks.....

gas near my house is only $2.84 a gallon!!

what will they think of next?

at the grocery on sunday i found the coolest thing. pickles are now sold in snack cups!! i was stocking up on my weekly ration of pickles and i saw little cups of baby dills. they are so cute! i wanted to turn to the woman a few feet away from me and see if she was as impressed as i was. i decided not to. but, i was tempted.

could you even ask for anything more? i guess some green olive snack cups might rule. i am not going to ask for too much. i am so pleased with what i have already!

my drive to work this morning......

somehow twelve hour days are catching up to me. i am so tired that i can't seem to get out of bed on time. this morning my phone was chirping and it became part of my dream. i actually said to someone "hey, can you stop that beeping" inside of my dream. oye. but, i did get up and cleaned up and made it out the door.

i pulled into my gas station for my daily soda (don't worry erika, todd doesn't work there). i was listening to traffic radio and heard that a BEAR had been hit on the freeway and traffic was backed up. talk about surreal! can you imagine bear road-kill? is this a southern thing??

so, back to the gas station. i pour myself some icy diet coke and notice that the drink melts the ice cubes. i taste it and it tastes like shit. so, i dumped it out and selected the caffeine free. i just need the diet coke and i can pretend there is a boost in there. I took it to the counter and put my dollar down and my cashier says "no, that is okay, it's on me." the employees at this gas station try to let me have free stuff all the time. in fact, one of the attendants came out to the pump one morning when the pump was malfunctioning and put $2 on his own credit card to test it out. i don't allow that to happen. i can't just take the "pretty girl" discount. so i fight with the cashier this morning because i want to pay for my drink and refuse to take it for free. he then says, "have you tasted it yet?" i give it a taste and ugh! this one tastes like shit too! so, i thank him for his kind offer of a free beverage and decide to toss it and try burger king instead. i guess he was just trying to be nice. (they had best have that fixed by the time i get off of work!)

then i called my mom. yesterday was barb's birthday and i wanted to hear how it went. this is the first time in 7 years that i was not at my grandma's for her birthday. i sent her this huge fruit arrangement that looked like flowers. it ruled. but, i digress. my mom tells me that she and al bought grandma a special cell phone for seniors. it has big keys and a padded ear piece to help block out outside noise. i love it! my grandma has been bitching about cell phones for years. "i never want a cell phone! i am not accountable to anyone!" (she thinks cell phones are an evil control device used by couples to shackle themselves to their beloved) well, guess what? she loves the phone! she is so excited she can't get over it.

now i am at work. i want to be at the ocean. i think it is only a four hour drive from here. i could roll up in savannah, call paula dean and do lunch. then we could sit on the beach and burn. ahhhh.....that sounds like heaven right now.

blue is the new pink....

i am sure most of you that know me, even casually, are aware of my obsession with pink. my whole office is pink. pink chairs, pink storage cases, pink file folders-the joint is as pink as the day is long. i often purchase a fair amount of pink clothing. most of the time i wear all white, but if i am not wearing a white dress then it is bound to be pink one.

lately i noticed a strange pattern. i have started to purchase blue dresses. in fact, three out of the last five dresses i have purchased have been blue. what's up with that? and you know what?? i actually look nice in blue. i guess blue is probably more complimentary to a porcelain complected redhead.

what will be next? will i start wearing pants!! this might be revolutionary. i haven't purchased a pair of pants since december. well, it is way too hot here to consider wearing slacks!

*insert drama all over the place. i am just feeling goofy and whimsical.

Love Is A Mix Tape

Dean and I bonded many years ago over music. Dean and I share a sick love. We love Ryan (I know you all know who I speak of, so I will omit his name) Dean has this book called "Love is a Mix Tape." It is one of the only book he read from cover to cover (in a long time.) The concept is nice. I think it is about a couple that traded mix tapes throughout their relationship and then the girl dies. He finds love again and tell the story of his new relationship through mix tapes. Cool, huh?

I have been making mix tapes since elementary school. I remember, quite fondly, my maroon stereo with the dual tape deck and turn table. I used to record my LP's with this elaborate microphone/tape deck system because I didn't have the ability to record an LP. Then cd's came along (my grandma bought me my first CD player for christmas in 1997) and I continued my microphone/tape deck recording studio. The work we had to do before iTunes!!

Mix tapes rule. I still have cassette copies of mix tapes I exchanged back in high school. I found this awesome tape with a recording of this church lock-in I went to with an old boyfriend. We made mix tapes for one another with snippets of the conversations between the songs.....sigh. Young love.....

I feel that a mix tape is one of the most personal gifts you can give. As a grown up I have taken to elaborately decorated liner notes and cool vellum envelopes. I wake up in the middle of the night with setlists swimming in my head. I think I might be obsessed with the mix tape!

My new job sent me to Boston where I met 10 incredible new people. I bonded with 3 in particular because we shared a car (Pete, Lea and Em.) We spent a week training during the day and playing at night. Our rooms had a cool kitchenette set-up at our hotel and I would invite my new pals to my room. I made yummy dinners and snacks, Lea would drink red wine, Em would mix up some wildly strong vodka cocktails and Pete drank beer. We listened to music, traded stories, played therapy. It rocked. We all shared a car and spent our time singing along to the radio and acting like complete morons. So, we were a group bonded by music (and love for Pete's NY style driving skills.)

The next weeks sent us to Chicago. Most of May was a haze. Our group stayed in this incredible condo in Lincoln Park. It truly was the "real world Chicago" complete with drama, late night drinking, laughing until we cried, and a fantastic story of drunk cycling (this was not me.) Trained all day (once again) and played at night. The first night in the house I pulled out my hello kitty ipod player and we washed dishes and harmonized in the kitchen. We went to a cubs game, walked the town, and I made many a meal for very grateful people. One of the best parts of these weeks goes back to the mix tape phenomenon. Pete and I would hang out on our fabulous porch, with our laptops until ungodly hours. We would take turns playing DJ and share songs with one another. It was such a blast. We had a huge exchange night with at least 6 people and their music. Cheryl brought her external hard drive, many of us had our laptops and we all traded jump drives. It was literally a 200G mixtape-o-rama.

After we all went back to our lives, the music lived on. I made Lea a little album of mix cds. There were mood cds and theme cds. She nearly tinkled when I gave it to her. It wasn't just me. Cheryl made some awesome cd's and passed them around. When we all reunited in Boston for our company meeting there was a world-class sing along on the way to the airport. Cheryl, Lea, Brian and I were jamming to some old school Salt'n'peppa, a little "Baby got back" and my personal favorite "Wild Thing" by Tone Loc. It was a blast to share a nostalgic mix cd with a bunch of people who are my age. The very small group of those who can remember these songs during middle school dances grows smaller by the minute. Long live 1974 and 1976!

This past week I made a special mix cd for our trainer. Andrea lives in my old neighborhood. We share a love of squealing, laughing, pedicures and gossiping about bad dates. (a couple of drunk dialing text message stories have been swapped) We are both from Michigan. When she conducted a phone interview with me, we spent literally 90min talking. I think that at one point she has referred to me as her twin (I wish I had her hair!) I wanted to make her an extra special mix to celebrate her 30th birthday. (After all, 30 is the best year ever!) I made it all pretty with decorative paper and sent it off to her.

The IM's started after she heard the first tracks. I could nearly hear her squeals in her frantic IM's. "I love Ben Lee!" "OMG Rachel Yamagata!" "Uncle Tupelo!" The girl went nuts. "Do you have a camera in my living room?!?" and my favorite "This is the soundtrack of my life!" I don't think I have ever seen this type of response from anyone.

That dude in the book Dean read was right.....Love is a Mix Tape. I am happy to spread the love. It feels soooooo good!

My BFF

Today my new BFF is an iced-venti-nonfat-latte from Char-bucks.

Holy Crap Batman! I just have to make it through today and then I can sleep!

Hey Dean......Let's do some BBQ tonight. Sangria, my black bean salsa, some corn on the grill......that would rule. If I start driving now I can get there by 11pm or so..... Sarah....are you free too?

it all comes together!!!!

I just sold a program to my very first family!!!! More details to come...you would not believe the piece of work that just EMAILED me his Visa number.

It is bound to be a hello kitty goes to peaches classic.

A Wallpaper Update

Matt brought over some awesome wallpaper removal spray! Maybe this project will be complete by the end of the week!! No more pickles for me. (and he was impressed by my drywall patching skills!)

A spackling superstar am I.

Oh, hey, in other home improvement news.... I am buying this big set of tools with a circular saw, drill, hand sander and some other stuff!! I bet a shopvac is around the corner! I love having a job and having money again. This sure beats the life of the very poor student.

Harry Potter- I Miss You!

It has been nearly two years since I last sold a book. I loved my job as a bookseller for a long time, but I don't miss it at all. I am so happy that I no longer work retail, deal with corporate bullsh*t, or work weekends. But I can't lie.....I wish I was working Harry Potter night tomorrow.

Even though Harry Potter was literally insanity on a stick I still loved it. I had six books worth of crazy hours, wild children, yelling over a bullhorn, and a few dozen angry customers when we ran out of books. I remember after the first book came out, my all time favorite children's book clerk insisted on reading a chapter to me one night at dinner. Then there was the year that my store flooded, the lights went out, the elevator broke down (we had to carry the books case by case up the stairs) and my sweet ex-husband organized and supervised "security detail" with the other husbands (that was book number 3.) The celebrations kept getting bigger and crazier. So, I will be thinking about my book friends tomorrow night. I hope that it is a wonderful farewell for the little wizard and his fans. I doubt there will ever be another book that will create this type of frenzy. I am so happy I was able to be a part of it.

And-for the record-I still haven't read a single one. I just heard that first chapter back in 97 or 98.

Haven Kimmel rings true again...

A few blogs ago I talked about a passage I read in Haven Kimmel's new book. I came across another one that is just beautiful and insightful.

The character is talking with a friend from a divorced family. Because the character had never experienced what it is like to have divorced parents, she speculates what it must be like to be in that situation. Here is how Kimmel describes this...

"She didn't know, really, would never know what it feels like to be the child of a rancorous divorce, but surely it was something like this: the nervous straddling of two worlds, the feeling that one was an ambassador to two camps, and in both the primary activity was hatred for the other"

Wow. That is so accurate. As a product of one nasty divorce-even 20 years later-this still applies.

As a grown up, and after hundreds of therapy sessions, I have balanced this in my life. But the passage still struck me in such a way that I underlined it and keep re-reading it.