Final Hours of July

Holy moly, I can't believe today is the last day of July! It's amazing how fast the last couple of months have gone... one minute it's the end of May and I'm getting ready to move. The next thing I know it's August! Crazy!

So I think my personal trainer tried to kill me on Thursday. I mean it! I get to the gym and he says "You're advanced... my @$$ hurts, yours is going to hurt too. You're doing the workout I did yesterday." I thought this was said in jest. No, he really had me do his workout. The good news is he found those muscles in my butt that I've been wanting to tone. The bad news is that I did squats and lunges to the point that for the last few days sitting down has been painful. It's really interesting because they're very focused exercises, so you don't have to do a ton of them to get toned up - it's all about doing a few of them but doing them well. I wish I had the money to afford him... 20 sessions = $1000. A little out of my budget...

I discovered a GREAT new store on Saturday. Well, it actually isn't really new, but it's a store I haven't shopped at before - I went to Kohls. Very cool place. They are a department store, and have the cutest clothes and shoes. Brand name. Very good sale prices. I came out of there with a bunch of new shirts and some new tennis shoes for the gym. They're very cool Nike's that are red and white and black. :)

That's pretty much it for my weekend. I relaxed, went shopping and went to a graduation party where I got to see some people I knew in high school. Pretty cool! Hope everyone else had a good one!

Driving

 think I might have road rage. I firmly believe that I should own the road. No one else should be on it because everyone else drives like idiots. Several scenarios led me to believe this today:

1. Don't go slow in the fast lane. Unacceptable. They call it the fast lane for a reason - it's for the people that are at least going the speed limit. 25 in a 40 zone is not going the speed limit.
2. When you are turning out of a parking lot and would like to cross all lanes to go the other direction, please use that little pedal on the right. It's called the accelerator. The whole point is that you can get your car moving. You are probably going to cause an accident if you swing across 4 lanes doing 25 mph while the people coming at you are doing 40. And also, wait until people aren't coming! That way they don't all have to slam on their brakes and honk!
3. If you're an old man, don't stare at me at a stoplight. In fact, I don't care who you are, don't stare at me period! First of all, it's rude to stare. Secondly, if you're an old man, chances are that you aren't going to get a date out of it. I admire your courage and all, but quit it!
4. Finally, a word of advice. We live in the 21st century. Your car is not supposed to blow smoke. Never. Only big rigs get to do that. It's really gross to drive behind you and smell the yuckiness because you're too lazy to fix the car. If there's a black cloud that seems to follow you everywhere, I'm talking to you.

Thank you for listening. Now get off my road.

Bathing Suits

So mom and I went bathing suit shopping yesterday. We were looking for suits that we could wear to the gym when we swim laps - needless to say, the suits I wore for 10 years while competing are a little shot. I learned one very important lesson. After 10 years of competitive swimming, I have no idea what size Speedo I wear. I'm not kidding. I really couldn't figure it out. You see, here's the problem: when you wore a suit in practice, you generally wore more than one and they were both generally two sizes too BIG. You wanted to create "drag" so that when you actually raced you felt light and had less resistance. However, when you wore a racing suit (and you never, EVER wore this to practice) you bought the suit two sizes too SMALL. In the words of the great John (our coach): "You should have to go to the locker room, suck everything in to get the suit on, waddle out to the blocks, dive in, swim, waddle back to the locker room and peel the suit off". They weren't meant for comfort.

All of this leaves me in a very weird place now. I have no idea what size to wear. I don't want to look totally retarded swimming in suits that are huge with the old ladies, but I also don't want to wear my suit "racing small" where you are so smashed in that you have weird bulges. It was a difficult task finding that perfect in between size.

So today I got to take the company jet to Santa Clara. How cool is that?! I just walked right in, got on the plane and was there. So easy. I want to ride it every day!

Eva, thanks for talking with me in the movie forum. Anyone else care to join? :)

Long Weekend

Oh wow, it's been a long four days. Yes, I know that the weekend doesn't last four days, but mom and dad were out of town, so the pup was in my care. He began having "tummy troubles" Thursday during the day while I was at work. I came home to two "puddle/piles". I'm trying to keep it G-rated here... the poor thing thought he was going to be in trouble. How could I ever be mad at him for being sick? Especially with those cute brown eyes gazing at me. So I cleaned up and made him some yummy rice with cottage cheese and chicken. Supposedly that calms down a dog's stomach when they're sick. I don't know about you, but all of that would make me pretty sick. But it was doctor's orders. They also gave him an anti-puddle/pile medication which caused him to barf. I spent the next three days cleaning up various puddles. This morning he woke me up at 5:30, barfed a hairball with some blood flecks in it and then started at me. This prompted the 6am vet visit. Three hours later, one x-ray and one shot later, I was heading home. Thankfully, he seems to be feeling better, just in time for mom and dad's arrival home.

I met with my personal trainer this weekend. Yes, I said personal trainer. No, I haven't gone nuts. I get two free sessions with my membership. It was actually pretty cool. I went in and was immediately complemented ("I would say you definitely don't have any weight to lose - I would just work on maintaining and toning"). Good way to start. I told him that I wanted to work on toning my arms and my tummy, so he took me out and showed me all of these machines to use (the running and swimming really gets the legs done, so I wanted to do some weights for the other stuff). Let me tell you, I DEFINITELY noticed it working. I can never hit just the right muscle that I've wanted to tone up and he found the machine to do it. Plus they have this really cool ab thing and when I go back he's going to show me more. I'm a very satisfied customer. I wasn't looking forward to it, but he made it really nice. I highly recommend that everyone try a personal trainer, even if it's just once or twice to get tips.

That's about it. Dad and Mom brought me back the new Harry Potter book... I'm so excited to read it! Yeah! Don't forget to keep checking out the movie section (and posting) and to listen to the artist/group of the week!

Emergency Vet Visit $89.50

Dog X-ray $180

Bloodwork $175

Being tackled by the dog after all of this - priceless.

Senses

Have you ever stopped to really think about your senses? Sure, you feel hot or taste something yummy, but have you ever thought about it?

For example, I look at the sky and I see blue. You look at the sky and see blue. How do we know that we're seeing the same thing? What if what you're seeing is what I see when I say "red", but you've just always been told that it's blue? Think about it. The grass is green. But is my green the exact same as your green? Maybe what you see and call green is really purple in my eyes.

I promise I'm not drunk. Just feeling philosophical.

The reason I bring this up is because I don't think that people hear music the way I do. I know, sounds a little conceited, but I think I hear music in a way that no one else does. I think certain chords or keys or notes hit me in ways that other people just don't get. I'm not sure if that makes a lot of sense...

Here's a little experiment for you. Call your cell phone, your house, your voicemail and leave a message. While you're doing it, really focus on how your voice sounds. Then listen to the message. Sounds totally different. Same sound, right? Why does it sound different then? Well, science tells us that when you speak your voice sounds different because you hear the reverberations in your head. When you listen to your voice recorded it sounds different because you no longer hear the same reverberations. That has to hold true for all other sounds, right? I mean, we all have differently shaped ears, ear canals, nasal passages, etc. So sound going in is going to be different on each one right?

I'm thoroughly perplexed...

The Gym

Ok, so I joined the gym last week. So far, so good. But the sales guy cracks me up. I get a discount because of where I work, but he still was giving me the hard sell. When I went in to sign up he shook my hand, looked deep into my eyes and said "I hope you see you here a lot". ROFL. Yeah right. I have to give the guy credit, because he is a good salesman, but this was a little overboard. Yesterday, I was running on the treadmill and he came and found me to clear up some issues with the price that we had been discussing. Talk about a bad time to bother someone. Let me tell you one thing, he most definitely works on commission.

I should probably explain my "Proud" mood from yesterday. I got an award at work! I know! I've only been there a little over a month, but on Friday afternoon I was helping someone with an issue and the next thing I know, there's a $10 "kudos" award in my inbox. So cool. That's what makes it a great place to work - people recognize you when you help them out!

Off to another hot day - we've been in the 105 - 108 range for the last week. HOT!

New Feature!

Hi everyone!

We have a new feature - the "Movie Reviews" Forum has replaced the poll. I'll add the poll back in as needed, but I think the movie forum will be much more fun, at least for now. Here's how to use it... please feel free to email me with any questions!

To Read Posts:
1. Click on "Enter My Forum" (from the main blog page).
2. Towards the middle of the page you will see where the messages are posted. The first one should be titled "Swing Kids" (I copied my review from my last post as an example).
3. Click on the title.
4. If you would like to reply to the post (give your feedback, etc) click reply, otherwise click forum to return to the main page.

To Create a Post:
1. Click on "Enter My Forum" (from the main blog page).
2. In the very center you will see a button that says "Post". Click it.
3. Put your name and the subject. DO NOT enter your email address, instant messenger, etc. I do not want that information posted. Type your message (you can use the smilies at the bottom as well) and click "post message" at the bottom. You can also preview it.

I'd like to keep it one thread (a thread is a string of posts related to the same subject) per movie. So if there's already one started about a movie that you'd like to write about, please "reply" instead of starting a new thread.

I'm really excited to debut this... please feel free to email/post your feedback on this!

Water Aerobics

Ok, so Mom and I went to a water aerobics class last night. Keep in mind that I've been a competitive swimmer and water polo player. I've always sort of made fun of water aerobics... as of last night at 7pm, I take back any thing bad that I've ever said about water aerobics. They KICKED MY BUTT. Seriously. Wow. Water is really good resistance and they use these water weights that really work your arms.

Next up, spinning. Eva, have you tried it?

Movie Rating System

As it turns out, I do happen to have a movie rating system!

Now, it's based on several different criteria.

Characters

Key Questions:

1. Do you fall in love with them (or love to hate them)?
2. Are they believable?
3. Do they draw you into the story?
4. Are they hot? (Yes, I know. But sometimes it's just nice to watch Brad Pitt)

Plot

Key Questions:

1. Is it too predictable?
2. Is it too hard to follow?
3. Does it have some sort of great twist?

Music

Key Questions:

1. Does it add to the movie or take away from it?
2. Did James Horner compose it? (Ok, I'm a little biased)
3. Does the music help a key scene in the movie?

Now, we take these elements and rank the movies on the following scale:

• See it in the theaters (value: $10.00)
• Wait for it to come out on DVD and rent it (value: $5.00)
• Wait for a friend to rent it (value: a couple bucks for pizza)
• Wait for it to come out on HBO (free, still relatively close to the time of original release)
• Wait for it to come out on PBS (free, but you see it years after the original release)
• Don't bother (priceless... you don't have to sit through an agonizingly horrible movie)

Allow me to rank a few so that you might understand.

My all time favorite movie is Swing Kids. I would rank this a "See it in the theatres". It has absolutely amazing music that you end up singing long after you've watched the movie. The plot is great - it covers the time period in Nazi Germany when teens rebelled by listening and dancing to "the devil's music". The characters are also great - you learn to love each one and really feel their triumphs and heartaches.

Just a few days ago I saw "Eternal Sunshine on the Spotless Mind". This I would rank a "Wait for it to come out on PBS". I wouldn't have wanted to miss it because it got so much hype. I admit, you kind of feel for the characters, but the plot is so freaking confusing that you spend most of the movie trying to figure out what's happening. Sometimes that's a good thing; in this case, it's not.

So, Eva, to answer your question, I would rate "The Manchurian Candidate" in the "Wait for it to come out on DVD" category. Definitely worth renting and watching. Good plot, cool twist, awesome characters.

And Denzel Washington is not so hard on the eyes. :)

One more disclaimer - sometimes these ratings vary depending on your mood when watching the movie. When ranking I will make sure to let you know if there are any mood barriers.

Eva, I love the idea of a movie section. I'm going to work on that. Give me a few days (maybe the weekend when I have a little more time). Once I have it posted I expect full participation. :)

Hope you all have a great night!

Monday, Monday

Ok, so no one liked the Vanilla Lace post... either that or you're all boycotting since I missed a few posts. Hrumph. Comments people! Comments!

By the way... I'm still looking for that first guest column poster... someone be brave! Doesn't have to be long... it can just be a paragraph or a whole post. Whatever you feel like doing! And don't forget to vote! We have a new poll and a new style of "song of the day". I'm featuring one artist or band per week and introducing you to some of their music.

So I watched the "Manchurian Candidate" tonight. What a cool movie. Makes you wonder what kind of stuff the government really covers up. If you haven't seen it, you should. Hang in there... it's a bit confusing at the beginning, but it's worth the investment.

So today was a nice day. Super busy at work, which I'm loving. Busy is good. My sis came and had lunch with me and got to see the place. And tonight has been nice and relaxing! Baked ziti for dinner (Still LOVE the recipe Eva!) and then a good movie. Now I'm getting sleepy and ready for bed.

Oh, speaking of bed, I've posted a picture below of my new bedding at the request of my lovely ex-roomie Jo. I LOVE it because it's fluffy and comfy! :) Now I'm going to go crawl in and sleep! Good night!

Picture - My New Bedding! 
 

Products I Love - Victoria's Secret Vanilla Lace

No, it's not underwear.

It's one of the best smelling body splashes ever created. They have a zillion different smells, but I love the vanilla lace. It's a very light fragrance, but it doesn't wear off very quickly like other body sprays. They also have the matching lotions, bath bubbles, salt scrubs (I love that one too!), soaps, etc. Fabulous. It also seems to go well with most perfumes because it's sort of a light scent. I wear with the Polo Sport.

I spent the weekend shopping. I spent too much money. I got a really great new bed ensemble... from the Eddie Bauer home store. They're closing so everything was on sale. I've always wanted a down comforter, but I'm deathly allergic to them, so I got the faux down. I absolutely love it! I also discovered a cool new store with Kati today. It's called New York & Company. They're owned by Express, but have much better prices. I got this great little burnt orange sweater that goes over a lacy orange cami. And two pairs of earrings for the price of one. Awesome!

Other than that, this week has been nice and relaxing. Just what I've needed. Work is going well... I absolutely LOVE it there! I'm settling in and finally beginning to take things over. It's very exciting and challenging! Finally!

Have a happy Sunday!