A Shout Out

Today, I had a meltdown. Not just a minor "I'm really busy" moment, but a major 'run-to-the-bathroom-and-bawl' meltdown. A 'don't-look-me-in-the-eyes-or-I'll-cry-again' meltdown. The words "I'm giving my notice" were actually on the tip of my tongue when I was talking to my supervisor today. I still feel like walking down to the office manager's office and throwing my water in her face and screaming at her. I've been in tears off and on since about 2:00 this afternoon; I've managed to make three people feel guilty, and a fourth feel bad for me. The fifth person, who gave me some much-needed advice, is who I need to give a shout out to.
Emily "The Mug" (http://emilythemug.blogspot.com/) came to my rescue. After taking a quick look at my red eyes and hearing my quavering voice, she said, "Get your coat on, we're going to Starbucks."
So she listened and I talked... and talked... and whined... and complained. And she just listened and offered some excellent advice. She gave me a hug and just let me cry. She pointed out that stuff at work seems like a big deal because I have so much other crap going on in my life right now. DUH, how come I didn't see it that way? She's right! I feel like I've lost control over my social life, my health, my home life, and my spiritual life. So naturally I lost control over my work life. She helped me understand that I don't need to do everything, and do it alone - it's okay to ask for help and involve other people. She also bought me a vanilla bean frappuccino, which makes EVERYTHING better. (No lie - if you've never had one, go get one. No coffee in it, just pure sugary goodness.)
Anyway, thank you Mug, for being there when I needed you. You are the GREATEST. :)

Welcome December!

I woke up this morning to an appropriate December 1st:

I wanted to crawl back in bed, but I had a gut feeling that I'd be the one shoveling the walks. Score - since I was obviously not going to go running in this crud, I'd shovel the walks and let THAT be my exercise for the day. But no sooner had I shoveled two rows of snow, than a neighbor came over with his snow blower, and two of the neighbor kids brought their shovels over... needless to say, I was done in 10 minutes. Well, I have awesome neighbors, but I didn't get much exercise! So, that left me with two alternatives: I could go back up to my room and do Pilates, or...

Yeah, these guys won. They wanted to go out and play in the snow so bad, that I didn't have the heart to keep them in. The backyard isn't that big, and they can only run up and down the yard so many times before it gets boring, so I put their leashes on them, and off we went! Just a mile or so was all we walked because it was snowing pretty hard. But man, I got some exercise! It's tough to walk in the snow! Most people hadn't been out to plow or shovel, so we didn't have a lot of clear spots to walk. Indy and Bo didn't care - they jumped in the big piles of snow anyway. So we trudged through a lot of snow. It's like walking in sand! I was as winded after one mile of walking in the snow as I was after having jogged at the gym last night! It's pretty, though... I like it when I can just LOOK at it, not have to haul it around or drive in it, hehe.

August Rush

So Mar was nice enough to humor me last night, and go see a movie with my new favorite celebrity-crush, Jonathan Rhys Meyers. It's called August Rush - it's rated PG, totally clean. No swearing (that I can remember) and even in the "love scene" they're wearing clothes. But it was honestly one of the best "feel-good" movies I've ever seen. It's about a musical prodigy who's searching for his parents, and his parents aren't even aware he exists - his mother thought she lost her baby in an accident, and she hadn't even told the father, because they were only together one night. It's cheesy and sappy, of course, but it really tugs at your heart strings - I cried at the end.

Keri Russell does a great job as Lyla, who(as Mar put it) wanders around looking tragic. Very well-put, Mar, I totally agree!

And of course, Jonathan Rhys Meyers does a fantastic job as Lewis the rock star - I can't get enough of the Irish accent.

Freddie Highmore does an excellent job as August Rush, a tender-hearted musical prodigy who's searching for his parents.

The cutest part of the movie - August and Lewis in the park, jamming on their guitars together, not knowing who each other are. THIS is the scene to see the movie for, if not for the music, which is AWESOME.

This would be a great family film, or even a girl's night out flick to go see, and cry over. I loved it.

Really, this crush I have on JRM is so unhealthy. Time for me to meet a REAL guy! :)

Is It Bad That I Don't Care?

Today was the "big game" - Utah vs. BYU. The "Holy War" as my friend Mug refers to it. I heard my mom and dad and brother yelling at the TV, and I was... trying to take a nap. I gave up after a while and turned on "Bend It Like Beckham" so I could look at Jonathan Rhys Meyers. When I heard the game end, I went downstairs and nonchalantly asked who won. Apparently the blue side won. Too bad for the Utah fans... *yawn* I got a drink of water and went back upstairs to look and JRM some more.

Am I being too facetious? ;)

I'm sorry, but not only do I not really get into football, I don't buy all the 'Utah vs. BYU' crap. I guess it's not so much the schools as it is the rivalry. Is it necessary? I wasn't even into it in high school - I went to Alta High, and I thought our major rival was Jordan High. I found out years later that Brighton High was considered a bigger rival. Huh.

Can't we all just get along? :)

Office Mis-hap

So I'm sitting at my desk on Friday evening, just working away, and another secretary comes by my desk and asks if I've seen a Runner anywhere.
"No," I said, "Not recently."
"Well," says the secretary, "If you see one, tell them that the dishwasher in the 12th floor kitchen is flooded."

What??!?!

I see an e-mail go out to the whole office a few minutes later from the receptionist asking for a Runner to get the to kitchen ASAP, to remedy said flooding.
I see Paul (one of the Runners) a few minutes later, heading for the kitchen, giggling. So I follow him, and look into the kitchen to see this:

This has happened before,believe it or not. A few years back, another well-meaning Runner named Bryan flooded the kitchen on the 10th floor by putting Palmolive dish soap in the dishwasher, instead of dishwasher detergent. UGH. That was a hard lesson learned for him. So naturally I assumed it had happened again; only, the two Runners left in the office that evening (Paul and Tim, who came in a few minutes later) load the dishwasher all the time, and they know what detergent to use. So I know THEY didn't cause the mess. I figure some genius filled their glass halfway full with Palmolive and didn't rinse it out - just stuck it in the dishwasher, causing this mess. Poor Tim and Paul were left to clean out the dishwasher, and call building maintenance to get the floor cleaned up.

You guys have the worst jobs in the world sometimes, hehe! I'm sorry you had to deal with this on a Friday night! :)

Let's Try This Again:

TA-DA!!! They did it. McDonald's actually came through for me this morning. THIS time, I pulled over and checked my bag to make sure it was the mouthwatering sandwich I ordered, and - there it was. The savory goodness of the bacon, egg and melted cheese on a soft, flaky, buttery biscuit.

I didn't dare wait to eat it this time - I chowed down right there, afraid that if I didn't, it would turn into the nastiness of the sausage patty. I had it finished before I even got to the freeway.

He's a Big Dumb Animal, Isn't He Folks?

I just wanted to post a picture of cute Indy - he spent Sunday morning snoozing on my bed with me. Which is fine until he gets overheated (I have a down comforter on my bed) and starts to pant... which then causes the bed to shake... which then causes me to wake up and kick him off.

But he's cute anyway. :)

Karma? Or Just Plain Destiny?

I LOOOOOVE McDonald's breakfast. Specifically, I love the bacon, egg & cheese biscuits. I DON'T love how fattening and calorie-filled they are, though, so for that reason I only let myself have them once or twice a month. Well, this morning was one of those mornings, and I was looking forward to a mouth full of buttermilk biscuit and bacon and egg smothered with melted cheese... mmmm... so I go to pull up to the drive-thru and some car full of old ladies beats me there. CRAP. If I'd beat them, I would have been in and out of there in 60 seconds. NOPE. So I waited for them to order. Then I ordered my mouthwatering bacon, egg & cheese biscuit. Then I waited for them to pay - and watched as they dropped their change on the ground outside the car. Then I paid for mine. Then I waited as they got their food... and they didn't move. The guy came to the window again and disappeared, reappearing with a carton of milk. They still didn't move. The guy came to the window again and disappeared, reappearing with a cup of ice. Slowly, they inched forward, pulling into a parking space (presumably to check and make sure they had everything), and being as impatient as I was, I grabbed the bag from the poor guy at the window and took off, zooming down the road, anxious to have a bite of heaven. What a morning to hit all green lights... I had to wait until I was almost to the freeway before I finally hit a red light and was able to get into the bag containing my morning joy. I unwrap the paper, ready for my first bite of...
A SAUSAGE MCMUFFIN???????
No.
NONONONONO. That did NOT happen. I stared at it, willing it to transform into what I actually ordered. Nothing happened.
*sigh*
I was too far away to go back and complain and get my sandwich switched, so I just ate it. Then I sucked down a bottle of water. Later, I thought of those ladies in front of me, and how they probably checked their bag to make sure they got the correct order, and I started to laugh - I should have done that, I know I should have. Bad karma? I was irritated at those ladies for getting their order before me, and I ended up getting the WRONG order! I looked up the sandwich that I ordered compared to the sandwich that I actually ate, and there was probably 150 fewer calories in what I ate than what I WOULD have eaten... bonus! Everything happens for a reason. Maybe angels were looking out for me, which is why I got the wrong sandwich - maybe the egg was bad, or the bacon undercooked, or the biscuits poisoned. Maybe, if I'd gotten the right sandwich, I would have gotten sick. Or maybe the person who got MY sandwich gave it to a hungry homeless person, after they realized it wasn't what they ordered. Or maybe the guy screwing the orders up gave his manager the guts he needed to fire him, since he was a creepy employee and might have gone postal and shot up the McDonalds, therefore saving dozens of lives. HHMMM. Maybe that wasn't such a bad thing after all!
Either way, I'm still burping up sausage and cheese. Gross.

It's a Dead Man's Party...

Who could ask for more? Every body's coming, leave your body and soul at the door!



I love this day - everyone gets to dress up and freak each other out! I freaked myself out this morning - driving to work, listening to my Halloween music mix - I seriously got chills listening to Michael Jackson's "Thriller" - just imagining ghouls and corpses wandering all over town, creeping up behind people... OOOOHHH!! I just freaked myself out again!

Happy Halloween, everyone! :)

Open Mouth, Insert Foot

When I'm in a conversation where people start talking about their talents, I clam up and just listen. I hear people talk about musical talents, artistic talents, social talents, and even medical, legal, and educational talents. My sisters are talented; among their many talents, Melissa is a very gifted cook, Marianne is a gifted writer, and Kate is extremely crafty - give her a marker and a piece of paper, and you'll be amazed at the results. My brothers are talented, too. Mike is very artistically and technologically gifted, Dan is socially gifted - he's got a ton of charisma; Steve is educationally gifted - the kid has brains like no one I've ever met! - AND he's talented with quick wit, and Shawn is THE master punster - he's very gifted with words.
Me? Excuse me as I puff my chest out with pride as I share that my talent is...
Sticking my foot in my mouth.
UGH.
I have a talent for unintentionally saying the WRONG things.
Let me give you a few examples:
#1. A few years back, I was at a Denny's with my sisters getting ice cream. I LOVE chocolate shakes, so I got one at Denny's. When we were getting ready to leave, Mar asked how my shake was. I turned to her and said, "I've had better."
Ever seen "Liar, Liar" with Jim Carey? That's what he says to the woman he's in bed with, when she asked how it was for him. So that's what popped into everyone's mind when I said, "I've had better."
What Came Out: I've Had Better
What I Meant: There's better ice cream at other restaurants
What it Sounded Like: I wasn't thinking about ice cream at all, I was thinking about... something else.
#2. One day several years ago I was watching TV with, again, my sisters and cousin, Emily. One of those "Bod" commercials came on - you know, the ones selling a body mist for men, that have the totally hot, ripped guys with women falling all over them saying "I want your Bod." So I say, "I don't think I could do a bod like that." Again, a sexual reference I didn't mean to make.
What Came Out: I Don't Think I Could Do A Bod Like That
What I Meant: I don't care much for muscle-bound men - I like husky guys best
What it Sounded Like: I'm a picky little hussy

The other day at work, a couple of guys were teasing me about rooming with a guy - particularly a very shy, quiet, single guy we're all familiar with. They asked me if I was so immature and naive that I couldn't control myself with a male roommate. (One is LDS and the other was raised LDS, and they know I react easily, so of course they were just teasing me.) So out comes my talent, and the foot goes in the mouth: "It's not ME I'm worried about, it's HIM!" Yet again, more unintentional innuendo.
What I Said: It's Not Me I'm Worried About, It's Him
What I Meant: He could be a serial killer, would I want to put myself in that position
What it Sounded Like: Oh sure, like he could contain himself around ME, I'm so hot!

Not to worry, though! I've figured out a way to cure myself of this unsavory talent.

I just have to stop talking. :)

Celebrity Crushes

Yes, I realize my last post was about a celebrity crush, but I have another one. (I have lots, let's be honest.) I was house/dog sitting over the weekend, and since there isn't much I can do with three dogs on a snowy evening, I hung out with them in the basement and watched T.V. I noticed on the Guide that a movie was going to be on that I'd never seen - one that a friend told me I should watch, because it was a total "Mel Movie." (Man, I shouldn't be so dang transparent.) So I watched it - "Bend it Like Beckham" - and fell in love with this guy:

Jonathan Rhys-Meyers. OH man. There's something about an athlete with an Irish accent... the only thing he lacked was fangs and eternal damnation, hehe. Wouldn't he make a great vampire?? Yes, yes he would. He's on a series currently running (or, at least it was on this year) called "The Tudors" - looks pretty gritty if you ask me, but I'd ALMOST watch it for this guy.

And yes, I REALLY need to get out more.

Eternal Damnation, Anyone?

I have a new crush. His name is Alex O'Loughlin - but I know him as Mick St. John, from my new favorite show 'Moonlight.' The picture does NOT do him justice - you have to actually see him in the show. He is DREAMY. Oh, and he's a vampire.

Most people who know me, know that I am obsessed with vampires right now - after reading Stephenie Meyers' 'Twilight' books, mere mortal men just don't do it for me anymore. I'm all about eternally damned monsters. ATTRACTIVE eternally damned monsters. So when mom and I happened across this show a couple of weeks ago, and learned it was about vampires (she likes vampires now too, hehe) we decided to watch. The show itself isn't anything special so far... it's a murder-mystery without the mystery. Very predictable. But there IS something about it that draws attention - probably the vampires, hehe. Mick St. John is a private investigator -and a vampire with morals, like the Cullens - who hunts down and kills bad guys, and at the same time is watching over Beth, whom he saved when she was a child. So you know it's going to turn into a love story - they opened that right up at the beginning. But there are so many pretty people in it to watch - among whom is another favorite, Jason Dohring of the 'Veronica Mars' fame.

OH yes, we love Jason. He's exactly like Logan Eccles (his character in Veronica Mars) but with fangs. He's the 'leader' of the vampires - kind-of like the Volturi in the Twilight books. Very boyish and cute - and irresistible.

Read about the show and the other characters at http://alpha.cbs.com/primetime/moonlight/

In the meantime... I'm just gonna sit back and look at my attractive, eternally damned new crush. *Sigh*

FINALLY!!!

OCTOBER WEATHER! It's about time. This 80-degree crap is just bizarre October weather. But it was rainy and windy and cloudy an creepy all weekend - now THAT is what I'm talking about! Fun colors in the canyons, creepy weather, and Halloween!

At a family dinner yesterday, I was at a table chatting with some cousins, when one of them made the comment that Halloween ceased to be fun after you're too old to trick-or-treat... to use a phrase from Steve, "I disagree vehemently." There's still scary movies (which I don't usually watch), Haunted Deseret where they do scary story-telling, the Haunted Canyon on the Heeber Creeper (geared mostly toward younger kids, but still fun), and I still dress up every year for Halloween - who cares if I don't trick-or-treat? Thanks to my good friend Holly, I get to wear a cool dress! And as Holly says, Halloween is a great excuse to wear a really cool dress that makes you look better than everyone else, hehe. This is me last year:

For anyone that doesn't know the Lord of the Rings movies, this is me as Eowyn, from the Two Towers.

Oh yes, Halloween is for EVERYONE, not just kids! :)

Office Shenanigans

Generally, I like my job. Maybe it's not so much the job itself, as it is the people I work with. I enjoy coming to the office because everyone is so fun, in spite of all the "office politics" that go on, and I have friends here. I also have some... well, not enemies, but... people who don't appreciate my "enthusiasm," I'll just say. :) There's someone that sits nearby that has complained about me twice in the past six months, saying I'm too loud and there is too much visiting going on at my desk. Hey, I can't help it if I'm popular! Okay, I'm kidding. She's right, though, because I'm not that quiet - when I get excited and animated, I get loud. But the people who DO appreciate me... well, for example, last Monday, Mug (Emily) came past my desk, and for some odd reason I got too shy to ask what she was doing for lunch, and to see if she wanted to go out; so all I said was, "I'm SO hungry!" She laughed, and continued on her merry way. (Generally, I'm NOT shy with Mug - she knows me too well.) Ten minutes later, SHE called ME and asked if I had lunch plans and wanted to know if I wanted to go get Mexican food with her and Matt. Um, YEAH!! Either she felt sorry for me not being able to be subtle, or she just wanted to invite me to lunch. Whichever, she's just AWESOME.
The guys in the mail room are a blast. They drive me nuts sometimes - I'll get to my desk, and my computer speakers will be turned up all the way - only I don't notice until my computer makes a blaring noise. (They still deny doing this...) Last year sometime, one of them put a cell phone in my jacket pocket (the jacket was hanging on the back of my chair) when I was away from my desk, and then they called it and the ringer was Darth Vader breathing - scared the crap out of me. The other day, a couple of them (Matt and Dustin) were out visiting at my desk, eating candy, and Dustin picked up a candy corn and aimed it at me, like he wanted me to catch it in my mouth. So I opened my mouth, and he tossed it - but at the last second, I chickened out and closed my mouth and backed away. The fate of the candy corn? It sailed right down my shirt. I was laughing so hard I had tears in my eyes, but poor Dustin was mortified. I STILL like to tell people that story because it's so funny. Yep, those mail room guys - they're so fun!
It's people like Mug and the mail room guys that make work so fun. That's the reason I come here every day. The actual work and the paycheck? Minor details. :)

K-9 Conspiracy...

I SWEAR I almost killed Indy this morning. It's a good thing he's so dang cute, otherwise he might be dead right now. (I snaked this picture from Mike, hehehe!)

I heard him barking this morning. That's not unusual, you might say - because it's really not, he and Bo bark at the littlest things, starting at about 6:30 or 7:00 a.m. No, what was unusual about THIS bark was that it was 4:00 IN THE MORNING. It wasn't a crazy "I heard a noise, somebody do something" bark, it was more of a "I'm not getting any attention" bark - like, "woof." Silence. "Woof woof." Silence. "Woof." Whine. Silence. "Woof."

ARGH. This went on for a few minutes before I heard mom get up and let him out. I sighed in relief that I didn't have to go downstairs (sorry, Muti!) and rolled over to go to sleep. I heard mom let him in and go back to bed.

Then...

"Woof." Silence. "Woof woof."

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!

I looked at my clock - it was now 5:00 A.M.!!!!!

I marched out of my room and down the stairs, and he was in the hall, aimed right at the stairs. I'm sure he would have come up if I hadn't had my gate blocking his way. He got up when he saw me. "WHAT ON EARTH DO YOU WANT???" I whispered loudly (if that's possible). He wagged his tail. I walked toward the back door - he walked right next to me, so I stopped, thinking he'd lead me to the back door. Nope - he stopped with me, and looked up at me. I took a few more steps and stopped. So did he. I went to the back door and opened it, and he went out and laid down in the grass. WHAT???!?!?!?! "YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE TO PEE???? GET BACK IN HERE!!!! You did NOT just wake me up again to HANG OUT!!!" So he came back in and went and sat down in the living room. I marched back up to my room, and ALMOST slammed the door.

But I didn't.

I was fuming. It took me a while before I got back to sleep - then my alarm went off. GREEEAAT.

I heard him do it again when I was getting ready for work this morning. "Woof." Silence. "Woof woof." Silence. Oh man, it's a good thing that dog is cute.

Someone told me today that there was a full moon last night, and that her dog was acting funny because of it - a few others agreed and said their dogs were acting weird too, and thought it must be the moon. Well, I'm telling you, it BETTER be the moon... because if Indy makes a habit of this, I might go postal.

I am NOT too old for Sleepovers!!

When we were younger, my sisters and I used to have sleepovers with our cousin, Emily - as often as we could seeing as she lived in Orem and we lived in Sandy - and they were always SOOO much fun. Even as we got older, we'd still have over-nighters - mostly road trips to St. George, California, and once or twice even to Bear Lake with other cousins and Idaho to visit family we had there. But since Mar and Em have gotten married, the over-nighters have tapered off... those darn husbands, hehehe.

But last weekend, I went and had an old-fashioned sleepover with Em! Jorg was out of town, so we decided to have an over-nighter! It was (almost) just like old times, but this time, there was an extra girl - Baby Rebecca!

We stayed up late and talked, giggled like girls in the morning, wandered around in our PJ's until it was absolutley necessary to get dressed and leave the house, and Em even made breakfast for us! YUM!

Then we played dress-up with Rebecca - Em and her mom bought some cute new clothes for the baby, and we wanted to see what she looked like in her cute new outfits. She looked adorable, of course.

Even Rebecca herself thought she looked cute!

That was fun, Em - thanks for letting me come over! Fun times! :)

Some People Eat the WEIRDEST Things!!

I'm totally obsessed with food. What I CAN eat, what I CAN'T eat, what I SHOULD eat, what I SHOULDN'T eat... and anyone who obsess over food like I do knows that it's what you CAN'T eat and SHOULDN'T eat are always the tastiest.
So I just went into the kitchen to warm up my Lean Cuisine for lunch, and there was a guy in there making HIS lunch - I couldn't see what it was right then, but it smelled funky. Then he picked up his plate and turned around - and his lunch was a pile of plain canned tuna with cottage cheese on top.
I was only sicked out for a minute before I realized that it probably didn't taste that bad! I don't like cottage cheese usually, unless it has something salty with it - like crackers and Lowry's All-Season salt. But tuna? I'm almost tempted to try it! Plus that's one protein-packed meal! And who couldn't use a little more protein in their diet?

Man, now my Lean Cuisine tastes DRAB.

I *heart* Keith

Last week, I went to a Keith Urban concert with my sister Melissa... SO FUN!!! Seats were awesome (thanks, Melissa's friend, for the ticket!), music was good - I don't claim to be some ultra country fan, but I do dig Keith Urban. I gotta give the guy props for going through rehab, and I gotta give Nicole even MORE props for sticking with him. I like the guy! He's got some awesome songs, he interacts well with the crowd (shakes as many hands as he can), he has a certain level of class that few celebrities have, and let's be honest...

He's just hot!!!! :)

The Injustice of Driving: Part II

Disclaimer: Before I tell this story, I would like to point out that 'The Injustice of Driving (part I)' was written LAST year, before I attended the Landmark Forum, and REALLY started to make an effort to control my road rage; so those that know how bad my road rage can get should be proud of me!

Just over two weeks ago (I distinctly remember it being Friday, August 31, because it was the Friday before Labor Day), I was leaving work, relieved that it was Friday AND a holiday weekend - no work on Monday, yay! I had just pulled out of the parking garage and on to State Street, intending to turn right on 500 South and take that particular freeway on ramp. Unfortunately, I'd pulled out behind a bus, which was lining up behind other buses - I didn't want to wait for them, so I made a snap decision to swerve around them quickly and get back into my lane. Of course I checked my mirrors, and all I saw was a Jeep Cherokee in the distance, and I thought it was far enough behind me that I could swerve around the buses and get back into my lane without cutting off the Jeep. No such luck - the driver saw me start to swerve, sped up, and honked her horn at me. So when she sped around me, I held my hands up in an effort to communicate that "Hey, I had to swerve around the buses!" She zoomed around me and cut in front of a few other cars ahead of me. I went through the next light, and saw her pulled off to the right in front of the courthouse, picking up some shady-looking character, and she must have seen me coming in her rear-view mirrors, because when I passed her, her middle finger was plastered to her window, flipping me off. I beeped my horn (BAD idea) just to say "chill out!" as I passed her, and got to the next light - 500 South - where I was waiting to turn right. She comes up right behind me, so close I bet our cars were touching (although I couldn't feel it), and puts her hand on her horn - and LEAVES it there, for the duration of the light! People were staring - I just ignored her. I bet it was a full 60 seconds before I got the chance to turn - and her horn was STILL blaring. So I hurried to the next light - but she zoomed ahead of me, in the lane to the right of me, waiting for me to pull up next to her - she still had her middle finger plastered to the window, and she was looking at me, yelling. So I didn't pull up right next to her - just slightly behind her. When the light turned green, she started to move very slowly, trying to get me to catch up to her, but I moved just as slowly - so she finally zoomed to the next light, and waited for me to get there. SAME thing - finger plastered to the window, screaming. This was NOT a good day to be hitting all the red lights on the way to the freeway. When THAT light finally turned green, I turned left and took another route to the freeway, just to escape her.

Now, at this point, I was shaking - a little from fear, mostly from anger. (Now is the part where you should be proud.) The entire time we're stuck at stop lights, I ignored her - not a smile, not even a glance in her direction (except to notice that her middle finger was still saluting me). I bet that made her even more mad - she wanted me to put up a fight of some sort. But the fact that I ignored her should make you proud - I could have rolled down my window and started screaming at HER and flipping HER off - but I didn't. I was shaking so badly when I finally made it to the freeway, I had to concentrate on breathing. When I had finally calmed down enough to think clearly, my Landmark training kicked in, and I stopped making that lady wrong for what she was doing. I had no idea what her life was like - for all I know, her husband had just left her and the kid she was picking up at the courthouse was HER kid, having just made bail after being in jail for drugs or something - she must have been having a really BAD day. By the time most of the anger had worn off, I was left with fear - I was checking my mirrors every two seconds, positive that she was going to come out of nowhere and plow right into me on the freeway. Even when I finally made it home and parked in the driveway, I was looking for her. When I took my dogs out for a walk, I was STILL looking for her - I expected to see her cruising the streets, looking for me. I was positive I was going to come back and see my car beat to a pulp.

I guess I should work on my paranoia problem now!

Let's catch up a little bit...

Because it's been so long since I've written, I'm going to attempt to catch up on a few events that have taken place over the past year.

January: I attended the Landmark Forum with my brother Mike - what a great experience! It was an intense three-day program that taught me to let go of who I was being in the past, complete relationships that may have been holding me back from being who I have the potential to be, and really get out there and play full-on in the game of life. Yes, I'm still working on that one, hehe.

February: I turned 31 - and that's all I'll say about THAT.

March: The blind-date month. With my new-found, fledgling self-confidence, I must have gone on three or four blind dates - all of whom I really liked, and none of whom I ever heard from again, unfortunately. No worries, no worries. There IS someone out there for me, hehe!

April: I think the blind dates DID carry over to April, but what I remember most about April is - ta da! The appearance of Rebecca Rose Bachmann, daughter of Jorg and Emily Bachmann! (For those new to my blog, Emily is my cousin, and one of my very very very bestest friends EVER! The Bachmann Family:

LOVE them! Isn't Rebecca so pretty??? Look at those dimples... Good work, Em and Jorg! :)

May: Attended another Landmark course - the Advanced Course, to be more specific. Learned even more about myself and how to interact effectively in groups; again, still working on it!

June: 4 Words - Wasatch Back Relay Race. Logan to Park City. Mar and me. 177 miles, 26 hours, no sleep. 'Nuff said.

July: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows comes out, and Mar and I spend a weekend in St. George reading instead of playing. In fact, we went to Wal-Mart at midnight in... Bloomington, was it? I think... to get our copies of the book. Lame? Maybe. In my defense, though, I was sick - I had a nasty cold, so I wouldn't have gone out to play that much anyway. But let's be honest - I just love Harry Potter. Even if I wasn't sick, I'd have read it all weekend!

August: A blur. I can't even tell you what happened in August because I don't really remember. But Eclipse came out - the third book in the 'Twilight' vampire series - and I fell in love with Edward Cullen all over again.

So that's my year so far in a (rather large) nutshell. And we're halfway through September, and it's STILL 90 degrees outside. I thought Autumn was coming... where on earth IS it???

Welcome, Autumn...

First, my apologies for having been away for so long! I will make no excuses - other than laziness. And I should have been writing every week, because this has been a very... interesting, I'll say... year! "The Year of Meloo" as the guys in the mailroom put it. It's definitely been a year of growth - spiritual and mental (and physical, but I'll get to that in another post) and social. So one of my "Emily Friends" as I like to call them (I have two close Emily friends at work) asked me today if I have a blog; if so, why is she not reading it? Funny thing is, this is an Emily I e-mail all day, chat with on gmail, and now keep track of through HER blog - and we sit maybe 30 or so steps away from each other.

I love technology.

I also love Fall, as I've written on this blog before - it's getting time for the weather to cool down, the leaves to change, football season to really get going, the air to smell like chimney smoke (I call that the "Halloween Smell"), the bugs to die, and the turtlenecks to come out of the depths of the closet. It's also FOOD TIME!! Halloween candy, Thanksgiving pies, and Christmas goodies - accompanied by pounds, ounces, inches, and more pounds on my rear, stomach, and thighs.

You know what? I think I'm gonna stop right there before I get depressed. One thing at a time... let's just enjoy the color-changing leaves, to start!