Red's Readings

Hey Kirsten!

2006-10-12T17:52:00.000-04:00

Hey girl! I think you may be the only one who reads this .... wanna hear something funny? I forgot how to log on to this thing....I'm just so used to myspace now...hahah! Anyways, just wanted to post for fun, I can't believe it's been 4 months since I've posted on here....Catch up on me with myspace. Miss ya girl!

I'm here I'm here -----

2006-06-15T14:38:00.000-04:00

Okay, well, before Kirsten moves me over to the "slacker" category, I figured I'd better update....LOL. I guess I've just been spending more time on "MySpace".....

Things are going well right now --

Working hard...our office moved across town so that kept things crazy for a bit but now things are starting to settle down from that a bit....

Been working out more now that volleyball is over so I'm enjoying that...

Applied for a new job at work so I'll keep y'all posted on how that works out...

My birthday was last Sunday --- YAY...HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!!

And to be honest, that's really the excitement in my life right now ---- so now may you see why I haven't updated....but I'm here, alive, well, and kickin'...

Miss y'all!

United 93

2006-05-08T13:46:00.000-04:00

Well, where do I start?

I knew I wanted to go see the movie United 93 but it seemed like none of my friends wanted to go...I finally found a friend at work, Christine, that said she'd go with me to see the movie. Everyone has asked me "how was it?" I'm not quite sure how to respond to that...I have a standard response now of "I'm glad I went to see it!" I wasn't quite sure I was going to react but I think I did well with it....

I didn't have anyone in my family that was directly affected by 9/11 but as Americans, we're all affected. It makes me believe even more so that the war we're fighting on terrorism is the right thing to do! It makes me even more proud of the courageous and brave men and women who fight for my freedom every day. To see the passengers fight back against these terrorists, it's an indescribable feeling....to hear them call their families and say good bye, tell them they love them one last time -- the movie left me speechless!

I hear everyone say "I'm not ready to see it!" I don't think anywould be ever be READY to see it...do you think that the passengers were READY for their lives to end? Do you think that the passengers were READY to fight terrorism? Hell no -- but I think we owe it to ourselves to know what happened that day -- I think it's the least we can do -- let this movie serve as a reminder of the men and women who lost their lives that day, and to those who continue to lose their lives every day to fight the war of terrorism to protect our freedom.

As an old blogger buddy used to say (and this is paraphrased) -- tell someone you love them or at the very least that you miss them a bunch -- you NEVER know .... it could be the last time they hear you say it!!!!!

Feliz Cinco de Mayo

2006-05-05T15:42:00.000-04:00

Hey peeps (if are you still out there!) ---

Things have been calming down quite a bit for me so you'll probably be hearing from me more often now. Volleyball has ended -- we had our end of the season party last Sunday and that was pretty fun. Team give me a gift card to Cheesecake Factory -- ymmm -- now I just need to find a hottie to go with me :) HEHE!

Work is going well -- our office is moving across town on the 25th so instead of a 5 minute commute to work (and that's if I catch the 1 light), I'll now have a 35 minute or so commute depending on traffic -- UGH!! We'll be more cramped in the new bldg as well -- OH WELL! That's life right?

I'm playing on a volleyball league now for myself -- VERY RECREATIONAL -- but the funny part is that so many people that play on the opposing team thinks they are the best volleyball players EVER! Quite a few of them play beach, but to be honest, a lot of beach players don't have good fundamentals -- anyways, enough about that. My team is really cool and I thought that there was perhaps some potential on the team for my Cheesecake dinner but HE'S MARRIED : (

I'm getting back into working out 5-6 times / week now and I feel so much better about myself and have so much more energy now too!

I'm back to having a social life again now that volleyball is over...as an early birthday present, my best friend in the entire world since 6/7th grade is flying me up to NC for a min-vacation. We've got a cottage in the mountains and it's gonna ROCK -- geez, sounds like we're lesbians going on a weekend getaway -- but I PROMISE we're not --- LOL.

So what's with the whole "my space" thing....EVERYONE has 'em -- so many of my friends want me to sign up for it to keep in touch that way -- it's honestly so addicting -- I've found lots of people from high school on it and it's interesting to see what they look like, where they are living, and what they are doing with their life, etc.

Hmmm....what else is there to discuss --- oh yeah....HAPPY CINCO DE MAYO AMIGOS!!!

Until next time -- take care!

Happy Easter

2006-04-14T15:02:00.000-04:00

Just wanted to wish all of you a Happy Easter! Enjoy your time with family and friends...God Bless!

Playing Catch Up

2006-04-11T09:50:00.000-04:00

Okay, okay, okay, I’m here – to say that things have been crazy with me lately is a HUGE understatement. Geez, where do I start? Well, let’s go back about 6 weeks ago…..(I’ll do my best to fill you guys in on everything but I know I’ll miss some stuff : )

Okay, so my jeep – that’s where we left off – I had to spend a lot of money on it lately but not as much as a freakin’ dealership would have charged me – my friend’s husband is a real handy man and has a jeep of his own so he’s done a lot of work on my jeep for me….it’s awesome! He put 4 new shocks on for me (I felt like I was riding in a limo after that job was done), he re-checked the Serpentine belt (which by the way is fine), and most recently on my trip back from Orlando for a volleyball tournament, my oil pressure sensor went bad so as soon as I get some free time and he’s not working, he’s going to change that out for me….what a nice guy eh? He’s got red hair like me so if I ever go out with them, everybody thinks we’re brother and sister – my volleyball girls mainly…LOL.

Speaking of volleyball, the season is almost over, thank goodness! Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE volleyball, I love coaching, but these girls can be really tiring. I feel like I’m a mother to eleven 15-year old girls – best form of birth control EVER!! Hehe. We’ve had several tournaments this past month. One in Orlando, one in Atlanta, and then one in Jacksonville…..3 consecutive weekends. Talk about exhausting – I’m looking forward to this weekend (Easter) because it’ll finally be a weekend that I can sleep in if I so choose, and I can do WHATEVER I WANT for a change.

The weekend before Orlando was St. Patrick’s Day weekend – I took off Friday to go camping with massage-boy and that was definitely an interesting trip – all I’m gonna say on that topic….

Last week I thought I was coming down with strep throat so I went to the Dr. The results were negative and she said it was either viral or allergies. Well, she gave me an antihistamine and sent me on my merry way. Needless to say I’m still sneezing like a crazy lady and my eyes water and I get congested a lot so I think it may be allergies….adult onset allergies….lovely isn’t it??? UGH!! And when I cough I sound like a smoker….GROSS!!

Volleyball ends on the 23rd in Orlando at our last tournament and then I’ll probably do some traveling around to see my friends in Tallahassee, Panama City, Lakeland so that should be fun and I’m looking forward to it (I hope they are too)! hah!

My aunt is moving back down to FL from Virgina. She moved up there in ’80 – it’s been a rough several years for her so I think this move will be good and it’ll definitely be good to have family closer.

Nothing else I can really think of to update my blogger buddies on right now so I think I’ll sign off – and now that things have seem to calm down a little bit, I’ll definitely be able to update more – hope every is well….Sean, Kirsten, Diayah, Bri….hope to hear from you guys soon – I miss my chuckleheads!

Take care and HAPPY TUESDAY!!!!

Thanks Kirsten : )

2006-03-27T08:43:00.000-05:00

1. Grab the book nearest to you, turn to page 24 and find line 5
We decide to confine our transportation, and then compile another list of closely related words & phrases. - Thinking in Writing by Donald McQuade & Robert Atwan

2. Stretch your left arm out as far as you can, what do you find?
Window blinds

3. What is the last thing you watched on TV?
Extreme Makeover Home Edition with Ty Pennington :)

4. With the exception of the computer, what can you hear?
Silence

5. When did you last step outside?
I walked in the house about 10 minutes ago from the gym!

6. Before you started this survey, what did you look at?
I was driving so I was looking at the road.

7. What are you wearing?
gray T-shirt & black with pink stripe capri work out pants

8. Did you dream last night?
not that I can remember

9. When did you last laugh?
at the gym in step class

10. What is on the walls of the room you are in?
I'm in my office and my two degrees are on teh wall -- my AA & my BA

11. Seen anything weird lately?
I saw some weird old lady at the gym that was wearing too tight of clothes and she had a tail (you know the ones I'm talkin' about -- like the ones in the '80s)

12. What do you think of this quiz?
Well, it got me started to write on my blog again - so I guess that's a good thing...

13. What is the last film you saw?
oh geez, I don't know....

14. If you turned a multi-millionaire overnight, what would you buy?
A house for my mom & a house for me.

15. Tell me something about you that I don't know.
I secretly like to watch those silly cheerleading competitions on TV even though I despise cheerleaders.

16. If you could change one thing about the world, regardless of guilt and politics, what would you do?
I would cure cancer & heart disease.

17. Do you like to Dance?
Love it!!! HOLLA!!

18. George Bush
George Bush Sr. has the same birthday as me!

19. Imagine your first child is a girl, what do you call her?
Kayleigh Gail

20. Imagine your boyfriend is making sweet love to his Xbox 360, what would you do?
Join in....I dunno?!?

21. Would you ever consider living abroad?
Yes, I would....not sure where though

22. What would you want God to say to you when you reach the pearly gates?
I love you!

23. 4 people who must also do this meme in their blog.
The four people I would have named are either not writing anymore or have already been tagged, so I pass on this question.....

Mo' Money, Mo' Problems

2006-02-26T15:29:00.000-05:00

Okay, so I feel like I only write when I want to vent--this time is no exception....

I took my car in for an oil change on Friday and I had a coupon to go to Chrysler so I said "why not!" Well, the coupon was for a $9.95 oil change but I walked out of there with $400 worth of problems (and that was only the amount I was willing to handle right then -- that doesn't include 2 rear tires and an alignment and rotation). What really pisses me off is that they told me I needed a new Serpentine belt -- what crap -- I just replaced the original one 15,000 miles ago and the original one lasted me 75,000 miles. GRRRRRRR!! So I called Sears and got some moron on the phone who said "well, bring it up here and we'll check it out!" Yeah, fine, I'll bring it up there but you sure as hell aren't gonna charge me to look at it when you put it in exactly a year ago. So, I picked my car up from Chrysler on Friday (paying only for the oil change) and took it right back up to Sears on Saturday. They pretty much told me the same thing that Chrysler said with 1 exception -- they said the serpentine belt was NOT cracked - Chrysler had said it was stretched but not cracked - and that I didn't need to replace it. WHAT?? But here's what kills me, I told them that a belt was squealing -- and the mechanics at Sears said they could not get it to squeal -- so I took my $700 estimate from Sears and drove myself home. What happens when I get home -- I HEAR THE SQUEAL AGAIN!! *uuuuuuuggggggggghhhhhhhh* So, I'm gonna keep my ears open for the squeal again -- I need to get 4 new shocks, 2 rear axle seals, a differential service, 2 rear tires -- need I go on?

Okay, so I'm pissed about my car -- but it can't be helped right? Just pisses me off that it has to be so damn expensive ----------- ugh!

Enough of my pessimism, my old college roommate and her husband came by on Friday night. They live about 2 hours south of me so it was good to see them -- and they brought me their old flat screen TV -- good friends eh? I thought so --

Alright, well, I'm off to mope around and relax on the couch....

Take care blogger buddies!

Volleyball, Death, and a WONDERFUL Surprise

2006-02-21T22:05:00.000-05:00

WOW-Well, I don't quite know where to begin so I'll just jump right in....This was going to be a really busy weekend for me to begin with but come Friday, things got CRAZY!

My mom called me at work on Friday afternoon and told me that my 1/2 sister (dad's daughter) had been in the hospital since Wednesday. She's always bounced back from these things so while it disturbed me, to be totally honest, I didn't take it as seriously as I should have. I left work around 4 and headed home to bake brownies and make a salad to take to the team dinner that we were having for the girls at 6 at Stef's place. Well, at 5:30 my phone rings and it's my mom -- and she says to me "she's gone!" WHAT? How could this happen? I mean, we weren't really close to begin with but still....WHY? She has a husband, 2 childen, grand-children, in her early 50's and way too young to die. I was so stunned -- she always bounces back -- I still think I'm a little shell-shocked from the whole thing -- don't know quite what else to say about that.....BUT, my mom and I did mention the same thing to one another -- I'm really glad that my dad isn't around because they say the loss of a child is the most painful and I would never want my father to have to live through that -- so with that said, please keep my family in your thoughts and prayers. And to make matters worse, my parent's 30 year wedding anniversary would have been tomorrow.....

Sorry to be so drab, but that's what I've been dealing with....

Saturday got better though --
We had the afternoon wave at our volleyball tournament which means that our pool play didn't begin until 2pm. So, for the 1st Saturday in a LONG time, I had it all to myself and I got to sleep in...YAY!! We played much better as a team on Saturday than we did at our last tournament and for that, we were very proud of the girls. Saturday was a long day because, as usual, things were running behind and I didn't get out of the gym 'til about 7:45pm. But, day and weekend was about to get much better--I got a text message inviting me to dinner -- FROM CHRIS!!!! So I texted him back and asked where he was and he was about 10 minutes from my house.....HOW COOL IS IT THAT HE DROVE UP TO SURPRISE ME?? I was ECSTATIC to say the least and he probably lost some of his hearing from me screaming into the phone!! We went to dinner and hung out that night, watched a movie and so forth.

We got up Sunday and I had to get back to the gym for more volleyball at 11am. (By the way, our team finished 2nd in the Silver Division which was a definite improvement since we tied for last place at our first tournmant). So Chris came with me for a bit but then went and played XBox with my friend Charles for the afternoon. They had a good time and I wish I didn't have the volleyball tournment because I would have loved to spend more time with Chris. We had dinner and watched TV that night and just sort of layed low that evening. Chris left Monday morning and I told him that I'm so glad that he had come up and it meant a lot to me that he did.....WHAT A GREAT GUY!!

That pretty much catches you all up on my life the past several days -- I'm pretty tired so I'm gonna jet off to bed here very shortly.

I hope you all are well and take care!

GO USA!

Random

2006-02-16T12:08:00.000-05:00

Nothing earth shattering to update you all on right now but here's some random stuff --

Remember the dream I had the other night about my teeth -- well, I think I've figured it out....perhaps a little foreshadowing because my mom went to the dentist the other day and it turns out she's going to have to have a lot of work done (expensive work at that!) -- so perhaps that's what my dream represented --- still haven't figured out the one where I was naked (stay tuned...hehe!)

Work has been stressing me out lately --- just seems like lots of deadlines and issues happening all at once that are all of equal importance and it sucks that I'm only one person and can only do so much at one time -- not to mention the fact that I stress easily and with high blood pressure at my age --- it's not a good thing....UGH!! (breath in, breath out, breath in, breath out!)

Um, volleyball tournament coming up this weekend. Friday night we're having a team dinner and we (the coaches) are cooking dinner for the girls -- they're not aware yet and we're not sure how they'll react to our cooking but I'm hoping it'll be a good thing! They'll have lasagna, salad, and brownies, and we'll get some sort of feel good, sports, team movie for them to watch! LOL. We play on Saturday and Sunday and I'm hoping that this home tournament will be more successful for them as a team and they'll play together and we'll win more too! (it's always nice to win). They've worked real hard this past month and hopefully they'll reap the benefits of that this weekend.

Chris may come up this weekend but that's still undecided at this point but fingers crossed : )
BUT-CHECK OUT MY HOROSCOPE FOR YESTERDAY (02/15/06) -- it said "Clean up your place. Fluff up the pillows. Romantic conditions are going from OK to fabulous, for the next couple of days." NEAT -- HUH??

My parent's wedding anniversary is Wednesday and it would have been something big, like --- 28, 29, 30 years....something like that, I can't quite remember but my mom is already sad so please keep her in your thoughts and prayers!

Okay, I guess that's all that's going on with me right now --- hope all is well with each of you!

Take care and

GO USA!!

Happy Valentine's Day

2006-02-14T08:34:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to wish all my blogger buddies a 'Happy Valentine's Day!'

Same ole Same ole

2006-02-12T20:53:00.000-05:00

Hey there everyone (all 4 of you!) -- HAHA!!

Nothing too much going on right now to fill you guys in on but I wanted to write anyways.

This past week at work was okay -- this girl that I work pretty closely with, her last day was Friday, and I thought all of her work was going to be dumped on me, but turns out they've got someone lined up so I was so ecstatic to learn about it.

Volleyball is going alright....come to find out, one of the team moms approached Stef (head coach) and told her that some of the girls are having issues with her and they think she's mean -- so we're going to have a team meeting on Tuesday before practice to let them vent their feelings and to give Stef and I a chance to defend ourselves -- I have a feeling their just going to bitch about how much we make them run. But, you know what? We have them for 3 hours a week and all they do is chit chat and laugh the entire time -- if we can only make them be serious and work hard when they're pissed at us, then hell yeah we're gonna make them run! AND they were pissed that we were making them practice on Valentine's day but you know what -- we've only got 2 more practices before our tournament this weekend so they'll just have to deal with it -- and what are 14/15 year olds going to do for Valentine's day anyways??? Have their mommy and daddy drop them off for dinner somewhere and give 'em some money to pay for it too? C'mon -- gimme a break! Geeeeeez -- I really sound like a bitch don't I? OH WELL!! Their parents pay a lot of money for them to be a part of this club and to become better volleyball players, so the way I look at it, we're doing them a favor and they'll thank us when they receive scholarships to pay for their college tuition -- WOW, ok, I need to change subjects -- sorry about that y'all!

Things with Chris are going very well : ) We are going camping in March and I'm REEEEALLY excited about that -- yippee! Primitive camping -- yikes -- I've only camped 1 night in my life -- so I'm nervous but excited at the same time -- WOOHOO!! Um, we'll be gone all weekend and some friends of mine will join us the first night -- canoeing, swimming, walking the trails -- FUN TIMES!!

Well, I guess I've blabbered enough for 1 evening -- thanks for listening y'all!

Take Care!

GO USA!!!

OMG, Another One....

2006-02-08T08:55:00.000-05:00

Okay, so I don't remember my dreams that often but I've had a plethora of them lately...last night's was weird.....so I thought I'd share...haha (it's making me laugh already)...

*****Well, I had gone back home to visit with my mom and some friends and we had all decided to go out to dinner. But, before dinner I had decided I wanted to take a little nap. When I woke up from my nap, my mom and my friends were all gone...needless to say I didn't think anything of it at the time so I took a shower and started to get ready. I had totally forgot that my luggage was still in the car so I go to get my keys and THEY ARE GONE!!! Since I have an SUV my mom had taken my car and left me there with NO CLOTHES!!!*****

Does this mean I'm a nudist at heart or what?!?!? ROFLMAO

Does my Dream Mean Anything?

2006-02-06T08:46:00.000-05:00

Morning friends......

I had a really weird dream last night and was curious to see what y'all thought about it. Here is goes....

I had a dream that one of my teeth got knocked out (not sure how) but then the dream got worse and I ended up missing almost all of the teeth from 1 side of my mouth....

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?????

Our 2nd Date......

2006-02-01T21:15:00.000-05:00

Hey Blogger Buddies!!

First off let me start out by scolding all of you for not updating more often.....what's up with that? C'MON!!! I want to live vicariously through you all : ) And if I can update, y'all can find the time too ... SOooOooOoOOoo....GET TO IT!!!

Anyways....my week has been going well....let me rewind back to the weekend. Saturday I did a crash workout at the gym...went to Step (cardio) class at 9am, then went to Powerpump (weights) at 10am, then to a beginner/intro cyling/spin class at 11am. What the heck what I thinking? Saturday afternoon was spent just chillin' out around my apartment and waiting for my weekend guest to come on Sunday .... yippee : )

So I got up pretty early on Sunday and made my famous breakfast casserole for Chris since he would have worked a 12-hour shift, then driven 3 hours.....I knew the man would be hungry...and what's the best way to a man's heart but through his stomach, right?? (take notes ladies....KIDDING ; ) !!!) Anyways, Chris came around 1030 on Sunday morning (and no Sean I did not go confession....lol)....he showered, ate, and napped once he did arrive....poor guy....SO TIRED!

So Chris only took like an hour nap when he got here and then we went down to St. Augustine....great place to go on a date!! Once we finally got down there and found a parking spot, we decided to go on a train tour of the city and also visit Ripley's Believe It or Not. We had a great time on the train and made acquaintences with these people from England...very nice folks! hehe! We held hands on the train and I'm my hands were so sweaty I'm sure....LOL! Ripley's was very fun too! We did take some pics so maybe I'll post them eventually....haha!

After Ripley's it was about time to head back home because not only was it about to rain, but we were hungry and he was EXTREMELY tired..but definitely a good sport ALL day and never complained...NOT EVEN ONCE!! (brownie points).

We stopped and got a few groceries to make dinner (we made spaghetti or as Chris calls it...'SKETTY!' How cute is that??). And ladies ... he even HELPED make dinner....a winner huh? So we talked and stuff over dinner - candle lit of course - and that was very relaxing to just sit and talk to him -- after dinner, I did the dishes while he rested on the couch then I hopped in the shower. After my shower, we watched TV and hung out a bit -- and just FYI, he did receive his well earned/deserved massage from our bet : )

Our evening was great and I hope he thinks so too -- that's all I'm gonna say about that -- a lady never kisses and tells, right?

I took 1/2 day off on Monday so it was definitely nice to get to sleep in a little bit but he had to get back home by 4ish so I left for work when he left town....

I had such a great time...he definitely earned lots of brownie points with me this weekend...he was a complete gentleman...paid for everything AGAIN...grrrr...., helped cook dinner, changed a few burnt out light bulbs for me, AND cleaned up after himself....Reminder -- all this on NO SLEEP!!!

So now that I've got you all up to speed on my life, it's time for me to hear what's going on with you all.....UPDATE SOON!!

SUPERBOWL WEEKEND -- WOOHOO!!

GO SEAHAWKS!!

YAY - The Weekend has Arrived!

2006-01-27T08:19:00.000-05:00

Hello friends!

I don't know about you all, but I'm sooooooooooooooooooooooo glad that it's Friday. And to be honest, I've never looked more forward to a Sunday in my life .... Chris is coming to town...WOOHOO!! I'll try to keep you guys up to date but I just wanted to drop in and say hi.

Have a nice weekend everyone!

GO SEAHAWKS!!!

My BIG Date : )

2006-01-23T12:17:00.000-05:00

Hi friends!!!

Y'all will have to forgive me if I'm not making complete sense today.....I'M ON CLOUD 9!! I had an absolutely WONDERFUL weekend!

I left after work on Friday and drove to Lakeland...made great time. Had dinner and did some girl things....ya know, paint nails, watch tv, pick out an outfit for my date, over-analyze...the whole 9 yards : ) *tell me how sweet it was that Allison had gotten me a yellow rose (my favorite) - it stands for friendship - SHE'S THE BEST - I LOVE YOU AL!!*

Um, Allison & I woke up Saturday morning fairly early...we walked around Lake Hollingsworth (3.4 miles) -- great way to release stress and nerves! After the walk, came back and had breakfast and hopped in the shower -- I was already getting tired by this point and my date hadn't yet begun....

Allison helped with hair and makeup and I was off....

Chris (aka 'massage boy') & I met for lunch at Bennigan's. We had good conversation - talked more about the details of both of our jobs and just chit-chat. Very nice. From there we dropped off my jeep at his place and then decided to head towards the mall. He had to get a gift for a friend of his who is getting married next month so I helped him do that at Bed, Bath, & Beyond -- it was so cute -- I used to work at BBBY so I'm very familiar with their wedding registry and all that jazz so we had no problems there....we were in & out in about 10/15 minutes....best kind of shopping right there eh? GET IN, GET OUT!!

From there, we went to the mall and just walked around and did some window shopping. After about an hour there, we decided to go back to his place and play some cards, watch movies, etc. The cards started out good (and by good I mean, I WAS WINNING!!) but then he quit letting me win : ) LOL. We also played some XBox - I've never before played in my entire life!! But it was fun and I sorta kinda got the hang of it toward the end....HAH!!

Ok, so have any of you heard of a show on MTV called 'Next?' OMG, it's hilarious....1 person goes on a date with as many as 5 other people...at any point during the date, the 1 person can say 'next' and that means the date is over and one of the other daters gets a chance. When you get 'nexted,' you get $$$$. The amount of $ is determined by the number of minutes you lasted on the date....so, when the dater decides that he/she has found the person they want to date again, he/she can ask the person on a date and then that person has a choice, take the 2nd date or the $. We watched a few episodes of that show and only saw 1 episode where a gold-digger took the $. Anyways, FUNNY show...check it out sometime...haha. We watched Underworld -- some gross parts -- but for the most part it was ok -- I did manage to fall asleep for a bit though...OOPS!

We ordered pizza for dinner and went and picked it up...it was SOOOOO YUMMY! After dinner we were both laying on the floor watching TV and he was getting pretty excited about his massage that he had won (can't blame him) -- my friend Allison had called and while I talked to her (she was out on a date too) - I started scratching his back ever so gently - I think he enjoyed it but was very disappointed that I didn't give him a full massage as I had promised....but I told him I'd make it up to him when he planned a trip to Jax -- AND I THINK HE'S COMING ON SUNDAY -- I'm so EXCITED!! yessssssssssssssssssssssssssss!!!! So after a bit of scratching his back, he said "come lay right here!" SooOOOOOooooOOOOo....I did, and he proceeded to give me the best massage I've ever had (and I've had several professional ones) - not sure how long it was but it was absolutely AMAZING -- he's got great hands -- knows just the right places to touch -- neck, back, shoulders, face, hair, LOWER back, even some booty ; ) All while being a complete gentleman which made me even appreciate him MORE!!

SoOOoOOOoooOO...after my AMAZING massage, we talked and then I decided it was time that I head home (to Allison's) -- it's not that I didn't want to stay the night (believe me, I DID) but I had told Allison that I'd be back there late that night...I trusted him but I don't know if I would have been able to trust myself (that massage got me all hot & heavy)!!! So when I got back to Allison's I called him to let him know that I had arrived safely.

That next morning Chris & I for breakfast at Cracker Barrel (yumyum) -- I had told him it would be my treat but he wouldn't let me pay and said that I was his guest ... sweet huh? (I thought so). Conversation was good--he was laying it on pretty thick about me not giving him his well-deserved, winnings (massage) so I told him repeatly that he'd have to plan a trip to Jax in order to collect on his winnings....so I think he's coming up this Sunday!! YAY!!!

I know he'll read this blog so I wanted to stress again what an amazing time I had with you Chris. I enjoyed hanging out with you and talking and getting to know you better. Can't wait to see you again and I promise I'll make good on my bet....I owe you two! *muah*

PS - Steelers or Seahawks? -- GO SEAHAWKS!!!

Off Again....

2006-01-20T15:12:00.000-05:00

Here's a quick note to let y'all know that I'm out of town again this weekend....this time for fun though...HEHE!!

It's probably a good thing that I've been so busy today at work or else I might have time to think about tomorrow and get even MORE nervous than I already am.....AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!

I'll return to you all next week.

Have a great weekend!

Wish me luck with "massage boy!!" : )

Words of Wisdom

2006-01-19T13:39:00.000-05:00

Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully.

Marry a man/woman you love to talk to. As you get older, their conversational skills will be as important as any other.

Don't believe all you hear, spend all you have or sleep all you want.

When you say, "I love you," mean it.

When you say, "I'm sorry," look the person in the eye.

Be engaged at least six months before you get married.

Believe in love at first sight.

Never laugh at anyone's dream. People who don't have dreams don't have much.

Love deeply and passionately. You might get hurt but it's the only way to live life completely.

In disagreements, fight fairly. No name calling.

Don't judge people by their relatives.

Talk slowly but think quickly.

When someone asks you a question you don't want to answer, smile and ask, "Why do you want to know?"

Remember that great love and great achievements involve great risk.

Say "bless you" when you hear someone sneeze.

When you lose, don't lose the lesson

Remember the three R's: Respect for self; Respect for others; and responsibility for all your actions.

Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship.

When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.

Smile when picking up the phone. The caller will hear it in your voice.

Spend some time alone.

The Monday Morning Test & My Looooooong Weekend

2006-01-17T21:11:00.000-05:00

Hello all--long time since I've posted (or so it seems)--am I becoming addicted to this thing? NAH!

Well, I made it back from Orlando alive and in 1 piece....it was a VERY long weekend. The girls didn't do so hot...BUT it was their first tournament and we've only practiced as a team like 6/7 times. Not to mention that our practices are only an hour and 1/2 long because we're a regional team (stay in FL & GA instead of traveling nation wide)....anyways. We ended up with a 1 - 6 record. Our match on Monday was scheduled for 1pm but the court we were playing on was 2 hours behind so we ended up not starting until 3 and I didn't get back into town until 8pm! UGH! Needless to say, I was tired and probably a little cranky (sorry Chris - haha). The girls parents seem to also be really cool which is such a help knowing that they support you! Um, other than that....the weekend was alright...had some team bonding time for the girls, team dinner, and silly little stuff like that....

I went back to work today and it SUCKED!!!! UGH!!!

This weekend I'm headed to see "massage boy!" I'm so excited yet nervous at the same time...I know we'll have a blast! AAAAHHHH...what am I going to wear?? LOL.

Anyways -- a friend of mine sent me this link and I thought it was cool so I want all of you to do it too...it's called the "Monday Morning Test!"

http://www.risingstarkaraoke.com/monday_test.html

My results were the following:
Your Score: 8 out of 11
Your Rating: Honor Student

AND CHECK OUT MY "PROJECTED LOVE LIFE"
Your Projected Love Life: Not Bad! Expect your love life to bloom soon! - WOOHOO!!

LOL--okay folks...I guess I've babbled enough for 1 entry -- glad to be bag in "blog-land."

PS-I guess since the Jags are out of the running for the Superbowl, I want Carolina to win it...so GO CAROLINA!!!

Wish Me Luck

2006-01-13T11:28:00.000-05:00

My team's first volleyball tournament is this weekend in Orlando.....eleven 15-year old girls--think I'll come back alive?? LOL. Nah, it'll be cool....wouldn't trade it for the world.

I will return to you all early next week....until then...I hope y'all have a great weekend.

Take care.

What's in YOUR fridge?

2006-01-11T23:02:00.000-05:00

Okay, so this is kind of cheesy.....BUT...I thought "why not?...."

What are the 5 things that you have to have in your refridgerator or freezer that you CANNOT live without?

Mine are as follows:

frozen dinners
milk
eggs (or egg beaters)
fresh broccoli
onion

I think when I'm married and have a family it may change a little bit -- perhaps instead of frozen dinners, I'll have like chicken or ground beef or something of that nature, but I think the rest will pretty much stay the same.....

Soo...yeah, this was a weird post but I just thought it was interesting....

What can't you live without in YOUR fridge folks? I think it'll be interesting to see all of your "can't live withouts."

Love in Any Language

2006-01-10T22:53:00.000-05:00

Ever heard of a "love language?"

I believe that every individual can express their love in a unique manner. But, they all can be grouped into five categories. And most likely, the way someone expresses their love is the way they want to be shown that they are loved.....It's very important that we understand one another's "love languages" in order to both show love and feel love.

I've listed the 5 different love languages (in no particular order):

quality time
physical touch
gifts
acts of service
words of affirmation

Now, for me, my love language is quality time. I show the people that I love, my love for them, by spending quality time with them...whether that be talking on the phone, spending a weekend together, etc. My best friend since 7th grade--her love language is the giving and receiving of gifts. Isn't it strange that 2 best friends share such opposite love languages?? BUT, what makes our friendship work is the fact that we both understand how the other expresses their love and at the same time feels loved. She calls me and plans trips to come visit me and I send her cute little cards in the mail and silly stuff like that....I love you AL!!!

What would you consider your love language? Is your expression of love and your feeling of love the same??

And what better way to end this blog than by using a quote that we all have come to know very well -- tell someone you love them or at the very least that you miss them a whole lot!

WIN-WIN

2006-01-09T09:46:00.000-05:00

Hi friends! Hope you all had a nice weekend…I did, despite a loss by the Jags on Saturday *insert pout here*

Friday nite I went out with my friends to dinner (Charles, Tristan, and Juan). We had sushi…YUM!! I love sushi…and I hadn’t had it in a while so that made it even better. I made Friday an early evening because I had a volleyball clinic on Saturday morning and I couldn’t go in lookin’ all crazy in front of the girls …. they think of me as a mature adult (what do they know?) hehe.

Saturday morning – the clinic was fine – nothing too exciting. I’ve had to go every year that I’ve been coaching and only a few rules change each year but we (head coach & I) have to go each year to supervise the girls.

Ran some errands on Saturday afternoon and then got ready for the big game on Saturday night.

Now, let me just tell you guys that I typically don’t bet on games or get nervous about them but I guess considering I did have 2 bets on this game…I was nervous. One bet was no big deal – I owe a friend lunch – no biggie. Second bet is a little more involved : ) BUT it’s a win-win situation in MY opinion. My friend, Chris, and I bet that if the Jags lost, I’d have to give him a massage, and vice-versa if they won. Not bad right? LOL. Now we just have to make arrangements for this massage because he lives about 3 hours away : ( *sigh*

I watched the game with some friends up at the Ale House and let me just tell you…they are CRAZY!! One of my friends, who is typically pretty laid back, confronted the server (who was a female)….you’ll understand in a minute why that’s important. And ladies, you’ll understand this better….so if any of you have ever been to an Ale House, you know that the tables by the bar and near the pool tables are typically first come, first serve. Well, we literally sat down at a table RIGHT after 6 guys got up and left because we asked them if we could have their table….SooOOooooOOO….the waitress comes up and says we can’t have the table because they (the hostess and management) are watching the tables pretty closely since it was packed in the bar…. “okay, fine, no problem.” Not 2 seconds after we leave, a table full of guys comes and sits down – AND SHE LETS THEM STAY! UGH!! So because she doesn’t have a chance of hookin’ up with us, she doesn’t want to have us in her section? WTF?? So, Tiff, went up to her and asked her about it and she turns to the table of guys and says “see what I have to put up with all night!” I think that pissed Tiff off more than the fact that she was letting them sit there so Tiff went straight to the manager who went straight back to the waitress….needless to say, the waitress made up some BS story so they stayed at the table and we got seated about 5-10 minutes later. Oh well – it was very funny to see Tiff get so bent out of shape though…never seen her like that! LOL.

Sunday wasn’t too exciting…went to the gym, watched the Steelers and Bengals play, and tried to get to bed at a decent hour…..

Well, I guess that brings y’all up to speed on my weekend.

This week should be pretty quick – we have our first volleyball tournament this weekend so I’m definitely lookin’ forward to that – our team has great potential this year!

Back to work my friends, take care!

PS-I’ve lost 4 lbs in 6 days on Weight Watchers so far – WOOHOOO!!!!

GO JAGS

2006-01-07T19:02:00.000-05:00

Whew -- I'm actually nervous about this game.....lot riding on it : )

GOOOOOOOOO JAGS!!

Is it 5 o'clock YET??

2006-01-06T11:01:00.000-05:00

THANK GOD IT’S FRIDAY!! I think this was possibly the longest 4-day week EVER!! Haha.

So friends, nothing exciting going on with me lately…or like Bri, I just don’t want to jinx it.

I’ve been on Weight Watchers for 4 days now and I’ve lost 2lbs thus far…pretty exciting! And for me, when I see the results, it’s easier for me to be motivated and stick to my diet. And I hate the word diet by the way….it’s a lifestyle change and portion modification…I still eat the same things, just less of it…and exercise of course….anyways, let me quit ranting : ) LOL

Going to have a pretty busy weekend --- I'll going to dinner with some friends tonight….YUMMY….sushi! We have a volleyball clinic in the morning but it shouldn’t be too bad then the never-ending Saturday errands, the gym, and laundry but then Saturday night…it’s just me and my JAGS!!! I’m so excited yet nervous….Leftwich better bring his "A" game is all I'm sayin' --- Del Rio has already said he’ll be the starter and if he’s not having a good night, Garrard better get some playing time because I think he’s a great asset to our team. Anways-sorry, once again ranting!!

Okay, nothing else to really say today—hope y’all (yeah, I’m a southern gal) have a nice weekend and stay safe!

Take care and GO JAGS!!!

Happy Birthday Dad

2006-01-04T11:35:00.000-05:00

As some of you know, my father passed away in May of 2004. His birthday is today. He would have been 80! Seems old but he never acted his age.....and for god sake, he was in better shape than I am. So--this one is for him

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD! I saw you out last night. I love you and miss you ALOT!"

Ringing in the New Year

2006-01-02T19:25:00.000-05:00

Hi friends-

Sorry I've been out of commision for a while--lots going on.....

The end of the week at work was very hectic. Seems like everyone was on vacation but me so I was left to pick up the slack for EVERYONE!! Ugh. Oh well--part of life. And I do have a job--I have to remind myself of that A LOT lately..haha!

Friday nite was pretty boring--I got off work a little early and ran some errands and then my friend Juan called. He had to run some errands so I went with him and I actually told him that I needed to run one errand so I made him go with me to Sunset Novelties. For some reason I hate going to novelty stores by myself--I dunno why but I do. So I proceeded to shop around for a few things *wink wink* and then we left (that was for you Juan!) -- haha!!

I got up on Saturday morning and packed and was on the road by 11 I think. If you recall from my earlier post, I was planning on going to Lakeland to spend the New Year's weekend with my friend Allison (our 13th year ringing in the New Year together) and another friend of mine from Pensacola, Josh, was thinking about joining us as well. I called him once I was on the road and he had said that he wasn't going to be able to make it. I couldn't hide my disappointment and I honestly wasn't trying to make him feel bad, but I guess that message came across and he was a little upset. But anyways, the trip went pretty well and I arrived in Lakeland mid-afternoon on New Years Eve. About 3:45, my phone rings while Allison and I are out looking for a bite to eat and low and behold it's Josh. He says "where are you guys at?" And me being a fiesty red-head, I cop an attitude and say "Why do you care? We're out looking for something to eat!!" Then he replies, "Why aren't you at (insert Allison's address here)?" In my head I'm thinking--yeah right!!! Well, I asked him "what kind of cars are in the parking lot?" and he managed to give a pretty accurate description--Allison told me to ask him "what color is her apartment complex..." He once again begins to describe her apartment building and her porch..it was at that point that I realized HE WAS REALLY THERE!!!! OMG!! What an awesome surprise!!! (side note, I've had a surprise party thrown for me when I was 16, but by far, this was the best surprise....EVER!!!--nice job JOSH!!). So anyways, I told Allison that he was there and that we had to turn around--sure enough when we got back, Josh was there-hehe!!

So once everyone got settled in and I got over the initial shock of the surprise....we started to get ready for dinner--we decided to go to Bonefish Grill since Allison had a giftcard . We got all dolled up (or I should probably just say "I" got dolled up because Josh was just sitting there looking at us while we did hair and makeup--funny stuff!). Had an awesome dinner -- oh, and they left my number for our server and the damn bastard didn't even call -- stopped by the liquor store then rang in the New Year at Allison's apartment.

Okay, how many of you all watched Dick Clark? That was so sad to see him in such bad shape--I mean it's a victory that he's walking and talking again after his stroke but I grew up watching Dick ring in the New Year and as morbid as it is, I think it'll be his last.

It was real easy for Allison and I to get a little goofy the more we drank and I think we resorted back to our 7th grade girly giggles which was a litle annoying to Josh I'm sure as he was trying to get some rest....but oh well....it's only New Year's Eve once a year, right? LOL.

We were all up 'til about 3 which was quite a change of pace for me...LOL.

Next day Josh left and Allison and I went over to her mom's house for New Year's dinner and my mom joined us as well. It was just the 4 of us girls and it was fun. I always have an amazing time at her house and she's an amazing cook!! YUMYUM!!! Good to see my mom again too.

We got back to Lakeland about 10ish and went to bed around 12ish. It's amazing that Allison and I can talk about ANYTHING under the sun but we can also be comfortable in complete silence and to me, that's a great thing!

I got back home today around 330ish and traffic on the way back was heavy at some points .... not to mention the fact that I have pretty bad road rage....UGH!! Not going to get into that now because I can feel my blood pressure rising! HAHA!!

Okay, so that was my New Years folks!!! Pretty low key this year but the best times are spent with family and friends in my opinion.

My New Year's resolution was to continue my workouts at the gym but to combine that with more food modification so that the weight comes off more quickly. BUT needles to say, I ate McDonald's on the way back home today and didn't go to the gym because there were tornado watches and warnings out tonight around town so I chose to stay in -- way to start off the New Year eh?? GEEEEESH!!

I hope you all had a wondeful New Years and that this year is full of hope and happiness for us all!

Take care!

PS-Kirsten, I just saw a commercial for Dunkin Doughnuts and how great there coffee was and you got it....I thought of YOU!!!!

PSS-GO JAGS!!!!!!

I guess that'll teach me....

2005-12-29T10:32:00.000-05:00

As you all may remember I had to go to a Holiday Party last night at my boss’ house. I wasn’t really looking forward to it because although I knew everyone there, I just wasn’t in the mood and I didn’t have a date ; (

I had decided I didn’t want to be right on time but not too late either so I got there fashionably late..hehe! I was trying to be festive with my green corduroy jacket to get me in the Holiday spirit and I guess for last night it worked!! We drank, ate, drank, played pool (I won once but mostly got my ass spanked on the table…LOL), drank, socialized, did I mention that we drank? And even had a dirty Santa gift exchange (which by the way, my boss provided ALL the gifts—very cool!) I ended up with a 12pk of Heinekin – anyone want to come help me drink it? *hint hint – Mike*

It was really cool to see people from work on a different level, especially senior management and executives…to see that they had wives and personalities outside of the office when they usually tend to be assholes….LOL. Hopefully they got to see a different side of me too. Actually I know they did because I was invited to a New Year’s Eve party at one of the Senior Category Manager’s house but I politely declined as I’ll be out of town.

I’m posting again at work because it is SO DEAD around here. And while I do like some down time, I like to be busy at work so that the time goes by fairly quickly. UGH! Only 1 ½ more days until the weekend ….WOOHOO!!

Okay, I think I’m outta here for now…I guess I should at least pretend like I’m working, right?

Take care y’all!

Get to know ME!

2005-12-28T17:31:00.000-05:00

Okay so Bri and Kirsten posted this a long time ago (when I wasn't an official blogger) but now that I am, I wanted to participate too, so here it goes......

THREE NAMES YOU GO BY:
1. Red
2. Bi-atch
3. Jice

THREE PHYSICAL THINGS YOU LIKE ABOUT YOURSELF:
1. Hair
2. Eyes
3. Boobs

THREE PHYSICAL THINGS YOU DON"T LIKE ABOUT YOURSELF:
1. Stomach
2. Thighs
3. Arms

THREE PARTS OF YOUR HERITAGE:
1. Irish
2. Cherokee Indian
3. English

THREE THINGS THAT SCARE YOU:
1. Natural disasters
2. Car accidents
3. Spiders

THREE OF YOUR EVERYDAY ESSENTIALS:
1. Shower
2. Food
3. Sleep

THREE THINGS YOU ARE WEARING RIGHT NOW:
1. Black pants
2. Black shirt
3. Green corduroy jacket

THREE OF YOUR FAVORITE MUSICALS:
1. Bye Bye Birdie
2. West Side Story
3. Hello Dolly

THREE OF YOUR FAVORITE SONGS:
1. Amazing Grace
2. When I Get Where I'm Going - Brad Paisley & Dolly Parton
3. American Soldier - Toby Keith

THREE THINGS YOU WANT IN A RELATIONSHIP:
1. Trust
2. Passion / Romance
3. Unconditional Love

THREE THINGS ABOUT THE OPPOSITE SEX THAT APPEAL TO YOU:
1. Personality - good sense of humor
2. Hands
3. Chest

THREE OF YOUR FAVORITE HOBBIES:
1. Working Out
2. Volleyball
3. Singing

THREE THINGS YOU WANT REALLY BADLY RIGHT NOW:
1. For year 2006 to be here.
2. To retire.
3. A good smooch for New Year's Eve ... lol ; )

THREE CAREERS YOU ARE CONSIDERING:
1. Replenishment Buyer
2. Professional Student ; )
3. Gym Rat ; )

THREE PLACES YOU WANT TO GO ON VACATION:
1. Key West
2. Las Vegas
3. Hawaii

THREE KID NAMES YOU LIKE:
1. Kayleigh
2. Taylor
3. Austin

THREE THINGS YOU WANT TO DO BEFORE YOU DIE:
1. Married
2. Have a family
3. Be able to retire and draw social security

THREE WAYS THAT YOU ARE STEREOTYPICALLY A CHICK:
1. Read into things or tend to take things way too personal
2. Love to cook and try new things
3. Overpack on trips

THREE WAYS THAT YOU ARE STEREOTYPICALLY A DUDE:
1. Sports/Gym
2. Agressive Driver
3. Don't tend to get too dressed up unless it's a special occasion

THREE CELEB CRUSHES:
1. Batista (WWE Heavyweight Champion)
2. Ty Pennington (Extreme Makeover - Home Edition)
3. Sean Moore - well, he's like a mini-celebrity, right? HAHA!

Okay, so that's a little about me...until next time folks, take care!

Out with the old, in with the new....

2005-12-27T13:28:00.000-05:00

Hi Friends.

Well, we've made it though Christmas--Hallelujah!!!

Let's see.....the week before Christmas was pretty hectic then my mom got here and so I've been busy spending time with her. My mom and I opened our gifts to each other on Christmas Eve and that was fun. We both liked our gifts. Mine to her was more sentimental than anything (I'll explain some other time) and she got me a really nice J.A. Henckels knife set.....VERY NICE!! I love it. Got some random stuff from friends but the knife set was the main thing. That night we went around town looking at Christmas lights....

Um, we ventured out on Monday to the mall (what was I thinking??????) - I managed to spend my gift card that I got from my bosses (actually, I spent more than the gift card--but everything was on sale so it was ok, right? Yeah, retail therapy...LOL). I only had to stand in 1 line at Target to return something and it wasn't that bad at all.....YIPPEE!!!

Now I'm back at work ..... BLAH!!! It's so dead today (hence why I'm posting from work) and I'm looking for stuff to do!!! Oh well, pays my bills and that's all that matters--and in actuality, I'm really blessed to have a job!

Anyways, tomorrow I'm going to a Holiday party at my boss' house--I'm really nervous about it because all the Category Managers (mostly men) will be their with their wives and I can't even find a freakin' friend to go with me much less a date...UGH!! Anyone want to come with me? Oh well, I don't have to stay the entire night--who knows--I'll probably end up having a good time!

I'm really excited about New Years--I love ringing in the New Year--espeically since I've done it with my best friend Allison for the last 12 years or so probably. In middle school we used to go over to her house and do stupid girl stuff all night long. As we got older, we continued to get together at her house and I even remember one year we (a whole bunch of us school girls) dressed up as the spice girls.....Yeah, can you imagine that? 10 little preppy private school girls dressing up as spice girls.....OMG, it was hilarious. I think there are probably a few blackmail pictures floating around...and there were obviously more of us than Spice Girls so I remember I was "Corduroy Spice!" Yeah, ok, enough of that....I'm telling embarrassing stuff about myself...LOL.

Last year was a blast....first time I had ever been drunk enough to puke--actually I not only puked, I induced vomit--it was bad but 2004 was definitely the worst year of my life (year my dad passed away) so I was drinking my year away. This year will be much better as Allison and I and maybe another friend of mine will be joining us. <--Maybe there will be some good stories to come of our time together (hehe)! Okay friends, I don't think I have anything else exciting (not that that was at all exciting, but ya know!) to discuss but I hope you all made it through the Holidays ok and that you'll return to blogging soon! Oh, and by the way, how 'bout those Jaguars? They secured a spot in the PLAYOFFS!!!!!! GO JAGS!!!!

Random Quotes

2005-12-22T10:19:00.000-05:00

God is the God of promise. He keeps His word, even when that seems impossible; even when the circumstances seem to point to the opposite.
-Colin Urquhart

A constant friend is a thing rare and hard to find.
-Plutarch

Friendship is like two clocks keeping time.
-Random

Laughter is the brush that sweeps away the cobwebs of the heart.
-Mort Walker

Loving can cost a lot, but not loving always costs more.
-M. Shain

The best thing about the future is that it comes only one day at a time.
-Abraham Lincoln

Time has a wondeful way of showing us what really matters.
-Random

When God shuts a door, He opens a window.
-John Ruskin

If you can find humor in anything, you can survive it.
-Bill Cosby

Take care of the minutes and the hours, and the years will take care of themselves.
-Random

Too Much to do in 24 Hours !!

2005-12-21T09:40:00.000-05:00

Hello fellow bloggers-

Okay, so I don't have any new revelations to write about today so I figure I would just update you as to what has been going on with me the past week and this upcoming week.

We'll start with last Saturday--I did my usual step class at the gym, then I managed to get 85% of my Christmas shopping done that morning. Gotta love TARGET! Also did some of my usual Saturday errands (grocery store, etc). I managed to make 2lbs of peppermint bark that afternoon too. It was my first time making it and I was making it for people at work so I was praying that it would turn out good. (side note-really really easy and inexpensive to make for Holiday gifts)! So that night I was invited to go to a "Stock the Bar Holiday Party" at a friends house but I just wasn't up for it--too many people, wasn't feeling spectacular so I decided to skip out on the party and instead go to dinner with my friends Charles and Tristan. Had a few drinks also which was nice. For some reason I was having trouble falling asleep that night and at 245 my phone rings....what the hell? It was my best friend, Allison....she had to fill me in on her drama ; ) LOL. Um, so I had my alarm set Sunday morning to hit the gym hard again but when it went off at 8am I hit snooze...needless to say the next time it went off....I TURNED IT OFF! (especially after not going to bed until 330....oh well). Sunday was a VERY lazy day but I guess I was subconsciously preparing for my upcoming week--

Which leads me to my crazy ass Monday. I got to work a few minutes early so I could get my inbox cleaned out since I had been out but when I got in, before I even turned on my computer I was a little pissed off. Things were shuffled around on my desk from other people and I HATE THAT!! So when I finally did turn on my computer it did some weird ass boot up thing and was making weird noises and MY FREAKIN' KEYBOARD WOUDLN'T WORK EITHER!! So it's probably just now 8am and I was already in a pissy mood--so I did what any IT guy would tell me to do and I rebooted my computer and magically everything was okay....THANK GOD! But-then I look down to see what time it was later that morning and the battery in my watch had died.....UGH!! Very frustrating! Ay yay yay - Monday evening I went to the gym and put finishing touches on my Christmas tins which contained the peppermint bark and got those ready to take the work the next day--did some random stuff around the apartment and then FINALLY hit the sack around 1130 or so I guess...

Then around comes Tuesday -- work was fine -- no drama like the day before. Gave out my peppermint bark to my 4 bosses and they collectively gave me an American Express Gift Card --SCORE!!!! Last night I went out to a friend's house for a medieval party (don't worry, I didn't have to dress up or anything) -- but we did have traditional food and the like...we had 4 courses but I could only make it through 3 because I was stuffed. We played games and had a Christmas gift exchange -- I ended up with chocolate which I was VERY pleased with (after all it is a girl's best friend -- besides diamonds of course -- KIDDING!!!) Last night turned out to be a late night, didn't get to bed until almost 1....UGH!!

Now it's Wednesday and I'm at work and wishing that this day would hurry up and be over....I'm driving about an 1 or so south today with a friend to have dinner with another friend of ours who is moving to NYC soon. It'll be our last chance to see her so I'm sad I wont get to see her as often but glad I'll get to see her for a bit tonight....I'll fill you in on those detail later...My mom is coming in to town today as well so I'm looking forward to that and she'll be here for a week.

Tomorrow we're having a "pre-Christmas" celebration with some friends who wont be here over the Holiday weekend and exchanging gifts. Friday is another party at another friends house as her husband got home yesterday from being out at sea for 7 months....so it's a "Welcome Home Shane/Christmas Party."

AY YAY YAY - too many things to do and people to see but not enough time......wake me up when this is all over...

Okay-so I HAVE to get back to work now....have a 12 o'clock deadline I have to meet...

Until next time folks - take care!

I've Been Tagged -- well, not really!

2005-12-19T21:58:00.000-05:00

I've been tagged...
Okay, so I saw this on Sky's blog and although she didn't "tag" me I thought it was cool, so I wanted to do it...so here it goes...My 5 weird habits...

Here are the rules: “The first player of this game starts with the topic. “five weird habits of yourself,” and people who get tagged need to write an entry about their five weird habits as well as state this rule clearly. In the end, you need to choose the next five people to be tagged.

Everyone understand the rules? Here goes nothing....

1. In addition to taking a shower AFTER I work out, I sometimes take a shower BEFORE I go to the gym.

2. I hate to have other people load my dishwasher.

3. I used to set 3 alarms in the morning. It's not that I wouldn't wake up.....I was just afraid that 1 would fail. So I'd set my alarm clock, my stop watch, and my cellphone. I've gotten better--I only set 2 now!

4. I alphabetize my DVDs.

5. I talk to my mom EVERYDAY.....sometimes more than once.

Ok, so now I have to tag...and I choose to tag Kirsten, Diayah, Bri, Head Moore-on, and Mike.

Have fun guys!

I'm baaaaaa-aaaack....Did you miss me?

2005-12-16T21:52:00.000-05:00

It's great to be back guys....and needless to say it's great to be back home too!
Lots has been going on the past day or so and after catching up on all of your blogs, I've definitely got some thoughts on that....

Well, shall we get started?

I left Thursday for Alabama to see one of my best friends in the world, Mike, graduate to a 2nd Lt. in the US Airforce. Two friends, Derek and Carol (Mike's sister in law), and I left around 11:45 EST to head for "Sweet Home Alabama!" (sorry, coudn't resist!). We made pretty good time which I was excited about because I can only take so much of being a passenger in the car before I want to take over the steering wheel. *side note - we saw some pretty horrible accidents on the way there so I was very grateful that we arrived safely* We talked, listen to music and played a new game on the way to 'bama. The new game (you better try it) is called "hey cow." This is how it's played.....when you're driving along and see a pasture full of cows, you roll down the window and yell "HEY COW!" as loud as possible....then the competition is to see how many cows actually look up....sound fun? (by the way, I didn't create this game, I only participated) I think the most I had look up from grazing was 3! Yeah, I already warned you guys that I was a dork! So...now you've got proof!

We arrived in Montgomery about 6pm and had some time to kill before meeting everyone for dinner so we grabbed a beer (just what I needed after being in the car for that long)....It was great to see Mike after him being at OTS (Officer Training School) for 12 weeks....dinner was great and I definitely partook in some more drinking....MARGARITA TIME!! I was sharing a room with Carol and Lisa Marie (not Pressley) so being the girls that we are, we had to get up mega-early to allow for shower time, breakfast and the graduation ceremony was at 8am but we were told traffic getting on to the base would be bad so we decided to leave at 645 am........need I say 'UGH!' Not sure if I've mentioned this before but I've never seen snow before but I got a taste of what heavy ice is like. When we went to the car on Friday morning, there was SO MUCH ice on the car that it was inoperable....luckily Derek (who is from New Hampshire) had an ice scraper in his car--there's definitely a technique to this ladies and gentlemen--he scraped the ice from the windows and then had a brush on the other end of it to 'brush' off the ice.....VERY NIFTY--yeah, I know....I'm DEFINITLY a Florida girl--sad isn't it? So anyways, shall we continue?

We arrived on Maxwell AFB early enough that we drove around for a bit and then headed to the ceremony site. Only 14 people in Mike's flight class so it was a very intimate ceremony. Mike was the first trainee to be commissioned and it was AWESOME!! Mike's father-in-law (retired Coast Guard) commissioned Mike, his wife (my best friend, Charlene), and his parents pinned on his wings, and his brother, Allen (Marine) gave him his first salute. It was awesome to see the comradery and discipline that these young men had developed over the past 12 weeks. AND I HAVE TO SAY THAT THEY ALL LOOKED HOT IN THEIR UNIFORMS!!!!!! After the other trainees were commissioned, we all went out to the athletic fields for a parade. Mike was awarded for being a distinguished member of his class so he was able to lead his crew during the parade and he also carried a sword -- very cool by the way! Again, lots of men & women in uniform that looked AMAZING!! (I'm getting all hot and bothered just thinking about it!!!!) After the parade there was a lot of pictures being taken but we managed to get out of there at a decent time.

This graduation ceremony and parade had me thining a lot....my dad was in the Navy (fought in the Korean Campaign and WWII) and it got me to thinking about him a lot. You see, my dad passed away when I was 23 years old (May 24, 2004). He had a massive heart attack and although he did make it to the hospital, the paramedics and ER staff were unable to revive him. My mom called me at work from the hospital and told me that he had passed....I started crying hysterically and a lot of it is still a blur, but I do remember this--I told my mom that I never got to say goodbye one last time and tell him that I loved him. Well, my mom gave me that opportunity--my dad was still lying in the hospital bed and she put the phone up to his hear and I whispered to him that I loved him and goodbye and that I would see him again some day. So, in my eyes, I said goodbye.....I know my dad watches over me everyday, I talk to him and I know he listens and I'm thankful for everything that he provided for me and my family. Not only did he provide for family but he also provided a loyal service to the country during his tenure in the Navy. I know Mike has that same loyalty and is a great addition to the military!!!

Wow-so that was pretty intense and now that I have wiped by eyes (sorry guys--thanks for hanging in there with me if you're still reading)--I'll continue...

We acquired another passenger on the way back to Florida--his name is Frank and he's a friend of Mike's. So 4 people in a cozy little Saturn....no comment! We played 'hey cow' on the way back and christened Frank to this game and we also listened to more music. Now, typically I'm into the Holidays but for the past year and a half, I just really don't enjoy them much...this Christmas is no exception. I've got no Christmas decor up, haven't done hardly any shopping and just have no real desire to be 'in the Holiday Spirit'....now my mom is coming up in less than a week but I think that may be the only thing I'm looking forward to.....so mind you, we're on the way back and Derek decides to put in some Christmas music......FOLKS, WE LISTENED TO AT LEAST 3 HOURS OF STRAIGHT CHRISTMAS MUSIC!!!! I don't care if you're Santa Claus, that is unbearable......OMG OMG OMG!!! It sucked--so I tried to snooze on and off but what I really wish that I had had was some ear plugs -- *note to self- buy some ear plugs for next road trip* -- haha!!!

We didn't make as good a time coming back as we did going up but I suppose it could have been worse. It's about 10:30 EST now and I'm going to put you guys out of your misery and sign off for the night. Thanks for reading (if there's anyone out there) and listening to my stories of my road trip to the scenic state of Alabama....

I hope that everyone is doing well and until next time....stay safe!

Sean-if you're reading this, did you see my song I wrote on Diayah's blog? Am I close to pinpointing you because I did mention LOTS of places that you could possibly be ; )

Okay, I'm really signing off now....GOODNITE!

60 Grueling Minutes on the Field

2005-12-11T08:52:00.000-05:00

GO JAGS--BEAT THE COLTS!

Volleyball - My First Love

2005-12-09T22:46:00.000-05:00

Okay okay....so here it is, my first post! I'm kind of nervous to tell you the truth as I've seen both good and bad blogs. Hopefully mine will be one that you revisit....

Um, needless to say, I'm pretty tired right now...I was up at 615 this morning for a volleyball exhibition/jamboree sort of thing. I coach volleyball for a juniors volleyball club here and this is my 3rd year with the club....my first year I coached 17s, last year I coached 14s and this year I am coaching 15s. I've been as assistant all 3 years.

I love volleyball and have been playing since I was in 7th grade -- let me do the math here -- 13 years I think -- anyways. I sort of just fell into coaching but it's something I've really come to love. I love working with adolescents and I love the fact that I could become a mentor to these girls.....some may not have a good home life so if they need a stable role model in their life, I'll gladly accept that role.

So, on to the exhibition -- like I said before, I've only been an Asst. Coach before but it just so happens that the Head Coach couldn't be there this morning due to a prior committment so I had to step up to the plate big time.

The girls respect my authority and listen to what I have to say so I had confidence going into this but was still a little uneasy since I would have TOTAL CONTROL!!! I decide the line-up, I decide who subs in for who and when---AAAAAAH!!!! This wasn't like a "real" tournament like we'll have starting in January but it was close enough for me at this point. We did well for only having 2 practices -- we played 2 games, won one and lost one. Our loss came to a 16 year old National team (which means they travel across the country to the Qualifier tournaments) -- our Regional team stays within the state except to go to GA for one tourney.

I'm sure you all have had enough volleyball talk at this point, so I'll shutup about that for now -- but don't worry -- y'all will hear about it over the next few months until our season ends in May.

Hope everyone is having a GREAT weekend and if you're still reading -- THANKS!