Gunshots Rang Out Like a Bell

Turns out Vanilla Ice was incorrect. Gunshots are more of a popping sound as I found out last night between 10:30 pm and 1:00 am. 7 shots here, 10 shots there, 8, 7, 12, etc. Louder, then softer. It sounded like someone was target practicing in the alley behind my house. Either that, or some unfortunate bastard has about 40 bullets in him. Needless to say I was freaked out and didn't get a lot of sleep last night. I heard my landlord get up, come downstairs and call someone (I am assuming it was the police). Shortly after, the shots stopped. A quick perusal of the blotter this morning turned up a double shooting about a mile away. Unsure if it is related or not, but really glad it wasn't in my alley.

And for those of you with Ice, Ice Baby stuck in your head - 1. You're welcome. 2. The lyrics are linked to the title above.

Oh the Horror!!!

I'm still reeling from the shock that was the cover of this morning's Express (smaller, free version of the Washington Post). Who on God's green Earth thought that anyone would want to start their day seeing Mike Tyson in his panties? I just threw up a little in my mouth thinking about it. Click on the title above for the article and photo if you dare.

In other, better Express news I may have found the man I'm going to marry. Well, not really. But Matt Swenson must have been reading my mind when he wrote the article "Anthem Cheer for the Birds". For those of you who have never had the good fortune to attend a game at Camden (one of baseball's greatest parks), the O's fans have a bad habit of yelling "O's say" instead of the actual "O say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave". It is something that just drives me batty and strikes me as rude and borderline disrespectful to our anthem. What bothers me more is there are people who are doing it at the Nats games. WE ARE NOT IN BALTIMORE. You have your own team and your own stadium - go yell O there.

As my man Matt put it "It's all well and good to be an Orioles fan in this age of Nationals baseball, but do Washingtonians have to suffer through the same desecration of the National Anthem seen every game day at Camden Yards?...Granted, there may be some guilty parties who just don't know what they're doing. For those poor souls who proudly cheer 'O's' at the Nats game, there are doctors who can treat the illness." Amen, Matt, amen.

Boys are Dumb - Throw Rocks at Them Pt. 2

I have figured out why girls think boys are dumb....other than the fact that they are a lot of the time. Women tend to talk things out/over with their friends. Men don't do this. At all it appears. And oftentimes they get mad when women do. They don't understand why we do it, we don't understand why they don't. I talk to my friends about situations to get insight (most times from both sexes in case my female brain is missing something obvious to a man brain), maybe get validation for the way/things I'm feeling/thinking or when appropriate, a smack upside the head to make me see the way I'm feeling or the thoughts I'm having are completely ridiculous and unfounded. Granted, this isn't a perfect system. The "others" are only getting one side of the story....mine. But that's kind of the point. If I'm talking to a friend about something related to a relationship I have or some jackhole move my boss pulled, etc it is because I think I am either overreacting to a situation and need someone to talk me off the proverbial ledge or checking to make sure I'm not making excuses for that other person's behavior because I tend to avoid conflict. It's a system of checks and balances and despite its flaws, it works.

And that my friends is why women are better at relationships with others than our male counterparts, minus our overemotional moments but those are only there to make up for the male underemotional robotic moments. How's that for stereotyping?

PJ Harvey? Really?

Which Rock Chick Are You?

I Was Joking About Being OLD

I stopped by Whole Foods last night on my way home since I had no vegetables or fruit in my house and I need them so I don't develop scurvy. One of my favorite wines was on sale, so I picked up a bottle and headed to the checkout with my basket of nutrition. The woman didn't card me, which is fine. I look over 21 - I learned to deal with that years ago and now laugh when I actually do get carded. I really am okay with it. What I am not okay with is the date she entered in after looking at me. 10/10/68! OHMYGOD. I am 31 and am okay with looking over 30. I cannot be okay with someone thinking I'm over 35. I don't really look that old, do I?

Oh Baby!

The total of pregnant friends of Plan B has now reached three! My best friend from high school is expecting. She is the one who has been stressing about getting pregnant and I am delighted for her. She and her husband of a year and a half just moved into a new home so the timing is perfect. I can't wait to see what happens to the tattoo around her belly button in the next 6 months. In other baby news....my other pregnant high school friend and her husband just completed their trek across the country and are settling nicely in North Carolina. I feel a road trip coming to go see her expanding belly. It is comforting to know that even surrounded by these moms-to-be I am not feeling any urge to put myself in that position any time soon. Sorry mom - looks like the pressure is still on my brother to 'produce'.

Stripper Cash

I just turned in a number of petty cash receipts (magazines and taxis add up) and all they had were one dollar bills. So I now have $44 in ones in my wallet. Friends, we're going to Camelot for lunch!

"I'm a Pretty Pretty Pony"

$5 to anyone who can tell me what the hell that is from. It's a tv show or movie or something and it's a guy saying it. This is absolutely driving me effing crazy. Ugh.

On a brighter note, googling the above mentioned phrase led me to one of the funniest blogs I've ever had the gut busting pleasure of reading. This woman is hilarious and I can only hope she and I become friends at some point. She does remind me much of my friend Katie, so maybe she's someone else's Katie. Who knows. Enjoy. February 20, 2004 is the posting with the pony reference. Definitely worth a look up.

http://finslippy.typepad.com/finslippy/

Memories, Like the Corner of My Mind

Now that I've got Cats stuck in your head (meow). Wednesday of last week I came back to my office from lunch and found two boxes from CA. I quickly figured out they must contain the stuff my mother packed away when she moved across country last month. I opened them up and among other items the boxes contained:

• My high school letter jacket (track and it still fits)
• Hundreds of pictures of my trip to South Korea junior year of high school
• Our grad night video
• Prom photos, including the booklet with everyone's photos

A few of my coworkers and I shared some laughs over the hair in the prom booklet (it was 1991 after all) and I pointed out this guy who was a friend of mine junior and senior years because he was about 6'4" and his date was maybe 5'3". I haven't thought about him for a couple years, since our reunion probably. He was still dating this girl who was the little sister (sorority) of a high school friend of mine. They met at my 20th birthday party if I recall correctly. Anyways, I remembered him fondly and then went on to talk about others in the book (a few couples got married, this is my "friend" Mark, this is my best friend of the wedding last year, etc).

The very next day I got an email from a kickball administrator saying she had received an odd email from someone looking for me. She wasn't sure if it was a bad email or not, but thought she'd take the chance and forward it to me, hoping I didn't mind. It was from Suzanne, the girl dating my old high school friend. After 12 long (wonderful according to them) years, they are getting married in November. And they seem to think they have me to thank. Coincidentally (even more so) that day Paul and I had been discussing going to SoCal for a weekend in the fall. So it looks like we'll be heading that way in November. I'm so excited to be reconnected with them - they really are a great couple and are so in love. It's fantastic to see good people happy.

Another Reason Paul Rocks

So I had my fourth dentist visit in about as many weeks this morning. I made an appointment for 7 am, which normally isn't too bad. Except Paul and I had Katie and Peter over to Paul's last night to watch the Sox/Cardinal's game (Katie is from St. Louis). We grilled out, then in once the storms started, watched the game, had some dessert and went to sleep about 11:45. The alarm went off at 5:30 am, Paul and I got up, I hopped in the shower and Paul made us breakfast. We ate, I got ready, he went back to bed (did I mention he rocks?) and I headed out to start my day. Whenever I get irritated with him, please remind me of this morning when he went out of his way, not feeling well, to wake up and do something nice for me.

Weekend of June 3rd - 5th

This past weekend was fantastic. I'm not sure what made it so great, it just was. After a hectic week, it was so nice to relax and rest and finally unpack from the Boston trip (although I still have laundry to do). Friday night I stayed in, ordered Thai (first time ever the woman kept saying "and then") and watched Boston beat my Angels (that's Anaheim Angels to you). I wanted to make it an early night because I had to wake up at 6:30 the next morning for the Race for the Cure. We put together a team here at work to honor a coworker's mom who passed away recently after battling cancer for 15 years. It's amazing to me how many people are affected by breast cancer. They had signs you could pin to you that had "In celebration of" or "In memory of". I chose to celebrate my grandmother even though she has passed away. She was winning her second fight against breast cancer when she passed away from a stroke about a year and a half ago. She was an amazing woman. Tearing up, moving on. So we did the Race Saturday morning. I ended up walking about 10 miles that day (from my house to the office, to the race start, then the 3K race, then to breakfast, then home) and ended up with swollen knees and a pulled hamstring. I AM OLD. So sad I even laughed at myself. But it was worth it. Our team raised about $2,000 for the Susan G. Komen Foundation and we had a great time doing it. I went home and napped (see above, I AM OLD) then got pretty for the Nats game with the girls. We had fun, so much that we completely missed how the 2nd base umpire ended up on the ground and why a Nat was ejected. Mystery solved Monday - he was trying to stop the player from rushing someone else and got clipped at the exact angle needed to knock him on his ass. After the game Paul and Peter (Katie's man) met up with us for drinks. Sunday Paul and I had lunch then I went home to get clean and met up with him to watch the third game in the Angels/Sox series. We had a little bet going and after the Angels' crushing 13-6 victory Saturday night we were tied up 1-1. The Sox ended up beating us (sad, sad day) and I got to find out Paul is a poor winner. The day ended well with the return of Entourage though and I went to sleep a happy girl.

Pretend I Was in a Coma

So things have been going on during the weeks (tastings, events, baseball games, etc) but I just don't have the time nor the energy to catch up on the month I've been slacking. Highlights include a reception for the Republican House Press Secretaries where I made friends with (among others) a very nice man from Perth, Australia who is delightful and charming and tons of fun; dentist appointments (it is just sad when the receptionist recognizes you); lunch with the journalist's son (nice guy, very interesting but the conversation was a bit forced); I guess I have a boyfriend now since neither of us want to see other people and we're planning more months ahead than we've been dating; I saw Star Wars III (best of the new ones, but the over acting was awful - best part was Yoda climbing up Chewy's arm...so cute); and concerts (Snow Patrol was awesome).

Memorial Day Weekend

Last weekend (Memorial Day) Paul and I went up to Boston to visit the families. It would have been the perfect long weekend but for the fact that for the third time (out of four visits to Boston) I caught a head cold. The city must not like me. We arrived late Friday night, Paul's uncle was there to pick us up and whisked our tired selves to his home where we stayed the entire weekend. His aunt and uncle are lovely people and so nice to let us come and go as we pleased. Saturday his uncle made us breakfast then we took our time getting ready and headed into the city to watch the Sox game (remember - I am dating Fever Pitch) and have a late lunch. We picked out hats and shirts for his nieces at Fenway (man it's hard to gauge the size of kids when you have none) with Paul refusing to get them pink ones. My thought on colored hats is this: If it isn't a team color, the hat shouldn't be made. With two exceptions 1. If the fan base is predominantly Irish or the team is from a predominantly Irish town, I have no problem with the green hats with the shamrock. 2. If you are under the age of 12 and are female, you can wear the pink one (you've got to get girly girls interested in sports somehow). Moving on. Saturday night we had dinner at the aunt and uncle's house with their two children and the son's two children. Let me just say, not the most well behaved kids I've ever been around. 'Nuff said. Shelly and her fiancee are great (albeit hard core Republicans but that made for great debate) and after I spent the day in bed sleeping away my cold, we ended up having drinks and watching the game Sunday (see a pattern?) with them and Paul's best friend. After a couple rounds of shots, I was very happy that I had Shelly write directions to her parents' house on a napkin as Paul was in no condition to give them to the cabbie. Monday we lazed around recovering and then headed up to the North side of Boston (about an hour trek from the South where we were staying) to meet up with my mother and have some dinner. Mom and I caught up on all the happenings with my normal aunt and the cult one as well while Paul continuously glanced at the game televised in the bar section. I understand that it was a game against the Yankees, and that he was probably a bit overwhelmed by my mother's and my near constant chatter about people he has never heard of, but it would have been nice to hear him have a conversation with my mother. He is, after all, only the fourth boy of mine she's met. Anyway, after dinner we headed over to my brother and sister-in-law's to pop in and say hello. It wasn't a long visit, nor was it very enjoyable only because Paul and I were exhausted and had to get up early and Larry and Christine were exhausted from flying in from New Orleans that day. Regardless, it was great to see them and meet their dog, who is the cutest thing ever, and hopefully when Paul and I are up there in November we'll all be in better spirits. We flew back to DC early, early, early Tuesday morning and I headed straight into the office where I worked the Longest Day Ever. My boss decided that the day I woke up at 4:30 after going to bed at 11 would be the perfect day to work until 7:30 pm. Ugh.

I Am Alive

Okay, I realize it has been a few weeks since my last post. I apologize for the absence. It hasn't been due to a lack of excitement in my life, I've just been very, very busy. Not all bad either. As soon as I pack my boss off for two weeks tomorrow afternoon I will catch you all up on the last three weeks or so. I can't promise I'll remember everything, but what I do remember will be fun.

New Music Tuesdays

Oh how I love NMTs. They take any irritation caused by co-workers and make it go away. It's great to hear an entire new album of an artist whose single you've been listening to for a few weeks and find out the album is just as good as the single. Ahhhh....happiness in a little metal disc.

Weekend Recap

I had a great, albeit full weekend. Friday night I went home and stayed in alone which was pure heaven. I decided to let myself sleep in Saturday morning which my body took to be 7:30 am. Lazed around for a bit reading and resting then got up and cleaned my entire apartment. Now, for those of you who know how small it is this probably doesn't sound too time consuming. Unfortunately, I have a cat, a very dust-prone apartment and a ton (near literally) of laundry because I haven't been home long enough to do any for over a week. So five hours later I had a very clean house and closet and a very dirty me.

I cleaned and prettied up and headed out to a Derby party at some guy's house I'd never met (Jim invited Agie and me to join him at a friend's). Turns out some guy is the son of a very well known, Pulitzer prize winning journalist who is a particular favorite of mine (I own 2 or 3 of his books as well). He is a really nice, down to earth guy who works over 80 hours a week at a law firm doing mostly pro bono work. The Derby was fun, Agie's horse (picked at random) won which made her first Derby watching a memorable one. Paul met up with the stragglers from the Derby and the 7 of us went to dinner. More fun was had and we convinced Jim and this guy Andrew we'd just met to join us on our trek to Bethesda for our co-worker's birthday party. To sum it up..... twenty-somethings, a keg and bad rap music. We had fun for the 40 some minutes we were there, then took our old selves home. Quote of the night goes to Jim yelling out the car window at the very young looking girls in the car next to us: "What high school do you go to?" their reply was, of course, a local high school.

Sunday was nice. Paul and I slept in then he walked me to my office, where we grabbed lunch at a nearby restaurant. I then headed to the office for a couple hours (ugh...but so glad this morning I did) while Paul ran some errands then met me back here for a movie. Let me just say Kingdom of Heaven is not worth the 2 1/2 hours I invested in it. I can't put my finger on why I was disappointed by it, but there was something about it that was off. Maybe the editing, maybe the tension headache that is still with me today, I don't know. Anyway, we grabbed food, headed back to my house and vegged for the rest of the night. Overall, pretty relaxing fun weekend, which is just what I needed after last week.

Upcoming this week: Event at US Chamber honoring a number of Central American Presidents, lunch with Matt (journalist's son), dinner with Paul's dad and our first kickball game of the 2005 season.

Meet The Fams

Paul and I booked flights to Boston for Memorial Day weekend this morning. I'm very excited. It will be great to see my mom, brother and sister-in-law (hopefully they will be around, I should check on that...) again. Haven't seen any of them since my brother's wedding in July so I'm really looking forward to the trip. There is a chance that Paul will have to work that weekend which would really suck, but hopefully that won't happen and we'll get to enjoy the city. I hope it's not seen as a big deal that we're meeting each other's families. After all, I've already met his dad, aunt and uncle. I guess I'm a little nervous only because my family never really meets guys I date.

Still Better Than Paul Moyer

As I do most mornings, I started my day with Katie, Matt, Al and Ann. During one of the commercial breaks they had a snippet for the local news and what stories would be airing this evening. One extended piece detailed an "alarming health crisis" stemming from not getting enough sleep....News at 11 pm. If it's detrimental to your health to get less sleep, wouldn't it be good to show this piece on the earlier news show?

Clowns Are Evil

A few months back my wonderful sister-in-law sent me a link to www.ihateclowns.com . It's a great website by someone like myself who can't stand clowns. I laughed, enjoyed the kill the clowns games and sent it to some friends, most of whom mocked me for my "irrational" fear of clowns. I've become used to the mean, inconsiderate comments, the people who think it's somehow funny to terrorize me with pictures of clowns. I now suffer silently most of the time. Until now. Heather pointed out the front page of today's Wall Street Journal. Right there, beneath the fold, is a picture of a t-shirt with a clown in a circle with a line through it and a banner that says "I hate clowns". What is the article about you ask? It doesn't really matter, but it is about how the t-shirt selling business is booming on the web. Regardless, finally, after all these years of being taunted about my (seriously) paralyzing fear of clowns I feel slightly vindicated.

Former Co-worker and Good Fun

I had dinner last night with a friend who used to work here. I miss him terribly and our schedules are such that we hardly ever see each other so last night was a major treat. We got all caught up with the goings on here at the office and with our respective lives. So much fun! He knows all of my secrets and never judges me which is a great quality to have in a friend. Plus, he is so funny, witty, sarcastic, intelligent, bitchy, caring....I could go on but I won't. Anyway, I absolutely adore my friend and have been in a good mood all morning as a carryover from last night.

We Can't Be The Only Ones Who Find Us Amusing

From time to time my dear friend Debby and I have a gift for upsetting people or being misunderstood when we make jokes. We were delighted when we found this out about each other and now whenever we make one of these offhand joking comments we both think "Well, Debby/PlanB would have thought that was funny" and we laugh. Generally we run into this problem with men in our lives that we are currently or have been involved with in a romantic nature. We joke, they take us seriously and then talks result. Sometimes we even get lectured about how unfunny we were being and how it's not right to be joking about such things. We were just being funny. Sigh. It's so difficult to be misunderstood.

Metro Hell

I'm sure y'all are tired of my bitching about the metro and maybe if I could get my ass out of bed earlier I would have enough time to walk to work, avoid it altogether and spare you metro stories, but for now you are stuck because I am working too much and too tired to wake up early. This morning I took the short way to work (see above about waking up late) which entails transferring trains at Gallery Place. It's a nightmare every morning which is a large part of the reason I take the long way. Floods of people walk lemming-like up the escalators (well, most of them stand on the escalators in the way of people who would like to walk up them), around the corner and over to the platform where the red line train will appear to whisk them away to their next metro station. For me it's one stop so I like to walk all the way down the platform towards where I get off the train and then try to be one of the last on the train so that I don't have to push my way through the throngs of people between me and the door. So after puttering behind slow zombie commuters to the end of the platform I waited for a number of them to board the train before I got in. There was room for about 1/2 a person behind me. The rudeness of morning DC commuters came into play and fit two more people before the friendly "doors closing" lady made her announcement. Just then one rather large man Heismaned his way into the train pushing the people (including me) into the train as the doors shut. This left a couple of us teetering on one foot, trying to hold onto the closest bar (which in some cases was a foot or so away) so as not to fall on the people around us. I looked at the guy and said "Are you kidding me?" as he stood there like he had done nothing wrong. I'm not sure if I've become more confrontational since moving here or if it was the protection of music in my head that made me unaware I was speaking out loud.

To make matters worse this guy's utter disregard for all people not him had put me in such a position that as I lowered my arm to get out I hit a woman in the head with my elbow. I immediately apologized, she was nice and understood, but it still sucked. To prove that it was possible for him to be a bigger ass, the guy managed to block 3/4 of the door that we were all trying to get out of and I almost tripped after having to rub against him to exit. I've felt dirty in a bad way ever since. Ugh.

Booze, Books and Babes

Friday night I ended up going to the Nationals Game with Paul, Katie and Peter. Paul and I met up at a restaurant bar before heading over to the game where we had a few drinks, some nibblies and met these two women who were very......entertaining. Time got a bit away from us and we got to the stadium late. We grabbed a couple beers for Katie and Paul as a "we're sorry we're tardy" gesture but as luck would have it, they were late as well and got to the seats minutes after we did. We had a great time at the game, Paul made friends with the guys behind us who are also Sox fans and the Nats won (sorry Jim). We ended up hanging out a bit afterwards at a bar near my house with K & P which was great fun because I hardly ever see Peter anymore and he was on his best, most charming behavior. I hit the wall and Paul was close behind me so we left K & P at Stetson's and all I can say is thank God for the walk home in the chilly air.

Saturday was spent recovering and reading trying to finish my book since I was out the night before. We got picked up around 3:45 and I managed to read to about page 367 before getting to book club. Not bad, I must say. On the way to book club we stopped at a friend's house to visit a new baby (6 weeks). So sweet and the best smelling baby if Katie can be believed. After a beer, a piece of Katie's marvelous chocolate cake and a couple fingers of Suntory Whiskey we were off to Herndon (F-A-R) for book club. We arrived and I continued to read as much as I could before the ladies spoiled the ending for me since all they could talk about was page 377. I managed to get into the 390s before the discussion started. I wasn't too disappointed, I had been able to figure out most of the plot by that point so there weren't too many spoilers. Over the course of about 4 1/2 hours we enjoyed five flights of tapas and far too many pitchers of sangria for 8 women. After about an hour of discussing the book (which is really good for us) the gathering slowly turned into Dance Party USA with me playing DJ off my iPod. In order to protect the innocent I shall refrain from detailing the dancing.

Sunday I finished the book (yay), cleaned, grocery shopped, did laundry and baked up a storm. Paul left work to come over for dinner, then left to go back to work where he stayed until after midnight. And I thought I worked too much. It was a great treat to see him last night. It's nice to have someone to look forward to seeing and to miss when they aren't around. Even if he does keep asking questions like "Can you be in charge of the cooking and I take care of the lawn?" (neither of us have a lawn) or "When Charlotte dies, can we get a dog? I mean, can you get a dog?". Charlotte is my cat btw. Granted, he is allergic to her, but I've told him a couple times she's not 'going to Hawaii' for at least 8 years. He should just suck it up and get shots....

Why I Love My Friend Jim

Let me give some background. Jim is a die-hard Democrat. Jim is the kind of guy who does not hold anything back and will say whatever he is thinking. Generally this is very embarrassing to the person unfortunate to be with him at the time. The last time Jim and I went out (Hotel Rwanda) we passed through Dupont Circle and ran into some anti-abortion protestors who he had a few choice words for. They were very sweet and just said "God bless" to which his Jewish self replied "Not my God". I mouthed sorry to the girls and shooed him away. In essence, he can be a trouble maker and an ass just to be one.

So, Saturday night was the White House Correspondent's Dinner. Jim was out on a date with a girl who is a Republican and happened to take her to a very late dinner near an afterparty for the WHCD. As they were hailing a cab who should appear but Paul Wolfowitz. The poor, misguided, obviously ignorant or brainwashed girl began to tell Wolfie all about how she admires him and all the good he's done for the country.....all while holding her hand over Jim's mouth as he was shouting "You are evil. You are evil." The cab pulled up during this, Jim put the girl in first and then as Wolfie was trying to enter the cab to share with them, Jim shut the door on him and said out the window "I'm not riding with the devil."

Bravo Jim. Bravo.

Books, Crowds and Comb-overs

I was riding the metro today, furiously trying to finish my book for book club tomorrow. The book is The Shadow of the Wind and I am on page 199 out of 486. Before chuckling "she's screwed" know this - I read very quickly with great comprehension, the book is a fantastic read, and I was only on page 71 yesterday morning so I'm in pretty good shape to finish before tomorrow night as long as Paul doesn't mind me reading some tonight during the Sox game. Moving on. I decided to take the longer ride to work today since I have all the reading to get done. The trains were crowded so I stood near the end of the car in one of the little alcoves so that I would be out of the way of those getting on and off the train. My position gave me an advantageous view of a gentleman across the aisle with one of the most interesting comb-overs I have ever seen. As is typical of most c-os, he had a very low side part. The interesting part was how very thick and pretty his hair was, minus that one small balding spot on the back of his head. The beauty is I would never have looked up from my book had he not grabbed my attention by looking up at me, checking me out, then self-conciously patting his balding spot.

Boys are Dumb - Throw Rocks at Them

There is something in the air today. And it's not just DC. Boys everywhere are behaving like idiots. No less than three women I know have had their feelings hurt today by the men they are dating, myself included. We are all smart, professional, attractive, self-assured, independent women, IMHO. We all know there are times we have a tendency to overreact and get too emotional about things. We also know that men can be very insensitive (most of the time not intentionally) and well, daft for lack of a better word. We will all get over whatever was done to hurt our feelings (minor in my case, major in others), some of us already have. We are not the types to hold grudges. But if you hurt someone's feelings, you should try to understand why so you don't do it again if you care or will grow to care, at all for that person. And even if you don't understand, you should apologize because something you did, whether intentional or not, hurt them however slightly. It's really that simple.

As an aside, I still think Paul rocks. Just not that much today.

Paul Rocks

It was a lovely evening when I left the office last night so I decided to walk home, hitting Whole Foods on the way. I called my mom to chat and catch up which I've been meaning to do for about a week now. She recently moved to the East Siiide and I wanted to give her time to settle in, find a job, a place to live, etc before calling her. Turns out she's going to be working in Quincy (pronounced Quinzee to you out of Massachusettsers) which is South of Boston and the area a lot of Paul's family is from. Interesting coincidence. Nice to know there are resources for my mother if she ever needs a dry cleaner or florist. I mentioned this to my mom and she was so good. She didn't ask a lot of questions about Paul (only second time I've mentioned him to mom) so my brother probably got hit with them when he got home (she's staying with them while she gets settled). It's understandable. I rarely talk to my family about people I date. That's mostly due to me not dating anyone longer than a month or so, but I am very cautious mentioning people to my parents. Hopefully my mother knows me well enough to not start planning the wedding.

So, I got home, started dinner (yummy pork roast and potatoes), worked out and then thought about continuing to defrost my freezer. I started a bit this weekend and gave up after 20 frustrating minutes. It's really bad. About 1/2 of it is frosted over. In my defense I almost never use it. I really don't enjoy frozen food, rarely keep ice cream in my house and don't really use ice. Anyway, Paul was kind enough to take it upon himself to defrost it for me without me asking. I heard sounds from the kitchen and peeked my head in to find him boiling water and hacking at the iceberg that is (or should I say was) my freezer. A little over an hour later I found out my freezer is actually made of metal, not white frosty ice stuff. He even did the dishes from dinner. I really lucked out with him. And to think, I almost cancelled our first date. I'm very glad I didn't. I think I'll keep him around awhile :)

Things Thrown in the Potomac River

Every year volunteers gather to dredge and clean the mighty Potomac. And every year weird sh*t is found. This year's 17th annual Potomac River Watershed Cleanup was no exception. Over 186 tons of garbage were yanked from the river, among which were 43 shoes, 3 weed wackers, 3 tricycles, 2 pornos, 2 bongs and a full keg of beer, $50 in dinara (currency of Bosnia), a bowling pin, a drawer from a cash register, a boogie board (what?), the grill from a police cruiser, a Kawasaki motorcycle, a plastic horse head and a rocking horse, and a Civil War-era sword in its sheath. Makes you wonder what they don't find.

A Really Great Weekend

After being stuck at work late Friday (made up for by my boss giving me a taste of a really good, really expensive scotch) Paul came over around 9. It was really nice to have an evening in. I made dinner, we hung out and then watched some of Arrested Development Season 1. It really is a great, underwatched show - check it out if you haven't. He left around 12:30 and I went straight to bed where I slept soundly for the first time in awhile.

I had every intention of going to the office Saturday to get caught up on some work. I did a bit of shopping then realized it was later than I thought so I hopped on the metro to get home and get ready for my date with Paul. Everything was great until my hairdryer broke while my hair was still sopping wet. Ugh. Our plans were to go see a friend's band then head to a late dinner. Kenin didn't start playing until around 8:30 and it would have been stressful to get to the restaurant in Arlington by 10 so we scrapped those plans and went to meet Paul's friend at her rugby happy hour. Too bad Paul couldn't remember the name or location of the bar. After about 20 minutes of a very nice cabbie driving us around, we gave up and had him drop us off by a restaurant for some food. We asked the door man there if he knew of a place called the 4th or 5th Column (which Paul kept insisting was the right name). Turns out the bar is the 4th Estate and was just down the street from where we were. How fortuitous. So we hoofed it over there, had a couple beers with the friend and her sister (who are both wonderful) and then went to my house for late night pizza.

Sunday morning Paul and I had breakfast and then left to run some errands before his family got into town. We got to the sporting goods store a little bit before they opened so I suggested going to Starbucks to get a warm beverage (it's been pretty cold lately). Paul has never been to Starbucks......nor has he ever had tea. Who is this guy? So he got his hot chocolate, I got my cider and we settled in at a window table for 15 minutes. We went to City Sports so Paul could get some more baseball caps and I picked up a yoga mat and body ball. Then we headed to the bookstore for a bit. It was really nice tooling around the morning with him. It's been awhile since we've just hung out with nowhere to be. I really enjoy him. He's a great guy. We then went our separate ways with plans to meet up later for dinner with his father, aunt and uncle. I stopped by the store to buy a new hairdryer (thank God it happened Saturday and not Sunday) then got a mani/pedi to relax further. It was a really great Sunday.

Paul and his family came by and picked me up for dinner. They are delightful. Dinner was so much fun. Paul's friend Jorge also joined us at the restaurant. It was nice to spend a bit more time with him as well as get to know Paul's family. His dad and uncle are a hoot and his aunt is lovely. Such a nice woman and they were all very friendly. Plus, they love to tease Paul which was fun for me since he insisted on telling the story of getting locked out of my house late that one night. Slightly embarrassing since even a fool could deduce the reason for his visit. But not quite as embarrassing as him referring to me as not "the flavor of the week". Why does he say these things in front of me? The man has no filter. They very nicely dropped me off at home where Paul's dad turned to him and said he'd wait for Paul to walk me to my door and say goodbye (very sweet, plus I got to kiss Paul good night which is always nice). As I was getting out of the car, I thanked his father again for dinner and wished them all a safe trip back home. His aunt placed her hand on mine and said it was very nice to meet me and that hopefully we'd meet again to which I replied "I would like that". Then she kissed me on the cheek goodbye. She's a sweetheart.

All in all a relaxing, fun weekend.

Aquaman Rules

Ahhh Mark. He's really like a second brother to me (that is meant not as an insult but as a high compliment. I love and respect my brother dearly). Over the years in my relationship with my friend Mark (notice the absence of quotes) some constants have formed. Most of them are positive. Take for instance our friendly, light hearted banter, our shared love of music. Then there's the everlasting Aquaman debate. I admit it - he was my favorite Super Friend growing up. He got to hang out with various oceanic creatures, swam all day, didn't need weapons per se, was hot - what more could a young Southern California girl want from a superhero? Batman had Robin, Superman was so obvious, the WonderTwins' only redeeming quality was Gleek (?) their pet monkey. Mark once sent a pages-long diatribe on how awful Aquaman is. Mark will never, ever give up bashing Aquaman....ever. Today he has tried to kill my love for Aquaman by saying Crapman would be a better superhero. While mildly amusing, it hurts. But not as much as knowing they are now drawing Aquaman with a hook for one hand. That's just wrong. Almost as wrong as a grown, married lawyer man watching the new Justice League cartoons.

O'Reilly of the Caribbean

Bill O'Reilly makes me laugh.

Now one would think that since the media frenzy over his settlement with a former producer regarding sexually explicit phone calls (see link below) has died down, Mr. O'Reilly would want to stay away from any mention of him and the Caribbean. But no. I wonder if it is sheer idiocy that makes him do these things or rather the faith in the Teflon coating that most DC Republicans seem to have been doused with (see: Tom, Dick, George, John, et al).

From his website: "Time now for "Most Ridiculous Item of the Day"... Because we do the "Radio Factor" at noon and the TV "Factor" at night, I don't have time to do many personal appearances anymore. --I can't even do book signings. But the Thomas More Law Center, --the anti-ACLU-- has asked me to do a couple of lectures next November on a ship sailing the Caribbean. Now, I'm thinking about it if the interest is there. So if you are interested in checking the possibility out, please go to billoreilly.com for information. If those lectures happen on the ship, there is one rule, however. No throwing me overboard. That would be ridiculous. I am taking a risk here if I get on a ship!"

I wonder if he'll be taking his loofa and falafel with him on the cruise.....

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/1013043mackris16.html

Paul Sucks

So I've been having trouble waking up the past few days, which is unusual. I blamed it on the time change/change of seasons and haven't thought much about it. Until yesterday when Paul told me he has strep. My throat has been bothering me a bit since this weekend and it was worse this morning so I decided the wise thing to do would be to go see a doctor. I just got back from the doctor and I have strep. Stupid Paul. It really isn't his fault and he feels worse than I do but it couldn't come at a worse time. My coworker delivered her baby this morning and everyone else in the department is in New York (New York City?!?!? - name the reference, get a prize) for an event we are having this evening. And the phones are going nuts because we have some tax/state issues breaking. I really want to be home in bed, sleeping away the afternoon so I can wake up later feeling better. Oh, and no this will not keep me from going to the game tonight. I will probably leave before the end though. I sent a friend/coworker to drop off my prescription so I can hopefully pick it up before the game tonight and start feeling better tomorrow.

Adventures in Baseballing

A coworker came by late in the day yesterday and invited me to the Nats game last night. One of our member companies wasn't using their season seats and they're much better seats than mine, so I figured why not? I probably shouldn't have since I've been very busy at work, have a game tonight as well and have been feeling a bit run down lately. Generally this is the point where my dad uses that tone of voice he has to say "Stop burning the candle at both ends" and I make my argument that I don't have a choice between work and social obligations and he says something along the lines of "no one is going to take care of you but you" and it goes on and on.

So, I went to the game and it was fun. Agie and I got up to tool around, we went to the bathroom, went to the souvenir stand where she bought a hat for her husband (which she wore during the game not taking the stickers off so that he wouldn't know she'd worn it) then to Dominic's to get our Italian sausage which is the best in the world (seriously, if you haven't had one - do it now). We were both excited and hungry, sat down in our seats to grub and then.....I dropped mine. I was like a kid who dropped his ice cream cone. It was very, very sad. After recovering, I asked everyone if they wanted anything since I was getting up again. Hasan said he would get me one while he was gone. He came back with one just the way I like it - no peppers with just yellow mustard - and nothing for himself. What a great guy. Agie and I have decided on a new career - giant foam finger sellers. Just think of how fun it would be to get paid to yell "Get your fingers here! I've got your fingers right here!"

Best quote of the night goes to Hasan. "So, I saw they elected a new Jesus today".

Tears and Clowns

Jim and I haven't spent time together in a very long time so I was really looking forward to going out with him Friday night. We both were jonesing to see a movie but neither of us had a burning desire to see anything but Hotel Rwanda. Excellent movie. I am somewhat educated on what happened between the Tutsis and the Hutus and the history behind the genocide in 1994 so I wasn't expecting to be so troubled by the film. I cried three times during the movie and Jim did the same at least twice. I walked out of the theater feeling like I needed to vomit I was so upset. So Jim and I went to Biddy's, grabbed a beer and some food and watched soccer to get us back into a sane frame of mind. Man that movie got to me. One complaint - they should have showed more of the history behind the uprising. Most people have no idea the reasons the Hutus had for hating the Tutsis.

Saturday morning I watched Finding Neverland. Pretty good movie with the exception of the scene where he is dancing with the bear surrounded by really, super freaky clowns. That afternoon Agie, Katie and I went to the Postal Museum for a handwriting analysis workshop as part of the Smithsonian Saturdays project. It was really interesting (reserve your comments - we all know I'm a geek) and pretty fun. We have all decided to never handwrite anything again though. Then Katie and I grabbed some beer and a late lunch and traded stories of boy woe. Which made me late for my date with Paul (oops). He was great and didn't give me crap for being 40 minutes late. I beat myself up enough about that. I hate being late. Anyway, we went to the Lifehouse concert which was at a venue neither of us had been to. I'd go to a show there again even if it's a bit of a pain to get there. Their first cd is one that I have not listened to for at least 3 years. The entire thing reminds me of a relationship I had (we both loved the cd) and I just haven't been able to listen to it without thinking of that person and the regrets attached to him and the situation. A few weeks back, I popped it in for some unknown reason and remembered why I enjoyed the cd so much without having too many bad memories. So a few days later when Paul asked me to go to the concert I didn't hesitate at all and said yes. Little did I know that hearing a couple of the songs live would bring me to tears. A bit unnerving and embarrassing to say the least. Thank goodness it was dark in there. I really need to create new memories to that cd or forget it forever. I'd rather go with Plan A for once.

Game On!

Last night I went to the Home Season Opener for the Washington Nationals. Such a great experience. Granted, it does not equal going to Game 7 when the Angels won the Series, but it was so much fun....well, once we got in the stadium. A coworker (the one with the freaky girlfriend - who comes into play later) and I left the office at 5, hopped on the very, very crowded metro and got to the stadium around 5:50. There were, of course, long lines and tons of people the majority of whom were wearing red Nats caps. I had my blue cap on. Katie (my partner for our season [20 games] seats) and I discussed which hats we were going to get - we are such girls. She chose red (she's a St. Louis fan and it's the home hat) and I chose blue (I look better in blue - yes I am that shallow at times). Plus, I'm a blue state girl. I have had a slight revulsion to all things red the past couple months. It's fading, but still there. I know, I know. I am lame.

43 threw out the first pitch so security was a bit nuts. Metal detectors and Secret Service were at every entrance which made getting into the stadium a bit of a hassle (understatement). But it was to be expected. This was not a secret that it was going to take a long time to get in. Yet people insisted on being asses while waiting in line. I use the term line loosely of course. There was no order. The term that comes to mind is clusterfuck. But again, it was to be expected. It's the first baseball game in over 3 decades in DC. The President is there and it's sold out and RFK is a really old stadium. It's going to suck. It's not going to go smoothly. Deal. There were so many guys complaining in line I could not believe it. I finally lost it when some moron made the comment "why are they having the President on the first day? April 9th would be a better day and less crowded". I turned to him and told him that he was a complete idiot and that he should really stop using profanity and complaining about the situation since there were children around and his bitching and moaning was not making the situation any better, it was only making things worse. Of course this is the abridged version, but any of you who know me get the gist of what was said. Anyway, he shut his trap and everyone around was better off.

Got in the stadium just before 7, right in time to hear the national anthem. Grabbed a beer, got to my seat to find that the other three people weren't there yet. They missed out on some pretty cool, albeit hokey, stuff. They had the guy who threw the last pitch before the Senators left DC come out with that ball which he gave to 43 to throw for the opening pitch. The crowd's response to the President was very representative of our nation's voting this past election. 1/ booed and 1/2 cheered. After being told that I couldn't turn my back or read a paper while he was doing this (I wouldn't have) I decided to be a silent protester. I will respect the office, but I do not need to respect the man. Then the last Senators starting line up took the field in their uniforms carrying gloves. Then the Nationals came out and were handed their gloves by the Senators. It was very touching. I admit - I got a tear. I'm such a sucker for anything historic and baseball related.

Ryan and Patrick got there within 10 minutes of me and each other and we settled in to watch the game. Katie had called to let me know her car died in the middle of the highway so she was running a bit late. It was a nightmare for her the poor thing. No one stopped to help her during rush hour traffic. Finally when a guy from Ohio (go Buckeyes) helped her push the car to the side of the road some ass in a Cadillac CUT THEM OFF. She got there just in time to see the first run scored. That and the fact we gave her beer made her happier pretty quickly. It was a fun game and the Nats won. If the concession stands hadn't run out of beer and food it would have been a better experience, but it's the first game. I'm sure it will get better as the season progresses.

Poor Ryan though. We got this missive from him this morning : "Hey, great time last night, even with all the RFK logistical snafus (WHAT?!?! You're out of beer?!?!). Looking forward to seeing you guys throughout the season. Now, the sad part: After all my preservation plans for my schmancy ticket, it fell out of my program last night on the metro and onto the floor. Just as I noticed it was missing, someone picked it up and ran off the train at Clarendon! I kid you not! Anyway, so if any of you three are not particularly attached to your ticket stub, I would be happy to compensate you for it (cash, beer, whatever). Ok, enough of my sob story. Go Nats!"

I can't believe some tool snaked his ticket. At least two of the four of us had a relatively painless experience!

Gnome Sweet Gnome

So ordinarily those little freaky garden gnomes really creep me out. It may be because their owners are usually, shall we say....odd? Or that they are an object that could come to life in a way that ends with much killing (similar to lifelike dolls or ventriloquist dummies - damn you Twilight Zone!). Anyways, this morning as I was getting ready I watched the news heavy Today show and they had a story on a sleepy gnome and how he spent spring break. I love starting my day laughing. Some college kids took the gnome with them on their spring break and the owner had no idea until he was returned with a photo book of where he'd been and who he'd seen. Too funny. The best part of it was the owner. She was a hoot talking about the gnome like he was a son who had snuck out of the house to go to Hooters. She also mentioned that she's keeping him inside for awhile (he's grounded) until the other gnomes get over being mad at him. The link below shows the gnome with 'celebs' Paris, Marilyn and Elvis.

http://www.komotv.com/stories/36265.htm

The Lights Are Out and Everybody is Home

Woke up this morning to no electricity. Luckily I have a battery powered alarm clock so I wasn't late for work but I am not as well dressed or pretty as I usually am. Damn my reliance on irons and hair dryers!

I Wish I Were Home

I had a really packed weekend and I'm paying for it this morning. Friday night I went to a going away party for a friend and her husband who are moving to San Francisco. Normally this group's outings turn into a drunk fest of laughing and bad karaoke. I'm sure Friday was no different but I left before the antics got into full swing. It was way out in Herndon (which is f-a-r-r, about an hour out of the city). We got to the party at 9 pm and left just before 1 am, getting grief from Natalie the entire 20 minutes we tried to extricate ourselves from the party. Best quote of the night while I was there "Indians don't talk loudly, they just have accents".

Saturday was spent having lunch with Katie and Heather and then shopping at Target for far too many hours. We were originally going to do one of our Smithsonian visits but it being cherry blossom season, we nixed it and went shopping. This is the first time I've been to Target since I've moved (over 2 years) so it was a fun, fun trip. You forget how much you can get in one convenient location and since there aren't any in the city it was an extra special treat for Heather and me. So four hours later we get back into the city just in time for me to put my purchases away, hop in the shower and get ready to go to Jim's bday celebration. Paul and I grabbed some dinner and then picked Heather up on our way to the bar. We spent a couple hours hanging out there where I had to explain to Paul that if Jim wasn't such a good friend to me I would think he was a complete ass. We got home and my landlord's party was still sounding strong so we went up to have a beer with them. Ended up staying for a bit longer than expected but they were fun and it was good to spend some time with my landlord.

Sunday I came into the office for a couple hours and then went to help divy up our season tickets for the Nationals. Opening day is Thursday and I can't wait. So excited for the season! I've really missed going to baseball games regularly so having a team in the city I can root for without going against the Angels is great. Now I have a National League team and an American League team and it's not like they're going to be in the Series together anytime soon so I'm golden. The divying took a couple hours since there are about ten of us splitting up four seats for 40 games but it went very smoothly (thanks for the spreadsheet Katie) and no one seems to be ruffled about the outcome. It probably helped that there were only four of us there and some don't care which games they go to as long as it's not Toronto.

Longest Week Ever

This week has been super hectic. A coworker is going to have her baby anyday now and up until today we weren't going to have anyone helping out while she's on maternity leave. I found out today we're getting an intern thank God. I've been so stressed thinking about how much more buried I would be with her out I haven't been sleeping well.

Wednesday night we went to the Tori Amos show at the Warner Theater. Great venue, boring, boring, dull, boring concert. I like Tori Amos, but apparently only in three to four song snippets. She didn't talk to the crowd at all. I've never wanted to leave a concert of an artist I like before. Man, we were disappointed.

Last night we had a little happy hour here at the office which turned into a group of us hanging out and drinking until about 6:30. Then Heather and I went to a kickball happy hour where we had a few more beers. Paul was talking about coming over after work (around 11) all day and I was really looking forward to seeing him. Unfortunately, the combination of eating only a burrito all day, not really sleeping for the past week and drinking for 4 hours put me to sleep right when I got home at 9:30. With the door locked. And my only key inside with me. And my phone in the living room. I woke up this morning to see 24 missed calls on my phone and a voice mail from a very unhappy (understandably) Paul. He's still mad. Not good. I'm hoping a good night's sleep will help him. I feel like a complete tool. Ugh.

Hot Young Doctors and Spring

I can't decide if OB/GYNs should be allowed to be young, handsome men. On one hand, you spend the first five minutes of your appointment (which can be uncomfortable to some, make that most, women) adjusting to the fact that a good looking man is about to examine you. On the other hand, I don't know what woman would prefer an unattractive man. Anyways, the doctor was great - he, the nurse and I discussed the finer points of scotch and Guinness and the exam was over before I knew it.

The cab ride back to the office was beautiful - the city is once again in bloom. My favorites are the trees that have magnolia-like flowers that appear to be painted porcelain. They start as a deep purply burgundy and slowly fade out to white at the tips of the petals. So pretty but I'm sure they're a pain in the arse to clean up. Today is the kind of day that you want to spend napping on a blanket in a park, soaking in the sun and watching squirrels play and people walk by.

Variety Really is the Spice of Life

Let me start by assuring those who are related to me or who have no interest in my sex life, which I hope is most of you - this is not about me or my current personal experiences....okay, now that that is out of the way. Oh, one more thing. These are broad generalizations and not intended to apply to all reading.

I'm coming to the conclusion there is a fundamental difference between most men and women. Now before you shake your head and say "no duh" (you know who you are), stick with me. I've heard a lot of men complain about the disappearance of sex over time in long term relationships or marriage. I've also heard a lot of women complain about the same thing. Which started me thinking. Why is it that two people who couldn't keep their hands off each other in the beginning stages can't seem to put them on each other regularly after some time? I'm leaning towards the theory that women get bored sexually. If we get the same thing, the same way everytime, we're going to lose interest. It really might be that simple. When sex becomes routine, heck when anything becomes routine we stop wanting to do it - be it workouts, what we do for a living, commute to work, sex, going to the same restaurant or doing the same thing every Friday night. If you change it up a bit from time to time, the spark will stay lit, we will stay interested and involved. This doesn't mean it has to be different every time or that you need to be insanely kinky or outrageous if that isn't in you (and it isn't in everybody and that's okay) (also, no pun intended). Speaking from personal experience, a little shake up in routine from time to time can be very beneficial and appreciated. Take into consideration though, this is from the girl who moved 3,000 miles on a whim.

Things That Are Keeping Me Sane Today

In no particular order : Green Day's American Idiot cd. The 10 minutes I got to spend outside enjoying the beautiful weather. That when I empty my spam box in gmail it says "hooray! no spam here". Baseball has officially begun and I get to go to opening day for the Nationals next week. My friends are entertaining, good people who cheer me up when I am having a stressful day.

School Night v. Weekend Night

Whose bright idea was it to start the season opener for two of the top teams in baseball (both on the East Coast) at 8 p.m. on a Sunday night??? Just wrong I say. I watched the (brutal) game last night with Paul, who is a die hard Sox fan so the 9-2 loss was really, really fun....and now I'm dragging. Why is it that I can stay out until all hours of the morning on a Friday or Saturday and not feel tired, but I do it on a Sunday and it's all over? Unfair I say. And no, it's not because I sleep in on Saturdays and Sundays. I usually get up at the same time every day. Maybe God is smiting me? Doesn't He have more important things to do?

Advance Notice is a Good Thing

Paul and I went to a concert last night. We arrived before the first band went on (Longview - the band Paul wanted to see) so we sidled up to the bar near the door and ordered beer. As I was talking with the bartender, I noticed Paul talking to a girl behind me. I turned around to hand him his beer and he introduced me to Lauren. I was a bit taken aback because this is his ex-girlfriend from last year. Not a big deal that he was talking to her (I am not a jealous sort) but he knew she was going to be there and she knew I was going to be there. Why was I the only one who didn't know? A little "Hey, you're going to be meeting Lauren tonight" would have been nice. I would have made sure I looked cuter. Yes, we women are a silly bunch. We stayed for a bit of the second band (Dogs Die in Hot Cars) because I enjoyed them - they were very fun and I've been reading great reviews about them the last couple months. They're kind of ska but not really, lead singer's voice has a Killers tone about it and their keyboardist is to them as Linda McCartney was to Wings. I swear it wasn't plugged in.

Tourist Season

It is upon us. The time of year when people flock to DC for vacation. They come to see the monuments, the White House, museums, and revel in our nation's short but illustrious history. It's all kicked off by the cherry blossoms. Those delicate, beautiful flowers that last just long enough to drive us all crazy with the mass influx of outsiders coming to see the sight of these trees blooming.

For most of us who live here the metro is easy to operate. We go in knowing where we're going, which platform to head to for the correct train, how to operate the turnstiles (do you still call them that when they don't actually turn?) with our smartrips or fare cards. We also have a sense of urgency during rush hours. We know to stand to the right and walk on the left. We know when the doors open on a train we leave a walkway and let those who are exiting do so before we board the train. I think our lives would be much easier if more people wore this shirt as a public service for the tourists:

http://www.cafepress.com/standright

Inside Voices People

I have a beef with people who talk loudly in public places. This includes metro trains, buses, movie theaters and offices. Please don't bark to your companion or into your cell phone/ blackberry phone/ speaker phone or whichever device you are using. No one wants to know every detail of your life. Trust me. No one wants to be stuck on a metro train listening to your conversation. Trust me. No one wants to be trapped in their office unable to concentrate on their work because you are using a speaker phone for EVERY SINGLE CALL you make. Trust me. No one paid almost $10 to sit in a movie theater and hear you tell someone you're going to pick up grandma later. Trust me. It's just rude and inconsiderate.....Trust me.

Spring Has Sprung

It is such a beautiful day outside. Sunny, warm (50's), slightly breezy, but eh...I'll take it. Such a refreshing change from the awful rain this weekend. Oh wait, it's coming back in a day or so. Dammit. Anyways....I have been incredibly busy these past few days as evidenced by my lack of attention to my blog. A few things have made me want to post so now that I have a moment, here goes:

1. I finally talked with my friend with the jealous girlfriend. Here's the story: She got home Saturday night and after rifling THROUGH THE TRASH CAN she confronted him asking him who he had had over while she was gone. He (stupidly, cowardly, pick your adjective) denied it. She brought up as evidence the two sandwich wrappers in the trash. Wow. Really, that's all I can say on that. Anyway, he continued to deny he had anyone over and then they had a long discussion and all seemed right in their (increasingly unstable) world. I talked with him yesterday and he told me all this. I let him know that his phone had definitely called me and intentionally hung up on me. I was still finding the situation somewhat amusing at the time. Well, they had another discussion last night. This one included me (joy). He asked her about calling me, she denied it but was defensive (duh). He let it go and informed her I have a boyfriend (his word) and she has nothing to worry about. Um, yeah. Sure. That's going to solve everything. Especially when she tells him one of her coworkers played kickball with me last year. I get the unsettling feeling this is not over and that I am going to be involved (quite reluctantly) into drama. Ugh. No longer finding it amusing, just really, really sad.....
2. What goes around comes around it seems. Ahhh....the Boy Scouts. A fine tradition among men and young boys. My brother and I were both involved with the Scouts (I, of course affiliated myself with the girl variety) growing up. I feel I can speak for my brother and say that we both really enjoyed ourselves. I still have all my badges actually (yes, I know I'm a geek). I do find it highly....hmmm.....searching for right word here......ironic? humorous? sad? kharmetic? (yes I know it's not a word, but you know what I mean) that after such a hullabaloo about not allowing gay troop leaders there is now a scandal about a pedophile (or at least a man who enjoyed child porn) rising to pretty high levels in the organization. Wanna bet he's Republican? (I'm joking Mark.....well, mostly joking). It just kills me to see people get up on their high, moral horse and then come tumbling down. That's why I walk.....hurts much less when you fall.

More tomorrow - kisses.

Easter Brunch

Any gathering at Heather's is a treat full of fun times, good food and beverage and of course intelligent discussion and laughter. Yesterday was no exception. There were no peeps - Katie had threatened to bring them, but instead showed up with the unexpected treat of Frango mints. Anyone who has been or knows anyone who has been to Chicago knows of these mints. They are very yummy and difficult to locate. There was an Easter egg hunt (no I didn't win, but did tie for first by finding one in Gary's pants), bloody marys, mimosas and a great food spread. Two fantastic quotes came from the day - "I can't go to church drunk" and "Stick out your tongue". And of course the requisite rehashing of Napoleon Dynamite quotes. Brunch two weeks in a row - I may be getting spoiled.

Direct 'Radio' and Late Phone Calls

Tuesday evening the picture went out on my television. I had sound, I had my DirecTV menu but no picture. A bit irritating, but I'm not home an awful lot so I figured there wasn't a huge rush to get it fixed. I let my landlord know Wednesday and he assured me he was on it as he was having difficulties as well. Thursday, still no picture so I listened to The OC (couldn't miss it). The novelty of living like it was the pre-tv radio days was still there, so not very annoying. Plus I can't stand looking at Marissa - her acting is bad enough without seeing her lack of emotion. By Friday afternoon the problem was still not fixed. This is when I began to get irritated because my boss kindly made me take a day off so I could rest and get better. Stuck home for a day and a half without television during March Madness is pure torture. Trust me.

So I went to a friend's house Friday evening to watch the games, hang out and drink some beer. I called him Friday to set up times, etc. and then again when I got to the Metro so he could come pick me up. His girlfriend was out of town, Paul was out of town, neither of us had plans and both wanted to watch the games. Taking into consideration my television difficulties it was the perfect solution. Some background on his girlfriend will be important for the rest of the story. They have been having some 'difficulties' lately. She is convinced he is cheating on her (he isn't.....well, hasn't for over a year and it was only with one person a couple times - not making excuses for him but he has taken great steps to be a better boyfriend) to the point where she checks his emails while he's out. Evidently she checks his cell phone too because mine rang twice very late Saturday. Once at 11:45 with a private number (I never answer those) and again about 5 minutes later. This one was a call from my friend's cell phone so I answered and was promptly hung up on.

I would love to tell the rest of the story, but this friend is not in his office today. Hmmmmm......

Plan B Nightingale

Paul and I were supposed to go out on a date last night. Both of us thought it would be nice to spend some time together before he left to Vegas for the weekend. Plus, we haven't gone out for some time since lately we've been seeing each other on school nights. I have been battling a bit of a chest cold this week so we decided to stay in and watch a movie and go out when he gets back next week. Plans changed again when his body decided it would be a good idea to throw up all day starting around 10 am. He finally went home around noon with the thought that I would go over there and watch the movie. He was still vomiting when I got there about 6:45. I administered some anti-nausea medicine and he was good for a little over an hour....until he tried a saltine. Big mistake. I called my mom (she's a nurse) and got some sage medical advice. So I sent Paul to bed with the orders to take very small sips of vitamin water and/or gatorade for the next 12 hours. And then I took my sick self home after being at his house for an amount of time equal to my travel to and fro.

A few friends have looked at me crazily for having done this, especially while not feeling too hot myself. I like to think that he would have done the same thing. Even if he wouldn't, I would have felt bad that he was stuck at home with no provisions when I could have done something. Guess I was just raised well - thanks mom.

Elevator Woes Part Deux

Just arrived back to my desk after being stuck in an elevator. NOT FUN. It was the longest, hottest 5 minutes of my life.

Fore!

After being poked by not one but three golf umbrellas on the way to work this morning I have come to the conclusion that you should not be allowed to carry an umbrella big enough for a family of five if you are the only one enjoying its protection. Also, please don't swing your big ass umbrella to and fro while standing or walking in the metro stations. People are trying to walk in an overcrowded area as it is. We don't need sharp, wet objects attacking us as we're trying to catch the train. A little common courtesy people. That's all we're asking for.

Where My Peeps At?

Riding home on the metro last night I had the displeasure of watching in horror as a young man devoured what seemed to be an entire flock of peeps. You know, those disgusting, unnatural technicolor bunnies and chicks that I think are some form of marshmallow substance. This started a conversation that had me realizing how little of Easter candy I really like. Peeps definitely top the list, which also includes jelly beans (except the starburst or jolly rancher ones) and those icky Cadbury eggs. Shuddering just thinking about them. I would always trade with my brother for something good like the sweet tarts or something else yummy and fruity.

Time To Let Go

All this Terri Schiavo business is really irking me on a number of levels. The one that is bothering me the most is all the 'pro-life' groups backing her family's efforts to 'save her life'. I realize they love their daughter/sister. I understand it is difficult (understatement) to lose someone you love, especially unexpectedly. But what about the past 15 years she's spent in the hospital with machines keeping her alive constitutes living? There comes a time you have to give up hope and realize this person you love will never be that person again.

Before you call me a heartless bitch, take into consideration I, along with most of my immediate family watched my grandfather 'live' only because he was being fed oxygen through a tube. Seeing my grandmother struggle with the removal of that tube was excruciating and one of the worst things I've ever been a witness to. Knowing that my grandfather would not be happy 'living' like that, having us watch him slowly die helped make up everyone's mind that the tube should be taken out, my grandmother just couldn't bring herself to do it. In what can only be described as an act of God, my grandfather became lucid long enough to say goodbye to her, his three daughters and almost all his grandchildren (two couldn't make it from out of state). He then was able to make the decision to take the tube out and passed away the next day. I understand this is not the norm in these circumstances and I am beyond grateful to have had that last five minutes with him. I still have an empty place in my life, always will from his absence, but he's happier now. He isn't suffering, being kept alive by artificial means and that is where my aforementioned problem with the 'pro-lifers' comes from. These are people (I'm not saying all Tam) who fight against the right for a woman to have a choice regarding abortion, who say that it is God's will if someone gets pregnant or not, if someone lives or not, yet will use artificial insemination if they are unable to create a life on their own. These are people who think abortion is wrong, that it is murder, yet get the morning after pill after having unprotected sex (I personally know someone who did this and didn't see the hypocrisy - it still boggles my mind). They are politicizing something that is a personal matter and refusing to admit they are politicizing. They are also creating a great threat to states rights.

Sorry to have gotten all Dennis Miller on y'all, but this is just driving me crazy.

Worst. Wake-up. Ever.

After opting out of the concert Saturday night (for reasons that will go unexplained - no it was not so I could spend more time with Paul), Paul and I made dinner and watched a movie. We went to bed around 10. I usually have trouble sleeping over there, waking up a few times during the night...not sure why but that's not central to the story. Just know that it took me a good couple hours to fall asleep for longer than 30 minutes so when we were awakened at 3am by his roommate it sucked much more than it would have normally. I'm still dragging this morning from the fitful night of sleep....well that, and the Indigo Girls concert last night. Super fun, they sound fantastic live. The opening band was good too - check out The Great Unknowns if you get the chance. Concerts are one of the few times I really embrace and love being tall. It offers a mostly unrestricted view of the stage, especially when surrounded by short lesbians.

Let's Play Catch Up

Romance:
I've been super busy the last few days here at work. I guess it's a good thing Paul is gone this week since I've been working past 7 the last two days. I'm pleasantly surprised to find I'm missing him....a part of me was worried absence would make my heart less fonder. Mind you, it hasn't made it grow more so, but I am definitely looking forward to his return. He gets back sometime Saturday....I have a concert that night, brunch Sunday and then another concert Sunday night, most of which I was just reminded of. Heather, who reminded me about brunch, was giving me grief for 'whining' that I wasn't going to see Paul until Monday now while denying he's my boyfriend. The two are not interlinked. I can miss someone and like someone and date someone who is not my boyfriend. We have not had that discussion yet - there's been no need to. I'm happy with things the way they are right now. So shut it Heather.....

I've managed to get SAM out of my system during the last few days. We went out to dinner and drinks Saturday night after I was wine tasting all day. I had a really good time, he's smart and funny and hot - how could I not? Enough of the evening was spent thinking I'd rather be with someone else, so it's goodbye for SAM for good this time I'm afraid.

Appearance:
Agie and I went to the salon for hair cuts Monday at lunch. We were a bit wary at first, but the woman was fantastic....and fairly inexpensive. We both walked out of there in an hour (1/2 for each) with great cuts and newscaster hair. She styled it a bit bigger and bouncier than either of us usually wear it, but it's fun and settling down after two days.

General:
Watching 60 Minutes Sunday I was scared by the segment on the next Star Wars movie. All I'm saying is digital Yoda, creepy he is.

I've been listening to a lot of Alice In Chains, Pearl Jam and Soundgarden this week. Could Seattle be my next city to move to on a whim? I'm going with doubtful on that one. I like the East Siiide far too much to move to a rainy coffee-fueled city.

I have saved the best for last..... www.americansforrice.org Click on "The Song: Condoleeza Will Lead Us" on the left side. Oh my......thank you Daily Show.

Elevator Woes

My co-worker/friend Agie borrowed my office keys to go down to the third floor. I should have known something was up when she was gone over 1/2 an hour. Turns out she dropped my keys while getting out of the elevator and they fell into the crack between the elevator and the floor....down the shaft to the basement. Outside people were called, fees were waived for a bottle of our product and my keys are now back in my possession.

Another co-worker got trapped in an elevator this afternoon. There was just enough room for him to pry open the doors and crawl out. Unfortunately, he did this in front of one of my bosses who knew someone who was killed over at Dept. of Agriculture doing the same thing. I don't think David is going to be crawling out of any more elevators anytime soon.

Odds & Ends

Got talked into having some drinks last night. My initial response was no because I was worn out from the night before, but I ended up having a really fun time. Plus, I was home at a decent hour and was able to catch up with two of my friends from high school. One is about 10 weeks pregnant and she and her husband are moving to North Carolina in April. It will be really nice to have her back here - I miss her terribly. The other is trying to get pregnant and is growing frustrated. I hope she doesn't stress herself out too much over it. It'll happen when they are ready for it. She says she keeps thinking that, but I know her well enough to know it's eating at her. Another of those times I wish there was something I could do but know there is nothing. Sigh. Even with getting home early, I didn't sleep well. Got a drunk dial from SAM after I feel asleep. Highly amusing of course but I was up for about 1/2 an hour after the call. Shouldn't complain - the flip side is I would have been up for much longer if I had met him out like he wanted.

Open Mouth, Insert Foot

Went to a work event last night with some coworkers. Paul came with us, which was fun because one of my good friends (Heather) was there and I've been wanting her to meet him to give him the once over. About four beers into the evening the following conversation took place:

Me: Paul, are you going to be doing inspections all day tomorrow again?
P: Yeah, looks like it.
H: So, are we safe? How's Homeland Security treating you?

Thankfully, I am honest and open so Paul already knew about SAM. He laughed it off, as we all did....but wow, that could have been very, very bad for me....

Good Morning Little Schoolgirl

It's only a bit past 8 am and I've already learned a few things.

1. Don't forget to iron your pants in the morning.
2. Always eat while drinking even if you aren't hungry....yes, I realize I'm old enough to have already learned this.
3. Don't have DTRTs (Define The Relationship Talk) with someone after both of you have been drinking. You'll never remember what was said, you'll say everything you didn't want to and won't say anything you wanted to.
4. When walking past a homeless man who is more than likely mentally disabled (clue would be the waving of arms above head and talking to someone no one else can see) duck so you don't get hit.
5. The office without bosses is very quiet and much more productive.

I Find These Truths to be Self-Evident

1. When people I care about are having an awful day, I feel helpless.
2. Politicians and weathermen can lie everyday and still not get fired.
3. If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans.
4. Late night infomercials are disturbing (case in point - ad for The Bible on DVD touted as a selling point a virtual tour of the Holy Land at no extra cost).
5. When my boss and I are calling for the same person, he trumps me dammit.
6. Wind has once again proven to be my natural enemy.

Day After Tomorrow?

Yesterday it was about 65 degrees, no need for a coat, not humid, no wind....in essence, the perfect weather day. It was in the forties when I left home this morning....I'm looking outside now at blizzard-like conditions. Maybe I won't be meeting my friend for lunch today.....

Taxicab Confessions

I had to be in pretty early this morning so I grabbed a cab. Everything was going well, we said good morning, exchanged pleasantries about the weather and NPR and then his phone rang. I generally have no problem with my cabbies talking on the cell, especially when I'm not in the chatting mood as I was this morning. This conversation was different. He was going on about the service he was getting on his car - the car we were in. This wasn't an oil change. The list included changing out the tires and brakes. Thank goodness it was a short ride.

Thanks Friends

So after my harrowing experience on the train I have found I have good friends and coworkers. I called Paul from the Metro station as I was watching the EMTs work on the man and he was wonderful, making sure I was okay. He's a really great guy. Friends here in the office have been good - making me laugh, getting my mind off of it. My coworker Sarah coincidentally brought me a flask this morning from the convention in Vegas she just attended and my boss just offered to fill it for the day for me. I'm a very lucky girl.

I Know The Heimlich Too

I stayed over at Paul's last night and rode the Orange line in to work today. As we were waiting for the train I was giving him grief for only riding one stop with me thinking "I really should have grabbed an Express - now I'll be bored the rest of the way" (see earlier post about riding on trains). Be careful what you complain about. Right before we pulled into the next stop a man passed out and stopped breathing. We hit the red emergency button and told the driver there was a passenger emergency. A gentleman asked if anyone knew CPR. I've been CPR certified since I was about 10 years old (and they mocked me for being a Red Cross Certified Babysitter - thanks Girl Scouts). I've taken a number of refresher courses over the years, but the last was about 3 years ago and I've never performed it on anything living. Until this morning. I threw off my bags, had them lay him on the floor, couldn't find any hint of a pulse and enlisted a big man to do chest compressions while I did the breathing. He was taking maybe 1 of every 3 breaths I was giving him and there was a rattling in his throat. Adding to the pressure was his wife of probably 50+ years watching while her husband slowly turned blue. I have to say she was the calmest of us all. About 10 minutes later the EMTs showed up and took over with the defibrilator. They worked on him for another 10 minutes or so. It looked like he had a heartbeat. I'm going to believe he did since GW hospital wouldn't give me any information when I called.

CPR training courses are offered by the American Heart Association (for training courses near you call 1-800-AHAUSA1), the American Red Cross and by many local fire departments. I highly recommend taking one. You never know when you're going to need it and it only takes a few hours of your time.

It's a Sunshine Day

Ahhh...The Brady Bunch. I walked into work today (about 1 1/2 miles). It was a spur of the moment thing. I was walking to the metro and saw what a nice day it is outside (read: 27 degrees, sunny, no snow on the ground, not too windy) and decided to enjoy outside since I'll be chained to my desk most of the day. Listened to some great music, helped a lost woman who spoke only French with directions and pointed out a dropped shirt to a guy taking in his dry cleaning. I also realized I have a much better job than the poor fellows digging the ditches at Logan Circle. It was a really great way to start my day. Hopefully this does not mean I'll have another horrid afternoon.....

I Should Have Known....

The day started great - Paul and I rode the metro in together and it's always nice to start the day with a kiss goodbye as you're getting off the train. I got into the office before 8:30 and ran into our controller who commented that she keeps seeing me in the office earlier and earlier. My mental response was "that's because I no longer dread coming into work since I've moved out of your department" but I wisely smiled and mentioned how busy we are right now. It's not her fault I hated my previous position with our company, that department is a huge mess and it has alot to do with the person who runs it. I was also beyond overqualified for that position. Moving on. My day has gone downhill from there. My boss is on my ass for something I forgot to do, which is completely reasonable. I have no problem getting yelled at for stuff I messed up. But on the heels of that he has now yelled at me for something I had no control over. I really shouldn't be saying yell. I've heard him yell, it's not pretty. His tone is more chastising than anything else but regardless, I am in trouble for the day. It really sucks. I just need to focus on good, happy things.

• I'm finally healthy after being sick for what felt like forever.
• I have a job that pays me well to do something I enjoy and is usually really fun.
• I have great friends.
• I have a wonderful family.
• The boy I'm starting to really like seems to really like me too.
• I'm listening to The Killers. Nothing can be bad when you listen to The Killers, right?

Those Crazy Brits

My summer vacations were never this ambitious. Two British college students are planning to traverse the United States this summer breaking the following silly laws:
Starting in my home state California, they will ride a bike in a swimming pool and curse on a mini-golf course.
In the state without a sea Utah, they will hopefully evade arrest when they hire a boat and attempt to go whale-hunting.
They will then take a nap in a cheese factory in South Dakota.

Their journey will start in Alcatraz, fittingly, and will cover approximately 18,000 miles and last eight weeks - assuming they are not taken down by the fuzz of course.

Here's a sampling of other laws they plan to break (thanks Times of London):
It is illegal to play cards against a Native American in Globe, Arizona
It is illegal to drive around the town square in Oxford, Mississippi, more than 100 times on a single occasion
It is illegal to say “oh boy” in Jonesborough, Georgia
It is illegal to play golf in the streets of Albany, New York
It is illegal to give lighted cigars to dogs, cats and other pets in Zion, Illinois
It is illegal to take a lion to the cinema in Baltimore
In Carmel, New York, a man cannot go outside while wearing a jacket and trousers that do not match (okay - this is not a silly law....really should be nationwide)
In Miami, it is illegal for men to be seen publicly in any kind of strapless gown (again, not a silly law)

Tunnel Vision

I learned this morning that I'm growing as a person and overcoming a fear that I've had for pretty much my entire life. I don't like enclosed spaces, places I can't get out of quickly, crowded places, etc. so riding the Metro has been a tough adjustment for me to make. I've become a master at distracting myself from the fact that I'm underground - music and reading material are key. In the absence of these, a good companion will do. This morning I was reading the Express (free daily from the Post) and trying not to listen to the women behind me loudly discussing their finances. After the first stop the train started to stop about every 10 feet. While unnerved, I was able to continue reading and not freak out - 10 months ago I would have jumped off at the next stop and got on the next train. This is good.

The Cure For What Ails You

As we were discussing our lunch options today I had a hankering for a hot pastrami sandwich with yellow mustard. Now, I don't generally crave pastrami. In fact the first time I had it was only about 3 years ago (after I figured out what animal this odd meat came from) and the last time I had it was over a year ago. Regardless, I wanted pastrami and since it was the first sign of an appetite in four days, I went with it. I am now happy to report I'm on my way to feeling human finally. I can attribute this to one of two things. Either all my bitching and moaning about being sick finally beat the illness down into submission or the pastrami sandwich I had at lunch kicked the germs' butts. More likely it is a result of the vast amount of TheraFlu I drank this weekend combined with 40+ hours of sleep....but wouldn't life be better if all things bad were made good by pastrami?

Sick and Tired of Being Sick and Tired

So I've been battling the flu or whatever the hell this is for about a week now. It's awful. No fun at all. Made me miss not only Smithsonian Saturday but also a concert last night that I was really looking forward to for two reasons: two bands that I like were playing and it was a date with Paul. Before you start to fret, I did get to spend time with him. He came over after he got back into town (after checking in on me regularly while gone), made me dinner (which I promptly threw up - illness, not cooking), found a friend who could go with him at the last minute (thanks Jorge) then had said friend drive him to the store so he could get me ginger ale and saltines. I figured he would bring them back with him after the concert but no, he ran them back before going. Such a sweet guy, which usually means pushover, but he's not. Still doesn't let me get away with anything....the bastard. It's weird. I feel like I've known him for years. It's just so comfortable (not in the bad, we're in a rut kind of way) and natural to hang out with him. Kinda scary, but mostly good.

See You In April

Paul and I just figured out we won't be seeing each other pretty much the entire month of March. Which really kinda sucks since we've been having such a good time together. Figures I finally find a guy I enjoy seeing more than once every week or so and between both of our travel schedules (more his than mine) we won't be spending any weekends together until April. Ugh.

What Are You Five?

Yes, apparently we are. Two coworkers and I braved the weather and went shopping at lunch. As we were walking down the street with our heads down and hats pulled low, Heather lobbed a fistful of snow at my chest. I of course retaliated by pelting her on the side of her head. Our other coworker, not used to our antics (she's new - she'll learn) asked us how old we are. We told her to wait until spring when we splash each other in puddles after work.

Stupid Snow

Had a good time with SAM last night. After getting out of work far too late for my taste we commiserated over a couple bottles of wine. Amazing how some vino and laughter can make stress go away. It was nice. I did find out he was packing heat via an ankle holster the first time we went out. Not because he considered me dangerous - because he came straight from work. Can't decide if that's hot or scary.....

Considering it's been a whole 3 days since I've seen Paul, I'm really looking forward to my date with him this evening....that is unless the snow makes it impossible for us to meet up. This is when the many times I've said "I really want just one more big snow this winter" come back to bite me in the ass. I think Depeche Mode got it right - "I think that God has a sick sense of humor".....

Just Say No?

SAM asked me to meet him for drinks tonight and I'm going. He's a good guy and we have fun, so why not, right? What else am I going to do after I get off work at 7 (if I'm lucky)? Watch bad television? I think drinks with a handsome man is much more of a draw. Plus, this way I can tell him in person that we probably won't be seeing each other much more. Yeah, I know - keep telling myself whatever makes me feel better.....

Best Drunk Email Ever.....

Lo and behold I am very drunk. Been drinking since I don't know when... hours, days, months since clarity you've been gone and i don't reckon verily. Sorry for the rhyme I just have no reason. I'm sure you've got a man so I'm committin some sort of treason.

I have been listening to irish punk. Alone I think I've become some sort of drunk .Definitely. Women hit on me in the bar but I don't give a damn. You don't believe me I'm sure you think I'm full of some sort of sarcasm. Like alakazam.
You ever hear of the Pogues I love em. They speak to me. Did you know that Shane MacGowan is on the streets and I am sometimes like him.
Maybe you'll gall me at (number has been deleted to protect the drunk). maybe you won't. Maybe I'll be sober maybe I wont'.
Love ya and alls.
I did enjyoy som of the times and I really do miss you when some girl reminds me of ya.,
Have a good won.
love ya hon.

Another One Bites the Dust

After spending the majority of this holiday weekend (3 nights out of 4) with pool guy (hereafter referred to as Paul) I think Secret Agent Man is history. He's just not as much fun. It also feels nowhere near as comfortable hanging out with him. So, now we're down to two. And I want you all to be proud of me - I'm not freaking out about spending so much time with Paul. The secret appears to be to not think about it, just enjoy the time with him. He's nice, funny, has great taste in music, doesn't let me get away with crap, plus he's pretty cute so it's easy to spend the time with him and enjoy it. Ryan is a good guy too, but as Charlie put it - if he doesn't have a nickname, it's not a good sign.....

Fear and (Self) Loathing

"There's no such thing as paranoia, the truth is, your worst fears always come true."

Hunter S. Thompson shot himself Sunday evening. What a great loss.

Are We Dating or Going on Dates?

I had a conversation with pool guy last night about the difference between dating someone and going on dates with someone. I've never come up with a hard number as to when the label becomes "dating" as in "I'm dating this guy John" instead of "I have a date with John tonight". For me if someone says they're dating someone it usually means they're at the point where they're sleeping together. For him, it appears to be four dates....which I suppose could mean the same thing. I should find that out before date four....eh, I've got time tomorrow is only date two.

Return of the Mark

It's been pointed out that one of my best traits was left off the list of things I have in common with pool guy. How could I have possibly forgotten modest?

A Male Version of Me?

I must really like me. I had a really great first date last night. We met at Buffalo Billiards for a few games of pool and pints of Guinness then moved on to another establishment for a few more games. It was instantly comfortable probably because we have tons in common - he's sarcastic, intelligent, even more into music than yours truly if you can believe that. A guy at the second place told me what a great couple we made and asked how many years we'd been dating. He didn't believe me that it was our first date. Keep in mind he was wearing a shiny, shiny grey shirt about a size too small, earrings numbering into the 10s, a thumb ring and way too much hair gell. The other young man we were playing pool against looked exactly like Elijah Wood - it was creepy. I kept expecting him to call the cue ball precious.

Secret Agent Man

One of the gentlemen that I've been dating is an agent with Homeland Security. He's just what I look for in a guy - tall, handsome, great dresser, sense of humor, intelligent and I will admit, his job makes him even hotter. I played a part in making him late for work the other day so last night we kept the date short. Would have liked to spend more time with each other, but it was a school night. It's tough doing my part to keep our country safe.

Saturday at the Smithsonian

My friend Katie came up with the brilliant idea to do "Saturdays at the Smithsonian". The plan is to pick an exhibit or few each week and visit all the Smithsonians this year. Yesterday was the second, but the first I was able to go to. I picked a National Geographic portrait photography exhibit at the Natural History Museum (photography exhibits generally have fewer children). The NHM also has the Orchid Experience right now so we decided to combine the two. Katie was running late so Heather and I met at two and went through the photography exhibit which was fantastic and then headed down to the Orchids where we painted on silk, planted our very own orchids and origamied an orchid. We still hadn't heard from Katie and her friend so we went strolling on the mall for a few minutes trying to decide what our next move would be. My eyes landed on the carousel and Heather agreed it would be great fun. Just then the other two girls showed up so the four of us were off to the horses. Let me just say - it was much faster than we expected and no, we are not bad people for partially wishing the 8 year old boy climbing up the pole of his horse would fall and teach his parents to ride these things with him instead of letting him go alone. After the ride we hoofed it over to Rosa Mexicana for some pom margs. Delightfully refreshing and very addictive. After a couple of those each, we went our separate ways and I continued my evening with a date that was not as exciting and fun as the day I'd had with the girls.

Keep Up If You Can...

Ever hear the phrase "it's either feast or famine"? I have been feasting off the dating buffet lately and I am exhausted. I'm not complaining mind you, it's just getting difficult to keep them all straight. Age, job, home town/state, name - it's becoming a jumble of facts. I can only hope I'm charming enough for them not to notice I've asked the questions already. On a positive note, I have not had any more undergarment malfunctions since TGLNG.

Best Breakup Story Ever

A friend of a friend got home from a very long business trip and his boyfriend did not meet him at the airport. He called the bf and asked what the plans were for the next couple days. Said bf had three or four things to do and said
"Why don't you pick which one you want to go to since you can't do all of them?"
Foaf replied "I'll pick the concert"
Bf says "Oh, I'm taking Jeff"
Foaf says "Are you going to be home for the next 1/2 hour?"
BF "Yeah, why?"
Foaf "Because it's going to take me 20 minutes to get there and 10 to break up with you"

Better Than Quintuplets?

I got into work this morning and was greeted by an email from my "friend" Mark. After knowing him for about 16 years one would think I'd learn he likes to be mean to me and expect it. But no, I was surprised (albeit mildly) by his email:

'After dealing with reruns the past week, all we get is "there's nothing like sleeping in your own bed?" Even "According to Jim" will get better ratings than that.'

Keep in mind....this is the guy who told me I'm the only brunette he knows with blonde roots.

Back to the Grindstone

After a week away, I am back in DC. Never thought I'd say this, but it's really good to be back...at work, at home. I was ready. Don't get me wrong, it was nice to be away, but there's nothing like sleeping in your own bed.