The One About Errands

Upside to babysitting for the weekend: I'm still in my PJs

Downside to babysitting for the weekend: I probably won't get anything useful done today

If I was having a weekend in the real world, instead of fake world, I might have to put this on and go run some legitimate errands. But if I was in the real world this outfit would look a little bit more like jeans and an over-washed TCU sweatshirt. I guess I can't have it both ways.

The One About Babysitting

This weekend I'm spending it with my 10-year-old cousin, Kathleen. Apparently she's going to spend all day Saturday running around the neighborhood playing with friends and I'm going to catch up on my reading, a little bit of work, and I might even transfer my entire home iTunes library to my work iTunes. How does that sound?

I was trying to come up with some fun things to at least OFFER to take her to do, but I'm not even sure what would be fun for her. I guess maybe we'll run all of that down tonight. You never know, maybe she'll actually want to hang out with me some??

It's gotten beyond cold in the last couple of days...mittens, scarfs and constant shivering cold...but last week the universe gave us a teeny tiny glimpse of what it would feel like to put on this, and not want to constantly be wrapped up in wool and a parka. Wouldn't that be nice?

On a totally unrelated, and relatively obnoxious note (sorry). The people who live in my apartment and throw parties on weeknights are going to have to GO. Not only does that mean I can HEAR YOU, but YOU'RE TAKING UP ALL OF THE PARKING SPOTS. Last night I parked on the curb, right next to the trashcans. People sometimes do this, and it's not a huge deal, EXCEPT last night THREE of us had to do that...so I'm sure people were using some mighty nice words when trying to slither there way out of the driveway...past the rear end of my car. OOPS. Not my fault. Take it up with the 30 or so people that were banging (probably, but that might have just been the music) on the wall of my apartment in the middle of last night.

** That YSL is the best mascara on the planet. It's all a friend of mine in school wore, and I LOVE IT. Too bad its more expensive than my current choice...which I picked up at Target.

The One About Lunch

So - I gave up eating out for lunch during Lent. I like this plan. Hopefully it's going to make me eat a smidge healthier, and I'm 90% sure it's going to keep money from hemorrhaging out of my bank account. Let's say I spent $8 on lunch everyday, and I eat out 5 days a week (all of the work days)...then I've spent $40 a week, and $160 a month eating mainly fast food in Inverness, AL. That's nauseating. Monday I went to Target and loaded up on food for my office. We have a full blown kitchen so I could cook whatever I wanted to but I figured I would stick to the basics. I bought bread, mustard, turkey, cheese, PB&J, and apples for lunch - plus - yogurt, Special K bars, Pop-Tarts and English muffins for breakfast. I'm 100% sure I'm going to miss Chick-fil-A (or maybe Tazikis) the most, but so far so good.

I've maintained good self control for 5 whole working days...hm. Tomorrow, for my JOB, I'm going to have to skip over my self-imposed hibernation during lunch and venture out to eat. A girl in my office is leaving her job so we'll be having lunch as a big group. Oops.

On another note...I've started attending a Bible study focuses on the book of John. The guy teaching is WAY smarter than me, but it's interesting.

AND, have y'all seen this today? Remember when I was talking about making myself one of these? I like how this girl did three different ones and hung them together. How cute is that!?

Anything fun going on in your life? I'm swamped at work which is fun and terrifying all at the same time. Not only are we overly busy - but this girl who is leaving? Yeah...her work has to go somewhere, and there it is...on my desk. I'm so pumped about getting to do a lot of new things and MORE things, but did I mention terrifying?

This weekend I'm babysitting for my cousin while my aunt and uncle visit her brother in Athens. I am looking forward to a desperately needed weekend of relaxation, early to bed and getting in a few chapters of the books I haven't been reading. I'm sure she'll have 8 different 10-year-old sporting events.

The One About Curtains

Remember back a million billion years ago when I said I would show y'all what my apartment looks like? Oops. That might still happen...but for now, I can show you what my curtains look like without putting forth any real effort myself. I know, I know, you're very welcome! HA.

This post on Little Green Notebook highlights Ralph Lauren paint (which will be discontinued at Home Depot - in case you're curious or want to go buy it at 50% off) and some rooms that use RL colors.

Scroll down to the orange and brown bedroom.

Those are my curtains! Aren't they wonderful? They're MASSIVE, and we just tuck them under on our very tall ceilings (who knows what I'll do with shorter ceilings). Don't worry...just the window drapes, not the orange-trimmed canopy - there is no orange in my living room.

So...there you go. Now, I'll get back to planning a time to take pictures of where they actually live now.

The One About Puppies

The roomie and I have been discussing our "future puppy" a lot lately. My parent's are like broken records with the "You don't need a puppy" routine...but I disagree. The rooms is allergic to puppies that shed, so I've been researching dogs that won't make her wheeze until she passes out on the floor and dies. That would be bad.

So far, I've discovered two things. First - small dogs are more allergy friendly, and I am REALLY against teeny tiny yappy things. Except for maybe this one - he's so cute! Second, apparently anything mixed with a Poodle ends up not shedding. Nice. So far - I've come up with these suggestions.

Labradoodle
Goldendoodle

And that's it. I don't like terriers really, I definitely don't like hairless dogs, I don't really like schnauzers. This guy is pretty cute but I think having to deal with his hair would be a little bit out of control. He's a Puli - in case you've just been introduced to your new best friend.

My only major concern is this - how do I know that my dog is going to look more that a golden than a doodle. This one is a miniature golden doodle, and he's ADORABLE, but some of them have that weird standard poodle stance that I am NOT a fan of.

I'm so confused. Do any of y'all have suggestions?

I need a big dog that's not going to kill my roommate, is soft and cuddly, refrains from drooling (especially into their beards) and will be perfectly fine in our future fenced in back yard. Ok, thanks.

The One About Google

There is a blog...called The Bloggess, which is 85% inappropriate but 115% rolling on the floor, tears streaming down my facing laughing so hard I'm going to pass out. She makes this point about the absolutely ridiculous things Google suggests you search, so of course I tried it...

and this is what I came up with.

I also got - on a search beginning with 'where'...
Where is Santa? and Where is Santa right now?

but really...why CAN'T I own a Canadian? It seems like a perfectly acceptable question to me...

The One About Southwest (and Ding!)

...with a rant at no extra charge.

Southwest is probably absolutely, positively, without question my very favorite airline. Granted, I fly pretty frequently on American because they have a very nifty direct flight from Birmingham to DFW, but on the occasion that it's less expensive (generally always) I pick a trip from Birmingham through Houston to Love Field.

....that was really weird, my Font box disappeared...

But, back to the point. Southwest is probably one of my all-time favorite things, and Ding! is their most genius idea (a list that also includes not having to pay for bags).

Ding! let's you plug in where you're interested in flying, and then it alerts you to inexpensive flights when they pop up. For instance...I've plugged in Birmingham (obviously), but am also interested in flights that involve airports in Dallas, Houston, Austin, or Las Vegas (for my girls trip in June...remember?). For a $55 flight to Las Vegas, because seriously - they can be that inexpensive, I just might drive to Nashville or Jackson to hop on it. Same goes for Houston or Austin - I wouldn't feel badly at all convincing girls to all convene in a city different from the "best college town ever." It's the perfect thing for me, who doesn't really care when I go to Dallas - just that I don't pay an arm and a leg to get there.

Seriously, these people are genius.

They ALWAYS have the cheapest flights (if you want to put forth the effort to make decisions earlier than three days before your trip), they don't make you pay to check bags which can seriously cost a fortune, and they have the best commercials! I love bags too.

Well then, after all of my discussion with you about the wonder that is Southwest Airlines, would you believe that there are people out there in the universe who are being mean to this wonderful airline?

This is a nice airline. Very unlike US Airways who tricked me into paying an ENORMOUS amount of money for a plane ticket AT THE AIRPORT because they couldn't figure out how to verify that I was indeed the Expedia ticket purchaser, with my name, going to the teeny tiny Norfolk airport, on the teeny tiny plane, that they could see in their crappy US Airways computers. Yes, red-headed horribly mean ticket agent in DFW - I'm talking to you! Let me tell you something - 5 am is not the time to be discussing the technicalities of airplane paperwork from Expedia with me...unless of course you've been assigned to confused people to the point that they believe they have done something wrong and deserve to pay crazy amounts of money to fly on your crappy airplane.

Enough of that rant.

The point being - Southwest is awesome. There are airlines that are not.

Kevin Smith, who is apparently famous but I've never heard of him (don't worry - I know that it's totally possible I'm just out of the loop) is all ticked off that they asked him to get off their plane in California. This man is large. He's so large in fact, that he bought two plane tickets - as he usually does - to fly on the airline. SO, when they seated him standby in only one seat, and he wasn't able to properly fit, they asked him to wait for a later flight.

Apparently, unfortunately for Southwest, the natural reaction for Smith was to rant and rave (in less than appropriate language) on Twitter.

Give them a break.

According to Southwest, they've given him a $100 voucher (for a flight he wasn't even meant to be on) and called him personally at home to apologize.

He's just enjoying making their lives miserable.

I understand - I would be mad as all get out if some stewardess asked me to get off the plane based on my weight...but give it a rest already. It's obnoxious. NOT TO MENTION, you had previously purchased yourself 2 tickets - clearly indicating that you do in fact need some extra room.

I'd love to hear what his next door neighbor thought...I'm sure he was pleasantly surprised that Southwest took an unpopular action in order to insure his or her comfort.

I once sat in a middle seat next to an incredibly large man wearing motorcycle boots, a cut off Harley Davidson t-shirt and a cowboy hat - I wish someone had said something to him!

The One About Mardi Gras

Last year I spent this weekend in New Orleans for Mardi Gras. See?
Wouldn't it be fun to be there again, instead of in snowy (but not really cold enough to make it fun) Birmingham? Or I guess this weekend I could have also gone to Austin with a few girls for Valentine's Day - but that requires money. More money than I have. Either way I'd probably have on this outfit, but ESPECIALLY in New Orleans. It's impossible to walk about the city all of Mardi Gras weekend without boots. Tall boots. With jeans tucked in.

Whatever you're doing - have a Happy Valentine's Day!

P.S. Just booked hotels for a girls weekend in Vegas...get ready to hear me talk about THAT, from now until June.

The One About The Job

Big presentation at work finished. Done. Over.

I'm planning a big time evening of dinner with the 'rents and a little quality 'Y' time. Then I'm going to sleep.

Tomorrow I plan on 8th Street at Billy's and focusing on my Netflix queue/stack of library books for the rest of the weekend.

Wouldn't it be nice if we had a snow day tomorrow?

The One About Cookies

I made these this weekend.

Then I decorated them with this icing, colored black and yellow.

And I took them to a Super Bowl party.

Maybe they were good luck?

A few quick thoughts:

Make the cookies in advance, so the icing really has time to harden up...mine might have gotten a little smushed in the process of driving out to Hoover.

Don't use all the water, or even most of it, the icing was pretty runny.

If you can't find pastry bags, or squeeze bottles, make friends with the nice guy in Whole Foods. He let me "borrow" a few from the bakery.

I didn't have brandy, and felt boring using milk. Martha suggests orange juice but I used amaretto. I'm not sure it made much of a difference - but the cookies were delicious.

And that's all.

The One For Saints

This weekend I plan on doing pretty much nothing.

I MIGHT do a little bit of research on a new project for the kitchen. After thinking over this idea, and even purchasing some frames, I've decided that not only will this project end up costing more than I'm really willing to spend - but it's not going to look exactly the way I want it to.

This seems like so much more fun - and an easy one afternoon project. MAYBE the roommate and I will work on that at some point this weekend.

I'm definitely going to work on my big pile of books - and the list of Netflix instant movies I have stored up. I'm going to attempt to wear my pajamas for most of the weekend, AND I might even post some circus pictures. Wouldn't that be good?

I'm probably going to cook up something yummy to take to a Super Bowl party I'm planning on going to with a very good friend. His whole family is from New Orleans so I'm probably going to avoid anything remotely NOLA-ish and just make something celebratory (or sugary).

Something like this? That's a variation on black and gold, right? Or sugar cookies with icing might be cute too. I guess it depends on what I'm actually in the mood for.

And I'm going to have to pull together a Saint-related outfit for the occasion. I really wanted a jersey because that's so much easier to throw on, but those are EXPENSIVE. I had no idea. Instead I'm thinking about this...

...a variation that exists in my closet, so I'll have on jeans, my black blazer and a yellow scarf.

What are y'all up to this weekend?

The One About My Life (Today)

1. I'm going to the YMCA again tonight. Last night I literally worked my tail off, but I'm not all that sore today...that concerns me. Does that mean I didn't actually work out as hard as I thought I had? I did the stepping thing - I walked MORE steps than it would take me to walk to the top of the Eiffel Tower. That's very tall. Right?

One thing I didn't think about...I'm going to have to do a LOT of laundry if I'm going to keep working out like this.

2. Work has been so wonderful lately. My boss has given me a huge project - one that I get to do ALL BY MYSELF from start to finish which is a little bit terrifying, but so much fun! It's taking up a lot of time and I've been reading research out the wazoo - but definitely fun.

3. I love Dave Matthews. You and Me has been on repeat in the car since The Grammy's. You should download it too. I'm still wondering what happened to the LIVE versions that Target was promoting. I want that one!

4. I'm still working on our kitchen idea. I can't find the frames I want, which is really annoying me. I found some at Target - WAY on sale, but they are brown - so that would involve spray paint. They also didn't come with a mat, which I really really want. I think they are being returned.

5. The sadness I feel about not going to Mardi Gras is just getting bigger and bigger. My sister is going for one of the balls - and I'm jealous. Some of my girlfriends are planning a weekend trip to Austin - but that involves place tickets and Southwest is really not cooperating.

The One About A Favor

Three blog posts today? Aren't y'all lucky...or unlucky, depending on how you see it.

One of my sweet friends, Kirbie - she's over there on the left, lives in LA (the city, not the region of Alabama) and is working her tail off to eventually work for famous people. She's even been an extra on TV...

In order to do more of all of these things, she's signed up to be in a contest on HSN and seriously needs your votes. You can vote once a day and you can comment, etc. to give her a few extra bonus points. Would you mind?

Click here.

She's so cool, she'll even dress up in a see-through leotard in an effort to perfect a Lady Gaga costume for Halloween.

Thanks a million (in advance).

The One About The Grammy's

Dave Matthews - why did you not win Album of the Year. Taylor Swift - why DID you win Album of the Year. Now I do know that the votes are over and done with before the Grammy's actually start...but did you HEAR Taylor Swift. Ouch.

I thought the Lady Gaga + Elton John performance was fantastic, he was probably LOVING the face paint and excessive sequins. Sadly, Taylor Swift was definitely the low point for performers (unless I'm forgetting something pretty heinous). Of course Dave Matthews was so wonderful I added him to my iTunes this morning.

On another note - WHAT was everyone wearing last night. They either looked completely ridiculous, or just downright boring. I mean, I love a pretty dress as much as the next person - but it's the GRAMMY'S people, not the Golden Globes. Why was there no color? Mary J. Blige looked gorgeous in fuschia, Fergie came in bright blue and Jennifer Nettles wore hot pink - but that was about it. Unless you count Lady Gaga's performance outfit (GOOD GRIEF), Snooki's bright purple, or Shaila Durcal's...whatever that is.

Everything else was black, cream, silver, NEUTRAL. I'm not going to pick best and worst dressed (mainly because I don't care and you don't either) but I will say that if I got to go to the Grammy's I wouldn't be wearing basic black - not to mention very revealing black, amazingly heinous, skanky and beyond ugly black - or even brown.

Lea Michele actually did look cute, especially compared to that time you looked like a 35-year-old woman - but I've seen people wear more interesting things to my sorority's formal.

OH MY WORD - WHAT IS THAT?

The One With Motorcycles

You know those giant cage-balls that they put motorcycles in at the circus? You know how they drive really fast and spin around a lot? You know how there are 4 or 5 riders in that tiny little ball? We went to the circus Saturday night and they crashed. I'll admit, I thought it was some sort of circus trick at first but I changed my mind when they started throwing around kitty litter to soak up the gas that was spilling out of one of the bikes. Then I got a little bit freaked out. They got everyone out, and the ringmaster said that the two who were hurt were getting the best medical help Ringling can buy. Which is probably pretty good. They had to be carried out like babies, but they were waving and what-not so I guess they're probably fine. I HOPE SO. What do you think circus workman's comp is like?

I have pictures of the circus so I'll try to get those up sometime in the near future. Although, I definitely just said TRY.

On another note - we saw Rollin' in the Hay Friday night and they were great, but first we had dinner at Fuego in Five Points and it was absolutely delicious. I thought is was going to be a nice expensive Mexican restaurant (Cocina Superior-esque) and I was mistaken. The food was delicious and the margaritas will put you on your butt - but it was very reasonably priced!

Less expensive than Zona Rosa, Dad.

It was definitely not typical Mexican though. There were no enchiladas, or chimichangas. Lots of tacos and taco salads and dips and things. Closer to a Cantina that anything else. My fish taco was excellent!

So for those of you in the Birmingham area - go try it.

Sunday was pretty uneventful. I finished my book, so I've started another one. One down, five to go. I ordered Chinese and watched the Grammy's at home...more on that later.