Happy Birthday Colleen!

My sis is 34 today - she has already informed me that's she's going to Chili's for her birthday lunch so I'm confident she'll have a good one!

Well, it's Friday - the end of a kind of slow week at work. I'm in the process of phasing myself out at work and I have less things to do during the workday (that and the whole office has been slow.) So I decided, just to get the right brain going, to do one of those cute "I-Pod Shuffle" pieces. 7 (usually it's 5, but I have that kind of time. If things continue to be slow it could be 10 or even more) random songs that pop up on the pod and my thoughts on them. Sounds like fun, huh? Here we go...

"Shambala" - Three Dog Night: "Joy to the World" was the first 45 I ever owned (and my favorite sing-along at Howl at the Moon) and I love this band. I have Joy and it's B-side, "I Can Here You Calling" (very funky for a bunch of white boys) as well as this song on the ol' I-pod. I need more Dog - at least "Old Fashioned Love Song".

"Get Set" - Taxiride: This is one of those faux psychadelic songs that came out in the mid-90s. I think it was in a movie. The whole CD is pretty good. I have nothing more to say about this one, sorry.

"One Way Street" - Go West: I loooove Go West - especially that guitar player - I think his name is Richard Drummie. Let me check...yup. My college roomate and I fantasized about marrying them - Richard for me and lead singer Peter Cox for her (yes, pathertic as it is, I fantasized about celebrity relationships long into adulthood). This is one of their mellower tunes - I think I'd have to pick "Goodbye Girl" as my favorite - oh, and the remix of "Call Me" from "Bangs and Crashes". Ok, getting a little music geeky here...

"Burning Up" - Madonna: I remember when I hated Madonna. My gay friend forced me to listen to her first album every time we got in the car (a gay man who loves Madonna? Who woulda thunk it?) I thought she was whiny - but it didn't take long to become a big fan of the Material Girl - I dressed up in the "Lucky Star" video get-up for a high school costume party (complete with knock-offs of her boots from Desperately Seeking Susan which I still have (again, pathetic - isn't it?)

"Hung Up" - Madonna: 2 by Madge in a row? I like this one because of the ABBA sample. That's pretty much it. I kinda gave up on Madonna after "Ray of Light", but this one is catchy.

"Good Morning, Good Morning": Peter Frampton, the Bee Gees & Paul Nicholas: I was hoping my baby Peter turned up! This is from the soundtrack of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, the movie that I have seen more times than any movie ever. I remember when we got cable for the first time, and watched every single viewing of this movie the month it was on (it had to be over 20 times.) I lost count around 50 or so viewings. I also watched it on my 21st birthday, when my purse was stolen (as in no ID) and I drank Heineken that someone had to buy for me with my friend Patrick (who's an actual movie star now!) It obviously holds a special place in my heart!

"Show Me the Way" - Peter Frampton: What could be better than a Frampton 2-fer? Not much! Of course this is the "Frampton Comes Alive" version. I (obviously) have a lot of his songs on my I-pod. Favorite? "Baby, I Love Your Way" (which would have been our wedding song if I'd had my way) and "Penny for Your Thoughts", but his songs are kind of like your children - it's so hard to pick a favorite.

"Mr. Blue Sky" - Electric Light Orchestra (yeah, it's number 8, but I'm exquisitely bored...) These guys had me at Xanadu. This is such a peppy song, great for morning workouts!

"Belief System" - Double Drive: I saw this band a few years ago at Music Midtown in Atlanta. My then-boyfriend and I got in a fight during their set. Ah, sweet memories...Actually, this song rawks.

"Rhiannon" - Fleetwood Mac: Peter Frampton and Stevie Nicks - my 70s idols. "Dreams" is still my favorite karaoke song of all time, but this one is cool as well.

Ok, the guys from Clerks II (a must-see) are on Opie and Anthony now. Later 'taters!

Every comment in my high school yearbook - the video

Yeah, I was a geek in high school, and I'm proud of it. Most things from high school (jokes, music, fashion - thank GOD for that) have long since been forgotten, but there's one thing that we just can't seem to let go. So that being said, here's a li'l old school video for my PJPII homegirls!

Nothing from me...how 'bout some more Frampton?

I love YouTube. I figure if I put enough Peter Frampton references here, maybe the man himself will check the site out and - who knows? And for those of you who aren't Peter, enjoy...

Guess I'll never learn...

Yup, once again, I am surrendering my body for charity. Just yesterday, I signed up for the 2007 Walt Disney World Half Marathon. This one (along with Disneyland Half in September) concludes my "Farewell Tour" - as in I am hanging up my running (oh, alright, walking) shoes after this. As in 2006, I am taking part in this race for charity. This year, the charity I'm raising money for is near and dear to my heart.

Joints in Motion is a part of the Arthritis Foundation. The Arthritis Foundation is the only national not-for-profit organization that supports the more than 100 types of arthritis and related conditions with advocacy, programs, services and research. Those of you who know me know that my Dad has dealt with arthritis and, thanks to the wonderful world of genetics (and my current weakening state) I'm a prime candidate for it in the future. So, now commences the begging...

PLEEEEEEAAAASSSEEEEEE! No, I will be more subtle. Last year, the response for my efforts with Team in Training was overwhelming - those who gave donated what they could, and if it weren't for everyone's help, I would have never made my fundraising goal (by the way, it's $2500 this year.) No donation is too small, so if you are feeling charitable, please click here. And hey, it's tax-deductible! As with last year, I am chronicling my training efforts on Chariots of Fitz, so enjoy and feel my pain!

Starting the Holiday Weekend Off Right

I was looking for clips from America's Got Talent on YouTube (for my Pop Culture Junkies column) and I found what has to be the biggest laugh-out-loud moment on TV I have ever seen. I have seen this so many times and it makes me cry - it is that funny. Now, laugh, cry and enjoy...





If you don't know, that's Ryan Stiles and that's improv. Hope this clears the whole stand-up vs. improv thing once and for all!

It's Amazing What You Find When You Clean Out Your Closets...

Things I Want

Ah, the summer blahs. 2 months to vacation, hubby out of town, friends incommunicado, move date up in the air and to top it off, a severe case of right-brain atrophy (as in my creativity is lagging, big time!) So, here's a list of some miscellaneous (mostly non-tangible) things I want.

- A TiVo (ok, that's a tangible one). I have a lot of the other high tech goodies (iPod, Razr phone, digital camera) but somehow, the TiVo has escaped my grasp. I initially didn't want one, as I feared it would render me a useless couch potato. If I had a TiVo, instead of a VCR that we never have seemed to be able to program correctly, I could record and watch all of what I dub my "unemployment greatest hits" - the daytime judge shows I love (Judge Mathis is my favorite, but I also like Judge Milian from The People's Court, Judge Joe and, of course, Judge Judy) and watch them when I got home from work - while recording the evening shows for later viewing - thus causing a never-ending cycle of TV watching...not good. But I think I may obtain a TiVo soon for the following reasons:

First of all, I have so many VHS tapes laying around that it's ridiculous. When "House" used to be on the same time as "My Name is Earl" and "The Office" (my 3 favorite shows) we obviously had to tape something; and now that I'm doing recaps for two shows over at Pop Culture Junkies, I also need to tape those. Mount VHS is growing at an alarming pace.

Secondly, TiVo would come in handy when there's nothing else on TV - which is quite often. We have gone through just about every "On Demand" movie and show, and it would be nice to take some time off from channel surfing (husband is a master of this.) So that's enough about this. Now on to the intangibles...

- I want more people to read my blog - all of them. I want people to realize that I'm a pretty decent writer.

- I want to do some cool celebrity interviews for Pop Culture Junkies. Not the typical Brad/Angelina/Vince/Tom (Hanks or Cruise) ones, but some people that I've always wanted to talk to - like Chris Atkins and anyone from Beyond the Valley of the Dolls. I'd also love to talk to Gina Gershon, Henry Rollins, Janeane Garofolo and Margaret Cho. Of course, I think it's been pretty well established that the ultimate would be the one and only Peter Frampton!

- I want a nice new house with a big kitchen (with pantry and island) and a community pool. I want to be in a neighborhood where they have get-togethers and such. I want to live somewhere where there are not NASCAR stickers on the back of every car and truck. (Ok, another tangible, sorry...)

- I want to be a full-time writer - maybe an arts critic/columnist for a newspaper (I couldn't be a restaurant critic - I'd be as big as a house!)

I want to stay at the Hotel del Coronado in San Diego just once - as that was where they filmed my all-time favorite movie "Some Like it Hot".

- And the last one for now...I want Peter Frampton to play at my 40th birthday party. I fully intend for this to be a reality. Don't know how, but I'm going to do everything in my power to make it happen!

That's all I can think of for now...

On-Whee! (Say it out loud...)

Oh my God. I am so bored. I can't even come up with something interesting to write about for any of my blogs (at least I have my show recaps at PCJ for the next few days.) I am sick of surfing the 'net - I know way too much about Lindsey, Paris and the gang. I am slightly ashamed and feel slightly dirty. I have made a few "celebrity connections" since I started writing for PCJ. Got an email from Doug Benson from "Last Comic Standing" and even cooler, Harrison Page (from "Beyond the Valley of the Dolls" and "Sledgehammer!") emailed me today - I am hoping to do an interview with him sometime soon. I am trying to hone my journalism skills, as I am really enjoying the writing thing, and may be able to parlay all of this blogging into a real career. It would be awesome if the hubby and I were both doing something we enjoyed!

I am really at a loss. I need some sort of right brain jolt or something. I've been reading other blogs to get some sort of inspiration, but it's not helping. Since I'll be a single gal for the next few weeks, maybe I can (gasp) actually work on my book concept for a while! Kick me (figuratively - I'm not into the kinky stuff!), I need it!

Movin' On Up to the East Side

Great news for your friend Sugar. We have officially put our Hooterville estate on the market! I am beyond excited. With this excitement comes stress (of course!) as we now have to kick the packing thing into high gear! Our real estate agent, Barry, came over last night and told us what to do to make the house more sellable. We know we have to fix the obvious, like the laundry room Boo trashed during that "let's see how she does without her crate" period (a complete disaster) and the chunk of stucco I took out on the side of the garage with my car (no, I was not drunk. I was headed for the gym. Who knew?) When Barry got to our bedroom, he took one look in my closet and said "oh no."

My closet is a disaster. I blame the fact that the only dresser I have to speak of looks like it belongs in the Barbie Dream House. It's small, but then so was my apartment in Atlanta, where I bought the thing. So now comes the painful reality of having to get rid of a lot of stuff in a short amount of time. This could be a good thing, as I'll have little time for sentimentality and quiet reflection on things that really need to go, like my extensive collection of "stripper shoes" (5" heels in a variety of patent leather colors.) I never go anywhere that would call for stripper shoes, so I will ace those (but save one pair for "special occasions" - hubba, hubba!) I also need to cut down my extremely huge t-shirt collection. All the shirts that have been relegated to the drawers under my bed I believe will soon be the latest in Goodwill fashions (except for any of my Frampton tour shirts, for obvious reasons.) I can at least get rid of my business suits, because who really wears them anymore; but I am not parting with my Madonna "Desperately Seeking Susan" boots that I've had since high school, because I can't. Period.

More moving adventures coming soon! In the meantime, if you know of anyone looking for a house in Hooterville, let me know!

Sugar - Broadway Impresario?

I'm posting this here, 'cause it might be a little too obscure for Pop Culture Junkies. I was thinking, since Jersey Boys, a musical featuring the songs of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, did quite well at this year's Tony Awards, why not revive the music of some other bands that may have lost a bit of their luster over the years? Here are some suggestions...

"I Wanna Sex You Up" - The Color Me Badd Experience


"Brandy and Other Fine Girls" - A Look Back at Looking Glass


"Shambala Boys" - The Music of Three Dog Night


"Flint Guyz" - The Songs of Grand Funk Railroad


"Saturday Night Scots" - A Musical Revue Spotlighting the Music of the Bay City Rollers


"Afternoon Delights" - A Musical Tribute to the Starland Vocal Band


and...wait for it...


"Do You Feel Like He Do?" - The Peter Frampton Story (Oh please, oh please!!!)

I thnk these are all viable properties, don't you? I mean, look how long Cats was on the Great White Way? Just a thought...

That's My Time...Tip Your Waitress...

Since my other site is down right now, I thought I'd return to my home blog - and write about something that's been on my nerves for a while. Those who know me know that I have a pretty extensive background in Improv comedy. I honed my skills at FSU, when I was in the Moving Company, the school's children's theater troupe (yes, Miss "No Kids" did children's theater!) You have to think on your toes to keep 3rd and 4th graders amused, and I must say we did pretty well (I also got to rap in the show we did, so I immediately endeared myself to the young'uns.) My Improv background also helped out immeasurably during my stints as a tour guide (both at Universal and CNN.) We had a script for the godawful tram tour at USF, but as you are carting a load of tourists around closed, empty soundstages for 15 minutes, you have to come up with something, and boy, did I (we also would do the tours in different accents, to liven things up.) CNN was another story. Fortunately I had worked in television production before I got there and could riff endlessly about the neat-o things that went on in the newsroom and studio (which came in especially handy on the VIP tours, where people paid a lot of dough for the occasional face-to-face with a Headline News anchor (Chuck Roberts, my friend (and twin sister at the time) Toria Tolley, and the late, great Don Harrison) and the chance to watch (former) CNN anchor Lou Watters incessantly spray his hair (my parents got to witness that, and they still talk about it.) I could write a book about CNN, probably will someday...

So why the walk down "memory lane"? What does this have to do with anything? I was talking about Improv. I did some in Atlanta and had a really good time doing it. Unfortunately, the 2 troupes I was in there broke up (little ego-clashing problems and the like) and I haven't found another outlet here in Florida, so I haven't had much practice as of late. But what really steams my buns is that whenever people hear I did Improv, they instantly say "Tell us a joke!" (a few of my co-workers are guilty of this - in fact it happened again last week, which prompted this entry.) I don't know how many times I have to say it, Improv-ers and Stand-Ups are 2 totally separate groups. I have nothing against Stand-ups, in fact I dated one for a while. It's hard work. It's just different. I met Jeff Foxworthy (shameless name dropping) at a charity event (which a friend and I snuck into, but that's a story for another time) and told him I did Improv. He said, and I'll never forget it, "I could never do that!" I thought that was awesome. Improv is hard too, especially because more people hate it, so that's another battle we need to fight. I love going to see stand-up comics (like Jim Gaffigan, who is my favorite, Margaret Cho, Lewis Black, Dave Atell, the aforementioned Jeff Foxworthy, and so on...) but I also had a blast seeing Wayne Brady and Colin Mochrie and Brad Sherwood do improv live. We can all live together in harmony, doing our own thing. Kumbaya.

So, in summary, if you ever run into me, please don't ask me to tell you a joke!

2 Legit 2 Quit!

Believe it or not, the fine folks at Pop Culture Junkies have given me a chance to write on a site that is seen by more than 2 people! I'm a writer! Check out my hilarious review of Last Comic Standing. If you suffered through it last night, you will probably think the recap was much funnier than the show itself (hell, I laughed more at the "Office" marathon promo!)

In other news, my sister-in-law just had a baby early this morning. Congrats Lynne and Mark! This means I am now an aunt. I am someone's aunt. Scary, isn't it? I want to be a "hip aunt" like my aunt is. She introduced me to rock n' roll (still have the LP's) and Oyster Bars, among other things. By the time my new niece is ready to be RAWKED, the only thing "hip" about me will be a hip replacement. Of course, the li'l chica will have to learn to fish first (from both Dad and Unca Paul!) Speaking of fishing...

I never detailed the excitement of the PTTS Ladies Day Tarpon Tournament down in Boca Grande a few weeks ago. I was on a team with Dena and Beth (it was the "wives and girlfriends crew".) In keeping with the long tradition (which started way back in 2005) of dressing up for the event (as no one, including the event organizers, take the ladies seriously,) we decided to do a "pimp n' ho" theme. Paul got he and Cap'n Ozzie those silly pimp hats that you find at Spencer Gifts or other fine retail locations. We gals had to bring the sexy. Last year I was in an oversized fishing shirt and baggy shorts. This year, it was a black bikini with matching mini skirt and (optional) red feather boa. At least the camera boat was around us more this year! We dropped lines at 9am and had 3 hours to land a bigg'un. I thought I had one on 2 occasions, but I merely had hooked the bottom. Beth got one hooked, but we couldn't keep it. If you've ever seen the Tarpon Tourney on TV, you'd know how hard it is to actually land a fish - boats are stacked thick and are almost on top of each other. Result? No fish (only 3 were caught in the whole tourney - 60-something boats) and a slight sunburn due to negligent sunscreen application. It was fun though!

Not much else is going on right now. If I were a psychic (which I'm totally not), I would predict a lot of changes coming up this summer and beyond....

Score One for the Goobers!

Yay! Taylor won! Goobs represent! I'd like to think I had something to do with this victory, so hey guy, you're welcome. They did give a scary statistic at the end of the show, over 60 million people voted, to which Ryan "I'm not gay, really, I'm not...but that Simon..." Seacrest said something along the lines of that it was more people than voted for A.I. than they did for the last presidential election (to my credit, I did vote in the last presidential election too, I just didn't pick a winner like I did tonight. 'Nuff said.) Noticed they let the gospel singers out from their backstage confines for one last performance until next year. How nice of them. I did finally realize, as I whooped and hollered on the couch when they announced that Taylor won, that I don't have anything to root for this time of year (no football!)and that's probably why I got involved woth this whole "Idol" thing in the first place. At least that's what I'd like to think...

Congrats Taylor!

Pa-F'in-Thetic

Ok. I officially have no life. I stayed up last night so I could call in and vote for Taylor Hicks on "American Idol". He was my second choice even (I really wanted Chris - the "rock guy" - to win), but for some reason I was compelled to battle the busy signals (for 2 hours, no less) just to hear "Hi, thanks for voting for me!" I even watched the whole shebang (my defense remains that "A.I." is on right before "House" - that's my story and I'm sticking to it!) Some things struck me as funny while I wasted an hour of my life. One of the judges (probably Paula, the mistress of fluffy comments) said Taylor's dancing style was "contagious" and I thought to myself "More like he has something contagious!" maybe that's why I like him - he's a goob and has no problem with it. Yeah...that's why. I also hated the last song - how schmaltzy! Why do they do that to these poor kids (even "Boobie McBooberson's" song sucked.) And what is it with the gospel orchestra. I guess they helped out BMB, but why drag them put for Taylor? I guess the producers figured, "Well, we've already paid for them..." Yikes. So anyway, congrats Taylor and sorry to my hubby, who hates him!

P.S. Look at that picture (thanks Cold Hearted Truth for the image). He is kind of cute. But then again, I have always had a thing for kinda nerdy guys (and the complete opposite, like the hubby!)

What's Your Favorite Color?

Ok. I am in a slight quandary. I get restless about any number of things – I tend to have a "gypsy" mentality – I am never completely happy where I am – both physically and spiritually. The spiritual thing is more of an issue as of late. (Physically, if we actually pull up stakes and head out of P.R., that’s great. If not, I am going to do a 100% overhaul of the house, so it will be a change of scenery in some shape or form at least.) As many of you know, I am hopelessly insecure about my looks, and to ask anyone to be honest about matters of looks is essentially futile, as no one is completely honest about such matters (although my husband said he "wouldn’t mind" if I got a boob job.) So, next best thing…I need your help - it’s time for an exciting new poll…

Find Fitz’s Perfect Hair Color!

I am taking suggestions as to which color is best on me. Here are your options:

1. Blonde – Yes, I was born blonde. Those who know me know I can be pretty dinghy, so it’s easy to believe that I have “blonde roots”! I have always wanted to emulate my role model, Marilyn Monroe (except for the bad marriages/choice in men and drug problems) and since I don’t have the bod, at least I can have the hair (although, Christina Aguliera has been doing her take on Marilyn (a slutty take, but an obvious nod) lately, and I wouldn’t want anyone think I was paying tribute to her!) I was blonde when I met and married my hubby, and I have spent the most time this color. Since I’m so pasty, I don’t now if this color works as well on me as I thought it did. When I “fake bake” (tan-in-a- can), it looks better, but I can’t afford to keep myself in fake tanners year-round! This always seems to be my “go-to color” – I think I might be too old for platinum, but who knows?

2. Brunette – This was the first color I chose when I wanted a change from the blonde. It’s my “I want to be taken seriously” color. The first time I experimented with brown hair was when I graduated from college (the first time). I thought I’d get a better job if I looked more responsible because, in my 21-year-old brain, blondes were perceived as being dumb (not that there were any dumb brunettes anywhere…) My first go-round with the brown was not too good – my hair was resistant to the change, and my hair ended up as kind of a dingy, almost gun metal color. It was pretty bad. I went brunette again in my early 30’s – just for a change (I was going through a lot of other “changes” at that time as well…) I added a few blonde streaks in the front – the overall result was kind of cool. Of course, I desired change, so it was back to blonde after a few months. See? Fear of Clairol Commitment!

3. Red – The current shade. Bowing to Ann-Margret, not Lindsay Lohan! I actually kind of like this, but if I need a change, I can’t stay this shade. Again, I came here from blonde (this was my post-wedding change. Most girls cut their hair, I opted for a different route), and my hair didn’t want the red. It still is a battle to keep it red, it mellows out pretty quickly. I just don’t know!

If you’d like to help, leave your comments here for me. Don’t know if I’ll change, but input is always appreciated!

Don't Hate the Player...

I hate to admit it, but I have been following "American Idol" this season (it's on right before "House" for pete's sake!) I can't believe it. I spent so much time trying to avoid it, but it's everywhere - even in Australia, on our honeymoon, it was on. It was on in Costa Rica too! It is too powerful to escape...

So anyway, like most of the country, I was rooting for Chris (the rock guy). After he was (gasp!) eliminated, I moved on to my second choice, Taylor (the guy with the grey hair). I like his Joe Cocker-esque voice, the fact that he hasn't dyed his hair (I'm one to talk...) and, sorry, I love his dorky dancing. My husband (also drawn in to A.I. because of it's pre-"House" time slot) hates him, pretty much for the same reasons. He had not one good thing to say about the guy. He (of course) is rooting for Boobie McBooberson (the only chick left and the reason that girls can get their husbands/boyfriends to watch the show!) I am rooting for Taylor even more now, although I don't think he needs my help! Go Taylor!

Happy Wasabi!

I really don't have a whole lot to say, but I feel obligated to type something. Paul just got back from Japan for business meetings and brought back about $100 worth of Japanese snacks (my obsession). I've been unhappy and stressed a lot lately (for a wide variety of reasons) and nothing puts me in a better mood than a bag full of sweet and salty treats from the Far East. One of the highlights of our once-yearly trek to EPCOT Center for the Wine Fest is the mandatory stop at the store in the Japanese section of World Showcase, where I inevitably...
a) Spend around 30-40 dollars on snacks
b) Eat most of said snacks before I leave the park
c) Drink waaaayyy too much sake

I will also stop at any Asian market I see, no matter where I am (New York, Australia, Georgia) and not be able to escape without dropping at least a $20. For the uninitiated, here's a brief summary of some of my favorites (old and new):

- Wasabi peas: Classic. My absolute favorite. Small fried peas with a crunchy wasabi coating. There are actually places in the US where you can get a decent bag (current favorite is at Wild Oats). Paul bought me an assortment of peas and beans, which kick butt! The more wasabi there is, the happier I am. I have eaten so many in one sitting that I lost the use of my taste buds for 2 days. Yummy!

- Pretz: These are like very skinny Japanese breadsticks, but the flavors are awesome. I love the salad and tomato flavors. The regular Pretz is slightly sweet, like a plain cookie. I found some roasted chicken flavor on a web site, which I think I have to try.

-Pocky: These are Pretz dipped in chocolate or various other sweet substances. Men's Pocky is dark chocolate flavored (I don't know why...) Paul got me black sesame flavor this time around - which looks odd, but tastes like peanut butter. He also got me green tea flavor (everything comes in green tea flavor over there, and it's not bad!) strawberry, framboise (raspberry), caramel and melon. He also bought me some called Fran (a Pocky knock off), but they're named after one of my best friends, so you can't pass it up. I also got my first 2 boxes of Giant Pocky - about 10" long and thicker than your average Pocky stick (Pocky on steroids!) I will be eating these for months...

- Melty Kiss - these are chocolates with green tea filling. The prospect was a bit frightening, but these are great (this is the confection I predict will be the first gone - Paul loves them too.)

- Miscellaneous candies and salty snacks: I don't speak Japanese, so I have no idea what they are - all I need to know is that they're good!

Paul had a very interesting trip. He saw a lot of cool stuff and went to a lot of cool places. I went to Naples. Oh well...I am actually supposed to go along on the next trip, so I should probably learn more than "My name is..." in Japanese! More later...

The Exciting Conclusion...

Sorry, I have been updating my "professional site" so I've neglected my blog - I apologize to my faithful readers that I've left you hanging! So, where was I?

Day 6 (continued)
So there I am at the top of this platform, with a beautiful panoramic view of Lake Arenal, the volcano, and the vast rainforest. It would have been the ultimate experience if it wasn't for the knot in my stomach that came about when I realized the velocity and angle at which I'd be returning to land. I was petrified. You could chicken out, but had to make up your mind during the first two lengths of cable, which were quite tame (they were used as the training part of the journey - one to learn how to use the clip bar/equipment and how to position your body as you go down and the other was to learn how to slow down - mainly for the heavier people.) I was in this position (chicken out or not) once before. I was in Destin, Florida on vacation with a friend who was also in my improv group (a real smart ass). For whatever reason, I wanted to go on the Skycoaster (I'm sure you've seen it, thy have them at carnivals, theme parks, and all over Orlando - you get strapped into a harness, get pulled to the top of a tower and then come screaming down, like you're flying.) There was no line and I had a few beers (aka "Liquid Courage") prior to this, so I paid my $30 and strapped in. On the Skycoatser, you control your own destiny, you have to pull the cord that sends you down. I got up to the top of the tower and thought to myself "I can't do this". Then I thought of the massive amount of ribbing I'd get from my friend and figured death was much less awful than having all of my friends find out that I'm a big wuss. So I pulled the cord and had one of the most exhilarating experiences of my life. It was awesome (I don't know that I'd ever do it again, but I'd recommend the experience to anyone.) Back to Costa Rica, on this trip I was also accompanied by a smart ass - my hubby. I knew I had to do it. Paul went down first. I watched him speed down the line, his figure disappearing rapidly from view. Then, my turn. I was shaking as they hooked me onto the cable. If there was ground, I couldn't see it. The guy who was hooking me up asked "Esta listo?" (Are you ready?) I wasn't (I wouldn't ever be, really), but said "Si" and away I went. Oh my God. It was the coolest thing I've ever experienced, topping the Skycoaster and even the Sydney Bridge climb in Australia. After the initial run, I was yelling "Estoy listo!" every time I got ready to take on another line. (I ended up being a translator on this trip - a few of the guys who worked for the Sky Tour didn't speak much English, and of course all of the turistas didn't speak Spanish - there are so many English speaking tourists over there now that most Costariquenos (or Ticos, as they're also called) are pretty fluent in Spanglish. So I am translating instructions to the other turistas and teaching the staff how to say things like "side to side" and "slow down". 5 years of Spanish helped, I guess!) I was really sad when it was over!

The ride back to Tabacon was amusing. There were a bunch of middle aged guys from California with us, and their pseudo-"leader" was this guy who vaguely resembled Gary Busey. He was kind of (loudly) recapping the information the tour guide provided on the tram, and I don't believe he got any of it right. It was only an hour ago...geez! No wonder other countries hate us...

After all of this excitement, we had a traditional Costa Rican buffet dinner (lots of pork, rice and chicken - and tres leches cake for desert...mmmmmm!) We heard the distinctive rumbling that came from the volcano and got to see lava coming down the side of the volcano - it was truly spectacular. The next day was "GUAPOTE!" and we had to get up early, so we made it an early night.

Day 7
GUAPOTE! Yes, we hit Lake Arenal for a little fishing. Our guide took us out on the lake and we caught a variety of bass - none were really impressive, we've caught bigger (ok, Paul's caught bigger) in our lake - but Paul did finally get his GUAPOTE! so it was a good trip. (Don't ask me what I caught - I think a tiger bass (?), some sort of Costa Rican mullet and, of course, a GUAPOTE! (actually, Rainbow Bass) of my very own! Oh, and a horrible sunburn on the tops of my legs - first one of the trip.)

We went back to the resort, grabbed lunch and then headed out on our ATV tour (no sitting around for us!) It was only my second time ever on a 4-wheeler - the first was when I was 15 and went out with my friend Suzie, I got on, started up, went a few feet and promptly crashed into a bush. Needless to say, I was a little nervous. After a few minutes of getting used to the ride in a big empty field (no bushes!), we ventured out and had a nice 2-hour journey. Since we were off-road quite a bit, I got really dirty. And we had already checked out. Great. I had to grab a washcloth and try to clean up as best as I could in the ladies room before we got a ride back to San Jose. We stayed at the Ramada Herradura, which was really nice. When we got in our room, we flipped on the TV, and imagine my delight when my favorite show, "House" was on (it's called "Dr. House" over there - if it were literally translated it would be "Casa" which really doesn't work. By the way, most North American shows have Spanish subtitles, but I did get to see the "Trapped in the Closet" episode of "South Park" dubbed (surprisingly well) in Spanish as well as "Los Simpson"!) We had dinner at Sancho Panza, a Spanish restaurant. We had a delicious paella and a few Imperials as the hours ticked down to burfday #37 (I managed to translate the first bit of 50-Cent's "In Da Club" to Spanish for the occasion - ok...here it is....)

Yo pequeno, es su cumpleanos

Vamos a celebrar como es su cumpleanos

Vamos a beber Bacardi como es su cumpleanos...

...and that's all of the song I know (even in English!)

Day 8
We got up early (again) and jumped on a bus at 6am to head out on a whitewater rafting adventure (See? I am an action figure!) When we got on the bus, there were a bunch of loud, boisterous guys (about our age) already there. They were loudly boasting of their maids and Porsches, so I was not looking forward to spending a few hours with them. Then we went to another hotel to pick up another group and they were late. Real late. They finally got on the bus, we pulled out into the street and immediately turned around and headed back, because one of the new people had the wrong kind of shoes! (I never thought we'd ever be leaving San Jose!) We drove for a few hours to the "operations base" for the river rafting company, loaded up on breakfast (I'm not even going to tell you what I had!) and made our way to the Pacuare River. Since there were only 2 of us, we had to go with some of the loud guys...great. Our tour guide was named Abel and as we headed out, he became less of the friendly tour guide and more of a drill sergeant ("What part of paddle forward do you not understand??") The loud guys became our allies (the ones on our raft were actually nice - they were from Ft. Lauderdale) as our hatred of Abel intensified. At least he was a good guide. We never got caught up on any rocks. The scenery along the river was beautiful - there were tons of waterfalls and cool grottos. There were also some very intense Class III and IV rapids. One group did actually hang themselves up on the rocks and Abel went out to help them, while we waited on the shore. Abel swam back and was floating in the water, asking us to come out in the raft and pick him up. We all just looked at him for a moment - and in that moment, Abel realized what a jerk he had been all day and his demeanor magically changed. The whole ride was 14 miles and took us about 3 hours. It was a lot of fun! We went back to our hotel and dined at the sushi restaurant there (pretty good). Of course, you can't seem to go anywhere in Costa Rica anymore with out some loud North American bragging about his business acumen, finances, golf game, whatever - no wonder they hate us....All in all, an excellent birthday!

Day 9
Sniffle! Today was our last day in this beautiful country. We had an early (of course) flight, but had time for the obligatory souvenir shopping (the coffee there is awesome, so we picked some up, as well as gifts for family and friends) and no trip overseas would be complete without a stop at the duty-free store! We went from paradise to hell in a matter of hours...Miami Airport was a zoo (as always) and the traffic (on a Sunday, no less) was awful. When are we going back? Soon I hope!

Christine's Costa Rica Adventure - I'm an Action Figure!

Ok. Now, where was I...

Day 5
Today we left Crocodile Bay and headed back to San Jose. We were headed for Tabacon, a resort and spa that are very close to the Arenal Volcano. The place is about 3 hours from San Jose. We took a cab (!) there, as there was only one (inconvenient) flight there via puddle jumper. It was a beautiful drive however, as we wound our way up and down the mountains, passing through small towns, souvenir stands and one very odd toll booth (it was a rickety little shack with hand painted information on the side. Our cab driver stopped, said hello to the lady in the booth and drove on, without paying a dime (or a colon, the currency in C.R.) We deduced it was probably a toll only for the gullible "turistas"! And then we were there...and it was beautiful!

The place was gorgeous - lush landscaping, beautiful architecture, friendly staff. Our room was luxurious as well (really comfy bed). This part of the trip was dubbed "mine" as there was nowhere for Paul to fish. Until...

If there's an opportunity to fish, Paul will find it. He went over to the concierge to make sure all of our eco-tours were booked and discovered he could go fishing in Lake Arenal for indigenous Costa Rican rainbow bass, or Guapotes. So, of course, he booked this and this part of the trip became "ours". (And "GUAPOTE!" was Paul's battle cry for the next 3 days!) One thing I noticed while Paul was talking with the concierge was the video running behind her desk. It featured all of the eco-tours that were available through the resort. They showed zip line tours (which we were going to do) ATVs (which we also were going to do) horseback riding and such. The video also spotlighted the hot springs - which I guess sell themselves, because the folks in the video did not provide any additional temptation! It was 5 minutes of pasty, old, fat white guys shuffling along and sitting like a lump on a log in the water. Eeeewwwww! But I digress...

As soon as we settled in, we walked down to the hot springs. "Hot springs" is definitely not a misnomer! The scenery was breathtaking, with natural waterfalls and even more beautiful flora and fauna (and one little iguana scooting across the walkway.) The volcano was awesome, I had never seen one before. It's an active one, so we could see smoke coming out of the top of it. The springs are hot because of the volcano - some were so hot, I couldn't even get in. Paul, of course, plunged right in to each and every one! The swimming pool was really the only place where I could stay in the water for more than a minute or so (maybe it was because it had a pool bar? Yay, pool bar!) We had a light lunch there because we were having our big dinner that night (it was also my birthday dinner.) The restaurant was lovely, and very fancy-schmancy (with the 9 million forks, knives and spoons on the table - "Oh, that's your asparagus fork!" and even sorbet!) The food there was so good (we didn't have a bad meal on the whole trip actually.) We were sleepy after dinner, so it was off to sleep and onto our next day's adventure.

Day 6
Today was my favorite day on the trip. We had a bountiful breakfast buffet (more gallo pinto for me!) and were off to the Sky Tram tour. This was the canopy tour through the rainforest. I always thought that they were laid back affairs, where you move yourself leisurely across zip lines from tree to tree. Imagine my surprise when I got to the base and found out that "laid back" was definitely not happening today! We had to get into harnesses and those helmets that would even make Albert Einstein look like the "Ding, Fries Are Done" guy. We the got into a tram that took us waaaaaayyyyyy up into the mountains. That part could have been laid back, if I wasn't starting to freak out about how we were going to get down. You could see the zip lines - they were long and, instead of taking you on a horizontal, tree to tree path they did an almost 90 degree drop from platform to platform (guess that's why they're called zip lines, huh?)Guess what? I'm spent! I will give you a teaser...to be continued...

One more...

I know most of you couldn't care less about Peter Frampton, but I adore him. Posting the videos I find of him here is so convenient for me - I can watch these a million times - so the heck with you all if you don't like it! I am still clinging to the hope that I will actually be able to meet the man before I die. So if you Googled "Peter Frampton" and ended up here, and you actually are Peter Frampton...

Ahhh...You Tube...

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I get harassed by many people about my obsession with one Mr. Peter Frampton. But, hey, he rocks! Thanks to the wonder of the Internet, I can now share his genius with you! (Isn't it amazing the things I can find to fill my blog in lieu of actual writing?) So anyway, here is the song that I tried to have as my wedding song not once, but twice! I will post another song I found in the next post...

Christine's Costa Rica Adventure - As Many Days As I Feel Like Recapping Here!

At long last! I am back to relaying my adventures in paradise! So, here goes...

Day Two

We head off from San Jose to Puerto Jiminez, which is on the southern end of the country. To get there, you have to take a puddle jumper. The first time I went to Puerto Jiminez was right after Aaliyah died in that plane crash. I was a little nervous to be getting on a small plane. Before you fly on Nature Air (Costa Rica's puddle jumper airline), they weigh you and your luggage (at least they don't yell out your weight to everyone in the tiny terminal), the owner of them lodge and his wife were on that flight and had what appeared to be 10 tons of luggage with them. Needless to say, I was a little nervous. Add to that the plane was about a big as a van with wings and our pilot looked to be about 12 years old. I survived that (obviously), so this time was no sweat. The "airport" in Puerto Jiminez is basically a landing strip and what looks like a bus stop. One interesting, but slightly disturbing thing is that it is right next store to a cemetery! We were picked up there and taken to the beautiful Crocodile Bay Lodge (about 5 minutes from the airport). The place is beautiful - airy and bright with no TV's in the room (so relaxing!) We got there in the early morning and had enough time to grab breakfast (I had Gallo Pinto - the typical Costa Rican breakfast, which is basically beans and rice, but it's so good!) and then we were off to do some inshore fishing. Our captain's name was Wilbert and he was awesome. We caught a lot of fish - the most of any of the boats that were out there that day - lots of snapper, jacks and needlefish. For some reason a full day of fishing really wears one out! It was Easter Sunday and the Lodge had quite the spread for dinner - a full buffet featuring some of the snapper we caught! Delish! After dinner and a few pina coladas it was off to bed and our next adventure...

Day Three
We woke up early (of course), scarfed down some Gallo Pinto and headed off for some offshore fishing. I caught my first sailfish, which weighed in at a hefty 80 lbs! Of course, Paul caught a sail too - it was a great day! Went back to enjoy libations at the swim-up pool bar (if I ever get a pool, I am so having a swim-up bar!) and another great dinner. Then (pooped again!), off to bed...

Day 4
More inshore fishing at the Lodge. Went out with Wilbert again, and Paul caught a fish he had never caught before (very rare for him!)- a Cubera Snapper -which also proved to be quite good eating!

More to come...

We interupt this travelogue...

I am (I promise) going to write the next installment of my Costa Rica trip soon - but in lieu of that, enjoy my favorite You Tube video...

Christine's Costa Rica Adventure - Day 1

I'm sure my 2 (or so) loyal readers of my blog have been dying to know what happened on my recent trip to Costa Rica. Well, I finally have gotten all of the pictures developed (yes, we actually used those old-timey (non-digital) film cameras for part of the trip!) and I have kind of gotten caught up with work, so I can begin to share my experiences with you. So, here goes...

We ventured out of Miami on Saturday, April 15th - we had a brief layover in Panama City (no, not that Panama City!) We wanted to grab a bite and thought we should probably hit the ATM in the terminal. When we approached, there was already a lady there using it - so we ventured closer to see what kind of unusual currency they used in Panama. Imagine our surprise when U.S. $20 bills came out! We didn't need any money there, the food in the airport was really cheap. P. got a hot dog, 2 sodas (one for me) and some chips for two bucks! We then flew into San Jose, the capital of the country. I had heard tales of a certain notorious hotel in San Jose and I knew I had to check it out for myself, so P., coolest husband ever, arranged for us to spend a night at the Hotel Del Rey. P.'s fishing buddies were quite surprised that I requested to stay there, but I couldn't resist. Just to clarify, the Hotel Del Rey (and accompanying bar, The Blue Marlin) is, to put it nicely, a brothel. The available ladies pack the bar and casino at all hours of the day, looking for "dates". If they end up making a "Love Connection", they will bring their "date" to their "manager" to arrange terms, then either head out of the Blue Marlin to parts unknown, or head up to one of the (actually quite comfy) rooms upstairs in the hotel. It was a fascinating evening of people watching. I, being what I assume was the only gringa in the place, was actually looked at a few times like I was "working" there (the working girls actually were pretty much dressed the same way as I was - low cut jeans, small t's and such - no outrageously slutty outfits to be found.) Of course, P. made sure I was not on the market (I think he did find it slightly amusing that men were checking me out and wondering what my asking price was!)It was really a much more benign experience than I was expecting - I've seen worse behavior in the bars in Orlando and Atlanta - but interseting nonetheless. Of couse we gambled a little, we blew a whopping $40 between the two of us (no worries about gambling addiction here!)and had a few Imperial (Costa Rican) beers (I'm not as much of a beer drinker as I used to be, but for some reason, when I'm in a country where Budweiser is considered an import, the availability of "exotic" beers at bargain prices is irresistable!) We also spent a little time around downtown San Jose, which offers pretty much what you'd expect to see in a third world country - numerous homeless folks and incredibly zippy street vendors, who could pack up in less than one minute when the threat of law enforcement was near (we witnessed this - they hustled at a speed I hadn't ever seen before once the signal was given that la policia were near.) From what I saw, Costa Rican steet vendors had few unique wares to offer - to me it looked like the same tired necklaces and designer sunglass knock-offs - but hey, they're trying to be self-sufficient, so more power to 'em!

All of this excitement actualy occurred in the first day of our adventure. Bet you're chomping at the bit to find out what happens next...

4 Years Older Than God

Yup. I'm 37. I'm in that blank spot before you hit the "big 4-0". Had an awesome birthday however - I was in Costa Rica as another year passed for me. Of course I'll share the highlights of my week in one of the most wonderful countries in the world (tied with Australia), just not tonight! Stay tuned - same Fitz time, same Fitz channel...

It hasn't really been 20 years, has it?

I was going to do a recap of my goings-on of late (at least I was going to a few weeks ago - gee, how time flies!) But another topic has taken over the blog for now. (And if you really want to know what's been going on, in a nutshell, Mom and Dad moved to the condo - after coming up here to see Dame Edna - where Dad (inevitably) got involved in the show, I won tickets to see Wanda Sykes in Orlando, and, having no one to go with, ventured out by myself and had an excellent time, and - being the good Irish gal I am - had a memorable St. Patty's Day, 'nuff said!)But I digress...

I graduated from high school in 1986. So for you math majors, this means that it's my 20 year reunion this year. It's no secret that my high school years were easily the worst 4 years of my life (overall - I did make, and keep, a few really good friends - good enough that I (Miss "I hate kids")actually attended my first baby shower a few weeks ago!) but, since I think I may actually look better than I did when I was in high school and have an adorable, wonderful, smart-ass husband, I thought it might be actually rather fun to go to my upcoming reunion. This idea was totally vetoed by my (3) high school buddies - who all had no plans of attending - I think they were still probably miffed that I missed our 10-year, but I had just (not even a month earlier) gotten promoted from CNN Tour Guide ("Where do Regis and Kathie Lee sit?" - obviously the bottom of the totem pole) to graphics operator in the main CNN control room (I had the worst schedule ever - 6pm - 3am, Monday and Tuesday off - but I knew I couldn't ask on my first day, "Oh, can I have a weekend off?" - I have tried to explain this a million times, to no avail - but I still love my girls!) Actually, 2 of my friends are preggers, and I can understand why they wouldn't want to go (I know I'd need at least a few drinks before I could see any of those people again!)Besides, I'll be moving closer to my friends by the end of the year (I hope, I hope) - so a reunion really is a moot point. SO (boy, I'm verbose tonight!), I had pretty much dismissed the whole reunion thing (besides, the organizer of the reunion copied me on an email about the soiree and the people she also sent the email to I had no interest in seeing whatsoever - which brought me to the conclusion - why should I spend (at least) $200 to spend the weekend with a bunch of people I never liked (and vice versa, I'm sure?) So, needless to say, my June calendar is open now!

But what I didn't really expect to happen is that I am reconnecting with my grade school friends. My absolute best childhood friend in the world found me on Classmates.com a while back, and I was so excited - we've been emailing, sending old photos back and forth, and actuially got together last year, and it's great. Well, she hooked me up with her high school reunion group, and today I heard from a girl I haven't taked to since 1982! It is so exciting and slightly overwhelming to see these people again after such a long time. As a whole, I am way more connected to the Curley Class of '86 than I ever was to the PJPII Class of '86. I've been trying to mask my excitement from my Mom, who blames herself pretty much every time we talk for moving me away from such a great bunch of kids and subjecting me to Boca Raton for my developmental years, but I'm so over all of that - still not gonna give my alma matter $200 though! It was awesome to relive, for just a moment, events like the one you see in the picture (the girl who I just heard from is the one I'm crushing in this photo!) Made me feel a little old...until I got carded tonight buying a bottle of wine!

We are off to Costa Rica on Saturday. Don't know if I'll have time for more entries before then. I am trying to promise myself that I'll return with a lot of cool travel blog entries. Let's keep our fingers crossed on that one!

My Dog Has More Friends Than Me

I'm back! Thanks to all of you who missed me (that would be you, Rose!)

I wrote a really lengthy entry yesterday, and thanks to the wonders of the Web, it has magically disappeared! I'll recount everything soon, but for now, I'll just get to the meat of the previous, lost post. I have a profile on MySpace - set up to help some of my single male friends tweak their profiles to meet chicks (apparently, I have a gift - it's how I met my husband.) So, anywhoo...I have about 43 "friends" - made up mostly of comedians and bands (as much as I'd like it to be true, Barenaked Ladies are not actually my friends!) I was able to reconnect with a few acquaintances from FSU, but only one real-life new friend (who my husband actually hooked me up with - no, we're not swingers!) I thought it would be cute to set Boo up on a site called Dogster - and wouldn't you know it, the bitch (literally) has more friends than me! Sad, really...

I'll recap the past few weeks in the next post!

Congrats to the Zimmers!

I don't have time for a proper post, but I just wanted to congratulate my sister and her new hubby on their nuptials. They did it smart - they eloped! All the best to you both! And to my (few) faithful readers, I promise many new exciting posts in the near future!

If There's A Dive Bar, Yo I'll Find It...

I don't know what it is about me, but I can find a dive bar in any city I visit! Last night I went over to Orlando, to help sell the Orlando area to one of his reps' wives (they're moving from Minnesota, so it wasn't really a hard sell!) We were actually in Altamonte Springs, spitting distance from the house that my ex-hubby and I shared. Dinner was at Crazy Buffet (yum!) where we enjoyed 2-4-1 wine and loads of sushi. P. and I decided to have a nightcap, so I suggested that we check out the bars at a strip mall (in Florida! Quel surprise!) that was across the road from the restaurant. I had been to the sports bar there a loooooong time ago, and was fascinated with the bar next door to it - Cooter Brown's. Yes, Cooter Brown's. As I have an affinity for bars with "Cooter" in their name (as in the lovely bar we hung out in before my wedding), P. and I headed inside. There was metal on the jukebox (Motley Crue's "Dr. Feelgood") and the drinks were cheap and strong. The clientele, however, led me to believe that this bar could be categorized as a "place where someone's gonna get in a fight". The petite flower sitting on the bar stool next to me was fascinated with my hair color. She complemented me, asked for my hairdresser's name, and promptly fell off her barstool. Oh, and before the tumble, she almost got into a fight with a rather harsh looking middle aged woman with a cowboy hat and bad implants. Let the good times roll...

By the way, I miss Orlando. That's sad. I think what this really says is that I just don't like the Tampa area. I don't get a good "vibe" about the area. Could also be the huge image of my favorite anchor/crush from the tv station I worked for that was plastered on the "Super Duper Doppler" tower! Oh well...

Married? Yeah, married...sheesh!

I don't know why I get a kick out of the title of today's blog entry - I used this "Sixteen Candles" quote when telling a few friends that my youngest sis was getting married sometime soon (the wedding date and location have moved around quite a bit). First it was September in Illinois then March in New Orleans. If she can pin down a date, I'd love to go!

So anyway...I really wanted to write about my big weekend in Hooterville. I really didn't know what to do - we wanted to do something but didn't have the motivation to drive to civilization (Tampa), so we chose to make do with the cavalcade of entertainment that only Port Richey has to offer. Of course, we ended up at the movie theater (much more pleasant since they enforced the curfew!) Saw "Date Movie", which ranks up there with the worst movies I have ever seen (and that's really saying something!) It was just bad. Not "so bad it's good" - a la "Showgirls". Just godwafully bad. Usually chattering and texting teens annoy the hell out of me, but this time they were a welcome diversion from what was going on onscreen. I felt ripped off. So anyway, after such a promising beginning, how to end an evening like this? Why, the "Jale House (yes, that is actually whay the sign says - "Jale". Maybe the guy who owns "The Karl Reef" owns this one too - naah...it's just that no one in Pasco County can spell) Karaoke Cafe"!

We approached the rundown building and saw a sign that said $10 cover. Since we were only staying for one drink, we didn't want to pay the cover. We started to head back to the car and a guy popped his head out the door and yelled to us that there was no cover. So we ventured, hesitantly, inside. There were about 15 people on the cramped dance floor doing "The Electric Slide", so things were not looking good for a lengthy cocktail stop. There was an assortment of motley folks in the club (about 25 in all) - there was the guy who looked like Greg Allman, the lady in the blue velour track suit (very tight and not too kind to her shlubby physique), a guy in a cowboy hat, and the obligatory black guy/fat white chick combo. There was a karaoke "host" floating around, wearing one of those dumb rasta wigs from Spencer's. He didn't sing, he just contributed a few "Awwwwyeah"s over the mic. Actually, for a karaoke bar, there was a strange shortage of karaoke. There were fat binders, full of songs on the tables, and a few people perusing them (Greg Allman for one), but no one took the stage. Until...finally..."Let's bring Rose to the stage." Rose, who was most likely in her mid 50s, proceeded to launch into "Roses Are Red" by Bobby Vinton. She got to about the second line when P. said "That's it" and made a beeline for the door. Guess we'll have to find another place to hang out. At least it was a concrete, tangible example to show P. what was wrong with Port Richey - and insurance that we'll soon be moving to civilization!

Midnight in the Garden of Freeze

Thought that since it's V-day, I'd give a little recap of the past weekend, which was my present from P. - a weekend in Savannah. Savannah is "our place" - when we lived in Atlanta (sniffle!), we used to go there every few weekends, as it's where P. kept his boat. Now it's a really big treat to head up there. P. went up before me, as he had a reservation with Captain Judy to fish and really wanted to go (I had to work.) He called me when he got there and said "It's COLD!" I packed a bunch of sweaters and 3 (count 'em) jackets to make the trek up to our frosty retreat. We stayed at the River Street Inn, right in the center of the action. The hotel was absoultely awesome - historic, balcony overlooking the river, chocolates on the pillow even! I got in late Friday and we wnet to dinner and had a few drinks (Wet Willie's - which I can't believe I patronized so much with the chilly temperatures outside! Kevin Barry's Pub too - where some girl was wearing a backless halter top in 30 degree temperatures. BY THE DOOR!) Didn't really have a plan for Saturday, which was good because we didn't get up until 1pm! Did some shopping (which mostly entailed looking at novelty t-shirts and drooling in the candy stores - but P. did find a stuffed chicken that did the Chicken Dance, which was amusing for about 5 minutes) and had our traditional dinner at the Shrimp Factory (yum!) Then the night got weird...

I was at Wet Willie's alone (Paul had to go up to the room to drop our stuff off) and these 2 large gals bellied up to the bar (they had a lot of belly, so they had no difficulty with that) and one of the babes proceeded to dump the scrawny, redneck (well, we are in Georgia! At least he had all of his teeth. He told me he went to Clemson, but I'm thinking the city, not the university!) dude that was with her off on me - presumably so she could keep his Colts baseball hat. So, even after I told him I was married, he stuck to me and stayed even when P. came into the bar. Then in comes a Bachelorette Party (the girls were making the bride-to-be earn badges for completing her "tasks." I thought the Girl Scout theme was appropriate for Savannah - birthplace of Juliette Gordon Low - their founder. Quite creative.) Poor scrawny dude couldn't get any play from any of the Bachelortettes. Poor guy. Kinda felt sorry for him. Felt sorry for myself the next morning! I won't go into details, but suffice it to say that Wet Willie's frozen concoctions, wine and Chatham Artillery Punches don't mix!

Went to the sloooooooweeeessssttt restuarant Sunday morning (well afternoon, you know how that goes.) We waited "20 minutes" to get a table (I guess "20 minutes" is Savannah Speak for "a real long time".) P. was seated next to a petite flower stretching her sweatpants to their limit, displaying her "summer teeth" and topping it all off with a cap emblazoned with not only a Playboy bunny, but also the annoying phrase "Git R' Done". Yup, Georgia. I think they had 6 out of the 75 tables in the place occupied and the service was awful. I think they had one host (who spent most of his time hiding - he was never at the podium), one waiter, one busboy and one cook (or maybe that was where the host kept sneaking off to...) At least the food was good.

I'm sure I could say more and relate more amusing anecdotes, but I am actually burned out! More on that later...

Cupid, draw back your bow...

Just wanted to enter a quickie today. Everytime I check my email lately, I get a million reminders to get my Valentine a present next week. I don't think my husband wants candy and flowers. I don't know why I keep getting these, but it is amusing watching companies try to market their wares as good Valentine's gifts. Say "I love you" with a new Food Saver. Give your Valentine the gift of meat (yes, even Omaha Steaks is in on the action!) I don't know about you, but a nice card and a small bauble in a light blue box is fine with me (kidding, you don't have to get a card...)

Honestly, do we really need Valentine's Day? When I was single, I hated it (but not as much as New Year's, but that's fodder for another blog entry.) And it's hard to get a guy a gift - I hate when they get me a gift and all I have is a card. Maybe I should give the gift of meat? And the cards! Back in the day, I would get cards for my friends for V-day, but it was gettng increasingly hard to find cards for someone you hadn't seen naked (in a romantic way - I was a fraternity little sis, so I saw a lot!) I almost resorted to getting one of those boxes of Valentine's that we used to send to each other as kids (the ones with pictures of cute, fuzzy animals and really bad puns - or if you had dough, they were emblazoned with the popular cartoon characters of the day.) Now I just reserve cards for hubby and my folks (our family has single-handedely been keeping Hallmark in business for over 25 years!)

But really, if you have a good idea for a guy gift, let me know...

43 Things

As my faithful readers know (all 2 of you), I like to surf the Internet and find things to do to occupy my time. Lately I came across a great site called 43 Things. So, of course, I signed up. Heck, I can accomplish 43 more things before I die, right? I actually have done quite a bit since I set this list up a month or two ago (So do I add new things or just finish the list first? They don't really tell you...)So here's my list (complete with snarky comments):

1. Learn Japanese - pretty self-explanatory. This might be a good time to say that these aren't in any particular order.
2. Meet Peter Frampton - obviously, this would be my number one thing!
3. Learn to play guitar - I am not counting the guitar classes I took in third grade, where I single-handedly took "Hang Down Your Head Tom Dooley", a nice old folk song and reduced it to a funeral dirge, thanks to my awkward chord changes!
4. Move to Australia - easier said than done, right mate?
5. Be a better wife - this one will, I'm afraid, always be on my list!
6. Write a book and have it published - working on that! Started writing class yesterday, and I have promised myself I'd work on my book for a half hour a day. Let's see how long that lasts!
7. Make new friends - trying...
8. Figure out what I want to do with my life - 36 and floating! Maybe if I write that book...
9. Clean out the clutter - this could be taken a few different ways. I'm sure it's the literal way here. I have put a bunch of my books up for sale on Amazon and gotten rid of 3 bags full of clothes - but I'm nowhere near crossing this one off!
10. Go back to Improv comedy - I am trying that too...hard to find the time!
11. Finish my Master's degree - my biggest recent regret. I am going to do this - I was all the way up to my thesis - darn it!
12. Bone upon my Spanish - para mi viaje a Costa Rica en abril. I don't want to have to ask for "cow" at a restaurant because I forgot the word for "beef" again!
13. Go back to Ireland - I'd like to go as an adult - and just live off Guinness and chips for a week!
14. Swim with sharks - I don't even know if they still do this. I knew someone who did this a few years ago and it looked so cool. Of course, I would prefer for this to be a pre-arranged, supervised by professionals kind of experience!
15. Be more diligent about exercising - going to the gym after work is hard, but I have been better at staying away from the TV at night, so this is achievable, I think...
16. Take dance classes - I'd like to find something that is not like classes I've taken in the past - me and a gaggle of pre-teen girls trying to learn a cutesy hip-hop routine (we never even made it through a whole verse of a song!)
17. Join a writing group -actually did this! Now I just have to go to a meeting...
18. Be happy - this is a hard thing to get my arms around - should have put be happy more - no one can be happy all of the time - that's freakish.
19. Cook more - I did do the chili thing on Sunday, so that's a step in the right direction, right? It would help if P. shared my taste for low-fat, mostly vegetarian foods (this will never happen, P. could be the poster boy for Omaha Steaks!)
20. Be more confident
21. Not be stressed - hopefully this will be resolved real soon - like July, perhaps?
22. Be happy with my body - next.
23. Spend more time with my family - this entails more drives to Naples down the nightmare that is I-75. And expensive dog boarding. I still want to see everybody more!
24. Be better with money - I am working on this. I'd be great if I made more though!
25. Stop drinking so much soda - I'll get to this, as soon as I finish this Coke Zero...mmmm....Of course, I can't give up soda completely, as I'd have nothing to mix with my rum! Rummy, rum, rum....
26. Figure out how to play Playstation 2 - I miss Atari. I have tried to play Madden 2005 but get so confused with all of the buttons - I can't spend my down time keyed up about pushing the "X" when I'm supposed to push the triangle and push the left button to move. Frustrating.
27. Learn computer graphics - I used to know some stuff, but you know how technology goes. I think I learned Flash 0.5 or something!
28. Fix my web site - need to do this badly.
29. Learn as much as I can - never getting crossed off either!
30. Learn to sing - not just karaoke.
31. Go to Japan - P.?
32. Get motivated - for what I'm not sure. How about everything!
33. Move - I think this was literal. July...
34. Fix my tattoo - I have to do something with the dumb shamrock on my hip. I got it at a really bad time in my life (long story) and I'm reminded of it everytime I look at it!
35. Win the lottery - who doesn't want this?
36. Keep in touch with friends better - I emailed Eric today...
37. Fish more and better - this one goes with being a better wife!
38. See Hawaii - this should happen within the next few years.
39. Find the perfect hair color - as my self-esteem ebbs and flows, I like my hair and alternately hate it. Blond? Red? Brunette? I have been all of these (currently red) but still haven't found the "mack daddy" color.
40. Consolidate my belongings - did I mention I'm selling some books?
41. Stop procrastinating - I'll do this after I check out eBay...
42. Get my first pedicure - did this on Saturday! Had a fancy-schmancy chocolate manicure. Quite decadent. Cross this baby off!!
43. Be in a movie - SeaQuest doesn't count - I want to be on the big screen!

That's it - seems like I can realistically cross everything off the list. I (as always) will keep you posted...

The Great Tot Conspiracy

They're closing in on me! Just when I start to lose weight (yay on one resoultion at least), my biggest crave in the world is getting closer and closer, surrounding me in a whirlpool of hot oil and potato goodness. Yes, the tater tot.

Let me 'splain. Ever since my Atlanta days, my taste for tots was re-awakened and for a while, I could not get enough of them. We would try to end every drunken night at the Highlander, a bar in Midtown with a very ecclectic crowd - bikers, nouveau-hippies, goths, a few guys who looked like washed-out Glam Rock stars from the 70s and us. The highlight of a visit to the Highlander was ordering a heaping "pitcher o' tots" - literally, a beer pitcher full of the crispy treats. I am a "tot virgin" myself - I don't like 'em scattered, smothered, covered or even dipped in ketchup, just lightly salted, fresh from the fryer. My friends like a little more variety, and one night got more than they bargained for, as some tacks mysteriously appeared in their bowl of chili-covered tots ("tacks n' tots" as my friend Kib dubbed them - he was the one who picked around the tacks to eat all of the tots he could - waste not, want not, right?) On nights I couldn't get to the Highlander, it was Ore-Ida to the rescue! I have a bad habit of cooking under the influence - and not anything that can just be microwaved - oh no, it has to involve the stove or boling water or some other potentially dangerous activity (pasta was one of my favorites - and one night in college a friend of mine and I had a craving for tempura - I had little red oil burn marks all over my arms for the next few days!) So, one night after I got home from some local tavern, I proceeded to bake some tots and watch TV. I fell asleep on the floor, only to awaken, bolt upright and inhale the smoke. The resulting charvoal briquettes killed my tot craving pretty effectively for the night. The whole low carb/South Beach thing kind of changed my relationship with tots, but some new alarming developments have seen the re-awakening of my tot cravings.

Napoleon Dynamite. Yes, damn you Napoleon! His lunchtime tots looked way better than anything I was ever served at school! As tempting as they looked, and thanks to whatever is going on in my body that has reduced my drunken munchies (it's not for lack of drinking, that's for sure!) I am able to resist, with the occasional hiccup or 2 (P. likes the tots too - what kind of wife would I be if I didn't share the tot experience with him?) The other recent development is more disturbing. There have been an alarming number of Sonic fast food restaurants popping up all over my neighborhood. Coincidence...or conspiracy??? Not only is that disturbiong in itself, but Sonic and it's competetors have seemed to have taken over Port Richey - as soon as a new Steak n' Shake, Taco Hell, Wendy's, etc. pops up, a "good" restaurant (where your food isn't served on a plastic tray) disappears! I am well aware that Port Richey is not the first place that comes to anyone's mind when one thinks haute cuisine, but come on! I can't be the only person who wants to live in a world where everytihng isn't fried! I'm scared...hold me...

Image courtesy of baconneggs.gfxartist.com

I have a good excuse...

I have been busy (at work, no less!) this week! I haven't had much time for the usual activities - such as scouring the 'net for more trivial information than anyone would ever need and looking at wacky videos and movie trailers, and I am actually happy about it - it makes the days zip by!

In other news, the pooch finally gets to lose the "satellite dish" tomorrow. Thank God. It makes her head an enormous battering ram that has left the backs of my knees bruised and sore. She has become more of a chicken as she's gotten older - yeah she's only pushing 7 months, but come on - she's supposed to be a watchdog for me when P.'s away, and she's terrified of cardboard boxes, tin foil and thunder (as I found out this AM.) She's a 53 pound chicken!

It's Super Bowl weekend and I have been drafted to make my (almost) world-famous chili (I actually got the recipe off the wall at Chili's years and years ago - my own personal take on it involves every hot thing I can find - habaneros, scotch bonnets, jalepenos, Tabasco...you get the point.) I almost got away without having to prepare it, as P. and one of his buddies were supposed to be fishing in Louisiana until late Sunday, but the weather changed his plans quite drastically. It has been the nastiest winter ever - rain, wind and yuck. I need Spring. I need renewal. I have been getting rid of stuff like crazy (but I did buy a new Pink Lady album - I had to!) Some things I still just can't part with - like my stupid collectible KISS and Austin Powers action figures (got 2 sets of Gene and the gang!) I also can't explain the appeal of my Ginger Spice doll collection (I guess it's because she was so sassy!) The Cher doll - don't need to explain (unfortunately, my 1970's pre-mummification Cher doll is long gone, but I have made do with the milennial version.) I suppose if some of this stuff was worth a few bucks on eBay, I could easily part with them, but last time I checked, you could get all of these for about $10 total. I'll just keep 'em. With my luck I would sell them and the next day there'd be some freak accident where a plane carrying Mike Myers crashes into the KISS tour bus or something! Wow, did I go off on a tangent!

My writing class starts Monday, so maybe I will have some better material on here soon!

Lazy Friday

It's cliche, but thank God it's Friday. What a long week! P. finally comes home today. It's a good thing I have so many pictures of him, or I'd forget what he looks like! Of course, he's fishing this weekend, and I'm continuing the quest to get to the floor in my room (I am getting there...don't know why I can't get rid of my Beanie Babies cllection or Austin Powers Action figures, I am strangely attached to them - and they're not worth squat on eBay - I checked!) I also need to weed through the boxes upon boxes of what I call "memorabilia" and everyone else calls "crap" that needs to go into scrapbooks. I actually finished one (detailing my first Atlanta stint - the Ron-Rocky-CNN era) but that's such a small stretch of my life - I don't know how many books I'll have filled once I fill in all of those gaps! One thing I definitely want to keep is sadly missing, I have lost my Pink Lady album. (Pink Lady is the Japanese disco duo who had an infamously short-lived TV show - produced by Sid & Marty Krofft and co-starring Jeff "Buttsteak" Altman, who has never been funny. Never.) I am very sad. I have also figured out that I really don't have much to say today - the ennui is killing me! I'll write more later, but in the mean time, if you find my Pink Lady album, please let me know.



And you wondered why I was such a Spice Girls fanatic...

Dammit, we can't have nice things...

Greetings on post-Hump Day! First off, we got the vacation situation all worked out. I will be permitted to take a week off (without pay, of course) to go to Costa Rica, as long as I don't take one more second off until my year anniversary in June. This also means that I have to drive to Savannah by myself on Friday and miss out (again) on fishing with the legendary Captain Judy. Oh well, at least I won't be subjected to the country stations P. has programmed into his Sirius unit! At least I have my XM, Dane Cook and Jim Gaffigan to keep me company!

Now, to the matter at hand. The destructo-dog! Ever since Boo has come into our lives, we have managed to keep the things we would like to be free of bite marks and slobber (shoes, books, etc.) out of harm's way. We also have a wide array of things she can chew on in lieu of my Steve Madden pumps or P.'s surge protector. Unfortunately, since she is still limited by the big satellite dish around her head, she has been denied her chewies because she tends to thrash around quite a bit, and her stitches have started pulling a bit. I don't want a return engagement at the vet, so no playtime for the pooch until she's healed. SO...this AM, she found something new. In the 5 minutes I stepped into the bathroom to put on my makeup (yes fellas, it actually only takes me 5 minutes to put on my face. The hair, however, is another story - and don't even get me started on finding something to wear!) she managed to chew up a substantial portion of the carpet in front of the laundry room - even exposing the "painstick" thast holds the carpet down (if you have ever stepped on it, you know exactly what I'm talking about.) This wouldn't be so bad if we hadn't just had some other mishaps in the house, calling for insurance claims and repairmen trotting through the house (it's feeling more and more like that horrible movie "The Money Pit" every day.) At least we can tack this on to the list. By the time we get done fixing everything, P. isn't going to want to leave! Great. I was beyond pissed this morning - and even her big, sad brown eyes didn't keep Boo out of her cage. (That's hard...could you resist this?

I thought not...

Clipped Wings?

I read online that today is the "gloomiest day of the year" and for me, it's kind of ranking up there with some of my not so pleasant days. Yes, there are the usual Monday problems, but my travel plans may be seriously curtailed for the next few months. I have only been at my job for a year, but I have already taken 15 days off. 15! Wow, it didn't seem like that many. Friday here, Monday here for long weekends with P. It wasn't an issue until a long Valentine's Day weekend in Savannah came up. That request led into a week in Costa Rica that may not happen now. Oh sure, I could go, but I'd be going as an unemployed tourist. I don't know what to do. We (P. and myself) had talked this past weekend about our future. He has been travelling a lot, and we haven't had a lot of "quality time". By July we will know if we're staying here (albeit not in Hooterville!) or heading east to be closer to P.'s office. I need a change, that's all I know. I am sad, miserable and lonely. I am trying to expand my horizons (I have been really good about easing up on my television consumption, well...except for "Flavor of Love"- yeaaaaahh boooooooyyy!) but I just feel like we're almost roommates - not even, as I saw my roomies more than I see my husband. It sucks. I sent P. a frantic email this AM when I got the news - I'm sure he's probably pissed and/or confused at the moment. Ought to be an interesting conversation tonight!

By the way, my youngest sis got engaged this past weekend! Despite my "doom and gloom" attitude, I am really happy for her and my future brother-in-law!

Darling I love you but give me Park Avenue...

Since when has my life become like "Green Acres"? I guess I should have known that marrying P. would bring a heaping helping of challenges into my life (not driving him crazy, being a good wife, cleaning a house, etc.) but one thing I didn't really expect were some of our differences that I either denied or overlooked. We do have a frightening amount of things in common (both communications majors in college, both love football and hair metal, both are sushi fanatics, the list goes on and on...) but one thing I don't get is the whole urban (me)/rural (him) thing. Now, I think it's pretty obvious that I am not thrilled with our living situation at present, but P. is happy as a clam to be living in the sub-suburbs. Yes, the lake is lovely, but I am getting way too excited about doing things like going to the "fancy mall" and getting my hair done - as these tend to have been my major outings as of late. It's downright depressing where I live. I know Florida is strip mall city, but the ones around us are run down and many are still bearing the scars from last year's hurricane (a lot of blown-out signs litter highway 19.) Restaurants are closing at an alarming rate (we have a few chains in the area, but many of the indie places are gone or rarely patronized. There's really nothing to do once the 5 o'clock whistle blows - although I am starting to figure out why there are so many A.A. meetings in P.R. I don't think we will ever move. I am trying to get used to the slower pace of life, but it's really hard! I probably should stop writing now, as I can get real negative real fast, and I want this blog to overflow with positivity and humor - not complaining and anger. Besides, I'm babbling. I'll write more later...

Broken Resoultions

Yes, I managed to already break a resolution. I haven't been writing, and I should be ashamed of myself (I am). I have stayed slim (I managed to fit back into my "Prince Pants" - my favorite pair of pants ever. They are black and lace up in the front and on the flared bottoms. They were my favorite club pants - I looked "hot" in them (well, with me, I don't get much hotter than "lukewarm", but you catch my drift. Of course, I don't think the "Prince Pants" are going to see much action in Port Richey - they're not going to fit in at the "Karl Reef", that's for sure!) I have been keeping the house (relatively) clean - I finally tackled the mysterious pink mildew in our bathroom, so I've been doing the good wife thing (haven't seen much of P. since New Year's, so a clean house probably isn't the best possible indicator of what a good wife is.) I have been away from the TV a lot more, mainly because I impulsively decided to clean out the closet in "my room" (aka the guest room - our guests can stay with us as long as they don't need to hang anything up!) I have old photo albums, scrapbooks and things that need to be put in scrapbooks strewn all over the floor, along with every single thing I ever wrote, from my My Melody diary I had when I was 10 to the last incarnation of my now-abandoned thesis. (Sniff - don't get me started on that.) It's hard to get rid of things, except for my "fat clothes", I was glad to get rid of those! School stuff is the hardest. I have textbooks from my Radio/TV days that I think don't even talk about cable, and have lessons for editing 3/4" video tape (I'm sure even the podunk station I worked at in Panama City doesn't even use that anymore) and I'm positive I won't need any papers discussing the films of Francois Truffaut for anything...ever. But it's stuff I wrote, so I'm keeping it (P., who also was a Comm major, has some outdated books too, so I'm sure we'll both come to our senses someday and pitch them. (Note, I said "someday"...)

What was I getting at? Oh yes, resolutions. #2 has still been a tricky one. I am still very much in limbo with that. I have my days though, so it's at least a step in the right direction. So, 3 out of 5 ain't bad, right? I did sign up for an online writing class through the university, so I'm trying. And I will start writing a lot of random stuff here, just to keep the right side active. I am also keeping up muy other blog, runninfitz - if you read it, you'll find out why. Oh well, the painkillers are kicking in (getting over my current medical problems would greatly contribute to improving my chances of achieving the happiness I'm searching for!) so until later...

Life as a "Doggie Mama"

Aaah, the joys of dog ownership. There is not one sqare inch of our house, cars, and clothes not covered in white fur. Each and every pillow on the sofa is riddled with little bite marks. I have trudged through my neighbors' yards every morning, yelling "Boo, poopies!" I am losing my mind.

But that's not really what I wanted to talk about. I was going to go off on Lindsay Lohan for making us recovering bulimics look bad, but it's not worth my time and effort. I don't want to fall into celebrity journalism here. I'll just keep my fond memories of working at Planet Hollywood.com, where I was paid to care about what Ben Affleck was doing. I was going to talk about quitting and procrastination, but I'll do that later. I was going to take you on a tour of my horrendous movie collection, but I think that deserves more time than I have right now (you really need an hour or so to properly discuss "Roller Boogie".) So that really leaves me with nothing for today, but at least I'm writing! Oh, and I get a chance to for,mally warn you about the Chris Atkins vampire flick I talked about yesterday. It's called "Dracula Rising" and you should do whatever you have to do to avoid this tripe! (Sorry, Chris, I still think you're a hottie. I had to endure the abuse in college when my friends found the 45 (that's a record, kids!) of your song from "The Pirate Movie", so I guess now we're even!)

"I opened up a container of yogurt, and under the lid it said "Please Try Again" because they were having a contest I was unaware of. But I thought I might have opened the yogurt wrong, or maybe Yoplait was trying to inspire me. 'C'mon, Mitchell, don't give up. Please try again. A message of inspiration from your friends at Yoplait. Fruit on the bottom, hope on top.'"

Still miss ya, Mitch!

The snow turned into rain...

Yeah, yeah, yeah....everyone does it, and they all pretty much look the same, but I can't help but add my resoultions to the 2006 pile. So, here goes:

1. Lose weight. How trite. Do you think anyone resolves to gain weight? At least I don't have as far to go as I did a few months ago, when I was a bit more "fat and happy" (see #2). And, best part, I found my old, "skinny" jeans - and they FIT! Saves me a chunk of change, as I was going to replace my (now) baggy jeans that looked like they had a garage sale after the bus and truck production of "Annie" (a.k.a. the "Ragamuffin Collection"!)

2. Get happy (or at least happier). This one is way harder than losing weight. I have a great hubby who's patient, cool, fun, patient, tolerant, nurturing, supportive, did I say patient yet? - and I should be ecstatic that I was able to pull the wool...um, I mean find someone like him (I'm such a kidder!) BUT (not as in big but...that's back to #1) I am so dissatisfied with ME. I am stagnating at my job (definitely not what I signed on for...I wanted to be Peter Scolari on "Bosom Buddies" (Henry/Hildegarde - advertising copywriter extrordinaire), but am more like the late, great Wendie Jo Sperber (Amy - office flunky, coffee bitch. If you don't understand these references, too bad - you should've watched the show!) If you want to take a bright side approach, at least I have time to write (see #3) and conduct very important Internet research (such as finding the "More Cowbell" sketch from SNL and searching for a DVD of "Valley of the Dolls" to add to my horrendous movie collection.) Unfortunately, I still don't really, truly know what I want to be when I grow up (and at 36 years old that's probably not a good thing.) The deadline to complete my graduate thesis has come and gone, and nothing bugs me more than being a quitter, so that's also weighing on my mind (even though I really don't have a good use for a Master's degree in Mass Communication...) Let's see, what else? I am a horrible parent to my pooch (who I'm sure regards me as "Ol' Candy Ass".) To quote Eddie Murphy, "My chi'dren don't lissen to me." She has a blatant disregard for my calls outside, and is much more content eating duck poop than coming tome when I call her. P's the disciplinarian here, as it probably should be with "kids", but children don't chew on your shoes and computer cables when left alone for a few minutes (or so I've heard.) And of course, the cherry on top of my angst sundae is my living situation. I have still to make a real friend - and it's really hard when you're a good 25 miles away from any activity. The house is taking it out on me - I came home after Christmas to find "my room" flooded out and many of my pictures destroyed - not to mention the fact that all of the furniture and objets d'crap that occupied my room now takes up space in our living room, den, and "my" bathroom! I hate being in limbo - as soon as P's comany gets straightened around and established a permanent home base, my hands are basically tied. Add to that the fact that I'm alone a lot, as P.'s been travelling quite a bit as of late (left in "Chaos Central" with an adolescent German Shepherd with an attitude!) 2006 is going to be a moving year for me...in more ways than one! Whew! That probably should've been a few resolutions! Onward...

3. WRITE - in any way, shape or form! I think I have my novel/novella starting in my cluttered mind (title is there, as well as general direction - but I'm not quite ready to get an agent yet!) I have to make time to do this - and in a perfect world, not during the workday! I also want to be more dilligent with this blog (after next week Runninfitz.blogspot.com may be concluding, so I will devote to this one full-time) as it may lead me to some great story ideas (and it's quite cathartic at times...) So, in order to write, looks like I should...

4. Watch less TV - sit on my lazy butt less. When you get psyched because "Celebrity Fit Club 3" is on, followed by an "I Love the (year, band, song)" marathon, it's probably time to step away from the boob tube. "Trading Spouses" is not supposed to be the most mentally stimulating part of my day (but I feel more like a "God Warrior" for watching it!) Yes, "House", you will not be snubbed (I can't, I am developing a girlish crush on Hugh Laurie) and "The Office" and "My Name is Earl" will make up the rest of my "must see" list. Other than that - life's to short to watch crappy on-demand movies (and boy, 2005 was ripe with them: "Blue Demon", "Dark Town", "Dracula 3000" and that God-awful Chris Atkins vampire flick just to name a few) so free time should involve activities such as writing, exercising, walking the pooch and other such things.

5. Be a better friend and wife. I actually started on the first item last month, as I managed to send out Christmas cards (but it's the first Christmas after the wedding. I think people are more apt to send cards that first year. I need to pick up the phone and call folks more often (one activity I could actually add to #4.) Being a better wife is going to take more work. I need to go fishing more and, well, see #4 again! If I get #2 going, this will also help out immensely!

Five is enough, right? Oh, there's still other things like boning up on my Spanish, taking a guitar lesson, getting de-cluttered, cooking dinner more often, making it through a whole day at EPCOT Wine Fest and such. I am optimistic that 2006 will be a good one!

Later, 'Taters!