Damn

So here's the damage. I still haven't seen it in person because I enjoy being in denial sometimes. The car sat in the garage all weekend and should be in the at Bruce's Body Shop any minute now. We will find out pretty soon if Chris will be driving a rental car, but we got his truck a new battery this weekend just to be on the safe side. He is due a rental in any event, but we have this fantasy that we will get to drive the rental for our Christmas trip to Atlanta, which would be great because we weren't jazzed about getting dog hair in the new car. We also find it pretty ironic that this new 2010 car has yet to see the year 2010 and is already in the shop for body work. Meanwhile, we have two vehicles that are nearly a decade old and have yet to suffer the slightest dent.

Hit and Run

Stupid, stupid deer. Chris was on his way to Richmond to take an 8 am final exam when he slowed down for a deer in the road. Then out of nowhere another deer ran into his new car. The stupid deer ran away unscathed and left Chris' sideview mirror dangling. He couldn't tell if the door was damaged but he said it sounded different. I feel bad for him because on top of having to think about taking a final, now he has to think about possibly having to fix his new car. I'm dying for him to get out of his final so that I can find out if the car is okay or if it will need to go into the shop for repairs. This is bad. It could hamper our holiday plans. Stay tuned.

Thanksgiving 2009

The Goose is Getting Fat

We had a very nice Thanksgiving holiday. We had Dante for a couple of days while Christopher and Corbett were traveling. I don’t think Dante had any fun, but Jake and Ramona loved having him!!! I can’t read him at all. Sometimes he looks just miserable, and then when you catch his eye he begins whipping his tail around. Margie joined us for Thanksgiving Day, helping out with the meal. I took some pictures of the table and the little turkeys I made out of pinecones, marshmallows, leaves, peanut butter chips and holly berries. We haven’t uploaded them yet so you’ll have to take my word for it. On Friday we put up the tree and rearranged our living room and dining room and got a new area rug for the couch. It looks awesome now, but again, no photos to back it up. We scoured the Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales for a flat screen TV but alas, nothing really caught our eye that was worth the money so we’re staying with our fatty 37 incher. We also put up the lights outside; it officially feels like the holidays.

Our plan this season is to stay home and enjoy a cold and hopefully white Christmas. We’ll head down to Atlanta just after Christmas to spend some time with Kate, who will be out of school without any parental supervision…stupid jobs! We’re really looking forward to it because short of one measly sleepover we’ve never spent any time alone with her. Hopefully she will enjoy our company and doesn’t think we’re a couple of losers. Who knows, maybe we’ll get Sarah to skip daycare and paint the town a sparkly shade of pink. I’m very excited. A little scared, but mostly excited. Lisa’s birthday will land on that Tuesday and she took that day off. Hopefully we will not have worn out our welcome by New Years, because Mike and Lori will be in Atlanta on New Years Eve and The Avett Brothers will be playing the Fox Theatre on New Years Day. We’ll see what happens.

Time flies

I just realized that I haven't updated in two weeks. Where does time go? I feel like it was just Halloween and now I'm preparing for Thanksgiving. I also wrapped seven Christmas gifts this weekend. We had a couple of really cool undocumented occurrences, some of which I documented last year. I'll catch you up.

• Halloween - we dressed up and went to Red Rock (bar/lounge) with Amber and Jason and some friends of theirs. Chris and Jason were Angus Young and Brian Johnson of AC/DC. Amber, her sister Breeze and I were 80s aerobics instructors. It was a long night.
  
  
• Vikings vs. Packers - Big game. Watched it at home, screamed, was happy. My brother Joey goes to Green Bay to see this game every year with his friend Jason (from GB). Every year we worry about what shenanigans they will get into and hope they return in one piece. This year I got a call from him at around 9:45 pm EST. The game had ended a few hours earlier and he was still celebrating. He was telling me that he had befriended a couple at the stadium, about an hour or two into their conversation they realized that they live in the same area that we grew up in. Curious, they asked Joey exactly where. Joey started with the address, and after he finished, the husband took out his drivers license to show that they live in the same exact house that we did about 22 years ago. Same. Exact. House.
  
  
• Our FIFTH wedding anniversary - I called in sick so that I could spend the day with Chris. I honestly did feel sick, but decided to go to Richmond with Chris to spend a day in the life of a VCU Mechanical Engineering student. I spent an hour in the computer lab while he was in class, mostly Facebooking and instant messaging friends. Then we went to the bookstore and got some VCU garb and met up with his friends at a cute little Moroccan restaurant. We had to get back to school so Chris could attend his lab, then we went home. I was POOPED at the end of the day. It felt like an honest to God road trip. Then we went out to dinner at the Blue Talon. My tummy wasn't enjoying the evening, but I was still happy.
  
  
• Juliet came to visit - the day after our anniversary we had company from Boston. I was still sick, but we managed to spend some QT at home and went out to pick up some food to cook some Cuban food. I passed out on the couch that night, and the next morning I woke up to find Juliet in the kitchen whipping up some killer food. We went out for mani/pedis and when we came home there was a full-on party. Yum.
  
  
• Nor'Easter - We had a pretty rough storm this week. We were released early on Thursday and went home to...watch TV. I was lucky enough to get through all of 30 Rock, when just after 10 pm, as though I was being sent to bed, the power went out. The next morning it was still out, and though we had a 2-hour delay at work, I headed out to get the dogs to the vet by 9:00 am. I worked a full day, picked up the dogs and headed back home only to find that the power was still out. When Chris returned home from school, we passed out on the bed until our hungry tummies woke us up. We picked up Christopher and went to dinner. When we came home later that night we found that the power was back! It had been out for 24 hours.
  
  
• Alex's birthday - He turned 34 this year. I sent him a card.
  
  
• Vikings game - I started watching Minnesota Vikings football this season. Yesterday I realized that it wasn't playing in my area so called my brother Joey to out a little ask him what I can do. He was kind enough to let me use his sports package from DirecTV and I watched the game online, with the laptop hooked up to the TV. Happy day. They beat the Lions. :P What a nice guy Joey is!
  
  
• Lola - Last but certainly not least, the Drueke family lost an important member. It was a devastating blow, and it was all so unexpected. She was Chris' brother's family dog, a beautiful white and brown rescued Boxer. My first memory of Lola was when we visited their home in Atlanta one Thanksgiving. We had left for the day, and when we returned she had eaten my disposable camera. I tried to be angry, but she had a face that could let her get away with anything. Last year we brought our own dogs to Atlanta to visit at Thanksgiving, and they managed to get along pretty quickly with a couple of rumblings here and there. When we returned in December, the three dogs were a pack. Having lost family pets myself, I can share in their pain. We will miss her forever.

Help! I'm becoming THAT person.

For health reasons I'm gradually quitting meat and cutting way back on dairy which means I'm am having a hard time eating. We've had the same 3 or 4 meals for the past month and a half and we're getting bored. I am looking for some good meatless recipes. I like beans and Morningstar Farms fake meat/chicken but I do not like eggplant or okra. Anyone? Best entries will receive a small prize.

What we already know:
Salad with morningstar farms chicken
Cheese/Spinach/Mushroom Ravioli/Tortellini with sauce
Vegetable Pizza

It's not nice to laugh at people who don't speak English as a first language.

Last week I was on the phone with my mom and the following conversation transpired:

Mom: I’m watching a movie on AMC.
Me: What movie?
Mom: Shot Gun.
Me: I’ve never heard of it.
Mom: Yes you have. You know the one with the guy with the dark hair and blue eyes.
Me: TOP Gun! That’s Tom Cruise.
Mom: Oh, it’s called Top Gun? I didn’t know.

This past Sunday Chris and I were laughing about that scenario (because Mom is just so cute) and the following conversation transpired:

Me: Guess what movie was just on.
Chris: I don’t know. What?
Me: I’ll give you a hint. Thee movie with thee guy with thee dark hair and thee blue eyes.
Chris: Oh, ha ha.
Me: “Shot Gun”. “No Mom, its HOT Gun.”
Chris: HOT Gun? Ha ha ha!
Me: I mean TOP Gun! TOP GUN!

Drugs?

The weather has been changing and during the fall is when I have the worst of sinus headaches. It started Thursday, and it was pretty manageable. Driving home from work I felt what seemed like the beginning of a migraine so I took some Maximum Strength Benadryl and crept into bed with the drapes drawn. About 20 minutes into my nap I got a text from Amber reminding me that we had a shopping date, so I slept about an hour more and went shopping high like a crackhead. I slept like a baby that night, but woke up Friday morning with a lingering headache, so I took Excedrin Sinus. It helped a little. I went home early from work and took the real deal Sudafed. I went down for about an hour, and woke up but I wasn't very coherent. I tried to read and play Solitaire online, neither of which I was very successful at. The whole evening was a blur, and when I got into bed I realized after I scratched my legs that my nails were cut and I had no memory of cutting them. When I woke up at 6:00 am on Saturday morning, I had a full-blown migraine-type headache with stuffy nose and went in for the Maximum Strength Benadryl and passed out until my mom phoned in at 12:15 pm. I spent the rest of the day in bed trying to watch How I Met Your Mother on DVD, but my head was still paining, so it was difficult. Chris joined me eventually (and is officially hooked) and when the episode about the World's Best Burger was on we decided to go to Shackelford's for Williamsburg's best burger, but I only ate half because I was still not feeling great. Sunday was better, and I went the whole day without taking any drugs other than Afrin until around 10:30 pm when I realized that I was going to need to breathe just a little better and really needed to sleep. Monday morning proved difficult to get out of bed, but I did, and made it to my annual evaluation. I was very, very loopy still from the medicine, but could breathe and didn't have a headache. I don't recall much, other than something about my "attitude" and working on communication. They also want to have lunch with me more often. Who knows why. And if I have to spend my lunch break eating with my 50 year old superiors, I'm going to need to leave an hour early, because that is a working lunch, even if we are talking about puking cats. So...what was I talking about? Drugs?

Not necessarily the news

Every once in a while I check my own blog to see if it's been updated and it usually is not. Why is there not a blog fairy that updates for me? Real cool stuff is happening. Last night I accompanied Amber to the mall to get her new stuff for her anniversary trip to Europe even though there really wasn't anything I needed. She didn't find one thing. I, on the other hand, found the coolest pair of riding boots in the clearance section and a gorgeous new teal scarf. Oh yeah, I wear scarves now. I told her not to get down about it. You never really find anything when you need it. Only when you don't need it. Only when you really should wait until the next credit card cycle. Even if they were the last pair left! Of course, now I really need a new pair of skinny jeans or a cute plaid dress and black tights. You see, this is the problem with shopping. The more you buy the more you need. Too bad she wasn't shopping for a new job.

Celebrate good times, come on!

Last Weekend:

• Went to Boston to visit Juliet for her birthday (cheap flight thanks to Airtran)
• Got pedicures at Melt
• Got an 80 minute Bella Provence scrub/massage at Bella Santé
• Upgraded to business class for return flight
• Return flight delayed 2 hours
• Found out about delayed flight after I got through security
• Glad I upgraded

This Weekend:

• Ornit came to visit
• Got a 60 minute espresso scrub/massage at the Spa at Williamsburg Inn
• Visited Monticello in Charlottesville again (second time this year)
• Went to Maymont in Richmond
• Read a lot more of the Mötley Crüe book, The Dirt
• Caught up on sleep
• Began the transition to black American Coffee (Need to find a good one. Recommendations accepted.)

For Shame

I just spent $50.11 at Target on chocolate.

Target Thinks I have a Baby

Within the past year or so I have known about 13 people to be pregnant and thus I've been to handful of showers and mailed another handful of gifts. I've been looking at baby registries online and making many baby purchases from Target because I don't really care for Babies R Us. I noticed recently that every time I go to Target's website, there are a bunch of baby products on the front page. I also noticed that every time I make a purchase at Target, I invariably get a coupon for $1 off Huggies, or $1 off Dreft. I really need Target to know that not only do I not have a baby, what I really need is $1 off Purina or $1 Neutrogena, like the good old days.

Spread the joy!

Only 112 days left until Christmas! We're still trying to figure out if our annual trip to Miami is going to happen after all, since the governor just announced a $6M budget cut for my employer. We're not sure it makes sense to just drop about a thousand bucks on travel. I am thankful that we have great friends and family that have made the journey to visit us this year and hope they all understand if we don't return the favor just yet. This also means that our 5-year anniversary trip that we started planning last night will also be scrapped. Normally I would use this as an excuse to start drinking, but I can't even do that now because of my medication.

Good Morning, Sunshine!

HANGOVER

Friday night Chris and I went out with Amber and ended up at the Movie Tavern to see The Hangover. We'd already seen it, but Amber hadn't. It's awesome. Even better was the fact that Chris discovered the "Tanker", 32 ounces of premium beer. You can hardly hold it with one hand. In fact, you're not allowed to order two at the counter because they don't think you can carry it to the theater alone. I didn't partake because I could never hold that much beer without having to pee several thousand times. It was a good thing because I ended up having to drive home. Turns out that Chris got drunk. And guess what he was the next morning. That's right, HUNGOVER. Except he didn't steal a police car or Mike Tyson's tiger.

By the way, Chris, who HATES going to the movies is so excited about this new theater because he can drink beer. Now I have a movie date, but I have to see a movie in an office chair that doesn't recline. It's all about compromises.

The Parking Situation at Ukrops

Dad, Mötley Crüe and the End of Summer

It’s been a long two weeks, but time has just flown by. Last week Dad was in town, and it was our only time off for summer vacation this year. We had planned on taking him out of town for a day trip or two, but he had plans of his own. Chris managed to capture some it with his new camera. I'm going to be citing his blog entries because he's already posted the pictures.

Chris got us all (me, dad and Margie) on the guest list for a tour of NASA Langley Research Center. We got to see planes up close, planes taking off and other planes landing. It was great to meet all of Chris’ superiors at his internship on what was to be his last day. They really like him there and were very vocal about their desire to see him back next year. Fingers crossed.

We hated our oak built-in book case and entertainment center. Dad encouraged the project (to remove, sand, prime, paint and re-install) and was a great foreman. After all the dust, smoke and sweat we put all of ourselves into it and after three days we were very pleased with the results. Turns out that the biggest pain was sanding the doors, and at the end of it all we decided it looked better without them. Good to know.

We hit up a couple of really cool restaurants in Williamsburg. Shackelfords, Pierce’s, the Marina at Kingsmill, Nawab and the Fat Canary. Turns out Dad is a simple dinner kind of guy. He didn’t like his meal at the Fat Canary, but loved his burger from Shackleford’s and his pulled pork barbecue sandwich at Pierce’s. Also good to know.

We dropped Dad off at 6:15 am on Wednesday at Richmond International Airport and drove back home to sleep in on what would be our last day of summer. Chris started school again on Thursday and I went back to work.

Come Friday we were exhausted from the week but managed to muster up some energy to accompany Amber, Breeze and Dennis to Crüe Fest 2. I loved Mötley Crüe growing up, but managed to never see them. Turns out they’re not that good. I was excited to fulfill a childhood concert though. I think it would have been better if Tommy Lee wasn’t injured because he didn't play (and they usually have elaborate moving drumset displays), but his fill-in was good, technically. Turns out TL holds all of the on-stage charisma. He got on the mic and addressed the crowd with his obnoxious banter, and that was the most reaction the band ever got from the crowd. The biggest laugh came when he said, “What’s up,Vagina Beach?!” Haha, get it? Virginia Beach/Vagina Beach? Yes, and although he is kind of douchey, he is not nearly as bad as Vince Neil. I have never seen anyone kill (in a bad way) awesome songs as VN did. "Shout at the Devil", my favorite, was unrecognizable and quite terrible. Surprisingly, we left early and I was disappointed. I wanted to witness the entire train wreck from start to finish, but we needed a ride out of there. In all, it was fun because we were in good company sans the sweaty meatheads with neck tattoos. Next stop was Red Rock Lounge to watch Jason’s band, and we were out of there after last call.

Saturday was really our day to recover. We ran some errands and had Christopher and Corbett over for drinks. Yesterday Chris and I rode our bikes again out to Chickahominy State Park and back, then went to the Ford’s Colony pool and went home. Now it’s time to start another week. I need a vacation.

Highlights and non-sequiturs

Last Tuesday Chris took his Nasa flight. I was a nervous wreck, but he landed safely. I got notice that I could see his plane flying over College Creek at around 12:30. This was great because that’s where I go sometimes to eat my lunch. Christopher and I got together and drove out there and sat in the car eating our lunches while the landscapers mowed and blew debris in the car. We saw a Cessna two or three times and a helicopter twice. I came to find out later on that Chris never even took off until after 2:00, so we were waving at strangers the whole time. Oh well. It wasn’t a total waste because we got to catch about 15 minutes of the Thomas Jefferson hour. Clay Jenkinson is a staple of my Tuesday lunch. His voice is very soothing.


This past weekend we took a five-hour drive to Charlotte to see Mike play with the Avett Brothers at the Bojangles Coliseum. It is always great to see Mike. We have a lot of fun reminiscing about Kendall. The most remarkable part of the trip was actual concert. I had never seen the Avett Brothers before, and I was thoroughly impressed with their performance. I’m a new fan.

We got to talking with Seth (an Avett Brother), and it turns out that his wife is from Williamsburg. We got on the topic of Pierce’s, which we all agreed was our fave in Williamsburg, and he mentioned that his favorite BBQ place in NC was Lexington Barbecue. Chris and I got the address to Lexington Barbecue and arrived at lunch time, only to find that they are closed on Sundays. We were disappointed, but didn’t give up completely. Our Garmin navigator told us about another place named John Wayne’s Barbecue, just minutes away. It looked really cool from the outside. We sat down for lunch and immediately fell in love. It was a true slice of Americana, straight out of a Norman Rockwell painting. The food was sloppy and not nearly as good as the barbecue I’m used to, but the trip was made worth it when a cute, unassuming late-teenaged girl was on her way out with her boyfriend. Apparently everyone knows everyone in Lexington. As the girl approached the front of the restaurant, she was stopped by the main waitress and was asked, “Megan! What are you wearing!?” The girl said, “It’s a dress”. The waitress said, “Everyone can see your butt.” In reality, it wasn’t that short. It was just gathered a few inches below her butt. But Megan was young. She could pull it off. The waitress demanded to know where she was going dressed like that. The girl responded, “To church. And I wore it out last night too.” The waitress rebutted with, “You went to church dressed in that dress?! You better go again!” The room erupted in giggles. Chris and I were in stitches, but I felt embarrassed for the poor girl. After she made her exit, the waitress went to a table and said to the man, “Can you believe that Megan went to church in that dress?” and the man said, “It must be a non-denominational church”.

Dad is coming on Thursday. I have this strange feeling like I need to clean my room and finish my homework. He’s going to be here for 5 whole days. I hope we have enough to do. We’re thinking about a day trip or a home renovation project. Either way I need to stock up on wine.

TGIF

I brought the wrong keys to work today. Instead, I brought the set of spares. I could drive any car we own, but I cannot access any of my files or my banana. If I don’t go home during lunch, I will find a dead banana on Monday morning and will be responsible for fruit flies in the new building.

The AC at work is not functioning. It is currently 84° F inside, and outside it is 75° F, Overcast, Winds NE at 0 mph, and 99% humidity. I cranked up my fan and opened a window. There is no screen, so we have to pray that nothing flies in. My hair is slowly but surely turning into Diana Ross.

This morning I decided to wear a black t-shirt with puffy sleeves, khakis from the Gap and black loafers. Apparently so did Sue. So maybe I’ll change clothes when I get home for lunch. After all I will need to change out of my sweaty clothes.

Getting My Groove Back?

The past few weeks have been a blur. It came to my attention this morning that we are more than half way through July. Where has the time gone? I think I have some explanations. Brace yourself, because I’m feeling like I have some nonsense to talk.

First week of July, the Mason School of Business moved from Tyler Hall, Blow Hall and Governor Berkeley to Miller Hall. It is a grotesquely huge building. I can’t tell if I’m offended by its enormity, but nonetheless my quality of life here at work has improved tenfold. You can’t tell because it is impossible to capture the awesomeness of my workspace in picture, but I have three mid-thigh-to-ceiling windows that look out onto Jamestown Road. This is a remarkable change from the prison cell that was my office. The only thing that I have to contend with here now is audio space. I’ve learned to silence my cell phone and only take work-related calls at my desk. I’ve become a wiz at texting. I run a fan for white noise and sometimes play “A Jaunt to Hawaii” on my iPod, a track that sounds like waves crashing on the beach with the occasional seagull. Sometimes it makes me have to pee, but that’s the price you pay for sanity.

Last week I had to break up with my personal trainer for schedule and financial reasons, something that I’ve avoided for quite some time. We just purchased a new car and have to replace our front porch; the break-up seemed like a responsible step. Since then I’ve gone into a little bit of a mourning period. Chris decided that we need to keep active, so we are riding our bikes almost every day. We try to ride for at least 30 minutes. Last Saturday we rode from home to the Chickahominy bridge which took about an hour. Yesterday we rode to Jamestowne Island, which took around the same time. During the week we stick to the trail or kind of mosey around the neighborhoods. The only problem that we’re facing is the bugs at night. I’ve learned that if you wear a hat (we don’t have helmets yet) and keep your mouth closed at all times you’ll survive without incident. Chewing gum helps too. Another key to keeping fit without a trainer is eating well. Chris and I decided that since we’re so active now, we needed to eat Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream for dessert and banana bread for breakfast. I like the way we think. We’ll see how long this lasts. Maybe when none of my pants fit me anymore we’ll rethink this junk food for exercise strategy.

Also, I realized that I’ve been wearing socks and shoes every day to work instead of my cute sandals, which has been a drag. The reason? I’ve been neglecting my toes. I’ve been thinking about a pedicure for weeks but somehow I haven’t had the time. Also, while the Miami Druekes were in town, I cashed out my favorite nail color. This weekend I replaced it with a new color, which is really cute, like tropical punch and did my own at-home pedicure. (It’s amazing how much happier I am when my toenails are painted!) I figure I only have about a month and a half left to display my cute little piggies because come fall, I’m going to be rocking my new black leather booties with a square point. This new building inspires sharp-dressing, and this fashionista want to play! So…about that job…

Sick of Looking at Michael Jackson?

Here's Sonya with my little sisters! "We're just two girls and we're having a good time, having a good time, having a good time. We're just to girls and we're having a good time..."

Michael Jackson

1958-2009

Big News

Most of you know that Chris and I have been talking about expanding. After five years of marriage, we are very proud to announce our newest addition, a 2010 Toyota Corolla. I know...this is huge. I'll give you time to let it sink in. Pictures to follow.

Outside My Window...

Something I had to learn the hard way

Do not mix Kashi Go Lean Crunch (aka Colon Blow) with Activia. Unless you enjoy extreme bloating and cramping.

What did you expect?

Today is Chris' orientation at Nasa. I just got a text from him that made me laugh out loud:

Two things: 1. I am old. 2. There are DORKS everywhere.

This Memorial Day Weekend

• Bid adieu to Kat Wiseman, our best employee. We foolishly let her slip away and will rue the day. We sat at the train station waiting for her hubby to arrive to help her pack up and go. It was beautiful. If you've never waited for a train in Williambsurg you are stupid. It's great.
  
  
• Had Christopher over for dinner. He then introduced us to Spongebob Squarepants, which is not unlike being high on drugs (I think). I, in turn, introduced him to Chelsea Handler. He was the victor, in my opinion. The key to watching Chelsea Lately is to skip the nervous monologues and go straight for the panel discussions. It's funny.
  
  
• We were going to try to get to the Ford's Colony pool for opening weekend, but the sun just wouldn't commit. While waiting for the rain that never came, we decided to go out for food to barbecue. Then the Kytes came over and we drank our weight in beer.
  
  
• Watched Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist. Easily the best movie I've seen this year. I can't believe we waited this long for it. It brought me back to the days when I gave a crap about music and shows. It was like, woah. Super funny. It reminded me of 200 Cigarettes in that it was a scavenger hunt of sorts (the friend and the band) and Almost Famous with the freakish love for the band and the super awesome soundtrack. I love Mark Mothersbaugh.
  
  
• Went to Pancho Villa with the Kytes. Never going back again. The new fat waiter with braces found out that I speak Spanish and wouldn't stop talking to me. Upon learning my name, he had the entire staff talking to me and singing my name in the kitchen. It was as though there was no manager on duty. That's what I get for suggesting that the Kytes recruit one of them for lawncare. Karma.
  
  
• Watched Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle. Made me think about drugs and how Neil Patrick Harris is so perfect for pulling off "asshole". I love him! Also, Chris and I realized two things: 1) Kumar looks exactly like Zach Braff, except Indian and 2) all of the villians in the movie are caucasian. All of them. Hmmm.
  
  
• Went to a bar to watch a cover band. Consumed way too much beer. Amber and I were putting chalk handprints all over each other. Then someone called it a night and I passed out in the car on the way home. Also, I wore contacts. Brilliant on my part: contacts that naturally feel uncomfortable+smoke+late night=sucks.
  
  
• Made breakfast burritos again (made them every morning all weekend).
  
  
• Watched Nick and Norah (again), then watched Baby Mama (again).
  
  
• Did laundry and cleaned the house for a short work week. Yes! More to follow?

GREAT Weekend.

This will be short because I'm very tired. Joey and Patty came this weekend, and we drank a lot. We also walked a lot and it rained a lot. But mostly we drank a lot. Beer mostly. We had a ton of fun and they missed Penny. I miss them now. Hopefully they will come back. In a nutshell:

• Greenleafe (the old one) BTW, try the chili...trust me ;)
  
• Prime Outlets/Alewerks
  
• Riverwalk in Yorktown
• Monticello
• Ash Lawn (gift shop)
• Jefferson Winery
• Ichban
• Rita's
• The Blue Talon
• Short Pump H&M
• Legends Brewery (yuck)
• Edgar Allen Poe Museum
• Richbrau (yum)

This Weekend

• Christopher’s Birthday – Yes his birthday was weeks ago. Chris and I took him to Carrabba’s and got him the Snuggie, or as we call it, the Slanket (if you watch 30 Rock). We took turns wearing it at the table. After dinner we went to his house and watched The Soup.
  
  
• Dana’s baby shower – My trainer is expecting boy and girl twins at the end of June. She is HUGE. I’m enjoying seeing her expand, especially since it’s the only time in my life when I can be skinnier than her! The shower was held at another trainer Lori’s house which was tucked away in the woods. They had a killer infinity pool overlooking a lake. She got a ton of gifts and it was a good excuse to wear a cute outfit. Everything was served on silver, including an awesome punch (tasted like champagne and rum with floating strawberries). We got a good buzz on and sat by the pool watching all the gifts open.
  
  
• Hooters – once the sky looked like it was going to open up, Amber and I left the shower and headed to Hooters to continue the party. Chris and Jason met up with us and we chewed on some chicken. I don’t know what it is about those wings, but it makes it worth it to sit around with sleazeballs chain-smoking and ogling the wait staff, and the pimps disguised as managers. I try not to judge. Oops. I’ve said too much.
  
  
• Karaoke at Jason & Amber’s – We ditched Hooters and took the party to Jason and Amber’s. Jason has joined a cover band that will be gigging very soon. He is still practicing all of the songs, and since the mics are all set up we got rocking. We had a special moment, specifically when the entire room was singing “Bohemian Rhapsody” – what is the DEAL with that song!? We had a frigging blast. We also played an interactive Music game, which Chris and I destroyed. Don’t mess with us and music. You’re going down. Sorry. As it turns out, it's only fun for Chris and me.
  
  
• Shopping – I did a great deal of shopping this weekend. Mostly for babies. (My BFF since 7th grade is due next week and I haven't gotten her anything yet. I haven't even gotten her a wedding gift yet, and she got married 2 years ago, so I feel like I have to make up for it.) Ever since my niece Kate was a mere fetus I got a great kick out of shopping for babies. My emotions take over and lose my ability to control spending. If you’re a kid, it’s very possible that you can expect gift in the mail this week too, I’m just sayin. Oh yeah, and I wrapped EVERYTHING, and FYI, this includes baby gifts, dad’s birthday and mother’s day. I’m pooped.
  
  
• Finals – Chris spent a good chunk of his weekend studying. He has one final today and his LAST FINAL ON THURSDAY!!
  
  
• NASA – There is a good chance that Chris will be doing an internship with NASA this summer. A good friend of mine here at work hooked us right up with this – and all I had to do was ask. Her husband works for the EPA, contracted through NASA and is setting this thing up especially for Chris. Please keep him in your thoughts, as this is SO important to him/us. I don’t know which one of us is more excited.
  
  
• Summer Visits – Last but not least, we got word this weekend that the Miami Druekes purchased their airfare for 4th of July week. YES! Joey and Patty are still working on purchasing their airfare for May 15th weekend. Good stuff to look forward to.

Twenty. More. Minutes.

I can’t concentrate. I have had a full workload here and I’ve had enough but I still can’t leave for a little while. It’s that time of year when the Faculty have to spend their money or they lose it, so I’m exhausted. It will only get worse by the end of the week. Also, I have become an expert eavesdropper and have heard some unsettling things that I choose to not let get to me. I’ve heard something about layoffs twice in the past week but we’re also hiring two new people. I must exert all of my energy on things that make me happy, like Chris, food and shopping. When I leave this place, I’ll be going to Ann Taylor Loft so that I can use my birthday gift certificate. I waited until Friends and Family so that I could get 30% off. Maybe I’ll get two things. Then I’m going to have dinner with Chris for the second night in a row when he won’t be leaving me for homework. He’s even doing dishes now. One more week and the semester will be over. I think my head’s going to explode.

Thanks for Nothing!

I’m a loser. I have lived here for almost four years and I still don’t have a physician. I went home sick on Tuesday with a certain painful ailment and went to Urgent Care on Wednesday morning. I almost always go to Urgent Care because you don’t need an appointment. They took a specimen sample and sent me off with an antibiotic, Bactrim. They told me they’d call me tomorrow (Thursday) with the results. I wasn’t feeling any better on Thursday so I thought I’d give them a call myself to get these darn results. I was told that it was too soon, and they’d give me a call on Saturday.

Thursday night I was getting ready to go to bed early because Chris had a final very early in the morning and we would have to wake up at 5:30 am. The thought of going to bed was not sitting well with me because I knew I was not going to be able to get through the night so I opted to go to the emergency room. I know, Thursday night, ER…but that got cancelled! On the way over I mentioned to Chris that I hated the fact that I was on Bactrim because I had been on it for two years due to a very stupid dermatologist. (I decided after two years that I didn’t want to be on antibiotics anymore so I went off it and stopped seeing him.) I wouldn’t be surprised if I needed to be on another antibiotic.

We arrived at a packed ER and when I was finally called into triage, I mentioned to the nurse that I had my suspicions about the Bactrim and she said it could be true. They took another specimen sample and two vials of blood. I have a gorgeous bruise on my hand now thanks to my cool young doctor who almost left the room without removing my tourniquet. When I asked her if she wanted it back she tried to take it off with one hand – she had something in her other hand. She didn’t succeed at removing it, but she did succeed at ripping off a fair amount of arm hair. I offered to take it off myself with success. After a while of exchanging bitchy comments, she decided to – get this: stop Bactrim and start Cipro. She also offered one Vicodin so that I could sleep. On our way out, she gave me one Cipro pill and two Vicodins because I’m cool (her words, not mine).

I picked up the prescription on Friday and since then had begun feeling better, but I’m still extremely tired. I was sitting at my desk today and noticed that I missed a call. The voicemail said that it was the Urgent Care (from Wednesday) and that they need me to call immediately. I did. I got a series of girls who once they had my name and birthdate said “Oh, um….can you hold?”. The fifth or sixth person I got said “Oh, uh…so we got your results, and the bacteria you have is resistant to Bactrim. We need you to come in and get a prescription for Cipro”. I feel bad, but I laughed out loud. I said, “Thanks, but that won’t be necessary. I went to the ER on Thursday night and got my Cipro.” She said, “We’re very sorry you had to go to the ER. Is there anything else we can do for you?” I said, “Thanks for NOTHING, you Idiot! You owe me $29!” Just kidding. I didn’t say that. But I wanted to.

Why we love Corbett

Happy Birthday to Chris!

Today is Chris' 33rd birthday (I know, he doesn't look a day over 6). To commemorate, I thought about writing 33 interesting facts about him, but I'm so tired, so maybe some other time. We both had to work/school, but I took the night off from the gym so that we could have dinner together, so I picked up a Spinach, Feta and Tomato pizza from Paul's Deli and we ate it in the sun room with Margie. It was great to sit and eat and laugh while the sun was setting around us. Later we came in and Chris decided it wasn't time yet to start homework, so instead we watched Chuck. Now it's time. The good thing about getting pizza is that there were no dishes. That makes me happy. Not so happy is that they guy is exhausted and sitting in a room doing homework on his friggin' birthday. Thanks to Amber, I have started asking myself what his textbooks have that I don't have and have fantasized about planting photos of myself in his books to see if he would notice. Only 767 days.

One thing I found out today that was sort of interesting is that Chris shares a birthday with two other good-looking guys: Paul Rudd and Zach Braff. Coincidence? Who knows. Of the three hotties born on this day I know I got the smartest, wittiest, charmingest, cleverest and most considerate. I doubt Paul Rudd's wife can say that she still gets doors opened for her every day and gets coffee made for her every morning. And Zach Braff aint even married, probably because he's not all that great. I win, I win. In lesser hottie news, Candace Cameron Bure, aka DJ from Full House was born on the very same day as Chris. Also born on this day in different years are Billy Dee Williams and John Ratzenberger.

Giveaway!

I am giving away a brand new set of mini lipglosses that I received from Sephora "for my birthday". I know, they're adorable but I don't wear gloss...call me old fashioned, ungrateful even. I have too much crap sitting in my bathroom getting old and taking up space. Besides, this gift was so impersonal. If they really knew me they would have given me a new eyelash curler. Sigh.

Rules:

• Leave your favorite line from "16 Candles" or "Revenge of the Nerds" as a comment and I will pick my favorite quote randomly...I think...if anyone is even interested in this garbage.
• Deadline is next week, Tuesday April 7.
• If you're selected, you will have to give me your mailing address. I'll even pay for shipping. You're welcome.
• No anonymous comments will be counted as an entry.

Gifts I received that I am NOT giving away because they are TOO awesome :

• Ann Taylor Loft gift card
• Aromatherapy neckwrap
• Blazer
• Bodyfit session
• Body lotion
• Breville Juice Fountain Plus
• Brooch
• Candles
• Forever 21 dress
• Harry & David chocolate bars - YUM
• HOME MADE vanilla extract - YUM
• L.A. Burdick chocolates -YUM
• Victoria's Secret lotion/spray/body wash set

(I'm pretty sure I sent out thank you cards to everyone, but if I didn't, THANK YOU!)

Juice

It's a baby!

Many of you have heard me comment on how everyone ever is pregnant this year. My friend Stacie was the second person that I found out about (not including celebrities), and her little guy Davin is the fourth baby to be born of this year's baby boom according to me. There are still about ten babies to be born from May until August - that I know of. I am very excited that Davin is finally here, though. He's very cute. If he's anything like his mom, he'll be a knockout and killer dancer with a sassy mouth. Just don't get in the car with him because he is going to be a terrible driver.

Spring Break! WHOOO!

Friday: After work I came home and the weather was just right to enjoy a beer on the deck with Chris. There was just one problem: We didn't have any fire wood. The crappy logs that we had lying around weren't cutting the mustard.
So Chris grabbed his axe and started messing up a little tree in the backyard.
My little lumberjack took care of business.

Got the fire started. Yes! Just in time to wrap it up and go to bed.

Saturday: We had planned on taking a quick respite to the DC area to get away from home, work school, dogs, etc.
Here we are in front of the Thomas Jefferson Memorial. Chris had never been, and I hadn't been since high school. I was too bratty to care about a stupid monument of George Jefferson...I mean...whatever. Green Day Rules!

This is our view of the dang thing from our parking space. It makes you want to punch a tree. Frigging beautiful.

Here's Chris inside the monument. TJ is friggin HUGE.

Ever the good engineering student, Chris is making sure everything is up to code. He would hate to close the place down.

We found the FDR memorial. I had no idea this place existed. Judging by the shininess of FDR's finger, I decided that the popular thing to do was pull his finger. I opted to take the classier route and pose with his dog. Next time.

Here's Chris in line for food.

I joined a depressed couple. It was depressing.

This is nothing. After we left the mall, we went to the actual mall at Crystal City, where we got a few things. Then we went to Tyson's Corner to eat dinner at Gordon Biersch, our favorite chain. It's a tradition.

Sunday: We got up early and got our free continental breakfast and drove around the city for a little while. We decided to go to the American History Museum. It was under renovation last year so we thought we'd check out the new exhibits.

Here's Chis Colbert. Nice. We were a little disappointed with the new displays. They removed some really cool stuff. One thing that blew us away was the new Lincoln exhibit. Totally worth the trip, but also completely crowded.

After the museum we attempted to go to Ben's Chili Bowl, a popular tourist restaurant. It was packed, so we kept going. On our way out of town we saw this awesome Obama t-shirt. I would have purchased one for Christopher (who kindly watched our mutts) but...I have no excuse.

Here is Marine One. We are pretty sure that Mr. President was inside both times we saw it today. Perhaps he was going to pick up his dry cleaning for the week. It is Sunday, afterall.

We also decided to visit Mt. Vernon on the way home. We didn't take any pictures because we didn't actually pay to take the tour. We didn't pay for anything except food and the crap we bought in the shopping mall. We did have a great lunch at Mt. Vernon. We'll come back real soon.