Sunday Boring Sunday

Watched the re-run of the San Marino F1 race today. Yawn. I know it didn't help much that I already knew who won. But it was reeeeeally dull just seeing Michael Schumacher and Alonso running around for the last 20-odd laps, knowing that noth.ing. was going to hap.pen. And with no word on how Kimmi was doing. Or Jenson. Or Rubens. Or tons of other people. Yaaaaaaawn. At least I finished the last row on my latest crochet project.

Which brings me to names. Spefically, the names of curves & chicanes on these circuits. I have no problem with naming them after famous people in Formula 1 (like the Villeneuve curve at San Marino). But I have some issues with the Nurburgring. I can accept the Castrol-S and the Michelin Kurve. But the Coca-Cola Kurve just feels wrong. Is F1 really this desperate for sponsorship? Is it not enough that the cars and the drivers are covered in sponsor logos?

And while I'm whining about advertising, take a look at what's coming to a parking lot near you: parking stripe advertising. I thought the one for Botox was the best, but the one for Hotel Monaco is pretty hard to beat.

Anywho.

While waiting for the race to begin, I was playing about on the internet and found a little something that brings me joy. Cubees! So cute! The Quicktime film on that site gave me the giggles ... which, in turn, brought Tim out to the living room with a raised eyebrow. Sooooo bizarre. But in such a good way!

Tomorrow the owner of the house should receive our initial payment. Which means we should be getting the keys. Which means I'm going to be busy moving our stuff over the next week. Here's hoping I don't wreck myself like poor Holly and george!

It ain't no Rooster Days

Tim and I are staying in tonight, so I thought I'd post something.

Hmmm ... what to say, what to say ...

Today was Janine's wedding day! Hope that all worked out well for her. Hope the ceremony was lovely. Hope they had a good time at the reception. Hope she doesn't suffer too badly from post-wedding let-down. After our wedding, I had a lot of feelings like, "What? That's it? That's really it? Shouldn't I, you know, feel different or something?" I was stressin'. Of course, I say this as if "stressin'" isn't a normal state of existence for me, but you know what I mean. Anywho, it was much nicer when I relaxed & started to settle into Happily Married Mode. It took a couple of months, but I got there. Since then I've gotten a bit smug about our wedding. I see those shows on TV about weddings & crap and every single time I think, "Our wedding was SOOOO much nicer than that." Hell, we actually impressed my sister-in-law with our choice of venue. And that is saying a LOT, my friends.

So, what was I saying? Oh yeah. Congrats to Janine and Jason!

I read that george and Derek will be going to a street fair thingy today. Last weekend there were a lot of various festivals and fairs in our area, but we didn't go to any of them. We were going to do something, but then we got terribly busy with the whole house thing. And it rained a ton. We thought about going to Apple Chill ( http://applechill.com/ ) but it was crazy-busy! No place to park. And cops ev.er.y.where. Plus it was hot and steamy from the previous rainstorms. So we went home. Probably a good thing, too, because there were shootings at Apple Chill ... which, what do you know, is just one of the many traditions of the annual festival! Which is why the place was crawling with cops! And which is why there will not be another Apple Chill festival. Ever. It's all over, kids. The town council voted unanimously to cancel it. Here's an article about it for those who have too much time on their hands: http://www.newsobserver.com/102/story/432485.html

But you know what? Who needs Apple Chill! As long as we have pastries, we're all good, right? That's right! Which brings us around to Guglhupf ( http://www.guglhupf.com/ - click the "Cafe" link for piccies). Guglhupf is a bakery/patiserie/cafe in Durham. Tim and I went there for snacks last Saturday. Unfortunately, Saturday afternoon is a very popular time to go to such places. But I liked it. I had the best chai latte EVER. So delicious. And I tested a croissant. I thought it'd be good to see how well they could tackle the basics, you know. Buttery goodness. Yum. Tim did not seem terribly impressed, but that's probably because it was so busy. I'd really like to go back when it's quieter. Maybe get something fancier. Bring home a loaf of bread. That kind of thing. And you know, if Tanya got a job there, I bet she could bring me discounted day-old baked goods. That would kick SO much ass!!!

But back to this week. I am currently reading Girlbomb by Janice Earlbomb. Janice is one of my faaaavorite people at the on-line community where I hang. She also has a blog (check out the link on the right). She kicks much ass. Enormous quantities of ass. In fact, even when she's just relaxing at home, she'll grab a handful of ass & kick it around like a hackysack. You get what I'm saying. Oddly enough, she rather likes me, too (as she proclaimed publicly just this week! Without any prompting from me!). Which absolutely astounds me because she's so massively talented. Anyway, her book has TOTALLY sucked me in. Loving it to bits. I can't remember the last time a book took over my life & my thought processes as much as this baby. I wish it were longer. It has also proven to me once and for all that my adolescence was massively safe and uneventful. On the weekends, my friends and I would eat ice cream while watching Ren & Stimpy until the wee hours. Janice, on the other hand, was partaking in every vice known to man. My parents got off sooooo easy. But then again, there was no abuse going on in my parents' house.

Reap what you sow, people.

Okay. I'll bite

Here are my results for the same quizzes george took.

You Aren't Scary, You're Scared

Probably even scared to see how this quiz came out!

How Scary Are You?

Your Theme Song is Back in Black by AC/DC

"Back in black, I hit the sack, I've been too long, I'm glad to be back" Things sometimes get really crazy for you, and sometimes you have to get away from all the chaos. But each time you stage your comeback, it's even better than the last!

What's Your Theme Song?

I may be scared of everything, but I still have a dark side.

Your 1920's Name is:

Clarabelle Freda

What's Your 1920's Name?

Your Quirk Factor: 43%

You're a pretty quirky person, but you're just normal enough to hide it. Congratulations - you've fooled other people into thinking you're just like them!

How Quirky Are You?

In a Past Life...

You Were: A Charming Warrior. Where You Lived: Texas. How You Died: Buried alive.

Who Were You In a Past Life?

Hey! I was charming! That's nice to know.

You Are a Boston Creme Donut

You have a tough exterior. No one wants to mess with you. But on the inside, you're a total pushover and completely soft. You're a traditionalist, and you don't change easily. You're likely to eat the same doughnut every morning, and pout if it's sold out.

What Donut Are You?

But ... but I like apple filling!

And here's one george didn't do that I simply couldn't resist.

Your Hair Should Be Orange

Expressive, deep, and one of a kind. You pull off "weird" well - hardly anyone notices.

What's Your Funky Inner Hair Color?

Orange. My least favorite color. Interesting.

Hey baby ... let's get lost

The most difficult thing about the move so far has been getting accustomed to the road system. The streets in Tulsa are laid out in a basic grid system. There are some exceptions to the rule, of course, but fairly few. So it's pretty easy to find your way around.

This is not the case in the Triangle. Note the above artistic interpretation of the road system.

The roads here are swirly! There is not a single straight road in the whole area. And it gets tricky because sometimes you feel certain that you've finally found a straight road, but before long it begins to curve. Also, the labeling of the roads can be confusing. Are we on the 70 by-pass? the 70 business road? The other version of the 70? All of this and more has lead us to get lost a few times. Which leads to many tense moments with your car companion. And the occasional argument about who was supposed to double check the directions. [clears throat] Luckily, Tim has managed to sort out the confusion & find our destination each time. Each and every time! Astounding. This has lead me to believe that he has magical powers. There is no other explanation. How else can he determine magnetic north in the dark without a compass?! Astounding. Maybe our children will be born with similar magical powers & we can send them off to the American version of Hogwarts. Or maybe even Hogwarts itself so that they can have cute accents like their poppa.

Speaking of children and psychic powers, I had my cards read this week. Cards as in tarot cards. It was just an internet thing at the on-line community I frequent - no big deal - and I swear that I don't put faith in such things. Just decided to do it on a whim. But my reading was rather interesting. check this out, kids.

"Usually I PM information like this - and usually I don't like to speak in certainties because often when cards like this come up it can be either literal or it can be figurative. HOWEVER I'm going to go out on a limb here and suggest that this is literal - simply because of the sheer number of the cards that come up that refer to it. You are in a very good relationship. There is true equality and balance here - you compliment eachother perfectly. I believe that you are going to have a baby. If you are not now pregnant, you soon may be. The reason I haven't PMed you about this, is that I believe this will not shock you, as the cards show that you may have gone off birth control. As I've said, and just to cover my ass if I'm totally off base, it could be that I'm taking the cards too literally and that they refer instead to some other creative enterprise undertaken with your husband - this after a period of leaving things up to chance and fate."

The eeriest part of all this? I'm not on the pill right now. Long story, but I ran out. Good thing I don't put any faith in such things, right? Right?!? [laughs nervously]

Speaking of Scooby Doo, I need to learn how to get the photos off of my phone and onto my computer. I've got some excellent pics saved on there that I want to use. Mainly I want to share the pic that I have as my phone wallpaper. It's a fantastic picture of george in a woolly yeti costume. The thing that hit me today is that, in this photo, george looks suspiciously like Robert Smith of The Cure in the video for "Why Can't I Be You". It's uncanny.



Two of my favorite things - george and The Cure - in one perfect image! It must be shared! But how?! Guess it's time for a bit o' research.

Linky-dinky

Just some stuff I've found lately that I like.

13 minutes of super cool machines
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6176491654107670145&q=rube%2Bgoldberg&pl=true

Instructables (I think Derek would love this)
http://www.instructables.com/

Shelterrific (from the people who brought you Budget Living - before they lost their jobs)
http://www.shelterrific.com/

And because I'm a feminist, I suggest you listen to a bitch. Because a bitch has something to say.
http://angryblackbitch.blogspot.com/

31

Happy belated birthday to me! Monday was my birthday & I turned 31. I am officially in my 30s! So maybe that means that it's okay that I'll soon be living in an ultra cute house & that we'll be buying another car. It's good to act like an adult and do adult-y things when you're in your 30s. So rather than feeling freaked out by that number, I'm actually kinda comforted by it. So it's all good.

An up-date on the housing situation.
Saturday night, the owner of the house (Tricia) called us while we were at Target. She said she'd like us to meet her daughter. I was a bit stressed that there was an additional step to this whole process, but happy that we'd made the finals. On Sunday afternoon we met the daughter & her husband at the house at 1pm (which caused us to miss the F1 race, but it was worth it). The daughter, Andrea, is super cool. We really liked her and her husband, Jeff. We also met some of the neighbors and they all seemed great; very friendly, yet non-Stepford-y. Interestingly, Andrea said that she didn't know that anyone else had shown interest in the house over the past week. Hmmmm! Anyway, Tricia called on Monday morning. Tricia said her husband had called our references & it was all good. She said our old landlord had given us a positively glowing report & she was happy to let us have the house! We chatted about the flowers in the garden & such & I thanked her for trusting us with her home. Such a great birthday present!

As you can see, my birthday started out very well. I also got to talk with all of my immediate family members. And my family sent me flowers, too, which was very sweet. And I should mention that while I was chatting with Corey, I ventured up to the grocery store and did not get lost! After Tim got off of work, we went to the Sarah P. Duke Gardens at Duke University( http://www.hr.duke.edu/dukegardens/ ). Very pretty! Can't wait to take my parents there. We also went to Caffe Driade ( http://www.caffedriade.com/ ). Tim is a bit sniffy about their spelling, but the guy working there was super cool & wished me a happy birthday & made us some lovely cappucinos. After that we had dinner at a little Italian restaurant on Franklin Street.
And I drank wine.
Again.
This is the point where I tell you that I've been drinking wine almost nightly since I arrived in North Carolina. And before I got here, I went out drinking with people far more often than usual. I think that, on the night of my birthday, my body finally said, "Enough! You're not French, you know!" because I was sick most of the night. Either that or I'm stressed out (as Tim believes) or I may've caught a flu bug that's going around (as Mom suspects). Would you like to make your own diagnosis? Feel free. I'm open to suggestion.

Before retiring to the bathroom, however, I had a great phone call with george. We compared our neighborhoods by listing the cars parked outside. And she up-dated me on the cats. And we discussed the job sitch. The woman actually thinks she's being lazy because she hasn't started job hunting yet. Umm. She's only been in LA a week! But the more I see what's available on television, the more I sympathize with her desire to get out of the house. Just check out what's airing on TLC tonight.
8pm: I Am My Own Twin
9pm: 101 More Things Removed from the Human Body
10pm: The Man Whose Arms Exploded

101 more things?! Eep!

Flail, whimper, fret, flail

Tim and I are stressing out. We just toured the house this morning. We love it. The problem? There's competition! Another couple was there to view the house at the same time. Eep! So now we're worried that we won't get it. So feel free to imagine me sprawled across a couch, the back of my hand upon my forehead in a dramatic pose, as I cry out in agony over the situation. What are we going to do if we don't get this place?!? We have to be out of the temp place in just two weeks! Oh ... somebody bring me my smelling salts ... [faints]

The more resilient part of my personality is thinking positive thoughts. For instance, Tim and I have both spoken to the owner of the property, which seems to have set her mind at ease & she's told us both that we sound exactly like what she's looking for. Also, we can well afford the place. Thirdly, we saw The Competition and the wife is pregnant which is a problem for them because the owner of the house doesn't really want children living there. So! These things are all good. Let's hold on to the good, m'kay?

Also, Tim took me to see the car he wants to get. And I have to admit ...
I like it.
After all my poo-pooing, I actually like the blasted car. And I really like the salesman, too. I never thought I'd say that about a guy who sells cars, but it's true. He's not at all pushy. And he feeds the neighborhood cats who live by the dealership. That's right ... the man takes care of the hobo kitties. That's a good sign, yo. Anywho, the car is very nice. Hmmm. We'll see.

Cute houses. Cute cars. I'm turning into a yuppie. Eep.

In other news, I have spent more time on the phone this week than I have in years. I feel like I'm back in 10th grade or something! Just yesterday I spoke to Veronica, Corey, Janine a couple of times, Dr. White (dad's old friend who lives here), Dad himself, and Mom (who called 4 times and promised she won't stalk me quite so much in the future). I've also spoken to a few other friends and, of course, I've called a couple of people about finding a new home for us & our stuff. And I had a lovely long chat with Peter and Susan (the bro & sis in law back in England). Take note that these are 75% in-coming calls. It's cray-cray, I tells ya. I've only managed to call george once amongst all the madness. But I must say that I'm loving all of these in-coming calls. Makes me feel appreciated and needed and such. And I need a little validation when I'm so far from everything I know. It also keeps me from worrying about some of them so much.

Take note: george has been in LA for nearly a week and hasn't gotten a nose bleed yet! Woo hoo! Take that, Hollywood smog!

Where do I live again?

So I suppose I should tell people I know about the blog, right? So far I sent a link to george. And I mentioned it to Mom & V. And I might have mentioned it to Corey, but I can't remember.
And.
Umm ....
Well, that's it. Because the words, "Hey, check out my blog!" feel wrong in my mouth. Maybe george can plug my blog on her own site & we'll have crossover traffic [elbow nudge].

Anywho, life is looking good around here. Last night over dinner Tim told me a bit more about his current project at work and some up-coming projects. Hole-lee crap! It sounds so cool! I am beyond excited for him. I can't talk about any of it, of course. At least, not until they're officially announced at E3 in a couple of weeks. Just trust me when I say that this is exciting stuff.

I've been looking for a place to rent (since Tim and I are in temporary accommodations at the moment). And I found the CUTEST house on the planet. It's for rent. It's in our price range. I called the owner & we chatted for a while & she said that we sound like the exact kind of tenants she's looking for. The best part? It's cheaper than most of the apartments we've been considering. And bigger (Guest room!). Fingers crossed!

The bad thing about this house is that Tim won't be able to come home for lunch. His commute should be "only 30 minutes" (tee hee). But it'll be worth it. I tell ya, the more I look around, the less I want to live in these carefully constructed apartment communities. Too confusing. Yesterday Corey was laughing at the fact that I don't know the address to this place we're currently in ... and then I realized the hard way what a mistake that was on my part. I took some trash out to be recycled & when I turned back, I couldn't tell which building was ours! And the numbers were no help because I didn't know our apartment number! And I didn't have my cell phone, so I couldn't call Tim & ask him! Talk about panic. Luckily, I found my way back, but I have yet to leave again without an escort.

So. Back to happy thoughts.

Last night Tim drove me around town a bit. We looked at some apartment complexes (they all look so similar that they're starting to blend together in my mind). Then we drove around the UNC campus & Franklin Street. Too precious for description - although that's not quite the right word. I may have to break out the thesaurus on this one because, although the place is cute, it isn't nauseatingly so. Tim thinks that george and Derek might actually like it here. And our goal is to suck all of our loved ones to this corner of the globe, anyway. So I'll consult various thesauri and the tourist board to find better descriptive terms.

The first official post (because the test doesn't count)

So! This is the post in which I say "Welcome to my blog!" and all of that. I feel as though I'm supposed to mention the purpose/goal of this thing, but that makes me feel as though I'm writing a term paper & I need to come up with a thesis statement. Which makes me nervous. So I won't be doing that. Instead, I'll just jump in and try to pretend I've been doing this for a while.

I have now been in North Carolina for [checks watch] 40 hours! Fancy that. It looks very nice around here. Trees! Tall pine trees! All over the place! After living on the plains, all of these trees are making me feel slightly claustrophobic. I'm accustomed to seeing buildings and landmarks from miles away. No more. Too many trees. But they're pretty trees! Very nice. Not knocking the trees. Honest.

But today I'm not thinking a lot about what is here. Instead, I'm thinking about what I'm missing back at home in Tulsa. Today is my Mom's birthday and I'm missing it. I don't get to go out to dinner with the family. I don't get to watch Mom get misty-eyed as she reads the perfect card my brother selected for her (my brother always picks the sweetest cards ever). And later this week I don't get to take her to Kokoa (http://www.kokoachocolatier.com/) for a special girls-only chocolate outing. It's difficult. The only thing that helps is knowing how supportive my mom has been through the move. Instead of making me feel guilty about moving so far away, she has only been warm and encouraging. She only mentions the positive aspects of the move & has really helped lift my spirits when they've drifted downward.

Speaking of which, my phone just rang. And it's Mom.

Testing testing ... 1 2 3 ...