on a date with Ryan.... and an excuse

So......on a whim R and I decided to go see Twilight. He finally finished reading the book last night and I got a movie gift card today at work. Seemed like fate, right? Well.......tobad the gift card isn't to the only theater we could make the showtime for! Lol!! But it will be fun to have a nice night out together.

And now for my excuse for not getting my 12 of 12 posted. It os that typical "mommie syndrome" where you start off doing one thing and kept finding other things that needed to be done and never got the pictures posted! I DID manage to spend an evening downloading over 500 photos from 2 different cameras and burn 2 dvds with the photos that I couldn't get my dvd reader to recognize. Uuugh! Boy THAT was fun! NOT!!

don't faint!

But today is the 12th and I have been taking pictures. I might even get them posted! Lol!!

I am a snob....

atleast when it comes to water. We get bottled water delivered to our office. I don't know why but the company doesn't pay for it. We all chip in 3 or 4 bucks a month for water service.

Well......we have been waterless since Monday. The water dude gave Thanksgiving as an excuse but that was 2 weeks ago at this point. I noticed last night that I was getting ddehydrated so today I broke down and filled my water bottle from the tap. UUUUUGGGHHH!!!!! It tstes like DIRT!!!

So now I am drinking extremely overpriced water from the soda vending machine! At this rate I am going to be a POOR water snob!

nothing but pathetic!!!

thank GOODNESS I didn't do any challenges like "post every day for a year" because I obviously would have lost!

the new job.....and yes, I still call it the "new" job to differentiate it from the "old" job! lol! well.... it is about killing me! on top of that I am trying really hard to get to the gym on a more regular basis. oh, and remember how I said I could mobile blog? the last time I tried it bounced back to me. maybe if I can get THAT working again I COULD blog from the gym...... treadmilling and typing away! I could be skinny AND current all at the same time! lol!

speaking of the gym....I found a great treadmill motivator = JEOPARDY!! I was just about at my distance goal last night when I noticed Jeopardy was on. so I plugged in my headphones to the little tv on my treadmill and stayed moving until the game was over!

so.....despite my blogging drought I actually DID take my photos on the 12th of October AND the 12th of November. I doubt I will post them but know that Oct 12th was busy doing things like waiting for SMUD to give us electricity and Nov 12th was so unmemorable that I can't remember anything to tell you about it. the highlight of that day was getting on the wrong train and luckily figuring it out at the next stop so I could get off and get over to the correct stop to get picked up! and before you think "what a ding dong you are, Susan" let me tell you that I was not the only one! for some reason there were about 5 or 6 of us who did the exact same thing that night!

anyway.................. PEGGY!!! your turn!

a private joke to share.....

I sold my WaMu stock when I left the company. I kept my JPMorgan stock. tee hee hee!

And for those of you who may have seen the post I made and deleted earlier this week..... my grandmother seems to be recuperating nicely. She is in a convalescent home but should be home in about 2 weeks.thanks for your prayers!

Dear Sharon

Takes one to know one!

Wondering....

Since I tend to be kinda technologically slow..... I *think* I just send an e-mail and it gets posted to my blog. If you can read this then I was right! lol!!

Test

okay, seriously. this is a test. I am trying to set up mobile blogger so I can e-mail in posts. maybe you will hear from me a little more often this way. isn't that nice of me?

pants.....

Because it is warm so late into the school year, long pants are never on our back to school shopping list. So today R and I are going ice skating and I made him wear pants. Thankfully he has a pair that fit him around the waist. I guess that means he hasn't gotten WIDER in the past year.
But it does crack me up that the wear mark from his pants being too long last year is showing because his pants are now the right length instead of 4 inches too long!

12 of 12 .....the I can't count edition

yeah, so I THOUGHT I had 12 pictures! uuugh! and uploading I even numbered one of my pictures #12. I just skipped #11! lol!! I even looked for a picture from another day that would have fit in today perfectly (which is cheating) but couldn't find it. that makes me worried. needless to say.....here is my 11 of 12......a cheap imitation of the original! (and if you are clueless at this point about what I am talking about......check out Chad Darnell's blog over there on the right)

the handy dandy odometer on the Santa Fe. YIKES!!! thankfully this is J's Santa Fe and not mine otherwise you would have thought that we spent the month driving around in circles. in fact, MY Santa Fe is gone. traded in. we got a Sonata. we had to keep his Santa Fe though because it has the AWD, 3rd row seating, and tow hitch for Scout expeditions. I miss my sun roof! now I drive J's Santa Fe to the train station and he drives the Sonata round trip to work and R's school and racks up the miles. (you'll see when we get to that shot). my intentions are to still take odometer shots and combine them into the same photo but since I didn't even get 12 this month, I didn't bother!

here is me waiting in traffic metering to get on the freeway. being a Friday it wasn't really that bad. and if you look at the freeway you wonder why they even bothered turning on the metering! but........about 1 mile up everyone is almost at a standstill so don't let this photo fool you! lol!!

we had a big meeting this morning and they said they were feeding us breakfast. that meant I just needed a cup of caffeine (I mean coffee). this is one of two Starbucks by my office, both about the same distance, but this one is a train stop. for the record I had a grande non-fat decaf mocha. I should have kept the caffeine but was so tired I forgot to change my regular order!

Starbucks was packed so by the time I got back out I only had a 2 minute wait for the next train. normally I just walk to the office when I get coffee, but I was feeling lazy. the next stop is across the street from my office. perfect for me to be lazy!

they are putting in a restaurant on the bottom floor of our building. it makes a LOT of noise! but I have loved seeing the open building and ceiling with everything exposed. makes it fun to walk by (more when I am leaving than when I am coming! lol!!)

after work, waiting for the train, I took a picture of my recently pedicured toes. aren't they pretty? and can't you tell that I like to trim them down? I really need to let them grow a bit if I am going to have polish on them.

the train home making the turn. the minute this happens, people start popping up from everywhere to get ready to board. until the train starts to make the turn there are usually about 10 people visible waiting for the train. by the time it gets to us there are usually 30 or so! crazy!!!

had to drive out of my way to get a gas sign this month. everyone was saying earlier in the day that gas prices were zooming up courtesy of Ike. I wish I had noticed the price yesterday and in the morning to compare, but I didn't. we got gas back on the 5th and it was $3.64 at Costco so I don't think prices increased out here. probably went down as AMPM is usually a couple cents higher than Costco. it will probably hit us over the weekend!

J was a sweety and went and picked up my books at the library on his way home. I am going to start reading two new series so I requested all the books in them both from the library. this is what has shown up so far. I am missing the 1st book in one series and the 2nd book in the other so I can't start either one. but it looks like I might be covered for reading material for a few weeks now! lol! I just finished reading Denise Swanson's Scrumble River series and really enjoyed it!

here is the Sonata's odometer. check out all those miles!!! we got her/him the Friday before Labor Day weekend so we have had her/him exactly 2 weeks!

dinner.......was leftover chili and some yummy bread! this is actually me going for seconds! lol!! I should have taken a wider shot so you could see the cool bowls we use. there is a little compartment on the left side that is perfect for holding things like a dip or a piece of bread while the main compartment could hold chips or chili! we get a lot of use out of these!!

so that was it.......after dinner I cruised to Mervyns to try and find some workout stuff. I wasn't about to take photos in the dressing room. then I came home and went through some photos hoping to scrapbook today. which I am going to do now! lol!!

thanks for stopping by......I will try to make October's more exciting!

chivalry in the age of mass transportation....

So tonight I almost missed the train. I probably left the office a tad late and walked a bit slower because these shoes hurt my feet and I was chicken to bring flip flops to wear with my nice business skirt.

Anyway, I wasn't quick enough to get my pass validated and get on the train. It wasn't for lack of trying. I yelled out asking someone to hold the door. A man actually put his bike in the doorway so it couldn't close!! But I fumbled too much trying to get out my ticket and ended up boarding the train unvalidated. The man told me I could hope out at the next stop to get it validated and he would hold the door with his bike again!

And here people think there aren't anymore gentlemen out ther!

just a little courtesy.....

If you go to a baseball game do NOT put your hair into a Pebbles type ponytail!

12 of 12......the man about town edition

or really it should be the WOMAN about town......but whatever!

sorry I haven't been blogging recently. it isn't as though nothing has been happening.......just no time. I really need to get mobile blogging set up! really I do!

and with that........ on with the show!

a little different order to my photos and you will see why at the end! but in general this is a tour of the art pieces and odd/interesting things I see in my day to day life as a downtown worker! this first one is the clock/sign from an old nolongerinbusiness bank. if I get off the train a stop early I get to see it after getting my Starbucks. I didn't think it worked and am still not sure. it was only off by about 10 minutes when I took this photo, but that might have been a coincidence! lol!
because the 2 blocks between that sign and Starbucks can be a little dicey, I instead walk through the downtown mall. it has security, business traffic, and a Jamba for those mornings where I don't want Starbucks but still want something. while waiting to cross the street, I can watch the Hard Rock guitar spin around and around.

supposedly they are going to get rid of this and update this end of the mall. I have heard they are going to replace it with a Time Square kinda rolling marque. I say forget it and keep the guitar! anyway........just past the guitar are the granite guards to the mall.

rather odd looking. this is the female of the pair. I actually like the tiles cascading down the column but have no clue why she is holding a ball, wearing that mask, or even there for that matter! pre-caffeine this is even more confusing.

not to be outdone by the cool statues and such located in our classy downtown area, our building has its own piece of art.

I actually tried to get a photo with a person IN it so you could see how tall and skinny this thing is. it has to be 20 feet tall. blech!

for lunch, I met a scrapping friend, Deb. she only works a couple blocks away so I walked over to meet her. on the way I passed the world's ugliest building. I believe once they actually finish it Guiness will be out to authenticate the title.

yes, that blue stuff is permanent! at first I thought it must be some plastic coating that was protecting something while construction was going on.......but no! and the tan stuff is a mottled fake marble kinda stuff. the darn thing looks like a hospital. a really ugly outdated hospital where people never seem to get better because it is depressing just being there!

but lunch was nice! we met at Il Forniao. not a regular haunt of mine, but it was really nice to have an enjoyable grown-up meal with a friend. (and get a rare photo of us together at the same time)

on the way back to the office, I snapped a photo of a statue that still catches me off guard when I see it.

perfect for a real estate broker's building, don't you think?!?!? it is actually a really neat statue and the detailing is wonderful. I don't know why I am still startled when I see it.

after that I snapped a nice photo of our building. not a super exciting building......but not a contender for world's ugliest either! lol!!

after finishing my day of work, I trot on over to catch Light Rail home. I took a photo of the Capitol, but you have already seen one in a previous 12of12. it looks the same! lol! though maybe I should do monthly shots of it like I used to my office window so we can see the changing seasons?!?! we shall see!

anyway, at the spot where I get off Light Rail (if I don't make a Starbucks or Jamba run) there is this sign. depending on how the lights are running I also pass it on my way to catch Light Rail in the other direction.

that is it! just this marker on the side of the light pole. ta-da! no synagogue, just a sign.

when I got to my Light Rail pick up spot about a week or so after starting to work downtown, I first noticed this building. it is the Stanford Home. I KNEW I wanted to get a picture of it! this is where famed Leland Stanford of the Big Four, former governor, etc used to live. I love the irony of his old house being dwarfed by the huge building behind him. I am sorry about all the street lights and such in the photo but atleast I waited for the vanpool bus to pull away. I was told that there is a state agency that uses the house for their offices!

then I catch the train and start the first leg of my trip home (or would it be the second leg after walking to the train being my first leg?!?!?) anyway, I take the train and on the way home we pass the Sacramento Cathedral. I don't have time to get off the train to take a picture, but can see it through my window twice a day.

sorry for the glare from the strip lighting in the train. guess it gives it all that *real* feeling?!?! anyway, I finish my ride home, walk to my car, and then die of heat stroke.......

yep! it was 70 when I got in the car this morning. and it got up to 109 while driving home. l-o-v-e-l-y!! and while usually one can brush it off with a quip about it being a dry heat........it has been MUGGY here recently! an energy sucking horrible heat! (which is why this didn't get posted last night)

that is my 12of12 for August! thanks for checking me out!

the building that cried "FIRE!"

admittedly it is a new building. and admittedly there is a LOT of construction still going on. but the whole false fire alarm is getting out of hand. to top it off they have decided that it isn't safe for us to wait around and see if they tell us it is a false alarm and have to evacuate just in case. SWELL!!! so today we were halfway down the stairs (from our 8th floor office) when they announced it was a false alarm. does that count as my exercise for the day?!?!?

and in an update from yesterday.......my nose and throat have become a full blown cold. but, I was able to get the lost memory card images back. whew! but sadly, LM is still down. one out of two isn't bad I suppose! lol!

i know things could be worse.....

But honestly that doesn't make it much better!

No LM
I woke up with a runny nose and sore throat.
No LM
I lent a memory card to a lady at Fire Camp. I got it back last night. This morning I went to look at the photos and the card was empty!!! Most of the photos on that card weren't Fire Camp. I am hoping the images are on her computer but she is having computer problems.
No LM
I found out today that one of the baseball games I bought tickets to is at 11:35am on Weds! Who can go to a mid-day game on a Weds?!?!?

But I must remember......things could be worse!

R wants to be a fire fighter......

and this week he has been getting to practice at it:

Fire Camp

check out image 79!!

doing my civic duty today......

I have/had jury duty this week. my county has a 1 day or 1 trial service so most people end up being there a day. today was mine. I was called for the 3rd jury group and was then drawn for the first group of those interviewed for actual service. I ended up at one point being "juror #4." I truly thought I was finally going to get the experience of serving on a jury. I even started to get a tad anxious realizing that I would ultimately have to help decide someone's guilt or innocence. THEN they called up another set of potential jurors and I was excused by the defense. still not sure why but I somehow think it was because I was female. J said it was because I was obviously too smart and no defense wants a smart female. not quite sure but I think that was a compliment! lol! needless to say, I got a long long lunch and hen spent a couple hours back in the jury pool not getting called before I was sent home.......done with service for atleast the next year. (though prior to today I thought it was once every 2 years)

the cool thing was that since I took public transportation, they gave me a replacement pass for the one I used in the morning and one to use to come home. and I ended up catching my regular train home!

12 of 12 July summertime break weekend edition

hello and welcome to this month's edition of 12 of 12! with inspiration from Chad, the idea is to take 12 photos of your day on the 12th of each month.

this past week was a rough one. unhealthy air, long hours at work and taking a horribly torturous notary class and exam, and the fact that J and R were gone to Scout camp left me not sleeping well. so this morning I was thankfully able to sleep in this morning......until.........

Tessa decided to bark at something and woke me up......... but hey! it WAS 3 1/2 more hours of sleep than I had been getting! and a week of exhaustion had resulted in me actually sleeping quite well finally! lol!!

but.....since R was gone I had to feed Stubbs........Princess Stubbs. I couldn't resist trying to snag a few photos. sadly I couldn't get a shot that wasn't ruined by some stuff on the side of the cage. I think it is the vitamin stuff we dust the crickets with before sacrificing them to the Gecko Goddess! lol!! (be thankful I missed the shot of her snagging her prey. has taken me almost an entire year to be able to watch her)

D fed Tessa. too bad this isn't a video so you could see her nosing out the *inferior* nuggets so she could eat her favorites......... those little golden squares. in a few minutes there are pieces strewn around the her food area and all the golden squares are gone.

I did my daily Webkinz and even helped a friend a bit. course, got myself a cheesy price for my own spin...... but she'll be happy to know I got her a Wish Token.

then I took some time to clean the fridge. oh boy oh boy what fun! lol!! it actually looks pretty organized now......and hey, I needed a food shot since I didn't show you my breakfast (that I forgot to eat! lol!) after cleaning the fridge I decided we have WAY too many pickles and mustards! there is half a shelf of pickles and a door shelf full of mustard. insane! totally insane!

after my cleaning I finished up work on a recipe swap I am doing. these were a whole lot more work than I expected them to be......but I think they came out cute!

yeah! finally J and R got home from camp. be darn thankful that this is not Smell-O-Vision because they STUNK!!! they were freakin' STINKY!!!!

so after they were showered, we headed out to Weiner Works for dinner. here D is posing at our table while we wait for our food. as you can see, the walls are covered with photos and writing, etc. you can see some of it on the side.

FOOD!!!!! these guys make the BESTEST french fries!! this is a large order.....just ONE large order! lol!! we rarely finish them....though this particular order seems a bit larger than the normal large! and you can't believe how wonderful those hot dogs are!

since I had taken the two photos here with my cell phone, R wanted to try and take one......so I got a good smoochie phone of me and dh! much better kissing him now than before his shower! lol!

the traditional odometer shot. my mileage is going back down now that I am not doing carpool in the morning. even better than before I think since I don't have my car at lunch I don't use up gas running errands. and hey, Light Rail is $4 a day......less than 1 tank of gas!

as for the temperature........ the high was only 91 degrees today. earlier this week it was over 110! so much for drama. not that I LIKE blazing hot weather, but it would have been a lot more exciting to post a photo of it being that hot instead of a boring 91! lol!!

ah shoot! I didn't even think about changing the orientation of this next photo. another one I took from my phone. and maybe now is where I should mention that our desktop is having a Zone Alarm problem and I can't get on the internet with it. so I am doing all this on the laptop.....with no photo program.

anyway........don't be too fooled by this photo. prices have been dropping the past week or so. this is the lowest I have seen....probably the lowest in all of Sacramento. I was excited to pay $4.25 a gallon earlier this week courtesy of my 10 cents off at Safeway.

Dairy Queen has Thin Mint blizzards. we had them tonight for dessert. we deserved them, right? another sideways one...... sorry!

anyway......that was my day. I think I actually had 13 photos.....but between using the camera phone and e-mailing them to myself and rigging up the camera to the laptop to try and use, I was thankful to have any!

don't drink the water and don't breathe the air.....

that was a song that I remember from my childhood. yeah, my parents were odd. we listened to a radio show called Dr. Demento that played a bunch of funny songs. Weird Al got his start there too I am willing to bet.

anyway........Northern California is basically getting smoked out! seriously.....I am beginning to feel like a smoked sausage......or a 76 year old chain smoker. about 2 1/2 minutes after walking out the door my throat is insanely sore. and I have spent the past 3 days with an intense migraine. I am sure the 110+ heat hasn't helped either!

but what brought this up really was seeing a few people wearing masks recently. they are just wearing the more basic masks like painters wear.....or dh wears while mowing the lawn. they tell us that we are ruining the air and water......but the smoke has been SOOO much worse than the pollution has been. does that mean we are getting better about emissions or that Mother Nature wants to beat us to the punch?!?!?

guess that was really all I had to say......

blogging from the baseball game

Right now the River Cats are winning 4 - 1. 7th inning for those following along at home. Honestly not a very exciting game and it is SOOOOO darn hot out here. We are used to evening games where everyone has some shade. The first inning hadn't even ended when I noticed that my thighs were getting pink. Needless to say I made a note to bring sunscreen for the other day games. And to think, I had considered bringing a light jacket! lol!
This weekend has been nice. I am still not used to working so much. Amazing how quickly I got used to not working. But yesterday I got 3 layouts done. They are for LM.....well, 2 are. the third turned out horrible and I don't plan on sharing it. Too bad because there is some cute ribbon on it.
In addition to that, I made it to the gym 3 time (4 days in a row thankyouverymuch), we finally got J's tow hitch installed (kinda), and lmost bought a new car. Yep.......we have been talking about trading in my beloved Santa Fe for something more fuel efficient. Our salesman at Hyundai offered us a sweet deal on an Elantra. So sounds like it might happen.
Back to the game......Robnett just hit a double and sent in 2 runners......and while I typed the next guy brought in 2 more. The score is 8 - 1 3ivercats over the Tuscon Sidewinders.

saving the world......one post-it note at a time!

so I got a Blackberry last week. I was tired of carrying around a cell phone, planner, and iPod and decided I needed to get something that was more portable for my daily commute on the train and getting internet access and e-mail was just the icing on the cake......until now.

tonight I found THE reason justifying my purchase: lists.

no post-it notes gave their lives in the creation of a shopping list today. usually I would have made one at home on a post-it note, put it inside my wallet and gone to work. mid-day I would start thinking of things to add and grab another post-it to continue my list. by the time I actually GET to the store I have usually used up 3 post-its. but not today. this time I was able to get my entire list in the notes section of my calendar. (I couldn't do that with my old cell phone....the notes section was rather limited for character spacing)

and even if I don't make a calendar entry I can still make a list of things....whatever things.....lists of lists if I want......and no post-it notes will give their lives!

p.s. congrats to Fresno State for some seriously awesome baseball! it was a total pleasure watching you beat Georgia! Steve Detwiler.......you are my hero (and darn cute too! lol!)

12 of 12 - the HELP edition!

so I guess I kinda failed this month. I didn't get 12 pictures. but really I failed because the 12th wasn't anything close to a regular day so the whole "random photos on a random day" thing went out the window......or down the elevator shaft........so to speak. that and as a scrapbooker, I didn't want to minimize the event that brought about the one photo I did take. somehow afterwards picture taking wasn't really important.....


this is a photo of the call button on elevator #4 at my office. this is me really trying to remain calm and get a decent photo.......while I was stuck in the elevator for 15 minutes. it wasn't that long of a period of time.....but I was alone......and a little claustrophobic. I started off thinking it was a little funny when I was just stuck there thinking I was at the 8th floor but couldn't get the elevator to open. but when the guy at the other end of that help button said "I'll send someone out" and "push the alarm button every once in awhile so the building knows you are in the elevator" I got a little worried. then when the elevator went to the 25th floor and started bouncing around a bit I got more worried. then when the elevator dropped down to the 22nd and then 21st floor I was as close to freaking out as I could be. funny how something like not-waterproof mascara can keep a person from crying.

luckily........at the 21st floor when I laid on the alarm button, some guy walked by and opened the elevator door. he was so casual about it and I can't figure out how I managed to stand up and walk out of the elevator.

needless to say.....I walked 13 floors down the stairs to get back to my office.

I promise to do better next month.

bookend birthdays.....

things have been crazy around here. trying to get in the swing of the new job has taken quite a toll on my free time. dh is working on taking over making dinners and R is helping out a bit more around the house. thankfully summer is almost upon us and that means that atleast I won't have to do the morning carpool before catching Light Rail to work.

today, being June 2nd is the calm in the eye of the storm. R's birthday was yesterday and D's birthday is tomorrow. we celebrated this year with a miserable day at Great America. it was cold and windy and the boys lasted about 5 hours before wanting to head home. on top of that lunch almost killed us all it was so gross. if anything might push me to becoming a vegetarian......it was that hamburger! all in all we spent more time driving back and forth than we did at the park.

yesterday we went to Melting Pot for the next part of the ongoing party train. we joined a grown up couple for a lovely dinner. thankfully no hamburger there and the food is always superb!!

today was our day to rest from stuffing ourselves and tomorrow we will be off to Red Robin for the last of our great birthday parties. seems silly but Red Robin is our traditional place of celebration. we go every year on Gotcha Day and for birthdays.

D turns 10 this year. it isn't as shocking as when R turned 10. I wonder if that has anything to do with being the second child or because he hasn't actually been with us for all those years? not really sure other than it is still strange to think that he is 10.......

so anyway........hopefully I will be back up to speed and blogging AND scrapping more. I sure hope so!

12 of 12....... the EMPLOYED edition! lol!!

so today was my 4th day at my NEW JOB!!!! I am really enjoying it though I feel a bit scattered right now. it is weird knowing so much and yet so little all at the same time. but......more about that as we go along...... and for those of you who haven't been following along at home.......Chad Darnell started all this craziness!
as is tradition, there is my odometer shot. 1,400 miles in the past month. probably has a little to do with that trip to Reno to see the Gin Blossoms?!?! and maybe that trip to the Jelly Belly factory with Stanley?!?! and maybe all those trips to Periwinkles in Folsom for Webkinz Extravaganza?!?!?! and the several trips downtown for interviews?!?! and well.....you get the point! I will be interested to see what it looks like next month after I am taking Light Rail everyday.......and the boys being out of school.
here is my train stop. exciting, isn't it?!?! today I had time to take this picture because I missed the train. why did I miss the train? well......because I missed one light on my morning carpool taking the boys to school and......
because I have to buy a train ticket every morning. I can actually buy a monthly pass but it is more expensive then buying a ticket every day. crazy, isn't it? I might still buy one just for the convenience. I am SOOOOO not good at walking around with a bunch of $1 in my purse to pay for train fare. luckily, though, I can get transportation expenses withheld from my pay pre-tax! so unlike filling up my tank, I CAN get a little break on my train costs!
me.......on the train......in my business suit........we normally don't get this dressed up but we were having out of town company visitors. the jacket actually came off when I got to the office and never went back on. nice fish-eye kinda picture......but atleast I only have one chin! lol!
staples of my train trips.......my iPod and a book. this is the second in the Dexter series. I think I like the books better than the tv show.....no surprise there I suppose. this morning's music was shuffle.....I believe I got some Yaz, Collective Soul, and Bonnie Raitt. our building.........our nice big ol' new building. course, they are still doing lots of construction on it. in fact, several people opted for an early lunch when what sounded like a jackhammer started going off. though considering how high up we are I am pretty darn sure it wasn't a jackhammer! on my way in to the building this morning, a fellow train rider stopped to take a picture (that I might take in a coming month) and I ended up talking to him as we crossed the street. couldn't help but ask him if he was doing 12 of 12! lol!! (he wasn't .......bummer!)this job feels like a seriously official job. why? because I have TWO badges! not just 1 but TWO!!! one is for the company and one is for the building. sheesh! at my last job we had a code for the building but never ever actually used it. in fact, I think I still have it somewhere! lol!
this is my cubicle. envious, aren't you?? actually.......as cubbies go it isn't too bad. the walls are high enough to offer privacy yet you are close enough to people to be able to get answers without spending all day walking around in circles. good thing when you are the new girl! I am slowly bringing stuff in to personalize my space more. the whole train thing is limiting in that way! oh....and you might be able to see my lunch of a pannini sandwich and some triscuits. tres exciting! lol!
this is the view out my window. technically not MY window......but the window of the cubby next to mine.......or at the end of my walkway. I am close enough to the window that I can get the sun coming in without the glare. and.....with a quick couple steps I can see outside. today I watched a plastic bag get blown up the side of the building from the crazy winds we were having. but......they kept it nice and cool. I hear we are breaking 100 by the end of the week! YIKES!
Light Rail drops me off literally across the street from my office (sweet!) but to catch the train back home I have to walk a whole humonguous block! and this is what I walk towards (though more even keel than this photo might suggest). crazy that I work so close to the capital! that is something I never ever imagined I would be doing.
on the way home I exited the freeway one exit early so I could drive by a gas station. this is one of the cheapest places in the area......and is still 14 cents more expensive than this time last month. so......even if my $4 in train fees is only break even with the 1 gallon of gas I might be saving.......I am also saving a minimum of $7 a day in parking. I think I deserve a nice treat for saving so much money, don't you? lol!!
and what 12 of 12 would be complete without a fully devoted food shot?
like I mentioned before, one of the biggest changes with this new job is dinner. Mondays are still easy since we generally have pizza, but J and R are going to be doing more of the cooking. R was in charge of cooking the pizza tonight. looks good! tasted even better.

and with my days starting at 5am now.....I am exhausted and off to bed.
thanks for joining me this month!

think of 2008 as the year of opportunity....

I have a layout in mind showing the front door of my previous employer. I am going to use the quote "when God closes a door he opens a window" and talk about my old job and how hard it was to deal with the office closing and everyone being laid off. I figure I can have an accompanying page titled something like "hello window" about my fortune in finding a good job so quickly. (not really QUICKLY but in a whole lot less time that I thought it would take)

add to that the timing made it so I was able to take the boys up to see my mom, nana, and stepdad during Spring Break.

add to that my being able to go see the Gin Blossoms in concert in Reno.

add to that the fact that next week I will start getting paychecks from the new job and will still be receiving a little severance from the old job. we have plans to use that money to pay down some debt and trade a gas guzzler for a nice hybrid so that we can start saving more money.

add to that the fact that now I am taking public transportation to work. it is definately an interesting experience but I am saving a couple $$ every day and helping make less pollution. my new employer will also let me do pre-tax withholding for my transportation expenses.....so I will be making less taxes for myself at the same time! lol!

add to that the fact that J's employer has started a nifty new health plan. they will pay our gym membership as long as we go 3 times a week. sounds pretty simple except that I am getting home a lot later with my new job than with my old job. but I figure if I go Sat and Sun and 1 night during the week it will be a lot better than I am doing now. the company they have partnered with is putting in a new club about 1 mile from our house. no excuses!!! I just hope they have a yoga class on Weds at 7pm. life would be pretty darn close to perfect then!

oh yes.....and about that gym......from what I can see from their website, R will be able to use the facilities too. most places say they have to be 13, but it looks like this place goes down to 12. which is good because R really needs to work on some physical fitness!

so......while things looked rather bleak....it seems that 2008 might be a darn good year afterall! now if I can just get back into scrapbooking! lol!

you know you have been married a long time.....

when the places you went to frequently while you were just dating are all gone!

today is J and my 15th anniversary! insane, isn't it? we must have married when we were 13! lol!! but seriously.......we aren't big celebrators but wanted to go out to a kid-free evening at a nicer restaurant. so we started brainstorming.....

our first date was at a nice Italian/American restaurant in Old Town. we knew that night there was something special going on.......we both wanted the garlic bread! lol! it went under many years ago. in fact, we went to its replacement restaurant for our 9th anniversary. it just wasn't the same without the garlic bread.

the next place that would have been appropriate was what I would call a supper club. the place was run similar to the restaurant at a golf/tennis club. a regular meal, some scheduled specials, etc. but they also had a club meal. we joined and would get discounted meals, or meal credits, or something. I can't remember........J paid. anyway, it was special to us because we were regulars.......and because we set the place on fire......literally!! probably our 3rd or 4th time there we were eating bread and chatting and didn't notice that the bread napkin had flipped over the lit candle on the table. it wasn't until a couple across the room yelled at us did we notice! lol!! luckily, no bread was lost. that place, oddly enough and unrelated to us, burned down and a Starbucks currently resides on the spot.

but that still left a wonderful place, near and dear to our hearts. see.....when we were first dating, I worked retail and frequently got off work at 9:30. we had to find a place that served dinner later than most places. Brother Olivers was that place. I can't say the food was amazing or anything but there were always a few things that appealed to us. that and it was a nice relaxing environment to talk and enjoy being together. so Tuesday I reminded myself to call and make a reservation. at 9:45 we never needed one before, but this time around we would be going during a more normal hour. yep! you guessed it.........closed! closed about a month ago. closed and they are going to tear it down and build a Beverages & More. I really should go take a picture of the building to scrapbook before it is gone.

boy do I feel old.........old and married! lol!

12 of 12 - the Stanley edition!

Stanley (Flat Stanley that is) has arrived for a visit! so in honor of his visit this will be HIS 12of12! lol!! as a reminder, 12of12 is Chad Darnell's creation....... you can learn more about it (and perhaps join us next month) here.

woke up a little after 7am. did a little bit of snuggling with Tessa. she is such a good doggie!

for breakfast we had Strawberry Frosted Mini Wheats. Mommie B says these are her favorite. I liked them......tasted a little too much like cardboard to eat every day but they were okay.
check out Mommie B's odometer! now that she isn't working she isn't putting as many miles on her car. just over 1,000 this past month she said! at look at the temperature! it is only 9am. wonder how hot it is going to get out here?

We had to drive Big Bro B and his friend to a Scout camp this morning. because of all the bikes and stuff we borrowed a truck from the friend's mom. BRIGHT RED! HOW COOL!! I took some time to check it all out while the boys loaded the back.

dropped off Big Bro B and his friend. not really sure how they are going to get all their stuff where they need to. and it isn't like I can be of much help! lol! they told me I couldn't stay this time, but maybe next time. I sure hope so! this place looks FUN!
before heading home, we stopped by the District Pinewood Derby. these were the fastest cars in from each of the Packs from the District. my favorite is the black one with the StormTrooper driving! because I am not a Scout, they decided I should wear a Tiger Cub shirt so that everyone knew who I was! Thanks guys!
after our busy morning it was lunch time. Mommie B thought I might be a tad homesick so she made Lil Bro B and I an egg salad sandwich. YUMMY!!

you know when people talk about how hot it has gotten.....in the shade??? well here I am in the shade and it is 85 degrees! a few minutes later we went to go get gas and the car said it was 90! needless to say Mommie B got me some sunglasses so I can be cool.

the price of gas is crazy! here I thought it was expensive to send me USPS! Mommie B said that last month it was $3.44 a gallon.
when Daddy B and Big Bro B are at camp, Mommie B said one of the things she loves to do is get the seafood special from a local Chinese place. sweet & sour pineapple shrimp, crab cream cheese won tons, etc. YUM! normally she gets won ton soup with it, but she said it was too warm today. so instead she had to add on an appetizer sampler so they would deliver. look at all this food! Mommie B said that this will feed her for 2 dinners and a lunch.......even with sharing with me! lol! guess what my fortune said: "A cheerful letter or message is on its way to you." wonder if I am actually that cheerful letter or message and I got Mommie B's fortune by mistake?

the second part of Mommie B's evening routine when Daddy B and Big Bro B are gone is to watch chick flicks. I was trying to be a good house guest so I watched "The Devil Wears Prada" with her. it wasn't that bad.......not as mushy-girlie as "The Memory Keeper's Daughter" that we watched on tv afterwards. Mommie B even cried a bit at the end. blech!
after that it was bed time. I was already half asleep from that last boring movie so it was good to get tucked in bed. couldn't believe it was after 11pm! YAWN!!!!
what a busy day I had! I am really having a good time with the B family. thanks for stopping by.