Monday, December 28, 2009

Jury Duty

After being an official voter for over twenty years, I have FINALLY been called to serve for jury duty. Okay, okay, I know this is an odd thing to hope for, but after seeing co-workers being "called up" I was feeling a little jipped. Perhaps I have seen too many Law and Order shows, but this seemed like a fun thing to experience.

I cannot begin to explain how excited I was when I received my jury summons in the mail three weeks ago. With a little trepidation I woke up extra early this morning and debated on which outfit would be most appropriate (do I dress up or just wear jeans?). In case you were wondering, I went with a more casual attire. I got down to the court house with ten minutes to spare and was forced to wait outside with a few homeless men (who wanted my money)before they would let us in. In my mind I was having flashbacks to Adventures in Babysitting when the main character's friend was stuck at a train station without her glasses petting a large rat that she mistook for a cat. I couldn't help but laugh at this thought, which I am sure made me look a little odd, but whatever.

Finally the doors open and I follow the crowd through the security section and asked the police officer there where I needed to go to serve. I was quickly shown the door...because I was in the wrong place!!! You have to understand, there are about six different buildings down town that all serve some sort of municipal purpose. After being shown the correct building to go to I gathered up my things and with renewed excited headed to do my duty.

Flash forward three hours, excitement gone, boredom set in and booty aching I find myself watching the clock in anticipation of our lunch break. We lucked out and at eleven were excused for the day. I was only half way through the movie that I was watching but was more than happy to get the heck out of there. I have one more day to sit before I am either added to a panel or sent home and I am more than hoping for the latter. Yes, the dream is dead! :)

So now I can add jury duty to my list of things done in my lifetime, not that this was on my list of things to do before I die, but I have done it just the same.

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Jay Walking...it's a dangerous thing.

So this morning started out like any other, I stayed in bed a little too long but was still out of the house in record time. As I headed down the road that I have been using to get to work everyday for the last eleven years, lost in thought I was suddenly jolted back to reality when I inadvertently struck a woman who ran in front of me. It was such a surreal moment, as though time had stopped temporarily, I watched in horror as the woman flew up in the air and landed, face down onto the ground.

I pulled over as quickly as I could, still feeling stunned, I called 911 and raced over to where she lay. As I got closer the woman moved to her hands and knees and slowly crawled over to the sidewalk. All I kept thinking was, please don't let another car hit her while she is lying there. I was so relieved to see her moving. When I finally caught up to her I was stopped by the 911 operator who was trying to determine where exactly we were on the highway. Thankfully a woman who had witnessed the accident stopped to offer help and a statement.

The woman on the ground was sitting up by the time the paramedics, fire department and police showed up so I was feeling a little more relieved. The stranger and I both gave our statements to the police and it was determined that I was not at fault. The woman I hit ran across four lanes of traffic while we had a green light. She was almost there when I hit her. I didn't even see her until we made contact. The officer said that he was going to give her a ticket for jaywalking, which took the blame off of me.

This is all fine and good but it still doesn't change the fact that I struck another human being with my car. I think that I have been in a state of shock and denial for most of the day. The only time I really think about the events that took place this morning is when I am retelling the story. I do not even know her name. I am thankful that I was going the speed limit (45 mph) and that I did not hit that intersection two seconds earlier or this would probably be a completely different blog entry.

After calling into work to let them know what happened, I said a prayer of thanks and promptly but safely took myself back home. I am sure that sounds odd, to be thankful but I am. So many other factors could have come into play and I am thankful that she at the most has a broken leg. We will see what happens in the future with her, (you never know with people) but for now all of my t's are crossed and i's are dotted.

Now I can start breathing again.

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

The Interview

I have recently been given an opportunity to apply for a promotion within my company. Our office manager gave notice and suddenly I found myself in a position to challenge myself more in a place that I have called my second home for the last 11 1/2 years.

This evening I met with two of our five doctors for an interview. I know that they have already interviewed at least one other applicant and so I was feeling extremely nervous. I started the interview with a joke then let the questions fly. The doctors posed a lot of great questions, most of which I felt prepared for and some slightly unexpected but relevant.

I left the interview feeling proud of myself for stepping forward and going for something that I know will really challenge me. I feel confident that I can do the job but trust that the right person will be hired.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

An afternoon with local celebrities.

About a week ago I had the unique opportunity to attend a bowling charity event with local celebrities. The charity raised money for a local homeless shelter as well as a cat rescue program. My co-worker Janice and I went together and were very excited to find out who we were going to bowl with.

We got to the bowling alley a little bit early which in hind sight I was thankful for. I was eager to pick out my ball and get settled in so I convinced Janice to follow me down to where we could pick out the lightest balls possible. (yes I am a wimp)This is where I had my "Bridget Jones" moment. Yes, I managed to make a fool of myself once again. I had made a sudden stop to turn around and say something to Janice and as I did so my ankle turned in my Danskos. The next thing I know I am stumbling down these steps, hearing loud gasps in the background as I continue to try to catch my fall. I eventually came to a stop but not before hit a table then landing on the floor in the Superman in flight position. As I lay there stunned all that I could think about was, "I cannot believe that just happened, get up, get up"! As I peeled myself off of the floor and came to a sitting position in a nearby chair a man that I had met ten minutes earlier yells across the room, "Dawn, I saw you fall, you okay"? To which I replied, "Just trying to make an impression".

My arm hurt SO bad but I was not about to let something as silly as a possible broken arm to stop me from bowling with a local celebrity. The day did not disappoint! Three hours later and having laughed and enjoyed my time bowling with none other than Cisco, the garden guy, the peanut guy and a Sea Gal. My arm was hurting so bad by the end of the three games that I could barely lift it to clap for my teammates.

I tried to go to get my arm checked at the walk in clinic but it was closed. So I went home, took some drugs and went to bed. The next day I got in to see the doctor who took x-rays of my shoulder and found....nothing! All of that pain for nothing! I guess my arm is just really bruised, but I got stuck wearing a sling and was told to do as little as possible in the week to follow. I did what the doctor ordered for about a day and a half then couldn't take it anymore. It was too cumbersome so I took it off. My arm still hurts a little bit but it is better for the most part.

So there you have it, my exciting introduction into the world of celebrity charity work. So much fun despite the pain.

Monday, November 23, 2009

Thankyou

Jill at Jilliciousdiscoveries@blogspot.com challenged her readers to list ten things that we are grateful for, so I thought that I would share. These are not necessarily in order.
1. My family
2. Jeff-He is really good at letting me be me.
3. My friends
4. My job and co-workers
5. My education-currently in a masters program that I am loving.
6. Living in Washington
7. Church
8. Opportunities that have been recently presented to me.
9. Laughter
10.Facebook :)

So there you have it, just a few of the things that I am thankful for. Thanks Jill for the inspiration.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Spa Party!

This past Saturday I had a spa party at my house. I invited more people than I had room for and thankfully, after several last minute cancellations, we had just the right amount show up.

I was roped into doing this party by my friend Kaesha who is selling the product, Sensaria. I was feeling apprehensive about doing this because, 1. I'm busy with school and work and church and life and 2. I feel weird asking friends to come to a party to spend money. Thankfully, everybody was game and seemed to have a good time.

After a few hours of good food, great conversation, facials, hand rubs, and foot soaks I was ready to hunker in for a good nights sleep...If only I didn't put off my preparation for a presentation due at 8:30 the next morning. Bummer!

Needless to say, I prepared just enough to get through the presentation and it went over really well. All in all, it was a nice weekend.

Monday, November 9, 2009

Case #0002 The Second Flood

Okay, so I had yet another flood in my basement. This time no appliance was involved, only mother nature and a clogged drain. I woke up at midnight to find 2 inches of water flowing through my Kitchen, guest bedroom, bathroom and living room. After spending an hour getting the water out with a wet/dry vac I headed to bed thinking about what lay ahead of me the next day.

We have this wonderful gardener/handy man names Oswaldo who rushed over to save the day. He spent the day sucking out the water that remained from the night before and did a great job. The carpets finally finished drying yesterday so I have spent today cleaning, rearranging and throwing things out. The carpets will probably need to be replaced at some point but thankfully it can wait.

I have to say that the damage could have been so much worse and I really feel like we were be watched over. Looking back in hind sight, there were so many warnings that went ignored such as a niggling in the back of my mind that said I should check the drain. We had half of the power in the house go out. It was this that prompted my dad to come down stairs and check the breaker box. Had the whole house lost power he would have ignored it. It was because of this that he noticed the water coming into my part of the house.

All I can say it that I am grateful, and that I will pay more attention to the promptings that come my way.

Sunday, November 1, 2009

The Case#0001

Case:#0001 The case of the Flood

Victims:Mr. Washing Machine and Carpet





Culprit: Ms. Down Comforter



Hero: Dr. Bissel



Conclusion: Overflowing washing machine due to over stuffing.

Case Closed!

Monday, October 26, 2009

Jet Setting












This last week was really busy with travel. It all began last Saturday with a plane trip to San Francisco via Salt Lake City. I know, I know, kind of a round of about way to get there but it was cheap. I got in to SFO at about 10pm and was up by 5:30am to get ready to walk in the Nike Women's Marathon. As a team we went to the starting line together then separated to our various time zones. My friend Lisa and I were in the 12-14 min mile zone.

There were bodies everywhere you looked with a buzz in the air that was reminiscent of NYC on New Years Eve. It was cool to see so many people out running/walking to help raise money for Leukemia and Lymphoma research.
Since neither Lisa or I were going for time we took a moment to enjoy our surroundings. In fact, we took several moments to take pictures a long the way. (I would be showing them here but they are on my brother's computer at the moment and are not accessible).

After walking for about 10 miles I happened to see my brother Eric and his family drive by. They pulled over to see if we wanted a ride back to our hotel. I told him that it was tempting, but we were still in the middle of the race. Lisa almost went for it (she is 5 months pregnant)but figured she'd gone this far, what was a few more miles. Our true motivation for finishing however, were the Tiffany's boxes that we knew were waiting for us at the end. It's sad I know, but HELLO, when will I ever get a Tiffany necklace again?

Okay, so the race was great, I was exhausted, sore and walked away with 4 blisters on my feet. I was in bed that evening by 9pm trying to get some sleep before my 4am shuttle pick up back to the airport.

I headed to Baton Rouge via Georgia (are you noticing a trend here)to meet up with Jeff so that we could go ghost hunting with another brother of mine and his wife. Myrtles Plantation was the scary haunt of choice. Supposedly this is one of the most haunted homes in the south. The rooms we stayed in had a couple of children that had died of yellow fever as well as a voodoo priestess who was hung by the chandelier. There were nine of us in all including three teenagers. I admit, I was the only one to scream, but it was for good reason. That stump really looked like a giant lizard! Alright, alright, I'm a wimp!

The ghost hunt began as soon as it got dark and we wandered around the grounds and the house looking for evidence of ghostly behavior. The jury is still out as to whether we actually came in contact with a note of not. There was an instance when we were asking a ghost questions and we thought we got some responses. I just don't completely trust that it wasn't someone in our group doing the responding.

After a fun filled evening with very little sleep, we parted ways and Jeff and I headed to New Orleans to check out the city. We both determined that it would be a great place for people who are big into partying. We wandered the streets finding some that were nice and seemed safe as well as others where we determined the police presence meant that we should not be hanging out there. (smart huh?)

We were on a quest to find beignets at Cafe Du Monde. Beignets are these yummy doughnut like pastries that are served warm and covered in powdered sugar. It is VERY difficult to walk away from that cafe not covered in white powder. Hmm...note to self, police+powdery white substance=bad times in New Orleans. :)



The next day we decided to take a road trip out to Biloxi so that Jeff could visit the Hard Rock Cafe. He is on a quest to visit each HRC and collect a pin. We decided after we drove around the city for a while to take a detour out to Alabama since it was only about 20 miles away from where we are. (My quest is to go to every state in the US) Alabama was short and sweet. We stopped long enough to use the facilities then headed back to Biloxi for lunch.

Jeff and I found a cool cemetery after lunch and spent some time checking out some of the damage that still remains from Hurricane Katrina. Most of both states have rebuilt themselves but we were still able to see evidence of the devastation around
the cities. There were driveways that led to grass without a home and we also saw foundations that were still in tact but had difficulty figuring out what was once there.

We finished our trip back in New Orleans with another trip to Cafe Du Monde. I made the mistake of booking my flight out of Baton Rouge not realizing how far it was from New Orleans so we had a 2:30am wake up call which was painful. I headed back to Seattle through Baton Rouge via Memphis and slept most of the way.

Though it was a whirlwind of a trip, I had a lot of fun. I will probably never go back to New Orleans or Biloxi but am glad to have had the opportunity to check it out. It doesn't really matter where I go it is the people that I am with that I care about. We laughed a lot despite our exhaustion and have memories that will last a lifetime.

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Where to start? Adventure to The Olympics with Lucy.


Earlier this summer Lucy and I decided to catch the ferry heading over to Kingston so that we could do a couple of hikes in the Olympic Peninsula. I wanted to stop in Port Gambol on the way so that I could take a few pictures. Port Gambol is this picturesque little town a short distance away from Kingston. I have often passed by here on my way to the peninsula and have always wanted to stop but never had. So as Lucy and I made our way through Port Gambol we noticed a rather large man walking around in a kilt...and no shirt. To say that our interest was piqued would be an understatement. After asking the "parking patrol" woman what was going on she informed us that the Renaissance fair was just beginning. Lucy and I could hardly believe our luck!

After taking some pictures of the town we wandered over to check out the unique individuals who dress and act the part. There were knights, blacksmith, and even Monty Python graced us with his presence. Lucy was called my lady, to which she responded, "who me"? We couldn't help but laugh at the scene that was laid out before us, it was literally like walking back in time.

We lingered at the fair for a while then decided to make our way to Hurricane ridge where we took in the beautiful view and went on a three mile hike. We came across a deer who was eating leaves right next to the path we were on. Yes, I jumped, I can't help myself! Lucy and I had heard that the flowers up on the ridge were really pretty so we were eager to find them and get some pictures. Yeah, the people who told us about the wild flowers were delusional, there were hardly any there and they weren't very bright. Oh well, it was a good hike anyway.

The next day Lucy and I set off for a nine mile hike at Lake Ozette. The hike was loooong! I know nine miles in theory isn't bad, but three of them were on the beach, so that slowed us down a lot! The main reason that I wanted to do this hike was because of the petroglyphs that were carved hundreds of years ago by the native Americans who once resided there. The ranger had given us a map (which was not to scale by the way) so that we would not miss these really cool rocks. I felt like a little kid on a treasure hunt and was probably more excited than anybody else who was there when I finally located them.

The hike on the beach was starting to make me a little nervous. The markers that let you know where the trail head is off of the beach are not obvious so any time I saw what looked like a marker I would climb up the path and check it out. By the third time I checked and found no trail I started getting worried. I asked Lucy if she thought that we should turn around, to which she responded with,"your call". No pressure! With no markers, we had no way to know how far we had gone so I said a little prayer and we kept walking. I had been here before, a long time ago, but all of the landmarks looked the same. I just kept saying, "lets go up to that bend and see what's there". Finally, after what seemed like FOREVER, we found the marker and were on our way back to the car. I cannot express the amount of relief I felt when Lucy pointed out the marker.

By the time we got back to the car we were starving and I think a little dehydrated. Neither of us was feeling well but by the time we got some food and water in us we were feeling a lot better. The drive home was long but we had a great time.

The following are pictures from our escapades:













Thursday, September 10, 2009

Coming soon...an update!

I am sorry that it has been so long since my last post. I promise to update soon, I have just been really busy with work and school and the last thing I feel like doing when I get home is boot up the computer. My last class of the quarter is this Saturday so I will be sure to catch up on my blogging after that. I have lots of pictures from some Lucy and Dawn adventures to share as well as life in general.

Stay tuned...

Monday, July 6, 2009

Hair today gone tomorrow.

Today I went to see Tan, a new hairstylist at the recommendation of a good friend of mine. My first introduction to Tan happened over the phone when I called to set an appointment. What I heard was, "Pizza Hut, what can I get for you"? When I apologized for making an error in dialing, he said, "no, no, no, this is La Fashion, how can I help you"? Yeah...Not the best way to make a new client feel like they are going to be in good, professional hands.

While I was a little apprehensive about going to see a new hairdresser, my need to "pretty up" my drab looking hair prevailed. My first impression when walking into the closet they called a salon was, Oh my, what have I gotten myself into. There was dust all over the shelves, clipped hair residue clinging to the floor and, wait for it...no hairdresser. Yeah, he forgot that I was coming.

So while I waited the ten minutes it took for him to race to the salon, I sat in an uncomfortable chair texting the friend who referred me to see if I was being punked. My patience was waning and I kept thinking about how I could submit this salon to the "Salon Makeover" show with Tabitha. She would rip them to shreds. As I contemplated leaving Tan walked in muttering something about the bridge and being distracted by it. He pointed to a seat and said, "okay". I reluctantly sat in the chair and proceeded to tell him what I wanted done to my hair. He went into great detail as to what he would do to make that happen, then walked away to get the ingredients needed to create the perfect hair color. Oh yeah, he mixed it all right there at the counter. I started to worry about whether or not he was going to cover me with a smock before doing the color or just risk it. I was envisioning giant globs of dye peppering my shirt and pants while he absentmindedly chatted and waved the brush around in the air to make his point. Thankfully, Tan came through, and my tye-dye dreams were no more.

I walked out two hours later feeling relieved and happy with the results of my hair. All was forgiven and even with all of the flaws, I would go there again. I would even recommend Tan to a friend, I would just warn them first.

Sunday, June 28, 2009

Jeff's Birthday

This weekend started off with a bang when Lucy, Jeff and I headed to Teatro Zin Zanni to celebrate his 39th birthday. For those of you who have never heard of Teatro Zin Zanni, it is a combination of dinner theater, circus, and gymnastics. As you enter the large tent your senses are immediately put to work. The moulin rouge esque feel has you on high alert for fear you might miss some of the action if you are not paying attention. The performers are funny, talented and incredibly strong. We sat staring with our mouths gaping while we watched a couple perform a tango mid air. The meal that is provided has been given 5 stars, by whom I do not know, its just what they said in the advertisement. (Considering the fact that I probably wouldn't know the difference between a three or four star restaurant let alone a five star, it tasted good, so there you have it).

Jeff had several moments where he was in fear of being found out. He threatened to get me back BIG TIME if I mentioned that we were there for his birthday. It's probably a good thing I didn't say anything as Caesar, the "emcee" took great pleasure in pulling poor unsuspecting spectators from their chairs and into the spotlight. There were a few times when Caesar was searching for his next victim that Jeff was, I think, using the secret to keep him from being pulled up on stage. I can report that it worked because he stayed safely planted in his seat the whole time.

After being thouroughly entertained for three hours, Jeff and I headed up to Smokey Point to meet up with my little brother. Lucy decided to pass on the second part of our evening which was a trip to a haunted house to go ghost hunting. I know, I know, kind of an odd thing to do. My little brother has been getting into ghost hunting ala TAPS and asked if we could come along Friday night to help him out.

The house we went to had some sightings of a little girl. The owner (Mikey's co-worker) claimed to have heard a little girl giggling and singing lullabyes. I have to admit I was a little nervous at first and felt really dumb sitting in the dark talking to a wall. After we settled in, we all started getting into it. I have no idea what I would have done if we had gotten a reaction. (probably run screaming from the house like a little girl to hide in the car) We were able to debunk some of the claims as a result of her living on a busy street in a really old house. The evening was a bust and now we will never know what kind of ghost hunters we would be. I am secretly okay with that.

Jeff's birthday celebration was a lot of fun even though it ended with a no show of a ghost. It was 3am by the time we got back to the house, we were exhausted but it was worth it.

We continued the celebration Saturday afternoon with lunch at The Macaroni Grill, (another five star meal :)) where Lucy, Marly and her son Jett met us. Lunch was followed up with a trip to the theater to watch The Proposal. The movie is cute and Betty White is hillarious as usual. Later that evening Jeff and I met up with Lucy again to go for a walk at Discovery Park. We discovered a really long staircase in the woods that led us down to the water where we also discovered a lighthouse.

We finished the day sitting outside of a burger joint in Ballard where we ate dinner and talked for three hours. I think we finally dropped Lucy off at about 12:30am. I know that I am only 38 and can handle staying up that late, but Jeff is a feeble 39 years old now, he needs his sleep. :)

The weekend was great and as always I had a lot of fun hanging with friends and the man that I...(Jeff hates when I get mushy)

Sunday, May 17, 2009

Another fun adventure with Lucy.

Lucy and I set off last Saturday morning at 7:30am for a day of road tripping. I was feeling antsy and needed to get out of the city and Lucy wanted to test out her new camera. Out goal for the day was to head to Oregon to see Multnomah Falls then head over to see a replica of Stone Henge in Maryhill Washington. This was the plan for the day but as we drove we decided to add to it a bit by heading to Tillamok for ice cream then end the day with dinner in Astoria. I will get back to that little adventure later.

Highlights:



Multnomah Falls is a beautiful place surrounded by trees with a lot of trails surrounding the falls. There were plenty of tourists roaming about which made walking the trails slightly congested. I was really looking forward to taking pictures but was disappointed to find that my camera had been left on all night and so the battery was dead. Thankfully I have learned to be prepared so I brought a second camera with me...which I left in my car in the parking lot across the street. I was being too lazy to walk back and figured I would get pictures from Lucy. The picture you see above is what I took from the parking lot.


Our next stop on our adventure was Stone Henge in Maryhill, Washington. Stone Henge is a world war I memorial created by Sam Hill in the early 1900s. The project began when Hill was mistakenly informed that the original Stonehenge had been used as a sacrificial site. He thus constructed his replica as a reminder that “humanity is still being sacrificed to the god of war.


The dedication plaque on this American Stonehenge reads:

"In memory of the soldiers of Klickitat County who gave their lives in defense of their country. This monument is erected in the hope that others inspired by the example of their valor and their heroism may share in that love of liberty and burn with that fire of patriotism which death can alone quench."


Not only was this an interesting place to visit on a sunny Saturday afternoon, but it was also a fun way to learn about Maryhill's history. Lucy and I
spent a little time at the Maryhill museum where they house some of Rodin's sculptures and artwork. I am not a huge fan of Rodin but it was worth seeing.

In the parking lot of the museum Lucy and I pulled out our map and figured out which route we needed to take to get over to the coast of Oregon. It was 4:30 in the afternoon and I started to question whether we would make it to Tillamok before it closed for the day. Lucy and I decided to bypass Tillamok and head straight to Asotria. We were feeling really proud of ourselves for being able to navigate so well and actually reach our destinations without getting lost...we probably should have waited until we made it back to I-5 before we got too excited.

We made it to Astoria by 7pm and we were pleasantly surprised to find that the local stores were hosting an art walk. Hunger out weighed our need to be culturally filled so we found a little Italian restaurant and hunkered in. It was prom night in Astoria so we found many scantily clad girls roaming the streets. There was a couple sitting close to up where the girl, in her pretty, barely there yellow dress spent most of the evening trying to keep her naughty bits from making an entrance of their own. Apparently Astoria has not heard of double stick tape. Lucy and I wondered whose parents let them leave the house like that.


With our tummies full and a very long drive ahead of us, Lucy and I headed on the 101 toward home. It was about 9:30pm at that point and we were both getting tired. We were doing really well until we came to a point where we could either go straight or turn right. Neither sign said 101 on it so we guessed as to which way we needed to go. Well...we guessed wrong. About 30 minutes later we were driving down what seemed to be a residential street and I jokingly said to Lucy, "wouldn't it be funny if this ends up being a dead end"? A block or two later Lucy says, "are we on Joe John road? Did that just say Joe John road"? (by the way, who names a street Joe John road?) Sure enough we were on the road of Joe John which confirmed our suspicions; we were going the wrong way!

I turned around and made my way back to highway 103, which we could not find on the map at first. We made sure to back track to the fork in the road we had come across earlier and found our way to 101. Feeling a little relieved to be on a somewhat familiar highway Lucy and I started chatting. It was right about then that a cop pulled up behind me and pulled me over...nice. Well, if you are anything like me you don't take out your old insurance or registration forms when you get the new ones. I proceeded to hand the police officer one expired registration/insurance form after another. When I finally found the correct forms it was all I could do to keep from laughing at the situation. The man took pity on me and let me go with a warning, which I was incredibly thankful for.

Adventures aside, I finally dropped Lucy off at her house at about 2:30am and crawled into my own bed after 3am. We had a great time visiting new spots and creating new memories. Hopefully this will inspire you to go visit some of these places, it is worth the drive.

Saturday, May 16, 2009

Stem Cells

As you know I am preparing to donate stem cells on Monday for a 62 year old woman. To prepare for this procedure I have to go in and get one injection in each arm for four days prior to the donation. Before you even begin this process the doctors go over every possible detail of what you may experience, what could go wrong, basically what to expect. In all of my optimism I thought, I can handle anything, this won't be hard. It is less invasive than donating bone marrow, so how bad could it be? Well...six injections later I am feeling like a 90 year old arthritic woman whose body is not happy with what I am putting in it.

Last night Jeff and I went to a wedding reception and there were several moments when I had to stop and wait for my chest to stop throbbing. When I woke this morning I felt like my head was going to explode and my heart was doing loop-de-loops. I figured that I would ask about these new symptoms when I went in for my injections this morning. (I seriously thought that I was going to end up in the hospital) Thankfully, everything that I am feeling is considered "normal". I am feeling this way because the growth hormone is creating more cells in my bones and the sternum, being a larger bone will "ache" more. They told me before I started this that the fourth and fifth days were the worst and that the symptoms would go away as soon as the injections stopped. I am only on day three...

I must say, I am extremely disappointed. I was expecting to have grown at least 3 more inches but it just hasn't happened. I guess I am stuck at 5'4 & 3/4s. (That's what heels are for, right?)

All in all this has not been a bad experience, just uncomfortable to say the least. I just keep thinking about why I am doing it; call myself a wimp, take some Tylenol and get on with my day.

My next post is going to be much more exciting I promise. I still need to blog about my trip to Stone Henge with Lucy last weekend. It included a waterfall, an unplanned trip to Astoria, getting pulled over, and getting a little lost. It was quite the adventure.

Monday, May 11, 2009

Dietitis

I have been thinking a lot about why I continue to ride the weight loss/gain train. Just when I think that I have cured myself of the cunning ways of carbohydrates, I find myself being wooed, senses dulled with the promise of mouth watering pastries. It could be something as simple as a wafting smell of popcorn at the movies or the sight of fresh out of the oven chocolate chip cookies and I am back in their loving arms…I am such a push over!

I think that I have finally figured out why I am so weak when it comes to food, pure pressure. Yep, you heard me right…pure pressure. Now, I can’t really blame my friends and family for my food weaknesses, after all, it is not like they are forcing food down my throat, heck, I think half the time its my idea to go get something to eat. What is wrong with me? (That was a rhetorical question) I have decided that I suffer from a sad case of wantingtoeatwhatIwantandbeskinnywithoutdoinganythingaboutititis. It is a sad reality I know, but that is the crux of it; that and the fact that I think that I relate to others through food.

When you don’t have a family to cook for you tend to eat out a lot and when you are the only one eating healthy there is a feeling of not quite fitting in. It is like we, or I bond with others through food. I seriously need to change this way of thinking. My problem is that I do not know how to be that girl who eats the same way at a restaurant that she eats while at home. Scratch that…I do eat that way, just not in the healthy sense. Please don’t think that I lack the desire to be healthy and thin…In my mind I look gooooood!

If you have any advice as to how to take this insight and turn it into healthy thinking, I would appreciate it. Until then I will try to reclaim the shorts that my thighs are currently holding hostage and attempt to counteract my eating through exercise.

Monday, May 4, 2009

While I've been away...

Sorry that it has been soooo long since I have updated my blog, I have had some computer issues. Let me update you on the goings on in my life.

1.School has kept me busy, busy guessing that is. The program that I am in seems to be flying by the seat of its pants. Is how most grad programs are? No yearly calender to say when classes begin or end, registration is done through your counselor, just finding out that quarters are done on an accelerated program so they only last 4 weeks. All of this information would have been good to know before I started the program. :) (not that it would have changed anything)

I just finished my last class yesterday so I am anxiously waiting for the results of the final. I have to maintain a 3.0 GPA to stay in the program and while I am confident in my abilities, I still get a little nervous.

2. My good friend from work just found out that her 2yr old grandson (with whom she has been raising since he was 6mos) has Leukemia. She walked into the er on a Tuesday morning thinking that maybe he had an infection of some kind, would get some antibiotics and be on their way. By Tuesday evening he was admitted to the hospital, told he had Leukemia and started on chemo the next day. Such a devastating day. The good news is that of all the strains of Leukemia out there, his is the most curable, though he will be doing treatments for the next three years. Right now he is home and as he puts it, "mama, I happy now".

3. As some of you may know I donated bone marrow three years ago to a 16 year old girl with the same disease. Unfortunately she passed away shortly after the transplant, but I was thankful for the opportunity just the same. Last Friday I got a call from the Puget Sound blood bank telling me that I have been requested to donate again. This time I will be donating my stem cells which will require a series of growth hormone injections done over a week followed by an extraction. Blood is taken out of one arm "sorted" then put back into my body through the other arm. On May 18th, yes, the anniversary of Mt. St. Helen's' eruption I will spend the day doing this donation-much less invasive then what I did before, which I appreciate. The only information I know about the recipient is that she is a 62 year old woman.

4. Finally, my 4 year old laptop has decided it no longer wants to play so I am forced, yes, forced to go buy a new one. I hadn't realized how attached I am to my laptop. I have been forced (there's that word again :)) to use my parent's desk top which, is a little too bulky to rest on my lap. Today I am off to go search out my options, sadly MAC is out of the running (Jeff, Ken and Lucy) as I am looking for a laptop that is UNDER $800. Call me cheap, but I really would rather spend my money on fun things like traveling, or shoes.

So there you have it, now you are updated on some of the things that have been going on with me.

Sunday, April 5, 2009

The first day of school

Today I officially started my grad school program. It is kind of weird because this particular class is every Sunday through May 6th. This is a pre-requisite to the rest of the program and since all other classes are on Saturdays the administration thought a Sunday class would make the most sense.

As I prepared to leave for class I wondered what kind of people would be there. Would they be professionals or would they be young "kids" fresh out of college? I wanted to look somewhat professional so I opted NOT to wear my sweats,(The class goes from 8:30am to 2:30pm) and made sure that I got up a little early to do my hair and makeup.(1st impressions you know) With my book bag once again in hand, I took a deep breath and headed off to school. I will admit that I felt a little relieved when I walked in to find that the majority of the students were "seasoned" professionals. The old school 3-ring binder that I brought with me to take notes fit right in.

I was feeling alright for the first few minutes, and then... the introductions started. My introduction came towards the end, (I tend to be a middle, to back of the room kind of student)and I was feeling incredibly inadequate. As each person listed their credentials and multiple degrees, my mind wandered to the scene in "Legally Blond" where Elle meets her fellow law students and her intro was all about how she stopped Cameron Diaz from buying a truly heinous orange outfit. I racked my brain for an interesting intro that would validate my acceptance to the program. I have to say that what I lack in experience, I definitely make up for in my desire and passion to make the school systems better. Despite that, I felt like I held my own but went on my first break texting Jeff about how intimidated I was feeling. I honestly was beginning to wonder if I was WAAAY out of my league.

My instinct to run out of the school and never look back was hindered by the fact that I left my books and computer in the classroom. Curses! I walked back into the room with my head held much higher than I felt and reclaimed my seat next to the overachievers, (do these people believe in having a personal life?). The professor, (who is the program administrator by the way) went through the syllabi's and by the time we were done with that I was starting to feel more confident about my ability to succeed in the program. We were placed into groups shortly after the expectations were hashed out and quickly found that the students are all really nice and non-judgemental. We were given questions regarding counseling that we needed to answer and I actually felt that I could give intelligent answers that were appropriate to the subject, despite my lack of experience in a school setting. (Jeanna, I even used your Reality Town experience as an example, thanks)

Though my day started off really shaky, it ended with a renewed faith in my latest endeavor. I feel like I will do well in this program and ultimately be able to help kids succeed in their lives. I met some really nice people that are respectful of the others ideas in the class. (What else would you expect in a room full of would be counselors?) I am sure that I will have more moments of feeling inadequate, but hey, that's what friends are for; reminding you that those feelings will pass. I will thank you all now in advance.

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Activity Night

Every other Wednesday I meet with twelve young girls all between the ages of 8to 11 years old. My co-chair and I plan various activities to keep them entertained for a little over an hour. Some of the activities are really engaging and keep the VERY energetic girls occupied, while others seem to send them into this wild frenzy. This evening we had a guest come in to teach the girls a dance routine, (very basic) to the theme song for "Tarzan". Ellie, the dance instructor, was very patient when a few of the girls decided to display their skills performing "The Worm". The older girls did really well and seemed to be really into learning the dance while the younger ones entertained themselves by doing the splits, hitting each other and running aimlessly around the room.

Sue, my co-chair and I have been discussing the unruliness of our group and after repeatedly asking the girls to pay attention to our guest, she'd had enough. The girls were asked to come sit on the carpet where, with our prompting, they came up with a list of rules that they should follow while at activity night.
Most of the rules they came up with were pretty common, ie: Be respectful of others, raise your hand when you want to say something, and think before you speak. Some of the not so helpful suggestions: Don't do the splits, only one person can go potty at a time(don't ask) and don't lay on the floor.

After our chat the girls really seemed to be adhering to the rules. We will see how things go at our next get together. For our part, we are going to attempt to be a little more strict. Time will tell.

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Preparing for grad school

As you all know, I have recently applied to grad school at a local University. I submitted the application and transcripts a little over a month ago. I have been waiting ever so patiently for the school to call and schedule a time for me to meet with the senior faculty,(The final step before being considered for a place in my program). One week after another went by without a phone call so I finally broke down and contacted my would be advisor. When Nicole answered the phone, I asked her why I had not heard from the school yet. She kindly asked me to hold on the line while she pulled my portfolio to see what the problem was. I waited anxiously to hear what she had to say. (I was convinced that it was their fault and that they were slacking) When Nicole returned to the phone she informed me that they were still waiting to receive the rest of my portfolio. Oops! In my defense, I was under the impression that I was supposed to bring the "missing" paperwork to the meeting with the advisers. I explained my confusion to Nicole and promised to have it all in her office within the week. I hung the phone and thought,WOW! Way to show how organized and on top of it you are! :)
I had to go babysit my nephews shortly after the phone call ended so I packed up my laptop and headed out. Lets just say that babysitting two young boys and trying to write three essays about how I will be an asset to the University, do not mix. I was able to write all of the essays but they were in desperate need of some tweaking. Jeff was nice enough to read through my papers and edit them for me,( I must admit that I was a little embarrassed by all of the grammatical errors that I had made). Again, I had written them all in the span of three hours, while helping with homework, baths and video games. I know this sounds like a lame excuse and realistically, I probably am just really rusty. After I finished rewriting the essays, I printed out my edited papers.
With my finished portfolio in hand I ran down to the school on my lunch break to turn it in. I was surprised to find myself feeling very anxious. All of a sudden my future was/is sitting in the hands of an advisor who is going to judge my essays and applications and determine my fate. What if I am not accepted? What if I do get in? Holy Crap! If I do get into school, classes begin in two weeks...that is A LOT to do in a really short amount of time. Oh, the joy...

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

A new law in Seattle

About a month or two ago the city passed a law that requires any establishment that sells food to provide a list of the calories in each item. The theory behind this is that if people know how much fat and calories they are consuming they will make better choices. While there are some that are poo pooing this idea, I am finding this to be working for me. I love Starbuck's hot chocolate and just learned that a grande without whip is 300 calories. I have since switched to non-fat, tall, no whip hot chocolate which is something like 240 cal.

A little over a month ago Jeff and I went to dinner at CPK (California Pizza Kitchen). I went directly to the rest room while Jeff got our table for us. By the time I got to the table Jeff had a sad look on his face. When I asked what was wrong he said that he could never eat there again. (This is one of his favorite places to eat, so this was indeed a sad day for him) I found in his hand a pamphlet that listed all of the calories in the menu. The salad that he usually gets was something like 800 calories. This was shocking! We then went through the menu to find something that would not instantly attach itself to our arteries and found, (after a lot of rationalizing over all of the calories we had burned exercising earlier in the day) that some of their pizzas were relatively low in fat and calories. We made are choices based on that and felt relatively good about them.

There are some who have said that if they are going to a fast food restaurant they aren't worried about the calories and knowing how fattening they are will not dissuade them from eating fries and a burger. I imagine this is probably true for some but I am finding that I am choosing differently because of this new found information. I will admit there are times that I don't care how fattening something is (I bet you can't guess when those times are:))but those are few and far between. For the most part knowing how many calories are in the food I am about to purchase definitely makes me pause and look for another option that would be just as satisfying.

Saturday, March 7, 2009

Facebook

For those of you who are still living in the dark ages and have never heard of facebook it is a website (similar to myspace) where you can connect with friends. I have been apart of facebook for about 6 months now and have really enjoyed it. When I first joined (because of Jeff) I was not that enthralled with it. I am not a huge internet person, I don't like to spend hours at a time on line surfing the net. Never have been, probably never will. It's not that I don't find it entertaining, I just can't think of that many sites to visit. (call me boring)

Facebook has been a great way to re-connect with friends from high school, even some from elementary school. I love that my brothers and cousins are now on there. It is fun to read about what they are doing in their daily lives and to interact with them more frequently than I would otherwise.

The only downside to Facebook is just that, you don't really need to interact with anybody face to face. You can see what they've written and choose to comment or not and they can, in turn, respond to you. As our technology grows our abiliy to interact on a one on one basis decreases. I am not saying that it is a bad thing, I am on it just as much as the next person, but I think that after a while it gets easier to "communicate" on line as opposed to in person or on the phone.
I guess I got a bad taste in my mouth when I had a roommate who would spend hours on end on the internet. She formed friendships with strangers and lived her life through websites and chat rooms. She gradually stopped doing things with other friends and lived to be on line. I know that this is an extreme case, but it was enough to keep me from even coming close to doing the same thing.

I must admit that the Internet is really entertaining and I do see the value in it. As they say...all things in moderation.

Monday, February 23, 2009

The Lion King


Last Saturday I went to see The Lion King musical with one of my best friends. She got us the tickets for my birthday last July and we have been looking forward to going ever since. The days proceeding were filled with expectation and excitement. We had both heard that it was a great musical and judging by the ticket sales and sold out shows we went expecting A LOT.
The play started with a bang. The opening act was everything that we thought that it would be and more. The "animals" entered at the back of the theater and sauntered down the aisles to greet the new baby lion, Simba. The music was really beautiful and the sets pretty amazing. I understad why people are so enthrawled with this play.
Now, with that being said, I must say that I found myself nodding off during some of the scenes. While the costumes and music were incredibly well done, the story was...kind of boring. Things picked up a bit when Timone and Pumba entered the stage. They supplied a much needed laugh and put a little more life into the play. The story follows the movie fairly closely and if memory serves me correctly, I liked it.
Overall the play was kind of a dissapointment. Perhaps if we had gone into it with lower expectations we would have felt differently about it. I know that I am probably in the minority on this one but when you're watching a play and counting down the scenes in your mind before it is over, that is never a good sign. Again, the sets and costumes were hands down, some of the best that I have seen, but I left feeling underwhelmed by the story.

Sunday, January 25, 2009

An evening with Marc Broussard



Last night I went to see Marc Broussard play at the Show Box with some friends. We started the evening by having dinner across the street at The Pike. (They have the best food!) We finally made our way over to the concert at about 7:30pm. We quickly found our place on the floor and eagerly waited for the first act to come on. The last time I was here was probably three years ago, seeing the same performer. At that time I had never even heard of Marc Broussard. By the end of that evening I became a fan and was looking forward to seeing him again.

The first performer J. Hoge went on at 8pm and wasn't....bad. He was constantly plugging his cd (that we could purchase in the back) and promoting his upcoming tour. He also repeated his name several times and unfortunatly I can't remember it. He struggled to hit the higher notes and was a little flat at times but he had a really fun personality which made his set more enjoyable.

The next performer was Jessie Bayler. I really liked her voice however, most of her music is mellow and as a girl who is not used to being out much past 11pm I needed all the help I could get just to stay awake.

As the evening progressed we encountered some of the strangest people who all seemed to gravitate towards us. One guy we nicknamed elbows because he kept elbowing everyone around him including a VERY patient Lucy. He was killing me. He would close his eyes and just start dancing like he was the only one in the room. Oh, and he had no rhythm which made it even funnier. The other guy who decided that we would be a fun group to hang with we nicknamed Bollywood. He would yell out yeah at the most inappropriate times and sang louder than the performers and was flaaaat! At one point I had to ask him to be quiet so that we could hear Marc sing. I thought that Rachelle (sorry if I am spelling that wrong) was going to throttle him. At one point she was yelling at him to get off of Lucy because he kept dancing really close to her. Lucy, by the way was totally oblivious to him. There were a few other interesting "folk" there but they were quickly forgotten when Marc Broussard entered the room.

After waiting patiently for the roadies to break down the set and prepare for the next set Marc Broussard came on with energy, excitement and that amazing voice. I can honestly say that he brought the house down. He played for over an hour and could have gone on for more. We all remarked afterwards that he thoroughly enjoys what he is doing. He was smiling almost the whole time, he interacted with the crowd and performed with so much energy that it would have been difficult not to be affected by it. When he came out for his encore he sang the two songs that he wrote for his son and daughter which were really sweet. The final song was a new one all about funk. It had that "We want the funk" vibe which was a great song to end a great show with.

We all walked away entertained and maybe a little tired but it was well worth it.

Monday, January 19, 2009

Liquid Satan



In an effort to live a more healthy lifestyle I have decided to give up my favorite drink, Diet Pepsi. This is not going to be easy for me because I really like my liquid satan. (as Jeff so affectionately calls it) My rationalization for drinking it has always been, "I have no other vices, so why not"?
In an attempt to talk my self into following through with this I have listed a few valid reasons of why I need to stop drinking DP. 1. Believe it or not, I tend to lose weight when I am not drinking soda. The last time I stopped drinking it I lost 10lbs. 2. The cost alone would be worth it, a 20oz bottle of soda costs about $1.65,(I wont say how much I drink in a week but I have done the math, and I will be saving quite a bit of money) 3.The most important reason to quit, I drink A LOT more water when soda is omitted which is much healthier.

So there you have it, I am announcing it to the world, no more liquid satan for me! Bring on the headaches!

Sunday, January 18, 2009

"Twas the week before Christmas..."

"Twas the week before Christmas, and next to the Sound,
Not a creature was stirring, for all were snowbound.
Greyhound busses quit running, no matter the the fare,
And the mail men and garbage said they just couldn't get there!

The children were sliding Queen Anne Hill on their sleds.
While roofs were collapsing on old people's heads.
And mamma in her boots and I in my cap,
Were stuck in the snow and ice and such crap.

When at the Home Depot there arose such a clatter,
I trudged from my car to see what was the matter.
A group of sad souls were waving their cash,
They couldn't buy shovels, they'd sold in a flash.
Tires were spinning and just wouldn't go,
And chains lay broken in the dirty old snow.
Then, what to my surprise did my eyes look over and see?

Eight representatives of SDOT,
With a fat politician so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it was Mayor "Salt Nick".
More rapid than gun bans, his excuses they came,
"To save our environment the roads stay the same!
On Broadway! On Boren! On Yesler and Denny!,
To clear off these roads would cost such a penny!
Sliding down Thomas and onto a wall!
The busses hung over I-5, ready to fall!

Still, he insisted it wasn't his fault,
As the world's greenest mayor he wouldn't use SALT!
That stuff's corrosive, could hurt the fish.
(But the Puget Sound's SALT WATER you ignorant kish!)
So snowy Seattle continued to stew,
But Mayor "Salt Nick" just hadn't a clue.
While I stood there astonished, on nearby TV sets,
I saw the airport was packed, no de-icer for jets.
Since others couldn't get down the roads to the ferry,
The city decided to close Denny and Cherry.
Police cars and firetrucks were highly impaired,
Citizens got no impression that Mayor Salt Nick cared.
A house that caught fire, or a rape in progress,
Was less important than "going green" in Seattle - I guess!

An accident closed the I-90 bridge,
And people couldn't drive down Phinney Ridge.
Shovels, and salt had just flown off the shelf,
And I laughed when I heard him in spite of myself.
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
He tried to convey we had nothing to dread;

He spoke many words, but did little work,
Yet Seattle knew they should never have elected this jerk.
Then thumbing his nose at his citizens' plight,
He turned to the crowd and exclaimed "We've done right!",
And then to his limo refusing to yield,
He left to get solar panels installed on Qwest Field.
But I heard him exclaim, as he ski dded past me
"Happy Christmas to all, heck, I give myself a 'B' ".

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Aaaah, life, isn't it sweet

You may remember me blogging a while ago about a problem I have with TMJ. Well it was better for a while but has recently been acting up. Some of it is brought on through stress (the holidays were brutal at work) and some just because of how my jaw is formed. Unfortunately my jaw has slipped out of the disk and after many Orthodontist appointments, it still has not gone back in. The upside is that I can't chew very well so I have been averaging about 800 calories a day. I've lost about 5pounds so far. Though not a diet of my choosing, I will take it. The downside is that the whole left side of my face is in pain. My ears, head and neck all hurt and the pain meds that I am supposed to take make me sleepy and light headed.

So I am hungry, in pain and incredibly frustrated with my body's ability to heal itself. (Not the best combination) :) If we cannot get it to go back into place and stay there, I will have to have my jaw wired shut. THIS is not an option! I love to talk,and eat, so that would be no fun at all!

Okay, now that I have gotten that all out of my system, I feel much better.

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Movie Stars and economics.

I am watching the Oscars this evening and am laughing at the mention of "these difficult economic times". My first thought is really? I mean seriously, what difficult times are they facing? Are they in danger of getting fired or laid off from their job because the company they work for is going under? Are their insurance deductibles going up in an effort for their company to cut costs? Are they shopping at non-designer stores to cut back?

It kills me that they have the audacity to talk about these troubling times when they are making millions of dollars and buying purses that cost upwards of $3,000. Forgive me if I fail to feel sorry for them.

I have been lucky not to have been hit by the economic crisis as of yet. Working in a doctors office kind of ensures that you will always have a job. Though my job is safe, there are so many others who are feeling less secure. I listened to a co-worker's spouse talk about his experience of having to say goodbye to colleagues whom he counted as friends. On the one hand you are grateful to still have a job, but feel bad for a friend who has to go home and tell his/her family that they may have to sell their house. What a devastating day that would be.

So when I hear celebrities talking about how they are feeling the pain of the economic crisis I get cranky.

Monday, January 5, 2009

Blogging to Blog

So, I was talking to Jeff about the fact that I hace 1,500 visitors so far on my blog. I was feeling pretty good about myself until he mentioned that he has had over 5,000 visitors to his blog. Needless to say I am feeling like my 1,500 is looking pretty pathetic next to his. Then I went to Jeanna's blog who has, I don't know, something like 20,000 visitors. She is my hero in the blogging world. She has tons of visitors who make a lot of comments on what she has to say.

I am not sure if I should feel bad about my stats or not. Does it make me narcisistic to hope that people out there in cyberspace care to read about what is going on in my life, however trivial it may be? Probably. :) I started to think about how I can increase the volume to my blog. Do I really want that kind of responsiblity? It is a lot of pressure to try to come up with new and interesting things to blog about. Hmm...I think that I will have to put my pride to the side and just be satisfied with the fact that I have faithful friends out there who come back to visit often. For those people, I say thank you.

For now I will be content to blog for no other reason then as a way to get the things out of my head and onto "paper". Having friends come to visit is just an added bonus.

Saturday, January 3, 2009

A New Year

Here it is, another year to look forward to. A time to reflect on the past, and set new goals. I know, I know, the same old thing we revist as each new year aproaches. I am not big on making resolutions as I try to set goals throughout the year to work on. My friends have all been busy trying to come up with ideas of how to enrich their lives. Some friends have even enlisted the help of others to aid in their search for ideas. That said, I have decided that my goal this year is just to do some of the things that I have been puting off for years now. I am really good at making excuses for why I can't or shouldn't do things and I have resolved to stop that behavior.

I want to do the Wonderland Trail, I want to go back to school and get my masters, I want to be more active. (I like Matthew McConaughey's way of thinking, in that he strives to work up a sweat on a daily basis)I even started this morning with a jog around Greenlake. There are so many other things I want to do; take an acting class, audition for a play at the local theater (volunteer of course), maybe sing again. So many things, but all very fun.

I will try to keep you all aprised of how I am doing. Here's to a Happy New Year!