Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh just won the gold! (And how many medals do they get?) Yay! I think it's cool how Misty May's childhood role model was there to see her win the gold (Jason somebody? a basketball player), and I like how she remembers her mom by scattering her ashes in the sand because she was a volleyball player too.
So I am now done with the Olympics. Swimming's done, gymnastics are over, and volleyball dominated, so everything that's remotely interesting to me is finished. Yes, we'll still record it til Sunday, but I'm through.
Anyway, I officially want to be Misty May. She is awesome. Kerri too, but go Misty.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
A Wedding Vent
I am so sick and tired of looking at invitations and addresses and everything wedding. Designing my own because I didn't like traditional ones? Hate them now. Trying to get the wording right so they sound like real invitations? Ummm, how many weddings have I really been to? I don't know what invitations are supposed to say. Using purple for my color? I never want to see an eggplant again. Lilies? My favorite flower? Never again. I'd be happy to take a weed eater and whack the heck out of any orange flower I see on the side of the road. (And for anyone who thinks orange and purple don't go together, get over it. It looks good, it's better that pink and green and I don't care what you think.) Shoes and music and photography...
Remember when I said brides should use weeds to make things easy? Nevermind. Elope. It's the ultimate easy decision. But then I guess you have to deal with the crap from everyone when you get home. So weigh your options. Don't listen to the girl who's going to have a nervous breakdown before six weeks is up.
At least we finally got a ring for Ray. Sort of. We ordered one, titanium, that came in after about five weeks. Ray tried it on, it was too big. So I took it back to order a smaller size because titanium can't be sized (and because with seven weeks til the wedding it's cutting it close), and guess what? The store was closing. And not taking any more orders. Thankfully my mom was there and she got them to take it back for me (she's a little more fiery than I am) even though the receipt says no returns or exchanges. So Ray and I searched for rings again on Sunday. And we ordered the exact same ring from a different store in a smaller size after hunting for a different one for two hours. Let's hope this one fits (but this store will exchange it).
And since invitations have been consuming my time, here's a little more for you. Have you ever heard of defective envelopes? I have. We bought these cool sponge pens to seal them, but oh, no. Water wasn't enough for these. Neither was licking them (apparently I believed saliva has some special kind of sealing agent). So we had to resort to glue sticks. And it still didn't work. These things just didn't want to be sealed. I think the little gummy people who live on sticky strips were resisting, pushing up their arms, shouting "Noooooo!!!!" in tiny squeally voices (did you know they're distant relatives to Smurfs?). Yeah, that nervous breakdown? It's coming. Anyway, I was up til one last night re-gluing invitations. So if any of you get sticky envelopes from me for the wedding, sorry. At least it was closed. And if you can't open it? Good, I did my job.
And another tip, make the guest list early with everyone you could possibly invite on it so you know how many people you're inviting and you can argue about it before you address invitations. Never leave the option open to say, "Hey, we forgot them! What's their address? We should invite them... they probably won't come anyway." Because it's not fun. Trust me. I think my Bridezilla tail started growing this weekend just because of the stupid invitations.
Remember when I said brides should use weeds to make things easy? Nevermind. Elope. It's the ultimate easy decision. But then I guess you have to deal with the crap from everyone when you get home. So weigh your options. Don't listen to the girl who's going to have a nervous breakdown before six weeks is up.
At least we finally got a ring for Ray. Sort of. We ordered one, titanium, that came in after about five weeks. Ray tried it on, it was too big. So I took it back to order a smaller size because titanium can't be sized (and because with seven weeks til the wedding it's cutting it close), and guess what? The store was closing. And not taking any more orders. Thankfully my mom was there and she got them to take it back for me (she's a little more fiery than I am) even though the receipt says no returns or exchanges. So Ray and I searched for rings again on Sunday. And we ordered the exact same ring from a different store in a smaller size after hunting for a different one for two hours. Let's hope this one fits (but this store will exchange it).
And since invitations have been consuming my time, here's a little more for you. Have you ever heard of defective envelopes? I have. We bought these cool sponge pens to seal them, but oh, no. Water wasn't enough for these. Neither was licking them (apparently I believed saliva has some special kind of sealing agent). So we had to resort to glue sticks. And it still didn't work. These things just didn't want to be sealed. I think the little gummy people who live on sticky strips were resisting, pushing up their arms, shouting "Noooooo!!!!" in tiny squeally voices (did you know they're distant relatives to Smurfs?). Yeah, that nervous breakdown? It's coming. Anyway, I was up til one last night re-gluing invitations. So if any of you get sticky envelopes from me for the wedding, sorry. At least it was closed. And if you can't open it? Good, I did my job.
And another tip, make the guest list early with everyone you could possibly invite on it so you know how many people you're inviting and you can argue about it before you address invitations. Never leave the option open to say, "Hey, we forgot them! What's their address? We should invite them... they probably won't come anyway." Because it's not fun. Trust me. I think my Bridezilla tail started growing this weekend just because of the stupid invitations.
Monday, August 18, 2008
Everybody else is doing it...
Talking about the Olympics, I mean. So here I go. Honestly, it's getting old. I'm tired of watching them. The same thing over and over. And over again, when Brooke records it and watches it the next morning (c'mon, Brooke, hardcore fans stay up late to watch these things). But anyway, here are my thoughts. Most of this can be filed under my "This. is. Ridiculous." section:
-Hero worship.
We all know who I'm refering to. Yes, he's an amazing swimmer. But calling him the best athlete ever just because he happened to be able to enter eight events? What about the events where they have to compete multiple times just to win one medal? Rowing, track, boxing, weightlifting... and have you been following our basketball teams? The men have been crushing every team they play and the women's smallest lead was something like 37 points (thanks Ray). My personal favorite, U.S. women's beach volleyball, has been killing. Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh have played 10 games and are playing in the semi-finals tonight. So basically if they win the gold they will have played around 14 or 16 matches. Shouldn't they get 14 or 16 gold medals for playing in all those games? Mmm-hmm.
And... ummm, hello? A few of M.P.'s races were relays. That involved multiple people. But who's getting all the glory? Yeah. What about that one where we came from behind and won? Michael Phelps didn't win his leg. And did anyone else see that piece NBC did about how M.P. was genetically built to be a swimmer? Sure, he's tall and double-jointed. But the fact that he has broad shoulders and a flat backside comes from him being a swimmer. Look around, NBC reporter, all the other athletes on the platform (and pretty much across the Olympic athlete board) have broad shoulders and flat backsides, including most of the women. Even Facebook called him out among the rest of the winners for congrats. Don't get me wrong, he seems like a great, humble guy and he's easy on the eyes, but give other athletes credit too.
- Media coverage.
I already mentioned some problems I have earlier, but I'm going to focus on NBC being stupid right now. They paid millions of dollars to get exclusive coverage of the Olympics. And now they're not letting any other media have video of the events. They could make soooo much money for that if they wanted. And besides, that's not being a very good sport, is it?
-Sports that shouldn't be sports. Or in the Olympics.
Badmitton. Handball. Ping pong.
And then there are the sports that already have world championships or should. Soccer and tennis players already compete across the world. Baseball and softball are being taken out this year. What keeps basketball in?
Who makes these decisions? They have some 'splainin' to do.
-Hero worship.
We all know who I'm refering to. Yes, he's an amazing swimmer. But calling him the best athlete ever just because he happened to be able to enter eight events? What about the events where they have to compete multiple times just to win one medal? Rowing, track, boxing, weightlifting... and have you been following our basketball teams? The men have been crushing every team they play and the women's smallest lead was something like 37 points (thanks Ray). My personal favorite, U.S. women's beach volleyball, has been killing. Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh have played 10 games and are playing in the semi-finals tonight. So basically if they win the gold they will have played around 14 or 16 matches. Shouldn't they get 14 or 16 gold medals for playing in all those games? Mmm-hmm.
And... ummm, hello? A few of M.P.'s races were relays. That involved multiple people. But who's getting all the glory? Yeah. What about that one where we came from behind and won? Michael Phelps didn't win his leg. And did anyone else see that piece NBC did about how M.P. was genetically built to be a swimmer? Sure, he's tall and double-jointed. But the fact that he has broad shoulders and a flat backside comes from him being a swimmer. Look around, NBC reporter, all the other athletes on the platform (and pretty much across the Olympic athlete board) have broad shoulders and flat backsides, including most of the women. Even Facebook called him out among the rest of the winners for congrats. Don't get me wrong, he seems like a great, humble guy and he's easy on the eyes, but give other athletes credit too.
- Media coverage.
I already mentioned some problems I have earlier, but I'm going to focus on NBC being stupid right now. They paid millions of dollars to get exclusive coverage of the Olympics. And now they're not letting any other media have video of the events. They could make soooo much money for that if they wanted. And besides, that's not being a very good sport, is it?
-Sports that shouldn't be sports. Or in the Olympics.
Badmitton. Handball. Ping pong.
And then there are the sports that already have world championships or should. Soccer and tennis players already compete across the world. Baseball and softball are being taken out this year. What keeps basketball in?
Who makes these decisions? They have some 'splainin' to do.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Good day, bad day... it's the little things
Oh, the highs and lows. Today was just one of those days where you can't figure out how you want to feel. You kinda just have to pick which mood is going to take over. Some things were related, some weren't. Well, here we go...
The good: I got my invitations today!
The bad: There are a few snafus... details later because there are still discussions to be made.
The good: I had a doctor's appointment today.
The bad: They didn't have me scheduled. But I threatened to sit in the office til they closed because there was no way I was going to come back again.
And back to good: They said since it was their mistake, they could try to fit me in and my wait was still only 30 minutes (for a five-minute appointment, but hey, focus on the positive)!
The bad: I spent all day writing cover letters.
The really really really good: I got a call back for an awesome internship! (But you can't know what it is yet... don't want to jinx myself!) Now Ray and I have to consider where we're living (again). We're trying to let the chips fall where they may and decide what to do once we have all the info.
The good: I got Ray's ring!
The bad: Ray decided to lose eight pounds since we ordered it, it's titanium and can't be resized. Hmmm.
The bad: Filling my tank today cost me 55 dollars.
The good: I was able to fill my tank! I follow gas partly by mileage because my old car's gas gage was broken and I ran out a few times (fun stories, ask if you want to hear them) and I haven't been able to track it recently because it's been a few dollars here and there.
Other bad news: I got a migraine today driving home. It's a weird experience for me. I know they're coming because I lose vision in the left side of my left eye. Kinda freaky, but it turns a little kaleidoscope-y on the edges. But once the vision comes back, the migraine comes too.
I had another wedding nightmare last night. For those of you who don't know, for about two or three years I've been having dreams about a wedding from hell. Bad '80s dresses, people shuffling around everywhere, fires, hurricanes, you name it. The thing is, the closer we've gotten to the wedding, the more real the details become. Last night's was the most real one ever--it was at Great Oaks, I was in my dress, all the vendors I mentioned were the ones we've booked--but none of them showed up. I walked down the aisle with no flowers, the people were sitting on the ground, we ate hotdogs from the corner gas station and had rocks on the table because the staffs quit. Not too bad for normal people, but for a control freak like me who has this vision for the day, I had a small problem with the dream. But I'm dealing.
Other good news (keep in mind that it's the little things in life that make me happy): I'm fascinated with this new nail polish I bought. Usually I'm not too girly, but I'm trying to keep my nails in okay condition so wedding pics of my hands don't look like a man's. My nails are pretty weak and brittle, so I have to keep sonmthing on them. I'm pretty rough on may hands, so polish typically lasts, oh, a day. But this new stuff, Sally Hansen's Hard as Wraps, has lasted since last Friday without chipping! A miracle...
Spiff is back on the radio! Growing up, we always listened to Randy and Spiff in the mornings on Fox 97 Oldies. I was sooo disappointed when the station went under. Then Atlanta got a new oldies station that I listen to constantly and this afternoon, Spiff was on! It's like having a cool uncle around again.
I found a florist! So much easier this time around.
And since this this post is too long, I'm going to go. Do something. Anything.
The good: I got my invitations today!
The bad: There are a few snafus... details later because there are still discussions to be made.
The good: I had a doctor's appointment today.
The bad: They didn't have me scheduled. But I threatened to sit in the office til they closed because there was no way I was going to come back again.
And back to good: They said since it was their mistake, they could try to fit me in and my wait was still only 30 minutes (for a five-minute appointment, but hey, focus on the positive)!
The bad: I spent all day writing cover letters.
The really really really good: I got a call back for an awesome internship! (But you can't know what it is yet... don't want to jinx myself!) Now Ray and I have to consider where we're living (again). We're trying to let the chips fall where they may and decide what to do once we have all the info.
The good: I got Ray's ring!
The bad: Ray decided to lose eight pounds since we ordered it, it's titanium and can't be resized. Hmmm.
The bad: Filling my tank today cost me 55 dollars.
The good: I was able to fill my tank! I follow gas partly by mileage because my old car's gas gage was broken and I ran out a few times (fun stories, ask if you want to hear them) and I haven't been able to track it recently because it's been a few dollars here and there.
Other bad news: I got a migraine today driving home. It's a weird experience for me. I know they're coming because I lose vision in the left side of my left eye. Kinda freaky, but it turns a little kaleidoscope-y on the edges. But once the vision comes back, the migraine comes too.
I had another wedding nightmare last night. For those of you who don't know, for about two or three years I've been having dreams about a wedding from hell. Bad '80s dresses, people shuffling around everywhere, fires, hurricanes, you name it. The thing is, the closer we've gotten to the wedding, the more real the details become. Last night's was the most real one ever--it was at Great Oaks, I was in my dress, all the vendors I mentioned were the ones we've booked--but none of them showed up. I walked down the aisle with no flowers, the people were sitting on the ground, we ate hotdogs from the corner gas station and had rocks on the table because the staffs quit. Not too bad for normal people, but for a control freak like me who has this vision for the day, I had a small problem with the dream. But I'm dealing.
Other good news (keep in mind that it's the little things in life that make me happy): I'm fascinated with this new nail polish I bought. Usually I'm not too girly, but I'm trying to keep my nails in okay condition so wedding pics of my hands don't look like a man's. My nails are pretty weak and brittle, so I have to keep sonmthing on them. I'm pretty rough on may hands, so polish typically lasts, oh, a day. But this new stuff, Sally Hansen's Hard as Wraps, has lasted since last Friday without chipping! A miracle...
Spiff is back on the radio! Growing up, we always listened to Randy and Spiff in the mornings on Fox 97 Oldies. I was sooo disappointed when the station went under. Then Atlanta got a new oldies station that I listen to constantly and this afternoon, Spiff was on! It's like having a cool uncle around again.
I found a florist! So much easier this time around.
And since this this post is too long, I'm going to go. Do something. Anything.
Monday, August 11, 2008
Finger on the Globe
Have you ever done that before? Closed your eyes, spun a globe, put your finger down, landed on some random island in the Pacific and said, "Someday I'm going to live there"? I have. And I can tell you, the places where Ray and I were contemplating living were already on the short list of places I didn't care to live in. Let me tell you, trying to find a place between Atlanta and Ellijay is pretty tough when Ellijay is 80 miles away. But this weekend, we made a decision. Not Woodstock, not Canton.
Ellijay.
I am officially moving to the hills. Blue Ridge hills, not like the MTV Hills (that I really hope someone else watches), because that's a whole lot more glamorous and I'm sure it would be easier to find jobs because, let's face it, the north Georgia mountains don't offer as many places to work as L.A. does. Unless I wanted to work at Taco Bell or Wal-Mart. But, really, it's the best decision, and I'm okay with it. It's cheaper, so it gives me more time to find a real job that I actually want instead of taking any job I can find. I can look for part-time internships or jobs that'll give me experience. And Ray loves his job and I'm okay with giving a little since he waited for two years for me to graduate. It's good, and at least we'll be there for the prettiest time of year (have I told you yet that I looooovvvvve the fall?). Now, after all this time learning how to drive really fast between Athens and Dallas, I have to slow down because Ellijay drivers apparently don't have to hurry.
But a reason to rejoice: Ellijay is getting a Chick-fil-A and an IHOP. Ray and I actually drove almost an hour over a mountain to Dalton Sunday just because he wanted pancakes and I wanted an omelette. Even though Ray sprained his ankle Saturday (we played tennis--yes, I was winning :) ) and it was throbbing the whole time, we wanted IHOP. Not just Bisquick or eggs from the Piggly Wiggly, but it had to be the International House of Pancakes. Yeah, we're that cool. So we get good chicken and some breakfast food. YAY.
On the subject of jobs, I'm getting creative looking in the mountains. I'm really going to have to sell myself. Any hints? (Please, no stiletto or fishnet jokes.)
Now I'm in the process of finding florists. It's fun. For anyone wanting to plan a wedding... use weeds. It's easier. Don't get this grand idea of flowers overflowing from tables and altars. Weeds grow in the backyard. And they overflow. Easy.
Off to eat dinner!
Ellijay.
I am officially moving to the hills. Blue Ridge hills, not like the MTV Hills (that I really hope someone else watches), because that's a whole lot more glamorous and I'm sure it would be easier to find jobs because, let's face it, the north Georgia mountains don't offer as many places to work as L.A. does. Unless I wanted to work at Taco Bell or Wal-Mart. But, really, it's the best decision, and I'm okay with it. It's cheaper, so it gives me more time to find a real job that I actually want instead of taking any job I can find. I can look for part-time internships or jobs that'll give me experience. And Ray loves his job and I'm okay with giving a little since he waited for two years for me to graduate. It's good, and at least we'll be there for the prettiest time of year (have I told you yet that I looooovvvvve the fall?). Now, after all this time learning how to drive really fast between Athens and Dallas, I have to slow down because Ellijay drivers apparently don't have to hurry.
But a reason to rejoice: Ellijay is getting a Chick-fil-A and an IHOP. Ray and I actually drove almost an hour over a mountain to Dalton Sunday just because he wanted pancakes and I wanted an omelette. Even though Ray sprained his ankle Saturday (we played tennis--yes, I was winning :) ) and it was throbbing the whole time, we wanted IHOP. Not just Bisquick or eggs from the Piggly Wiggly, but it had to be the International House of Pancakes. Yeah, we're that cool. So we get good chicken and some breakfast food. YAY.
On the subject of jobs, I'm getting creative looking in the mountains. I'm really going to have to sell myself. Any hints? (Please, no stiletto or fishnet jokes.)
Now I'm in the process of finding florists. It's fun. For anyone wanting to plan a wedding... use weeds. It's easier. Don't get this grand idea of flowers overflowing from tables and altars. Weeds grow in the backyard. And they overflow. Easy.
Off to eat dinner!
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Moving Forward
I've been a little overwhelmed lately. Remember me posting about my friend Miley? On Monday night I got the news that a friend of Ray's sister lost his son Lane in a drowning accident at the beach on Saturday. He was three. We actually saw this kid every time we visited Kim, so we knew him a little bit. Sweet kid, and so tragic.
Along those lines, Brooke and I went to Miley's memorial service yesterday. It was long (almost three hours) and lots of people (around 40) spoke, but that's just a small testament to how many people she touched and what an amazing person she was. The service was inspiring, lots of laughs, and if you knew Miley, it's the way she would want it to be. There's a reason her nickname was Smiley Miley. We'll miss you, Miley.
On top of that, I still have lots to do around the house. To get this out of the way... yes, I still have wedding planning to do. (This is getting so old. So cliche. So sorry. It'll be over soon. 58 days, to be exact, but then you get to hear me talk about the actual wedding.) The florist we were going to use didn't call us to tell us she was booked, so we've been trying to work stuff out with other (more expensive) florists we've already talked to. And all the little details have to be worked out this month. We have to submit decor proposals to Great Oaks, finalize music, fill out final forms, call the caterer, get invitations out, blah, blah, blah. Side note: What do you think of inner envelopes for invitations? Not the addressed envelopes for RSVP cards, but the extra envelope that has the less formal names of the guest. I think they're useless and slightly annoying, but the mom wants them and they're actually causing us some big problems.
Guess what. I still haven't unpacked. Well, I haven't organized my stuff. See, I didn't really pack when I left Athens because of the time crunch, I more, well, threw things into my car as I found them. And when we got back to Dallas, I threw things into my room. Now there is a three-foot pile of clothes, blankets, lamps, clocks, etc. on my entire floor. Circling my bed. I have a path from the door to my bed, but that's the only wiggle room I have. I actually woke up the other morning with my head in the middle of the bed and the bottom half of my body resting on the suitcases at the foot of the bed. So today's the day I clean. Really.
I also need to start looking for jobs again. I had to take a break with so much going on, but I need to start that again too. Yay. So anyway, I'm done procrastinating for the morning and I'm off to do the stuff I just wrote about. I will be productive!
Along those lines, Brooke and I went to Miley's memorial service yesterday. It was long (almost three hours) and lots of people (around 40) spoke, but that's just a small testament to how many people she touched and what an amazing person she was. The service was inspiring, lots of laughs, and if you knew Miley, it's the way she would want it to be. There's a reason her nickname was Smiley Miley. We'll miss you, Miley.
On top of that, I still have lots to do around the house. To get this out of the way... yes, I still have wedding planning to do. (This is getting so old. So cliche. So sorry. It'll be over soon. 58 days, to be exact, but then you get to hear me talk about the actual wedding.) The florist we were going to use didn't call us to tell us she was booked, so we've been trying to work stuff out with other (more expensive) florists we've already talked to. And all the little details have to be worked out this month. We have to submit decor proposals to Great Oaks, finalize music, fill out final forms, call the caterer, get invitations out, blah, blah, blah. Side note: What do you think of inner envelopes for invitations? Not the addressed envelopes for RSVP cards, but the extra envelope that has the less formal names of the guest. I think they're useless and slightly annoying, but the mom wants them and they're actually causing us some big problems.
Guess what. I still haven't unpacked. Well, I haven't organized my stuff. See, I didn't really pack when I left Athens because of the time crunch, I more, well, threw things into my car as I found them. And when we got back to Dallas, I threw things into my room. Now there is a three-foot pile of clothes, blankets, lamps, clocks, etc. on my entire floor. Circling my bed. I have a path from the door to my bed, but that's the only wiggle room I have. I actually woke up the other morning with my head in the middle of the bed and the bottom half of my body resting on the suitcases at the foot of the bed. So today's the day I clean. Really.
I also need to start looking for jobs again. I had to take a break with so much going on, but I need to start that again too. Yay. So anyway, I'm done procrastinating for the morning and I'm off to do the stuff I just wrote about. I will be productive!
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Remembering...
Through all the whirlwind that was my graduation weekend, I got some bad news Saturday night. Two friends were driving to Baltimore for a service at the church they attended when they lived in the city. Ultimately, they were headed to NYC to meet a few other girls for a post-graduation weekend. But they got in an accident because of bad weather and although Hannah has some broken ribs and a collapsed lung, Miley passed away. I wasn't super-close to either girl, but we had the same circle of friends. I saw Miley at graduation on Saturday morning and she was so excited about New York. She just turned 22 on Wednesday. She was always loud, full of life, but always willing to drop everything and help or have fun. She and Hannah were like sisters. So please remember Miley's family in your prayers. And please pray that Hannah will recover soon and take comfort in knowing that her best friend in with her Daddy now.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)