Puppy Love

NKOTB + NBOTB = A Great Day

Did you all hear that NKOTB is in town tonight? The fact that they are on tour is kind of a big deal for grown women between the ages of 26 and 33 all across the land. Let's all take a moment to reflect on our favorite New Kid and the song that made our pre-teen hearts skip a beat each time we heard it. My favorite was Donnie Wahlberg. I had the Donnie t-shirt, the Donnie poster in my room opposite my Kirk Cameron poster, the Donnie button...He was my homeboy. I swear that I must've watched the Hangin' Tough LIVE video more times than my parents probably should've ever allowed, but I absolutely loved it. And thanks to the awesomeness of YouTube, I am including my favorite song for your viewing pleasure.

Unfortunately I will not be making it down to the Gwinnett Arena tonight for the show since I have class. Not to mention the fact that I prefer to save my concert money for good quality entertainment...like Justin Timberlake.

In other news, there is also a NBOTB...New Blog on the Blogosphere. I'm excited about this blog because it provides me with yet another outlet for good recreational reading and also because I was asked to write a forward for it. It's like I'm almost famous. Minus the paparazzi following me and cruel comments in the tabloids. So click here to check it out and welcome my friend, C to the blogosphere.

The Sky is Falling, The Sky is Falling

On my way to work this morning I passed this billboard...(Please excuse the dirty windshield spots)I generally do not take this route, but boy am I glad that I did today because it provided me with some great things to consider during my commute. For instance, does Public Health Athens know something that us common folk do not? Is the Pandemic Flu scheduled to arrive on a certain day? Will it occur in conjunction with another event? Perhaps I should make tentative plans now to stay indoors on January 20, 2009...just in case. Also, I wonder if the Angel Food Ministries' mission is to feed America chicken? It's a fair question.

Settle?!? Settle.

According to dictionary.com there are multiple definitions for the word, settle. But for the purpose of this post, I am going to focus on this one: to take up residence in a new country or place.

I know. I've lived in Athens for 17 months...far from new, right? In all of my recreational blog reading, I stumbled across this post from a fantastic blog that I read. I'm just saying that if I lived in Nashville, I would work really hard to make this girl my friend. In a nutshell she is new to Nashville and writes a lot about her transition to a new town. Reading her blog often leads me to think about my own transition. The truth is, I moved to Athens with the mindset that this was just a brief little stepping stone for me that served as a means to some end. I would earn my advanced degree and move on to a place where the skies were much bluer and the air much less smelly. Because I've had such a narrow focus I really haven't taken the time to invest in important things here...like people or a church or the community. And now 17 months later, I'm starting to realize that maybe one day I'm going to regret my decision not to make these investments.

Yes - I have friends here. But not the kind that I feel like would call me up if their world was falling apart and they needed someone to help them drown their sorrows in a vat of cookie dough. You know, like the ones I have scattered all over in places far from Athens. Yes - I go to one church regularly. But it's not a church where I feel really at home. It's huge and very impersonal at the corporate worship level, and I, being the "temporary resident" that I've deemed myself, haven't taken the time to get involved and do something service oriented there. Heaven forbid that happen. I might make even more friends. I might do some good for the world. I might put the gifts and talents that God has given me to good use.

The truth is I made the conscious decision to move my life here. Even though the decision to do so completely forced me out of my comfort zone. But the older I get, the more I understand that life isn't always about being comfortable. I'm thankful for free will and that I have the freedom and resources to make such decisions as well. I think that often we take the ability to do these sorts of things for granted while in reality we are given so many liberties that much of the world will never know. Well, I can't speak on behalf of the entire citizenry (is that a word and am I using it correctly) of the United States, but I often take these kinds of things for granted. It doesn't matter that I only plan to be here for a little while. Often times I get very caught up in thinking about the future that the present just flies right by without me taking notice. I imagine that I have missed out on some great opportunities in all of my forward-thinking. It's time that I focus on the here and now. In other words it's time for me to settle. For a little while, anyway. Until it's time to settle elsewhere.

"He put your feet on a wonderful road that took you straight to a good place to live. So thank God for His marvelous love." -Psalm 107:7-8 (The Message)

Just Me and Jack (O'Lantern)

The other night after class I had to stop by the grocery store and as I was walking in, I became completely distracted by the pumpkins for sale. Normally I breeze right by these displays because I prefer to buy my pumpkins at pumpkin farms while dressed in overalls... Side note: Apparently going to school in a mountain town had more of an effect on us than I realized at the time. To our defense, overalls were all the rage when this picture was taken eons ago.

I digress. So before I knew it I was in pursuit of the perfect pumpkin. The whole time I was asking myself things like "Why in the world am I going to carve a pumpkin? It's just me so what's the point? How fun can carving a pumpkin solo be?" And 15 minutes later when I was lugging it up the stairs along with a gallon of milk and other essentials I was still wondering the same type of things. Of course Cash thought it was just another chew toy...

Thursday was a nice fall day so I decided during lunch that I would actually carve the pumpkin when I got home that night. I mean, what else is a girl to do in Athens, GA on a Thursday night, right? So I lit up my Harvest scented Yankee Candle and turned on my favorite Allison Krauss CD and got to work. And since there was no one around to witness that I was actually carving a pumpkin I decided to be like the Pioneer Woman and use the camera timer to take pictures along the way. But her pictures are so much better because she uses Photoshop. And she has a KitchenAid mixer so that automatically makes her kitchen better than mine. But that's beside the point, really. In the beginning Cash was all about the activity...Fortunately he got bored pretty quickly so the master pumpkin carver could get to work...Of course my original "sketch" wasn't good enough so my perfectionist personality took over by trying to erase it and start over. Lesson learned: ink on a pumpkin does not wash off with water.In all my brilliance I started out trying to cut through the top of the pumpkin with probably the dullest knife in my drawer. Then I remembered the pumpkin carving kit that I had from the last time we carved pumpkins so my life became much easier. Until I remembered how messy the inside of a pumpkin is...Which is why I'm including this picture so I'll think twice the next time I decide to start carving a pumpkin at 8:30 at night...

Somewhere along the way I decided to separate the pumpkin seeds from the pumpkin yuck (yes, that's the official name for the stuff inside of a pumpkin) in order to roast the seeds. Just because it's fun to pretend to be Martha Stewart sometimes. Minus the line of linens sold at Kmart and time served in the slammer. They turned out pretty well I suppose...

if you like pumpkin seeds. Which I don't particularly, but surely someone does so they won't go to complete waste. Finally I made a futile attempt to get a shot of the finished product with my puppy and me...

So much for that. Welcome to my world of having a dog that eats everything. It's at this point that I would like to say that my neighbor's 7 year old is the one who did the actual carving but that would be telling a story. The truth is I just have the artistic ability of a 7 year old. But that's ok.
The other truth (which I think is also ok) is that pumpkin carving is much more fun as a team sport...especially for a girl who prefers the company of her friends, family and other people as opposed to the company of her TV. Which brings me to a whole other post. But that's going to have to wait for a little while...I've got school work to do.

Mindless Post Regarding Mindless Television

So you know how Dancing With the Stars is notorious for having dried up TV stars on the show? In my personal opinion, a true indicator that a star has in fact bottomed out is when they are given the "opportunity" to dance on this show. Don't get me wrong...I love some dancing and what girl born in the very late 70's/very early 80's didn't have a crush on A.C. Slater or Joey McIntyre? But I can totally live without the Cloris Leachman and Jerry Springer types so I usually avoid this show like the plague. (Except for the Emmitt Smith season when I never missed an episode.) However there is one couple that would totally convince me to tune in again...

Two Week Countdown

Public service announcement: The election is 2 weeks from today. Just a friendly reminder. Do with it what you wish. It's your right as a free American.

Honestly I will not miss the pundits or the media or the candidates going back and forth in that oh so political manner in which they communicate, but I will miss this stuff...

Home Sweet Home

Well, I'm back in the Classic City and Cash could not be more thrilled to see me...

I Clicked My Heels Three Times...

And I'm still here in Georgia's 2nd oldest city. Speaking of heels, I had huge issues in footwear before leaving home...

Please note that while this carpet is lovely, it's not the carpet at my apartment. I took this picture at the hotel. Why in the world do I need 7 pairs of shoes for a 3 day trip? When I first became a working girl with income, I traveled all the time. I was gone so much and became so good at packing that I could pack for an entire week in about 20 minutes flat carrying no more than 3 pairs of shoes. Not so much the case for this little measly trip. Now don't get me wrong...there is no such thing as a girl having too many shoes, but even I think it's a little overkill this time. Interestingly enough I have worn every single pair in a matter of 3 days. It's nice to have options. While it's been mostly work with me serving on a couple of committees and making presentations and even attending a session or two, we (my co-workers and I...not me and my multiple personalities) have managed to incorporate some play into the mix...
I'll be honest - I'm not sure why the theme of the association dinner was patriotic in nature instead of us all gathering around to watch The Legend of Bagger Vance in our white painter coveralls considering we were in Augusta and all. Maybe because it's an election year? Or maybe it's just because we're all proud to be Americans. Yes. That's it. But no worries all you golf fans, I did run into some old friends and manage to work in a quick round (is that the right lingo?) of golf...

Likely story considering the course. In reality it's more like I'm still reminiscing about all the fun that I had in the wax museum in Vegas last year. One of the reasons why it's been such a fun few days is because I have am blessed to have such great co-workers. I worked with these folks on a daily basis for about 3 years before I moved to another campus.
Now I only get to see them about once a week, but that's ok because I have the best of both worlds with great co-workers at The OC too. But I'll talk about them another day.

There's no place like home. There's no place like home...

Augusta Thus Far

Greetings from Augusta, GA. I'm here at a conference for work but the truth is, I would rather be in Athens. The reason why is because I miss this...But if I were in Athens, fun and exciting things such as this would not be taking place...
At least if our future career as dueling pianists doesn't work out, we've always got a shot in Vegas. Stay tuned.

100th Blog Post Bonanza

So it seems that I have reached a milestone that is celebrated here in the blogosphere. This is my 100th blog post, which really is a joyous occasion. Ok, maybe it’s not joyous for you, but it is for me. When I first began my relationship with this little blog o’ mine it was very on-again-off-again. In fact, the odds of Nick and Jessica actually making it were probably greater than the odds of me making it as a blogger. But it seems I’ve beaten the odds. Apparently there is a little tradition among bloggers to share 100 things about themselves in order to celebrate the 100th post. At this point you should start channel surfing because I’m sure whatever St. Olaf story that Rose is telling on the Golden Girls is much more entertaining than this stuff…
1. I love taking naps. They make me a better person and everyone reading this would probably be better people if I cut the list 99 facts short and took one right now.
2. I’m left-handed, which proved to be really beneficial for me all those years on the softball field.
3. I stopped playing softball before my freshman year of college when the masculinity of the other players began to frighten me.
4. I’ve never broken a bone.
5. But I have ripped my cornea. The eye patch made me the cutest (read: geekiest) cheerleader in the 6th grade.
6. I finally came to terms with my naturally curly hair my junior year of high school after years of trying to straighten it out.
7. To celebrate, I threw away my brush and haven’t owned one since.
8. Even though it is kind of fun to brush out my hair when in need of cheap entertainment.
9. I’m very easily amused and enjoy the company of others who are as well. (see #8)
10. I break out into hives when I get really cold. Yes, cold. Not hot. Weird, I know.
11. At weddings, when everyone stands up and turns to watch the bride walk down the aisle, I watch the groom to see his facial expression as his bride walks towards him. It’s priceless, and I dare you to try it at the next wedding you go to. Unless it’s your daughter or sister walking down the aisle. You should probably watch her if that’s the case.
12. My thumbs are double-jointed.
13. If I could meet any celebrity on the planet, I would choose John Travolta. Then he would ask me to dance. And I would faint.
14. Speaking of fainting, I did once during a chorus concert in the 7th grade. Another one of my shining moments.
15. But not as shining as that time in the 6th grade when Joseph W. pulled my Umbros down around my ankles. Dad was pleased. I was just pleased Dad didn’t go to jail.
16. The farthest I have ever been from home is Seattle.
17. However it’s my dream to go much farther and spend some time in Europe by way of New Zealand.
18. I just realized that I’m getting a headache…it must be because Oprah is on. I happen to believe that she uses her power for evil instead of good.
19. I consider myself very fortunate to have a mom and a dad who live in the same house.
20. I’m a Southerner who hates grits. Yes, it’s true.
21. I love to read. Always have. Always will.
22. I would love to be the Weekend Update girl on SNL. I think I’ve got a shot since Amy Poehler is about to leave the show to be a mother.
23. When I’m a little bit anxious about something or tired, I twirl the curls on the right side of my head with my right hand until they all morph together into one big curl. It’s pretty.
24. Fortunately, anxiety never interferes with my sleep. I only lose sleep if I’m excited because I’m looking forward to something fun.
25. I would pay lots of money to see Justin Timberlake in concert again. He’s that good.
26. I am loved by Jesus.
27. I happen to love Him back.
28. I’m a little compulsive when it comes to the organization of my closet.
29. However my desk at work is currently a disaster area.
30. I remember what I wore on the first day of kindergarten, last day of 3rd grade, and the first day of college. Don’t believe me? Kindergarten: purple Cabbage Kid shorts with a white shirt that had Cabbage Patch kids all over it / 3rd grade: sea green OP shorts with a white sleeveless OP shirt that had a beach scene on the front / college: blue striped tank top with white shirt over it, jeans and Timberlands. No, I’m not looking at pictures…my mom is great at taking pictures, terrible at getting them developed.
31. The older I get, the more sentimental I become.
32. I love giving gifts. Especially when I get really creative and come up with something that has meaning and significance.
33. There are very few things that truly get under my skin. Ring-back tones are one of them. I believe that they should be banned.
34. As a child I had an irrational fear of thunderstorms.
35. I finally outgrew this fear in college.
36. Along with my jeans.
37. And my legalistic points of view.
38. There is nothing about conflict that I enjoy. I try to prevent and avoid it.
39. My life thus far has turned out nothing like I ever imagined that it would. But then I can’t think of anyone’s that has so I’m in good company.
40. But there are still some days when I wish that I had become a math teacher.
41. I wish that I could play an instrument.
42. There is a ridiculous amount of useless knowledge stored in my brain. But I’m glad that it’s there because it makes conversations much more interesting.
43. I trust people. So it hurts even worse if trust is broken.
44. Writing this is harder than I thought it would be.
45. Jimmy Carter once told me that I looked “just lovely”.
46. Then I chatted with Rosalyn as I danced around outside brushing ants off of my dress after stepping on an ant hill.
47. We didn’t talk politics. It was probably for the best.
48. I’ve been to the dog tracks in Florida. Twice. I live the high life.
49. I love airplane trips.
50. One of my favorite things to do is sit outside on a really dark and clear night and look at the stars and moon.
51. I can watch the movie Anchorman over and over again. It’s how I roll.
52. I also happen to love musicals though. Let’s just say that I’m [relatively] cultured.
53. I’ve been stopped by the police 4 times in my driving career.
54. I’ve never gotten a ticket.
55. I have only been scared for my life once. Spinning through the median of GA-400 in the pouring down rain and landing north bound in the south bound lanes while talking to your mother on the phone would probably make you a little scared for your life too.
56. There’s nothing like a close call to reaffirm one’s belief in God. It worked for me. (see #56)
57. I believe that having a KitchenAid mixer in my kitchen would make the world a better place.
58. I don’t believe that everything happens for a reason.
59. But I do believe that God can bring good out of even the worst situations or events.
60. I almost had a coronary earlier today in Publix when I went to buy a 2-liter drink and it cost $1.79.
61. However there is always a silver lining because I would’ve clicked my heels had I not been driving when I passed the gas station and gas was down to $2.99/gallon.
62. I can click my heels by the way.
63. I cannot believe anyone is still reading this list.
64. I love looking at maps. So much so that I usually go on at least one MapQuest per day.
65. Some days all [I] want to do is dance, dance, dance.
66. Since I’m quoting Don Henley, here is where I’ll mention my very eclectic music collection.
67. I love music.
68. And I always sing along to it in the car. Much to the dismay of fellow passengers.
69. Taking pictures is something I really enjoy doing also.
70. That’s why I always have my camera on hand should a Kodak moment occur.
71. Lately I’ve been thinking about taking up an adult sport. Like tennis.
72. Speaking of sports that I don’t always think about, I love going to rodeos.
73. In high school I snuck into one with my friends without paying. But being the rule-follower that I am, I had a pre-paid ticket in my pocket “just in case” we got caught. So I guess I didn’t really sneak in after all.
74. I blush more easily than anyone I know. It's embarrassing.
75. I’m beginning to feel like this post is the transcript of a really bad and awkward first date of when I grasped at straws to make conversation.
76. My mom and I have the same middle name. Melia. It’s Hawaiian.
77. I’m not Hawaiian.
78. But I am Irish, Scottish and English with a dash or two of American Indian thrown in.
79. I’m trying to incorporate green into more areas of my life than just clothing. So far I’m down with the reusable shopping bags. It’s a work in progress.
80. Kind of like I am.
81. Watching The Office makes me laugh out loud. And I love laughing out loud.
82. Gold Rush weekend (this coming weekend) is something that I look forward to every year because it’s a great time with great friends.
83. This will be the second year in a row that I miss it and I really wish that I could be there.
84. It’s harder to make friends in a new town than I thought it would be.
85. I need to stop referring to Athens as a new town since I’ve lived here for well over a year.
86. It’s fun for me to think about where I will go once I’m done with school because I do not plan to make this place my home sweet home for any longer than I have to.
87. I very easily forget that my plans aren’t really the ones that matter.
88. Sometimes I feel like people don’t understand my sense of humor. I pray for these people because obviously they are the ones lacking something.
89. I love tradition.
90. This weekend will be the first time that I have been away from Cash for more than 12 hours at a time since I got him.
91. The thought of leaving him for 4 days makes me sad. Then I remember that I used to giggle at people like me.
92. Which is why I’m a firm believer in what goes around comes around. Both Alicia Keys and Justin Timberlake said it so it must be true.
93. I like to invest in people and know them. Not just the surface stuff, but the stuff that makes them who they are.
94. But most people don’t realize this about me because in certain situations I am shy and it appears that I am being a snob. I'm not though.
95. I don’t like losing touch with people, but unfortunately I think it’s a part of life.
96. If ever I’m scrolling through the channels and Top Gun is on I will stop and watch it every time without fail.
97. I feel completely unprepared for the Thanksgiving half-marathon that I’m running (I use this word loosely) in a few weeks.
98. No matter how hard I try to do it, I find it nearly impossible to get in the bed before 11 each night.
99. I still don’t understand what is happening with the economy. I’m hoping that a simple explanation will be included in the envelope with my new Wells Fargo debit card.
100. I think it would be interesting to see the stuff that I would've come up with had I done this on another day. But not interesting enough to do it again.

I'm No Sissy

When I woke up this morning I knew that it was going to be a great day at work because I would be sporting a casual GSC t-shirt with khaki's on a normally non-casual Wednesday. All I had to do in exchange was serve hamburgers to some wild and crazy college kids during the Fall Carnival at The OC. Much to my dismay all the burgers were gone before it was my turn to ask if they would like fries with that, but my frown quickly turned upside down when I saw what other opportunity was waiting. Suddenly it was like I was in Gilley's about to get in a big fight with John Travolta. Except it was the G-rated version. And John was nowhere around. (Never mind the fact that someone could've easily mistaken me for Powder with a severe case of the sun grins.) Who am I kidding. In reality, my 8 second bull ride was much like the rides that I took on the quarter horse (as in the 25 cents per ride horse) that sat outside of K-mart and Richway (who here remembers Richway?) when I was about 4. Afterwards, I briefly considered quitting my day job to become a barrel racer on the rodeo circuit, but then I remembered that I would be required to ride horses, and I'm pretty much scared of them. So even though I'm no Sissy, I'm still a sissy.

In completely unrelated news, I talked to Mom when I got out of class tonight, and Daddy has pneumonia. The good news is that he is being treated with some good meds and his fever seems to have broken. The not-so-good news is that his pulmonologist has given him 48 hours to show marked improvement or she's going to put him in the hospital. And she is just sassy enough to do it. Which is why I like her. Naturally I'm a little worried because pneumonia is what triggered the respiratory arrest before, but since he's no longer the Marlboro Man, he's not as sick now as he was then. Which is more good news. The best news is that God is completely in control. But when you pray, if you happen to remember his tarnished and damaged little lungs (and my tired and amazing little mother who is taking care of him), we would all be very appreciative. I'll save the friendly public service announcement about not smoking for another day, but it's probably coming soon. So be ready.

Time Does Tell

What? Did you all think that I abandoned my little "where does all my time go?" project and as a result am too ashamed to surface here in the blogosphere? No such luck. Sorry. In reality, I have been consumed with little projects that are due in my classes this week. One down, one to go. Allow me to take a moment to divert from the primary purpose of this post to write about procrastination (ooooh...alliteration. I think.). If you learn anything from me, people, please learn that procrastination is not the way to go. It's not worth the fine lines and wrinkles that are sure to result from getting only 4 hours of sleep in one night. Yet, I don't know why I would change the way I complete assignments at this point in my life when I managed to make it through high school and undergrad just fine by waiting until the 11th hour. (What's so critical about the 11th hour anyway?) But it seems that during this past week of keeping track of my time that I have gained some insight as to why delaying the stuff that is inevitable probably isn't the best idea I've ever had. So the moment the masses have all been anxiously awaiting - the breakdown of how I spent 168 hours of my life. Well, more like 156 hours and 44 minutes...

Sleeping - 50:15 (one Sunday afternoon nap included)
Working - 40:01 (too bad I don't get overtime)
Sitting in Class/Studying - 9:59
Driving - 9:49 (all that time in the car and I didn't even get to see the ocean)
"Multi-Tasking" - 7:27 (any combination of getting ready, talking on the phone, playing with the dog, watching TV, eating)
Getting Ready - 6:38 (for the day, for bed, for the gym, to go out)
Exercising at the Gym - 5:47
Walking Cash/Playing with Cash/Taking Cash outside - 5:21
Quiet Time/Recreational Reading - 4:56 (Currently reading - The Shack, The B-I-B-L-E, and some Max Lucado devotional)
Talking on the Phone - 4:22
Watching TV - 4:20
Surfing (the Web) - 3:40 (reading Donna's blog...and others, too!, emailing, Facebooking...maybe I'll grow out of that one day)
Shopping - 2:20 (grocery store, pet store, Target)
Cleaning House/Laundry - 1:48
Eating - 1:10
Church - 1:10

As for the missing 11 hours and 16 minutes? Totally clueless. I would like to say that I took the Delorean over to Narnia or that I was off on some secret CIA mission that is completely classified in order to account for the missing time, but I can't. Or it would be nice to say that I was driving the Bookmobile (um, how cool would it be if I drove the Bookmobile?!?) or visiting some old people who have no family or gathering with others for a Bible study, but I wasn't. In reality I was probably just painting my toenails or paying bills or something equally as exciting like balancing my checkbook. How in the world did I lose 11 hours and 16 minutes? Of course I knew from the beginning that in no way would I be able to account for every single minute of every single day for 7 days straight...I'm not even that meticulous, but 11 hours? From this I learned three things: First, I feel like I'm selfish with my time. One hour at Church? Zero hours volunteering? Problem. Second, I understand how easy it is to lose track of time and end up wondering where it all went while feeling completely overwhelmed. I lost it when I was deliberately trying to keep track of it! Finally, even though I always manage to get everything done in plenty of time even after much procrastination, I'm actually wasting more time by filling my time with unnecessary tasks and acting busy in order to put off doing a project that I know must be done. Does that make any sense at all? Probably not, but I'm sleepy. So please forgive my deficiency of sense-making in that sentence.

You know, really, time is a resource. Just like oil and water. And like all other resources, if it is used irresponsibly, it goes to waste. Once it is gone, we can never get it back. It's not that I believe that we have to be able to account for doing "something" with all 168 hours we're given each week. I believe that God wants us to rest too. (This doesn't equate to being lazy bums or sleeping one's life away but to be still and quiet. Rest.) Personally, I know that when I am well-rested, I think more clearly, I worry much less, I'm a better daughter/sister/friend/employee/learner. I'm also a better listener and am more receptive to things that I need to hear.

Another thing that I am learning is that time is valuable. And when it comes right down to it, it's a gift. (as if there aren't enough cheesy and trite sayings in existence to support this idea already) When I really thought about how time is in fact a gift, I thought about special gifts that I have received throughout the years and how I deliberately take extra care of them. I take care of these things because I want them to last and also because I know someone else has worked in order to give me these gifts, and I want to show my appreciation to them. Now I understand that I should show my appreciation to the One who created time by making the most of the years that I have been given. I should probably get started...There's no time like the present.

(10.17.08: Edited to add the super jazzy pie chart - is that what they're called? - that Emily K. was so kind to send me the template for!)

Time

It's on Mick Jagger's side.
Otis sits on the dock of the bay and wastes it.
One thing for certain is that it keeps slipping into the future.


The other day I was thinking about time and how it seems like there is never enough of it. When I was a child I always thought that all of those adults who sat around talking about how quickly time passes were absolutely crazy. Did they not realize how long it took for December 25th to roll around each year? Practically an eternity. But now that I have become one of those mature and responsible grown-ups, I was thinking just the other day about how I really needed to start Christmas shopping since I have only two more paydays between now and then. I swear the days are getting shorter. Let's not even talk about weeks or months. I haven't taken down my September calendar yet at my desk,and we're a quarter of the way through October. Yes, it's true.

In my thinking about time, I really could not account for how I spent mine. Ok, I know that I sleep, eat, work, etc. but how much do I spend in a non-productive manner? I had no idea and honestly I was a little afraid to find out. But I knew that I needed to. So I started a journal last Saturday night at midnight. Yes, the first 25 minutes were documented as watching TV. Originally I was just going to do it just for a 24 hour period but seeing as though it was a Sunday that wouldn't give me an accurate depiction. It was at that point when my inner geek emerged fully and I decided to keep the journal for a full week. I like to keep journals though so I didn't really think it would be all that difficult. But the tediousness of noting the time I start or stop something all the time is getting a little old. Of course it's not going to be completely accurate and of course just keeping the journal has already made me more cognizant of what I'm doing with my time so I'm probably wasting less, but that's ok. Isn't that the point of the whole "project"? Maybe you're wondering why I'm broadcasting this to the blogosphere only half-way through the week. Well, the reason why is because doing so will keep me accountable. If I tell someone I'm doing it, then I'll continue to keep it up for the full week. Also I might end up learning something significant during this little project and I will pass it along in the hopes of helping someone else out. Hey...a girl can dream can't she?

Monday night I was on Rick Warren's Purpose Driven Life website, and I stumbled across this devotion. Coincidence? I think not. I love it when these kinds of things happen!

Multi-Tasking: Watching TV while Running on the Treadmill

I've really had nothing of any substance to talk about for a few days so why break the pattern now, right? Maybe inspiration will strike soon though. In the meantime I'm sharing these commercials that I saw last night when I was running in the gym. Of course the entire world has probably seen them countless times (or maybe not since DVR is all the rage these days and folks can zoom right past these future child stars whose parents are just trying to make a buck), but since I'm a girl with other things to do with her time than sit on the sofa watching the tube and snacking on bon-bon's all day, it was a first for me. They are currently my 2 favorite commercials. Yes, I am fully aware of the fact that I need to get out more. Enjoy!

The 80's Called. They Want Their Clothing Back.

Today after church I stopped by Target to pick up some essential items like shampoo and contact solution. Well, the store layout specialists over at Target are very sneaky in that the very first section you pass in any of the stores that I've ever been to is women's clothing. Other than the Dollar Spot, that is. As a result of yesterday's shopping bonanza I just cruised right by the merchandise without paying all that much attention until I happened to see this display...
Say it isn't so - the return of denim vests and 3-ruffle skirts! If my memory serves me correctly, I rocked this outfit pretty well when I was in the 2nd grade, but I never imagined that I would see it again 20 years later for the teens and young girls of the 2000's. Maybe it's a good thing I held onto those Z. Cavaricci pants and I.O.U. sweatshirts after all...I'll be able to pull them down from the attic and put them to good use in just a few years.

Argyle and Corduroy

Today my friend, Emily, and I went shopping in the booming metropolis that is Commerce, GA. Ok so it's not really booming nor is it a metropolis, but Banana Republic, GAP, and J.Crew can all be found there. And what more does a girl require to satisfy her retail wants and needs other than those three? Nine West? Good news, there is one of those too. Now I like to think I'm a pretty fashion-conscious girl. At least I hope I am after I vowed years ago to not get stuck in a fashion rut and continue to wear the same styles that I wore in college when I'm 40. Apparently though I have been living under a rock and missed out on all the fall fashion trend alerts for 2008. Everywhere we went, the stores were full of argyle and corduroy. But if it can be bought at the aforementioned stores then it's got to be cool, right? At first I thought, "Really? Colored corduroy pants? Argyle sweaters and socks? Does this mean I'm going to have to wear wool skirts with box pleats and Weejuns from Bass, too?" As we continued to shop the strangest thing happened though...I decided that I really liked some of them. Those marketing people are geniuses. I found the greatest argyle sweater at J.Crew that would have been so pretty with winter white pants, but then I remembered that I had a dog. And a tendency to spill my chocolate milk most mornings on my way out the door. So I decided against that purchase and will hold out for another great argyle find. I believe that I have mentioned previously that the two dominant colors in my life are green and brown. Well, today I was determined to diversify my wardrobe. After getting home and taking stock of my new inventory I discovered I didn't do such a great job...Different shades of green counts as diversification, right? I think that I really stepped out with the gray pants and off-white sweater also. Before I go any further I know that my dear gal pals are probably cringing at the sight of my new green pants but I promise they aren't chartreuse in real life...they are much more muted and moss-like. And now for the best part...this stuff was on-sale in a big way. There is nothing like a good sale to make one's shopping experience even more enjoyable. In completely unrelated news, Cash learned a new trick...Now that he is 5 months old it's time he start pulling his weight around the house by doing the dishes. Even though it's impossible tell from this picture he was standing on his hind legs at the kitchen sink when it was taken. Sometimes I forget that this puppy...looked like this not even 4 months ago...

Personally I'm glad that his front legs have grown in since this picture was taken.