How to spend $119,000 really fast!

Most of you know, via Facebook, that I've been in the process of buying a house. Well, here she is. Granted, she's not mine yet; I go to closing sometime next week..........unless I just jinxed myself with this post!

Shakespeare Anyone?

Miller Outdoor Theatre’s Shakespeare Festival is putting on A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Much Ado About Nothing.  Anyone want to go with me?  Here’s their full summer schedule.

A Midsummer Night's Dream
July 30, August 1, 3, 5 & 7, 8:30 pm
(Captioned performance July 30)
One of Shakespeare's most popular and frequently produced plays. There is a strong belief that Shakespeare wrote Midsummer for a wedding feast. But its mixture of fairies and mortals with some of Shakespeare's most memorable verse makes this classic a universal favorite.
Presented by Houston Shakespeare Festival

Much Ado About Nothing
July 31, August 4, 6 & 8, 8:30 pm
Perhaps Shakespeare's sunniest comedy, audiences continue to be dazzled by the verbal dexterity of Benedick and Beatrice as they battle and charm each other and finally discover their mutual love.
Presented by Houston Shakespeare Festival

Dear Prudence: UPDATE

WOOHOO!!  I got my earphones back!  I think it’s funny he spent money to ship them to me, but I’m not complaining.

One Of These Things (Is Not Like The Other)

Not sure if Big Bird still sings this song on Sesame Street, but he did when I was a kid and I loved it.  I really enjoyed taking in all the details and figuring out which item(s) didn’t belong.  Attention to detail was what probably got me through boot camp fairly unscathed; that and the fact that my mother drilled it into me that you always acknowledge your elders/superiors as Ma’am or Sir (that helped a LOT!).

Well, as of yesterday, I’ve officially lost my touch.  This is what my offices has looked like for the past year or so.

This past Wednesday I got an email telling me that I would be moving offices and that crates would be sent over to pack my stuff in.  I’ve known about this move for MONTHS now, but due to circumstances beyond anyone’s control it was delayed several times.

Anyway, yesterday morning I get to work and my office looks normal, nothing out of the ordinary.  It was a busy day and I was in and out of my office all morning.  Around 11:00 I forced myself to slow down and have lunch and that’s when I noticed…

THIS!

Sadly, I remember sitting at my desk earlier in the morning (obviously, completely out of it) and “seeing” something green in front of me, but I was so caught up in what I was doing that it never clicked in my brain what I was looking at.

Side note: That move I was suppose to do this morning??  Yeah, delayed….AGAIN!  My whole stinkin’ office is packed into those stupid green crates sitting in my office ready to be moved and I get to go back Monday (took today off to go to go make peanut butter) and at least unpack my computers so I can work until they decide to try and move me again.

Dear Prudence:

If you loaned something to your boyfriend, but now you’re not dating, is it ok to ask him to give that item back?  It’s nothing like jewelry or anything expensive like that.  In fact, it’s pretty insignificant in the whole scheme of things.  Ok, fine, it’s a pair of headphones.  I know, stupid.  Go buy another pair, but darn it, I want them back.  They’re really nice ones and I miss having them.  I did finally buy another pair a few weeks back, but they are no where near the quality.

Is it ok to ask for them back or am I just being petty?  I was thinking of making it easy for him and just putting a self addressed stamped envelope on his windshield with a quick note requesting the item. 

Second question.  Would it be mean spirited if I put a quick line on the above said note asking him to please treat his new girl friend better than he treated me???  HAHAHA!  Just kidding!  (kind of)

Hope For The Lonely..."Shot" Down

As I was walking out of the Randalls last week my eye cought this sign and for a split second I thought it said, Singles Shots Available Here. And for that split second my world turned sunny with the prospect of being vacinated against eternal (ok, lifelong but it feels like eternity) singleness! If only it were that easy!! HA!

A Little Leisurely Learning

I consider myself a fairly ok amateur photographer.  Nothing spectacular, but I love landscape photography and occasionally I produce something that’s pretty good.  I’m a firm believer in taking loads of pictures in order to get at least one good shot!

Anyway, for years I’ve wanted to be better; I’ve wanted to know what all those buttons and settings mean and how they would help me to take better pictures.  Today I took that step and went out on the internet to see if HCC had any classes and found this company, Leisure Learning Unlimited, Inc.  I’ve never heard of them, but the price seemed pretty reasonable so I decided to give them a try and signed up.  I’m pretty excited!!

I’ve always loved film photography, but for many years I’ve just done the point and shoot digital thing because of the ease of it.  Two years ago I bought a Canon EOS ELAN 7 with a standard 28-90mm lens and a 75-300mm telephoto lens from a co-worker and since then have used it a little with pretty good results, but it has so many different settings I was pretty much lost if I wasn’t outside with good lighting.

Anyway, beginning Jan 18 I’ll be on my way to mastering my camera and taking gorgeous landscape photography!!  And yes, I’ve already checked and they do have a Landscape Photography class.  :)

I’m wondering if I should also bring my Canon S5 IS with me to the class.  That’s the current digital camera I use.

Mini Vacation in L.A.

This past Wednesday Wendell took Brandon out to CalTech in Pasadena, CA to get settled in to his dorm.  I flew out that evening and Wendell and I went sight seeing Thursday and Friday while Brandon attended his orientation classes.

 

Griffith Observatory – you have to go here if you’re ever in the Hollywood/L.A. area.

 

Wendell sitting next to Einstein at the observatory.

Cool display of the planets at the observatory.

Random 50’s cafe off of Santa Monica Blvd where Wendell and I ate one night.

 

Los Angeles Temple.  Wendell and I did a session there on Thursday.

 

Afterwards we drove to Santa Monica and up the Pacific Coast Highway.  We got there just as the sun set.

Cool bridge off of Colorado Blvd in Pasadena, CA.

Stupid traffic in L.A.  This was taken as we were trying desperately to get to the airport Saturday.  Took us two hours to get from Pasadena to LAX (approx 20 miles).  Thankfully we had allowed ourselves a lot of time to get there or we would have been in trouble.  Our flight was at 4:45, so we had reserved the car until 2pm so we could be at the airport the requisite 2 hours early.  We left around 12:45 to give ourselves what we thought was plenty of time.   When Wendell picked me up from the airport Wednesday night it only took 35 minutes and that was with what I would consider normal rush hour traffic in Houston (except that it was 9pm!!).  Anyway, we got there about an hour before the flight.  Just enough time to sit down, de-stress and then board the plane.  The flight wasn’t full so we got the row to ourselves!

Labor Day Weekend – a little late

My dad called me the week before Labor Day and invited me to come down to Galveston.  My Aunt Sharlet, who I haven’t seen since I was 6, was in town and had rented a beach house on Jamaica Beach and wanted to see me.  So, Wendell and I packed a few things and headed out after church.

We had a good time.  I wasn’t sure what to expect since it had been 30 years since I saw her and my dad and I don’t  really talk on a regular basis, but it all turned out well.

 

My Aunt Sharlet and her husband Wesley.

 

Random pictures taken from the beach house deck.  The one on the right is of a little sand crab.  You can’t see him here since he’s so well camouflaged, but if you click on the pic you’ll see him just below and a little to the left of his hole.  The pic on the left is the sunrise Monday morning.

Sunday night after the beach cleared out myself, Wendell and my dad went down to the beach to go swimming.  Dad and I were talking about our time in the Navy and found out both of us, when out to sea, had seen waves that glowed.  We were trying to explain it to Wendell when all of a sudden he was like, “hey, what is that!  I see something glowing in the water.”  I thought for sure he was just seeing things, but after a few seconds you could see it everywhere when you moved your hands through the water.  It was pretty cool that one moment we’re talking about it and the next we’re surrounded by it!  Sorry, no picture.  I tried to find one in Google images, but no luck.  I imagine it would take a special camera and a lot of luck to get a pic of it.

Side Effects

I got hives a few weeks ago and the doctor prescribed a steroid (prednisone) to get rid of it. If I never take another dose of that stuff again, it will be too soon. The list below may not sound like much, but have them ALL at the same time and you too will live the nightmare!!

Difficulty Sleeping - check
Feeling of Whirling Motion - check
Increased Appetite - check
Increased Sweating - check
Indigestion - check
Mood Changes - CHECK
Nervousness - check
Elevated Blood Pressure - check
Muscle Soreness - check
Body Shakes - check
Racing/Confused Thoughts - check

Good news though, my hives are gone!! Bad news is that the battery of allergy testing they did on 4 viles of my blood came up with absolutely nothing that I'm allergic to. Go figure! Doc says it was probably just something transient I came in contact with. How do my boobs and stomach transiently come into contact with something??? :D

No new cloths/garments
No new laundry detergent
No new fabric softener
No new foods
No new medications

For My Friend Shelly

She believes I've been on hiatus long enough and should at least leave a line or two about how I am. So, here goes.

Life is wonderful.

Wendell and I are still dating.

Things are progressing.

Well, there you go! Until next month! :)

Why I Haven’t Been Blogging

I’m turning into the person I told myself I’d never become!  I probably know more of these people than most of you by virtue of the fact that I’ve been single for so long.  I’ve become the person that ignores her friends because she’s dating (and or is getting married).  I always swore that when I dated and got married I wouldn’t throw over my friends for a guy no matter how much I liked him.  Yeah, well, I’ve changed my mind, but just to be clear, I’m not throwing you over forever; I’ll be back.  It may be months down the road, but I will be back.  Please be patient and know that I still love you!!

As a side note: My reference to and use of the word “marriage” was not meant to imply an impending engagement.  Rest assured, most of you will get a phone call letting you know when that happens before you read it here! :)

As a side side note: Please do not be offended if you do read it here before getting a phone call.  I’m older now and the brain ain’t what it used to be!

No Laughing Matter

For the past few weeks I’ve been trying to find a little SUV for my mom.  She’s needing to get back and forth to doctors appointments and her old truck just isn’t reliable anymore.  It broke down on the way to Austen a few weeks ago so I began looking.  As I’m on the computer all day pretty much every day, I’ve been looking online.  A few days ago I found what I thought was a great deal, so I called the guy and made an appointment for a test drive today at 11:45.  The salesman said Ok and I hung up excited thinking I had found a good deal.

My good friend Jonathan (who I work with) agreed to go with me.  He knows cars and adds the male factor to what would otherwise be a, “Look here boys, we got ourselves a sucker/girl looking for a car!!” situation.  We got there right at 11:45 only to find out that the salesman I had spoken to earlier wasn’t due to come in until noon and the person who met us initially, upon finding out I had spoken to someone else already, decided he was going to go back inside and not help us.  No matter how much I asked, he flat refused. 

By this time I’m getting  a little hot under the collar.  The salesman I spoke to on the phone wasn’t there, the car he told me was available for a test drive was not on the lot and the jerkwod of a salesman we spoke to refused to help us.  Is that normal?  I can understand not wanting to snake someone else’s commission, but to flatly refuse any help whatsoever was astounding to me.

But wait, it only got worse.  Jonathan and I found another truck we thought was a good deal and requested the keys for it so that we could check it out while we waited.  Again, Mr. Jerkwod refused telling us that our salesman would “be here in a minute.”  I decided to wait in the car with the air on while we awaited the arrival of the other salesman.  A few “new” guys walk into the office while we sat there and when one of them came out I decided to get out and go see if he was the guy we needed to talk to.  He and Jerkwod were standing together outside the door when I walked up.  I asked if he was the salesman I was waiting for only to find that he wasn’t.  I asked them if he had arrived and was told that he had.  I then asked if one of them would go inside and ask him to come out only to be told he wasn’t there and that he was probably out on a test drive.

This whole conversation lasted a total of a minute during which Jerkwod and Jerkwod Jr. are snickering while we speak.  By this time I’m so mad I want to spit, but I keep it to myself, turn around and start for my car to leave.  As I turned they both busted out laughing.

All my life I’ve had people make rude comments to me about my weight calling me fat a— or mooing as I walked by.  I can’t prove it, but the first thing my mind did was imagine they were laughing at the fat chick and the black guy driving up together to buy a used car.  Lucky for me Jonathan is an awesome Christian guy and on our way back to work he talked me out of being mad at them for laughing at us.  I was so mad at them disrespecting him and me. 

And in case you’re wondering it was Joe Myers used car lot on 290 at Beltway 8. 

TMI, But You Know You’re Going to Read It Anyway

News Flash!!  I'm fat and for the most part I'm fairly OK with it.  I'd love to weigh what I did in High School when being fat meant I was 20lbs overweight (oh, to have those days back!), but I'm pretty much resigned to the fact that those days are done and dusted.  I think I'd be a seriously happy camper if I could lose 40lbs and get to an even 200.

Anyway, this post actually isn't about me losing weight, but about my weight in general and how I see others and their weight. 

When I was a teenager I loved to go to the mall.  No big surprise there, but while I was walking around I'd people watch.  For the most part I was watching how people interacted with each other; friends with friends, parents with children, husbands and wives, etc.

Where this goes downhill fast is when I would see fat people.  Now remember, at the time I was 20lbs overweight and sadly I thought I was HUGE!!  I would see these fat people and I would say to myself, hey, they've got someone who loves them so there's hope for me to find love.

In the years since it's morphed into something a bit different.  Maybe something a bit less destructive to my self image??  I see people who are considerably larger than me and I wonder if they wish they were my "fat."  Does that make sense?  I've (almost) moved away from the "no one loves me cuz I'm fat" mind set and replaced it with being grateful I'm not as fat as the lady across from me at Curves.  It's a weird kind of "things can always be worse, so stop complaining" way of thinking.

And just so you don't think I'm completely crazy, I have better body self image now at 36 than I ever did at 18 and I've added 60lbs to that original 20 (see body language pics below).  It's amazing what Faith, friends and a little therapy can do for a girl! :)

 

 

Resorting to Drastic Measures

Much to my surprise my office building re-opened Monday. ConocoPhillips decided to hold off moving their employees back in until we (IT and Tcom) verified that the network was up and running and that all printers were working properly, so my co-workers (the remote team and IT at the temp office location) and I walked each of my 9 floors Monday morning to verify. It was a little eerie being there with no one else on the floors.

With everything up and running employees began moving back in Tuesday and it has been nonstop chaos since! Overall it's been pretty seemless with only roughly 10 pc related problems that required fixing or replacing. Considering there are approximately 450 people in the building, I'm counting myself lucky!

But that's not to say working that many issues was a cake walk. My co-worker (actual guy who works with me at the office) and I have been BUSY --- hence the Mtn Dew! It's helped a little to wake me up, but I'm so ready for a day off and not just Saturday and Sunday. I need a vacation!!!

Did I mention my co-worker went on vacation with his fiance most of last week and Monday?? Yeah, he basically missed EVERYTHING! Ok, so he got back in time to help with the move in, but he got to miss all the stress of getting everyone setup at their temp location. The next disaster I'm taking vacation and he can deal with it! :)

Office Refugee

Ever had one of those days? Well, I’ve had one of those weeks!

That’s the below ground loading dock at the building where I work – four hours after it stopped raining Tuesday morning. Initially it was up over the road, in the parking garage and over the road behind the garage. The basement was completely flooded destroying all the electrical and HVAC in the building. I’ve spent the past 4 days relocating roughly 350 people to the building next door where 350 extra people don’t really fit! Lets just say there’s a lot of wiring running across a lot of floor space (taped down for safety).

Thankfully the IT guys had a little extra room in their area for me to pop a squat! Not that I’ve had much time to use it.

Oh, and my coworker (from the flooded building) went on vacation this week. I really hope he’s having a good time in San Francisco!!!!!!

Random pics of the flooding aftermath. The first is of Mayde Creek Bayou over by the house. It was up over the bridge until around 7 Tuesday morning. The rest are from Westheimer Parkway through George Bush Park as I was driving home today.

My Birthday – A Little Late

Well, the birthday wasn’t late;  I’m just late posting about it.

I can’t believe I didn’t get  pics from the party (except the cake)!  DER!  My dear friend Jeanette was totally awesome!  She sent out the invites, and  made my cake (seriously the yummiest cake and icing ever)! 

The pic above is of my awesome friend Ginny and her husband Drew.  I’ve known Ginny for forever!  Well, since Junior High anyway!  Ginny was planning on being at the party, but her boss had other plans so she and Drew took me out for lunch at the new 59 Diner that’s in the old Bennigan’s.  If you haven’t been, I suggest trying it.  We had breakfast and it was good!

The party was awesome.  I borrowed a projector from work, hooked my DVD player and computer speakers up to it and watched Mama Mia “widescreen” style while eating pizza.  Afterwards we dug into J’s gorgeous cake and made pigs of ourselves.  Oh wait, that was just me!  :)

Thank you everyone for the gift of friendship you give me every day (and for the gifts you brought)!

Downtown Tea Party

View Full Album

I’ve been a bit reluctant to post my pics from the Tea Party I attended on the 15th.  I uploaded a handful of them to my Facebook account and got hammered by a friend.  For years we haven’t seen eye to eye politically, but I thought they were tolerant enough to allow me my beliefs without calling me a hypocrite.  Guess I was wrong!

Anyway, whichever way your political pendulum swings, here are a few pics for your enjoyment and or ridicule.

Memo To Me

After three months of pretty much no caffeine (3 Cokes in 3 months), don't drink two Mountain Dew's after 5pm on a Sunday evening. Unless of course the goal is to lie awake until 2am. Then it's a great plan!

Side note: With only 4 (fairly lousy) hours of sleep, I'm surprised I'm as awake as I am. Two thirty this afternoon could bring a whole other story!

Mother Nature Is Awesome!

Link to AP article.

I was watching a show the other day called How The Earth Was Made and it was talking about Krakatoa and how when it erupted in 1883 that it was so massive it imploded on itself only leaving a small portion still visible above sea level. (As a side note: the eruption of Krakatoa is the loudest sound ever recorded) In December 1928 the volcano (then undersea) erupted in the same way as the volacano above. I tried finding the video online, but to no avail (seriously cool!). Since 1928, Anak Krakatau (Baby Krakatoa), has risen to almost 500ft. That's an average of 6 inches a year!! That is just amazing to me.

Anyway, just thought I'd share this random bit of news with you.

Memo to me: I need to call my friend to see if she's heard anything from her family in Tonga.