my life... take three

9/11

2009-09-11T12:46:00.003-04:00

I wasn't in NY and I didn't know any of the brave people who lost their lives that day. I do know one man, my husband, who continues to serve this country and protect our shores. I told him I wouldn't talk about him on my blog so I wont say anymore than just this. We owe the men and women who serve our country our greatest gratitude. The policemen and firemen and everyone else who worked to save lives that day and every day since then. For you, I am ever grateful.

I was a senior in college on 9/11/01 waiting to leave the US for London to study abroad. I was driving on Route 95 to work listening to the radio. At first they thought it was a traffic helicopter that crashed. The more I listened the more I learned. I sat there in traffic from 8:46am till 9:30am listening and crying.

A few weeks later I left the US to live in London for a few months. I never had a doubt in my mind that I wouldn't go. I didn't want to let those people hold me back from life. I left on an American Airlines plane with my friend Rocio and tried to hold back the tears. I didn't do anything brave or heroic. I just made sure that I continued to remember and reflect on the lives lost and the America that changed. My husband heard a speaker the other day who had an interesting insight. He asked everyone to look around and see the sprinklers and fire alarms and lighted exit doors. He said that we were prepared for fire. We have drills and we are taught how to deal with the situation. We are not taught how to deal with terrorism. The people on United Airlines Flight 93 fought back. The people in the towers helped others to get out. The firemen and policemen ran in to save others. I'd like to think that faced with a similar situation that I would fight to save lives.

I will be thinking of these people all day.

The hundreds of people who died in the WTC towers, The 92 crew members and passengers on American Airlines Flight 11, the 64 crew members and passengers on American Airlines Flight 77, the 56 passengers and 9 crew members of United Airlines Flight 175, the 125 service members and employees in the Pentagon, and the 45 people on United Airlines Flight 93.

Inappropriate Interns

2009-09-03T09:22:00.003-04:00

At every job I've had there have been interns. Some of them have turned out to be superstars (that's you Alicia) and others have shown us how to be superstar idiots. This year at The New Agency we have an intern. At first she was lovely. She wasn't shy and she'd follow up on things and she was very cute. I'm not exactly sure when it all went down hill but I have a feeling when her skirts began to become smaller our feelings for her also lessened.

At each office there is always someone who is the daring fashionista. At my old agency she was perky and beautiful and oh so Nantucket. We loved it. We even made Christmas ornaments one year for the office holiday party and she made a perfect replica of herself with sunglasses and pearls.

At my office unfortunately the new intern is our daring fashionista. Actually fashionista is not really the word I'd use for the sky high platforms, mini skirts and tight hot pink tops. Or some days its the beach cover up dresses used as actual dresses. Today is a very cute dress that somehow got shrunk in the wash. Every day its "what is the intern wearing today?" and sometimes its a "No, you don't want to look at her - she forgot her pants when she got dressed".

Now I could be a bitchy slightly overweight short girl who is very jealous of the skinny skimpy clothed intern but I don't think so.

Also - one last thought. If I'm cold in the office wearing pants and a short sleeve top - is she is just freezing to death?

22 Points

2009-08-27T16:04:00.002-04:00

So I started Weight Watchers again online. This basically means that I eat something and then laugh about how many points it is. OR I lie and say that the Sportello Creamy Wild Mushroom Polenta I ate today was 5 points. Riigghhhttt nothing that tastes that good is 5 points. Ever.

Today is Thursday and I am already over my points for the week by 22 points and its not the weekend. I have a feeling thats not good. Oops.

Furry Daughter

2009-08-26T15:46:00.000-04:00

Look at this thing and tell me you arent going to want to take her EVERYWHERE with you?

No-ga

2009-08-25T09:05:00.001-04:00

So I have been trying to find ways to get in shape. I downloaded some work out classes on the TV the other day and tried to do those. It was a disaster. I laid down on my mat and stretched. The dog thought it was awesome that I had come down to play with her. I had not.

I thought she'd calm down so I started the video. Soon the dog was doing her own version of doggy licking yoga. I finally gave up and wrestled the dog and turned off the TV.

I stopped going to Krav Maga because once I learned the self defense tactics it became more street fighting. Yes, street fighting. I was in a class with those guys that you DON'T want to shove at a bar. It was fun but I don't know if my knowledge of being able to suffocate someone in a leg headlock will really come I'm handy. Brett won't even let me show him my moves. His loss.

Guess I just have to go back to the gym....

I'm baacckkkkk

2009-08-24T16:07:00.002-04:00

So I took a hiatus from blogging but after talking about the blog recently at work I think ill start again.

Ok let's see. I'm still fat. Working on it... we'll see.

The summer weather showed up in boston and my hair decided to take the summer off from being manageable and cute. I've even come to work with it up - yes, up as in a clip. As in showing off my ears. gasp.

The dog is still eating stuff. Like... my razor. What animal thinks its OK to eat a razor.

The T still gives me comic relief as well as crazed anger on a daily basis.

I'm still see-thru. No beach time for mama yet this year.

My car got hit... Again.

Job is good. Love the ppl I work with and I drink less b/c there aren't bizarre (yet also amazing) happy hour parties every other day.

I went down to New Orleans for a wedding. NOLA was a blast. The wedding not so much.

Brett still wants to eat burritos every other day.

Ssoooo basically life is the same only a couple months later.

Things I Think About

2009-04-29T11:12:00.004-04:00

In no particular order.

1. Why the janitor is not concerned that they are putting the rolls of toilet paper on WRONG every single day. Is this on purpose? To drive me INSANE?

2. There is an obscene amount of women who walk around with their winter jackets and do not take the string out of the back pleat of their jacket. This criss cross stitch is ONLY there so the manufacturer can ship the product and the store can put it on display w out the pleat getting all messed up and needing ironing. The women that walk around with this string in their coats look like huge bubble asses and probably dont realize that they look like assholes. Clearly this one actually really bothers me. Some days I almost want to walk up to these women and tell them.

3. skinny jeans. Unless you are actually really skinny (like my sister in law) these DO NOT LOOK GOOD ON YOU.

4. how are skinny jeans AND wide legs BOTH in fashion right now? I cant keep up.

5. I'm concerned that there is something wrong with me when I prefer Extra to The Evening News. Except this swine flu thing - its fascinating to me and I cant read/see enough about it. Also Pirates. Also fascinating. All other news sucks.

6. How some of the people I see on a daily basis have multiple $2,000 bags. Their closets could be sold to mortgage my condo.

7. Why I still feel the need to drink like im in college.

8. Why when i do drink like i did in college it hurts WAY more.

9. I'm currently obsessed with how enormous my boobs have gotten - why are they bigger? eh! (I'm sure I'll get a few death threats from my not-so-well-endowed friends out there for that one)

10. Baby names. I bet you every time someone has a kid and names it something cute about half of their girlfriends are pissed they didnt get knocked up first to steal the name.

11. I never thought I'd be able to sleep with someone who snores or is a weird sleeper. Apparently now im ok with having a dog sleep on top of my head while snoring very loudly and randomly farting throughout the night.

12. I wish I could get back into making jewelry. I should take a class on how to do it the right way. That way it will be more fun.

13. If i was loaded I'd be a walking Anthropologie catalogue.

14. Brett likes to announce "we're fat" while eating something really bad. Buddy - thats not going to help.

15. I wish I could tell some reps where to go. No, I dont want to meet you if I have never heard of your site/magazine/radio station/ TV station. WHY would you think that would be interesting to me? Do you think I have hours in my day to learn something new? riiigghhhttt. Send me a media kit.

16. Even though I wish I could tell off these reps I am trying to be nice. Sometimes its not easy.

17. My biggest pet peeve about all of these cold calls/emails I get is when someone says "I'm calling about XXX client that XX person told me you run." Oh really - I dont have that client and I dont know that person. Then they openly admit that they were reading off a sheet OR that they just copied the same email over again to send it to me after I call them out on it. Drives me insane.

18. Another thing that drives me insane are those people who dont move out of the way on the subway or bus when you are trying to get out. "Look bitch you arent going to get where you are going any faster until I get off this bus so move your ass"

19. My dog smells good. My parents dogs dont smell good. Is Billie just less oily or something? I touch my parents dog and she smells like "dog". I wash my hands. Its weird.

20. We just got my car fixed - new transmission. This means that Brett will be the first one to get a new car when we need one since mine is all set for years. Not like I wasnt expecting that but now he has a great excuse.

21. I still really want to know who sent me that coconut in high school.

22. If I cant be funny in a facebook status what makes me think that Twitter is ok for me. I think i'll stick to this.

23. I try not to tell people I dont like football. Then i'll never get free tickets. Not a fan of the game but the tailgating is a blast!

24. I fantasize about the places I will live due to moving for the coast guard. most likely i'll live in crappy places but hey its fun to dream huh?

25. do the playboy Girls Next Door really sleep with Hef? I REALLY want to know this. I'm sure you do too.

Thats it! I'm sure I'll have more later... hehe

Tape Worm

2009-04-29T11:02:00.002-04:00

I think I have a tape worm. I'm going to call him Marty. I'm hungry all the time. Its probably just being bored at work but it sucks. Marty is constantly yelling at me and forcing me to think about walking to the ice cream store or eating the candy in the dish in my office. Its no fun. I hate my tape worm.

And nooooo for all of you reading this. I am not with child. This is me. All the time. Starving! Damn you Marty.

bridesmaid.. hopefully better than the first time

2009-04-13T13:39:00.002-04:00

So this weekend I went with my sisters to pick out and try on bridesmaid dresses for Maggie's upcoming nuptials. The place was kinda gross but if the dress is cheap... I'm in!

We tried on several dresses - we should have tried on the really gross ones and taken pics but I wasn't thinking about blog postings on Sat. Sorry blogosphere!

We did find a lovely dress that fit both Dee and I well. The one problem is that my boob-o-licous body was a little well... overflowing from the top. Now most women (including little sis Dee) would say there is not a problem with overflowing boobs but I tend to disagree. They were overflowing into my armpits and didn't really allow me to put my hands to my sides. Hmmm should we have gotten another dress?

My favorite part of this whole experience is the obligatory "you can wear it again!" No, you can rarely ever wear it again. Well, scratch that. You can wear it again but only on Halloween if you are a Drunk Bridesmaid or the Tooth Fairy. I was both of those when I used my first bridesmaid dress which was bubblegum pink with 3 1/2 foot around toole gown with spiky rosettes along the top of the dress. I was a drunk ballerina during the entire wedding. Because the bride was screwing some other dude up to the night before her wedding I decided to get shitfaced and twirl a lot in my ballerina dress while screaming "Im a drunk ballerina! look at me! Im drunk! woo hoo! Look at me twirl!" all while humming the song from the Nutcracker.

A little knowledge and a need for a lot of education

2009-04-08T14:47:00.002-04:00

I don't know how I discovered Dooce but a couple of years ago I did and she's really an interesting blogger. I'm in love with her pictures of how she dresses up her dog and the hysterical stories about raising a child and a puppy at the same time.

Today's post was something I wouldn't normally pay much attention to but it was very interesting. I don't have children yet but I do think that I'd want to learn as much about vaccinations as possible. I had many interactions with Autistic children when I worked at a local children's shoe store for years. Many customers came in to have us fit the shoes of their autistic children and knew who should be their sales person depending on gender or personality. This understanding of what their child could or wanted to handle and control I am sure took months and years of education and study. If I saw my child change and take on autistic characteristics after something like a vaccine I would make sure I knew as much as I could.

What I am saying is... I see both sides. I can see the side of the autistic parent who is so passionate about their child's condition that they will try to find any way to make that not happen to anyone else. I can also see the side of most of the population who feel that a child that is not vaccinated could be a danger to many people including young babies and children, the very ill and elderly.

Personally when it is time for me to have children I think I will educate myself. I will see if there is a middle solution that allows my child to be vaccinated but perhaps at a less aggressive schedule of treatment. My husband and his job would force us to travel a lot and that means vaccinations.

The more I write what my opinion is the more I know I need to educate myself. I'm so thankful for blogs and interesting news stories to force me to think and educate myself on issues that I might not be aware of otherwise. yay blogosphere- thanks for making me think twice about the world we live in.

Here is a link to the article again:
http://dooce.com/2009/04/07/word-or-two-about-vaccinations/#comments-start

Ultimate Fighter

2009-04-06T09:26:00.002-04:00

my dog thinks she is employed by Vince Mcmahon of the WWE. She is short and stalky and flights well... like a bulldog. She is strategic and doesnt exert herself like other dogs.

Here are a couple of examples of Billie's take down techniques.

1. Ankle Bite - if a dog is running around her and teasing her she will simply sprint after them for a second and bite their back ankle. This is immediate take down where she then pounces on them and bites their ears etc. Hysterical. Dogs dont know its coming.

2. Flying Puppy - this is when she is playing and she is close to a park bench. She jumps on the bench and flys onto the other dog knocking him over. Also hysterical. A real crowd pleaser.

3. Body Slam - since Billie Jean is 50 pounds but only a little over a foot tall she can also just take out dogs by slamming into them. If they are taller she slams into their legs and they fall over. She also can do this to adults. I always keep a wide stance at the dog park so I'm not body slammed by my own dog.

4. Side Slam - Sometimes there are dogs that in playing with Billie Jean they feel the need to run around in a big circle to get away from her. It usually works for a minute until Billie catches them mid circle and side slams them mid run. This is why we call her strategic. She doesnt need to run the full circle - she just finds the point that is closest to her and sprints to the side slam. Works every time.

5. Statue - this is pretty self explanatory. She puts herself in the running path of a dog to take down and just stays there like a statue. The dog doesnt assume she wont join in the running so they plow right into her. She holds her ground (since she's so close to it) and the dog falls over or sometimes launches themselves over her body. This is really funny since Billie normally doesnt flinch throughout the entire thing and the other dog just got flung.

6. Sneak Attack - Billie is really good at making you think she isnt paying attention to you. She does the sneak attack to dogs and humans alike. You will be sitting there minding your own business when she just walks up and bites you. Sneak Attack! She did this to me this morning.

Stay at Home Mommy

2009-04-06T09:13:00.002-04:00

So Brett and I had an interesting talk this weekend. We discussed how when we have kids Brett thinks that one of us should stay home. Since he makes like double my salary it would probably be me. I never in my life thought I'd be the kind of woman who would be a stay at home mom. Not that its a bad thing but I just never was the type - I love to work.

When we were talking it wasn't a big shock to me that Brett said that. Our Coast Guard life can bring us to various places across the country and its possible that I wont be able to work in all of those places. I think that gives me a much better feeling about Brett's thoughts.

If we were living in Boston, NY, SF, Seattle I think I'd have a very difficult time staying home and raising children. Now if we were in Hawaii or Savannah I think I'd feel very differently. I also have a boss now that is a freelancer with my agency in Boston. I see her once a month or sometimes more and I talk to her all day. When her kids are at school we have our client calls and when they are out of school I usually only call her when I have to ask a question. I think I could do that. I could work from home as a part time freelancer for an agency that needs me - regardless of where I live.

When I worked from home before it was an impossible situation with an impossible client. I also felt as though I had no choice but to take that situation and not complain. This time I have a choice and I know better. No one has to suffer that much in their job. No matter the pay. I am at the level in my job where I could be a huge asset (and I do believe I currently am) to any agency. I'd also have my dog to keep me sane and possibly some day some kids to keep me insane.

I guess we'll see what life... or the Coast Guard brings us.

Krav Maga Part 2

2009-03-28T15:29:00.003-04:00

So today I went to an intro session for Krav Maga. I figured I had not taken a class since November so it was a good opportunity to go back. It was great. I didnt feel like i was going to die after the first class last time. I was great. I even looked good sweating.

So I signed up for 6 months. Its quite expensive and after the new transmission the Honda needs I'm pretty sure Brett's going to put me on a no spending lock down.

I do think I need something and its perfect to get me energized about getting a bathing suit body. Notice I didnt say bikini. hahaha now that would be a miracle!

My friend Amy is also taking a month worth of classes with me before she is transferred to Seattle.

Obviously I want to do it for the confidence and exercise but i also think its a pretty cool skill to have. I feel cool and tough. Is that bad? Who doesnt want to feel cool and tough?

Now I just hope I dont get any bruises like this one before I have to attend my summer weddings or events. oops.

Happy St.Patty's Day

2009-03-17T10:21:00.004-04:00

The old black homeless man in the T was singing Danny Boy this morning. I guess its St.Patty's day where even the black homeless dudes in Boston are Irish!

I am not wearing green b/c the shirt did not look OK with the pants I had on and I didn't want to iron again. I am wearing my green emerald shamrock earrings. OR should I say my mothers green emerald shamrock earrings. I love these things. I wear them once a year and I just love it. I also think my sisters are pissed that I have these in my possession. ha ha ladies!

Later today I am going to a Coast Guard Spouse's Association event for St.Patty's day. I'm not so sure how I feel about the Coastie Wives after this incident but I will give it another try.

"oh Danny Boy!"

2009-03-09T22:02:00.003-04:00

So for the past couple of days I have been wondering why I feel so weird. I sit weird. I walk weird. My clothes feel weird. I have constant weggies. Then today I figured it out. I'm getting fatter on one single side of my ass. I literally have a fat ass... on the right. I officially have a lopsided ass.

How do I suck the fat out of a single ass cheek?

Sasha claims I'm lucky to even have an ass. I told her she just thinks that because hers are evenly distributed. If she had a lopsided ass then maybe she wouldn't think I was so lucky. Then... we'd be soul sisters. Ass sisters.

So for all you people who don't believe me I took some Photo Booth pics. To PROVE my ass-ets aren't the same.

I was able to get Billies ass into this second one. She has a more symmetrical ass with cowlicks in her hair. Its a very cute ass.

Fashion + Jaci = Fear

2009-03-08T18:11:00.003-04:00

My new agency has a lot of fashion clients. Every week it seems we are meeting with new fashion clients. Its a really new world for me and its very exciting. Last week I was in NY for a new business meeting for a great fashion brand. I was told I was traveling to NY on Monday and the meeting was the next afternoon. Obviously I made myself available but then started freaking out about what to wear. The last new biz meeting I went to I was one of the 4 people in the meeting wearing a black turtleneck. The owner of the fashion company asked us if "we were attending his F**king funeral". It was pretty funny but I was quite mortified. No more black turtlenecks.

The professional world has gotten more casual. I think a lot of people at my agency and other local agencies wear jeans every day. I am not that person. I have issues feeling professional in jeans.

Monday night after work I went out shopping for an outfit to wear. I was not wearing another black turtleneck. I tried on literally every dress in the store, suits, and tons of shirts. Literally nothing fit or looked good. I finally ended up with a white button down (so fashionable huh?) and paired it with a nice wool pant and wool jacket I had at home. I dressed it up with a big beaded necklace.

The meeting was great. I left feeling great but wondering If I'd ever fit into this world. I'm not really that funky and I pretty much have only 2-3 nice shirts/pants which means I wear the same thing every week. Oops!

i also dont think this economy will allow me to buy some more fashionable clothes. Does anyone have any tips for me? How do I take a bland closet and make it cool?

Dermablend is my friend

2009-03-08T17:59:00.002-04:00

I get hives. All the time. For really any reason. For no reason at all. Its awful. Well... its not THAT awful. Its just really a pain in my ass.

In high school I never really had them - then one awful prom date asked me over to his house so his parents could take enough pictures to wallpaper their house, cottage and car interiors. I looked great. Minus the red blotches ALL over my face and body. That was really D day for me. Since then I have been aware of my hive issues and tried very hard to hide them at all times. Most days that means scarves, turtlenecks and carefully placed hair, hands and folders to hide my neck.

Once during a presentation a friend said that she couldn't pay attention to my speech. She just kept watching my neck and face as tiny little red blotches popped up and then just kept coming until they took over everything in one single red blotch. Good times.

In business my hives are a point of weakness. It shows that I'm nervous even if I'm not really nervous. I have done a pretty good job of hiding them but I cant wear a scarf or turtleneck everyday w out people thinking some odd things. When I worked in San Fran my office colleagues had a poll. A couple people thought I had hickeys or a nasty scar and one thought was that I was really a dude hiding an adams apple. After all I WAS in San Fran.

The good thing is that I can also "hide" them by being tan. My wedding was perfect. Not a blotch in sight because I was perfectly golden tan. I cant do that 365 days a year. A couple of months ago I found out that I can hide my hives with some dermablend makeup. Its a very thick makeup that I used as a teen to hide my tattoo for years. I decided to give it a try for my neck. It worked and I'm happy.

Now I can wear button down shirts and v-neck's w out the fear of the blotches coming out like i have chicken pox. dermablend is my friend. Now I need to find something to hide my fat. Somehow I dont think thats going to be as easy as some makeup. damn.

friends vs basketball

2009-02-27T08:56:00.003-05:00

So Brett and I got a wedding invite yesterday. Brett looked at the date and realized last year we were doing something very special... seeing the Celtics win their championship. We aren't sure what to do. Its possible that they get knocked out in round 2 and wont even make it to the Finals.

The wedding is in New Orleans so I immediately want to go. The groom is a guy that was on the ship with Brett but I have never met him. I'm not sure the last time they saw or spoke but he's a dude and apparently that's pretty normal.

Brett was the best man in a wedding for a guy that I had never met. When we flew out to CA for the wedding it was like no time had went by. That's when I realized that things like time and lack of communication don't matter much for guys.

Anyways - in addition to Ryan being an old friend of Brett's and the wedding in a cool location we also have several friends in the NOLA area. Anna and Bull are there in NOLA and Andy and Jen are about an hour away. I haven't seen Anna and Bull in well over a year and Andy and Jen haven't been to Boston in about 3 years. It would be a great vacation but the one hang up is possibly missing the Finals.

What should we do? I think it might be easier for them at first to know that we will try to make it. We will be able to give them notice and hopefully it doesn't screw things up. The other thing we could do is just fly down for the weekend but then it sort of makes the big visit to the rest of our friends impossible.

Obviously we will wait and figure this out but what do you think?

Game

2009-02-27T08:55:00.000-05:00

Another one of my favorite games to play on the T is "guess the gender"! For example this morning there was a person with a stalky figure and a really long pony tail. Seeing this person from behind I began the game...

Pony tail- 1 for chick
Bad outfit- toss up
Stalky physique- toss up
Ring on finger- 2 for chick
Sneakers- toss up (small feet)

Wait on second! Facial hair! Hhmmm I think its an ugly ass dude. That's it for todays game folks! Hopefully next week there will be more fun to be had on the T. Have a good weekend!

music in the T

2009-02-25T16:33:00.004-05:00

So with the new job I now have a different commute. I think Ive blogged before about how much it sucks. There are a few bright spots. A few things that make me smile or laugh on my way to work.

One of them is the music on the T. I get off at Downtown Crossing to change trains (did I say my commute sucks... eh!) and there is always some interesting music. First there is one guy whom i think might be homeless. He strums away at his guitar and screams loudly "JESUS! OOOHHHH JESUS" in some sort of melody. This morning he was singing "Ive been working on the railroad". Now what does that have to do with Jesus? I wish I stuck around to the second verse.

Then there is the couple (i assume they are a couple because...) that brings this HUGE karaoke machine down to Downtown Crossing subway station and they turn that bad boy on. Microphone and everything they belt out some Tina Turner, Whitney Houston and Dione Warwick. Now the odd thing is that its a guy and a girl but they aren't there together. I cant imagine there are two different people EACH with a karaoke machine singing away for coins in Downtown Crossing. That would be even funnier.

Now since I'm changing trains I don't mind my morning music since I literally get off the train and walk past them to another platform. If I had to stay on the platform and listen to more than 30 seconds of "That's What Friends Are For" then I might be blogging about a very different emotion.

Music is one of the little things that makes me laugh. I also laugh when I overhear conversations. The other day was one of the best ones in a while. I was walking into the T and this woman was walking out. All I heard her on the other side of a cell phone call saying "Did you find them?" "What?" "No, the bottom ones" "Damn I lost my bottom teeth".

I almost fell over. It was too good to be true. Was this woman really talking on the phone in public to another person about how she LOST her bottom teeth. Priceless.

49

2009-01-29T09:55:00.002-05:00

So on Tuesday my dad turned "49". I felt bad because I missed his birthday due to traveling for work. When we were kids we'd ask Dad what he wanted for his birthday or Christmas and he would always answer with: "Good grades" so we'd buy him socks.

This year I'll get him some socks and maybe a nice shirt to go with them.

Happy 49th Dad! ;)

Some Clouds. Cold. Low 1F.

2009-01-15T13:44:00.004-05:00

Honestly who chooses to live like this? Tonight its going to 1 degree outside. That dog better pee faster than she has ever peed before on tonight's walk!

Poor Brett had to do a boarding very early this morning. He has got to be miserable.

I am hoping for a nice warm night inside the house. I hear its just going to get worse this weekend. Last night my mother in law called Brett. It was 80 degrees in Southern Cali. gggrrrrrr!

sleeping habits

2009-01-03T23:00:00.003-05:00

Brett and I have a queen bed... and a 50 lb bulldog. Normal people have the dog sleep on a bed of their own on the floor. She has one of those. Never touched. Other dogs might sleep at the end of the bed protecting their parents. Our dog sleeps between us in the bed. When Brett leaves in the morning she doesn't go to his side of the bed. Instead she comes up and lays on my head. She likes to put her head either on my neck or directly on top of my head. I move so she isn't breathing into my face and her heavy head and wet jowls aren't on my face. Her body then wraps itself around my head while taking up 90% of my pillow. She then pushes her paws into my head, neck and shoulders to make more room for her body on my pillow. I eventually wake up to find that I am no longer sleeping on the pillow. I pull her body off of my pillow. She then sleeps between the two pillows on the bed, snoring into my pillow. Her little legs are stretched out and as I try to get comfortable i end up sleeping on top of dog legs.

This is how my day starts. Everyday between 6am and 7:30am. Breathing my dogs breath and sleeping on her little legs.

The dog is always the most comfortable person in the room. As I write this I am sitting/laying on the couch with my legs bent to the side. The dog is laying down with her body on the other side of my bent legs. The way to picture this is the dog is taking up 90% of the couch and I am trying to fit on the couch while attempting to be comfortable. Oh and did I mention Brett is also on the couch. He has to sit diagonal with his legs on the table. The dog has taken over the couch and she is snoring. Loudly. Anytime one of us moves she wakes up and gives us dirty looks. Afterwards within 10 seconds the snoring resumes, her eyes might still be open but she is again snoring. If she hasn't found her own spot on the couch she just sleeps on top of us. Here is a classic night from my view.

nice huh? Thank god she's only 50 pounds. I'd have a lot more problems if she was 75 pounds huh?

Snowy Lawn Chairs

2009-01-03T18:27:00.004-05:00

There is a phenomenon that happens in the winter when it snows. People in the city "save" their parking spots that they shoveled out using Spacesavers as the Mayor calls them. Spacesavers are typically lawn chairs, broken fans, garbage cans, and cones. It makes the beautiful snow look like a ghetto of broken chairs.

From the Mayor's office on the City of Boston website:
"Any spacesavers® left in on-street parking spaces that have been shoveled out must be removed 48 hours after a snow emergency has ended."

Keywords here are: 48 HOURS and SNOW EMERGENCY

Knowing that this is an actual rule I am OK with people doing this... most of the time. I personally do NOT put anything outside in a spot I shoveled and thankfully in Charlestown there are many other people that share my frustration with this "rule". Last winter we had 3 days of intense snow. so much snow that work was cancelled - that never happens! Anyways - I spent hours outside shoveling myself out of my spot knowing full well that if I went anywhere I would be hard pressed to find a new one. That's just the risk you have to take and after being stuck inside for several days. In this case we were willing to risk it. When I returned my spot was not taken but it was actually saved.... by someone else. Someone had the audacity to steal the parking spot that I had spent hours shoveling. That is NOT acceptable. I removed the lawn chair and attached a lovely note to it. Hopefully I taught that person a lesson, though i doubt it.

The thing that drives me so nuts about this "rule" is that it ONLY applies to snow emergency days. People think that any snow - even 1 inch - gives them the OK to save their parking space. I get so angry walking down the street looking at lawn chairs saved in spots that have no snow anywhere near them.

I have thought many times about photocopying lots of notices and making them look official to warn my lovely neighbors. The only problem is I might get caught putting them up. I know this is just a part of life and thankfully Charlestown is not the worst of them all. Southie is pretty brutal for their "spacesavers" in the winter.

Ahhh the charms of living in the city.

The Poop Run

2008-12-30T23:42:00.001-05:00

So Brett and I have been dealing with this phenomenon for a little over a year now. The Poop Run is what Billie Jean does when she needs to go #2. This dog will run over a block before finding the right place to go. She's also pretty private so this "spot" also cannot be within 15 feet of another person, dog or running car. If she sees a person, dog or a moving/running car the Poop Run must start from the beginning. Some nights we could spend 20 minutes running after this dog looking at her butt waiting for something to happen. The spot must also be hidden and also "perfect". Usually a "perfect" spot is on top of leaves, in between the curb and a car, hidden behind a house or down a scary alley. Pooping on top of snow is pretty difficult. A new method is to run back and forth across a snowy area to create a private divot in which to poop. That works pretty well.

I haven't asked but I'm pretty sure that the dog walker wants to murder my dog everyday when she is dragging her around attempting to poop. I'm afraid that if I ask I might get slapped by a neon blue poop bag she has in her hand.

The Poop Run has caused more than one problem before. Due to our dog's private bathroom needs she sometimes runs away from the park area to do her business. God forbid Oscar, Roxanne, Sadie or Birch see her poop. She'd never be able to live it down. When my dog is running away other dogs find it perfectly acceptable to go within inches of my feet. Me, well I'd rather a dog with some discretion but her private pooping is a little out of control. I think she might actually get embarrassed if someone/dog sees her pooping. Her head darts around like she's trying to hide and then gives me death looks like I was supposed to stop traffic while she is going.

The dog has issues. I have like 10 more years of the Poop Run in my future. Wish me luck.

2008 Review

2008-12-28T13:41:00.017-05:00

We are a couple days away from the end of 2008. Its been a good year and I thought I'd review some of the highlights and low-lights.

I finally paid off my car. I own a car! Then it broke. Stupid car broke about 2 months after I paid that bitch off. Nasty.

In 2008 there was some baby news. My friend Matt is having a baby... well his new wife is but its 50% him. That's scary. If you have ever met Matt you'd be afraid right now. My friend Nancie is also having a baby. As a child she used to talk like the devil. I'm not kidding. She had this deep awful devil voice that she used to talk in. Lets hope her kid doesn't get that gene.

Also I learned the truth about child birth. All you women out there who are like "oh sure it was fine" are all lying. My friend Lauren just had a baby and told us the TRUTH. Her baby girl was a week late and after 30 hours just didn't feel like coming out. So she had a C-Section and said it was all just awful. Granted she's happy as a clam now with beautiful Annabelle but she told us the truth. It was awful. Anything over 4 pounds is like popping out a turkey. I might re-consider this whole mommy thing. I cant even keep a dog from eating Aleve and Vaseline. Shouldn't that tell you all something?

I joined a Krav Maga class. I loved it. I kicked some major ass. I also got the largest bruise known to man. I impressed some huge ass dudes by kicking their asses. It was pretty awesome. I keep waiting for someone to choke me or trap me so I can "go all krav on them". So far no takers.

The Celtics won their 17th Banner last June. It was amazing. After freaking out that Brett bought Celtics Season tickets it was all worth it. We went to almost all of the home playoff games and we were there the night they clinched the title. It was amazing. We cried and we smelled cigar smoke. It was great. Congrats Celtics. You deserve it!

I took part in a very important election. I'm excited to see what 2009 brings. Please make this economy better. I need to sell my condo in a couple of years and my friends need to get their jobs back!

I also learned some not so great things. I learned first hand what its like to deal with someone with addiction problems. One of my co-workers had a serious addiction problem and we had to deal with that in the workplace. It was an incredibly difficult time and I don't think I did so well. I've been around addiction before but this was a little different. We had to hide it and cover for her because we thought that was best. It wasn't. Hopefully we all learned how to react next time.

I got a new job! After 4 1/2 years at The Agency I left to take a job at The Smaller Agency. It was a great move. I'm leaving work earlier and working on projects that I did not have the opportunity to do at The Old Agency. It was a great career move for me. I'm also pretty excited about my negotiation skills. I got game.

Also in the not so fab 2008 news I initiated a law suit against my former neighbor. Its still on-going. He stole several thousands of dollars from us and we are hoping 2009 is the year we can make this right and get out money back. hhmmm maybe I can use my sweet Krav moves on that asshole. woot woot!

I painted the front room/office of our house. It looks great. It took me forever but I did it. All by myself. Next time I will be hiring someone. Painting is a bitch. Thankfully the sea foam green is now gone.

I went on my first cruise. It was only for 2 days but it was great. Apparently I get sea sick. Brett said I was a wuss.

I survived the first year of Brett going back to school. Its not fun - for either of us. I learned to talk to Brett "in clif note version" so he could still do homework and I could still tell him my daily stories. I cant wait for classes to be over.

I also had some great times this year with my family and friends. Kristy and Casey's trip to Boston was awesome.

We had a blast with Dick and Mich at the Cat House in Hyannis.

I also had an amazing time at the New Kids on the Block concert and rocked out like a retard.

i watched my puppy grow up. She will be two years old in April of 09. She still eats EVERYTHING including a bottle of Aleve and Vaseline. She also still has her weird quirks that makes her our dog. I cant imagine life without her. Isnt that what people say about kids? hehehe

I hope you had a great 2008 and I wish you a wonderful 2009. Love you all! -Jaci

House Modeling

2008-12-14T20:56:00.003-05:00

I had 30 days to buy my condo. I think I did a pretty good job. Its a 777 sq feet rowhouse but its a nice place. Its a 1 bath two bedroom place with what looks like granite countertops and cherry hardwood floors throughout. Its on a nice street with lots of trees and within walking distance to a grocery store, restaurants and coffee shops. Its also a 10 minute walk to the T (subway) and there is parking on the street. We are on the second floor with one unit below and one above us. There is also a great roofdeck with a grill and a view of the city. In the summer you can see the fireworks on the 4th of July from the Charles River.

I walked into this place when we were looking and it felt like home. Everyone felt that way. Pretty sure my mom started praying that we could get this place.

I also knew it would be an easy place to sell again. That was one of the qualifiers. Since we move every couple of years it needed to be sellable with little to no improvements needed.

Since we moved in I had a walk in closet installed in the 8x10 room off the side of the second bedroom/office in the front. The walk in closet is not a common feature and I didnt see a single one in the 30+ condos I looked at in the city. Nice selling point right? I also painted the front room to a neutral color. It was a light green before - not a fan. I also bought a new kitchen fan (the other one actually broke) but it makes a big difference. I was watching HGTV today and thinking about how I would model my house when I go to sell and have an open house. Here are the things I would do.

1. remove the coffee table - dog ate it. Not good
2. remove the livingroom rug & polish all of the hardwood floors to a shine
3. remove all of the dogs stuff and clean out the closet so you can actually see the potential
4. remove the papasan
5. remove all pictures hanging on the exposed brick
6. plant some nice flowers in the outside pot on the sidewalk. Place more flowers on the steps of the lobby
7. remove the stuff from the closets to show that our clothes arent cramped in there
8. remove the couch from the office to make that room look larger
9. remove everything from the countertops to make the kitchen look larger
10. remove the coat rack - makes it cramped when you walk in

Those are my ideas. What do you think?

I remember looking at other condos and thinking that I'd like to see the closet without so many clothes and i kept thinking - will my stuff fit if theirs cant? So many people left their places so cramped and filled with their own personality. From watching HGTV i believe the best bet is to make it neutral enough that everyone else can imagine their own personality in the condo. We have a couple of years still but everything I do I always think about what that means for us and selling this place again.

Please don't re-send the chocolates!

2008-12-14T20:42:00.002-05:00

Its Christmastime and working at an ad agency you get a lot of food gifts. Chocolates and pies and cupcakes galore! Its a bad time to think about a diet. Well... it normally would be...

On Tuesday afternoon I got a box of chocolate from one of my sales reps. I opened it up and ate a chocolate and some other people had some nuts. So the cleaning people wouldn't throw the box out I put it on my desk for the night. Wednesday morning I put the box back on the cafe table in the middle of the office. Around noon someone went to check out the goodies. Instead of lovely chocolates there were thousands of little tiny swarming bugs. We all screamed like little kids and tried to throw out the box as soon as possible.

The rest of the day I felt nasty. I was itchy feeling and sick. Then I also felt obligated to send an email to the company that paid for my gift basket. I wanted to let them know they should contact the vendor and also halt sending more before checking out the boxes. I also called my old agency and instructed them to throw out their box asap. The next day I got an apologetic voicemail and an email from the president of the company. I felt bad but I also ate bugs. In the email the president said she would be sending another replacement box. I quickly wrote back and told her it wasn't a big deal (a lie) and that she did not have to send a new box (because it would just get thrown out) very nicely. Come on! Who wants more bug chocolates??? NASTY!!!

Then I thought that would be the worst of it and it really was but I still continued to have food gift issues. I got a small box of peppermint bark and I brought it home. I opened up the box to have one after dinner on Friday and as I picked up the bark a big huge thick piece of hair came up with it. It wasn't mine. It was wrapped in my bark. Needless to say I threw out that box too.

Whats up with food lately? I think its safe to say I am officially on a food gift diet. No more for Jaci.

The Quest for the Best Boston Burrito

2008-12-08T20:46:00.002-05:00

My husband has an obsession with Burritos. The man could eat one every day. He grew up in Southern California and now that we live in Boston there is a ongoing quest for the best East Coast burrito.

The other day was a first for me. Brett had read about this great burrito place in Beacon Hill and wanted to check it out. I Googled it and the website looked great. There were reviews from Todd English but for some reason I didn't read the FINE print. Apparently the burrito "restaurant" is IN a gas station.

Brett and I pulled up to the pump and went in for our burritos. They were great! They weren't the best of Boston but they were pretty damn good.

We are still on our quest. Any suggestions? Oh and see the last post... we tried Jose's in Cambridge and then came home to Billie Jean and some little blue pills.

A bottle of Aleve and Vaseline

2008-12-08T20:27:00.005-05:00

Its what my dog had for lunch this past Friday.

Brett and I came home from some Birthday Burritos (we took the day off for our birthday) and the dog had taken a jar of Vaseline off my bedside table. She licked it clean. I got mad at her and threw the jar away. Then when I went into the office I saw 32 blue pills on the office couch. She had chewed the entire bottle but left 32 pills. I freaked. Aleve is made of Naproxen and is toxic to dogs. I called my vet and they told me to call Poison Control. $60 later I was on the phone with a doctor who was telling me that if Billie Jean had more than 2 pills she was screwed. At 2+ pills she would probably either have Kidney failure or ulcers. They made me give her two tablespoons of hydrogen peroxide to make her vomit and that worked. Unfortunately no pills were in there. We had to go to the vets to make sure. She's my baby. I couldn't lose her.

We went to the vet and Billie was given a stomach full of charcoal and an IV. They wanted to keep her till Sunday. We left her overnight but on Saturday I didn't know if I wanted to keep her there. The idiot vet also called me and asked the following "Is Billie Jean a picky eater?" I literally almost reached through the phone to bitch slap her. Is she kidding? The dog ate Vaseline and Aleve. Pretty sure she'd eat just about anything.

Soo... I called again and asked how much the damage was already. $417 for Friday and half of Saturday. I made the decision to pick her up. There was no way I was paying another $250 for another night. I knew that I could drop her off the next day for more fluids for about $30. $250 vs $30? ya - I choose $30 and picked up my puppy.

She is doing much better. Yesterday she got more fluids and some drugs. I stayed home with her today and she is back to her old self.

My stupid dog. I will have to add this to the list of things she has eaten.

The Stache Week 2

2008-11-08T10:19:00.005-05:00

Brett's stache is coming along very nicely. He's almost at creepy State Police level.

He's worried that the ladies wont like him anymore. Tonight is Guy's Night and Brett is hoping to pick up some Cougars!

I voted but...

2008-11-04T20:11:00.003-05:00

I still cant be passionate about politics. Obviously the US needs a change and thankfully Bush is on his way out. Its odd because I live in a home where my husband is in the military and his paycheck and possible deployment is changed based on the government. I have different views on a lot of issues than my husband but we both fully respect each other and our views. I'm not one to openly discuss politics but this year the lines have been blurred a lot easier because everyone wants to talk about it. I have been excited to vote for a long time and I was really happy today to actually do it.

Sooo... when I asked my parents to look and see if I was on the list for Andover and they called and said i wasn't I was shocked. I last voted there and I haven't changed anything since then. I called the Boston town clerk to see if I was registered to vote in Boston. I wasn't. I'm not an active voter. Apparently if you don't return a postcard that says you still live in that house every 18 months they make you an inactive voter. How many people does this happen to? I'm pretty sure I would have mailed back a postcard if I got it. So annoying.

So my options were to cast a provisional ballot. I went to Charlestown voting station and I was given two options for a provisional ballot. I also asked about why my voting status became inactive. I got a frustrated answer back - the same answer she gave to hundreds of people today. Apparently with home foreclosures and people moving the "active" voter list is very difficult to keep active. I was told they passed a bill recently with the current economic situation that people can vote nationally (ie for the president only) or state wide (president, senate and other state wide issues) but you cannot vote for the local issues and local politicians. I choose to case a state wide provisional ballot instead of having them verify my local address and then actually have my vote cast in 6 months.

What an ordeal huh? I have a feeling that with my Coast Guard life I'm going to have to deal with this over and over again. I need to remember to re-register to vote every couple of years and every time I move so I can make sure i am "active".

I feel better to know that at least my vote will count (but not for a while). Its nice to be a part of change.

Now I can thank the good lord that all of the political ads will be off the TV. I was going insane watching the NH senate commercials.

The Stasche

2008-11-02T22:06:00.007-05:00

Brett has always joked that he is going to grow a beard some day. Well the Coast Guard has regulations against that and fortunately for me that means no beard. Unfortunately for me there is a nice regulation that allows for a mustache. So his entire team has decided to grow a Stache for the holidays.

This is week 1 of The Stache.

I'm going to post updated pictures as my husband transforms into Magnum PI.

I assume Brett will be growing a Chevron based on the CG regulations but some of the other styles of mustaches are very interesting.
The
American Mustache Institute has a lot of great information on this trend.

Cancelled Due to Lack of Interest

2008-10-27T11:05:00.002-04:00

Ok so I know its evil but i cant get this awful smirk off my face. I got an email this morning that said "Hey Everyone, At this time it doesn't look like we have enough interest to be able to hold the 10 Year Reunion on November 28. I want to thank Beth Har and Judy Vajda for their help in planning the reunion. We will try to reschedule the reunion for a time when more people are available."

Now if you read any of my previous posts you know that I wasn't planning on attending this years reunion. I was thinking about going after my friend Julie asked me to go.

When I received the original Evite I was angry. Who the hell sends out an Evite for a reunion? I know we live in the digital age but do you know anyone who really responds to Evite? Also we graduated with 311 people and only about half of those names were on the Evite (plus several duplicate names). Where the hell was the other 150 people? No wonder it was cancelled due to lack of interest! You didn't Evite the interested parties!

It pisses me off that the only people who got the Evite are members of Facebook. So only the cool kids get to go? Its just sooo Andover isnt it? If you aren't cool enough for Facebook you arent cool enough to get invited to the party. It serves them right for inviting Facebook people to a reunion via Evite. Idiots.

Also I have another rant. How much money does it cost to send out some postcards? Also why did it cost $30 a person to attend the reunion. My wedding cost less than that per person and it was at a country club in the same town with a full menu!

Kicked my Ass

2008-10-19T22:41:00.004-04:00

So today at Krav Maga I learned some pretty cool things. Unfortunately I also got the shit beat out of me. Check out one of many NASTY bruises...

and the mother of all bruises...

this one hurts so bad i had to ice it for an hour today. I also have multiple bruises on my thighs, calves, knees and my ass. I am literally getting my ass kicked. BUT I learned some awesome things and it was totally worth it. This is my 3rd class in the 6 week course. Today we learned how to defend ourselves if someone is on top of us. I had to fight my way out from under a 250 pound 6 foot 4 guy today. At one point 6 people got in line each with their own turn to try to fight me. They choked me and hit me and held my arms. I had to get them off of me and flip them over and then hurt them to get up and run away. It was pretty cool that I was able to do it. Out of all of the techniques i felt like this one was the most fun and I was good at it. I also wished I knew this in college to teach my residents and friends - we all would have felt safer im sure. Either way - i can fight them off. Pretty cool right? Bruises will fade but the confidence that I'm getting in this class will hopefully stay with me forever. Good thing its not short sleeve weather anymore huh? hahahaha

Mama Wants

2008-10-15T14:18:00.003-04:00

I have blogged about this collection before but its been a year and I'm still obessed with these shirts.

I really really really need an excuse to pay this much money on a shirt. Someone help! I want to buy one for everyone I know!

This one is perfect for Jen.

This one would be hysterical for Jessi.

This one would be a hysterical internal joke gift for Anna!

And this one was made for me!

can someone tell me that its ok to spend $87 USD on a t-shirt in this economy? Oh and did I mention I just paid $491 for my car on Monday and today I started legal proceedings against my former neighbor. Ya - I probably dont have the $ to spend on a hysterical nasty t-shirt from Paris. Too bad I'm not loaded... or better yet... too bad Brett's not loaded! hehehe

Bad things happen when I'm bored...

2008-10-06T22:46:00.005-04:00

Like this...

or this...

or this...

and this is really BAD...

Learning how to kick some ass! Krav Maga style!

2008-10-06T10:32:00.002-04:00

For those of you who have known me for years you are probably going to laugh your ass off when I tell you what I did yesterday.

I signed up for a 6 week Krav Maga class. Krav Maga is a military hand to hand combat system designed by Israli Defense Forces. In Isreal the army is made up of both men and women so Krav Maga is designed to teach everyone techniques to defend themselves no matter how big or small.

Brett took some Krav Maga classes at his work the other day and told me that I should do it. I was excited that he wanted me to do this. He kept on me and finally I signed up. Yesterday was my first class.

We learned how to punch, fist thrust, kick and defend off an attacker that is putting you in a frontal choke hold. At one point I almost passed out. This is literally the first time I have worked out in probably 8 months. I stuck it out and I really enjoyed myself. It was cool to think that I could actually defend myself. The great thing about krav Maga is that it doenst teach you how to fight. It teaches you how to defend yourself and then run when you get the opportunity. Unlike boxing and other fight techniques the goal of Krav Maga is to defend and run. I like this because thats exactly what I would actually do!

After my class I told Brett I would show him what I learned. Unfortunately for Brett I wasnt so good at my fake groin kicks. Poor kid should wear a cup next time we practice. BUT I did take him down. Day 1 and I'm already kicking ass... eerr groin.

Crap! I missed my stop!

2008-10-02T11:00:00.003-04:00

So I am blogging at my new digs today (sshhh dont tell my boss)!

The new job is going well. I'm getting into the swing of things and attempting to commute to work. Today i thought i'd take the bus. Well I didnt know which bus to transfer to or when that would come. So I walked. I was sweating and freaking out that I was going to be late on my second day. I'm a retard. Last night I missed my stop on the T so I made Brett pick me up. Also a retarded move.

Maybe tonight I can figure out how to get home. Its really not that difficult I just want to find an easier route... but that might not be possible.

Three ways I can get to work:

1. take the orange line and tranfer to the red line and then walk 10 mins
2. take the bus to Downtown and then transfer to another bus that might drop me off somewhere closer to work. Then i walk.
3. walk to the water taxi in the Charlestown Navy Yard and take it to Long Warf. Then walk the 15 mins to my office.

Any way you slice it I need to tranfer and walk. gggrrr

I am CLOSER to work now (only 1 1/4 mile) but it takes longer to get her b/c there is no direct route. If I wasnt lazy and the weather was nicer in this stupid town I would just walk to work every day.

New Billie Jean

2008-09-29T11:25:00.001-04:00

look at my cute puppy.

Isn't she so cute.

I heart Jordan

2008-09-29T10:58:00.002-04:00

The New Kids on the Block concert on Friday was amazing. My friend got us tickets and I thought it would be a blast. I did not think about how amazing it would be. It is literally tied as my #1 concert ever with Billy Joel and Elton John dueling pianos!

The crowd was insane. Everyone was screaming - as the video clearly shows. They played all of their great songs and then at the end when Paul Pierce came out with the trophy (that's him in the video) it was ridiculous. I was screaming like a little girl.

Oh and Jordan is so hot. I could stare at that boy wearing all white with his shirt hanging off of him ALL DAY! I might have to download every single New Kids album today on iTunes so I can listen to them!

Almost Over

2008-09-29T10:36:00.002-04:00

Today is my second to last day at my job. I'm happy and sad and a little freaked out. It was a HUGE decision to leave my current agency but I'm happy I did. I was totally comfortable here and I have some amazing friends but it was the right decision to leave. The opportunity I will have at The New Agency is going to be amazing and I cant wait to dive in.

Good thing I will ACTUALLY dive right in. My third day at The New Agency I am presenting a media plan to the clients. They arent new clients b/c I have worked with them before but still... kinda crazy!

Tonight is my going away party. This is my second one at The Agency. When I moved to Cleveland in 2006 I got a little party (it was really a Yahoo party that we crashed and made it a two person going away party) and that one ended up at the strip club and then Chinatown for 2am food! Ummm then my parents met me in Chinatown at 2:30am and we all drove (I slept) out to Cleveland. It was a blast.

My boss just informed me that after his going away party here a couple of years ago (yes - a lot of people leave and then come back) he was too hungover to come into work the next day so he had to make up his last day! Hysterical!

Anyways - its a sad day. My office is cleaned up and everything is in boxes. I have made a lot of amazing friendships and a great network of truly smart professional people.

I have to admit. Had it not been for my Bartender Dad giving me the connection to this job I would not be where I am today. Thanks Dad!

New Book

2008-09-24T18:38:00.003-04:00

I have read a bunch of great books this summer but now I need a new one. Any suggestions?

I have read the following recently:

Water for Elephants - loved it
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil - really liked it
Lovely Bones - liked it
My Sisters Keeper - liked it but it was a little much
Magical Thinking - liked it. Liked Dry much better

I think there are more. We had a book club at work so there were random books thrown in there that were chick-lit.

Help! I might have a bit longer commute so i need a new book.

My Friend Erick

2008-09-22T09:05:00.003-04:00

Although I don't want to go to the reunion there are parts of my brain that would love to be there to see the show. I still live in Boston so I still see a lot of people. I would love to walk around that place and flaunt my hot husband and tell them about our fun life and cute bulldog. I'd love to tell them that I have a great job and I own a condo in Boston.

Then there is a part of me that knows when they do that moment of silence again I wont be able to handle it. Heather and I were friends but we weren't that close. She was Nancie's friend so we hung out together. I went to the funeral to pay my respects and support my friends. It was heart wrenching and awful.

A couple years later one of my good friends became very sick. He watched his mother die at her bedside and told himself he would never want to have his family and friends endure that kind of pain so he never told us he was sick. When I finally found out he still wouldn't let us come and see him. I was so upset. I wasn't sure I knew how to say goodbye without actually saying it. So I decided to write him a letter. In my letter I told him how much I loved him and how much he cared for me and my family. His laugh and smile were amazing and there wasn't a person who he wouldn't do anything for. I told him all of this. I mailed it and it got there a couple days before he died. I like to think that he read it but I'm not sure. At least his grandparents knew what a wonderful man he was if they didn't know it already.

I still cant think about Erick without getting upset. Death's like his make me really upset and get angry at God for taking them away. I never understand his plan when it comes to good people who die so young.

I'm sure dealing with death will get easier but I'm not good at it. I'm not sure anyone is. Erick was my friend and he is still missed. I'm not sure I could stand around there and talk about him without breaking down. That's reason #2 why this reunion is too close to so many memories that I don't want to think about in public.

10 years

2008-09-22T08:51:00.002-04:00

So my 10 year HS reunion is coming up. I'm not going. I know, I know - I 'm such a rebel! But there is a good reason.

I went to the 5 year reunion, which is stupid b/c everyone is still in school or just out and nothing has changed except some people are fat. I went with my friend Nancie. Nancie and I have been friends since babies. Our mothers were best friends when they were young so Nancie was my first friend. She is 6 months older than me but we were both in the same grade. Nancie moved to Andover in high school but wasn't in my circle of friends. She smoked in the bathroom - she was a tough girl. Because she was my friend that meant that I was IN with the bad kids. They weren't really that bad - they just smoked and drank and looked a little tougher than the rest of us. Nancie and I remained friends and recently she got married to her boyfriend from HS.

5 years ago we went to the reunion together. I had my friends there but Nancie's friends werent there so we hung out. We also met up with our friend Sara and if there is one amazing thing that came out of that night - its that Sara and I are still good friends. We sort of "met again" that night and I'm so happy we did. That was really the ONLY good thing to happen that night.

Long story short there was a short moment of silence for one of our friends that died. Heather had a horrible death and possibly a horrible end of her life. Her bones were found in the woods several months after she had gone missing. No one was ever convicted of her death although most of us believe it was by the hands of her piece of shit boyfriend.

During this moment of silence some bitch from HS started laughing. Nancie and I were very upset so we decided to go over and see why she did this. She didnt apologize and attempted to dismiss us like she was still the fucking prom queen. I was never someone in HS to really care much about others and I was perfectly content in who I was back then. So I let her have it. I pretty much told her that she would soon realize that her life will never get as good as it was in those halls of high school because she was a dumb bitch.

Needless to say the prom queen regretted what she said and started balling. She claimed she was "afraid of Nancie" and that's when her friends realized she was a piece of shit and was just trying to be a drama queen. They all came over to say they were sorry for her behavior and actions that night.

That's when Nancie, Sara and I left the reunion and said we wouldn't come back until people grow up.

Dont let Abigail in and Dont let Susan Out!

2008-09-16T09:22:00.003-04:00

Last week Brett's parents came in for a few days to visit. We had a great time. For one day we went down to Hyannis Ma and stayed in a cute inn. We knew this place would be a bit odd since on the website the owner talked about his "30 cats". At first we didnt think this would be a great place so we called around. No one else would take dogs for the night. So we decided that at least we'd have some stories about our one night stay in the Cat Inn and decided to book.

We drove down and kept asking Billie Jean if she was excited to eat some cats. We got there and she lunged at a couple of them and then almost got an eyeball scratched out. The rooms looked interesting but the grounds were really nice with a really nice back porch and yard. We left the inn and went off to see the sights in Hyannis. It was a beautiful day and we walked around with the dog all day. She even went on a boat cruise with us and about 100 old people.

When we got back from dinner we all sat out on the back porch and had some wine. We kept noticing all of the signs on the doors all day. One sign said "Dont let Abigail in" which we knew was a cat and then there was another sign that said "Dont let Susan out". We didnt think Susan was another cat because they were all named with the letter A (yes - all 31 of them)! Just as we are about to go to bed I see this binder of clippings that has stories of Susan on the cover. I flip to that section to find out that Susan is a 7 year old girl that died in the 1800's in this very house. She has shown herself to the inn keeper once in 1988 and to a couple other people since then. Now I was ok with the cats but I was not ok with small haunted children. I couldnt be the only one that didnt sleep so I shared this with Brett, Mich and Dick. Needless to say Billie Jean didnt sleep at all that night and Brett and I werent lucky either.

I was glad that we only stayed one night. It was a fun experience but I like my ghosts on TV where JLoHew can see and talk to them and I dont have to calm down my dog.

In case this is your thing please check out the Inn. It was really beautiful and made for some interesting stories. The one thing you wont find on the website is any information about this being a haunted in... hhmmmmm

Changes!

2008-09-16T08:21:00.003-04:00

Hey everyone - lots of stuff has been happening lately. We have had a lot of visitors and a nice vacation (post to come later) and I recently accepted a new job. I'm really excited for the new opportunity but I will really miss my current job. It wasn't an easy decision but I think its for the best and I'll be really happy. Now I just have to tell my co-workers and do it fast so it isn't a gossipy thing (which it always ends up being since you cant tell everyone at once).

More to come...

Gustav, Hanna and Ike

2008-09-05T09:17:00.002-04:00

Since I live in the Northeast I don't have much experience with Hurricanes. Now that I have some friends in the Coast Guard we know several people down in NOLA and the South East US. Our Friends Anna and Bull live down in NOLA and had to evacuate because of Gustav. I must admit that it takes a strong woman to pack up her cat and two dogs and drive 13 hours to Atlanta by herself. Her husband had to evacuate but stay close to do his job after the storm was over.

I think I've been through quite a bit but every day I see these women that are stronger and stronger than myself.

I pray every day for Anna and Bull down in NOLA and all of the people that have been effected by these hurricanes in The Bahamas and up the east coast of the US. Hopefully Ike decides to give up very soon. Be safe everyone!

Billie & Me

2008-08-19T14:15:00.006-04:00

I am thinking I need to start documenting my life with Billie Jean. After reading Marley and Me, I am thinking that my dog is just as awful. She's so cute and cuddly and everyone loves her but she has one problem. One big problem: she eats EVERYTHING.

Here is a fun list of the items the dog has destroyed or chewed:

1. three bras (Victoria's secret at $40+ a pop)
2. All of her toys
3. Brett's winter boots
4. My winter clogs
5. Brett's running shoes
6. Three pairs of flip flops
7. My favorite pair of strappy black heels
8. the arm of my moms small couch
9. my couch in the office - all cushions
10. numerous buttons on pants and shirts
11. the corner of the bookshelf
12. a small area of the windowsill in the office
13. a small corner of the wall
14. 3+ small rugs including one that Brett brought back from Bahrain
15. the entire box spring covering
16. the corners of the entire bedroom 8x10 rug
17. several laundry baskets
18. every single corner of our coffee table including all legs and the table top - its not square anymore
19. all of my throw pillows
20. the buttons off my duvet cover
21. my cell phone (it was just chewed so I walk around every day with teeth marks in my cell phone)
22. one of her harnesses (now she has a collar)
23. Danielle's headphones
24. more pens than I can count - once she was blue for about a week from a pen

and the kickers this past week were the destruction of two items from our friends that were staying with us.

Billie was left alone for an hour while Casey, Christie and Brett ran a couple of miles around town. They came back to see Billie eating Casey's wallet. She ate a 2 inch hole in his leather wallet and a corner off of his drivers license. As if it doesnt get worse than that Billie was left for 10 minutes the other day and destroyed Christie's running shoes. The wallet made us laugh but the running shoes made us buy some lobster dinners for our guests.

Its to the point that Brett and I need to get serious about this problem. My dog is out of control with the chewing and its impacting our lives. Brett just thinks she is hysterical and does not discipline the dog at all. We need to have Cesar come by and tell Brett that he is the problem and to train the dog! I cant do it all on my own - I reprimand her and he laughs. I cage her for being bad and he mocks me and then takes her out. She's so funny and very cute but the chewing is getting to the point of no return. She is a year and a half old - teenage years. She is going to get into shape or she's being caged every single time we leave the house.

What do you guys think? What can we do? Any trainers you can suggest?

p.s. I am SURE there are more items she has chewed so this list will continue to be added to

Its Personal

2008-08-07T14:58:00.004-04:00

On Monday night I went to a class. I came home to take the dog out and fed her and we played. I left for one hour. I came home to find the dog had opened my drawer (which was left open a crack) and stuffed her nose in there and picked out not one, not two but THREE of my bras. She then carried them to separate rooms and licked them. I came home to three wet bras all over the house as a little dog wiggled and showed me her belly saying "don't kill me mama!"

She sought out MY stuff and then made sure I knew she could have eaten them just as a warning. "Don't leave again bitch or these bras might be gonners!"

She Swims!

2008-08-02T13:33:00.003-04:00

Take a look at the cutest video ever!

Bulldogs do not typically swim because they are heavier and have short legs and short noses. You can tell she isnt exactly enjoying it but we did!

I just love love love hanging out with my dog. She makes me so happy. She is so cuddly and wonderful and just loves her mama. I'm at home today - enjoying time with my puppy.

Let me clarify

2008-07-31T10:32:00.004-04:00

In my post here I said that I was depressed living in Ohio. I wanted to clarify to everyone the reasons why it was really bad. It was my job. This is no secret. My office offered me the same position to work from home as a contract employee while I was gone for 7 months. No one had ever done this before so the resources weren't there. The communication wasn't there. My support was non-existent. It was awful. I worked 7 days a week and sometimes until 2 or 3am. My office phone was on the same line as my home phone. If I didn't listen to the ringer type I could be picking up the phone at 11pm from my clients. I could also hear my clients in Europe calling me at 5am non stop so I'd just wake up and talk to them so I didn't have to call back later. It was the perfect storm.

Even a year later when speaking with my current bosses I just don't think anyone had any idea how bad it was. It was easy to forget about me. Obviously if I'm still writing about it a year later I am still a little bitter. Its a fresh wound since I just had my review. It just wont die. I am still being judged for that year I spent in Ohio and my emotions when I returned.

The city of Cleveland and the state of Ohio is not to blame. I loved my apartment and I loved my new family that we met out there. I loved spending thanksgiving and Christmas with them. I loved being around my little cousins. I could have had a little more action though. Some fun nights at the bar or some good friends to have dinner with. Mostly I stayed at home and cooked and watched TV. Ohio didn't really have the options I needed for nightlife. I don't drive and drink so since Ohio meant driving everywhere... that meant I didn't drink. I ended up preferring to split a bottle of Two Buck Chuck at home with Brett than at a bar.

Soo... end of the story goes. I never felt like I didn't get the support I needed from my friends or family. I was saved by Sara on a regular basis on my trips to Chicago. I spoke often with my mom and family back in Boston. I also spent a lot of time with Mom2Amara although I should have just camped out at their house. That would have made things much better. Or daycare at Jaci's place for Amara! I also think a dog would have been better. Billie Jean would have been the most wonderful thing while I was in Ohio. I just didn't know that we could handle it when Brett was in OCS - that part was right. It wasn't the right time for a dog.

That's it. Thank you all. I love you all. You supported me when I didnt have support. Now that I need it again you all are here for me now. You have no idea how much that means to me. Love you!

He Saves Lives n Shit

2008-07-21T12:30:00.005-04:00

So a couple of years ago I was living with Brett in a tiny apartment. It was the summer and he was at work and I blew a fuse while trying to blow dry my hair and use the AC at the same time. I had NO CLUE where the fuse box was and had to call Brett at work. I knew he did Search and Rescue (SAR) for the Coast Guard but I hadn't yet heard of anything he worked on. I called and called and finally he picked up. I told him the situation and he told me where the fuse box was. Then he told me when the lights come back on to switch on the TV. He then hung up. I turned on the TV to see a huge SAR case that Brett was working. There were casualties and it was big. I felt very very little. Since then I have learned my lesson. My husband saves lives. He makes management calls with people's lives at stake. I buy media.

Brett now does enforcement and response for the GC. Here are some pretty cool pictures of a vertical delivery they did from a Helo to an international shipping carrier. Pretty cool huh?

Its the Boston Police

2008-07-16T14:32:00.002-04:00

On Sunday my door bell rang around 10pm. The Boston Police were waiting outside for me to check out my car. Apparently there was a bunch of kids in it a couple minutes before the Police were called.

Apparently my car was unlocked (Damn key chain clicker!) and some kids (they were probably only like 8 years old!) decided to open it up and take a look. I'm not sure if they were just looking for stuff to steal or if they wanted to actually steal the car.

Thankfully I had nothing in my car for them to take. Some 8 year old might have given his girlfriend my old sunglasses - not sure where those things are!

THEN today I walk over to my car and there was a note on it. Someone HIT my car. All in one week - almost stolen and hit! I couldn't tell if there was any damage - pretty sure this isn't the first time my car has been hit in the city. Just a couple more bumps and scratches. If I drive it this weekend and the bumper falls off I'll be giving "Allison" a call.

So with all this bad stuff that's been happening lately something good had to happen. I got some news today that brightened things up so hopefully things will turn around for me. We also have friends from CA coming to visit soon so that's always fun. I'm also back on WW and I lost a pound last week. I still have like 20 more to go but whatever... at least I'm back on the diet. Oh and I still hate my new haircut. HATE it.

dreaming of spicy tuna

2008-07-10T16:09:00.003-04:00

So last night and the night before I caught myself dreaming of spicy tuna hand rolls. Is there a sushi addicts group I should join? I have problems.

Perhaps its the diet. Sushi is the only thing I feel (and by the way - not accurate) that I can eat like a wild woman. Ive had 2 meals of sushi in 2 days and I want more. Damn you weight watchers! Damn you love roll below my belly button! Damn you thunder thighs! I want my spicy tuna hand rolls and I'm going to EAT them!

I relate my retardedness to dogs. You put a dog on a diet and it wants to like the paper bag that the food came in. That's me. I'm ready to buy that shit that you spray on veggies to make it taste like chocolate! This is what I get for being in a funk. Depression = food addiction.

lost that lovin' feeling

2008-07-02T08:59:00.002-04:00

Something has gotten me down recently. I can pin point the exact moment that my balloon popped but its been getting bigger and bigger lately so it was bound to happen. I'm in a rut. At home, at work, in life. I never thought I could be depressed but then it happened to be in December of 2006. I was in Ohio and so lonely and alone and work was awful. I cried for days and weeks. I ruined Christmas by crying non stop. It didnt help thinking about the fact that I was going to not see my husband for 4 months. It was pretty much just awful.

I don't feel like that but is still not fun. My haircut is making it worse. The more people tell me they like it the more i feel like shit. I despise my hair. I wake up and don't FEEL like myself and then I look in the mirror and I don't LOOK like myself and I'm like that for the rest of the day.

Someone help. What can I do to get out of this rut? I need a hobby or something...

Its Hot

2008-06-22T13:41:00.004-04:00

In Boston we dont have spring. It goes from Winter to Summer sometime in late May or June. Billie Jean likes the summer because she goes outside more often but she also gets HOT! Here is a pic of Billie in front of the AC in our living room.

This is where she sits all day when its hot. Isnt she so cute???

I also got a new haircut. Its short.

throwin' F Bombs

2008-06-12T21:14:00.004-04:00

So as I blogged about yesterday I am having a bad week. I was frauded by someone I thought I could trust. Today I saw that person and FLIPPED OUT. I'm not really one to handle a bad situation without throwing some F-bombs. I was speaking to the person and he was not giving me the info I needed and was not budging on our requests of him. So I lost it at the very end. I said some shit and ran upstairs.

I called my parents. I told them I didn't feel comfortable being home alone with this person just downstairs. My dad came to save the day and be my enforcer if needed. He might be a 58 year old man with a new beer gut but a couple of years ago he was one crazy Vietnam vet. I felt safe. My dad has protected me in the past but this felt different. I had to smile after he left and when he called I was on the other line. I didn't pick up right away so when I called him back he was worried. He said he was glad he didn't have to drive back to the city. I just smiled. I have a great relationship with my father and he would do anything for me but this time - this time I wasn't the one overreacting and being silly. This time I was right and my dad agreed and was there to protect me.

I don't know how it happened but I have some wonderful men in my life.

Bad People

2008-06-11T10:57:00.002-04:00

I have made my way through life standing up for myself. At Dairy Queen as a kid if some adult cut me in line I made sure I told him what was up. I am short so I always make myself known so i dont get screwed over.

When I worked at my dad's bar there were all sorts of people who would do or say things just to get a rise out of my dad. Well my dad knew better - they were only going to get a rise out of me. One day this kid decided that he'd grab my ass but said he was trying to get my beer opener out of my back pocket. I quickly grabbed his arm and in some sort of fluke martial arts move I pinned him to the bar. After that my dad always said that "Jaci could take care of herself" or "Im not the one that you should be afraid of". At the office I'm still the one to be afraid of. I'll stand up for my self, my people and my clients.

Thats why what happened this past week is still just so crazy. I had someone that I thought I could trust essentially steal thousands of dollars from me. I'm not going to go into specifics but its bad.

I didnt think I could be manipulated and I didnt think that someone could rip me off like that. I guess even though I am pretty self aware of the world I just didnt think that people were THAT bad. But they are... people are awful.

This whole situation will most likely change me for life. It will hopefully make me smarter but will also make me trust less or sometimes not at all. I just keep going over the situation in my head. Over and over again. What did I do wrong? What could I have done? Does my husband trust me anymore to handle things? Do I trust myself to handle things? How did I let someone manipulate me like that? How did I let this happen?

Its a long way from cutting a child in line at Dairy Queen but bad people are still out there. This whole thing has just made me that much more aware of whats going on.

Playoff Quotes

2008-06-10T22:51:00.005-04:00

" Why doesnt Doc play [Eddie] House more often? What did Cassell tell him that his alien buddies would come down and kill him [if he didnt play]?" - Brett

"I need a drink for the 4th quarter. Hey Brett (last name) its the 4th Quarter!" - Brett (who has been to TOOO many Celtics home games)

"Pierce is playing like Billie's butt when it stinks real bad" - Brett

It was my Twin!

2008-06-10T16:05:00.002-04:00

So this is a pretty crazy article. The Sun is reporting that there was a Chinese baby born with a penis on his back. He was once a twin but the other twin was absorbed into him and the penis is all that is left of the other twin. Apparently its common. I know this is awful but it makes me think of that hysterical part of My Big Fat Greek Wedding where she is telling the inlaws about the "bubopsi" she had to have and found out that the bump was actually a tooth, hair and spine of her twin! "It was my twin!".

Hopefully this poor kid can live a normal life.

Favorite Chants of Game 1

2008-06-08T21:44:00.003-04:00

COL - OR - ADO
COL - OR - ADO
COL - OR - ADO
aka the place where Kobe didn't know that no means no

Speaking of... Apparently there was also a lovely

NO- MEANS - NO
chant

I have pictures to post of game one soon. I just need to get some new batteries in the camera to download them!

I heart Target

2008-06-08T21:37:00.002-04:00

I dont think i want to buy clothes anywhere else. Why do I love target so much? Every time I walk in there I leave with $100 less dollars in my checking account - ppsssttt dont tell brett.

I do need some tank tops - i think there is another trip to target in my future.

Recently I bought a long jacket, dress, and tons of cute shirts there. Who knew?

I'm going to do a closet purge very soon. I started today and I need to finish it up this upcoming week. I cant put away any of my winter clothes b/c i cant even get to my space bags under piles of clothes. I have a huge walk in closet that I dont even use anymore because its filled with so much crap. Time to throw stuff away!!!!

Brett has some gross stuff too. Time to get rid of the Spring Break 01 t-shirts!!!!

Airports & Flying

2008-05-21T10:30:00.002-04:00

So there are people who travel WAY more than me but I still travel quite a bit. In 2007 I did a 4+ month stint going back and forth from Boston to San Francisco every week. I had to sit in the middle seat on red-eye flights for 6 hours. I also once missed a connection in Chicago and somewhere in those airports got the flu. I had to fly into Providence and take a 2 hour car service back home for $400 almost throwing up the entire time. I've also almost missed international flights for spending too much time in the bar and had to run almost 100 gates in Heathrow Airport.

I also had to sleep in the Dallas Airport after missing our connection back to Boston from LA because of the 2004 fires and the delays in LA because of the raging fires and winds.

Recently I had to sit next to a man who was falling asleep on me and yesterday I sat next to a lady that smelled like moth balls.

I've lost luggage. I've even forgot what my luggage looked like and thought that I lost my luggage. As a kid I flew by myself at the age of 12 down to visit my relatives in Florida. I fell asleep on the plane and woke up thinking everyone was killed (aka asleep) and went screaming up and down the aisle.

You'd think I would hate traveling. You just have to take the good with the bad. Bring a good book and your charged up iPod and you are good to go.

Hey - at least I'm not this guy.

My Furry Baby

2008-05-12T10:26:00.006-04:00

Billie Jean is now a little over a year old. She's still insane. She still eats my stuff. She's still plopping on the ground and flipping over for belly rubs from complete strangers. She's still my little furry baby! Here are some good pics from this past winter and one from more recently.

Billie loves playing in the snow!

Stuck in the snow! We had a couple feet of snow and considering she's only a foot tall (maybe shorter than that) she had some trouble getting around. It was too damn cute!!

Attempting to free herself from the snow! Probably running to attack me too.

whoa... I can cook!

2008-05-12T10:15:00.002-04:00

Last night for Mothers Day I made a special dinner for my family. I looked it up on AllRecipes.com and scaled it to serve 7 people. I made a yummy seafood risotto and added in asparagus, tomatoes and shrimp to the original recipe with clams and clam juice. It was GREAT! I cook often but its rare for me to create a dinner for 7 people with a new recipe that I've never done. Also risotto is not exactly an easy process with the stirring for 40 minutes and everything! I also made shrimp cocktail in martini glasses for an appetizer.

A couple of weeks ago I made my own pasta sauce and turkey meatballs with whole wheat pasta. Yum!

I need to get back onto the CORE weight watchers plan so no more cupcakes and carrot cake and cookies and all that bad stuff I ate this past week!

Bring on the recipes! Time to lose some weight but eat well!

OMG they have ARRIVED!

2008-05-05T15:21:00.003-04:00

So back in April I created some awesome shoes at the Puma Mongolian BBQ. Today I got the notice that they have arrived!

I am SURE they are hideous but I dont care. I cant wait to wear those green and gold shoes with the FUURRRR tomorrow night at the Celtics game! Go Green!

WHERE IS BIBBY?? WHERE IS BIBBY??

2008-05-04T16:28:00.006-04:00

Just got back from Game 7. I was hoping to kick their sorry asses by 45 points. It was on 34 points but it sure felt good!

Some of my favorite chants of the night were...

WHERE IS BIBBY? WHERE IS BIBBY? WHERE IS BIBBY? WHERE IS BIBBY? WHERE IS BIBBY?

At the end there was a good...

Shanana Shanana Hey Hey Hey Good bye! Shanana Shanana Hey Hey Hey Good bye! Shanana Shanana Hey Hey Hey Good bye! Shanana Shanana Hey Hey Hey Good bye!

Go Celtics! Bring on Cleveland!

Petite Salope

2008-04-22T19:39:00.005-04:00

So I found this site a couple of months ago and I have been waiting for the new collection. Its something that I'm not sure I could ever buy - except maybe the shirts in french b/c I could get away with it.

I thought you'd get a laugh out of some of the "designs".

Beware of some language NSFW and some ppl might not like it.. like um... like my mom. Sorry mom.

I really like this shirt

What do you think? Check out the collection for yourself.

my first and only

2008-04-05T21:07:00.003-04:00

I work hard. I am pretty good with my money. I'm also not trendy. Every "trendy" think I buy I regret afterwards. I have bought several expensive things in my life and all of them took me several weeks to actually get the guts to go and buy. This bag was no exception. I thought about it for 3 weeks and went in and out of the store twice before I bought it. Finally I did... I bought my first and only expensive as hell handbag.

I stare at it all the time. Brett doesn't get it. I keep telling him his Celtics tickets are like 4 of these bad boys. Then he shuts up!

What Happened to March?

2008-04-05T20:49:00.002-04:00

So I apparently skipped a month with my blogging. Sorry! Ive been pretty busy lately so I apologize that I haven't been posting. I haven't even be reading any blogs. So whats been going on in my life since the end of February...

- work has been crazy. Lots of new clients and new projects. Lets hope we can keep up with the demand.

- Brett is going back to school. He started classes for the University of Phoenix Online and has been hogging the laptop. I usually post at home so I have to go into the other room to use the computer. too much work.

- my grandfather passed away. He was a great man. We miss him a lot.

- my family came back for the funeral. Thankfully they also all left again. It's nice to see ya - even better to see you go!

- I've been doing well on Weight Watchers. I switched to the Core Program and I've lost a total of 9.5 pounds. Good huh? I need to keep on it. I hate paying $156 for someone to weigh me but its my only real driver. I don't want Arlene to give me dirty looks!

- I bought my first expensive bag. I will have a separate post for this one. It deserves it!

- Billie Jean turned 1 year old on 4/1! Happy Birthday Billie Jean!

- I realized I cant drink like I used to. I puke now. God - I used to be able to drink like the Irish Woman I am - what happened? Now I puke. I hate puking. I should stop drinking so much but now I just want to know if I can drink my way out of this issue. I feel like im in the drinking marathon and I just need to get over "heartbreak hill" (Boston Marathon reference). What do we think? Should I just give up? Am I ever going to win this drinking marathon? or am I just too old?

- I made a huge dent in my debt. yay me! In the past two years I have canceled two credit cards and brought my debt from upwards of $9K down to $1,700!! How on earth did I ever have $9K in debt? My goal before I got married was to be debt free. I was able to get down to one credit card before the wedding (I had three) and Ive been working on the Amex ever since that damn wedding!

- I'm learning how to manage different people. Its a challenge for me to manage people with such different personalities from myself. I am trying not to make people cry. Honestly... its going to take a lot for me to be empathetic at work. I can train people but its when you train and train and train and they still don't get it. I cant handle it and I need to work on that. OR perhaps change my training style b/c apparently some people just cant understand. I'm working on it...

- I went on vacation to visit the In-Laws in Cali at the end of Feb. I ate tacos, fish tacos, burritos, nachos and more Mexican food on top of more Mexican food! Oh and some King Crab Legs! I think I would be down more than 9.5 pounds on WW if I didn't eat like a pig in Cali. We had a blast. I love going out there. We miss you guys!

I think thats it. I'm back. Sorry about March! -Jaci

sneaks with the furrrr

2008-04-05T20:39:00.003-04:00

On Tuesday night I went to an event with one of the sites I work with. We went to the Puma store on Newbury Street and made our own Puma's. The process is called Mongolian BBQ and it starts with one unisex shoe. You then can pick the outside, the "claw" aka the Swoosh, the toe, tongue, laces, logo, inside, and sole. It was a blast. Some people made some very plain shoes and some of us went a little wild. One of the fabrics was fur. I decided that I wanted to make some "sneaks with the furrrr". Check em out. You cant really see but the entire inside of the shoe is fur with a gold snakeskin claw and green accents.

"I'm gonna be SHITFACED"

2008-04-05T20:18:00.003-04:00

Last night Brett and I went to a wedding and sat at a table with my parents. My dad started the night out with 4 classes of wine. After about 1 hour the quote of the night was said... "Oh ya- well I'm gonna be shitfaced!"

Well... Dad did not disappoint. He was pretty shitfaced and all together probably drank 10 glasses of wine. He was hysterical. He kept going over to his "dates" of the night including the now infamous "LoLo" who apparently is a waitress at his bar. When Dad wasnt chatting up LoLo and her friends he was dancing up a storm with my mom on the dance floor. The two of them always make the best couple on the floor. The moves are unique and always seem to make me laugh my ass off.

The other best quote of the night was... "I think that we met so I could become friends with your dad. It was Karma." Brett pretty much thinks my father can do no wrong and makes my dad think he's the funniest person alive when Brett is around.

It was a great night and we all had a blast. Here's to you Nancie and Tallis! Thanks for having a wedding so Dad can get SHITFACED and Brett can follow him around like a puppy carrying the credit card for the bar! :)

This is why I love my job

2008-02-09T09:55:00.000-05:00

I feel everyday that I do some of the coolest stuff in advertising. TV is very cool but its becoming hard to really BE cool on TV. Only the beer and soda companies can really pull it off.

I saw a Kenneth Cole ad today and clicked on the banner (yes - i actually clicked! eek). It brought me to this site:

Watch the video and then watch some of the other videos of the people within the campaign. Most people dont realize that online advertising is just this - a way to extend the TV screen and sometimes in a BETTER way. Kenneth Cole did a very cool job here with this campaign called "We all Walk in Different Shoes". Brilliant! You never see clothing/shoe retailers doing things like this online with targeted banners.

Check it out! I think I made the best choice to go from TV to online advertising. Did you know online could be this cool?

http://www.kennethcole.com/default.asp?pw=advertising&adid=daily300x600&s=advertising

Weight Watchers

2008-02-06T10:14:00.000-05:00

Ok so two years ago I did WW for 12 weeks. I lost almost 20 pounds. I also weighed over 150 and I'm not even 5 feet tall. I went to Ohio after the WW program was over and I was able to work out with a trainer and on my own at least 4-5 days a week. I lost 8 inches around my waist and 1 1/2 inches on each leg and calf. My arms also looked amazing. Everything went downhill when I moved back to Boston/Andover a year ago. Anyways... I'm back on the WW train.

I have been doing it for 2 weeks but I havent really been focused even though I have lost 4 pounds. Starting today I am focused!!!! Hopefully in 10 weeks you guys will get a post from me that says I lost my 20 pound goal!

Let me know if you have any tips? Right now work is hard because of the many parties and a candy jar and free food lying around. Home is better but we eat out constantly so it’s not THAT much better. All I do is eat sushi and these Thai noodle soup bowls. I can’t live on that crap alone. Chocolate kills me. I NEEEEEEEDDDDDD chocolate - esp after the hellish days at The Agency lately.

I need to work out too. I know my friend Amy got into great shape doing Tae Bo and I have all her DVD's so I just need to stop being so lazy and just do it. Do you have any other tips?

Wish me luck!

Weekly Billie Jean

2008-02-03T19:05:00.001-05:00

Billie is watching the Super Bowl too.

She is watching for the commercials.

purple

2008-02-03T19:01:00.001-05:00

does Giselle put foundation over Tom Brady's purple lips?

I would...

would you go out like this?

2008-02-02T15:48:00.001-05:00

fat lip from playing with Billie Jean

Ya... we have a party to go to tonight. oops

See You Next...

2008-02-01T15:34:00.000-05:00

So my co-worker knows someone who works at lets say a Clothing Retailer. This Clothing Retailer has an Asian company work on their clothes and the tags for the clothes. The tags are coded with various elements: Size, Color, Garment Name

This Clothing Retailer has a lovely shirt in the color Currant. The code for Current is the first two letters of the color (CU) and the last two letters (NT).

There is a picture but we are not allowed to post b/c it would give away the Clothing Retailer.

Sooo... the story goes...

Customer Service Man in India: Miss Blah Blah I dont know what the problem is!

Marketing Person in USA: Ok tell me what everyone is saying to you.

Customer Service Man in India: All the women are screaming "See You Next Tuesday!" when they cant because I am in India and they are in New Jersey! Why are they saying that Miss Blah Blah??? Why?? why???

Marketing Person in USA: (Dying laughing) Well Mr. Blah Blah.... (and you can imagine the rest)

So Tired

2008-02-01T15:19:00.001-05:00

So today is Friday and I am so happy. I flew in from VA today where I had a client presentation at Colonial Williamburg. We were excited to get there and check it out but unfortunately January is somewhat of a dead month there. We had an interesting dinner and back home to watch LOST.

Its so nice to have some GOOD TV back on again! yay!

I didnt sleep well so its going to be an early night. Tomorrow we are off to Keene NH for a Back from Iraq Party for Gerry. Gerry is brett's kryptonite aka - he gets brett into some situations he just cant resist. Like... strip clubs and staying out so late you pass out somewhere else. Lets hope Superman can resist any of Gerry's powers this trip!

What is everyone doing for Super Bowl? I want to watch the commercials ummm i mean the Pats in the game. hehehe

Subtle Butt

2008-01-29T10:08:00.000-05:00

I seriously cant believe they sell something like this. Can you imagine being like "Mom, Dad... guess what I did... I created this great product! You were my inspiration!"

click on the image for a larger view

Weekly Billie Jean

2008-01-23T20:50:00.000-05:00

I am going to start a weekly post for Billie Jean pictures. Here she is wondering what Mom is doing on that white thing on her lap. Thats were I sit so damnit I am going to figure out why its more fun than me. I'm not impressed so far.

Fun with Pictures

2008-01-23T13:48:00.000-05:00

My new MacBook has a program called PhotoBooth. I brought the laptop to my parents house and had some fun. My mom, and my Youngest Skinniest Sister had some fun with me. Below are some of the results. We took over 40 pictures and couldnt hardly breathe afterwards. My dad was watching football and would randomly (really just during commercials) ask us what the hell we were doing out there. We never replied. We just kept laughing. hehe

my new toy

2008-01-19T23:05:00.000-05:00

I am typing this post on my new MacBook!! Brett and I bought it on Friday night and I set everything up while he was watching the Celtics. Its a little different from my work laptop thats about 15 pounds and shuts off for no reason. It also likes to freak out on me and the fan screams at me. Its pretty shitty. Its better than the POS that they gave me to work from home with. I was lucky - at least I got one. I got it the day before I left. There is a good quote on a co-workers white board. It says "All I know is that I am leaving tomorrow and Leonard is giving me a laptop." thats all I knew. hehe

I stole wireless from some random Ohio people that lived in my apartment complex for almost a year. Yup - I worked from home on borrowed wireless the entire time. At the new place I figured out that setting up wireless was about a 10 min job. Oh well. hehe

So I'm excited about our new toy. Watching sports will be much easier ie I dont actually have to watch them! heheh

Blue Paws

2008-01-15T10:05:00.000-05:00

Last night I came home and read the note from the dog walker. It went something like this.

"Billie Jean LOVES the snow! She had a great time outside. I did find her chewing on a pen (now on TV) which would explain the blue paws. -Anne"

I walked over to my dog who was in belly rub position and looked at her paws. They were so blue it looked like she dipped them in blue dye. She was all happy and hanging out just waiting for me to be home. She ate the pen like 7 hours before that so there was no chance that she'd ever have any clue why i was mad so I didn't get mad. I just rubbed her belly while she bit my arm and licked my hand.

Man Cold

2008-01-15T09:51:00.000-05:00

This is hysterical only because its so horribly true. The "man cold" is a real devastating condition that both my father and my husband have both had. My father - the man who was in Vietnam for several years is the biggest baby on the face of this earth when it comes to being sick. The moans can be heard down the street and all of us kids (even though we are grown) are required to do ANYTHING to help him. My mother could be on her death bed but my dad has a cold and she is his slave for 24 hours.

My husband is a bit better but not by much. The big Coast Guard guy becomes a little baby when sick. I am required to buy him weird liquid concoctions that "make him feel better" and feed him food. His legs cant possibly lift up to let me sit on the couch so I sit on the edge and lean back over his legs. Speaking of his legs I also need to rub them. It makes him feel better. Poor poor sick men.

makes me sick

2008-01-11T14:50:00.000-05:00

So I was doing research on Mommy Blogs for work. I got a list from a PR agency of influential mommy blogs and one of them was Dooce. This woman is hysterical and smart and she swears (come on Mommy's - you swear like a truck driver and I know it). The blogger on Dooce just got a new puppy. This is what made me sick.

On her site she has many forms of advertising. One of them is Google Adwords. I have nothing against Google but I saw something that made me uneasy. I saw multiple ads for Laughlin Kennels in Massachusetts. This is where we got Billie Jean. I couldn't get it out of my head that this place was a Puppy Mill when we bought her but she seemed normal and we ended up getting AKC papers on her so that calmed my nerves. This place has ads for Pugs and Whoodles (whatever that is) all over this blog. I hate the fact that we got her there and that they just pimp out these dogs all over the Internet. Poor puppies riding on the Puppy Bus from somewhere in the Midwest. I need to get over it but I just cant. I even looked up this kennel in the Better Business Bureau when we got her because I was so freaked out. It checked out with some random complaints and comments but nothing big. Then on Bulldog MeetUp everyone talks about this place and how its a Mill. Poor Billie Jean was brought to us by this gross place. At least she's a happy Human Dog.

What do you guys think? I think I just need to get over it. My desire to get a dog NOW was more important than getting one from a local breeder. Shame on me. I will never do it again.

Busy Lately

2008-01-11T13:47:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone. I haven't had anything to post lately. Here are a couple Mini Posts to keep you busy.

Writers Strike
When is this going to be over. If LOST starts and then ends after 3 episodes with some crazy-ass cliff hanger I am going to me maadddd! Thankfully there are some new episodes of some of my old favorites to keep me busy.

Dog not a Human
So Brett thinks the dog is a human. She sleeps in the bed with us. Not at the foot of the bed but with her head on a pillow and her ass under covers. She is now much happier because we are allowing her to roam the house instead of being locked up in the bedroom. We come home every single time to the dog sleeping on many blanket on the couch. She's Brett in dog form. Also she has a problem. She is one of those dogs that eats everything. Last night it was: 1. food in tin foil 2. rusty screw 3. leaves 4. orange found on street 5. gum stuck on sidewalk 6. something that looked like throw up. If we don't watch her constantly she will eat everything. She's like those people I see on TV that eat the cotton balls and medical instruments while they are in the hospital. Pretty sure that was on Grey's Anatomy once.

Chatty Cathy
At The Agency there are lets say "people" that wont shut up. They have NO CLUE what they are talking about yet that thought never enters into their mind. They will continue to speak about nothing. These "people" also cut you off and also refuse to acknowledge that you attempted to speak. I will do the open my mouth and try to speak thing and then "people" just look at someone else and continue talking. I want to kill myself. I think my new years resolution is to only say things of value. "People" should do the same. No one wants to hear you talk as much as you think they do. Trust me!

Expensive my butt!
So I have posted before that I buy expensive jeans. I just recently lost both of my pairs of expensive jeans. One of them busted on the outside seam of my Thunder Thigh and the other had two large rips on either side of my inside thigh. It happened within 2 weeks of each other. $250 to rip after a little over a year and a half of wearing them. So - after I noticed the inside rips (at the Celtics game in the bathroom with a whole second half left) I was so angry. I then looked at my two new pairs of Jeans (same brands) that I bought 2 months ago are already wearing thin on the inside thigh area. So I whipped out my jean patches and ironed those bitches on. Today I am sporting my new "diaper jeans" that make me feel like I just pooped in my pants. Yes my patches feel like a nice layer of depends on my legs. Awesome huh? $90 jeans = depends fun. I hate my Thunder Thighs. My mom and my grandmother owe me some jeans because of my genes!

Sports Gal

2007-12-28T14:34:00.000-05:00

Brett reads The Sports Guy on ESPN. He's a big fan. He read Bill Simmons book entirely on the toilet last year. Thank god we had two bathrooms!

Anwyays - his wife writes her own random columns when she does her "picks". They are always pretty funny and Brett and I think they could be our best friends. My "Woman Doctor" works in the same office with Bill Simmon's step mom. I felt like we were connected. I looked at pictures of their baby. It was weird.

Anyways - her article today was pretty funny.

Click here to read.

I pick EXACTLY the same way for the March Madness pools. Except I throw in things like "I hate that kid that looks like he doesn't wash his face so I'll root against his team even though they are good". Same thing for the Suns. I could never root for a Steve Nash team. Hopefully he doesn't come to Boston. Wash your hair and I'll pick your team. As we already learned I am not a football fan so my "picks" are just random. For example even though my friend Julie goes there I could never pick Stanford to win anything. They have a TREE for a mascot. How lame is that. I dont actually think that there could be anything worse than a friggin tree. I usually pick UConn because I was there when Rip Hamilton won the title. I was doing keg stands with frat boys. It was amazing! I also usually pick fun schools like Gonzaga. I just like the name. The cool part is that they are usually a good school to pick. If UCLA is good that year (which I will know since Brett is OBSESSED) I usually pick them to win it all unless its against UConn. Since I'm in Boston no one picks UCLA so I usually last pretty long in the pools. That's how I make my picks.

Fon-Don't & Stealing Jesus

2007-12-28T14:06:00.001-05:00

I AM going to hell for this but I just think its damn hysterical!

Headline: Six injured by exploding fondue

Three people were taken to hospital with serious burns after a gas-powered fondue set exploded.

WHAT?????? SERIOUSLY?? oh and gas powered? That's some SERIOUS fondue-ing right there. I will admit that the one time I got the urge to fondue I almost burned my tiny apartment down. Open flame + Jaci = disaster. Apparently these people shouldn't be around an open flame or any gas for that matter. I love this shit.

Ok so then I also stumbled on this story.

Teen charged in GPS-equipped Jesus

Who steals a baby Jesus? Also... who has a GPS-equipped Jesus? There are a million jokes here but I'll give the Big Guy a break on this one.

Back to Work

2007-12-28T13:57:00.000-05:00

I'm back to work this week. Yesterday and today have been uneventful. I think I got a total of 15 emails in two days. I started a couple of things on the To Do list but I'm not sure I will be able to finish them. I have no energy. I think the 20 people that were in the office today at 11am are no longer here. Did I miss the memo that everyone was leaving at noon? Damn!

I fixed up my digital picture frame I got from my mom for Christmas. Its pretty cool but the "slow" speed is still pretty fast. I would actually like to look at the pictures before they speed to another one. I'm already sick of the 100 or so pictures I put in there because I see them all about every 5 minutes. I'm going to have to cut it down to just scenery pics or something. Its making me nauseous.

I might roll out of here at like 3pm. T minus 60 minutes and counting.

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-25T08:38:00.000-05:00

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope you are having a great day. I am busy downloading new songs and videos to my iPod Touch that I got for Christmas. Apparently the limit we put on gifts for eachother was ignored because I got a gift double the cost of the limit. Brett claims that it was because he got Celtics Season tickets. Soo.. yay for me!

Merry Christmas. I am off to get ready to go to my parents. Brett is brining his Xbox and his new Guitar Hero game to play over there.

TV Sucks!

2007-12-18T09:53:00.000-05:00

So this writers strike is really starting to piss me off. After a day like mine all I want to do is get under 50 blankets and watch TV on my couch with my "lap dog" on top of me. Last night I was forced to watch CSI: Miami but had to turn it off before Horatio did his famous one-liner.

If this Writers Strike is going to force me to listen to Horatio Cane say things like "The verdict is in, but the Jury is out" and "drive by Miami Style" I might have to poke my eyes out. I also found this great video of all the good one liners clipped together - amazing!!!

Looks like I'll be watching old shows like Doogie Howser MD on Hulu.

Spouses Watch Out!

2007-12-12T15:27:00.000-05:00

so I'm posting a lot today. I might have to take a few days off.

A couple months back when Brett was still in OCS we hung out with some local Boston CG people. I met a bunch of great couples and one of the women asked me to join a Yahoo Coast Guard Spouse group. I did and I've regretted it ever since.

At first it was OK. I knew these women were nothing like me. They were gossipy and all of them were 24 with 2+ kids (typical right) with screen names like "honeypoohbearlover" and "hugsandkissesformyman". Shit like that makes me want to gag. Regardless - I had something in common with these women and I was going to stick it out.

Then the emails started rolling in with members asking for baby clothes and talking about their "DH's" whatever that stands for (in the context of their husband but what is the "D"?). It was annoying but like a bad car crash I wanted to sit and watch.

A week or so ago a woman emailed in saying this "Hello hope your all well and doing great! I'm going through a divorce. It was a long time coming and I am back with my family in RI. We only took the clothes on our back literally it was one of those get in the car and drive now situations."

I was shocked that this random women mass emailed the entire group to tell them about this situation and bash her husband. Ummm hello - its the f***ing Coast Guard! Its like 30,000 members - pretty sure all our husbands know this guy and now we are all thinking he beats the shit out of her or something.

I left the group today. Being the bitch I am, I sent an email to the group leader and told her that I didn't appreciate the mass email and that I hope that my husband isn't that woman's boss because that could be pretty bad. I also said that I didn't want to be a part of a group of women that gossip to "support" each other.

Am I being too extreme? I figure if this group is for the spouses to support each other and our husbands why on earth would someone want to put something like that in my head. I have met some wonderful CG wives but most of the women that I hear about are like this. They have husbands that DON'T talk to them so they have to talk to OTHER women to find info out. Try marrying a man that actually TALKS to you! If you don't know when your husband is coming home then there is something terribly wrong with your marriage. I'm probably going to be beat up after this post by an anonymous CG Spouse.

The Menorah is 10 feet tall

2007-12-12T12:52:00.000-05:00

My good friend and Maid of Honor just called me. She is taking classes at good old University of Hartford where we both got our undergrad degrees. The call I got was hysterical...

AC: "So I'm on campus and the menorah is double the size and there is no Christmas Tree in sight."
Me: "Take a picture. Classic UHa with the enormous Menorah. I NEED a picture!"
AC: "Its in the middle of the lawn. Probably 10 feet tall."
Me: laughing uncontrollably

So.. if you haven't figured it out already Amy and I were the minority here. Those of us who believed in Jesus were just a handful - we stuck together.

Update: 3:30pm!!! And here is the picture!!!

Christmas List

2007-12-12T10:25:00.000-05:00

What is everyone getting their loved ones for Christmas? I have a couple ideas for Brett but I have no idea what he'll actually want. Do people want the interesting gifts or the ones they actually need? For example Brett needs a new belt. Is he going to like getting it for Christmas?

I'm going to try for the 50/50 split on want and need for this Christmas.

Rep Love

2007-12-06T16:14:00.000-05:00

It was an awesome game on Monday night. We froze our asses off and there wasn't enough Baileys for the hot cocoa but it was a damn fun time!

Thank God I bought some Under Armour for under my jeans. They almost didn't fit since my ass and thighs are about to bust open most jeans I own! I was happy I over-packed and over-dressed for the event because I'm not sure I could have handled being much colder. This was only the second game that the Pats didn't out score the team by 20 pts.

Of course this was the FREEZING cold night that I had to stay all 4 Quarters to get a win out of the Pats! We stayed until the bitter end and rounded out a good 6 hours at the stadium. I got to hear the nice Baltimore accent in full force. It has something to do with the "O's" and now I search for it everywhere. I keep asking my asst planner about her "hoouuumme" read "home".

I went back to the hotel for some beers and late night pizza followed up by the hottest bath I have ever taken. The next morning was rough but we survived and had a blast.

This week has been the week of Rep Love. After I got back from Baltimore it was my birthday. I received a chocolate cake in the mail and then a bottle of Champagne sent to my dinner with Brett later that night. I was very pampered this week and it was AWESOME!

Thank you to everyone who wished me a good birthday. It was a great day!

Not A Football Fan

2007-12-03T10:32:00.000-05:00

Tonight I am flying to Baltimore to watch the Monday Night Football game - Pats vs Ravens. Some of you might know that I'm not exactly a football fan. I don't understand the game no matter how hard I try. I think the fact that it takes multiple trys to get to 1st down is retarded. I understand baseball and basketball but Football... for some reason I just don't get it.

So... you are now thinking that this bitch who doesn't like the game is now flying down to Baltimore to watch it is more retarded than her ideas about a 1st down. Yes - I know. I'm an idiot. I like watching live sports. I don't have to understand the game to stare at the hot, big, muscular guys in tight pants run around the field. I don't have to like the multiple times it takes to get to a 1st down to enjoy a sweaty Tom Brady on the sidelines.

My husband and most of my friends and co-workers are angered by my lack of love for the game of Football. I feel like they give me a little extra slack b/c I am a season ticket holder for the Celtics. Do you? Is it ok? Can I be a one-sport woman? Basketball is the only sport that I can watch on TV (Tommy Heinson is amazing) and live. Baseball is ok but since Brett is an angels fan its All Baseball All The Time and that can get annoying. There really isnt anything like going to a Sox game though... amazing.

Ok - back to Football...
Tonight should be a great time - my first boondoggle with work. My first taste of the fun trips that happen with spending huge amounts of ad dollars on websites. I have my Ski gear and Uggs ready to battle any weather that December can throw at me.

Thanksgiving - the real event

2007-11-26T12:52:00.003-05:00

So Thanksgiving this year was a pretty tame event. Considering the past couple of years have been pretty different it was nice to get back to the norm.

Last year I was in Ohio with Brett so we spent the day with the Wagner family. We had an amazing meal and great company. There was an odd green Jello dish that I did not touch. Apparently "the boys" love this dish... i decided to pass.

The year before that I got engaged. The night before I puked on myself and blamed Hillary Kiley for puking on me. My white lie would have been ok if I didnt then puke on myself again after I called my mother at 4am to pick me up. Its ok because Sara cried her eyes out to her ex-boyfriend from HS and made my pathetic story less in comparison. THEN I got engaged and my puking was God Damn hysterical!

This year it was just family and one invited bar customer. The "Bar Guy" didnt show so it was just a family event with "Bob's oldest daughter" aka Kerri showing up for dessert and wine. My cousin Amy didnt have the baby so that was good news - the basketball under her dress is set to fall out on 12/21 although we all think it will be sooner. Check her out!

Thanksgiving Part 1

2007-11-19T14:57:00.000-05:00

Saturday night I had a pre-thanksgiving day party with my friends from The Agency. We arrived fashionably late with dessert, dog and Brett's fresh military hair cut. Not many of the girls from work have met Brett so they were all in for some good staring.. umm talking. Brett got some good ego boosting comments - that he obviously remembered and tortured me with the next day. "So I'm hot Brett huh?" "Maureen says that I could have done better... whatcha think?"

We ate, we drank, we sang Celine Dion songs (don't ask) and we had a blast. The dog ran around all day trying to find stuff on the floor that was dropped. We will be sending a bill to the hosts for our dog's carpet cleaning services next week. There was a lively game of Kings in which CN blurted out "Touched by an Angel" as a Madonna song. I also apparently though that a rhyme for "His name was Bob" was "I needed to lob - it off". Apparently that didn't rhyme. I didn't understand why. hehe

Several hours into the night we walked to the bar where some other good quotes were said. One of them by the other host was "If this girl lost 60 pounds she would probably be cute" to the girl he was playing (read: flirting) a video game with. Brett loved my work friends. He always felt like he was missing out since he didn't know this new crew. He was part of the old tradition at The Agency but most of those people were long gone and make a crap load more money than I do at their jobs in SF, NY and at Yahoo!/MSN.

At the end of the night we came back to pick up the dog at the host's apartment. We had locked Billie Jean in the kitchen. Of course our dog was not OK with being left in the kitchen. She could NOT sleep on tile! So she slammed herself into the bedroom and passed out on the covered chair. We found her sleeping on her back like she was drunk. She might have been....

All in all a great night. Thanks to all! Esp to MB and The Meat for being great hosts!