Trials,Tribulations, Travels, Tastings...and Occassional Transcendence

Trials,Tribulations, Travels, Tastings...and Occassional Transcendence
Sock on the Great Wall

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Some Literal Artery

More thanks to 'List of the day' for my amazing ab workout (sidesplitting laughter = six pack abs).

http://listoftheday.blogspot.com/2008/02/redneck-medical-terms.html

I highly recommend you check out the entire site when you get a chance - hilarious!

All Work, No Play

It has been a crazy-busy past few weeks for me at work. This morning the motivation to go to work was completely non-existent. Now, some would say that this lack of motivation exists within them all the time. While I do not consider myself to be in that category, I must admit, that lately I have had that feeling more often then not. That notion, however, usually lasts only for a moment then my logical brain kicks in and I scurry off to be a productive, contributing member of society.

Last night we got dumped on - finally a big snow fall and I have no chance of taking the day off. It is a very sad day indeed. The longer I spent brushing off my car while simultaneously throwing snow balls at the dogs (and running around like a lunatic with them in my back yard) the harder it was for me to actually get into my car and (force myself to) head to work. How badly I wanted to take a snow day and go skiing. To no avail, my impending deadlines are looming overhead. Being a responsible adult has overthrown the adolescent desires of playing all day in this beautiful snow. Such is life. My skis shall remain in my gear closet wondering why I have neglected them for almost this entire season. My mind will feel sad for my neglected skis but more sad for myself who won't have the opportunity to take some runs today. My body will be here, at work, being productive and dutifully meeting my deadlines and goals. What has happened to me?

Thursday, February 21, 2008

Laugh of the Day

This is incredibly funny (at least I thought so). Thanks to 'List of the Day' for the laughter induced stomach cramps. Maybe now I have a shot with David Beckham!

http://listoftheday.blogspot.com/2007/10/if-celebs-werent-celebs.html

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Crazy Cat Lady



So after working outside in the icy tundra for the past three days I am back in the office fighting more fires. One would think that I would be content with the fact that I am slowly thawing out my frozen body (by the heat of the inferno that has been set just for me - should I not be happy about this?). But no, instead, I think I am getting an ulcer. Perhaps I will take stock out in Pepto...hey we're heading for a recession - what have I got to lose except part of my intestinal lining (and all of my retirement)?

In addition to the onslaught of fire fighting, this is my busiest month at work. Translated into my terms - I am going to be driven to insanity. Look for me on the corner of Main and Chestnut surrounded by all the neighborhood strays. Be kind and throw me a couple of bucks...or some booze. A bottle of 1998 Reserve Mondavi Cabernet would be preferable.
Hey, I may become crazy, but my refined taste for good wine doesn't have to go with my mind, does it?


Monday, February 11, 2008

YIKES!

How my weekend ended...
The streak of red leading from the far end of the ice to the player's bench is blood. I was at the game last night when Richard Zednik was sliced in the throat by another player's skate. He then skated from the far end to the bench leaving a most gruesome trail. The arena went silent...scary moment of mortality.

Zednik had emergency surgery and is listed as being in stable condition.

Thursday, February 7, 2008

Rules of Engagement

My friend CB sent me the following in an attempt to help me solve my dating issues (he is married, by the way). Reading through I realize that I can't be bothered to do any of them...which then led me to realize that I am just happy being single. Too many rules and regulations make it not worth the effort. Well, perhaps someone will find them usefull - enjoy! (thanks for trying, CB. At least I can admit that I'm a lost cause :)

The Top 5 Male TurnoffsIn our quest to find, attract, and keep our perfect partner, we often wonder what turns men on. And while it’s important to know how to light a man’s fire, it’s equally important to understand what douses his dating flames. By being clear about what kind of behavior turns men off, we can be better prepared to keep the spark alive from our first encounter to happily ever after. What follows are the top five male turnoffs.

Turnoff #1: Flakiness. Guys report that one of the biggest turnoffs when dating a woman is when she either can’t commit to plans or constantly flakes on plans. If you regularly pencil in your plans with a “maybe” and/or cancel plans at the last minute, you’re giving your guy the impression that he’s tentative in your life, aka “good enough for now.” Who wants to date someone who makes them feel temporary? Chances are you don’t, and you shouldn’t be the girl who makes her date feel that way either.

Turnoff #2: Poor communication skills. Raise your hand if you’ve been this girl in your relationship past: your date/boyfriend said or did something you didn’t like, but instead of saying anything, you went along with it. You may have even said it was “fine.” But then at some point down the road, you got upset. Maybe you even blew up at an inappropriate time, causing an argument that completely took your significant other off guard. Most of us have been guilty of passive aggressive behavior at least once in our dating past. It happens. But when you repeat that kind of behavior over and over in any dating/relationship scenario, the only thing you’ll succeed at is sabotaging your efforts. Just as you deserve to be with someone who’s comfortable communicating his wants, needs, and desires, you, too, should be a healthy communicator. Don’t say one thing if you really mean another. Instead, get in the habit of saying what you mean. Guys appreciate that!

Turnoff #3: Not playing fair. From your initial encounter to your first date and beyond, guys pay attention to whether or not you’re playing fair. If, for example, you always expect the guy to come to your side of town, pick you up, open your door, pay the check, drop you off, call you the next day, and in general placate your every need without you so much as lifting a finger, you’re not dating fairly. More important, if there’s a disagreement and you don’t fight fairly, i.e., you throw things in his face, hold grudges, and insist on winning every argument, you’re going to be a very lonely single girl because you’re not being fair. In the new millennium, chivalry goes both ways and the dating game requires plenty of give-and-take. If you can be fair in dating times both good and bad, guys will dig you so much more!

Turnoff #4: Trying to change him. It’s almost cliché how often in the media we see, hear, or read about a woman who tries to change her man. Whether it’s changing how he dresses, what he watches on TV, his manners, or his friends, the woman at the helm of all this change always comes off as a control freak. Don’t be that girl. Just as the guy in your life should accept you warts and all, you, too, should accept him for who he is. And if you can’t? Don’t date him. It’s as simple as that. The whole point of being single and dating is to meet a variety of different people, find out who you are as well as who your perfect partner might be, and eventually settle down with someone who’s right for you. Rather than trying to change the wrong guy into Mr. Right, why not keep playing the field until you meet that special someone who’s far from perfect but whose imperfections you have no desire to change? (He’s out there — keep looking!)

Turnoff #5: Ultimatums. Nothing turns a man off more than a woman who gives him an ultimatum. Not only are they not sexy, they’re ineffective. Healthy and happy relationships don’t need ultimatums. When you’re regularly communicating your needs to the person you’re in a relationship with, ultimatums are unnecessary. It’s when communication breaks down, when one person feels his or her needs aren’t being met, or when the relationship isn’t going in the direction one had hoped or at the speed one had anticipated, that ultimatums are usually issued. A huge turn-off, ultimatums are a tricky relationship tactic and should be avoided at all costs.So there you have it — the top five male turnoffs. By understanding the dating and mating behaviors that shut men down, you ultimately master the art of how to turn the right guy on. Good luck and happy dating!

Wednesday, February 6, 2008

Pool, Beer and Personal Philosophies

Saturday I woke up later than I wanted to which prevented me from doing a couple of things before having to go to work. Yes, I had to work...travesty, I know. Regardless, the market and pilates class were a wash because of my inability to wake up when my alarm went off. So the dogs and I went to my job site - with great dissapointment. Due to the 2" layer of ice on all of my equipment, there wasn't a whole lot I could do. So the doggies and I went for a walk around the facility then to visit Mom. Which was long over due since I haven't been to see her new place pretty much since I helped her move in, almost a year ago (bad daughter).

During all of my daily adventures I decided I wanted to go out that night. It's been quite some time since I have gone to my regular bar and thought, since I had my tour de eats the night previous, I felt healthy enough to be bar-social. I phoned a few people and lined up an early meeting time. I prefer to go out earlier - it's like going to the diner for the early bird. You avoid the crowds, get better service, and still get home in time for Saturday Night Live (and a gallon of water to stave off an impending hangover).

The night started off great - I was first to arrive, as always, so I got to catch up with my favourite bar tender and watch a bit of the Detroit game. Shortly afterwards my Indian husband, Rohit, showed up. Ro and I always joke that if he can't get his greencard, I will marry him just so he can stay in the country. There have been a few crazy, drunken nights where it almost happended - good thing we don't live in Vegas. Anyway, we drink, talk and play pool. We are joined by a couple more friends. One of those is John. Now John is a proprieter in the City and one of the smartest, most well read men I know. I used to work in the building behind his shop and would go visit him almost daily just to get my fill of intellectually stimulating conversation. How the night went from talking politics, futbol and cricket to my lack luster dating life is beyond me, but with those two (with additional input from the pool-playing-peanut-gallery) it's never a dull conversation.

The consensus was that I am a controlling, man-minded, strong-willed woman. Controlling? I have been called many things in my time but controlling? The fact that I am strong-willed is completely true, but why is that so bad? Is it? And man-minded. They say I think like a man in my relationships, that's ok, right? I think so. But the controlling part, I didn't get. So I had to ask for elaboration (God help me). They informed me that because I am a strong woman, they observed that I like to have things my way. How little do these people, that have known me for years, know of me. It's not that I like to have things my way...it's that I expect ALOT of the people in my life as I expect ALOT of myself. Why is that construed as controlling? I think if I were controlling, I would still be in some dysfunctional relationship with some poor schlep that I have turned into my drone. But instead, I break up with said schlep and focus on myself. My Dad, in a conversation we had a few days afterwards, told me "Honey, you are alot of woman for any one man to take". I think he meant it as a complement, but I don't know now after referencing the conversations over beer and pool on Saturday. Whatever. I have not lost one nights sleep over it and think I am awesome the way I am (arrogant? never!). I know my friends have my best interest at heart and I absolutely love the fact that they are so candid with me. I wish everyone was so blunt.

Monday, February 4, 2008

The Start of the Weekend

I feel the need to post something even though I have nothing to contribute today. It is Monday. I am at work. My brain has already disintegrated into a useless puddle of grey goop. Good times.

This past weekend was the first time I got out since being (dying) sick. So I did it up right, it started like this:

Friday consisted of three dinners...yes, that's right, THREE dinners. Girls gotta gain the weight back she lost during her sickness. And trust me, I am doing my damnest to get my biker booty back! The evening started with an early dinner at the Newman's. They eat early because they have kiddies, so it fit nicely into my night of multiple meals. Not to mention Alex's amazing cooking - I can never say 'no' to her fine, home-cooked meals. To boot, her 3 year old son Landon's ridiculousness is just too fun to pass up. What a cool kid he is. If I could ensure that I'd have a cool kid like him, I would consider someday having a rug rat...but you can never guarentee coolness. My luck I would end up with some little fru-fru, girly, clothes-loving brat that hates the outdoors and even more to bike, ski or climb. Yikes, can't take it back then, can you?

After my fill of children, great friends and good eats I was off for a more adult gathering. Stephie, her handsome husband and a couple of friends were having dinner at a local bar/restaurant down the road from my house. So off to dinner deux. Good times and the beer was just going down all too nicely. Of course, I still shouldn't be drinking due to my last dose of antibiotics that day. Oh well, you only live once...might as well do it in a wonderful haze of Sam Adam's White Ale. A few hours of that, I think my stomach had digested enough to continue the tour de mange.

Next and final stop: Roz and Dave's for some grilled swordfish and tuna with 'The Crew' (incredible people that deserve a cool name like 'The Crew' - perhaps someday I will blog about them...names will be changed to preserve the innocent, of course). I figured my head was a little too fuzzy from the White Ale so I decided to start drinking water at R&D's...and good thing because they all thought it would be a good night to have a Scotch tasting. Blech! The smell alone makes me want to lose my previous two meals. No good - once down the gullet, I prefer my food to stay there. The meal was great, the company was even better, and the water was needed. In an accomplished and complete food coma I dragged my stuffed self (the kind of stuffed you get on Thanksgiving) home and to bed. What a great way to start off the weekend! More on my 'getting better' outings to come...

Friday, February 1, 2008

Strength and Relationships




I am a strong woman. I know this. I love that about myself, however, why is it that I attract weak men? Or men that think because I am strong that I should carry their load as well? Is it so wrong to want equality? An even balance between two people? I know I am more than capable of doing as much or even more work than any man I know, I however do not want that in a partner. I also don' t want to have someone that is in constant competition with me either - that's not too healthy, is it? So then, here is the dilemma: Does all this mean I want too much? I don't think so, but history has proven to me otherwise. So single I remain. Happily. Truly. It is not necessary for me to be inovlved with someone just to have someone "there". I prefer to be by myself and my own rock if that is how it is to be. I do not expect anyone to take care of me, so I therefore expect to take care of no one. So, if you are a strong, independent man that wants the same in a woman - bring it on. If not - please find someone who resembles Florence Nightingale. Know for certain that this woman will throw you a band-aid and run the other way if you cut yourself. Reason #254 why they call me the Ice Princess.