Written A Week Ago

I was in Vegas the last five days! (Okay, again more like a week ago...I'm a slacker). We went as a family, which was an interesting choice of locations for a family trip. We gambled, shopped, saw a few shows, and wandered. A LOT. I left about $100 dollars up, thanks to the $3 blackjack tables at Slots-A-Fun (aka: the sketchiest casino on the Vegas strip). But who can beat $3 blackjack! It takes forever to make any money, but it takes awhile to lose it too! While we were there we went to the Wynn to see Overtone. They are a pretty cool a cappella group that's managed by Dina Eastwood. We randomly ran into them on our Austin trip last March and they serenaded us on a dock by the river. They happened to be in Vegas performing so we stopped by the see them and say hello. They remembered us! Which was pretty cool. Check them out! (www.overtoneband.com) They are a little boy band-ish, but who doesn't like a good boy band?? Plus, their voices do some pretty amazing things.

While out west we also ventured to Death Valley, CA for a day. While this wasn't on my top list of places to visit in CA (I actually didn't even know about it) it did check a new state off the list for me! While I plan on returning, California is now one more state down on my quest to visit all fifty! For those of you like me, Death Valley is the lowest point in the country. It is actually the lowest point on North America. ACTUALLY, it is the lowest point in the entire Western hemisphere! Badwater, where there is literally a pool of really gross water surrounded by fields of salt, is 282 feet below sea level! Death Valley National Park is a lot of nothing. There's mountains and rock formations and a ghost town, but mostly its got a lot of hiking trails which we skipped. And camp grounds. The scenery was pretty cool though. I took a bunch of pictures, but lets be realistic, I'll probably never get around to posting them here. So, if you're in the California/Nevada area you should check it out.

On a more positive note...I was in Vegas the last five days! Which is partially why I was able to stay awake until four in the morning. It felt more like 1AM. We went as a family, which was an interesting choice of locations for a family trip. We gambled, shopped, hit up a few shows, and wandered. A LOT. More details to come later. Right now, it is 8:22AM...bedtime!

1:47AM

It is very early Tuesday morning and I am sitting at a computer at work. I am yawning. I don't really remember why at the moment, but I have chosen to work night shift for the next four weeks. Halfway through the first one, I am hoping I didn't make a horrible mistake. Night shift pays more money. Night shift doesn't have management breathing down your necks and asking questions like why isn't your clock hanging on the wall (something my manager did in fact ask me to investigate one day). But night shift is also quieter. And darker. And less busy. Which means the time is moving pretty slowly right about now. I am going to go to "lunch" soon to break things up a bit. But, what exactly, does one eat at 2AM? Is it breakfast? Lunch? Dinner? Middle of the night snack? I packed a peanut butter sandwich with lots of snack options, so hopefully it will appeal to me. I stayed up until 4am last night and slept until 2 this afternoon, so you would think I'd be quite awake. But two cups of coffee later and I am already starting to fade. Counting the hours until bed....

Vegas, Baby!

Yesterday morning we left for Vegas! Five days and four nights on the Las Vegas strip. I have been to Vegas once before and can pretty much take it or leave it. After a few days the constant lights and noise of the casinos, and the fact that you can't go anywhere without walking through at least five of them, starts to get to me. But we are staying at New York New York, my favorite hotel! It has shops and restaurants set up like a New York street, a really cool dueling piano bar and a Coyote Ugly. Which, thinking back to the events of last time, I may not re-frequent. Either way I am into Black Jack recently, and have been practicing strategy on hitorstand.net, which is cool since it scores you on making the correct move, rather than at beating the dealer. So, while I am a little intimidated to sit down at a table in the gambling capital of the world, I am also excited for this trip! Plus, some really cool peeps are here with me.

Weekend Update

This weekend was jam packed. Mini golf, movies, tons of football and a whole bunch of wedding planning. We were able to go to our reception site on Saturday morning and set up a table and chair with all the linens, place settings, centerpieces, etc. to see exactly how everything would come together. I have to say, I am surprised by how good it all looked. I was a little nervous about the chair covers (the current chairs are a hideous shade of 80's mauve and the legs are rusted and peeling), but we came up with a good alternate chair sash solution that I think will be quick, easy and effective in fitting the covers nicely. Napkins, ribbons, centerpiece colors all coordinated really well. Afterward, we stopped by a few restaurants to look into rehearsal dinner sites and went wedding ring shopping! So a few other pieces of research completed.

On Sunday, I worked, but the moms went to a DC bridal show. My mom was there for almost 8 hours, which is crazy. But they got some good info, a few discounts and a coffee pot door prize for me. Which is awesome since I just dropped and shattered my coffee pot. I have horrible luck with the glass carafes and a horrible addiction to morning coffee. Not a good combo.

I also watched an episode of TLC's Say Yes to the Dress and they said that approximately 80% of their brides buy the first dress they try on. This was definitely NOT me. I didn't try on a ton of dresses, but I didn't find my dress until the end of store number three. And I didn't buy it until I first returned to store number one. I was very conflicted between two very different dresses. In the end I made a practical decision to decide and didn't get the 'this is my dress' moment until the decision had been made and I was trying the dress on for the second time. But that's just me. Super practical about everything.

Pet Peeves

1. Blatantly incorrect grammar.
2. People who get on elevators before you, even though you have been waiting longer (drives me crazy every morning at work)
3. People who can't remember to yield when turning left at a green light
4. Pedestrians who think they have the right of way (who's crazy idea was that!?!)
5. People who don't take advantage of my kindness. It's rare. Don't waste it.
   

Explanation: When driving home from work last night I decided to be nice on TWO separate occasions. The first was a dude standing on the side of the road trying to cross in one of DC's really annoying, middle-of-the-block, crosswalks. Cars are supposed to yield to pedestrians in the crosswalk at all times. There are no lights, therefore, no flashing little man telling you to go. The dude was standing waiting for two way traffic to clear, so I stopped and waved him across. My thought was if I stopped, he'd start walking and the oncoming traffic would follow my example. Except he stopped. Hesitated. Stepped out enough so that he was in my way then fluttered about unsure of what to do while I had to wait for a line of oncoming cars to clear and him to complete his journey. THEN I approached this really annoying light in Adams Morgan. I hate it. Making a right hand turn always requires you to yield to a mob of pedestrians. And while yielding, it never fails, someone makes a left on green and tries to cut you off. So last night, still in the chivalrous spirit, I slowed to allow the car to steal my right of way. And he STOPPED. Hesitated. Flapped his hands around in the car and then finally moved out of my way. This is why I am not nice.

Tired

Today I am tired. I tried to go to bed like a good little girl at 10pm last night. But I couldn't sleep until midnight. I think I know why:

• Next week we are leaving for Vegas!
• The night after returning I go to night shifts for FIVE weeks.
• At the end of that I MOVE
• So there's the packing and unpacking game to play.
• Then there is Valentine's Day, President's Day, St. Patrick's Day, Birthdays, Weddings, Easter and Mother's Day to schedule work around.
• Bridal Showers, Bachelorette parties and 4 days where I have been told I'll be kidnapped, but given no further instructions.
• Plus a trip to the Hershey Spa (yay!) to squeeze in.
  

All this in the next 5 months! My sleep will be disoriented and backwards for a month. I'll be out of town multiple times. Squeezing shifts at work in around all the events, plus an added class they now want me to take in April. And mandatory weekend shifts to work when, really, I don't have the weekends free. An apartment to pack up and unpack (oh, how I loathe moving). Oh yeah...and a wedding to plan! All the little details I kept putting off until 'next year,' which somehow found its way here way too quickly. Talk about some stress.

Resolutions

The first full week of January is complete. So far, I've flossed 8 out of 9 days! Not bad. But also not all that impressive of a feat. My other, slightly less publicized and not even specifically defined, New Years resolution was to be more active. I don't like making a lot of resolutions as it does not make sense to set oneself up for failure at the beginning of a new year. But I have decided to make a conscious effort to move more. I am not good at sticking to exercise. I have, however, started by taking the stairs at work. I only walk up 4 flights in the morning, instead of the full ten. But, I walk down all 10 flights in the evenings. It's not that difficult, but still movement. AND as an added bonus today, I walked down then back up 6 flights of steps in the middle of the day. 111 steps down. 111 steps up. Of course the chips and soda I walked to retrieve, and then proceeded to eat, probably still put me a good 1000 calories to the positive. But it's a step in the right direction! ;)

Seriousness Alert

Warning: It is 2011 and I have run out of witty repartee. Nothing amusing happened at work today (Unless you count me losing my appetite when a 50-something year old discussed her thong rash during lunch--sorry if you haven't eaten yet and have subsequently lost your appetite as well. I felt the need to share the disturbing mental image this conveyed). Anyway, my point was yesterday was a bit of a gloomy day and today was a boring one. So I thought I'd share something a little more on the serious side of things. I am currently in love with the country group Lady Antebellum. I have downloaded both of their albums in the last 36 hours and listened to them on repeat as much as possible. I love a band or group that has more than one lead singer. Especially when their voices are unique and blend so seamlessly. Little Big Town is another favorite (also from the country genre--sorry!). But back to Lady A. I have been obsessed with their song 'Need You Now' since I first heard it, so I decided to take a chance on the album. If you believe me about nothing else listen to their song 'Hello World.' Actually, use the link and watch the music video. I saw the video before I heard the song and while I might have otherwise passed it over the video resonated with me. I have listened to the song no less than ten times in the last day and I swear to you I got chills every time. And I promise, I don't get chills very often. In fact, I am usually very emotionally withdrawn. Watch it. You'll like it. Or maybe you'll hate it, but you have to admit the message is pretty powerful. Give it a listen or two. In a world where we are bogged down by technology and responsibility and the need to constantly go, go, go it's easy to forget the little things. The important things. The reason we are here. I've forgotten recently too.

Every day I drive by a little white church
It’s got these little white crosses
Like angels in the yard
Maybe I should stop on in, say a prayer
Maybe talk to God like he is there
Oh, I know he’s there...
And I see a light, a little grace, a little faith unfurls
Well hello world

Okay, enough of the deep stuff. It's not like me. Next time I'll be cheerier. I promise.

Happy New Year!

Can you believe it is 2011 already? This year will be five years since I graduated from college. It will be ten years since 9/11. It is no longer the first decade of the new millennium. It will be 42 years since man first walked on the moon! Of course, I wasn't around back then, but I'm told it was a sight to behold and it has now been over four decades!

I told Michael my New Year's Resolution last night. It's a good one. Ready for this? This year my resolution is to...floss! It's perfect. It will only take a 30-60 second commitment each day. Perfect for a semi-commitment-phobe like me. Sorta weird, I know. But I read somewhere that flossing can increase your life expectancy. I researched a bit more today and it turns out the simple act of flossing everyday is thought to add 1.5-6 years to your life. Spending 60 seconds a day could add 189,216,000 seconds to my life.

While researching I came across the website livingto100.com. It has a life expectancy calculator. My answers scored me 91 years! Not too shabby. It said most people score in the late 80s. Check it out. If you aren't too scared of the results. I redid the calculator this evening, being a little more honest about my poor nutritional habits and sweet tooth, and actually increased my score to 92 years. The number one thing that would increase my number (adding 5 years) is to increase exercising. Changing my eating habits only added 2.5 years, for multiple changes combined. So New Year's Resolution #2: work out. It was going to be work out, eat healthier and sleep more. And while I will probably strive for all three, I have now been told working out is the the best way to add years to my life. So, starting tomorrow, I am getting up off my couch, doing something physical, and then coming home to a rewarding bowl of ice cream. ;)