Sara & Ingrid

Lately I've "discovered" some new artists that I really love. The first is Ingrid Michaelson, who a coworker introduced me to (her music, not actually her). She sings the sweater song that was on the Old Navy commercial awhile ago. Her music is quite different than what I would normally listen to, but in a really fun, kind of eccentric way. The second is Sara Bareilles, who sings the song "Love Song" that's pretty popular right now. I downloaded that song from iTunes awhile ago and on a bit of a whim decided to buy her album, which I ended up loving. She kind of has a Norah Jones type of feeling, with maybe a touch of Indigo Girls mixed in. If you're reading this, you should check out both of their albums, because they are fabulous. There - plug done.

The cutest little American Idol

I have to say that David Archuleta on American Idol is just the cutest kid (yes, kid) and has the most beautiful voice. He's so humble and has a really infectious laugh. And he's got cute little dimples. If I was in middle school, I would totally have a crush on him. Who am I kidding - I do have a crush on him and I'm 10 years his senior. I just want to pick him up and put him in my pocket!

That's it - I'm tired from a long day at work and have to gear up for more long days in the coming weeks, so that's all I've got.

I'm baaaaccckk!

It's time to get back in the swing of blogging! I've actually been fairly busy over the last week. This past weekend I took a trip to Portland with two close friends from the sorority and we met up with another close friend from the sorority who lives just outside of Portland. We got a cheap hotel downtown and spent the weekend shopping, seeing the sights, and trying fun restaurants. It was great to have a girls weekend and nice to pay no sales tax at the mall! Although it was President's Day weekend, we came home on Sunday as I had to work on Monday - which actually worked out pretty well because there was no traffic on the way home. Yesssss!

Monday brought the start of a really busy week at work - which after a very slow week previously, I welcomed whole heartedly. I have a feeling the busy trend will continue over next week, which I definitely don't mind. I would much rather be busy than twiddling my thumbs. And what's really great about this week - it's almost over! Tomorrow should actually be pretty easy - especially since we have the blood center coming for people to donate blood, so everyone will probably be in and out all day. I'm supposed to donate blood, which I've done before, but it took forever because the thought of the needle in my arm freaked me out. It still kinda freaks me out, but I figure me being a little freaked out is not enough of a reason to not donate. Look at me pitching in for the greater good.

I pink puffy heart SJP

Can I just say, Sarah Jessica Parker (hereon referred to as SJP) is so cute and such the girl next door (even though she's older than I am by at least 10 years). Not only do I like her because of Sex and the City (one of the best TV shows ever), but I'm watching her right now on Project Runway and she's so nice and just...likable. And it probably helps that she and I share the same birthday, but only a little. SJP, I think you and I should be friends and hang out in fabulous New York restaurants. Give me a call.

Dorky McDorkerson

Why I'm a dork...

1) I saw Ratatouille this weekend and it made me want to try and make the dish...so I did, for dinner tonight. (It actually turned out pretty well, thanks to allrecipes.com)

2a) I'm watching the Westminster Dog Show

2b) When the beagle won Best in Show I teared up a little (courtesy of our own little howler, Chesney)

Hey, at least I can admit it.

It's the simple things

I have no idea why, but for some reason a little after lunch I got a serious hankering for good bread with good cheese - mainly a baguette and brie. I was thinking about it all afternoon, day-dreaming about how good it would taste. Against my better judgment, I stopped at the store on the way home and picked up...yup...a baguette and some brie. And then I proceeded to hork it down as soon as I got in the house (even leaving some of the other groceries I got on the kitchen counter). I have no will power...but a full tummy.

Here we come a'caucusing...

This weekend were the Washington state caucuses and for the first time ever I decided to go. I figured this presidential race is probably one of the most interesting (and possibly most important) I could ever see, so it was time to go and cast my vote. Originally I was planning on going, signing in and voting, then leaving. Once I got there I thought "well, maybe I'll stay" - then I ran into a friend from the sorority who I hadn't seen in forever. She was leaving right after voting, so I decided to leave with her to go grab a cup of coffee and catch up. Turns out she's working down at the Capital as a session aide in the Senate and loves it. It was very interesting to hear about as I've never given much thought to what goes on at the capital, but she was so passionate about it I was definitely captivated.

Today has mainly been about a rest day and a house duty day. I went to the store earlier than I normally do (even before breakfast) and got the grocery shopping out of the way. Then I started in on the laundry - and amazingly enough have kept tabs on it all day. Usually I start in the afternoon and then forget it until I only have enough time to finish one more load. Not today! I also cleaned up the kitchen and installed one of those automatic shower cleaners in our guest shower/tub. I absolutely detest cleaning the shower and bathtub and thought maybe I wouldn't have to if I installed that cleaner system. I'll have to give an update after two weeks (once it's supposed to get things cleaner).

I also cooked dinner today, like a real honest-to-goodness dinner (not just lean pockets or chicken tenders or something). I marinated some chicken in this Chili Coconut Rub With Love from Tom Douglas (a famous Seattle chef). It's not actually a rub, it's a sauce that can be used as a glaze or a marinade. I baked the chicken in the oven after marinating it, then cooked some rice and peas and it was soooo good. I am definitely a fan of this particular marinade - plus I feel it's a fairly healthy meal as it's skinless chicken breast with rice (maybe not so healthy) and peas. Yummy! Now I'm wrapping up the evening with folding the last of the clothes and gearing up for the week ahead. Hopefully it won't be a crazy one.

Lipstick Jungle

I have decided that I really like the show Lipstick Jungle. It's kind of marketing itself as the next version of Sex and the City, and while I don't think it can be nearly that good, it comes up a pretty good second. My enjoyment might have something to do with the fact that I've had nearly a full bottle of wine, but you know, let's look at this objectively. It's a fun show with good actresses - and I think I will like it even when I'm sober. That's gotta count for something.

Ain't nobody gellin

Unfortunately, the gel inserts did not work out. They were just too big for my shoes (who would have thought that). I went running today (go me!) with my old ratty shoes and they actually stood up fairly well. I'm sure I need new shoes, but my old ones should last for the next couple weeks.

Other than that, not much else going on. I'm really excited for the premieres of some of my fave shows. One being America's Next Top Model, coming up on Feb. 20th. That's the one I'm probably most excited for. There's also Girlicious, which is basically a continuation of The Pussycat Dolls. And of course American Idol - which I think is on at the same time as ANTM. Hmmm...that could present a problem.

Are you gellin?

With all of this running I have been doing lately, I decided to get new shoes. Actually, to be more accurate, right when I started I bought new shoes because the ones I have are so old and beat up. I wore the new shoes the past three times I've been running and I realized they're really not that comfortable. So today I went to Nordstrom's and returned them (I originally bought them there, I wasn't just returning them there because Nordstrom's pretty much take everything), then tried on a bunch of different shoes. Of course nothing fit because my feet are so ginormous, so I went to the New Balance store in the mall hoping for better success. Keeping with the theme of the night, they didn't have the right size either (they make it, it just wasn't in stock). The guy there ordered the right size, but it won't be in for about 7-10 business days. I don't have to buy the shoes the store ordered - I can try it on and see if it fits - but that still leaves me with only my old ratty shoes to run in. So what did I do? Bought some gel insoles to hopefully lengthen the life of my old ratty shoes. Will it work? I'll have to let you know.

The Past 48 hours...

I just wrote a huge ole post and it was deleted...damn it. So here we go again...

The past 48 hours have been quite busy. On Saturday I went running around Greenlake with a friend again - two weeks in a row, woohoo! In addition, I went running after work today, around this loop by my office building - twice! Farther than I've ever run before (without someone yelling at me to keep up). I would say definitely in keeping with my New Year's resolutions.

Other than running, I've been up to quite a bit. Saturday after my run (and a shower) I met up with a friend from my sorority for coffee. We hadn't seen each other in awhile, so we spent 3.5 hours catching up. It was great to see her and hear all about her upcoming wedding in December. Then I came home and the hubbie and I ended up going to see Rambo (not my first choice, and probably one of the bloodiest I've ever seen, but not gawd awful either), then out to dinner at Claim Jumpers (with a giftcard).

Sunday I mainly hung out, cleaned up a bit around the house, and watched the Superbowl. Then today I went to work and came home to find a nice little surprise under our dining room table, courtesy of Chesney - a old, dried out, torn up rat carcass. Completely disgusting. I don't think Chesney was the one who chewed it up, but rather just dragged it into our house. Yay for cleaning that up.

So to sum it all up...take that Tom Brady, you lost!

Sickness is Blechy

Well this week was a strange one. We hand snow on Sunday night/Monday morning and I took Monday off, then on Wednesday I started feeling sick with a sore throat. I didn't want to take another day off work, but when I woke up on Thursday with a throat that felt like it was on fire I decided to call in sick. Luckily I was able to rest up and went back to work today, but for some reason I have this very annoying cough now and am sneezing a lot. I'm not sure what sort of illness I've contracted (a bad cold? a weird flu?), but I'm hoping it's just about over. Especially because I'm running around Greenlake tomorrow and I don't want to be hacking on people the whole way around. Plus the Superbowl is this weekend and I want to laugh my ars off at Tom Brady when he throws interceptions without it turning into a body-convulsing cough. I never thought I would say this, but Goooo Giants!