OBAMArettos all around!!

So, GO OBAMA!!!!

I've named a new drink in honor of the occasion. It's not particularly inventive but I noticed while drinking my amaretto on ice that amaretto and Obama have some syllables in common. OBAMAretto is the drink for me! Everyone should drink one...or three. I've had too much to drink, but it is tasty.

Woo being drunk!

Sean thinks I'm cute and tasty. Just thought you all should know.

In other news, so far it doesn't look good for Prop 8. For the non-Californians, Prop 8 is to ban gay marriage. I voted no. Anyone who votes yes to ban gay marriage is a bigot. That's my opinion. Screw religion and conservatives. Who are you to say that someone can't marry the person they love? And honestly, why should anyone listen to the Mormons? They are for polygamy. "Marriage is between one man and one woman" as if you really thought that. Bigots all of them.

Anyway, I'm drunk, happy for Obama, and keeping my fingers crossed that Prop 8 doesn't pass.

So, if i screwed up my grammar at some point, blame my OBAMArettos! Yeah, that's right. I'm on my third. Woo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dah dah dah...

Sometimes I get that song stuck in my head. I know it has a different name, but I also know it is by Trio. Dah dah dah...doo doo do do do dooo. Yeah yeah, I'm wacky.

So I think allergies are getting to me. I've had a headache off and on for a few days. It made my day off kinda hellish. I would prefer to think of it as allergies rather than me getting used to the climate and actually getting sick. I always got sick during winter in New York and this past winter was the first one where I didn't. We'll see...

Speaking of winter...Adam sent me pics of the first fat snowflakes in Albany, NY. I think I kinda miss the snow. Not the cold, or the shoveling, but the snowflakes themselves. Snow is pretty. And there isn't any snow here. It has been getting chill at night and in the evening. It's brisk without the threat of cold and snow coming. I like the smell.

I'm still doing pretty well with the crocheting. Sticking with it anyway. Despite the mishaps... I'm having fun with it still.

So, I'll enjoy the briskness, crochet some fun stuff and look at pics of the snow. I miss the east coast sometimes (sometimes more than others) and I wish we had some snow to look at while bundled up in a blanket and drinking hot chocolate. Does that mean I'm "snowsick?" The holidays...they are a-comin' and it's weird looking at palm trees.

Nagging or expectation?

So...when is something nagging? Apparently I nag. It's what I do. And before you ask, no this isn't coming from Sean. This is coming from work. Doesn't a manager have a right to ask when you punched out for your break? If you are sitting in the break room, shouldn't it be ok for the manager to ask? I mean, you weren't on the phone or in the middle of a book. Is it nagging if this happens to happen more than once? I mean, not more than once during the same break. THAT would be nagging. I guess I'm being sensitive. But it offends me that I'm apparently the ONLY one who asks, so apparently people are feeling that I'm a nag. *sigh* I just felt like bitching. I just don't understand it. It's a simple question that requires only the most basic of answers. If you don't want to be spoken to when on your break, then leave the store. Jeesh.

New craft blog

Ok, so I said I would do it. Here is my blog for my crafting ADD. Please enjoy. (I will update more I swear!!)

Oh look! A shiny!

So, it's been a while. Not surprising for me, I know. I'm terrible at keeping up with this blog. So here's a little update with me.

Things at Borders are going well for me. I like being the Merchandising Supervisor. It can be a bit hectic when we have big sales and I have to get all the signage and displays up for the whole store. Usually it's not just me, but with holiday stuff coming in, I feel like I'm always playing catchup. I never realized before how much changes in so little time...for example, Halloween stuff arrives, is normal priced for a few weeks, then it is sale time in hopes of getting rid of it to make room for Thanksgiving and (gulp) Christmas stuff. Retail is a fast-moving world. It's been a bit slow lately, but that's our economy speaking. We're not as bad as some stores (like really expensive Neiman Marcus). Which would you cut back on? A $10 book or a $200 sweater? Hmmm...tough decision.

As for Sean and I, we are doing really well. Sean has taken up making chain mail. He's a made a pouch for himself and is in the process of making one for me. He's pretty good at it and seems to enjoy it. I've gotten back into crocheting. When my mother and older sister came to visit on my birthday, my mother was crocheting. I watched her, and thought to myself, "That looks like fun!" If you know me at all, you know that I have craft ADD. Cross-stitching, crocheting, knitting, and scrapbooking are all things I've gotten supplies for, start a project, and lose interest in. Well, NO MORE!! I've finished 4 projects so far and I just started another one. I'm having a blast. I think I'll give knitting a go again seeing as both hobbies require yarn. It should be easy.

So, speaking of crocheting, I've joined this site ravelry.com It's in beta right now, so you have to request an invite (about 1 week waiting time). But I love it. I've got all my yarn and hooks catalogued. It's a fun community and connects you with other people of the yarn persuasion whether it's knitting or crocheting. So, I'm going to start another blog dedicated to my crocheting (and also possible future knitting) projects.

So that's it for now. I found a hobby I'm gonna stick with, Sean's found one too, and holidays are coming. Oh the craziness.

on and BTW...I need to read something more adult like. I've been reading a lot of young adult/independent reader books lately. Any suggestions?

Super Supervisor!

So today was my first day as Merchandise Supervisor. It was fun actually. There's a lot of customer service stuff that needs to be done (register codes and such). Closing the store was fun. Making announcements over the PA system that the store is closing was interesting...let's just say that I need to work on my spiel... "If you would bring your final purchases to the front of the store...that would be good..." Not my finest semi-public speaking but whatever I'll get better with practice. Counting cash, checking sales...all part and parcel of closing. Then I get to help cafe clean up because the girl closing tonight was by herself (had a questionable call-out) and she hasn't done that very often. All in all it was a fun, busy night. It went by fast. My GM is a great teacher and I will hopefully remember everything she has told me so far. There is a lot of responsibility and work to this job and I really think I am going to enjoy it. As I'm sitting here, thinking back on the day, I realize that I have a sense of "This is my store." It's a nice feeling of ownership, importance, and belonging.

...and the discount doesn't suck. :)

How time flies...

Well, apparently it's been 3 months since I've posted anything. Sean's been keeping up pretty good with what's been going on here in his blog. So, what's left for me to do? ;)

A little update: Still working at Borders. I was promoted to FOS (Front of Store). I was in charge of putting out the new books every week and doing the displays that you see as soon as you walk in the door. It's been a lot of fun. It's nit-picky and I like to think I did a good job.
Then my direct superior, Kristi - merchandising supervisor, quit due to finding a better employment opportunity elsewhere. (She's now assistant manager at Aveda). I asked if they thought I should apply for the job and everyone told me I should so...2 weeks later, I got the job! I am now the Merchandising Supervisor at Borders San Mateo! Yay me! I'm responsible for a lot of the displays in the store and promotions on top of the regular duties of being a supervisor (checking out employees, customer service issues, closing/opening the store when needed). I found out Friday that I got the job but couldn't say anything until my manager, Kara, posted it in the store. I got my keys to the store yesterday. I get a desk in the back and everything. I'm sorry to say that the thing I'm most excited about so far (aside from the desk) is that I have a key to the DVD case. So, the next time a customer wants to purchase a TV show DVD, I don't need to go all the way up front to get the keys. I'm so easily amused.
Since it's been a week since Kristi left, there are a bunch of things that I'll need to catch up on. I'm also expected to organize the "organized mess" that Kristi had. I'm really looking forward to all this responsibility. It's makes it feel a little more worthwhile since I'm not teaching out here.

So that's my news. Today is Thursday, June 26th and in exactly one week I'll be getting on a plane to go back to NY! Yay for seeing people! I'm so excited. Some details still need to get worked out (housing and transportation mostly), but I'll be calling people. It's been 9 months since we've been home and I'm really looking forward to it.

Ok, post way too long. I'll try to post more often in the future. (crosses fingers)

This Week in Review (3/17-3/20)

3/17 -(Mon) This was a great St. Patrick's Day. I picked my mother-in-law up from the airport and then went to work for 4 hours. I was home at 6:20 and only beat Sean by a few minutes. While we were working, Mom-in-law was making corned beef, cabbage, and potatoes. Yay traditional Irish fare made by a 100% Irish person! It was delicious. We even had Irish soda bread that was very good. There was liquor: I had Bailey's Irish cream over ice while Mom and Sean had Guinness. Of course, there was Sean having a car bomb. That's Mom laughing in the background. He's my man and boy can he down a beer real fast! Good times, good times.

3/18 - (Tues) I missed American Idol, but Sean taped it for me. I still have as yet to see it. I worked 4-12. Pretty good night at the store.

3/19 -(Wed) I made an awesome cake for Sean. He wanted a checkerboard cake and so I thought I would give it a try. I used the Fannie Farmer's Baking Cookbook's recipe. It uses a stiffer batter so you can pour the rings and don't need to go and buy a single purpose cake pan. It came out great.
Again worked 4-12 though I got out closer to 11 because Francisco closed and he always wants to get out as quick as possible.I missed American Idol again though I know who got booted. I am sad that it was Amanda Overmyer, but at this point anyone who leaves will be sad. I thought for sure it would be Kristy Lee Cook. Ah well, I was wrong.

3/20 -(Thurs) Sean's Birthday! We went to IHOP for breakfast and marveled over the crazy "Horton Hear's a Who" pancakes and drink. We didn't get them because they are scary. Who wants a drink with multi-colored Jell-o cubes in them? Eww...
We drove up to Napa to stay for a couple days. On the way we stopped at Roche family winery because Sean and I really loved the Muscat Canelli we got there the last time. We bought two more bottles and a bottle of Tamarix. Quite delicious.
We stayed at the Chelsea Garden Inn and it was pretty nice. The cottage was pretty cool, cowboy themed. The "wood stove" was nice. It was fake, but the fire was very helpful. The room froze at night, but whatcha gonna do? We went out to the Flatiron Grill for dinner. It was delicious! I recommend it to anyone who goes up to Calistoga. After dinner, we ate the cake I made (it came out perfect and looked like a checkerboard). Next time I need to frost in between the layers. While eating cake we watched the newest episode of Lost. That show is really crazy.

3/21 - (Fri) We were supposed to get picked up by the wine tour at 10:55 so sayeth the tickets place. Apparently there was a mix-up between the tickets place and the wine shuttle place so when I called at 11:30, we had missed a winery already. I was furious. At least we got refunded on almost half the price of each of our tickets and the shuttle payed for one of our tastings. We were picked up at noon and went to the remaining half of the winery the others were on (Frank Family Winery). The day went pretty smoothly after that. Very smooth. The nice thing about a tour is the not having to drive. This also means that people drink more. By the end of the tour (Beringer was my favorite winery of the day...tasted 9 wines!), everyone was drunk and best friends. We were taking pictures of each other together. I don't remember the last winery's name and I don't think anyone else does either. Maybe the Canadian couple as they bought a bottle of wine there. It was a blast. Next time we go up there, I'm going to contact the shuttle place directly. Lawrence was an awesome bus driver.
We went back to the bed and breakfast and Mom and I took a nap. After, we went to dinner at Checkers. It was pretty good food. We ended up going to bed a little early as our wine-soaked brains would take no more.

3/22 - (Sat) We checked out of the inn and wandered Lincoln Ave in Calistoga. There are a few cute stores and consignment shops to browse. After, we headed to Santa Rosa to eat lunch at Tex Wasabi's Rock-n-Roll Sushi, owned by Food Network's Guy Fieri. Sean has wanted to go there for a while now and I did too. The food was pretty good, however, as a real sushi lover, I hated the Gringo Sushi. Sean thought it was tasty though. Everything else was awesome.
We drove home and had a pretty good time of it listening to the Beatles and singing away. WE missed our exit to get on 1 from 101 and had to navigate UPHILL in part of San Francisco. My car made it! I was worried.

3/23 - (Sun) Happy Bunny Day! Easter was pretty good. Mom got up early-ish and made Sean and me french toast. Then she went to Easter Mass. We were going to meet Adam Lisbon in town for Mexican food, but the place was closed. We decided to make Easter dinner instead and invite him over. For appetizer we had lavash bread and hummus from the farmer's market. It was yummy. For dinner we had lamb, potatoes, and asparagus. It was quite delicious. For dessert, Adam had brought some pastries, but we made chocolate fondue as well. We dipped strawberries, pineapple, grapes, marshmallows, and PEEPS!! Of the torture for those poor chicky peeps. They were good though. Adam left around 6:40 and Mom, Sean, and I watched some West Wing before turning in around 11. It was a good holiday.

3/24 - (Mon) And the week comes full circle. Sean went back to work. :( Mom and I went shopping at the mall and Borders. I spent more money than I meant to, but it's all good. I get paid on Friday! Yay part-time job at Borders! Yay discount! We went to Mimi's for lunch with Sean. The lunch proportions are pretty good, they aren't too big. On the way to dropping Sean off back at work, I got backed into by a white van. I had no idea why he was backing up, but I laid on my horn. He tapped me. It turned out he was trying to back into a parking thing but had never put a blinker on. He really should have been looking. There wasn't any damage to my car that I could see, so we didn't call the cops or anything. Still, it was pretty nerve-wracking. Honestly, who pulls up to a stop sign, starts backing up, and doesn't look to see if there is anyone behind them first? Gosh!

So, now I'm home. I'm sorry for such a long post. It has been a while and I thought I should get it down before I forgot. It's been a good week on mom-in-law visiting. Her plane is tomorrow and then I have to work 4-12 again. It sucks working so late, but money and a job is nice.

Anywho, TTFN; Ta-ta for now!

Death of a legend.

Today a legend died. Gary Gygax was a co-creator of Dungeons and Dragons. D&D has been a part of my life for a long time. I played with my family, my friends...I found some of my best friends by joining a gaming group on campus. I still play with my friends and my husband. Imagination is so important to life and it is sad to know that the creator of this wonderful game is gone. I am thankful for his imagination and for inspiring so many to create their own fantastical worlds and share them with others. Thanks, Gary. I hope where you are is everything you imagined it to be.


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Welcome

My first blog...sort of. After reading Sean's for some time now, I thought it might be useful for me to have one of my own. Just some place where I can put my thoughts and feelings down. We'll see how it goes. Welcome to me in a nutshell.