I made it!

an oldie but goodie. I love this face.

Mister will be home in three hours, no news from home is hopefully good news, and that list! The list that has been driving me absolutely CRAZY for the last few months? We should have it next week! (We're kind of hoping that Tanzania (of all the places in the world) is on it..) I think it's going to be a good weekend. Hope yours is too.

barely holding my shiz together

Mister has been out of town since last Monday and won't return until late Friday night. This business trip has been harder for me than normal, I think because he's in my favorite place and has seen some of my favorite people, all without me. Makes me homesick for my friends and family there. Add to that some sad news from home and his absence is unbearable. Friday, please hurry.

And mom, before you call/email to remind me that I shouldn't announce to the three people that read my blog that this would be a good time to turn my life into an episode of Law & Order SVU, I should remind y'all (I live in TX, I can say that) that there are several firearms in my house (and Misters bullet proof vest for me) and I'll use them if I have to...(but I won't like it.)

Busted, er, busty

So yesterday at the end of the work day, I went to the mail room to drop of a package that needed to be picked up by UPS. I rang the little bell to announce my visit, but no one came to the window. I waited and waited and then decided to lean in to see if anyone was there and "DING!" Uh...I didn't push the bell, my boob did. Awesome.

Sorry, that was just one of those embarrassing moments that just need to be shared.

latest music finds

Just in case you were curious, here's my latest round of iTunes purchases. Thank you SYTYCD (and a Sprint commercial) for introducing me to fun songs. Also, I may or may not have jumped on the Justin Bieber bandwagon. What? His latest is quite catchy! Do you have any great suggestions? I still have lots of space on my iPod to fill!

Florence + The Machine - Addicted to Love



The Young Punx - Rock Star (Understand)



N.E.R.D. feat. Nelly Furtado - Hot N Fun



Mos Def - Quiet Dog Bite Hard



NeYo - Beautiful Monster



Justin Bieber - Somebody to Love

Weekend wrap-up

We had a most enjoyable weekend here in Houston. Friday, before meeting up with our friends for sliders and Little Shop of Horrors at the outdoor theater (it was hot, we were melting, didn't make it past intermission), Mister and I stopped by the Natural Science museum to get a peek of their most popular attraction, the corpse flower. It gets its name from the smell it emits; think less flowery, more dead fleshy, but sadly (or maybe it was a good thing) it hadn't yet bloomed. It's actually a really cool looking flower. It looks like a long and lean cabbage with lots of texture.  When it opens up, it has a beautiful fringe of deep purple. It's actually a fairly rare plant. It is endangered in its natural habitat in Sumatra and has only bloomed 28 times in the US. I think I'm going to go back to check it out when it is smelling up a storm. I'm so curious about it. And who knows, I might actually enjoy the scent, considering cigarette smoke, gasoline and skunk are among my favorite smells of all time. (Weirdo)

Saturday after running errands while Mister worked (boo), we met up with our friends again for some roller derby!! The home team got slaughtered by the team visiting from Austin. Supposedly they are the team that Whip It is based on. As a result, the bout might not have been as exciting as it could have been. I was disappointed to learn that they can't use their upper bodies to push people off the track. I was hoping I would see some nasty body slams and at least a little blood. Oh well. We also came up with Roller Derby names for ourselves. I can't exactly remember the others, but mine would be Anne-grenade. What would your roller derby name be??

Royal T

I was trolling the internet yesterday for new songs to add to my currently stale running mix on my marathon machine and came across this gem by the Crookers w/ Roisin Murphy. I think it's incredibly catchy and I want to listen to it all day long. Sadly though, I couldn't find it on iTunes. Anyone know where I might find it?

Chicken Salad

I got this recipe a few years back from my friend Chloe's blog (thanks Chloe!) and have made it several times, each time changing it ever so slightly. I think it was the best ever this time. Try it. It's SO good!

Ingredients

• 3/4 c fat-free sour cream (I used non-fat plain yogurt)
• 3 scallions (green onions), minced
• 1 Tbsp finely chopped parsley (I love dill, so I used that...fresh, not dried. Chloe used cilantro)
• 1/2 tsp lemon zest (this was the first time I added this. YUM!)
• 1 c grapes (I used black)
• 1/2 c cashews (I omitted these)
• Salt
• Ground black pepper
• 3 c shredded chicken

Instructions

• In a medium bowl, combine the sour cream (yogurt), scallions, parsley (dill/cilantro), lemon zest, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss well to blend. Add the grapes, cashews, chicken and toss to coat. Serve on a bed of lettuce leaves (a la Chloe), or in a whole wheat tortilla with avocado and tomato slices (a la me).

Enjoy!

Randoms

* Mister is going to DC for 10 days at the end of the month. Anyone want to buy me a ticket so I can go visit him over the weekend? I'm dying for some Lost Dog (and G-Town Cupcakes and Italian Store and Nielsens and Tacklebox and the list goes on). And dying even more to see my DC friends!

* We made sushi at our friends house last night. I made two dessert rolls with mango, strawberries and cream cheese (the second one also had cucumber). They were very pretty and actually quite tasty...well, once you got past the seaweed flavor.

* Mister's work buddy's last day in the Houston office is today. He'll be in DC for several months for training and join his family in Haiti where his wife was just assigned (she's in the FS too). They were in the same training class and the only two to be assigned to the Houston field office. Mister's a bit sad to see him go and I'm just a bit (ok, a lot) jealous that he knows where he'll be for the next few years of his life.

* Instead of being 100 degrees and humid, it's 80 degrees and rainy in these parts. It seems so strange for Houston in July. I kind of love it.

* Speaking of rain, it was pouring rain as we helped our friends move last week. It seems that they live in the middle of a toad habitat; we saw TONS. I have never heard so many toads croaking in my life. It was great.

* Have you ever listened to the Radiolab podcasts? We listened to them all the way to and from Arlington last weekend and I'm obsessed. I think I love them even more than This American Life if that's even possible. They have such a fun and interesting way of presenting their material. Check it out.

* Someone programmed the printer by my desk to display "push my button." Last week it said "pour me a drink." It makes me laugh every time I see it (which is often).

* Not only do I have my necklace burned onto my chest, but I have a nice red stripe down the inside of each calf. This is, hands down, the craziest sunburn I've ever had.

I want this!

Isn't it gorgeous? I want it! Find it, and so many other beautiful things, here.

Semi-Permanence

I don't think I ever blogged about my latest jewelry purchase, although it's possible the necklace has made a few cameos on my blog. Just look at how RAD it is!

Yup, that's right, the gun even comes out of the holster. I bought it in honor of my gun toting husband. He SO badly wants me to love guns (he even bought one for me) but just looking at them makes me sick. I thought this necklace would be a good compromise. I love it! It's a good thing too, because now its image is semi-permanently burned on my neck.

See:

Here's a close up, in case you missed it.

Note to self: Wear sunscreen next time!