Geaux Tigers

I had 4 whole days off to give thanks for various and sundry things. The holidays are really going to be a bummer this year, but we are trying our best. Mom and I went to Baton Rouge to cook Thanksgiving dinner for Fro on Thursday. Then Friday was uber-LSU day. We got up at 6:30 to make sure we got to campus in time to see the band rehearsal. Fro is a graduationg senior so he is pictured at right (the kid in the black tshirt) singing the LSU alma mater with the band.

Okay then we travelled to the middle of campus to see the drumline warm up. This was pretty entertaining and people enjoyed it a lot. I also took a video of a cadence but will spare you that. Fro actually wrote a lot of the music they played this year, so that's pretty sweet. You can see him here playing tenors.

Okay then we had to go wait for hours to see the football players go by then the cheerleaders then Mike the Tiger then the band. While we were waiting for mom's friend to meet up with us to get our tickets, mom randomly saw "that guy from the John Lithgow show". Luckily I was on the phone with Aneil, who strangely knew that the "guy" was "French Stewart". Turns out his wife is from Baton Rouge. So mom and I were excited about our celebrity sighting:

Whilst eating concession stand food (sausage on a bun and peanuts) I got to thinking...what do other countries serve in their concession stands. I mean, I assume they serve food at "football" games in Europe or Asia...I doubt they serve peanuts and hot dogs and nachos. Hmmm. Also the smell of and/or the sight of people eating nachos is real gross to me, yet when I am eating them it's somehow okay. I don't understand that either.

Okay so the game finally ended many many hours later (oh yeah the Tigers won) and we marched back to the music hall with the band. Fro et al played all sorts of crazy stuff and he was so excited. He is sort of like a local celeb amongst followers of the band, so that's cool. Also he's real good at it. No wonder he's my parents' favorite.


In other news, apparently I have finals in 2 weeks. Have I even opened a book since my last exams? Nope. Ah well, waiting for the panic to set in.

I also start my new job on Thurs. Hope I don't screw it up too bad.

I am enormous right now. I have to work on that. Eventually.

The oldies station has been playing a lot of Chicago lately (woo!). Also, I randomly heard a Yes song today. Call me crazy, but I occassionally enjoy their prog-ish-ness. (I am lame.) Kudos to the oldies station for reviving Yes.

No I haven't been leisure reading or watching tv or movies or listening to new music. I have become completely uninteresting and chubby. It would be a problem, but I'm not too sad about it right now. I'm just glad to have days off sometimes. I'm hoping to become interesting again soon.

Oh, the highlight of the day is I bought a really cute picture frame today and put a really adorable baby picture of Aneil in it. I am in fact going to take a picture of it and post it here, I am that proud of it. If you're still reading this, I commend thee.

this one's for amanda

Sorry for the lame-o posts lately, but my home computer is sick sick sick (again). Think it's about time for an upgrade (i.e. perhaps a powerbook!).

Life is much improved since previous post. Turnaround (at least my part of it) is complete, and I am back to normal working hours. By next Thursday I will start my new job, so I have been busy wrapping up projects, turning over files to other people, and packing up/cleaning my office. This is a more difficult task than one might imagine. I've gotten to the point that I keep throwing things away, just so I don't have to deal with them anymore. Last Sat I attended my new downtown workgroup's fancy holiday dinner. It was actually pretty fun, and my new boss is adorable. I'm really looking forward to moving.

In other news, I had 2 glorious days off Sun-Mon and spent them mostly lying around and holding hands with charming boyfriend. I don't really intend to gush, but here is a short list of presents/favors done by aforementioned boyfriend in the 4 day period in which I saw him:
1) Prepared a feast on Friday night that was ready when I got home from work.
2) Vacuumed my apartment.
3) Folded laundry and organized linen closet.
4) Attended holiday party with me and wore a suit (including suspenders)
5) Got me the following items for birfday:
a) An entire cookie cake
b) Cheese & crackers
c) A bookmark that says "Jump into Reading"
d) A miniature engineer's ruler
e) A VHS tape of him in the audience at an ACL taping
f) A rubber ducky
g) The Sweet Leaf cups I left at his house in Sept
h) A VHS tape stolen from Hollywood video of the HBO movie "Don't Tell Her It's Me"
starring Steve Guttenburg because we talked about it one night when we first met, and
are pretty convinced no one else we know has seen it.
i) The special edition "Freaks and Geeks" complete series on DVD. (WOW!)
6) Took me to see Okkervill River on Sunday
7) Didn't get mad when I woke him up at 5:30-6:30 every morning, including my days off, but
instead stayed awake and chatted with me until I fell back asleep.

Oh also I'm obsessed with Starbucks' Eggnog Latte. Why is eggnog only around during Christmastime? Is it one of those things that we would start hating if we could get it any time of year? Should I write an extra credit paper on the supply/demand of eggnog for my finance class? Hmm. At any rate, I am planning on consuming at least 1 eggnog latte every week at school through the next month. God bless the Starbucks at the Bauer College of Business. Not sure I could survive Accounting without it.

Also starting to get pudgy due to turnaround bad eating habits. Although during the height of activity I had turnaround super metabolism, I am now back to normal yet still eat like a man. This has resulted in the return of the Shelley Innertube-esque Tummie. Seriously, I can barely get my pants around it. But dammit, I would definitely float if thrown into a body of water. At any rate, am going to get back into super-annoying-healthy mode starting Monday (duh can't start a diet on Thanksgiving).

Okay, I'm off to Lake Charles for some family hanging out + LSU football + Aunt Jenny birfday time. Should be good. Stay posted.

we gon' sip bacardi like it's...

As I was typing it I knew full well that quoting "in da club" is like, so 1.5 yrs ago, but I did it anyway and it still made me laugh. I think I knew that any inherent hipness of "in da club" had been sucked dry when I heard Oprah quote it one day last year. Okay and I was typing that last sentence I started to ponder over the exact reasons I don't like Oprah. I mean, I'm sure she's a nice deserving person, seeing as I doubt anyone could publicly fake being nice 300+ days of the year for 20+ years now. Maybe her apparent authenticity is part of her appeal, I have no idea. But when I worked at the bookstore about oooh 7 years ago (best job ever) Oprah's Book Club was in full swing. And although currently she recommends (obvious) classics such that I guess you can't really argue with her "taste", 7 years ago her Book Club always recommended lame-o new authors (e.g Wally Lamb...oh my God "She's Come Undone" almost killed me). And we had this big display of Oprah Books that people would buy just because she recommended them. And we always had to overstock strange self help books by alleged self help gurus that she would endorse on her show. People (read: women) would just buy up anything she was "selling" and I guess I started to fear that sort of power over the psyche of an entire culture. An entire culture of Oprahlogists. I guess that's still better than worshiping at the feet of Donahue. (Ha wonder how many other blogs referenced Donahue today?)

Anywho, back to partying like its my birfday...big 2-5 was last Thursday. A vast improvement over 2-4, even though I was at worky for most of the day and for most of those days (read: all of those days) surrounding it. The short version: had homemade cinammon rolls from Carl-the-Co-op at morning meeting (yum), had cupcakes at the Zone 3 permit hut that one of the operators brought in, got a birfday phone call from my favorite tank farm operator (who sang!), got flowers delivered from mom & fro, had cookie cake + tons of Val presents, got birfday wishes from entire turnaround since I had started announcing upcoming birfday 2 weeks in advance, went out for sushi with amee, jeremy, carl, kristen, eli, preya, and maria, got an entire lime cake from maria (yummie), and received cute new clothes & travel boggle (I reign supreme at that game). All very fun, except for work and my eventual depression on Sat as I missed Austin festivus and had to work instead. Oh but birthday continues throughout week, as I got bea-u-ti-ful gifts from Amanda in the mail and I get Aneil presents on Thurs...eep!

Several blasts from the past this week. Got email from Lauren...love her...plus she is back in Chuck so I will have another friend at home. Got email from Karli who is in Hawaii for a few months (jealous of her life). Karli mentioned that an ex-bf of mine has been asking for my #. Random, but may call him, as he taught me how to kiss (for reals). Received awkward phone call + charming gift in mail from Zach this week too. Made me feel small pangs, but am feeling okay about it.

Work will just not be talked about, as its hit an all time frustration high. Oh and hit the low point on Sat when my boss asked the group "does anybody have a fart machine?" And she started to laugh and laugh and it was just so sad the way it was completely devoid of real humor. Made me think of the pathetic "Office" episode when David takes the Swindon lot to the pub in attempt to convince them he's funny. Oy. So sad you have to laugh else you'll cry.

I love the song "I want a new drug" because I like the idea of someone wishing that the way I make him feel could be drug induced.

Theoretically will be off on Sunday and will get to see boy-I-heart 4 days in a row starting Thurs. Will have Thanksgiving off so can watch brother proudly march in final football game of year (who are we kidding there will be a bowl game I'm sure). Mom got us tickets to see Lionel Richie in concert (ha!) in Lake Charles on Dec 10. YES! And am still trying to stop procrastinating and start planning party. Am just so so tired can't get motivated. Am lucky apt is still quasi-habitable.

Okay, that is the executive summary. Will be better more frequent if turnaround ever ends. Also will start with the pictures again if ever I see mommy again and can acquire long lost camera.

Bye for now.

What i've got's full stock of thoughts and dreams that scatter

I'm exhausted. Physically and mentally, anyway. Luckily the emotional exhaustion is staying in check this week else I don't think I could deal with things.

Turnaround is ongoing. Sat was supposed to be my last day working shift, but apparently the turnaround is running behind schedule so we are working another week. I am hoping that Michele lets me have the weekend off so I can hang out with the fam, but who knows? Blah.
Last Wed was in the top 10 worst days ever...got bitched at (in front of everyone) at morning meeting, but not sure why. So frustrating. Then had to climb through a huge column. Then in the afternoon had to go through the worst column ever...the inside has hardware and fittings that make it resemble some sort of medieval torture chamber. Then totally bombed my accounting test. Then as if it couldn't get worse, my car got broken into. UGH.

Things picked up after that though. Friday I got home from work and Aneil was here and had prepared dinner, so that was delightful, of course. Then Sat we went on a special date, then met up with assorted best friends for drinks at Rice Village. Sunday we went to eat lunch with Amee Casey n Maria, so that was good too. After that he and I both felt sicky...I had a head cold, he had a sore throat...so we sat around watching tv all day. Which was...wonderful. I love sitting around with him. I don't know why, I just like him a lot, I guess. (Laaaame, I know. I'll stop now.)

Anywho, I wish there was more to tell, but I don't really want to talk about work, and really that's all I do.

Gilmore Girls was excellent this week, so I am going to stay loyal.

I've given up on Alias.


I haven't read a book in ages.

Only 3 more weeks then I start new job.

I miss my family and far away friends.

I have had a Hall and Oates song stuck in my head for 4 straight days.

I turn 25 in 2 days.

I need a vacation.