2007 Reflections

I did this last year and it was fun to take a little look back, so I'm doing it again...

What did you do in 2007 that you’ve never done before? Took a huge risk (it didn't pay off), run a marathon

Did you keep your New Years’ resolutions and will you make more for next year? I don't make New Years' resolutions

Did anyone close to you give birth? my sister in law

Did anyone close to you die? no

What countries did you visit? Does the South count? Only kidding, no countries visited. Maybe if I got myself a passport....

What would you like to have in 2008 that you lacked in 2007? a toned stomach

What date from 2007 will remain etched in your memory and why? There are a few, February 14: a very bad day; April 2: The day my brother convinced me to put my name in the lottery for the St. George marathon. Changed my life; and of course, October 6: the marathon

What was your biggest achievement of the year? training for and completing a 10 mile race, which lead to running the marathon

What was your biggest failure? relationships...

Did you suffer illness or injury? yup...tendonitis...lots and lots of tendonitis

What was the best thing you bought? SportShield

Where did most of your money go? SportShield, ice packs and clif shot bloks

What did you get really, really, really excited about? It doesn't take much for me to get really, really, really excited, but if I have to pick one thing I'd say finishing the marathon.

Happier or sadder? happier, then sadder, then happier again

Thinner or fatter? about the same

Richer or poorer? richer

What do you wish you’d done more of? stretching

What do you wish you’d done less of? lying in my warm bed watching TV and surfing the internet

How did you spend Christmas? In Utah

Did you fall in love in 2007? Yeah

What was your favorite TV show? The Office, Pushing Daisies, So You Think You Can Dance

What was the best book you read? I can't think of one...

What was your greatest musical discovery of 2007? Modeselektor, Benassi Bros, Blaqk Audio

What did you want and get? Pete

What did you want and not get? a future with Pete

What was your favorite film this year? No Country for Old Men

What did you do on your birthday? Ate LOTS of food, spent time with good friends.

What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? I'm drawing a blank
How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2007? Fun. Long shirts or shirt dresses over jeans with skull vans or flipflops.

What kept you sane? My favorite people

Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? None

What political issue stirred you the most? I don't really get stirred by politics

Who did you miss? Everyone back in Utah

Who was the best new person you met? There were a TON of best new people I met this year. It's impossible to narrow it down to just one...

Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2007. Never run without SportShield

Humiliation

I don't really want to post this, but the masses (well maybe one or two of you) like my video feature, so I will swallow my pride and show it. You're welcome and be nice...

Random pics...Christmas edition

Time once again for random cell phone pics, *Christmas Vacation* edition. Although, the more I think about it, the more I think they're not very random...I'm in all but one of them this time. No plastic eggs or anything...

You can't tell from the picture, but I'm folded like an accordian on an uncomfortable airport chair. This was taken at approx 4:00 am, having had 30 short minutes of sleep the night before.

Dogpile!! I never did get that nap...

He STILL likes to snuggle. Yay!!

He's also still a goofball.

Me and Jake's eye

She's faking

Me and my Mii. Pretty good huh? All I'm missing is the red lipstick. Oh, and my eyes aren't green (although I wish they were, does that count??) And my hair is a lot shorter. Ok...so it doesn't look like me at all...

missing

I had a really great Christmas at home. Spent some good qt with the fam, met up with old friends and even a new one, opened a lot of presents, ate a lot of food, and got a sore shoulder from playing too much baseball on Wii.

Speaking of those presents, they're currently MIA. I was waiting....and waiting...and waiting...for my luggage to appear on the turnstile and of course my little teeny suitcase (with nothing it it but shoes and Xocolates) was the only thing I could find. If I knew this morning that I would be up at 3:40 am the following evening (morning?) waiting and waiting for my missing luggage to be delivered, I probably would have claimed the Jamaican Rum, which kept passing by me as I waited for my own suitcase, as my own to help get me through this mess. (Only kidding mom)

Of course, it would be my "heavy" suitcase, the one carrying all of my presents, my Christmas cash, my cool Mark Elliot artwork I was going to try to matte, and pretty much every item of clothing I wear on a daily basis, that decided to take an extended vacation in Atlanta. No problem, I was told by the baggage lady, there are a million flights between BWI and ATL. My stuff should be on the next flight, arriving at 10:45 AM and they would deliver it to my home. In exchange for my address, I got a case number and a promise that i would get my bag within the day. When I hadn't heard a word by 9:45 pm (the delivery guy is supposed to call you 15 minutes before they come to your house) I checked my case number online, only to discover my address was recorded incorrectly. I called the 800 number, talked with a nice agent, who relayed the correct information to the company responsible for delivering my stuff. At 11:00 pm I received a call from that company confirming my correct address. I assumed this meant they were minutes from my home and I was getting excited at the prospect of finally being able to put on "the softest robe ever made" I received for Christmas.

Well, it is now 4:00 am and there is still no suitcase. They still have a window of 2 hours, but I'm kind of doubting it will get here, especially considering the website says no deliveries to residences after 10:00 pm. Of course I can't sleep though, and of course the 800 number has been busy for the last hour and the delivery company that called me to confirm my address isn't picking up. Normally I wouldn't be too concerned, as they do still have two hours, but I'm afraid it's now sitting on some random persons porch and being raided by raccoons or a person with no conscience/soul or something. I want my stuff!!!

*Update* Guess what was waiting just outside my door this morning? It's a post Christmas miracle!! I can't wait to brush my teeth (gross, I know).

And I thought 80 cards would be too many...

Merry Christmas everybody!

Ugh

Whoa, what a workout my heart had today, and not because it is coated in all of the crap I've eaten the last few days. I couldn't find the marathon machine, so I grabbed my old shuffle in hopes that it still had enough charge left from the last time I used it, oh 10 months ago. Luckily it did, so I was off on my run today. My run quickly became a walk (I'm justifying it as "cross training") and just as quickly became a flashback in time. The shuffle was filled with music back in February so it's half the coolest mix I've ever received (The Return of the Anti-Cellulite, mixed by the lovely Rachel) and half knife to my heart, thanks to all of the songs that Pete (my ex-whateveryouwanttocallhim) and I exchanged with each other. Let's get one thing straight, I've moved on; I've accepted the fact that he will never be the person I spend the rest of my life with, but let's be honest, sometimes drudging up old memories hurts. Especially when you listen to the lyrics of the songs you shared and realize that they basically foreshadow the demise of your relationship and the difficulty you will have getting over it. Ugh!

If there was nothing that I could say
Turned your back and you just walked away
Leaves me numb inside I think of you
Together is all I knew

We moved too fast but I had no sign
I would try to turn the hands of time
Then look to you for the reason why
The love we had passed me by

And as the sun would set you would rise
Fall from the sky into paradise
Is there no light in your heart for me?
You've closed your eyes, you no longer see

There were no lies between me and you
You said nothing of what you knew
But there was still something in your eyes
Left me helpless and paralyzed

You could give a million reasons,
change the world and change the times,
Could not give me the secrets of your heart
and of your mind
In the darkness that surrounds me now
there is no peace of mind
Your careless words undo me,
leave the thought of us behind

-No Ordinary Morning, Chicane

Well, at least I had some good angry songs to help get me out of that funk. The Peaches song is always a good one to listen to in this frame of mind, as is Chop Suey! In fact, that was the perfect way to end my workout as I have a teeny crush on Serj Tankian. I find his voice rather mesmerizing (uh, when he's not screaming I mean)....

The playlist:
1. Finished Symphony - Hybrid
2. Technologic - Daft Punk
3. No Ordinary Morning - Chicane
4. Andromeda - Chicane
5. &*%@ the Pain Away - Peaches
6. Wind It Up - Gwen Stefani
7. B.O.B. - Outkast
8. Your Honor - Regina Spektor
9. Moan - Trentemoller
10. Saltwater - Chicane
11. Halcyon - Chicane
12. Chop Suey! - System of a Down

I'm cleaning out my phone again...

Well my friends, it's time for another edition of "Random Cell Phone Pics"

Ooh...a meerkat!

Santa really does exist, and when he's not delivering presents to good girls and boys he's admiring fine art.

That's an egg in my water...our chef put it there...

My new haircut, right after it was done. Notice how shiny (greasy) it is. I think she used so much hair junk to hide the fact that she gave me a buzz cut.

This picture wasn't taken in February, but in December...what is this world coming to?!

I took this picture of the cool bug on my window, but the picture makes it look more like a plane...

In case there was any question I had freckles...

Me taking a picture of Darrin taking his picture

I've never seen a cuter elementary school Indian.

I took a picture of these ads in New York so I would remember to look it up when I got home. I totally forgot about them until today...My cell phone is turning out not to be a good way to remember things...

Training, week 1

So I found out I got into the Canyonlands half on Monday, which was actually pretty perfect because the marathon training program I follow started this week too. I have mentioned before that traffic is ridiculous over the holidays so I get to go sweat it out at the gym. I have decided that I prefer running outside, even in the freezing cold. I'd much rather be a titch cold than be overheating at the gym. I don't know why they keep that place so warm. It totally bugs. So, because of that I can't wait until after the holidays for the traffic to die down so I can go home to run around my block. I guess the one good thing about working out at the gym is you can do some good quality people watching. The cutest older gentleman grabbed a treadmill close to me, he was probably in his 70's and he had on warmup pants and a white polo shirt underneath an argyle sweater vest. He made me smile.

One mistake I made with my marathon training was not doing any cross training, so this time around I'm following my program to a "T" (well except the strength training, I'm kind of a wuss...). I figure this way my odds of repeating my stupid knee and foot injuries will be decreased. So I'll be getting in lots of biking and even some swimming if I'm feeling brave...

You're going to be sick of it I'm sure, but I'm going to continue my playlist tradition...

Tuesday's 3 mile run
1. The Dark Side of the Sun - Modeselektor
2. Break My Fall - Tiesto feat BT
3. When You're Falling - Afro Celt Sound System
4. Audio Crash Yourself - Abstrackt Keal Agram vs. Eminem
5. Outta Control - 50 Cent
6. Less Talk More Rokk - Freezepop
7. Look at My Celebrity - Villeneuve feat M83 vs. Twister
8. Traveller - Lidstroem & Taste

Wednesday's 1 mile run, 6 mile bike
1. Waiting for the 7:18 - Bloc Party
2. &*%$ the Pain Away - Peaches
3. Bus to Beelzebub - Soul Coughing
4. I Want It That Way - Backstreet Boys
5. No One On Earth - Above & Beyond
6. Cish Cash - Basement Jaxx
7. Dark Side of the Frog - Modeselektor
8. Bitter for Sweet - Blaqk Audio

ACCEPTED IN LOTTERY!

I got this email today:

Congratulations!

This e-mail serves as your confirmation that you, and your entire group, were selected into the Canyonlands Half Marathon and 5 Mile Run on March 8, 2008. It is very important that you check the following information, which shows the race in which you are entered, age on race day, gender, race shirt size, address and spelling of your name. If there is an error, contact us immediately by emailing us at rrr@citlink.net (please do not hit reply to this email).

You can also find a results search for the lottery selection and other information on the website at:
http://www.moabhalfmarathon.org/halfm/halfm.html

Please remember there are NO REFUNDS and NO TRANSFERS.

You will also be mailed a confirmation card in January. You must bring this card and photo ID to the packet expo Friday, March 7 from 1-9 PM or Saturday morning, March 8 from 6-7 AM, located at the Grand Center.

WOOHOO!!!

P.S. I should probably confirm they have the right gender on my registration, considering I was referred to as a he and called Mister on two seperate occasions this weekend. A little blow to my rock star persona, but I'll get over it.

The envy of pre-teens everywhere

Santa came early this year; check it out...

Just what I've always wanted!! Thanks Santa!!!

Friday fragments

-I put my name into the lottery for the Canyonlands Half Marathon which takes place on March 8 in Moab, Utah. Just looking at the few pics on the home page make me swoon...red rock as far as the eye can see! I hope I get in, I'll find out on the 19th. This would be the third (well second because this comes before the Cherry Blossom) race I run with Chloe. I just love that girl.


-Santa came to Lemon Rd tonight...

It's one of my favorite nights of the year. My roommates and I were jumping up and down with excitement, just like the little 5 year old down the street (well maybe a little more exuberantly)...

-I got a long overdue brow wax at lunch today. This was the FIRST TIME the esthetician didn't ask me if I also wanted a lip wax. It was very refreshing. Oh...and she spent the whole time swooning over my hair. I don't know if it was just to get a good tip or if she really liked it, but I appreciated it (and I gave her a good tip).

-It's Friday night date night!

I'm putting on my party shoes and treating myself to a movie (sound familiar?). This time I'm doubling with my friends Nick and Lara to see I am Legend. I'm kinda over Will Smith, but the movie looks like it could be entertaining.

-Tomorrow night is my company party. My co-workers have persuaded (er...guilted) me into going. It's a fancy schmancy dinner and dancing and boozing. Should be good times. I'll be wearing the little black dress I bought for my hs reunion. I'm secretly excited to be able to wear it again. It's to die for. Now I just need to find a dry cleaner to turn it from the ball it's been wadded up in for the last three months into the sexy little number that it is destined to be.

-I was right about my haircut. I can TOTALLY rock it. I like it more and more every single day. I like to think that all of the people staring at me are doing so because they have never seen anyone look so freaking good with a buzz cut.

Drowning

I went swimming this morning and I STILL feel like I'm drowning. This triathlon training is going to be much more difficult than I imagined!

meat loving cooks needed

Each year, we get a rather generous holiday gift from work. This year we got a surf and turf feast, which includes 4 top sirloins, 2 lbs of king crab legs and 1.5 lbs of shrimp. Sounds delicious huh?! That's not all...over the summer I received a BBQ Bonanza package with 4 steaks, 8 chicken breasts, 8 hamburger patties and 8 hotdogs that are just hanging out in my cousins freezer waiting to be consumed.

As you know, my cooking skills leave much to be desired, which is why I haven't even touched all of this heavenly goodness. So I have decided a little bartering/trade is in order...I will provide the meat if someone else will cook it. Any takers?? There are a LOT of *free* meals to be had here!! And hi, an opportunity to spend time with lil ole me? Priceless!!

For mom:

As requested, my christmas list:

Subscription to Time or Newsweek

A cute, snug fitting knit beanie with some sort of feminine embellishment (like this):

This dress (but only if it's cute on):

This shirt in Cinnamon

This cami in White

US History for Dummies or Don't Know Much About History...

That book about art you told me about

The Art of War

No Country for Old Men - Cormac McCarthy

A box of chocolates from Xocolate (preferably milk, and no fruit varieties, except coconut)

But if none of these work for you, this packs easily:

I'm in!!

I don't know why I am sooo much more excited about getting into the Cherry Blossom 10 miler than I was to get into the St. George marathon, but I am. Oh, wait, maybe because signing up for a marathon after running for only 4 months was pretty ambitious and more than just a little scary.

So come April 6, I will be running once again the race that created a monster. This is one of the most beautiful races ever, and with the new route which starts at the Washington Monument, it can only be even more picturesque than the last.

Even better news is the fact that I will be running with my favorite running partner, Chloe!! I can't wait!!!

GI Jane

This was me on Saturday:

And today; one pair of sharp scissors, a picture featuring a short texturized 'do and a very ambitious stylist later:

It's SUPER short...in fact I think it's the shortest it has ever been. It's not exactly what I was envisioning, but I guess I did tell her that I like my hair to stick up a titch in the back and to cut off as much of the blonde as she could, and she did...all of it, as a matter of fact.

This picture doesn't really do it justice, it's REALLY short, and it sticks up everywhere. I wasn't so sure about it when she was done, but it's definitely growing on me! I think I can rock it!

Jingle All The Way 10K

I ran my first race since the marathon today, the Jingle All The Way 10K. I was a bit nervous about it considering I've only run a handful of times since October and the furthest I've gone is 3 1/2 miles or so, with lots of walking breaks. Apparently I was SO nervous about it that my subconsious got into the action giving me dreams of running races and having to drop out because I wasn't running fast enough.

So I woke up this morning and got ready, having laid everything out the night before, but then I realized I was missing my knee straps. I tore my room apart but never found them. Aargh!! Don't worry, my knees were ok without them. I was worried that it would be freezing and of course dressed accordingly, so I was more than a little surprised to find that it felt pretty good out there.

This race is a pretty low key and light hearted and a ton of people dressed accordingly. When I parked my car, some guy asked me to help him blow up balloons for his costume. I saw him later during the race and he had come as Frosty the Snowman, complete with two round balls, a hat and scarf. It was BRILLIANT!! There were also some elves, a ton of santa's, and I ran behind Santa and his reindeer. Oh, there was also the running juggler, who has run in virtually every race I've run in in DC.

With our bib and shirt etc., each runner also got some jingle bells to tie to their shoes. It sounded a little lame when it was just me walking to the race, but when you put 2,000 people all wearing jingle bells together, it sounds quite magical! I was tempted to load the marathon machine with Christmas music but never got around to it. Bummer.

The race went pretty well. It was an up and back course, and I was amazed to see the frontrunners pass me, they were at mile 5 and I was at mile TWO, 25 minutes into the race. Incredible I tell you. I wish I could run that fast! I tried to keep my walking to a minimum, and I find that much easier to do when running races. There's just so much more motivation in the group setting. So, my final time was 1:13:(and some seconds), putting my average pace under 12 minute miles, which is really quite good for me. (yes, I know I'm a slow runner!!) Yay for races!

In related news, registration for the Cherry Blossom 10 miler opens on Tuesday. I'm so excited to do the race that started it all once again! Fingers crossed that I am able to register in time (it is quite popular and fills up within hours).

reactions

Friday night is date night, so I put on my party shoes and took myself to see No Country For Old Men. It's all about a hunter, a cop, a sociopathic hitman, a drug deal gone wrong, and it is CRAZY!! There is little to no soundtrack to this film and the dialogue was kept to a minimum (I would say about 2/3 to 3/4 of the movie was filmed without speaking lines). It was incredibly violent, as one might expect a movie including a sociopathic hitman to be, and the lack of distracting sounds made it quite unnerving to watch. I'm usually quite good at separating fantasy from reality, but no such luck with this movie. After the movie I stopped at work to grab my christmas cards, and I fully expected Chigurh (the crazy guy) to step out of the elevator with one of his crazy implements (something much like this thingy...) and kill me on the spot. I'm pretty sure he'll be haunting my dreams for a while now...

All that said though, I think I really liked it. I don't think I quite got the ending, and if one of you could please explain it to me a little I would really appreciate it, but WHOA!

Just for fun, I thought I'd recreate my facial expressions while watching the movie (these have not been exaggerated, although I was able to cover my eyes with both hands in the movie). If you don't like movies that make you pull these faces, don't go see it!!

privacy

Did you know that if you google my name you can find out how much money I made between October 2003 to April 2005? Go ahead, try it (provided you know my name), it's really me. You'll find that it really doesn't pay to work for the government, although I would argue that the experiences more than made up for the lack of Benjamin's. It's a little disconcerting to me exactly what you can find out about yourself on the internet, which is why I have changed my blog address. I don't know why I didn't do this sooner, but I'm sure my mom is letting out a sigh of relief, as I'm sure she worries, on a daily basis, about psycho internet stalker/killers tracking down where I lived and doing unimaginable things to me (she watches a lot of Law & Order and CSI).

So I will continue to post, you'll still get to look at my cute face and read all about my exciting life, but without my name being splashed over every page. Thanks for sticking with me (and updating the links on your blogs).

Nut job

In the last few days I have been called crazy on more than one occasion. If my mental state was ever in question, I think my behavior this evening has confirmed that what these people are saying is true.

At 6:00 PM it was about 29 degrees and snowing. Perfect conditions for a run as far as I'm concerned, so I pulled on my tights, a beanie, a fleece, my marathon gloves and headed out. It was amazing!! I tend to overheat at the gym, so I definitely prefer to be out in the elements. I was a bit cold when I started, but when I started moving around it was great. Yes, my body got a little tingly and numb and my nose was running like a faucet (question, why do noses run when cold? Shouldn't the snot freeze? Makes no sense), but it felt so good!! It was like running in a snowglobe, and it made for an incredibly peaceful run. I'm sure everyone that passed me in their cars was thinking "that person is crazy," and it's totally true. But you know what?! I would run in the rain or snow every day of my life if I could. Hopefully people will be calling me crazy for years and years to come.

Post run...I'm still smiling!!!

Ye olde playlist:

1. No One On Earth - Above & Beyond
2. Break My Fall - Tiesto feat. BT
3. Love is Gonna Save Us - Benny Benassi & The Biz
4. In the Dark - Maxi Jazz & Christian Burns
5. Dreaming of Andromeda - Enigma
6. The Wedding Toccata Theme - Modeselektor
7. This World is Watching Me - Armin van Buuren
8. Feel It - DJ Rap

first snow!!!

The commute home should be very interesting!

back in the saddle

I work kiddie corner from one mall and a block away from another, and heading toward the malls is my only way to get home. As you can probably imagine, traffic during the holidays is ridiculously heavy, to the point where it can take a half hour/45 minutes to get through the three lights to get to the main road I take home, which is longer than it takes me to get home period on a normal day. Lucky for me the gym I belong to is just across the driveway from my office so I can sweat out the traffic. Today I went for a run, which was only moderately successful considering I haven't exercized consistently since running the marathon and I'm getting over a cold, but I have to do it because I am running a 10-K this weekend.

When I finished my 45 minute run/walk I headed back to the locker room only to find an empty stationary bike on the way...so I hopped on for a 20 minute ride. I am completely exhausted right now, but it feels pretty damn good. And...I've got to get used to these dual workouts because I start triathlon training on Monday and in order to get everything in, I'll have to do two different activities each day. YIKES!! I got my swimsuit in the mail and I'm doing my best to mentally prepare myself to get my face wet. It should be interesting, especially considering I'll be training with co-workers I'd rather not have see me in anything less than business casual. But, we have made a pact not to judge/be disgusted with one another, so I guess that will have to do.

Keeping with my running traditions of old, here is my playlist (and Tone, consider this a preview, they came from the cd's I owe you. I promise I'll get them to you someday soon!):

1. No One On Earth - Above&Beyond
2. 2000007 - Modeselektor
3. Silikon - Modeselektor
4. Show Me the Money - Petey Pablo
5. Less Talk More Rokk - Freezepop
6. Ayo Technology - 50 Cent
7. Hyper Hyper - Modeselektor
8. Love Is Gonna Save Us - Benny Benassi & The Biz
9. Halfway Love - Cedric Gervais
10. Feel Alive - Benassi Bros.
11. Feel Me Heave - Enigma
12. Stronger - Kanye West
13. Spiders, Crocodiles & Kryptonite - Faithless
14. The World Is Watching Me - Armin Van Buuren
15. Again, Again and Again - Blaqk Audio

no escaping

One of the reasons I moved away from Utah at the tender age of 22 was so that the little old ladies would stop hassling me about not being married already. I thought that moving to a place where the average marrying age is closer to 30 would get me off the hook, and for the most part it has. That is until I met Rob. Rob works closely with my boss and as I am all knowing as it comes to my bosses comings and goings, Ron and I have spent some good QT chatting it up. Among the course of our chats, he learned that I am single with no real prospects. Because he is happily married himself, Ron has decided that it is his duty to make sure I'm putting myself out there. He has given me interesting advice (including literally running into cute guys with a shopping cart), accused me of being too picky and follows up with me every single time he walks by my desk. "Have you found anybody yet??" "Where's your boyfriend?" "Are you engaged yet?" He's even worse than the little old ladies I knew back in Utah.

Rob has a second job as a volunteer policeman. His latest idea is that I should sign up for the police force. He says that's where all of the good single guys are. I told him I shy away from adrenaline, so that probably isn't the best profession for me, and besides, can't he just tell me where they hang out? Apparently that isn't good enough. He now makes special trips down to my desk to ask me if I've changed my mind. Every time I tell him no. Maybe if I'm still single at 35 I'll have a different answer for him...

More art and awesome TV news

So I can pretty much open my own unofficial art gallery of Mark Elliot's artwork. He is cleaning out his studio, getting rid of some of his stuff, and his wife has been giving it away on her blog. I was lucky enough to win a piece to call my very own...check it out:

This is called "Where We Go Together" and as the note included with the picture states, it was painted in one night, at a gallery, in front of an audience. The original is about 4x6 feet. INCREDIBLE! I would love to see this in person.

Just like the last piece of artwork I received from him, it included another sketch on the envelope, and it appears that he sandwiched the print between two pieces of "scrap paper" that feature identical screen prints. I feel like I just won the lottery!

You should check out his etsy page. He's got some great stuff there. I kind of want it all. You can find it here.

Do you remember American Gladiators featuring Nitro and Turbo? It was my favorite show to watch in the early 90's and I understand that they play it on ESPN Classic, but even better...I just saw a little teaser for the next generation American Gladiators show that will begin airing in January. I'm so excited (and I'm such a nerd).

Busy little elves

This will be my third Christmas living in the Lemon Road house. In previous years, the house has been decorated by the time I got back from Thanksgiving, with no input from me. A few years back I revealed on my blog my distaste for colored lights, colored lights that take over my home each year. I do realize that living with four other people with very different tastes and preferences requires more than a little compromise, but this year I took a proactive approach and requested that we put clear lights on our tree, which I would generously provide of course. With just a little hesitation from at least one roommate, my request was granted. Yay!! Tonight we pulled out the fakey tree and draped it in lovely lovely clear lights, after de-tangling them of course.

Isn't it beautiful?!

What I didn't take into consideration was that because we used my clear lights on the tree instead of the colored ones, my roommates would want to do something with the excess lights. There was some discussion regarding stringing them outside, but that didn't work out. The idea of putting the huge wad inside the fireplace was one I tried to encourage (as they would all be contained in one place), but that was vetoed as well. Instead, they have covered every inch of the main floor ceiling with the blasted things.

The living room:

The dining room:

The stairwell:

And who knows what damage has been done since I came up to my room a few hours ago. Now more than ever does our house look like the fiery depths of hell...

My roommates have apologized multiple times for the colored explosion, but it's really fine. This is what compromise is all about...and besides, I have turned my room into my own little holiday haven!

This is the cute little tinsel tree I bought at Urban Outfitters three years ago as an escape from the colored tree that rocked my Christmas world. I know it's a little non-traditional, but it makes me smile every single time I look at it. This year I wanted to do a chocolate brown and blue color scheme, but I don't know that they make mini-ornaments those colors. I'll have to keep my eyes peeled for next year.

Here's a close-up of the tree-skirt, a silk scarf that I got at an event a few years back. It matches the ornaments perfectly! I think I went a little overboard with the ornaments though. I may have to take a few of them off.

When I was looking for my clear lights for the downstairs tree, I discovered these large glass ball ornaments I bought on clearance last year and thought they would look so cute hanging from my ceiling, so that's what I did. So sad though, I had a casualty. RIP pink ball ornament. You will be missed.

So here they are (sans one pink one...why oh why did it have to be the pink one?!) above the sitting area in my room. Fun huh?!

And here's the view from the lovesac...

So I guess now I'm all set for Christmas . My cards are in the mail, my tree is up, my presents wrapped and it's only the second day of the month. I'm never this on the ball, it feels pretty good!!

FYI

I cooked myself a fried egg for breakfast today. I tell you this not to show off one of my marketable skills in the dating game of life, as you and I both know this is NOT the case, but because it was the very first time (well second time...I overcooked the first attempt) I have cooked an egg in this manner. I wanted to document this because if I happen to get violently ill in the next few days, I'll be able to pinpoint exactly what I'm suffering from...

masterpiece

A while back I bought this great little print off of etsy, because I have visions of someday filling a home with great art. I was really really excited about it. Look, isn't it lovely?
Well I guess it was buy one, get one free on Etsy that day, because this appeared in my mailbox:

Isn't that the greatest thing ever? I almost like the envelope more than I like the print I payed for. Would it be weird if I framed it??