Here's Hoping So

 

I found this quote on Pinterest earlier and I have to say I absolutely love it.  As a self-confessed book worm, Wilde seems to understand us readers who so often have their noses buried in books.  So logically speaking, if good old Oscar is correct in his assumptions I have quite a nice life coming my way. 

 

I'm hooked on travel books. Will I travel the world eating my way from beautiful place to beautiful place? 

 

I'm a bit of a sci-fi, Harry Potter-y, Tolkien-ish, Gaiman-esque geek. Will I find magic and the fantastic in the everyday? 

 

 I devour books about boarding houses in Edinburgh and royalty in the UK.  Will I finally make the jump I've been dreaming of and become an even bigger Anglophile than I already am?

 

The story of the Bard of Stratford inspires me with his ability to pen those amazing works in such a short period of time.  Will I land a job while living in England at the famed RSC teaching kids to love what I love about Shakespeare?

 

I hoard children's books from places all over.  Will I have family I'm hoping to to share this collection and love of reading with?

 

I can't pass up a "pink" book by writers like Mary Kay Andrews, or Jane Green.  Will I bump into the man of my dreams in the middle of the street and will I be just the girl he's looking for too?  Will we marry in a small ceremony in the park and honeymoon in Paris?

 

I collect plays from drama bookstores I've adored in NYC and dream about the perfect casting and staging of each show.  Will I get a chance to see these productions live with amazing actors in beautiful settings?

 

I browse cookbooks and can almost taste the food I'm seeing.  Will I become a superstar chef like my dad or a food writer/chef like Julia?

 

All I can say is here's hoping Oscar was correct.  This would be quite a life.

Ho-Hum

I seem to be writing a lot of these, I have nothing to talk about so I'm going to talk about how I have nothing to talk about posts lately.  I really need this to stop.  The whole point of this blog was to get a life and be adventurous but I just seem to be in a rut still...oh ugh!

Hoping that as the weather turns a bit warmer and we finally leave these dull gray days of winter, the excitement will pick up.  If not this is going to turn into one very dull blog, if it's not that already.

Stark "Raven" Mad

Well, as you can imagine we here in Maryland, have gone a bit Raven crazy these last few weeks.  It's been a very long time since we've earned a trip to the Super Bowl, and it seems that the team and fans alike are soaking it up while we have the chance.  I have to say I've been pretty proud of my team and my state in the midst of all this hoopla.  First off, there have been no riots or clashes within the celebrations, so hooray for using our brains!  And then, (and I'm not absolutely positive about this so don't hold me to it) whereas our guys suited up to travel to New Orleans, the 49ers wore sweats.  Not a huge deal but our guys certainly looked like snazzy gentlemen while the 9ers just looked like college kids (not that I'm biased or anything...)

Then the best part of all is the excitement that's spreading like wildfire through the city.  The send off yesterday was full of thousands of fans while the 9ers had quite a bit less.  I'm hopeful that this all carries over into a win for us.  If not, there are going to be some very grumpy fans in Baltimore next week, and I will most definitely be one of them!

All of this being said, I have to admit some of the hype is getting a bit ridiculous.  I read a headline earlier today detailing what Joe Flacco was eating on his way to New Orleans.  Gummy Bears in case you were curious, and Pineapple is his favorite, if you're rather stalker-y.  I love Joe as much as the next girl, but why do we care? 

Go Ravens!

Spatially Challenged

As a 30th birthday present to myself, I think I've finally decided to give myself the trip I've always wanted: London, Stratford-Upon-Avon, Hay-on-Wye and Edinburgh.  10 whole days to do the things I've been dying to do and see the places I've been dreaming about.  Since I've decided on October, I have 9 months to do the planning but since this is all very exciting, I've already started.  Here's the thing...I am apparently spatially challenged when it comes to these things...

After an hour last week, I had a list of everything I wanted to see, and a detailed map of where I needed to go and how I was going to arrive there.  I had train stations marked and in the case of Hay-on-Wye, connector buses since there are no train stations in the village.  I had it planned out to the hour, and everything I wanted to see worked into my timetable perfectly. 

Then I thought, "maybe I should actually look at the rail map and an actual map of Great Britain to see how much it would cost and if my calculations were correct."  This is where the trouble started.  For a country that's roughly the size of a few of our smaller states jammed together, towns and cities are VERY far from each other.  And it just so happens that the 4 places I want to see are EXTREMELY far from each other.  Now that shouldn't be problem because they have a fantastic rail system, right?!  Well they do but the map for the rail system I believe has been concocted by some sort of masochist who really likes his job.  Exhibit A: Stratford-Upon-Avon is no more than 2 inches from Hereford (the closest station to HoW) on the map but there is absolutely NO convenient line that will take you between these 2 cities.  I can't even figure out a loop in which I could change trains...What is wrong with me?!

Then there's the issue of in which order to visit all 4 places.  I pondered this one thought for a good 20 minutes straight with about 100 iterations until my head started to hurt and I gave up.  If I were smart, I'd pick 4 other relatively close knit places and go there but I'm picky and I want what I want.  So while I foresee quite a lot of research and headache in the coming months, I'm positive it will be for the best.

 I was one of those people who never wanted an itinerary, choosing rather to leave travel up to chance, but it seems that with this trip, I'll need to plan to the last second.  Do you think it's too late to hire a personal secretary to go with me?

Muy Bueno!

I am a sucker for all things Mexican food, so imagine how excited I was when  a new restaurant opened in Columbia MD last week: Xitomate.  They are still in their soft opening stage in that they're working out the kinks between the servers and the kitchen.  A complete menu wasn't even available yet, but you can most likely deduce my thoughts based on the title of this post: Delicious!  The chips and salsa were a little different than what I'm used to; thicker homemade chips and slightly sweet salsa, but I'm sure I could have eaten a whole basket by myself...if they would have come before my meal had come instead of after.  Like I said, still working out the kinks. 

For our meal, we had the Taquitos de Puerco, and a Carne Asada burrito which were both yummy.  The burrito was supposed to come without beans which it didn't and the pico de gallo left something to be desired but the mole that came with them was outstanding!  There was also a bit of a snafu when a poached egg for a soup that was ordered, couldn't be prepared because the kitchen was out of vinegar.  Not entirely sure what happened there but I'm hoping the chefs will eventually learn that vinegar is not really that important when poaching an egg...Anyway, since the servings were a bit smaller than usual restaurant portions (sort of tapas size, I think so you can order small bites to share with the table), we also had room for dessert.  The review I read noted the to die for churros so I knew exactly what we would be getting.  And they were admittedly, to die for.  I'm certain, I could have eaten many, many more plates of those little suckers.

Once they get the kinks worked out, I'm sure they're going to have a crowd pleaser on their hands.  Between the funky decor, the pleasant and helpful staff and the mouth-watering food, they'll most definitely do just fine.  I know I will be going back, if for nothing else than to gorge on churros...

Super cool wall art: You could say I'm a bit of a fan girl when it comes to Dia de los Muertos...

These gorgeous lights were everywhere

My teeny tiny taquitos (Sorry for the lack of churro pictures, I was much too busy gobbling them up...)

Purple Party

Tonight I attended my new company's annual Winter Gala at Ravens Stadium.  Along with some great company, delicious desserts and fantastic entertainment, you could take a tour of the stadium and actually get onto the field.  Since the anticipation for the Super Bowl is at a fever pitch, I think that's what most everyone enjoyed the most!  I didn't take many photos, but the 2 below were taken of me.  For the record I realize I'm a nerd...

I'm not sure how any player manages to catch a ball on this field in this weather (It was 15 degrees at the time).  I was so cold I'm not sure I could have caught a beach ball if one was tossed to me...

I'm fairly certain I don't look as intimidating as Ray Lewis does when he shows his moves but you can be the judge...

Friday Five

Well I've had quite a bit of time on my hands this week and what does one do with all that time?  If you're not a nerd like me you go out and party.  If you are in fact me, you read, read and read.

1. "Shakespeare and Martin Luther King Demonstrate Potential of DNA Storage":  I've read this article 3 times now and I still don't completely understand what they are saying.  I can't begin to pretend that  I'm well read in matters pertaining to DNA replication, but I must admit it's an awesome idea.

2. "John Harbaugh Pranks Family on Conference Call": I LOVE this family!  They are too cute with their J names and totally adoration for the game of football.  Any other family may have issues with such a big rivalry in their hands, but I'm not worried about these guys one bit.  It's safe to say that Jim will be perfectly fine when John's team beats his...

Happy Haggis-free Burns Night!

3. "The Poetry of Robert Burns": After all if I was going to celebrate Burns Night this evening, I really should see what he had to say.  Although, I beg to differ on the writing of Auld Lang Syne.  I had heard that while everyone believes he wrote this old favorite, it was actually written after he died...Though, don't quote me on that.

4. "Don't Forget to Sign up For World Book Night": I'm kind of in love with this idea.  I'm not entirely sure it's something I'd consider participating in mostly because I'm just a little leery of approaching strangers and handing them a book I like.  I know how I'd react if someone did that to me.  I'd be fairly skeptical that it was a trick of some kind.  But if others are participating, more power to them! 

5. "The Insider's Guide to Notting Hill": As  a future Londoner, who'll be living in this quite posh neighborhood, I'll most definitely need to know these things : )

Snow Day

Here's the deal.  Snow days were much more fun when I would get 2 hour delays or when schools would close altogether.  They were also much more enjoyable when I had the chance to "work" from home and could stay all cozy and warm in bed while I completed a little light browsing.  Now that I have a job (only my second week mind you, and we've received the first snow of the year!) that requires getting up and out of bed, digging my gosh darn car out, and crawling along with thousands of cars that don't actually know how to drive when flakes start falling, I'm feeling fairly glum. 

I've never been a fan of cold but I've always enjoyed snow.  It always looks so fresh and clean when it falls but I couldn't even focus on that this morning I was so grumpy.  It's convinced me more than ever that I need to move to the UK.  First of all, no car to worry about. Second of all, if the Tube or buses aren't running, there's a perfect excuse to stay home and enjoy the day in your PJs.  And last of all, and this may be the best part...if this week's papers are to be believed, the entire country shuts down when 4 or more flakes fall.  What a perfect way to run an empire.  Everybody gets a day off!

Click

Did you ever have one of those days where things just clicked?  A day where everything seemed to fall into place?  I think I've finally had one.  The job seems to be progressing...granted, the access situation is getting a bit irksome but it's working out.  The people I've met are amazing fun people to chat with.  And the very best part was after seeing the RSC's season announced this morning, attending a showing of Shakespeare in Stratford wasn't just a pipe dream.  By October of this year, I will have the time and the money to be able to take the kind of trip I've been longing for.  Even the itinerary seems to have worked out when I was preliminarily planning it this morning (like I said, access situation is a bit irksome...).

Because I'm me, I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop but things are looking up!

This...

I'm not even sure where I got this but it pretty much sums up my feelings right now.  I started my new job last week with high hopes but so far all I'm seeing are wedding rings.  What the heck?!  I'd like to say I need to stop being so picky but I really don't want to be not picky.  I'm going to find Prince Charming whether he likes it or not...It just may take a while.

Happy Birthday Dr. King

  "Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that."

***
Martin Luther King Jr.

Har-Bowl Bound Baby!

So proud of our guys!

10 X 10

1. Realized today, Edgar Allen Poe's birthday, that I've never ready ANY of his works.  How is this possible?

2. So looking forward to tomorrow's football game and so dreading it at the same time.  I want to think positive but it's gosh darn difficult when all the sports dudes are already writing us off.  Go Ravens!

3. Hoping that the man that fell at church this evening is back in his home resting comfortably after his eventful afternoon.

4. Wondering why it's been so difficult to find something; ANY thing to write about this week.  My brain is seriously on the fritz.

5. Entertained, amused and slightly skeptical of this website.   Some of the articles include some really good intel but others seem to have been pulled from every bad British stereotype ever recorded.

6. Fallen in love with multiple places I've only read about during my latest book binge this week.  I love that good writing can do that but I'm slightly worried about being that easily swayed.

7. Thinking about having a Burn's Night supper but annoyed that attendees are anti-anglophiles and that I won't be able to find a credible alternative to Haggis.

8. Fighting a headache which I hope is nothing more (such as that god awful Flu...)

9. Utterly and completely stumped by the Notre Dame Quarterback hoax.  And quite honestly I don't care enough to try to decipher it.

10. Nodding off...

Friday Catch-up

After thinking long and hard about what today's Friday Five could be, I seemed to have struck out. But then I remembered I had yet to upload my pictures from my trip to AZ.  I thought I took lots more but apparently not so much.  Most of the shots are from the Pima Air and Space Museum which was very cool!  And then of course there are  few shots of the desert. 

An "Uppy" shot of some paper airplanes

Me and the Momma

 Me and the Papa

Non-racist Cacti : )

(I realize I'm a nerd but I couldn't stop giggling each time I heard the word "cacti")

Not a Clue

Once again, I find it quite difficult to write about anything of importance that's happened or occurred to me in the last 24 hours.  There are still computer access issues which have caused me to sit at a desk and read for 8 straight hours.  That amounts to one full book in one day, which means in the last 48 hours I've read 2.5 books.  At this rate I may actually catch up to my queue, of course that will mean I will spend a fortune building my queue up again.  All this is well and good for a book worm like me but I'm starting to feel fairly useless.  Those around me don't seem to be bothered by my reading and are working to get me the access I need, but this is not why I changed jobs.  I could have at least been a bit useful at my old job this week.  

However, in spite of my uselessness, I'm loving the people I'm "sort of" working with and what we'll be (hopefully sooner rather than later) doing, and I can't wait to get started. If for nothing else, than having something, anything to write about.

Blah...

I literally have nothing to talk about this evening.  Because of computer access issues that are still being ironed out, I literally sat at my new desk today and finished the last 60 pages of "44 Scotland Street".  Then I began and ultimately completed "A Winter Dream".  Two books in 3 days - that has been the extent of my week so far.  I have high hopes that this job will be brilliant because the people I've met thus far have been fabulous but at the moment I would settle for any position that granted me computer access because if this keeps up I'm sure to run out of books...

Another Tale, Another City

A few years ago I got the chance to visit one of my other favorite cities, San Francisco.  The city itself was absolutely gorgeous and so full of fun things to do and eat.  While I was there, I did my usual thing when travelling to a new city, I hit the bookstores (shocking, I know).  I love finding bookstores in new places, because they tend to carry books specific to the region.  While browsing in San Fran, I consistently found Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City.  So I figured I'd give it a shot since it revolved around my (at the time) new favorite place.  After starting the first, in about a week and half I had read all 6 in the series and fell in love with the characters. The stories were (this is corny I know) dazzling and I wanted to be them and have the courage to do all the crazy things they did. Since then I've been looking for a series close to Tales to read that would excite me and hook me in as much as it had. 

It's taken about 8 years but I think I may have finally found it.  Alexander McCall Smith's 44 Scotland Street series, is, while I'm only on the first book, pretty close to perfect.  Seeing that I've since fallen in love with all things Great Britain, it's a version of Tales of the City on in Scotland, sounded right up my alley.  While it's a bit more genteel and a little less bawdy, you still get these 6 degrees of separation relationships that are so compelling.  I'm hoping that the next in the series will be as fabulous as the first as I'm already hooked on the tenants of the house with the red door on Scotland street, and look forward to their adventures.

Both series are set in a building full of colorful characters with a beautiful city as the backdrop. The relationships that form often begin out of pure proximity to each other but they become a second family as the stories wear on. I know that in real life, most people don't barge into each other's apartments/flats like they do in these tales, but in my head it really happens.  It seems a weird wish coming from someone who owns their own home, but one day I want to live this strange little contained way of life.  I think it's why I gravitate toward cities, specifically London.  The chance to finally live in an apartment and see if stuff like this actually happens is too delicious a thought to pass up.  In London I'd have no choice of course...unless I hit the lottery, a tiny little studio flat would be all that I could afford.    And maybe, just maybe, if I'm very, very lucky, my new BFF will nickname be Babycakes and our landlady/den mother will be a former He that drives a custard yellow Mercedes and I'll begin work on my own tale.

First Day

Today was  my first day at my brand new job.  I was just a little nervous this morning, but not as freaked out as I thought I'd be. There was no traffic on the way in, and when I got there everything was laid out perfectly.  I spent the rest of the day doing the normal things like paperwork, and new employee orientation and tours of the new building. 

So far the people are wonderful.  That's what I always worry about.  I've just left some fantastic people at my old job and I've unfortunately worked for some truly terrible people.  The one thing that has the power to make or break anything for me is whether or not the people are welcoming and kind.  Thankfully everyone I met today had a smile on their face and were super helpful and genuinely seemed happy to be working there.  I take this as a very good sign.  The unfortunate part, which may or may not change, depending on how lucky I get, is the size of my desk.  I left a fairly spacious 6'x6' cube which was totally my own for about a 10'x5' space shared by 4 people, of which I get around 3 feet.  We share phones. I have no drawer in my desk, no file cabinet and no room for even a pen cup.  That wonderful album I've been working on to show off on my desk?  Never gonna fit... 

Everything else seems pretty perfect though, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the space issue will work itself out, or I'm going to be just a bit grumpy.

Craftiness and

What could be better than a weekend full of a Ravens win, scrapbooking with friends and cooking and eating with family, with some fairly nifty finished products to boot?  An absolutely perfect weekend full of good times and relaxation and the perfect way to prepare for my first day of the new job in the morning.  Bring it on!

This album has been 6 years in the making.  Not that it's taken me 6 years to create it.  No, it's taken me 6 years to figure out what to do with it.  The darn thing still isn't filled, but at least it's started and since I start my new job tomorrow and I want it on my desk, it's a safe bet that I'll get a move on it soon.

Lasagna Cupcakes courtesy of an idea from the Food Network.  The picture isn't stunning at all but rest assured these babies were out of this world yummy!

So This Happened...

 

There's just not much else to say.  Nobody thought it could be done.  But our guys played the game of their lives in high elevation, below freezing temperatures and against one of the best QBs ever (if you listen to all the sports people) and came out on top. I don't think I've ever been more stressed during a football game or happier after one!  Let's just hope they saved some energy for next week.

 

Go Ravens!

Friday Five: Go Ravens Edition!

As you may or may not know the Ravens are in the playoffs again for the 5th time in as many years.  We here in MD are pretty excited about that fact.  Yes this game may be a little difficult going against everyone's favorite (except mine, of course) QB, Peyton Manning, but we're trying the whole positive thinking bit.  We actually do better when we're the underdogs.  If it's predicted we're going to win, we get a little cocky.  When we're the underdogs they seem to play a bit harder because they have something to prove.  We'll need all the help we can get so here's why you should love the Ravens too and root for them tomorrow.

1. Coach Harbaugh: You don't often hear about coaches being "nice guys" or "great friends" or having a "great sense of humor" or even being a player's "biggest support".  But these could all be used to describe John Harbaugh.  He's also an amazing coach whose father is an ex-coach and brother is the 49ers coach.  You can tell that his team and staff have the utmost respect for him, and in turn, we do too.  Here in Baltimore he's so adored, he's had an entire Bowl game named after him! (Not officially of course, but we did have the Harbaugh Bowl last year and it was awesome!)

2.  Purple Pride: How can you not love a team that doesn't have boring blue or red uniforms?  Those Ravens look awful snazzy in their Purple uniforms and even sharper when they wear their home black & purple uniforms.  Like Will Smith says in MIB, the difference  between our guys and your guys is, our guys make this look good.  Not to mention buying ladies attire to wear on purple Fridays is much easier; everything comes in purple!

3. Edgar Allen Poe: I know the names of most teams come from some sort of historical element of the city, but I happen to think ours is the cleverest (although, I'm slightly partial).  We could have gone with anything when naming our team, but we chose to commemorate Edgar Allen Poe, a former citizen of our fair city.  The name fits in with the bird theme we already had with the Orioles (which gave us the chance finally in 2012 when the O's were also doing well to whip out the slogan "The Bad Birds of B-more") and it's got sort of a dark and mysterious vibe going for it.  The only part I would argue is the ridiculous "Caw! Caw!" campaign they're pushing right now.  Hearing drunken idiots yelling Caw! to the top of their lungs, is not my idea of a good time.

4. Our players: Let's just rattle off a few of their names, shall we? Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, Joe Flacco, Anquan Boldin, Ray Rice, Matt Birk, Jacoby Jones, Haloti Ngata (pronounced like "Nata" contrary to what every non-Baltimorean sportscaster says), Torrey Smith.  As you can see, our roster is what you might call impressive.

5.  They deserve the Super Bowl: It's been 12 years since our guys were able to say they were SuperBowl champs.  In sports streaks, that's minuscule but it's about time.  They've gotten so close so many times, that they just need to make it happen.  Our guys have heart!  I couldn't be more excited to see how it goes down, because I honestly think they're gonna roll right over Denver! 

Go Ravens!

Changing the World

I have a simple goal.  I want to change the world.  I want to do something great that makes this world a better place.  After today's news that there was yet another school shooting, I think I know what I should focus on.  There's too much violence and fear and pain.  Kids shouldn't be exposed to this nonsense.  They should get to be kids.

I have the beginnings of ideas in my head.  I have no idea if the ideas make sense or even if they're possible, but I know I need to do SOMEthing.  I can't keep hearing these stories every week.  I had an almost perfect childhood with no fear of guns or violence.  I want to make that happen for other kids.  Now if I can just talk my friends into jumping off the crazy world changing cliff with me...

Nine @ Nine O'Clock

1. I'm freezing even though it's about 55 outside and about 72 inside my house.  I HATE winter!

2. I'm worried about some friends' jobs. 

3. I'm still smiling over this evening's The Middle.  Brick is utterly adorable.

4. I'm trying to decide if I'll be able to keep my eyes open long enough to finish my book so I can start the next one.

5. I'm fairly impressed by the length of my almost non-existent fingernails.  They've never been this long which admittedly is not very long at all.

6. I'm getting a bit peeved at these random sirens that are flying down the street outside. So loud and so sporadic.  Surely there aren't this many emergencies in this area this evening?

7. I'm proud of myself for "un-friending" someone on Facebook whose posts were only stressing me out.  I'm hoping he doesn't notice but I can't deal with the negativity and rabble-rousing anymore.

8. I'm starting to think about what to wear for my first week of work next.  A girl really must figure these things out.

9. I'm LOVING this blog.  I happen to know her personally.  She's awesome and her little boy is about the cutest thing ever. Can't wait to see where it goes, Sher!

Introducing My New BFF

 

We all know that the little things often make us the most excited.  Well, this right here is my little thing.  I found it on Pinterest (where else?) yesterday and have been dreaming about it ever since.  I decided to give it a try even though my Pinterest finds have not always yielded, shall I say, positive results.  This Corn and Green Chile pudding on the other hand was to die for! It was easy, not messy and delicious.  No mess, no fuss, those are the recipes I love.  And when they're this good, they're hard to resist. Yum!

 

PS - Please ignore the Christmas table cloth in the background...it's pathetic, I know.

Feeling a Little Guilty

Today was the first day of my last week at a job I have no real attachment to. (trying not to say hate because that's just a bit too strong)  The job is far from perfect.  I've worked a total of maybe 45% of the 4.5 years I've been there.  For almost the first year, I sat at a desk with no one around watching DVDs not knowing a soul. Then someone finally realized I worked there, got me a real desk. ("my" desk was a "hotel" for tele-commuters that randomly needed to come into the office)  While in this desk I was around people but still fairly useless.  Finally, I met people and branched out of my hole in the wall a bit and actually got a bit of work...for about 6 months, then work went down the drain and DVDs came out again.  All I can say is Thank God for YouTube!

But the people I met are fabulous.  They are funny and sweet and willing to help out whenever necessary and fun to talk to.  So leaving has left me feeling a bit guilty.  On one hand, I know this is a fantastic opportunity that I can't pass up that may lead to bigger and better things. But on the other hand, I worry that it'll be another 2 years until I meet super-cool people like those I work with now.  It's like the first day of school all over again.  And for someone as quiet as I am, that's just down-right hard.  But I've been working on staying positive about things, so I'm going to look on the bright side and try to focus on the excitement instead.  After all, even though it meant scary new things, I was always just a little too excited about the first day of school!

Ray-vens Nation

So happy that the Ravens were able to give Big Ray a win for his last home game at M&T Bank Stadium.  You could hear the electric atmosphere in the stadium coming through the TV.  The entire place was behind our team 100%.  I think it was made even more special by playing the Colts and our ex-Defensive Coordinator who has had a rough year as well battling Leukemia.  Even though this was a HUGE game and one team was going to be on the losing side, you could feel the family ties between the players and both coaches.  I would have loved to have been there to join in the fun.

 

Way to go Ray-vens!

Things I've Learned This Week

~It's a good thing I understand military time, because it seems it's used primarily in England.  I've seen it on telephones and in articles.  I just assumed this was a US military thing but I suppose not.

~An ASBO is a sort of disorderly conduct citation in England.  I'm not bright enough to remember what the acronym stands for but I can at least give you the basics (and since I don't plan to ever get one, the basics will be sufficient.)

~Ray Lewis is retiring which is just depressing and a half.  If you are a Ravens fan or just a fan of the NFL in general, you must know that big Ray (we use Big Ray to distinguish him from Little Ray Rice here in B-more) is one of the most influential players to ever play the game.  He's inspirational, a tough cookie and an all around awesome person and we in Baltimore are going to miss him terribly! But I also learned he'll be starting on ESPN as a commentator so at least we'll still get our Ray fix.

~All stupid stinking FICA (not even sure what this is) taxes will be going up ~3% this week.  What the heck?!  I know it has to be done but seriously, can't you just tax the rich dudes that actually have money to spare?

~It is supposedly possible to cut fabric with the Cricut.  This cannot be confirmed as I have not yet tried but I can't wait to give it a shot!

~This is not as easy as the pictures make it seem and it really just looks like a small animal is nesting in your ponytail.

And lastly:

~I am, without a doubt, the most boring twitter-er (tweeter?) EVER. 

Friday Five: Inspiration

I came across this post this morning while desperately trying not to be bored at work and thought it would be a fabulous post idea for my Friday five this week.  Though, mine may not have all the cute pics since most of my inspiration has been culled from a 2012 Mary Engelbreit calendar.

1.  I'm really trying to live dangerously this year.  It hasn't really worked yet but I want to grow a backbone and speak up for myself more.  Although, to follow this one I might just need to tattoo it on my forehead : )

2. "Clean out a corner of your mind and creativity will instantly fill it." (Dee Hock): I've had this quote tucked away in my desk since about January of this past year.  I love it!  And since I'm resolving to be more creative this, it's the perfect fit.  Now if I could only decide what information in my jam-packed full noggin of useless facts should be deleted...

3. "If your ship hasn't come in, swim out to it."  That's what I'm trying to do in 2013.  This whole single life with a boring job isn't all that it's cracked up to be, but since no one is handing me anything better, I need to make it happen.  I want to try to say yes more and create some really cool opportunities for myself.

4.  This is most definitely true.  I've never really wanted to leave for good (although London would be for good: )but I've wanted to see what was out there.  There are some amazing places out there that I've been listing and dreaming about for years.  I only hope that I'll have the opportunity to swim out to those ships one day. 

5.  I'm trying to be all about positivity this year so even though there might be cacti around, I want to see the blossoms.  Sometimes this is easier said than done...

Bonus #6: "Brainy is the new sexy." (Steven Moffat) I'm really not asking for much here, any slightly brainy guy will do.  (and if he just happens to be adorable and polished and wealthy, that would certainly not hurt...)

Twitter?

I am saying this as someone who recently joined twitter and thought she would love it: I absolutely do NOT get it.  I thought I would.  I'm a Facebook fiend, Pinterest pack rat and I go ga-ga for google but as of this very second, I can honestly say I'm just feeling perplexed by the whole thing. 

My first issue is the length of tweets.  I must admit to mostly following news-sites (BBC, The Guardian, CNN, NYT Book Review) but the gosh darn 140 character cut-off makes it quite difficult to get the gist of any story.  So you have to click the tweet, then click the link to actually get an idea of what's going on.  And doing that on a phone is just a pain in the neck due to download speed and text size.  It's easier for me to just go to the HuffPost site, or the BBC News site and read any of the darn articles I want to.

My other and main issue is, I'm not that interesting.  Why anyone would be so bored that they will "follow" my 140 character updates each day to see what I had for lunch, or (in today's case) what song woke me up on the radio this morning (which I realize is a bit hypocritical seeing that I'm writing these thoughts on a blog that's also not that interesting), is completely beyond me.  But joining the gosh-darn waste of time in the first place was for me anyway, not anyone else.  It's helping me look for the positive each day which is always a good thing.  For once I just might follow through on a resolution even if I'm completely baffled by whole crazy thing.

Crafty Tech

So I received this for Christmas and finally got a chance to set it up today. Since I'm on a creativity kick for the new year, I thought it would be just the thing to finally help decipher digital scrapbooking.  I haven't decoded all the bells and whistles yet but I have to say I quite like it.  The kit came with Art Rage software that I've not installed yet, therefore I really haven't seen all it can do.  But so far I was able to take notes in a specially designed notebook (by me!), and draw silly accents on a photo and play some game with squares and circles that I'm still not sure I understand but on which I was able to do particularly well.

After some trials and tribulations, I've even gotten the hang of the pen-y thing.  I'm not sure I'll be able to use it as a mouse like some people do, but it works in a pinch (especially if you read the tutorial first...learned that the hard way).  Now I'm all aflutter to get into all the really nifty artsy craftsy stuff.  I must admit I'm not an artist but I'm sure I'll be able to draw some easy little embellishments and liven up some photos.  The feature I'm most excited about is using handwriting.  I've always wanted to create super awesome amazing crafty things like this to use in frames or scrapbooks but have never figured out how.  Now that I have this tool, I'm thinking my scrapbooking fun may finally take off.  That is once I get a printer to actually print my masterpieces... 

Happy New Year!

Should old acquaintance be forgot,
And never brought to mind.
Should old acquaintance be forgot,
And auld lang syne!
For auld lang syne, my dear,
For auld lang syne.
We'll take a cup o' kindness yet,
For auld lang syne.  

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Happy 2013!