This year all of my siblings were home for a total of 4 days together. My mom made really excellent food (cinnamon rolls, ebleskivers, turkey, four pies, the list goes on). We had fun opening presents, and going to Duke Gardens. One highlight of the Christmas break was when my dad told my sister's boyfriend to come with him out to the garage, and we all got a panic stricken look on our faces. Was this the whole, let's go polish my gun, routine? I think my dad was just yanking our chain, because he let the rest of us come along to see some christmas lights. Another highlight was getting a manicure with my sisters as a christmas present. I have never done acrylics before, so it was fun to try them out. I am glad that we are all able to travel and be together for the holidays.
I grew up in the suburbs of DC, on the Maryland side. When we moved to North Carolina, we went back to visit a couple of times. But then all my friends went off to college, and there was no one to visit. My roommate decided to get a job in DC after college, so she lived in the Virginia side for several years. She still has many friends in the area, and goes up to visit a couple of times a year. One perk is that I get to go along with her. The highlight of driving was arguing whether the GPS was right, since we kept correcting it. Friday night we tried to find the National Christmas tree, but we arrived too late. So we stopped to see the Pentagon Memorial for 9/11. Unfortunately the signs were not clear, so we drove around the Pentagon and got pulled over because they wanted to know why we were driving around. Don't worry, we didn't get a ticket, but we did learn where to park. And then we walked through what is apparently a restricted area trying to find the Memorial.... another cop, this time on a little golf cart, directed us to the right place. You would think if they have a public access place like the Pentagon Memorial, they would make it easier for the public to get to without risking the security of the Pentagon. It was a cool memorial, but we couldn't find the names on the benches. So I think it warrants another visit. Then we went to a diner, where I got caramel strawberry french toast with cinnamon sour cream. It was good. Saturday we got up and went to the DC Temple. It started to snow. Then we got lunch at the Olive Garden. Then we went to a ward christmas party. Then we got caramel apple cider at Starbucks. Then we went to see the National Christmas tree. Then we went bowling. Bowling was hysterical. I had a score of 40 until the 8th frame. Then a song my sister likes came on, so I was joking and danced down the aisle, and got a strike! Then I got another strike! Then I got a spare! I was not the loser of the game! I really wish I would have figured out that dancing was the way to win at bowling sooner. Then we went to a restaurant that reminds me of Indian food, but I am not sure that is what it was. It was tasty though, it had a cool cucumber sauce, and pork and chicken, and rice with chickpeas. Sunday we made breakfast, crepes with fruit and sausage. I made the crepes, and everyone wanted to know how I make them come out so perfectly. The secret is patience. You have to watch the batter to know the perfect time to flip. I credit my dad with teaching me this skill (unless it was you, Mom, in which case, I am sorry I have alzheimer's and can't remember). Then we went to church, and came home and ate pizza, and hit the road. I have decided all of my vacations revolve around food. As our hostess said, she eats better when we come into town :)
A light falls onto a stage with a podium. A beautiful blond walks to the microphone and says
I would like to take this opportunity to thank my friends and family for making this possible. Without them, I would not have had the curiosity, gumption, and ability to cook a fried turkey. She lifts a turkey leg aloft in a cheers gesture
Let's rewind, shall we? For years, I have been hearing how fried turkey is moist and delicious. I have also been hearing (a la A Christmas Story) you will just burn your house down from my parents. I live close to home, so every holiday season I enjoy the fruits of my mother's labor. She is a fantastic cook, and has the holiday meal preparation down to a science. I truly enjoy her traditional meals. But this year, I was feeling ambitious, so I decided to host my own Thanksgiving dinner, and to fry the turkey. In order to not conflict with family obligations, my roommate and I decided that we would do the turkey dinner for FHE the Monday after Thanksgiving. I enlisted friends to bring sides, and I prepared the turkey and myself following this handy set of instructions.
Thanksgiving was a lovely day in North Carolina, 70 degrees and sunny. We ate outside. Fast forward to Monday.... torrential downpour, gusting winds...... the worst weather to try to fry something outside 10 feet from any structure. I attempted to set up the pot and get the fire going to warm up the oil..... when the lid blew off, and I had to chase it down the street, I was ready to give up. Thank goodness for friends who helped shield the fire, kept the rain out of the oil so it wouldn't splatter, and in general helped me keep my sanity. We were all soaking wet, but it was worth it when we tasted that moist white meat. I will say, if you are a dark meat fan, the dark meat didn't taste any different than oven baking, so I don't think frying a turkey is worth it for dark meat. But the white meat didn't need any gravy at all, so that is totally worth it.
For those of you who are now considering your own adventure into frying, here are some keys to success: 1. Read all the directions, and DEFROST and dry off that turkey so no water hits your oil! 2. Set up the turkey fryer the day before because they do not come preassembled 3. You need at least three sets of hands to get the burner going and the oil in the pot (one hand to hold the lighter, one hand to hold the valves, and one hand to hold the safety button... it is easiest if these hands belong to different people). 4. You must commit to sitting by the pot with a fire extinguisher for the entire 2 hour process. If there are other things you want done at the same time as the turkey (potatoes, other food, etc) you must enlist other people to do those items, as the pot cannot be left alone at all. Ever. This is the main guarantee that nothing will burn down.
I followed all these instructions, and here is the happy result:
Speaking of age differences between me and my younger sisters, another family tradition I discovered that was just around when I was young was playing long games of Risk. My dad would inevitably beat us all, but it was fun to try to take over the world (said in the voice of Pinky from Animaniacs).
So this year we introduced my sisters to the crazy world of Risk. Dad did win, and I think my sisters had fun.
The holidays are a time for family to get together and reminisce. This thanksgiving, two of my sisters were home, and I discovered that because we are 10 and 14 years apart in age, what I consider "family memories" are not necessarily their family memories.
My mom had done a primary lesson where she pulled up pictures from my surgeries. I had two/three/four surgeries between the ages of 7 and 10-ish. My sisters, who were not born yet, didn't know why, so my mom was explaining it to them. I find this astonishing because in my head, the world revolves around me, and of course everyone knows everything about me :) But then I realized that was twenty years ago.......
So I was going to do a blog post about why I had surgery, and give you all these links to medical information..... and then I remembered, I hate remembering! I am the worlds best forgetter when it comes to medical things. I have some place in my brain where I bury this information, and it never comes back out.
What I can tell you is that I have a lymphangeoma, a type of cystic hygroma, aka a tumor. It is not cancer, and cancer treatments will not work. It is a pink sponge like thing, and it is a birth defect that is not genetic. It happens in a small percentage of the American population. Usually surgery is the only way to remove it, and usually you can't remove it all. I have been fortunate that mine has been stable for a long long time. Once, I used to think that medical technology would advance and I could remove it when I was an adult. Medical technology has advanced, but not in this area. So we leave things be.
What I think I remember (hard to say if it is my memory, or my parents conversations over the years that I claim as my own memories): - Getting M&M's at every doctors visit - Not being able to talk - Wearing an eye patch (before Pirates were cool) - Not being able to sleep without two or more pillows - Pigs in a blanket - Driving home from the hospital, and not being used to the noise of my family - Skipping alot of 6th grade with the excuse "I'm sick".... and a few of those times I think I was just bored.... remember those reading books with worksheets?
The annoying part about having a lump on the side of my face is when random strangers ask me if I have had my wisdom teeth removed. Sometimes I wish I had a straight smile instead of a crooked one, but I am pretty sure the lump saved me from being a blond ditzy cheerleader, so now, I can take over the world!
I have finally posted all the blog entries I had in "draft" that cover my activities, more or less, for the last month. I also finally uploaded the 200 pictures I had between my old and new cameras, so now I can officially only use the new camera. It takes great photos, but I am still getting used to charging it. Unfortunately that means I have no pictures of Mom and Dad's Turkey Trot.
Other miscellaneous notes: 1. I took the GRE and got above 1200 (yes, GRE is still like the old SAT, a perfect score is 1600). Since this is a nice average score, I am pleased. 2. My release has finally started. Now the real stress can begin. Can I keep everything moving forward, juggling new requirements, not enough people, and shorter amounts of time without any motivational tools at my disposal? 3. For the first time in a long time, I am not done with my christmas shopping before christmas. I know, this is probably a sign of the end of the world.
Finally, I missed the thankful part of November. My sister usually emails me to keep up with my thankfulness, and without her prompting, the month has passed me by without any remarks. So in no particular order, here are a few of the little things I am thankful for:
1. Tivo and it's ability to make me the favorite sister, I hope 2. Cupcakes and their ability to make me the favorite fake aunt, I hope 3. Good colleagues 4. A sister to have dinner with 5. A sister to hang out with 6. A sister to call and talk on the phone with 7. A sister to text 8. Parents who run races 9. The challenge of an exam 10. Learning to work with someone new 11. Movie FHE nights 12. Swing dancing 13. 1.50 movie nights 14. Friends to be social with 15. Vacation days 16. A car that can drive long distances 17. A job that pays the bills and lets me do fun things 18. Apples 19. Bertolli 20. Finding the perfect pair of brown boots at DSW on sale with a coupon 21. Orchestra 22. Home teachers 23. Long, leisurely dinners and the conversations that go with them 24. Realizing that I have many BFFs, and am fortunate to continue to find good friends 25. Face to face is still a better connection than facebook 26. Asking someone to help out at work, and knowing that will be taken care of because they are reliable 27. Sunday dinners 28. Clean kitchen 29. Guacamole 30. An extra day off for Thanksgiving
The summer of 1987 we moved from Scotland back to Maryland. We landed in Gaithersburg, in a cute little neighborhood with duplexes and single family homes called Pheasant Run. We lived at the top of the court, and a family who lived on the corner at the bottom of the court brought over dinner. They had three kids the same age as me, my brother and my sister, and they were also Mormon. My best friend is now married with two children, and owns a home in Pennsylvania. I know, reading that sentence, who knew we had grown up this much? I remember sleeping over at her house as a kid.... and now, when I go to visit, I sleep in her daughters room instead :) I got to visit my best friend and her brand new baby, and see the new house a couple of weekends ago. It was really cool to help out, and to relax. We got to see some cool craft stores in town, I raked some leaves, we watched movies, went to a park, and I took her daughter to a class and picked up cupcakes..... Yes, I am trying for "favorite fake aunt" :) Sometimes the best vacations are ones where you just get to visit, and enjoy other people. My friend has a beautiful family, and I am glad I am a part of their lives.
When I was a senior I lived with my best friend. We decided to go out with a bang, and hit Franklin St for Halloween. But first, we needed costumes. We headed down to Crabtree Valley Mall to look for something suitable. We found some cheap pleather black pants and a pair of vests. So we decided to be biker babes, and got some bandanas. We walked Franklin Street, and then decided we were cold, so we headed home. (I wish I could have found the picture of us, and a scanner.... )
This year, I was Elfaba from Wicked, and my friends and I are heading out to some parties and then onto Franklin Street. Since my friends haven't lived here, they haven't ever been to a Franklin Street party. I got a couple of people to break into songs from Wicked, we saw Beyonce do the Single Ladies, and we heard Thriller. It was a good halloween.
My friends have not been to the mountains of North Carolina, so we thought it would be fun to go when the leaves were changing. It would also be a nice contrast to the beach camping trip we took over Labor Day. Since my sister lived in Boone, I wanted to go back there because I was familiar with some fun things to do, and I also hadn't gotten to do some other things yet. We headed out Friday Oct 25, and drove straight into a rain storm. At least we got cook-out shakes on the road. Setting up tents in the rain is not fun. And it meant the tents were pretty wet inside..... ok, there was a river on one side of the tent! So we went out to buy more tarps and towels to try to make it bearable. It did stop raining in the morning, but the ground was very soggy. Lucky for us, the campground had a laundry so we could dry out the sleeping bags and clothes that were wet. We enjoyed some pancakes for breakfast, and then got on the road. First stop: Linville Caverns. It was really cool to walk through the caverns, and we got to see a bat. Then we went to Grandfather Mountain and had a picnic. It was gorgeous and sunny. We saw the bears and eagles.
Then we hiked up to the Mile High Swinging Bridge. As we were hiking, clouds started flowing down the mountain. It was a really cool effect, but when we got to the top, it was covered in clouds, so we couldn't see the view. But we did walk across the swinging bridge, and it really does swing! As we walked down the mountain, we realized that the clouds were the rainy dreary kind, and they were there to stay. This dropped the temperature, and meant we spent 4 hours trying to get a fire going to cook our foil dinners. Once the fire was going, it was warm, but we were damp and hungry. That night was pretty cold, so I slept in the car to try to avoid freezing. When I bought my sleeping bag, I was thinking of hot girls camp camping, so it is only good at 40 F, not in the 30's :) Sunday we went to church, and as we were walking out, someone said, whoa, I smell campfire! Apparently showering didn't help our coats, which were still smokey. As we took down camp, we realized how much water was in the tents.... yuck! Then we went to the Moses Cone Manor on the Blue Ridge Parkway, and hiked around the lake. It was a pretty sunny afternoon, and the leaves were crunchy under our feet. Then we drove to see the Viaduct, and headed home. We stopped at my friends house in Greensboro for dinner. It was fun to see her, and her cute little girl.
Bottom Line: Boone is awesome, Cook-out shakes are awesome, my friends are awesome, and camping in the cold and rain is not something I want to do again.
In the series about Ender by Orson Scott Card there is a book called Speaker for the Dead. The point of the Speaker for the Dead is to speak the truth about someone's life. To reveal the good, and the bad. Often we gloss over the bad spots, the trials, and just say we had a great life. Well, my 20's were good and bad, high and low. So here is my Speaker for the Dead.
20: Raleigh Temple open house, moved into an apartment, got robbed, moved again, had the biggest snow storm ever, lived with Iguana girl and had the Iguana jump on me, started as a co-op at IBM.
21: Saw BNL with my sibs and BFF, lived with my BFF, had the best halloween ever, went on job interviews to exotic locations like NYC and Austin, got engaged, graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill (Go TarHeels!), got a full-time job at IBM, the project got cut after two weeks, and switched to another job at IBM, got married, moved into MSH (before the nice remodel), and worked in the nursery.
22: Got promoted at IBM, moved to the ghetto at NCSU, got called as the YW Camp Director and had a great time working in YW with my mom and sister, went to Utah for christmas, visited my BFF in honduras where she was working in the peace corps, and got robbed at machete point.
23: Got robbed, again. Rode the bus to work. Changed jobs at IBM because the project went away. Escorted another BFF through the temple, and went with my sister to the temple before she left on her mission to Italy. Went to another BFF's wedding. Finally went to an official girls camp as the director, and was very glad my mom and sister were there. Joined an orchestra.
24: Finally bought a second car, but it has no automatic anything. Bought a house in what was essentially the ghetto. Saw Les Mis, went to my BFF's wedding, and took a train to visit Charlotte.
25: Changed jobs at IBM because the project went away. Went to Boston for work, and flew home in time to see Transiberian Orchestra. Went to Mexico after christmas and climbed the pyramids. Separated from my husband. Moved into an apartment that was not in the ghetto. Saw Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Taught 5 year olds in Primary.
26: Got divorced. Took my sisters to see Transiberian Orchestra, and some plays (South Pacific and Wizard of Oz and Grease run in my mind, but I may be mixing up years). Taught 11 year old girls in Primary (much easier than the 5 year olds).
27: Bought a lovely townhouse. Changed jobs again at IBM because I was tired of being a tester. First time I ever proactively changed jobs. Took my sisters to see Stomp. Went to Anaheim California for work, and added a vacation to see the whales and SoCal. Helped my sister move out to Boone for grad school, and then went to visit several times over the next few years. It is a great town.
28: Promoted at IBM. Took my family to see Wicked. It was totally awesome. Drove to visit my grandparents in Nauvoo and got to see the Temple. Drove to Chicago for Labor Day with my sisters. Did a report on slavery in Charleston for a class, and got to spend Spring Break there doing research. Went skiing for the first time in Boone.
29: Spent my birthday in St Louis for work, but also on the weekends got to see my sister in her new job in Missouri. My BFF moved in, and we did the Krispy Kreme Challenge. Drove to NYC and Boston for Spring Break, and saw A Blithe Spirit, Phantom and Mama Mia on Broadway. Also got to visit with another BFF and her family in PA which is where they got new jobs. Worked the 2-day Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. Chief Programmer at IBM. Saw Coldplay and U2 in concert with friends. Visited my sister in Missouri, and saw Legally Blonde, and her brand new house. Had a totally awesome time eating my way through Provo with my sister. Did a triathlon with my mom and sister. Went to San Jose Cali with my two BFFs for a girls single weekend (yea, imagine that "All the Single Ladies" song). Wrapped it up with a camping trip to the mountains with friends.
If I missed anything you remember, post comments :)
What I can say was great about my 20s was my family, my friends, the ones that were there in the beginning, and the ones I met along the way, and the fantastic trips that were made possible by my job.
A few weeks ago, I asked for ideas on what to do for 30. I decided I would take the GRE. Wish me luck, I take it on Nov 6. Hello, 30!
Today was a very full meeting day, from 10:30 - 5:30 straight. But my noon meeting ended early, so I quickly went to the break room to warm up my lunch. I had a microwave pot pie, where you open one end and leave it in the box with a crisping top. Ding. I lifted the pot pie out of the microwave, with the open end facing me..... and watched the pot pie slide out of the other end and splatter all over the floor. Typical Monday.
It feels like yesterday that I went to the DMV to renew my license because I was turning 25 years old and it was going to expire. It was a terrible picture because it ended up being a really big head shot. And I looked at the license, and thought, geez, the next time I renew it will be 2009 and I will be 30! That is SOOOOO OOOLLLLLDDDDDD. (Said the way Lindsey Lohan says it in Freaky Friday)
Fast forward 5 years, and here I am, once again needing to renew my license. I guess this means that I think I am old. The state has changed the laws. Now you go in and get a piece of paper for 20 days while they mail you your license. Apparently mailing a license reduces fraud? I know drivers license pictures are not the end of the world, but........ I really wanted something that was at least a more normal proportioned head. So I did my hair and went to the DMV expecting to be waiting forever. Amazingly on a Friday they were completely empty. I didn't even have time to review the signs they quiz you on. Whew! I only got one wrong. At least I still know how to drive. And then I realized I had forgotten to put on lipstick. No time! They were ready for me to take my picture. And then I wanted to see it, to make sure it wasn't another big head.... Nope! That might cause fraud. So I had to sit and wait and wait for the license to come in the mail. It has arrived, and I can say with a sigh of relief I do not have a huge big head on my license. Apparently the DMV has taken pity on me for being old and gave me a half-decent picture. As an aside, the next time I need to renew my license will be in 2017....... yikes!
I feel like my blogs have become just about what I did on the weekend. But the weeks seem to be the same.... so I guess I am living for the weekends right now :)
So this weekend was another packed and exciting one.
First, I gotta whole lotta happy! I love seeing the crafts and the food competitions, especially the cakes. I just gotta say that the deep fried snickers was disgusting. I guess I am not a fan of deep fried things. But the corn on the cob and turkey was good.
In the awkward moments list, riding the Ferris Wheel with my boyfriend, a girl from my ward and the two kids she nanny's ranks right up there. So the girl was like, I will cover the kids eyes so you can kiss at the top. I am not a fan of public PDA, so I said no thanks, but it just felt awkward.
Then my BFFs and I went to Mama Dips in Chapel Hill for lunch. They had never had hush puppies, and were skeptical about NC barbeque. Well, Mama Dip set them right. They now love hushpuppies and vinegar barbeque!
I also had an Orchestra Concert. It was a completely packed house, so my mom and sister had to sit in the hallway. It was a children's concert, so we played fun songs that sounded like animals, and the William Tell Overture. William Tell is so energetic, I love playing it.
After the concert, I had dinner back at my place. I made my special chicken chili, and served Mama Dips corn bread. It was the most amazing corn bread I have ever eaten! I totally recommend Mama Dips mix.
My family was sitting around the kitchen table, basking in the sunlight that streamed through the large windows. Outside it was a gorgeous fall day in North Carolina, 75 degrees and beautiful. My grandparents were visiting and sharing stories. My grandmother told us how one of her siblings was engaged to be married to a man before he went on his mission. "We don't do that anymore". Mom told us when Dad first met her parents, he threw a snow ball down Grandma's neck. Then as they were driving out of the canyon, he got out of the car and picked some wild flowers. Grandma said her mother kept a meticulous diary, so whenever she would tell a story that Great-Grandpa didn't remember, she would say, I'll go get my diary. So Grandma inherited these diaries, and looked up the day she got engaged. Nothing. Apparently it wasn't memorable to her mother. Mom said she and Dad had gone to her parents house to tell them of their intention to get married, but that Grandpa kept getting up from the table. Finally they were able to share the news, and then Mom's brother came in, so Grandma said, Your sister has decided to increase our family, and Mom's brother said, "Oh, she's adopting from the Indian Welfare program?". Grandpa and Dad sat through the series of stories saying they didn't remember anything, and how could any of it possibly be true. Mom then told about Grandpa's sister driving to meet a return missionary, and passing out on the road, and when he got off the plane, he said, How you been kid, and punched her in the arm, she knew she would marry him. Grandpa didn't remember this story, and said anything from his sister was exaggerated, so then to have Mom tell it, means it was twice as exaggerated, so my sister said the only thing we could be certain of is this guy got off a plane.
I enjoyed hosting my grandparents and sisters one evening so they could see the new paint job and the big tv. The best part to me was my grandparents being very excited to watch baseball in HD, and my sisters sitting over in one of my big recliners, giggling and whispering because baseball does not interest them.
We also got to go to a Civil War site and see some rifles being fired, and tents, and ride in a buggy. We are all very glad that we have better accommodations today when doing things like Girls Camp.
And what family visit would be complete without food? Mom went all out because we had two birthdays to celebrate. First, there was salmon with a wonderful coating of seasonings, a fruit basket, mashed sweet potatoes. My sister made a beautiful and delicious cheesecake. Then we got to eat pasta with seasoned bread and more fruit, followed by cinnamon rolls.
One of these was delivered to me today at work. It smells even better than it looks. For several months, I helped a team in Toronto with our installer. This included twice daily meetings, making sure their defects got high priority, etc. Halfway through, the person I had been working with quit the company, and I got to work with a lovely lady who was much more enjoyable. Apparently she appreciated my work, because she sent me chocolate covered fruit. I am blown away by this gesture. At work we can receive 3 Thanks awards a year, and usually when you already have gotten your quota, people just send you a note: I would have given you a thanks award, but you are at your limit. Which is nice, but chocolate covered fruit is just amazing! And suddenly, a dreary, rainy work week is infinitely better.
When I was in college I had a roommate who counted life in weekends. She would say, only two weekends until fall break, or some other milestone. It sure made the school year fly by, but it also made us think about what we had going on for the weekend. When I started at my job, a mentor told me that you get a maximum of 5200 weekends, if you live to be 100, so then if you throw away all the ones that you couldn't walk or talk for, and the fact that you really won't live to be 100, you might have 4000 weekends. So you should make them count. This weekend was packed with activities.
Friday
IBM has a mentoring program at NCSU, and my boss asked me if I wanted to be one of the mentors. So Friday was the first meeting where we get introduced to our student. They started the meeting with a get to know you game. People kept asking me what my major was. I would say, I am a Chief Programmer at IBM, I am not a student, I am a mentor. They would look at me in disbelief and walk away. I finally found my student, and she looked at me in disbelief. Part of me wanted to be wearing a badge that said: "Yes, I am turning 30 this month, and I really am the Chief Programmer" :) This reminds me of another story. I was working at Wal-Mart after I graduated high school. I was sitting in the break room eating lunch and a woman walks in. She says, you can't be back here. I say, excuse me? She says, where is your mother? I said... I work here. She says, no you don't, you can't be older than 12. I said, I am almost 18, and I do work here. She really didn't believe me. People have always told me I will be grateful some day for looking young. I can tell you, at work functions, I am never grateful I look young. It makes it really hard to be taken seriously. I am sure in other parts of my life it is good. But not at work.
Friday night a group of friends went to the corn maze. This is the one I used to run by during my triathlon training. It was a lot of fun, and I was pleased with the turnout. You had to find stations and get a stamp throughout the maze. After the corn maze, we all headed down to Goodberry's because some people were new to North Carolina and had never had Concrete. Yum. I remember when we first moved here, we went to Goodberry's and they hand you the concrete upside down, spoon stuck in it, and it doesn't fall out of the bowl. Amazing! And then everyone was like, wow, only 10 PM, now what?! And I was thinking... uh.... bedtime. But we went to a movie, The Invention of Lying. It was entertaining. However, as Saturday morning rolled around a bit too early, I realized that I am getting too old to stay out until midnight every night of the weekend!
Saturday
Saturday morning was a bridal shower for a friend. It was fun to go and chat with people, and the food was good. Then the sessions of conference, which were wonderful. It was a typical North Carolina fall day, gorgeously sunny skies and 75 degrees. I got to eat lunch outside in between sessions. Immediately following the session, some friends and I went to the U2 concert. My friends are amazed at my knowledge of backroads, and my ability to avoid huge traffic jams. We arrived at the concert right before 7, which is when it was scheduled to start. Of course, it started a bit late, but that was perfect. Carter Finley was an outdoor venue, and the weather could not have been better. The stage was huge and was described by Bono as a space ship. It had a screen that moved and expanded, fog machines, lights, and a disco ball. It was a great show.
Sunday
Sunday started out with pumpkin pancakes for breakfast, which were very tasty. Then I enjoyed conference again, and my boyfriend met my parents and sister over dinner. Mom always makes a good Sunday dinner, and this time she made apple crisp, which was fantastic. Mom tasted all the apples in the farmers market to find the perfect ones, and they were great. Every time I go to Mom's house, and she shares food from the farmers market, I think... gosh, I should head out to the farmers market!!! It is too bad that my mom's house is not on my way to work this morning, otherwise I would have grabbed another piece for breakfast. I think I am too used to having daylight savings time on Conference Weekend, because by 7:30 I was ready for bed! Or it could be too much partying going on.
If you haven't seen the show, The Biggest Loser, then you will have no idea what I am talking about, so I have included a clip. I hope somewhere on the clip you see Jillian working someone out.......
I have been going to an ab core class at the gym. The first week, the instructor went really easy on me. As I struggled with an exercise, he would tell me to do only part of it until I was stronger. Obviously, this simply confirmed that I have no core! The woman next to me, who is rock solid, didn't get this kind of treatment. The instructor would come and add extra weight, or tell her to do an extra hard exercise, like rolling up on her tippy-toes on a ball into a pike position (yea.... that is what I thought). This week, I finally quit being a newbie, because the instructor came over and was like, Get those hips up! You can do the full exercise! and I laughed as a I fell over from trying to balance on the ball and pull one leg into a crunch. Apparently I still don't have a core.
I have been thinking about the fact that I turn 30 in one month and have to say good-bye to my 20's. It has been an interesting decade. I am curious if any of my faithful readers have suggestions on what to do to finish out the decade in style? I was thinking anything I could get done in the next month before my birthday, or maybe some way to celebrate my birthday.
My two bff's and I went to California this weekend. This whole thing started when a friend of my roommate's emailed and said there was a conference in California, did she want to meet up there. Since I am always game to travel, and hadn't been to northern California, I said yes. Then our other friend said she had grandparents in the area, and we could stay with them. The hysterical part is the original person who did the invitation got married before the conference even happened!
The trip out was smooth. We went up to Oakland in the morning to do a temple session. On the way we tried to find a breakfast place.... three different places in the GPS turned out to not exist. Then we finally found something. It was a gorgeous day, and the temple was beautiful. Since my parents were married there, it was really neat to see this temple. My friend ran into someone she knew, which just proves how small the church really is :) Then we found a smoothie place in a little shopping district. Yum.
Then we drove around San Jose. Then we went to the opening social, which was a luau. They actually had roasted a whole pig for the event, but it wasn't like a pig-pickin'. I will admit, this was mostly a spectacle of awkwardness because it is people meeting new people. The good news is we left to go get ice cream :) It was alot of fun because my friend's cousin came, and they laugh the same, so you know they are family.
Saturday was International Beach Cleanup day, so we cleaned up a beach. It was nice to stroll along the beach, and the coolest thing we found was a shotgun shell. I will say Pacific beaches are not the same as Atlantic beaches. I kind of like Atlantic beaches :) but my friends say it is fun to have a bonfire on the beach.
Then we went to Santa Cruz for lunch and to go to the boardwalk and the beach and just have fun. I am seriously scared of roller coasters, but I did try a few. We also saw a wedding, and kept running into random people from the conference. We got to put our feet in the pacific ocean, but it was seriously cold, so that was all. Also, I am not a fan of the sand flies and the kelp.
Then we stopped for some really good Mexican on the way home and got ready for the "red carpet". They had rented out a ballroom, and had a band, and then a dj. It was a pretty dressy occasion, and I was excited to wear my red shoes. The most random thing was meeting someone there who had lived in North Carolina and knew all the people we knew from our ward. Then we walked down the pier, and went home to bed.
Sunday we had breakfast with my friends grandparents, and the highlight was the bacon waffle.... yes, that would be bacon mixed into the waffle batter. Then we tried to see the cliffs near Santa Cruz, but there was a bike race, so the roads were closed and the other roads were pretty busy, so then we went to church, and got on a plane to come home. Before coming home, we did go to In n Out which is a West Coast only thing. It was pretty good, the interesting part was the "animal" style fries. Unfortunately, flying all night and having the airlines loose your luggage made coming home the worst part of the trip. I did just have a carry on but the plane was so full, I had to check it with a hand written tag from the stewardess (are they still called that?). I knew a hand written tag was a recipe for disaster. Lucky for me they did find my luggage and were able to deliver it today.
I am behind on my blogging because I keep doing exciting things with my weekends.
Labor Day Weekend: 10. Drive all over Cary and Morrisville to borrow tents and get food and other supplies 9. My parents helped us avoid disaster with a house key 8. Check out the campgrounds, set up tents, build fire, roast marshmallows 7. Stay up all night the first night with a major headache 6. Enjoy beautiful beach weather, fantastic surf, and good company 5. Cook dutch oven dinner of chicken pot pie and foil dinners, get rave reviews 4. Visit lighthouses 3. Try licorice with pixie stix as an alternative to s'mores 2. Tell worst dating stories as ghost stories around the campfire 1. Pack everything up in the pouring rain
So I loved the beach part of the weekend, and the company on the trip was great, but I could do without the bug bites, and the actual work of setting up camp and taking it down.... hmmm... sounds like a hotel :)
Triathlon Weekend: 5. No one tells you you will be standing around in just your bathing suit for an hour 4. No one tells you that you will have to run barefoot to get your bike 3. Seeing my sister and my mom on the run was cool, otherwise, it was pretty much a solo event 2. Crossing the finish line to Beyonce's All the Single Ladies, and having my two BFFs there was the fun part (Yes, I was imagining Justin Timberlake dancing to that song) 1. Months of training boils down to one hour and fifteen minutes, a time I can be proud of, and I could still walk the next day
I gotta give a shout out to my dad, who packed our stuff up and drove, and to my mom and sister, who are amazing athletes, and totally kicked my butt!
And to entice you to come back and read, this weekend is Cali Weekend!
On Tuesday I was talking to a co-worker about a problem. As I was talking, I was gesturing with my arm, and I felt something funny...... there was an extra wiggle following my arm around....... I looked and realized that where my triceps should be, I have some flab that wiggles! This was so traumatic, I went to the gym that night to check it out. I am currently on a trial to use the gym for a couple of days to see how it goes. Bottom line, I have already decided to join. My mom has been going to a gym for almost a year now, and she has awesome arms, and I went to a class, and the women there didn't have flabby arms, so I am sold.
As a side note, the class I went to was a "core strength" class. I learned that I have no core! There was one exercise where you put your feet on a yoga ball, and you put your hands down, so you are stretched out like a plank. Then you are supposed to lift one foot off the yoga ball and bring your knee to your chest. I couldn't lift a foot without rolling off the yoga ball! So the instructor was like, do a different exercise until you get enough strength to do this one.
What I have learned is that training for a triathlon does not mean you are physically fit. So here's to me, having rock solid abs and big guns for christmas :)
When I was in Elementary School and Junior High School we lived in a duplex in Maryland. It was great because my best friend lived at the corner of our cul-de-sac. One summer we decided to start a business venture together. We would have a "camp" for kids in the neighborhood, and we would teach them origami. The supplies would be cheap, just some colored paper, and we would have a registration fee. We thought we had enough origami shapes to take up 2 hours, but it turns out it was only about 15 minutes. So then we struggled to keep the kids entertained for the rest of the time. I was talking to my mom about this years later, and she said it was the cheapest babysitting in the neighborhood! I got to relive my origami dreams at Borders last week. I will admit, I am still not very good at it. I tried to make a dragonfly and failed :)
This past week I had dinner with my sisters, and had them come over and watch TV. This is why I enjoy living close to my family. It is fun to hang out.
I also went to a museum exhibit on Chocolate and an exhibit about Pirates. The pirate one was interesting because they talked about how to preserve ship wrecks and artifacts. It reminded me of the exhibit I went to in Missouri about a family that recovered a ship that had sunk in fresh water, and how they had to learn how to preserve it. The chocolate exhibit just made me hungry :)
This past weekend I visited my sister in Utah. It was a totally awesome trip! I found a direct flight, which I totally recommend. It is really great to get on a plane, and get off in your destination, without running through an airport and waiting a couple of hours in the middle. At first my sister said there was nothing to do in Provo, where she lives. She proved herself wrong. Here is all the amazing stuff we ate, and did, and we didn't even get to alot of her suggestions. I recommend a visit!
I arrived Friday around 9 AM, so we first hit a breakfast place. While we both agree it is not as good as the Bongo Room in Chicago, it was pretty good. I had an apple pancake, which was in a German pancake style. Very yummy. Then we headed up to Park City, and toured the Olympic Park. They had some fun games where you can try to be a ski jumper. My sister won :) Then we watched people do ski jumps into a pool. It was really cool to see people come flying down a slope, flip in the air, and land in the pool with skis on. It was a gorgeous day, beautiful blue skis, sunny, a breeze, not to hot. We walked down and watched people do the zip line down the mountain. Then we walked through the downtown part of Park City. It is a really cute street with little shops. Of course we got some gelato, and then we saw people riding the ski lift, and one of them lost their shoe! Then we drove through the mountains down to Provo. My sister gave me the official tour of Provo, driving by her work, her favorite house, the water park, BYU, the downtown street, and other things I have forgotten. We relaxed at her apartment, and then got a J-Dog! The special sauce is awesome (this is a hotdog stand near BYU). Then we went out to dinner with some friends at Zupas (a great sandwich/salad/soup place). I got a mango salad that was really excellent. Zupas always gives you a chocolate covered strawberry. I think this should be part of every meal. We followed dinner up with a movie. By the time that was over, I was exhausted! So I went to bed.
Saturday we ate at Kneaders. They have all you can eat french toast, with syrup, strawberries, and whipped cream. The french toast is thick and amazing. Then we went into Salt Lake and checked out the Library. It was a pretty amazing building, with an open area, and then just stacks and stacks of books. It had a university library feel, more than a regular library feel. Then we went over to temple square, and saw one of my sister's friends outside the temple having wedding pictures taken, which is just funny. We watched the new Joseph Smith movie, which was really cool. I hadn't seen it. Then we walked around temple square, and saw the tabernacle which has been updated to survive an earthquake. It looks the same on the inside, but the roof is now a bright silver. Again, it was a gorgeous day. Saturday started out looking rainy, but it cleared right up and was beautiful. Not too hot with a breeze. Then we went to the Gateway, which is a shopping place with the Olympic park. Kids run in and out of the water in the fountain. I discovered that in Utah the store Down East Basic is actually a store, and not an online thing only. So now I will be putting in orders with my sister :) We ate dinner at the Cheesecake Factory, and tried the whole set of appetizers. Lesson learned: The corn cakes and guac egg rolls are still the best. We also tried the pineapple upside down cheesecake. It was not as good as we had heard. At least we got the tuxedo cheesecake, because that was fabulous. I love cheesecake. Then we went to see an outdoor performance of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. We had a sleeping bag to sit on, but the hill was very steep, so we were sliding down the hill. The venue was nice, and the weather was gorgeous, but the performance itself was more like a roadshow than a broadway production. The primary kids were super cute, and the green go-go boots were definately the hit of the costuming. It was just funny, and I enjoyed it.
Sunday we went to church, and my favorite part was my sister running to another apartment to borrow the perfect shoes for her outfit. It is like having 10 times as many clothes when you have friends that live so close. I also benefited from this because I borrowed a jacket from my sister. There was a munch and mingle after church. This is different than the "break the fast" my ward has. It is on the third sunday and the ward provides the food, it isn't a pot luck. This time it was baked potatoes. Yum. We sat and visited and it was alot of fun to meet people and get names associated with faces. Then we took a Sunday afternoon nap (or I did), and then we went for a drive through the canyon, singing fabulous songs all the way. It was a beautiful drive up through Sundance. Once again, can't say enough about how gorgeous the weather was. It did get a bit cold up in the mountains. My sister was lamenting the fact that it was fall already, but I really enjoyed the break from the humid 100 degree days. Then we cooked some pizza and went to Ward Prayer. This is amazing to me. The entire apartment complex is one singles ward, and because they are all in the same complex, they get together in the courtyard and have ward prayer Sunday night. It is a social thing, with a short spiritual thought and games. Then the party came to my sister's place where we continued to play games. Provo is definately a social place.
Monday we got up and got a pie shake for elevensies. Yes, this is taking a piece of pie, putting it into a glass with ice cream, and blending it together. Amazing! Then we went to Thanksgiving Point, which has gardens and a dinosaur museum. We watched a glass blower create a vase of some kind. Then we walked around the gardens. They were amazingly beautiful, especially with the mountains as a backdrop. It was just fun to wander around. Then we drove by several temples, so in all I saw 5 temples on this trip. Then we got a slurpee and a "Beyond Glaze" donut, which is a glazed donut but decorated with other flavors, like Key Lime. Then it was time to drop me off at the airport. Sad.
Bottom Line: Provo is a very exciting place to meet people and do tons of fun things and eat lots of yummy food.
I usually try to exercise before work because there is no one in the neighborhood pool, but this week it didn't work out. So I went after work. I was swimming my laps during one of the adult swims, and a bunch of kids were sitting around with their feet in the water waiting to get back in. I didn't finish all my laps in the time period, so then the kids jumped in and challenged each other to a race. So they swam past me. Then they challenged each other to swim ten laps, and they were going super slow, and I am pretty sure they were making fun of me :)
Then I was riding my bike. I wear regular work out shorts and a tshirt, and I have a mountain bike ish type, so I don't ride all hunched over like on a road bike.... basically I ride a bike like I did when I was a kid. So I am riding along, slowly, and this guy speeds past. He is on a road bike, with the whole spandex outfit, the shoes that clip in, the water thing on his back... you know, a real professional. So I can only imagine how comical I looked in comparison.
This weekend was tax-free weekend in North Carolina. So I went to the outlet mall with a friend for some good clothing sales. We had a blast, and got some good deals. I also got to see a Durham Bulls game. The best part was the fireworks at the end of the game. They were so close it was amazing! It was a great weekend.
This week I moved offices, so now I sit near my manager's boss. I was wondering if it would be awkward to leave work early yesterday to go to a Coldplay concert, but when I left, she was already gone. I wonder if she went to the concert?
My roommate and I got a 4 pack of lawn tickets, so we decided to meet at our house to drive down to Walnut Creek. Walnut Creek is notorious for bad traffic, and my roommate got lost the last time she went to a concert there, so I was in charge of navigating. My roommate has noticed that I like to drive on back roads, so she suggested we do that to avoid traffic. One of our friends was like, I have only driven this far on this road, I had no idea it continued. So I pointed out the house that the peacocks live at, and other interesting sights. So if you would like a guided car tour of Raleigh, let me know.
We decided to leave the house right after work and pick up some food along the way. So we stopped at a Wendy's and tried to go through the drive through.
"Hi, can we place 4 orders?" "No, we only take two orders" "Ok, first order, jr bacon cheeseburger etc etc. Second order..." "Can you repeat that?" "Which one?" "Both"
So we got the two sets of food on that one, and drove back through the drive through, but this time, pulled up so the back passenger window could order and pay. We asked for ketchup, and the guy at the window said they were out. Maybe it was because they let people do 4 orders at a time. :) We were laughing hysterically through this whole thing because it would have been faster to walk in.
We finally got to Walnut Creek, and were directed where to park by the parking experts. We then found a spot on the lawn that was close to the center of the stage. Unfortunately, we did not bring any tarps, and the ground was wet from rain in the morning. Apparently everyone else there had forgotten their tarps, and was walking around had wet pants, which was funny, but also kind of unpleasant. It was a gorgeous evening, not too hot or humid, which is so rare in August in North Carolina. The best part of the opening bands was the fact that we could still talk, and they had some violins playing with them. Then it got dark, and Coldplay came out! It was awesome! They played all my favorite songs, plus some great ones I didn't know. Then they came out to the back and did a Michael Jackson tribute, Billy Jean. Awesome! And then, we got a free CD of the songs live from the concert.
Then it took an hour to get out of the parking lot, so we just listened to the concert again on CD. Fun times.
(Sorry, coldplay videos cannot be embedded, and apparently I haven't improved my picture taking abilities)
This week would be classified by my grandfather as mundane, but sometimes those are the best:
Eating a good tuna salad sandwich Rain that makes the earth smell good Planting herbs and hoping my brown thumb doesn't kill them Good pasta Watching So you think you can dance with my sister Helping load photos onto facebook Having friends over to watch a chick flick (Lake House, so good) Leaving work at 5:30 even if things aren't completely done Daisies Brand new conversations
And mostly, it is the anticipation of good things to come.... the rainbow after the rainstorm. I have always felt when school started, a new year started, and even though I am not in school anymore, I still feel a bit of anticipation when the summer begins to wind down in August. August is full of last minute summer plans, doing all the things you meant to do all summer. August is also when you get ready for the year ahead, go clothes shopping for crisp new jeans and empty notebooks. August will be completely starting the new job, and leaving the old one behind. With tax free shopping day, I will probably try to find a pair of jeans for old times sake. And who knows, maybe all the last minute summer fun will be just that...... fun.
So I like to think that a majority of the time I am a realist. But my family has told me some of the time I am bitter, but this post is for the hopeless romantic in me. You are warned, so you can skip it.
This weekend I went to a Young Single Adult conference with some friends. It was in Wilmington, so our backup plan was to hit the beach if it wasn't fun. So the conference was only for Saturday, but we decided to make a weekend out of it. So we drove down Friday night. Roadtrips are awesome. So the point of going to a singles conference is to meet people, but as I have mentioned, often my job makes guys heads explode. So we decided I would be a kindergarten teacher for the weekend.... a 25 year old kindergarten teacher. So we got up saturday to go to the conference. Turns out it was a lot of fun. We did a service project in the morning, and I met a bunch of people from my sister's ward. This made it impossible to say I was a 25 year old kindergarten teacher, because then if they told my sister they saw me, it would be awkward when she said, what? I don't have a sister who teaches kindergarten. Apparently I have an honesty streak in me. It was so funny because they were like, Oh we love your sister, she is so great, can you tell us embarrassing stories about her? And I said, no, there aren't any, and they were like, oh that figures. But one of my friends went to school with one of the Chapel Hill people, so I got introduced, and we chatted. Apparently the whole IBM thing is not intimidating to someone who works at Duke. Nice. Then we had lunch, and the workshops. Then we got to go to the beach. It was such a gorgeous day, and the water was perfect!
The best part of the conference was the dinner cruise. If you are a fan of the office, then imagine Michael Scott's Booze Cruise, but without the drinking.
So during the dinner cruise they were playing music and had a dance floor. At first, not many people were dancing, but then it got a bit more crowded. So I was sitting at one table eating dinner, and I decided to get up and throw my food away and try to move to where the guy I had been talking to earlier was. So as I was getting up and moving, he was moving to where I had been. Then my friend was like, uh... he's over there..... So I walked back over to that table, and was kind of wondering if I should ask him to dance, when he asked me.
I also tried to find the video for Anastasia dancing, and Ariel dancing, and basically, every great dance scene from the movies. Ok, so it probably wasn't like that in reality, but it was fun. Then the boat cruise ended. My friends and I went back to the beach to swim in the water. We stayed for church, and then went out to the beach for a couple of hours before heading home. So I had a great time, and would totally recommend YSA conferences, especially ones at the beach.
