Jaaaaaaaaaava chip

Sunday was a success... First, I walked 3 miles on the treadmill while reading. Then, some apprentices met for Korean food and then we stopped by Baskin Robbins to enjoy some good old-fashioned dessert. When I got back from that gathering, my fraaaaaaand came over to help film more of my fundraising video. This time we got video of me doing mainly non-treatmenty things, like brushing my teeth, getting in my car, etc. We also went over to the fitness center and got video of me running on the treadmill. I ran about a mile in the time that I was being filmed and then realized afterwards: 'Hey, I just ran on the treadmill and it didn't hurt my SC joint once.' So, I was really excited! As far as the video goes, I can't wait to see how it comes along. I'm ready to start fundraising BIG-TIME! (Then we ate Mexican food!)

Monday I got up for work and was just lagging big-time. I dont know what's gotten into me, but I have just been feeling so run-down. I started feeling progressively worse on Sunday and, knowing that I'd been outside a decent bit, I decided to look up the pollen counts. Believe it or not, they were high, so I attributed some of the sneezing and itchiness to that. Monday I felt so weak. Things that are usually effortless required significant determination. So, I was a little concerned considering my show on Thursday, which I've been looking forward to for what feels like FOREVER!

Rehearsal on Monday night went well, but when I got up this morning, I just couldn't go to work. I ended up working from home in bed all day. I didn't feel nearly as weak as the day progressed. It was nice to get to be immobile and minimize the stress and distraction. By the end of the work day, I was feeling pretty good and pretty confident that maybe I wasn't catching anything after all. So, I went up to the fitness center to try to destroy anything that could be plaguing me. Much to my surprise, I ran three miles and walked one. I stopped at each mile point and got some water because I was feeling dehydrated, but I was pretty pleased. Again, no pain in the SC joint! Somebody might be unstoppable!

This evening I did my vest for a little while. I also finished up the letters that I was writing for the CFF. I hope they are on-target. I was pretty pleased with them and rewarded myself with a little bowl of java chip ice cream. I was holding that over my head as a bribe, knowing that it would motivate me to seal the deal on the letters. I want projects like that to be so unbelievably phenomenal that I tend to drag them longer than I should... thinking I'll have a revelation, etc.

Anyway, today was a big success. Tomorrow's Wednesday and then Thursday? It's showtime!!!!

Kick it to the curb

So, Thursday was an eventful day; that Cortisone injection made it more painful than I imagined. I took some Aleve in the morning, hoping that the soreness would wear off as the day continued. However, I was horribly wrong. By 2:00 p.m. when the pain wasn't subsiding any, I decided to take half of a Vicodin. I'll tell you that definitely did a trick or two. I was at least able to relax a bit, so my shoulder stopped twitching and my neck loosened up a bit.

I met a friend at El Azteca before Thursday night's show. Dinner got started a little late considering the zebra running around on the Downtown Connector, which held up traffic quite a bit (it's no wonder Atlanta was just ranked third in the worst traffic among metro areas). Anyway, we had to move quickly, but we got in some good catching-up before we headed to the improv show. It was super-fun being spectators together, and the show was quite amusing!

I was relieved to work at home Friday so that I didn't have to sit up in a chair and/or walk around as much. Thankfully, I woke up Friday feeling remarkably less sore, but it was still nice to get to work from bed. I got a lot accomplished before I headed downtown to meet a friend at Willy's. We were both on the volunteer schedule, so we got to visit over dinner before we went to fulfill our duties. I was originally slated as the camera girl with her doing suggestions, but we flipped responsibilities since I knew my SC joint wasn't going to be happy about having to work the camera.

Today has been a really lazy day. I'm not sure if I'm just exhausted or if I'm still kind of fighting something, but I haven't felt up to much today. I slept in pretty late, which was nice since it's been a pretty jam-packed week. My mom ended up heading this way and we went to the Goodwill to do a little character-outfit shopping. I got a few good things to solidify some characters. Then we swung by El Toro (third Mexican reference in this post - I also forgot to say I had Willy's for lunch Thursday) and ate a late lunch.

This evening I haven't accomplished much. I dozed off for over an hour. I tried cleaning up a bit, too, but that didn't work out quite as planned. I got a bath, which was nice, but honestly I have no idea where the night has gone. All I know is that I'm feeling pretty drained.

Tomorrow I think some of the apprentice actors are meeting for lunch. Then, in the afternoon, a friend and I will be doing some filming for my CF video. I'm pretty excited to see the outcome of this; it's gonna be cooooool!

Hold on while I ice my chest

GREETINGS! IT'S THURSDAY!

Well, my chest is really sore today because I got my much-anticipated Cortisone injection. It was kind of what I imagined it might be when I tried to conceptualize what it would be like for a needle to go into my chest. I was on the gurney (or whatever) and the guy put the gooey gel on my SC joint. He started moving the ultrasound thingy (these are all medical terms) around to get a good picture of the joint. He moved it around for a while, then told me to get ready for a cold spray. After the cold, the needle went into my chest at a diagonal. When the needle got into the place they were going for in the joint, the doctor could not make the syringe cooperate. I think it was a matter of being at a place in my chest that didn't want the medicine. So, they ended up having to take it out.

Then, then tried again. This time they got in the joint pretty easily at an angle that was actually willing to receive the medicine. He slowly started to push the syringe. He warned me that I would feel a lot of pressure, but it was kind of like someone had just put a twenty-five pound weight on my chest or something. It was weird because it was in such a specified location, but it felt like the joint was about to explode from the pressure. Anyway, he warned me that after the injected Lidocaine wore off, it would start to get sore. And boy, was he right. There's a little bruise in the center of my chest and I'm feeling pretty sore. I iced it after rehearsal last night. I'm probably gonna need to pop a painkiller today. He said the pain should only last a few days.

The week has gone pretty well, I'd say. It has actually flown by; I can't believe today's Thursday. Tonight I'm going to the improv show to support some fellow actors. I think I'm meeting a friend for MEXICAN! beforehand, which will be the perfect after-work activity on a Thursday. Then tomorrow I will be working from home until I need to head down to the theatre to work suggestions and camera again. Saturday I will be worthless.

I really need to finish getting ready for work. I forgot that I'm going to be relying on my less-coordinated arm to dry my hair and what not. Here goes!

Achooooo

The sneeze total in the hour and a half I've been awake is now at seven. I don't know what's up, but my nose has been running pretty severely since Sunday night. Mmm, perhaps the suspicion that I was getting sick was on-target. However, I'm confident I can kick this. YES. I. CAN.

I had a pretty good weekend, although the snow thing threw it off a bit. Saturday was pretty fun. I officially went to IHOP for the third consecutive weekend; this time I went with a friend that lives in my complex. The second we walked into IHOP, the workers started telling me I looked exactly like 'Sarah' that used to work there. They were all pointing me out to each other. It's pretty strange because I don't know how I could possibly look like so many people. Oh, and I got an Elizabeth Shue lookalike comment on Friday.

Saturday night I worked two sold-out shows at the theatre. I was on suggestions and camera. It was pretty fun because it was a packed house. We also gave out roses for creative suggestions. How. Sweet. Anyway, I had a good time and worked with a fun crew.

Sunday a friend and I went to watch a college basketball game (a friend is an assistant coach there). The game was pretty fun; I like sports in general. Then the three of us went to get Mexican and margaritas for dinner. It was a non-traditional Valentine's Day, but I'm not a big fan anyway.

Yesterday I woke up feeling pretty gross. I was all sniffly and what not. My throat hurt pretty bad, too, from being horizontal, but it got progressively better as the day went on. I was also FREEZING all day, but the thermometer suggested that I didn't have a fever. Anyway, today when I woke up, my throat didn't hurt as much, but, as I mentioned earlier, I am sneezy magee.

I had sushi for lunch yesterday with some people from the CFF. It was fun aaaaand delicious. We talked about some fundraising strategy for the walk (yes, kids, it's about that time!!!!). Over the next few days, I'm going to write some motivational letters that are going to get blasted out to team leaders. It's time to get inspirational!

Rehearsal was the late shift again last night, but I'm excited because it's at 7:00 p.m. next week. Awesome! By the time I got there, I was feeling so run-down. [Interjection: I ate Mexican food (SHOCK!) for dinner before rehearsal.] We mainly sat around and talked about problem areas at rehearsal, which was kind of a blessing considering how 'off' I was feeling with my stuffy head. Anyway, I got home around 11:30 p.m. and got to sleep to gear up for an early day at work. WOOOOOOO!

Vanilla latte.

Coldlanta

Let me say that it definitely snowed in Atlanta today. If I knew how to get a picture from my phone to the Internet, I would show you the snow right now. However, I guess I'd need Internet on my phone to do that. WHATEVER! It looks like over three inches at this point. I'm just happy the weather people were right for once.

Today I worked from home. It's funny that the only two 'weathery' days this winter have been when I was telecommuting, but oh well... Work closed at 3:00 p.m. today, so that was a pleasant break from Friday's typical activities. I got brunch during lunchtime at J. Christopher's... Mmm, Spinach and Bacon Skillet.

Note: It's Tuesday now, but I'm going to post this anyway.

Walkin' in a Winter Wonderland

So, it's supposed to snow in Atlanta again tomorrow, like it did about a month ago. It's funny because I really dislike the cold, but I like precipitation. I would like it to be in the 80s every day, but if it's not, I tend to like precipitation. I have always been a fan of rain, and snow isn't bad, either. It sounds like the possibility of snow is pretty promising, so we'll see how it goes. The good news is that it shouldn't hang around for long, so we can hopefully avoid the icy mess that came along with last month's snow.

I've had the best week I've had in quite some time, for no real reason. Things calmed down enough to not be on-edge at work, so that obviously has an extremely positive influence on me. Plus, I've just had a nice week. Wednesday I worked from home and then, instead of rehearsing, we went out to a bar, so that was nice. Tonight I went to the show and had fun laughing there, too. It was nice to catch a bit of a break this week since it feels like I haven't gotten that in a while. I got to take it easy and I needed that.

Right now I'm just kind of surprised at where my memory has gone. I was just reading an AJC article online and it referenced my high school media center. WHOA. Okay, so this story just took a drastic turn. Really, though, the article referenced the media center and I have been wondering for about 10 minutes now where that even was in the school. I was totally blanking, partially because I was so surprised it wasn't coming to mind easily. Somehow, though, just then when I typed 'WHOA,' I could picture it. I just remembered. Everyone can breathe now.

Speaking of breathing, I don't sound too hot today. It might be a combination of the bar shenanigans, some smoky air, yelling to hear people last night, the crazy weather, etc. Either way, though, I sound a little junky. I found myself short-of-breath some today. Hopefully it's just some kind of fluke. Over the last several weeks, I have been sneezing a ton. Fact-sharing time is over now.

I think I'll go to sleep. I'm going out to an early lunch tomorrow.

I get knocked down

So, the title of this post is in honor of Chumbawumba. But, in all honesty, I don't even like them. That song was fun for a hot minute, but now it's obnoxious. I don't know how I got it in my head...

Let me tell you why I am excited today. I got an iPod! My sister actually got one with points she earned at work, but I bought it from her since she already had one. I'm not going to lie... it's pretty stinkin' hot! It is silver with some black accents on it. I need to add music to it and what not. However, I'm most excited because it has the radio. I know most iPod people are too good for the radio, but I looooove listening to the radio. It's full of surprises and it's a way to stay up-to-date with what's hip. You know I'm hip (says the girl who is at least five years behind on the iPod craze)!

Today was a great day, mainly because I had Mexican x 2. For lunch, I had Willy's. Typical behavior, but I devoured some steak nachos. Then, for dinner, I went to El Azteca and enjoyed some mango margaritas (YEAH!) and a combo. It was pretty awesome.

I'm super-excited right now because I get to telecommute tomorrow. There are some events being hosted in our building, so I get to benefit with a day at home. It will be perfect because I need to finalize some email communications, and it will be so much easier to do when I'm at home. It seems like I rarely luck out on days like this, but it looks as though my time has come. Awesome!

This weekend should be fun, I think. I'm going out to dinner with one of my work friends on Friday. Then, on Saturday, I'm working both of the shows at the theatre. That should be fun and Valentines-ish. Sunday I'm going to a basketball game at Oglethorpe University, so I bet I'll enjoy that, too. It sounds like a good weekend, although I'm anti-Valentine's Day in the same way that I am most holidays.

Well, I'm pretty darn tired because I went into work really early today. I savor my Tuesdays since I don't have any obligations... Ahhh, time for bed and a fun day of working from home tomorrow!

Goldilocks

Mmmm, I am more tired than I should be at 9:10 p.m. on a Saturday. Oh well.

This morning I got up a little after 8:00 a.m. because there was a lot of loud banging outside. It sounded like someone was knocking on our door, but that wasn't the case. I'm still not sure what it was, but it was obnoxious enough to prevent me from going back to sleep. That wasn't too completely horrible, though, because I wanted to get up and exercise before I went to get my hair did.

I went to the fitness center and got in a pretty good workout this morning. I did a combination of jogging, stairing, and sprinting. I think my workout totaled almost 40 minutes, so that felt worthwhile. I forgot to mention (I think) that I got up and worked out before work on Wednesday. So, this was the best week I've had fitness-wise in quite some time. I think it helped me maintain my sanity despite the week's activities.

Then I headed to get my new hairdo. I ended up getting....drumroll....goldenish highlights and about an inch cut off. The color is pretty. I don't know that other people will notice it as much as I do, but it feels pretty drastic to me; I think because that was the longest I'd gone in quite some time without having done anything color-wise. I'm trying to get used to it. The cut looks super-cute with a lot of body, though. I wish the hairstyler could fix it for me every morning because I don't know that I'll be able to replicate it. Anyway, I think the color makes me look a bit warmer.

After my hair appointment, I met my friend at IHOP! Yes, I sound like an IHOP fanatic, but in all actuality, last weekend was the first time I'd gone since I went with this same friend last year. I got the pancake platter with bacon, as I did last weekend, and it was just as good. We talked about a variety of topics, and she gave me some much-needed reassurance on my book.

I had every intention of working on my book tonight, but it seems like it just wasn't in the cards. Ha! I've actually been trying to keep my eyes open for several hours, so I haven't had quite the energy I'd like in order to write. I wish I had a drill sergeant here making me get things accomplished. Oh well. This blog is an accomplishment, even though it's a bit worthless and uneventful.

The Super Bowl is tomorrow. It's funny because I just really haven't followed football much this year. Ever since the Falcons decided to lose all of their games, I kind of lost interest. Plus, my schedule has gotten significantly busier lately, so I quit spending my Sundays watching football. Anyway, I don't know if I'll watch the game or not. It's pretty late on a Sunday night considering how long Monday will be (We have late rehearsal again). So, we'll see what happens tomorrow... Man, I've gotten old.

Well, maybe I'll force myself to contribute something to my book before I go to sleep.

Barracuda

Well, I am comfortably sitting in bed, getting ready to hit the hay. I am extreeeeemely tired tonight. It's been a long day and I just got home from my IMPROV show a little while ago. Woohoo!

Tonight was a lot of fun! I was in Buzzer, Repeat Scene Styles, Emo Interview and Oscar Musical. Again, that's mainly for my jogs down the improv memory lane - not so much so anybody else will understand what those things mean. I felt pretty good about every single scene, so that's a refreshing feeling to have! I had several of my wonderful friends and family members there supporting me despite the rain, so that was awesome. Plus, it was a friend's first apprentified show and she was stellar - especially at singing games. Her excellence overcompensates for my shouting to music!

I enjoyed steak nachos at Willy's today, per my pre-show tradition. A late-ish lunch of steak nachos is the perfect thing to get me geared up for improv. I had part of a Monster energy drink before the show and was feeling super hyper. It was a good kick to get me going! Throw in a few gummy bears and I am good to go!

Well, I'm pretty relieved because I don't have a whole lot on the agenda for the weekend. I am guessing I'll lay low tomorrow. Then Saturday I have a hair appointment and lunch with a friend. Otherwise I don't plan on doing much. I'm pretty sure I work at the theatre every weekend for the rest of the month, so I'll savor this weekend while I have it. I haven't quite decided what to do hairwise. As usual, I have been extremely satisfied with my hair ever since I made the appointment. Why does it always work this way?!

Anyway, I'm a sleepy one and have a lot to accomplish work-wise tomorrow. I'll be working from home, but I will be in. the. zone.

Cheers to a good week!

Robot

Well, it is waaaaaaaaay past my bedtime, but I just got home from rehearsal a few minutes ago. Tonight didn't go so hot for me; I think a lot of it had to do with my being tired. We worked on straight scenes tonight, meaning they were based purely on acting and not so much on games and funniness. Anyway, I was tired and it was tough for me to make emotional connections, hence the title of 'robot.'

Today was the best Monday I've had in a while, so that's good news. I honestly think a big part of it has to do with the fact that I successfully executed the pre-work workout. Sleeping in my gym clothes left me with few excuses, so I woke up and headed straight to the fitness center before reality could set in... I took an old-school portable CD player with me and a few unmarked CDs, so that made for constant surprises. I jogged a mile first. Then I did sprints for a mile. Finally, I hopped on the stairmaster for a fast-paced climb for about another eight minutes. It all only totaled about 30 minutes, but it was pretty high intensity the entire time.

Work wasn't too shabby today, either... It was the first day in a while that I was able to keep my head above water. I accomplished many lower-priority things that always get overshadowed by other time-sensitive things. Tomorrow we have a FOUR HOUR meeting that begins at 9:00 a.m., so it looks like it might be a Starbucks morning.

Ooh, I went to Marshalls between work and improv. I got two things that I'm kind of excited about: 1) a water bottle, and 2) a household decoration. The water bottle is aluminum and is black with little peace signs on it. I got it because I really need to start drinking more water for many reasons. I figured if I had a cute water bottle, maybe I'd be more tempted to take it places. Not so much for status purposes, but more because I just paid for it and should use it. Then, the household decoration is a little wooden sign that I've placed on my dresser. I first noticed a star on it, which is what originally DREW me to it. It reads: "It is never too late to be what you might have become." That really resonates with me because I have always had a lot of big dreams and sometimes need to be reminded that I can still accomplish things.

Speaking of accomplishing things, no, I haven't made any worthwhile progress on my book lately. A friend suggested that I take a break from it for a bit, and I do believe that it will help relieve some pressure and hopefully generate some new energy.

Well, I'm looking forward to my improv show on Thursday night. I can't wait for the adrenaline rush and the challenge.

Close your eyes, make a wish

BED. TIME. FOR. DREWDLE.

So, I've probably mentioned before how funny it is when I get called Mr. Dotson in waiting rooms and things like that. If I haven't mentioned it, it's funny. I agree that I, too, would assume someone named Drew was male, but it can be pretty entertaining. For example, today I checked my mail and had an envelope from the American Diabetes Association. I guess they gave me a gift for making a donation to them. I got address labels that say "Mr. Drew E. Dotson." Now, I've gotten misprinted address labels like this all the time. However, this time is funnier than usual because the labels have motorcycles and cars on them. It's just hilarious because I bet the labels for women have make-up or something on them. I can't wait to use these to send things to people. They are straight-up MAN labels.

I have had a weekend of good eats. I had IHOP yesterday morning and it was pretty incredible. Then, last night, I went and ate Mexican food with my friend from the neighborhood. We were feeling a little like some dessert afterwards, so we went to Seasons 52 and I had a keylime pie shooter. Deeelicious!

Tonight I went to dinner with a good friend (Hi!) from high school. We went to the Cheesecake Factory and it was delicious. I have a tough time with their menu since it's like 53 pages, but I found a gem! I got orange chicken, which was very similar to sweet and sour chicken and oh, so delicious. I am excited to eat the rest for lunch tomorrow! We also shared a caramel turtle cheesecake and it was good, too! Mmmm, CALORIES! Anyway, it was great to catch up; it was one of those friends I don't see nearly enough.

I'm assuming improv rehearsal is late tomorrow since this week's emcee teaches class from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. The 9:00 to 11:00 p.m. rehearsals are kind of exhausting because Mondays are hard anyway, but oh well. I'll survive. It just means it's not possible to get eight hours of sleep on Monday nights. I took an Ambien to ensure that I get a good night's sleep tonight. It's funny how obsessed with sleep I am now because it used to be of no concern to me... until I realized that sleeping helps keep me healthy. Oh, the things we learn when we become geriatric.

Well, I worked out both days this weekend and my goal is to get up and run before work tomorrow. I bet the exercise could give me some extra energy for what is shaping up to be a long day. Plus, exercising just makes me feel good and I'd like to start off the week on a positive note. Goooooo, me! I already have my gym clothes on so I should have no excuses when the alarm goes off. Happy sleeping to all!

..........

This week isn't on the top of my "Best Weeks Ever" list. In fact, it's far from it. I've definitely complained more than I should this week, but it was an exceptionally hard week for me. I was plagued by headaches Monday through Thursday and, although there were some twinges of pain throughout the day today, I was fairly pain-free.

I got a call about my SC joint today. I am scheduled for an ultrasound of the joint on February 17 and may also be given a cortisone injection if the doctor sees the troublesome area. While the thought of a needle going into the boniest part of my chest doesn't sound appealing, I like the idea of potentially getting rid of the pain!

The improv schedule for February came out and I'm in the shows on the 4th and 25th, so I'm looking forward to both of those. I got suggestions and worked the camera last night, so it was fun to see a show after a somewhat stressful week. I also saw some patrons that I thought I recognized from the previous week and they complimented my performance, which made me feel really good. I can't wait until I get to perform again next Thursday!

I plan to keep it pretty low-key this weekend, especially considering how worn down I feel right now. I haven't felt this exhausted in a long time. Every little movement feels like it requires so much energy. Tomorrow morning I've got to be up pretty early to go to a birthday breakfast for my grandfather at IHOP. I haven't been there in a long time, so I'm excited! IHOP pancakes aren't as good as my mother's Bisquick pancakes, but I'll manage. My grandfather just turned 86. Wow!

As you may recall (primarily if I wrote it in here because I'm not sure if I did...), I set a goal of finishing the revision of my autobiography by January 31, 2010. That's only two days away and I'm definitely not where I imagined to be at this point. I am going into writing lockdown mode tomorrow after breakfast and staying focused for the remainder of the day. Maybe before I go to bed I'll jot a list of areas that need some strengthening. Often, when I sit down, I find myself dumbfounded regarding where I'll begin. Plus, I think I'm too tired to do any efficient writing tonight, so I'll just hoard that energy for tomorrow.

Well, I somehow almost dropped my laptop on the ground just then, so I should probably cut myself off. Here's to a productive weekend!

A success story

Hmm, well, going to sleep is long overdue, but I figured I ought to write in here since it crossed my mind. I got home from the CF event I spoke at not too long ago. The event was in a very nice home in the Lenox Mall area. It took me forever to get there because I forgot about the roads that are still washed out due to the flood. The good news, however, is that I got there.

I winged it, for the most part, but I think it went well. It was a small and intimate gathering, so it wasn't as intimidating as it could have been. I met some very nice people all there to support my cause, so that's always uplifting!

I also found out some news I deem super-exciting. I was speaking with a CF doctor about clinical trials and one just got approved this week. Less than 10 percent of the CF population could benefit from this drug, and I happen to be in that small group. I have been following this drug for almost three years now, so I am way excited that my treatment center will have access to it. It could seriously make a huge difference in my life. Guess who's looking into that tomorrow!

Well, I ended up working from home today. I've had a headache since Monday and just wasn't feeling up to driving to work today. I also had a very difficult time sleeping last night, so that wasn't helping matters. The headache hasn't bothered me all evening, so let's hope this is indicative of what tomorrow will bring!

Tomorrow I am doing camera/suggestions at the theatre. It's funny that not being there in two days seems so weird to me. I think that means I'm officially in deep. I also don't have to be there for any reason this weekend, so that will feel unusual, too.

Anyway, I can hardly keep my eyes open, so I think I'll call it a night. I don't know the last time I was up this late on a weeknight. I know I didn't say a whole lot worth hearing, but whatever. I'm excited about that drug. YEAH BABY!

Heeeeeeeartbreak waaaaaaaaarfare

Well, today has been quite the Monday. Portions of it felt Mondayesque, but I'm happy for it to be ending on a positive note. I'm feeling refreshed, tired, and ready for a good night's sleep!

The most exciting thing that happened today was that I went to Target during my lunch hour. I had to pick up a prescription, so I figured I'd browse while I was at it. I got some vitamins that I've been meaning to get, and I also got some snacks to nibble on at work. I also got a shirt and a hat, and I'm excited about both. I have the same shirt in purple and it tends to do me well, so I got it in gray, too. I also got a little brown hat. I'm not sure what this type of hat is called, but it's a kind of cute hat I can wear when I feel like being nappy.

Work was fairly busy today. I had a couple of meetings, but nothing compared to the rest of the week. I have probably 14 hours of meetings this week, which makes it pretty difficult to accomplish the things I need to accomplish. Oh well, though... My biggest concern is that I need to be in the office on Friday for a big meeting, so I'll have to forfeit my telecommute day. Blaaaaah! Our intern starts tomorrow, so it will be fun to have a fresh face in the office.

Well, I don't have a lot to say, mainly because I'm too tired. I wanted to work on my book a little tonight because I'm still feeling energized from yesterday, but it shall wait until tomorrow so I can make it an early morning at work.

The eagle has landed

HAPPY MONDAY MORNING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Aren't I enthusiastic?!?! I'm creating enthusiasm right now...

So, yesterday was a pretty awesome day, if I must say so myself. It was the most productive day I've had in a long time. Remember how I wasn't going to set my alarm? Well, I forgot that it was set from Saturday. Sooooooo, when it woke me up at 10:44 a.m., I was pretty disappointed, but that was definitely enough sleep for a tyke like myself.

First I cleaned my room because, BOY, did it need it?! Not only did I clean up everything scattered throughout the floor, but I actually cleaned off my bed for once. It's usually incredible how much stuff I have on my bed when I'm going to sleep. I usually sleep in strange directions that make the junk at the end of the bed irrelevant, but I even cleaned off the bed and could have stretched all the way out if I had chosen to last night.

I washed all of my dirty clothes and even my sheets, so I'm feeling like I've got a wardrobe to chose from today.

At almost 1:00 p.m., I sat down to force myself to work on my book. I went downstairs and sat on the couch with my laptop, with the goal that I would at least do something - whether it was revising, helping bridge sections, etc. Well, I ended up working on it until about 5:30 p.m. with hardly any distractions. I basically worked on making things clearer for a reader other than myself, and I got through about half of it. SUCCESS! I was feeling pretty inspired because a friend's invigoration was contagious.

After working hard all afternoon, I went to meet two long-term friends for Mexican... Imagine that! It was POURING outside, so the roads were flooding a little bit. When we got to the restaurant, there wasn't any parking nearby, so we had to run inside while trying to stay as dry as possible. Of course I had on these slip-on canvas shoes with no socks, so there were some puddles I simply could not make it through if I didn't want to be up to my ankles in water. So, right there before I crossed the street, I took off my shoes and ran barefooted all the way to the restaurant. When we got inside, my feet were so cold that I could barely feel them. Oh, the things we do for Mexican food! Anyway, dinner was fun and it was nice to catch up!

Well, it's the start of another busy week. I'm speaking at a CF Foundation event on Wednesday, so I'm excited about that. Off to start my day...

Papa. Paparazzi.

It seems like I just wrote in here yesterday, but obviously it wasn't... This week flew by, probably because I was anticipating the show.

So, Thursday night was my first apprentified show at the theatre, and I had so much fun! Just for my own memory and not so much yours, these are the games I was in: Emo Interview, Sit Stand Lean Oscar, Remote Control Styles, ABC, and Oscar Musical Rap. I had soooo many WONDERFUL people supporting me and it couldn't have gone any better. I can't wait until the next - whenever that is!

Well, I'm up so late because I just finished working the 8:00 and 10:30 p.m. shows at the theatre. They were both sold out, which was fun. I was in charge of walking around getting suggestions for the show, and then pretty much watching and helping out if anything came up during the show. During the 8:00 p.m. show, a guy asked his girlfriend to prom onstage. He had planned it in advance, and it was actually very cute. I hate to admit it, but it almost made me cry. It was just so sweet, primarily because of its innocence.

Today I went to lunch at Mimi's Cafe with a friend that lives in my complex. I hadn't seen her since New Year's, so we had a good time catching up. I got a cheeseburger and onion rings. Woohooo! It was pretty good. When I got home from lunch, though, I literally passed out and didn't wake up for an hour and a half... I have no idea how I was so tired! Tomorrow night I'm meeting some friends for Mexican, so that's going to be AWESOME!

I went to the fitness center this morning, even though it took everything in my power to get out of bed (and this was at 11:00 a.m.). I ran a mile on the treadmill, then did 1.7 miles on the Stairmaster, then alternated between sprints and walking for 1.1 miles on the treadmill. I'm pretty surprised I'm not sore yet because sprints usually do it to me, especially if it's been a while.

Well, I'm about to go to sleep and not set an alarm. I usually set an alarm just for the heck of it, but not tonight. I'm just going to sleep until I can't sleep anymore... So excited!

Smile all day

WELL WELL WELL!! It is Tuesday and the week is almost over! Or so it feels!

Yesterday was an enjoyable day off in which I, once again, accomplished NOTHING. I slept in pretty late and sat around for a while. I got a shower... I then went and ate a late lunch of Mexican food at Pure Taqueria. I also had two peach mojitos, which were pretty enjoyable.

I had improv last night and just wasn't feeling it altogether. I honestly think it had to do with having such an unproductive weekend. I hadn't really had to be 'on' at all during the weekend, so it was hard to kick it into 'focus' last night when I got to the theatre. Oh well... I bet tomorrow I'll be feeling it again.

Today I got up and went into work really early. There was a lot I wanted to accomplish and I hoped to have most of it knocked out before I went into hour after hour of meeting. I stopped at Starbucks on the way to the office and got a vanilla latte. I got to work a little after 7:00 a.m. and was able to knock out a lot before my first meeting at 9:00 a.m. From that point forward, I was away from my desk until close to 12:40 p.m., which makes for a hectic day. I actually wasn't feeling all the well, combined with starving, and headed home a little before 2:00 p.m. to eat lunch and telecommute for the remainder of the day. It was a pretty good workday, especially compared to last week's roller coaster.

After I was done working, I went to the fitness center and walked a while as I read a book. I wanted to run some, but even the limited arm movement in walking was aggravating my SC joint. Sooo.. I took it easy. That reminds me, I should be hearing from the doctor pretty soon about moving forward with the ultrasound.

Anything else interesting going on? I'm getting pretty pumped about my show on Thursday! Each day I learn of a few more people that can hopefully come, so I'm crossing my fingers for a pretty full house! I'm also glad that the weather forecast isn't placing any potential cancellation threats on the show!

Oh, and one last thing... The highlight of my day. I have a column in a CF newsletter, right? Well, today, I got a post on my Facebook page saying, "We got a donation today in your honor! The message said, 'Drew is obviously a talented writer and the column in Reaching Out is a worthwhile contribution to the newsletter.'" That pretty much made me smile all day!

Imajeanation

Well, I believe it's safe to deem today a completely lazy day. I seriously have almost nothing to show for it, but it's good to have days like that sometimes.

I slept in until almost 11:00 a.m., and that was about the extent of what I accomplished today.

I went on an adventure to try to find some new jeans. What used to be my nicer jeans have slowly evolved into worn-out jeans, so I was hoping to find a new pair. The keyword there is 'hoping' because I had absolutely no luck. I have such a hard time finding pants that it's borderline unreal. I even decided to try on skinny jeans in hopes that maybe those would fit right, but that was unsuccessful, too. It was pretty frustrating... I also went looking for jeans at the mall around New Year's and had absolutely no luck, so I'm beginning to think this is Mission: Impossible.

I'm excited to have off work tomorrow. It's once again perpetuating the fact that I haven't gotten fully back in the groove since the holidays, but oh well. I'd rather have the day off than be in a groove. I do have improv tomorrow, though, which I prefer anyway since I'm in the show on Thursday. I know that looking forward to Thursday's show will probably make the week fly by!

This whole weekend-devoted-to-my-book thing hasn't worked out as I was hoping. Instead of making much progress, I've found myself second-guessing everything I could possibly be questioning. I have definitely made progress as far as getting it organized, but I've taken steps backwards as far as how I feel about it mentally. As my friend said, though, I am my worst critic.

Tonight I was thinking about cotton candy and it made me happy. It also made me angry because I don't have any and haven't had it in forever, but cotton candy is awesome. The thought of pure sugar excites me right now, but I should probably focus on going to sleep instead.

Night!

Hairy up with our food

Well, 2010 has been uncharacteristically busy so far... as you may have concluded since I haven't said much. So... I'll share some highlights of my busy week.

I had a CF check-up on Tuesday and it went surprisingly well. Not that I didn't think it would go well, but it was actually the best appointment I've had in over two years. I didn't even have to wait all that long, either... only about 30 or 45 minutes, which is actually impressive for this place.

On Friday I went to the doctor about my SC joint. Unlike the physical therapists who determined it was my first rib that was displaced, the doctor still believes it's my SC joint that's causing the problems. Either way, he didn't have a ton to say... He was going to consult some of the other doctors because he thinks maybe we should do an ultrasound to see exactly what's going on. Everyone seems to be in agreement that this issue shouldn't be plaguing me a year later. But hey... sometimes cornhole can get the best of someone. He said that, depending on what the ultrasound showed, maybe a Cortisone injection would help. That makes me cringe a little, but whatever!

So, tonight I went out to eat at a location. I don't think I'll say the name of the location because of the story I'm about to tell... Well, when my friends and I sat down at the table, the server brought a plate with some forks, chopsticks (that narrows it down a tiny bit), and napkins. I glanced at the plate and noticed a pretty lengthy hair intertwined in the prongs of the fork. This didn't really faze me all that much, but I did ask the server if we could get a new plate with forks. Then, my friend's appetizer arrived and there was literally another lengthy hair making itself at home in her tofu. At this point I almost vomited and I'm not usually grossed out by stuff like this. I mean, what are the chances that we would end up being 2-for-2? Needless to say, everything was comped, but I'm still kind of feeling uneasy when I think about it. I chewed every bite with hesitance, and I'm kind of surprised we even stayed there... Ugh. I grossed myself out just reading that story again.

I didn't have any time to exercise this week... sadly. I did go to the fitness center today and did a combination of walking and running, but mainly walking. My SC joint (the doctor's opinion is clearly winning right now) has been aching a lot and the running was just too high-impact to do comfortably. I'm proud of myself, though, for dragging myself out in the rain to go to the gym.

This weekend was going to be solely devoted to working on my book because I really hope to be done editing by the end of January. It's a long weekend, too, so I told myself I'd get a lot accomplished on the book. I did work on it some today, but I find myself feeling pretty discouraged about it.... I guess this is what happens when my left brain enters the picture. I'm second-guessing pretty much everything, including the recent revelation I had about reorganizing my book. I've told myself I was going to start working again for the last two hours since I got home, but I'm clearly not convinced yet. I promise I'm doing it after I post this... and maybe eat something. :o)

Improv was fun this week. On Monday at rehearsal we did some trust games. On Wednesday, we worked on scenework with the main-stagers, so that was a lot of fun. I'd never worked with many of them before, but things seemed to fall right into place. I'm excited because I'm in the show on Thursday! Woohooo! First apprentified performance.

Finally, before I go, I'd like to announce that my left "control" key experienced an unfortunate accident this week. I basically just broke it. It's funny because I lost control this week (I didn't come up with that joke on my own). Seriously, though, I felt really out of control this week, so it's funny that I also I lost control. HAHAHAHA! How symbolic!

Off to write...

And then you're on your very first date

So, are there ever song lyrics that you sing wrong every single time? You know that they're wrong, but you can't seem to stop singing what you once accidentally thought they were... Well, that's how I am with a line in Taylor Swift's song "Fifteen." It's the lyric that says, "And then you're on your very first date and he's got a car." For some reason, every time I say "and he's got a gun." It makes the song better, really. "And then you're on your very first date and he's got a gun." Oooh, what happens next?

Well, what a week it was... and I can't believe a new one is starting.

On Tuesday I went to work and then came home and watched Georgia Tech lose and disappoint me. I mean, they just didn't seem to have considered the fact that the other team had almost six weeks to prepare for their offense. Anyway, it was pretty upsetting, but oh well. I had a good time watching it, mainly because I ate some jalapeno poppers.

Wednesday I had improv, but we had a work call rather than rehearsing. So, I carried some stuff around that ended up irritating my first rib. It was also absolutely freezing outside, so that didn't help my cause. I was glad to get home relatively early, though, because I wanted a good night's sleep for my first apprentice show on Thursday.

I woke up Thursday super-excited about my show. However, as the day progressed and the talk of wintry weather increased, I began to worry that my show might get canceled. Well, I didn't have to worry too long because it was indeed called off. So, I came home from work and my roommate and I went to get ice cream at the grocery store as it was beginning to snow. It ended up snowing a decent amount and freezing over, so that makes everyone in Atlanta lose their minds.

Friday work was canceled due to the snow, so that was a nice perk. I pretty much had a lazy day until it was time to go work at the theatre. Claire and I met for El Toro before my shift. Then, we went to the shoe store and I got some cute plaid boots. I was surprised at the size of the crowd at the theatre on Friday considering the slick mess outside.

Last night, I went to a going away party for a friend that's moving to Israel for an intensive Arabic study. It was a lot of fun and I'm going to miss her, but I admire her so much for following her passion. We ended up staying out until almost 3:00 a.m. PARTAY! A server told me I looked like Lo from The Hills. I have also been told I look like Kristen and Lauren from The Hills, so I'm confused.

Finally, today - I had about 300 pictures taken of me, so that was fun. One of my friends from work enjoys photography and I just so happen to need a headshot for improv, so I stood out smiling in the freezing cold. It was pretty fun!

I'm hoping to spend the remainder of my day working on my book, but I wanted to update my blog before I got started on that. Or else I would use it as a reason not to be focused. I can't wait to enjoy the lazy rest of my day!

Good night, Monday

I am tired right now, but I figured I'd write in my delirium.

Improv was a lot of fun tonight. I actually felt 'on' for the first time in what seems like forever, although it doesn't help that I had a break with the holidays and what not. It's probably a good thing I'm feeling 'on' this week because I'm in the show on Thursday night. My first show as an apprentice....Woohoo! It's giving me something to look forward to in this week back to reality. I hope some people can come see my debut!

Tomorrow night I get to watch Georgia Tech play in the Orange Bowl from the comfort of my own home. I hope they win. I really want to wear my Georgia Tech hoodie to work tomorrow, but I don't know if I will since it's Tuesday, which means it's staff meeting day. If it weren't Tuesday, there's a 100 percent chance I would wear it, but it's the one day of the week that everyone sees me. Sooooo, perhaps I'll have to put it on at the end of the workday. Frankly I think people in behind-the-scenes positions (like myself) should be able to wear absolutely anything to work as long as it isn't vulgar. Wearing sweats to work would boost my morale.

Today I had Willy's, which was a good first lunch hour of 2010. Tomorrow I'm supposed to meet a friend who's in town for lunch. She's not in town for lunch, but I mean, I'm supposed to meet her for lunch. I hope it works out, even if we eat at an odd hour for the sake of coordinating our schedules.

I did the elliptical today at work. While I exercised, I read several pages of my book (the one written be me) and made notes on them for organizational purposes. I am reworking the silly out of that thing because the revelation I recently had changes so much about it...including the title. Am I being vague? Are you intrigued? Are you going to read it when it comes out?

It's definitely time to sleep. While it seems to be all that folks can talk about right now, it is extremely cold outside. It truly doesn't get much colder than this in Atlanta. Rumors are that it might snow on Thursday, but I'll believe it when I see it. I've never been a big snow person, but if it's going to be this cold, I prefer it yield some kind of result that couldn't happen otherwise. It makes shivering feel more worthwhile.

2010

Welcome to 2010! I just ate a nutritious dinner to kick off the new year. I had a double steakburger, double onion rings, and a mocha shake... Steak and Shake, baby! Clearly I didn't make any resolutions about eating healthily. I'm still trying to work out what my resolutions are going to be. Maybe I should make a resolution to make New Year's resolutions for 2011. Two of my definite goals are to do my vest at least three hours a week and make an effort to work only 40 hours a week for my own sanity.

Well, let me just say that New Year's Eve was so much fun! I ended up going to a hotel party with a group of six girls. It was sooooo hilarious. The crowd was twice our age and it was such an adventurous night. We went out to eat at Bahama Breeze and then went to the party in the hotel bar/lounge area. It was definitely one of the best NYEs I've ever had! I woke up in the middle of the night and had 39 text messages, so that was funny. We met a guy we named T-Boz, I got a ROSE!, people went swimming in dresses, we received a complaint from the hotel staff about being too loud... all in all it was a success!

My book is coming along really well! I know my goal was to complete it by the end of the year, and it's truly almost there. I think it's practically complete writing-wise; now it's just in the editing/reorganizing/filling in blanks phase. I'm really looking forward to it being a total hit!

My friend Anne and I are sitting here watching Office Space - this movie is so inspirational and accurate. I appreciate it more and more each time I see it. We have had a pretty lazy day, other than the fact that I went to my grandparents' 65th wedding anniversary party.

So, yesterday an incident went down at my house. My roommate was vacuuming and a circuit tripped (or whatever it's called). Anyway, I think the breaker has gone bad because we can't make it come back on now... at all. There are no lights downstairs and none of the outlets in the living room work. We have a huge orange extension cord connecting the TV to an outlet in the kitchen and a lamp from upstairs sitting on the kitchen floor. It looks pretty...trashy.

Well, we're gonna crash early tonight since last night didn't entail much sleeping. I can't wait!

Subconscious mind

Let me just tell you how powerful your subconscious mind is. Well, how powerful mine is. I know I sound like a psychobabbling buffoon right now, but get this... In my last post, I mentioned working on my book and how I knew the answer would come to me soon. Well, as I was laying down for bed that night, it hit me like a ton of bricks. There's still some significant ironing out to do, but I spent three hours transforming it tonight. I am feeling super-relieved and excited, although it's a major change from my original concept. Looking back, I have no idea how this didn't come to me sooner!

New Year's Eve is just around the corner and, per usual, I am not a fan of the holiday. There's so much hype about going out and doing something crazy and fun when it's truly no different than any other night of the year. The good news is that a friend called yesterday and made a last-minute plan to come to town, so I am excited! I haven't seen her since May and we always have a grand ol' time together!

I exercised yesterday and today. Yesterday I did the elliptical at work and today I did a combintion of the treadmill and the gangster elliptical we have at the fitness center. I'm satisfied with my dedication, especially after all of the holiday laziness. I'm hoping to make it three straight days tomorrow! No excuses because I'm working from home tomorrow, but we get off at 3:00 p.m. anyway for the holidays.

I haven't had much of an appetite the last few days. Maybe I ate myself out of commission over the holidays or something. I haven't really gotten hungry and haven't enjoyed eating as much as usual. I had Chili's for lunch yesterday and Mexican today and didn't finish the meals I typically wolf down. Odd!

I did my vest for about an hour and a half yesterday. That's one of my biggest resolutions for 2010, although I haven't started writing them down yet. I plan to, though, because I definitely believe in the power of writing things down and holding myself accountable.

Today I am just rambling like I'm an expert on random topics, when in all actuality I just feel like being on a pedestal for no reason. Perhaps I'll stop and go to sleep instead. Sounds like a compromise!

It's the mooooost wonderful tiiiiime of the year

Well, what can I say!? It has been an enjoyable break, but I can't believe it's almost over. I'm looking forward to another short week, though, with two days in the office, one working from home, and then four consecutive days off again. I have to say that I prefer this life over the one in which the majority of my time is spent at work. But oh well. I'll save that life for when I've won the lottery.

I haven't been outside since Friday, which is awesome. Some people might call it lazy, but it has been so enjoyable for me! I have literally worn pajamas since Tuesday, with the exception of eight hours on Christmas Eve and another seven hours on Christmas. It's back to work tomorrow, so I'm enjoying these last several hours in pajamas while they last.

I've worked on my book a lot while I've been home, but I'm still waiting to receive the answer of how to organize it all... my brain is supposed to be sending it to me. It is all scattered and on different topics, but it's all a part of what makes me who I am. I know that the answer will come to me soon because I set a deadline of December 31, 2009. Only about four more days!

I can safely say that I've enjoyed a lot of food over the holidays... including two rounds of pancakes (one for lunch today!). On Christmas Eve we had traditional Thanksgiving-like food, such as turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, etc. Then, on Christmas Day, we did our usual brunch where I gorged myself on sausage balls, quiche, fruit, etc. I have pretty much eaten for half of each day and slept for the other half. Rejuvenation, baby!

My mom and I are going to watch Failure to Launch at 7:00 p.m. We watched Knocked Up earlier today and Funny People yesterday. I'm just proud of myself because I haven't fallen asleep during any of the movies, and that's typically my forte. I think it's because I've fixed coffee to drink during each of the movies. What a senior citizen!

Well, I better start getting ready for the movie. I've got a lot of stuff to pack up before I leave for work in the morning. I hope everyone enjoyed their holidays!

Oozy rat in a sanitary zoo

Greeeeeeeeeeeeeetings. Today is 12-21, which is a palindrome. Therefore, I also used a palindrome to title this post. DORK!

Well, what a weekend! I worked at the theatre on Friday and Saturday nights. I did pre-show suggestions both nights, and also ran the camera on Saturday night. It didn't feel much like work, so that's cool. I also got to laugh a lot in the process, so volunteering was surprisingly fun. I was out pretty late both nights... Friday night I got home around 1, and Saturday it was more like 2. WILD CHILD!

Saturday I got up and exercised, then went shopping and knocked out pretty much everything you can imagine. It was relatively painless, which I didn't expect the weekend before Christmas. It's amazing how efficiently you can shop the closer you get to the deadline. I mean, the lines may be long and what not, but there's no longer time to debate, compare, pick and choose.

Sunday I got up and ran 3 miles (you heard me) and then went to lunch with a friend. We went to J. Christopher's and I had the spinach and bacon skillet. It made my mouth water! I could eat another right now. I debated getting the pancakes, but restaurant pancakes often don't do it for me. They are too...solid and calculated. I can't wait to eat some homemade pancakes this week!

Last night we had a theatre holiday party, and it was a lot of fun. I brought apple tart for dessert and my white elephant gift was a bottle of Bailey's. I ended up getting a tumbler... too bad the Bailey's already belonged to someone else at that point. There was so much delicious food to eat, including one of my favorites... buffalo chicken dip!

That brings me to a very important point. Back in September, I ranked my top three foods as Mexican, pancakes, and grilled cheese. However, I have an amendment to make. I'm officially replacing grilled cheese with buffalo chicken dip in my all-time top three favorite foods. Buffalo chicken dip is just sooooo savory.

Well, it's time to go to bed around 8:30 p.m. because I stayed up too late last night. Tomorrow is my last day in the office this week. YEAAAAAAH BUDDY! GET IT CRUNK! I'm seriously so excited about it. Plus, I'm going to lunch with my old boss, so that's always fun!

Tell 'em all I'm on vacation

Title: Song lyric from "Truth" by Jason Aldean.

WELL WELL WELL! It's Thursday night which only means one thing... I'm working from home tomorrow! Telecommuting makes a world of difference to me. It gives me the opportunity to sleep a little later, wear my pajamas all day and have some quiet time that I don't often get at work. I can't wait to get to go for a multi-hour waking period without having to speak out loud to anyone other than myself, although I won't do that either.

Tonight I got home from work a little after 7:00 p.m. and got changed into pajamas. I straightened my room a bit, and then got settled watching some Saturday Night Live holiday special. It was pretty entertaining, I must say. But I was definitely a little disappointed that The Office wasn't on in order for SNL to be on... You win some, you lose some.

I had a dream the other night that someone broke into my house. It was really interesting because the thief was actually still inside and was just sort of redecorating. Per my usual dorky behavior, I tried to look up those terms, and the robbery is understandably indicative of feeling as though my identity is being stolen or credit is being taken from me. Decorating involves trying to mask things or cover up something. Whew! Lots to think about, but someone is apparently out to get me!

Today I had what I may deem the best nachos I've ever had at Willy's. I don't know what made them any different than the nachos I usually get, but I think it's that I needed them now more than ever - emotionally. This week has been draining in every sense of the word. Now, tell me if it's ironic that I accidentally typed "weak" rather than "week" the first go-round. I think not. I think that would be one of the best adjectives to describe my current state!

It's time for another night of dreams to analyze.

Bulletproof

Well, the week hasn't improved much since Monday, but the good news is that I am alive and surviving. I somehow feel like switching from 2009 to 2010 will make me feel refreshed, although that's kind of crazy and unrealistic. Oh well... Maybe the two shortened workweeks will give me some time to take it easy. I don't think I'm going to take any days off; I prefer to hoard my vacation days.

Yesterday I got one of my favorite compliments of all-time... I was told I am bulletproof. Now, I realize that could be backhanded if said in the wrong context, but I was very flattered to hear it. I think I have gotten much more bulletproof over the last year or so. Can't nobody stop me!

Today I went to Target and got two Christmas gifts for people on my list. I think they'll like them... primarily because I was given direct instructions and no additional options. Merry Christmas! I also picked up two prescriptions, so I made a whole trip out of it. As much as I love Target, I hate shopping in general, so I'm pleased I made it through the experience without getting too angry.

Tonight at improv we didn't actually rehearse, which was probably in my best interest. I don't know what's up with me this week, but I haven't felt this wound up and unfocused in quite a while. Tomorrow should be a relaxing night if all goes as planned to be worthless. Then, I'm at the theatre Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights. So I'm bracing myself for a busy weekend.

I exercised yesterday and today...round of applause. Yesterday I really kicked it into high gear and did a combination of sprints and the Stairmaster. I got riled up enough that it was difficult to go to bed. That's probably a better exercise routine for waking up rather than winding down. Today I just did the elliptical at work, so I didn't get myself into hardcore mode. Oh well, I still got in some quality exercise.

My eyes are telling me it's bedtime, so perhaps I'll listen. Good night!

One of those days

Today was one of those days. It was one of those days where, no matter what I did, I couldn't get in a good mood. Maybe it was the fact that it was Monday, that I was tired, that the weather was dreary, that the holiday stress is upon me... I don't know. But all I can say is that I am so happy to be in this bed of mine ready to hit the hay.

Well, I have yet to do any Christmas shopping and I realize that in two hours it will only be ten days away. I'm not sure where the time has gone, but it seems like I've lived in a vacuum all year; the time escapes me and I can't seem to track it down. While I enjoy the holidays, I also find them particularly draining. There's so much preparation to do, things to wrap up at work, etc.

I haven't yet decided what days I'm going to take off for the rest of the year. I was toying with the idea of not taking off any - We get off the 24th, 25th, 31st, and 1st. However, I think I'm going to go absolutely insane if I don't do something more. I may try to telecommute a bit since my typical telecommute day (Friday) falls on two of the vacation days.

Today was our division-wide holiday party. I wasn't sure what to expect, so I can't really say whether or not it met my expectations. I was hoping there might be some adult beverages and what not, but what can I say... the budget doesn't support it. Blaaaaaaaaaaah.

Well, I had improv tonight and, after the events of the day, you can imagine that I wasn't exactly in the mood to try to entertain. In fact, if I could have done anything, I would have come home and been antisocial, probably falling asleep by 8:00 p.m. However, I toughed it out and, in summation, I didn't perform as horrendously as I thought I could.

Time to finally do what I've been dreaming of all day.....SLEEP. Tomorrow will definitely be better than today. Pessimistic Patty signing off.

Best Invisible Design Award

So, I didn't win the Bah Humbug category in the door-decorating contest at work, but my boss and I won the Best Invisible Design Award. I must say I'm pretty pleased. The door we envisioned was definitely awesome, so I'm glad we were recognized accordingly.

Our holiday party and work was fun, and I ate entirely too much. We had one of my all-time favorites, which are cheese straws. Good grief, those are awesome. I also had a variety of other things... little sandwiches, dip, quiche, cake, etc. I could have eaten myself into a coma, but I stopped when I was reasonably stuffed, so that was a good exercise of self-control on my part.

After the holiday party, I broke my personal rule and went to the library. I'm not supposed to be reading until I finish writing my book, but I had to turn in a few books and figured I'd go ahead and get some others. I've already started reading one of them and I really enjoy it so far. I need to work out some kind of compromise with myself so that I can continue to read, but also continue to make forward progress on my book.

Yesterday was a nice day to work from home. It was cold out, so I stayed comfortably in bed and worked on my laptop. As has become Friday tradition, I had lunch at El Toro, so that was the perfect mid-day break. Last night, Claire and I watched some television, ate some Chick-fil-A, and played some Jenga. Wild night!

Well, today I got up and exercised. My back has been bothering me lately, so I walked on the treadmill on an incline. I would have liked to have done something vigorous, but it was a good workout anyway... plus, I got to read a good chunk of the book I shouldn't be reading.

I'm about to head to Taco Mac to meet two work people before going to a concert tonight. The concert is this male a capella group, and it's supposed to be good. I'm excited to see what it's all about! I think they do singing as well as skits, so I look forward to being entertained.

I'm tired, so I hope a second wind is about to kick in.... WOOOHOOOO!

Why you so obsessed with me?

Gosh, I am so tired right now. I'm not even sure what I'm doing and why I'm not asleep. It feels like today should already be next Monday because this week has been so long.

Well, yesterday at work we had our holiday door decorating contest. Unfortunately, the person I planned to team up with was at a conference, so I gracefully bowed out. There was a Bah Humbug category, so maybe I'll win that. But probably not. BAH HUMBUG! I love stuff like that, but I also know how ridiculously competitive I get, so it's probably best that I didn't participate.

Last night we had our annual homeowners' meeting. Let's just say it was interesting... and I think I got some good character ideas for improv. I'm glad I went because I find stuff like that thoroughly amusing. I also wish I hadn't gone because it's time I'll never get back, but oh well. At least I know my dues are increasing since nobody will probably tell me.

Today was a pretty good day. I feel like I got a lot accomplished at work, but I can't even tell you what I meant by that because I'm not sure. I went to Starbucks during lunch and wrote/read some, so that was a nice use of time. I also got on the elliptical today before I headed home. I got in a pretty good workout, if I do say so myself. Then, I came home and wasted the night away. I ate a little bit and read some more. I just tried to straighten up my room a bit, but I got tired and started sitting in bed instead.

Tomorrow is our holiday party at work. It starts at noon and then we get to enjoy an early release, so it's going to be a short day. It's too bad I have kind of a lot of stuff to do, but I'll just take care of the rest of it from home after the party if need be. I'm excited to get to leave work early. Yeeeehaw!

I just wrote this entire thing and decided I didn't say anything worthwhile. Oh well. Sometimes I just don't have anything exciting to say... or I'm too tired to make it sound exciting. Night!

Goooo Yellow Jackets!

Friday's workout-during-lunch plan wasn't too successful. In fact, I ended up eating El Toro instead. That's always a worthwhile tradeoff. Burn calories or gorge myself? Gorge! Heck yes!

The holiday party Friday night was fun. I realized last-minute that I didn't have cash for parking, so I swung by Publix and got cash back by purchasing a Red Bull. I pretty much watched student volunteers man the door. It was a very easy job, and it was kind of fun to be in such a happening place. It was pretty crowded, though, because everyone felt the need to stay in a very confined space.

Yesterday was pretty productive, I guess. I got up, went to the gym, and went to Lowe's to get some supplies. I got a letter of violation for having brass doorknobs rather than brush nickel, so I had to get new doorknobs and locks. Sometimes it's absurd to have to pay for stuff you don't even want. Especially when it's expensive.

Then, I sat around and went to the grocery store before watching Georgia Tech win the ACC championship. The game was entirely too close for comfort, but it was a good game nonetheless. I cleaned my room a bit at the end of the game because I found myself getting frustrated with what I was seeing. All's well that ends well!

Today the new doorknobs and locks were installed, and the old satellite dish (that I also got a letter about) was removed. It feels good not to be a delinquent homeowner anymore. In addition to watching these things get taken care of, I watched the Falcons get taken care of. It was a pretty ugly game. OH. WELL. At least one of my teams made me proud this weekend.

Well, tomorrow starts a long week of mass emails and shenanigans. I have improv on Monday and Wednesday and our annual homeowners' meeting on Tuesday. We have a work holiday potluck on Thursday. Plus, there are about a million mass emails I need to create that will send this week. So, it looks like it will be a busy one.

On that note, I'm going to try to get to bed early so I can get up and exercise before work. I went to the gym yesterday AND today, so let's see if I can make it three in a row. Good night!

Today. Was the happiest day of her life.

Before anyone gets too rambunctious, I'm just singing the lyrics in my head in the title of this post. So chill out, fan club.

Well, guess where I was tonight.... The theatre. HA!!!!!!!! Bet nobody guessed. Tonight's show was a lot of fun, and I'm super-glad I went. Even though I was tired and didn't know if I should go, I am confident that I made the best decision.

Everything that happened today is blurring together. Things that happened this morning feel like they happened two days ago. One of my frizziends had a dead car battery this morning, so I left work to go lend my car's strength to a car in need. It was successful. I don't know why watching people with jumper cables makes me so anxious.

After work, I met a friend at Willy's to grab something to eat before the show. I had been in a Willy's drought (probably three weeks), but I went twice this week, so that satisfied my stomach and soul. I got the same thing both times..... steak nachos. Yeah buddy.

I need to hit the gym tomorrow. I have failed at my attempt to work out this week. That's okay, though. One step at a time... I figure I can work out during my lunch hour since I won't be concerned with getting sweaty (telecommuting). Then, I'm working at the young alumni holiday party at night, so that will be hilarious.

Off to bed!

Umm..... What?

I can't even fathom that it's Wednesday night. My internet wasn't working the last few days, and I hadn't had the time to try to figure it out. However, it's amazing what unplugging a couple cords can do for you. Primarily if you plug them back in after you unplug them. So, I'm up and running again!

I have been at the theatre the last three days... I had my first apprentice rehearsal on Monday night, went to a graduation show last night, and had rehearsal again tonight. It has been a busy, but fun week. I can tell I am going to learn a lot and I'm going to learn it quickly.

I installed my cruise card on my dashboard today. I use the term 'installed' like it involved more than sticking a sticker on the windshield, but it seemed like a pretty big deal. I cruised right through the toll plaza today and felt so free. I felt kind of rebellious. I also thought everyone was probably looking at me as I cruised by, so I felt narcissistic. Not fumbling for 50 cents was such a relief. Sadly, I am being serious.

Yesterday at work, we volunteered at Project Open Hand packing meals for people who are homebound. My first task was scooping broccoli into plastic trays. My second task was putting grape juice boxes into the bags of meals. My third and final task was putting chocolate chip cookies into bags. It was so much fun! We were having such a good time listening to music and moving things down the assembly line. I kind of wish we went there every day.

What else?! I worked out before work yesterday, and I'd like to get in the habit of doing that since I'm going into work a little later so I don't have much time to kill between work and improv. I got a pretty killer workout in by getting up a simple 35 minutes early. It doesn't mean I'm going to do it tomorrow, but it felt very productive. I might try to hop on the elliptical at work tomorrow since I left my gym bag at my desk...

Well, I just got sleepy very suddenly, so I'm off to bed. Happy December!

I am not a boy

Hi. I am writing today with a lot less hair than the last time I wrote, but I am not a boy. The jury's still out regarding my hair. I'm not sure how much I got cut off, but probably six inches in some places and more in others. Yeah, this is a true story. This is the shortest I've had my hair in probably ten years. It is kind of cute because it looks like I made more of an effort, but it also makes me feel like a small boy. One of my BFFs from high school cut it and he did a great job! Now I just need to be capable of making it look as good as he did.

I am still at my parents' house, so it has been quite the holiday weekend. I am leaving for work from here in the morning. It looks like I'll be wearing jeans and one of my new shirts. I will probably wear a headband I got today so everyone can tell I'm still a girl. I wonder how long it will take to get to work from here in the morning. I better leave early to be safe, so I'm going to go to bed by 9:00 p.m.

I couldn't sleep well at all last night. It was the most restless night I've had in as long as I can remember. I was tossing and turning and probably only slept in one-hour increments (at the most). Then, it didn't help that there was a darn squirrell tap-dancing in the attic this morning. It sounded like he was right above my vent, so that contributed to my sleeplessness.

This week should be fun. I'm going to an improv graduation show on Tuesday night, and that's always fun. Friday I believe I am staffing the young alumni holiday party in Midtown, so that ought to be adventurous. I can't remember if I have any other obligations - it will depend on when I start improvising as an apprentice. Giddy up!

Well, I took some NyQuil in hopes of being able to battle the squirrell tonight. Hopefully he's out in the cold shivering. That's mean, but I don't want him in the attic. I am tired and am afraid tonight will be like the night before school starts - anxious to go back to work and what not.

I guess I better go round up my belongings and get some more writing done to finalize the weekend.

Shake what yo' mama gave ya

I'm doing my vest right now. I've done it every day since I've been at my parents' house, so I'm pretty proud of myself. Granted, it would be extremely hard to make an excuse not to do it when I'm sitting around all day, but hey! I'm still pretty proud of myself.

Well, Thanksgiving was a grand success. I ate a small amount of turkey, but primarily overdosed on an unexpected surprise - macaroni and cheese! My brother's girlfriend made it and it was excellent. I also had some mashed potatoes and corn casserole. I mainly feasted on side items.

Last night I watched several episodes of The Office and I'm actually watching one the same episodes again right now. I am getting excited about the Georgia vs. Georgia Tech game tomorrow. I've been excited about it all season, and now it's just around the corner. Yeah buddy! I've watched more TV in the last few days than I typically do in a month. It's pretty fun; I can see why people do it!

I did not participate in the Black Friday ordeal and am proud to say I don't remember a time when I ever have. My mom went and bought a laptop early this morning, so I got to help her set it up while she acted helpless today (Hi Mom!). She is over there playing a game on it right now. She looks like she's having a real tough time.

Today I met one of my best childhood friends for lunch at O'Charley's. I enjoyed some sliders. They were pretty good! It was nice to get to catch up, even though it was for a short time. I hate having lost touch with some important people in my life, so it's always good when we get to spend some time together.

My new glasses are doing wonders for me, but I swear my vision without glasses is getting worse. I don't even know if that's possible, but I feel more dependent on them than ever before. Maybe I am noticing a greater disparity between when I wear them and when I don't because these correct astigmastm.

Well, I think I'm going to organize my book some. It's all over the place (figuratively).

Hooooooold My Hand

That title is me singing Hootie and the Blowish. I picked one of my mom's favorite artists to create a Pandora station while we get ready to leave for Thanksgiving festivities.

We had family Bunco competition last night and I got destroyed, as usual. Bunco is a dice-rolling game that truly involves nothing but luck. I just never have the luck when we play. You can win money for winning and for losing, but I'm always right in the middle. I'm not lucky enough, and not unlucky enough. Eh, I guess that's a good problem to have.

Yesterday I hit the jackpot at Target. I got 8 new articles of clothing. I am wearing one of my new shirts today. I was on a mission to find long-sleeved shirts because I have a plethora of short-sleeved shirts, but alternate between the same few long-sleeved things I like. Yeeeeeehaw!

Today we are stopping by Grandmama and Granddaddy's place, then heading to Gran's to eat. The thing I'm most looking forward to is Gran's mashed potatoes and Mom's apple cobbler. I could do with or without the turkey, but I'll probably slosh some hot sauce on it or something to make it flavorful. Turkey is just so.... turkey.

Well, I'm going to do my usual making-everyone-late thing if I don't hurry and go finish making my hair strizzaight. I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Unpretty

I just heard "Unpretty" by TLC on Pandora. I've actually never paid attention to the lyrics before, but it has a somewhat respectable message. It also fits my mood lately; it's extremely difficult to feel attractive in the colder weather. I can't exactly explain why - maybe it's my feeling ghostly, maybe it's wearing the frumpy clothes, maybe it's just me going into my seasonal funk inspired by the colder weather.

I am doing my therapy vest right now. I'm actually pretty proud of myself because I've been doing it almost daily, which is an extreme improvement from 'rarely.' I plan on taking it with me to my parents' house, so I should receive some kind of "Most Improved" award for that.

Well, my new glasses are doing me justice. I meant to mention that I wore them out Friday night and this weirdo came up to me and made a comment. Now, it would be one thing to walk up to a girl and compliment her glasses, and take it from there. However, this guy walked up and started telling me how he had a thing for glasses, etc. Way to make a miserable first impression by coming off as a total creep. He also made some comments about kidnapping me, so we had a good laugh at that after I sent him packing.

Today I went to this pizza place near work with several of my 'colleagues.' I built my own pizza with blue cheese, grilled chicken, caramelized onions and buffalo sauce. It was incredible! I ate the entire thing.

Tomorrow after work I am headed hooooome home. To my hometown. I am dropping my car off at Nissan for its 6K mile check-up. How cute! I hope my mom will make me pancakes for dinner. I'm not even going to be able to start thinking about Thanksgiving until I have some pancakes. I haven't had pancakes since the last time I was running my mouth about them in here.

I got on the elliptical today at work for the first time in over a week. Call me outrageous, but I plan on hitting the gym before work tomorrow. I realize that will involve getting up at 5:00 a.m., but I also know that I won't be doing much of anything productive until further notice.

Considering my likelihood of getting up so early is diminishing as each minute ticks away, I better put an end to this to preserve as much hope as possible!

Rain, rain, go away

As if the cold weather isn't enough to force me into hibernation mode, it is raining and gross outside. I'm pretty bummed because I planned to run outside today. Not only will that not happen, but I will also probably talk myself out of even walking over to the fitness center since the rain is gross. I know I am totally looking for excuses here, but nothing will bring me out of this house today. NOTHING!

I always become more of a homebody during the winter. I dislike cold weather with a passion. I'm one of those people who wants it to be summertime year-round. I would be happy if it was steadily 80 degrees. Seriously. I looked at the 10-day weather forecast and it's going to be pretty chilly in the coming days. BLAH. I wish I was at the beach!

I got my new glasses on Friday, and I must say I make them look pretty good. They are super-cute and I definitely feel like I can see better with these than with any of my other pairs. I don't notice that they are correcting my astigmatism, but I have noticed that my eyes have been watering a bit when I wear them, so my eyes are probably adjusting to the change.

Yesterday I watched a CF friend compete in an Irish dancing competition. It was a lot of fun and very interesting. It's always incredible to learn about something new and see that there is a whole different world out there to which you were unaware. I was oblivious to the Irish dancing 'circuit' until I met my friend. Then, last night, I was eating dinner at Outback and saw a girl who had clearly come from the competition because she was wearing a curly wig. Had I not been to the competition yesterday, I would have just thought the girl had a ton of hair and would have wondered how long it took her to get it that curly. Anyway, I had a good time and have deep respect for Irish dancers.

I'm super-excited to head home for the holidays. I am heading to my parents' house immediately after work on Tuesday and hanging out until the weekend. It will be nice to be at home, enjoying a break from it all. I also look forward to eating some PANCAKES. On Wednesday night, we are playing Bunco at Gran's house and we're celebrating Thanksgiving at Gran's on Thursday afternoon. I am beyond eager for this mini-vacation.

Well, perhaps I'll go start enjoying my lazy Sunday - The Falcons play at 1:00 p.m., so I'll probably watch the game and lay around like a worthless one. I bet it will be everything I dreamt it will be!

Like a battlefield

Goooooooooooooooooood morning! It's Wednesday. I'm super-excited! Only four more days in the office until Thanksgiving.... Two days working from home, but getting to work is usually the hardest part. This week seems to be freakishly slow, but I'm still having a difficult time getting everything done at work. I keep waiting for a lull in the excessive workload... I'm starting to think maybe that's a myth. It's been 10 months and I haven't yet experienced it.

Well, I spoke at the CF Foundation's Atlanta Wine Opener kickoff event last night. I woke up feeling kinda junky and teetered on canceling, but decided to rough it out and commit to going regardless of whether or not I felt any better by the end of the day. After what felt like an 18-hour day at work, I headed to midtown for the event.

Since I left work a little later than planned, I decided to touch-up my makeup on the way down to the event. Now, doing makeup in the car is typical for me because a) I don't wear much, and b) I live on the edge. So, I got out my 'concealer' and put some dots all over my face. As I was screwing the lid back on, I realized the lid had more of a square shape than a circular shape. At that point I realized I had just dotted my face with mascara.

So, here I am, driving around town making wrong turns while looking like Raggedy Ann. I finally got to the event - a few minutes late - but I got there, nonetheless. First stop was the restroom to make sure I had successfully dedotted my face. The event started soon after I got there, and my speaking part went pretty well. I didn't get too visibly emotional for once, but hopefully I got the message across. We want a cure for CF!

I think I'll treat myself to Starbucks on the way to work. I haven't done that in what seems like forever, so I'll leave a few minutes earlier than planned and pick up a Peppermint Mocha Latte. Mmmm, delicious!

I need to work on my book some this evening. I hoped that writing it (typing it) down in here may actually make me hold myself accountable.

Sleepy sloth

I am pretty stinkin' tired right now, but sometimes that's when I write the most entertaining things. Not that I just promised this would be entertaining by any means...

Today was a pretty good day; in fact, the workday flew by. I got to work at about 7:00 a.m. and it was almost 9:00 a.m. before anyone else arrived. That's nice because it gives me a chance to crack down in the mornings and knock some things out before I start getting distracted. I accomplished so much in the first two hours of the day. I also listened to some good music on Pandora - I started with Kenny Chesney and then ended up listening to The Juliana Theory.

I had a meeting from about 10:00 a.m. to noon, so that was a significant chunk of the day. After the meeting, I knocked a few things out before I arbitrarily journeyed to Kroger during lunchtime.

I got the following items at Kroger: a caesar salad with bacon, a box of Cheez-Its, and a bag of Sour Slices. The salad was a poor decision on my part; I rarely even enjoy eating salad - so much work with no reward. I wanted something quick and was too lazy to wait at the deli. The Cheez-Its are always a win, so that's a no-brainer. The Sour Slices are interesting. You know those orange slices that are basically like gum drops? Well, Sour Slices look the same, but have a kick to them. They're pretty exciting, I guess.

After work, my uncle came over and I helped him write a cover letter for a position he found online. I worked on that until my brain almost fell out, and then we went out to eat...you guessed it...Mexican! The Mexican food made up for that horrendous salad that I bought on a whim. I still don't even know what must have come over me in that moment of weakness.

Now I am dozing off as I type this, thinking about how I will speak at a CF Foundation event after work tomorrow. I'll probably figure out what I want to say when I'm killing time between work and the event. You know what they say... I'll stop procrastinating starting tomorrow.

Way down yonder

Well, where to start... I got up at about 7:30 a.m. and stayed up for a little while writing. Then, I took a nap from 8:10 to 8:50 a.m. I'm truly not sure how I can take a nap before 9:00 a.m., but I did. I went walking at the Chattahoochee with my roommate and some friends. It was pretty nice outside and we walked for almost an hour and a half. It wasn't vigorous, so I plan on really pushing myself tomorrow.

When I got home, I showered and ate a snack. Then I watched Georgia Tech destroy Duke in football, so that was good. Georgia Tech officially clinched their division, so that's good news to a typically disappointed fan. I took a nap (again!) during halftime, and then got up to get ready for my MASSAGE.

Let me tell you...the massage was fun. In retrospect, I kind of wish I told the lady to focus a bit more on my back because that's where I hold the most stress. It was kind of creepy being in the massage place. It felt surreal in a very strange way... I couldn't see outside to civilization and nobody was really speaking. I just kind of felt like I had been abducted. Calming music was playing and it was so dark; it just felt like I was in a strange dream.

I spent most of the time during the massage thinking about how much I wouldn't want to be a massage therapist. I just can't imagine wanting to touch people like that. I mean, I bet she was relieved when my little harmless self came in, but imagine the types of people she might see in a given day. I was surprised at how comfortable I felt and could definitely get used to that. "Get a massage" was on the bucket list I created in May, so I officially get to mark something off!

After the massage, I went to For Eyes to look at spectacles. I'm nearly positive I successfully chose the craziest pair of glasses they had. The color of the glasses is called "prism" and is a mixture of orange, blue and purple. They are pretty awesome! When I first went to For Eyes in March of 2008, a worker invited me to her 21st birthday party. She was there, so it was fun to reminisce and get an honest opinion on the glasses I was considering!

You think my day ends there? NOPE. My sister came to get me and we went to Marshalls and the mall. I found some comfortable khaki pants at the mall, so I'm really excited about that. I can almost never find things that fit me and, of course after spending most of last Saturday looking for pants, I accidentally stumbled upon them today. On the way home from the mall, we got some queso to-go from El Toro. That's called addiction.

Now I'm getting ready to go to bed. We watched a few episodes of The Office and I'm watching the end of the Auburn vs. UGA football game. It's tied at the moment, but anything could happen. It's been a long but productive day.

Shake and bake

I am doing my therapy vest right now. I figured why the heck not. I am sitting around being extremely unproductive, so this cancels out some of that laziness. The vest is actually extremely easy to do. You put it on and it just shakes you; you truly don't have to do anything. I find it amazing that I can come up with an excuse for why I can't sit here and have a machine do all of the work.

Today my friend came over to work on her laptop while her apartment was flea-bombed. We worked and then went together to El Toro (aka heaven) for lunch. It was delicious and made me feel pretty good. Yummmmmy! It was spur-of-the-moment and it was really nice to have her company.

Tonight I will probably take it easy. It has been a long week and I feel extremely exhausted. That's surprising because I've had a very relaxing day, but maybe I relaxed myself into exhaustion. Even though I banned myself from reading until I finish writing my book, I might read some tonight. I may also try to write, but I just haven't had the right (write... HA!) inspiration today.

I'm thinking maybe I'll eat some Espresso Chip ice cream at some point tonight. I can't go wrong with that decision.

I've had a Spa Sydell gift certificate since January, and I'm considering using it for a massage tomorrow. I've never actually gotten a professional massage, and this just might be the perfect time to use it. I know it's about to get busy with the holidays around the corner, and I've got to use it by January. Maybe I'll call and make my appointment, although I'm slightly creeped out at the thought of being so... vulnerable. I need to make sure I get a woman.

Well, avid readers, have a nice Friday the 13th night.

Blue cheese

Blue cheese is such a wonderful thing. I am in the midst of a blue cheese overdose right now. I'm joking, but I did have a buffalo and blue cheese burger at Taco Mac tonight. Plus, I shared some kettle chips as an appetizer, and they had blue cheese on them. It was truly a wonderful experience, and I needed to do some emotional eating after my high stress level all week.

I went to the eye doctor today, so that was exciting. I hadn't been in 20 months, so I figured it was about time for a check-up. The doctor says that I have astigmatism, so that's kind of interesting. Not really and I don't exactly understand it, but at least it redeems the fact that I made the appointment in the first place. Also, maybe it explains why I feel like my vision is blurry sometimes randomly. I can't wait to go pick out some new spectacles!

Today I ate some Skittles at work and discussed with my boss our Skittles-eating strategy. I always eat them in the following order... If I were to grab a handful, I would first eat all of the greens. Then, I'd eat all of the yellows, followed by all of the oranges. When I'm down to red and purple, I even it out so that I have the same number of reds and purples. At that point, I alternate between red and purple, and typically eat the final two Skittles (one red and one purple) in a pair. Is that obsessive-compulsive? Probably.

Well, I'm really tired and could use some good sleep before I work in my pajamas at home tomorrow. Awesome!

I am a tornado

Today I was like a tornado destroying everything in its path. As I made abundantly clear in last night's post, I went to sleep in a pretty foul mood. I woke up in a similarly rancid mood, but it got even worse. The rain outside was a dreary start to my morning and then the commute to work seemed eight times longer than usual. Upon arriving at work, I headed straight to the kitchen to brew a pot of coffee to try to enhance my mood. It failed.

I spent over four hours in meetings today, which was tough considering the things to which I needed to devote my time. And that's precisely why I worked for almost three hours after I got home tonight. ANYWAY. Enough about THAT.

Does it drive you crazy when people are cruising along with their blinkers on by accident? It drives me insane because, if you're paying any attention to the road whatsoever, you should notice that there's a flashing light on your dashboard. At nighttime it's especially annoying because it's nearly impossible not to notice the blinking light on your dashboard, unless perhaps you're sleeping, which is also frustrating.

While I'm illustrating that I'm irritable, let me also just say that I realize I'm the Grammar Police, but I can't stand when people use apostrophes to illustrate pluralities. Apostrophe's. Oops! I made a few grammar mistake's. Look at me - I don't know basic rule's of possession!

Well, it's 9:00 p.m., so I better start heading to bed. I realize that's somewhat pathetic, but maybe a solid night's sleep will get me out of this funk. Also, I typed up my article and realized it could use a little more meat, so I may try to bulk that up before I go to bed. Sweet dream's.