1 2 3 4 tell me that you love me more

Hellooooooooo friends.

I am assuming I have lost a lot of readers due to my extended hiatus, but I have been super lazy lately. Or super busy. It depends on how you want to look at it. My summer school class (Human Resource Management) is pretty easy but the pace (test every week!) makes for some intense study sessions. Just think, after I graduate in December, you will have more blog entries than you’ll know what to do with!

There have been many, many events since last post. The weekend following the Philly trip I headed to San Antonio for Amanda’s graduation. She was lovely, of course, and I felt like a proud parent. This has all been well documented in other blogs, but here are some of my favorite photos.

Amanda had to wear a floppy beret (oh, the irony!):

We started drinking around 6:30pm after feasting on Korean BBQ. Oak Hills was the scene, and it was jam packed full of newly minted doctors and lawyers, including these folks:

I FINALLY got to hang out with Carla, who was drunky and newly engaged and utterly adorable. Check out her blog in the new link on the right of the page. Anywho, here she is with her fiancée, Michael, who had this really great Biggie shirt, complete with bedazzled sequin bling:

Obligatory Best Friend Photo:

Okay, so the next weekend I headed back to Austin (with family in tow) for Memorial Day weekend. We did lots of grilling and feasting with Aneil’s parents, and we even made a day trip to San Antonio to hit the boardwalk and make memories. We feasted at Casa Rio on the Riverwalk. We also saw the worst 3D movie of all time at the IMAX theater. I blame Aneil and Fro for choosing it. But check out how cute we are in our glasses:

The next weekend Aneil came over to hang out with me and provide moral support when I cut my hair. Here we are waiting for my appointment at this cute bookstore with funny stuffed toys next door to the salon:

Here’s my new hair:

We also got to hang out with Maria/Casey and Bree/Travis at Kelvin Arms and held our first ever appetizer party! Appetizer party rocks my socks. Aneil and I crafted little tomatoes filled with hummus, ham swirls filled with onion, and mini corndogs. Everyone brought 2-3 appetizers and they were all delicious…THEN after a night at Kelvin, we came home and snacked on the leftovers…brilliant!

The following weekend I headed back to Austin to see Aneil, since he was leaving for Bonnaroo the next weekend. I stupidly had school on FRIDAY NIGHT. Ugh. So I didn’t leave until Saturday morning, but we still managed to a) go the mall, b) eat at Thundercloud (oh California Club Sub how I love thee), c) drive out to the middle of nowhere to pick up Aneil’s repaired stereo from this kooky fella who was sort of like a hippie high school physics teacher who loves electronics, and d) boogied with Neha and Jules and Aneil’s other friends at da club. The only thing missing was an appetizer night, really.

The next weekend was super sad, as we had to say fare thee well to our little Lamonica. She moved to Portland last Friday and I’m already bummed because I have no one to call up to drag to random shows or have dinner with or anything. It’s super dumb when best friends move away. At any rate, we threw her a bon voyage the Saturday before she left (complete with appetizers of course) and then we partied it up in Rice Village. Lamonica got super drunky, so it was fun of course:

Okay so that just about brings us back to the present. Last weekend we just watched tons of Veronica Mars (have you all started watching this yet? It’s so awesome!) and celebrated the fact that I don’t have to take my Management final, so no more school until July 5. Hurrah! So I am spending lots of time planning for Amanda and my trip to California (!) in August and doing math puzzles. It’s glooorious. Not much else to report so here’s my list of things I love:

1) Macaroni and Cheese
2) Red seedless grapes & white cheddar Cheez-its (I eat them at the same time!)
3) Boggle tournament with Aneil
4) Travel guides
5) Visits from Anthony
6) New Feist album I purchased at Waterloo with Chad (seriously, how can you not think this song is great? and the video is ADORABLE!)



Here’s my list of observations I made while listening to FM radio on the way to Austin:

1) “Light My Fire” is probably the hottest song containing an organ solo ever recorded
2) Oldies stations should really play more Zombies and Bowie and waaaay less Rush
3) The fact that 80’s and 90’s is considered “oldies” makes me feel like an oldie
4) Hearing a live version of “Life During Wartime” by Talking Heads on the radio makes me yelp with joy
5) I don't understand the appeal of the new Rhianna or Justin Timberlake song…I am ready to find my poppy summer anthem, but haven’t heard a good one yet. Am I going to have to re-use "Big Pimpin'"?

Here’s a random list of reasons I like Aneil:

1) He likes to challenge me to Boggle tournaments.
2) He did not think it was stupid to drive all over town looking for Veronica Mars disc 6 to rent, then give up and just go buy the whole season at Target…in fact, he encouraged it.
3) He thought that going to Katz’s Deli for 2 meals in a row because it was so tasty the first time was a great idea!
4) He worked really really hard on a classic rock playlist to enter this contest: XM & VH1 Contest
5) He holds my hand even when I’m smelly or boring.

Anywho, I have also added new links to the right of the page so you can check out some stuff that I am interested in and/or endorse.

If you're studying for a professional exam of any sort I am sending you good brain vibes. I love you all and promise to be more bloggy from now on...

Motownphilly back again...

Hello! I just got back from a long weekend in Philly with my BFF from Bayport: Kim, Dona, and Val. We shipped Val up there, well technically to Delaware, about 1 year ago, so we got to check in on her and her doggies and experience as much of Philly as possible in 2 days. Kim is originally from South Philly (think: Rocky’s neighborhood) so we got the local flavor tour as well. Here’s my best effort at a synopsis.

Continental serves strange foods courtesy of SkyChef (which I think is owned by Lufthansa so I am blaming the Germans!). Our “meal” consisted of a small pizza topped with ranch dressing, chopped steak, and goopy cheese. Why does this food item even exist? Also, we watched “Music and Lyrics” on the plane, which I was just SURE I would love, even though Maria and Casey gave it 2 thumbs down (I mean come on, I love Drew and Hugh and the 80’s and pop music!). But they were right after all, as the movie was exhausting and sort of soul-less. Kim pointed out that it made the plane ride seem even longer. Blah.

Friday we headed to Philly to do all the tourist-y stuff. We ate DELICIOUS pizza at this place called Grotto’s, which apparently is a popular chain serving “boardwalk/beach” pizza. Northerners and Midwesterners are sort of weird about their pizza and its geographical origins, but “beach pizza” gets my seal of approval. This was simply the first of many many “Meals Consisting of Meat, Cheese, and Saturated Fats.”

Here’s the Liberty Bell. Apparently it had a casting flaw which was “repaired” at some point, then when they tried to use it again the “repair” cracked even worse and left it non-operational. I dunno why I thought it would be HUGE because it was sort of little. Here’s me and Dona taking our turn at a snapshot:

Also Ben Franklin is a big Philly celeb, so we saw his grave, and the place where his house was (the only part of it still intact is the privy…eww), and his post office. I love Ben. You should read his autobiography. He’s sort of a wack-a-doo.

Then the girls let me drag them to University City, where all the colleges are, so we could stop by the World Cafe HQ. World Cafe is significant to me and the brown boy and played an integral part in the story of our lub, so I was excited. Lots of hipsters were there enjoying happy hour, and a DJ played some tunes. Sadly, no shows that day. Here I am making my delighted muppet face:

So then we were off to enjoy Meal Consisting of Meat, Cheese, and Saturated Fats #2 at this place called Tony Luke’s. It was sort of situated under the highway, adding to its off-the-beaten-path appeal. I ordered my cheesesteak with American Cheese and Onions and it was pretty good. Yes, I ate the whole thing. We then had to walk off the cheesesteaks so we wandered around Penn’s Landing and saw some sights. We also saw what appeared to be the equivalent of Midtown, i.e. yuppies galore, but it was somewhat charming. We headed back to South Philly for the best Philly treat ever: WATER ICE. I have always made fun of Kim and her insistence that water ice is somehow different/better than snow cones, slurpees, shaved ice, etc. But she was RIGHT. It can only be described as ICE that is like WATER, or WATER ICE. Apparently it is a secret scientific phenomenon that creates water ice, and only certain places know how it is done. Here at Italiano’s I opted for the Gelati, which was water ice layered with vanilla ice cream. Oh water ice, how I love thee:Okay, also there is this other strange northern phenomenon called Wawa. Really, it’s just a convenience store without gas pumps. But EVERYONE goes there. They have dozens of flavors of coffee and they sell tons of packaged cakes and little sandwiches. I honestly don’t understand the love for Wawa but I appreciate it nonetheless. Here I am with Kim selecting a Tastykake:

Northerners also love their Dunkin Donuts, as there is one about every few blocks, probably more than Starbucks. I tried a couple, but nothing can ever ever top Nelson’s Donuts in Lake Charles. Between the donuts and tastykake, I managed to keep my saturated fat equilibrium constant until lunchtime. Check out Frankie Avalon and Fabian in this mural!So we headed to the Italian Market, where there are lots of butcher shops and produce stands and smelly fish and whatnot. We spent a while in a cutie kitchenware store and Val bought us some fresh pasta to cook for dinner. While there we of course had to hit Cheesesteak Valhalla, i.e. Pat’s King of Steaks and Geno’s. We wanted to compare/contrast, so we got 2 of each and split them amongst the 4 of us. I was complimented by a local on my ability to utter the words, “Whiz Wit” with a straight face and therefore properly order my sandwich. Cheese whiz, although seemingly a terrible idea, was actually delicious on the sandwich! I can’t really say which place was better, although Geno’s tasted less fat-tastic, but it may just be the lack of Whiz on my sandwich from there. It was very confusing, but I give Meal Consisting of Meat, Cheese, and Saturated Fats #3 the edge over Tony Luke’s, I think because the sandwich bread at these 2 places was delicious. Also grease ran down my arm and that’s FINE.

Geno's?

Or Pat's (in the background behind me & Val)?

Then we headed to Jeweler’s Row, which is basically a couple of blocks in downtown with tons and tons of jewelry stores. We window-shopped a lot, and a quirky old man told us some long-winded yet charming stories about Philly, and I want to say he talked about how he knew Albert Einstein. Anywho, I spent an exorbitant amount of money on this necklace (it’s a black pearl done up with little diamonds and white gold meant to resemble a sea anemone). I am craaazy about it:

So freshly adorned with jewels, we decide it’s time for more WATER ICE, so we head back to Kim’s neighborhood to sample the water ice at Pop’s. This time I opted for orange dream with soft serve ice cream and it too was GLORIOUS. Post water ice we headed home, where Val made us an excellent meal consisting of fresh pasta, olive oily garlicy delicious sauce, bread, salad and wine. YUM. While she cooked, we strangely watched “Center Stage” which apparently all of my friends secretly own on DVD/VHS. So weird. We also discussed how the movie is TERRIBLE in every way yet weirdly entertaining. Kim astutely pointed out that at least it was better that “Music and Lyrics”, which was just a little sad, considering one of the co-stars is Olympic figure skater, Ilia Kulik.

Next morning we woke up at 5:30 (OMG) for the big Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. Thanks to your generosity, I raised $1130 for the cause!!!! Thank you so much! I have no idea how long it took me to run the race, however. We started late because of the huge crowds at the bathrooms, and by the time we got to the start line the walkers had already started and it was just a wall of people. I tried to keep up with Val, dodging around people, but was a little timid due to wonky knee. I did my best, but still got pretty slow by mile, like, 1.5. Ha. Nonetheless, my official time was around 55 minutes, but I am guessing that my actual time was closer to 45 minutes. I was very proud indeed and don’t worry, I will make good on my promise to send you guys official Shelley training mix tapes in appreciation for your donations. You are all awesome!

We had time for (what I thought would be) our last Meal Consisting of Meat, Cheese, and Saturated Fats. We drove around a while until we found a sandwich shop that was open and we feasted on hoagies loaded with meats and cheeses and whatnot. They were actually pretty good, and I strangely adapted to the local cuisine, and felt like a champ. We then hit Rita’s for more WATER ICE. This place is the water ice chain, so slightly less authentic, but I did discover that Mango is my favorite flavor and I liked that they use frozen custard in their gelati. Oh Water Ice! Swoon!

Then it was time to head home, where airport dinner consisted of Meal Consisting of Meat, Cheese, and Saturated Fats #5, i.e. Philly style pizza. I split a slice with Dona in a futile effort to save our arteries. But I mean, we got on the plane, where they served us our final Meal Consisting of Meat, Cheese, and Saturated Fats #6, which was a strangely delicious cheeseburger wrapped in plastic. This time there was no movie, so Kim and I chatted the whole way home, which proved to be much more entertaining than Music and Lyrics anyway.

So, my trip was fun and exhausting and I love my engineer gals a lot. I am currently in water ice withdrawal, and my soft serve cone from Chick Fil A today was just NOT the same. I have, however, gone vegetarian for the rest of the week, to do a little damage control, so hope that helps.

In other non-Philly news, my Amanda is done and done with law school. I don’t understand why they make them start law review classes immediately after they are done with normal classes, but maybe that’s not much to ask considering they will be making the big bucks someday. I get to attend her graduation this Saturday and I’m sure Chad and I will be bursting with pride. I am very very excited. Stop by her blog and wish her a congratulatory comment (she loves comments).

My latest tv obsession is Veronica Mars. I love mysteries, plus I love teen drama, so it was basically made just for me! She is like Nancy Drew with spunk! Aneil convinced me to watch it so I Netflix-ed season 1. I love it. It's also not as scary as Criminal Intent, so I don’t get scared at night. Ha. Why am I a 13 year old chubby girl at heart?

In other news I can’t stop eating Raisinets and I check them off as a fruit/vegetable on my weight watchers checklist.

American Idol tonight!

Love you all!

Let's bowl, let's bowl, let's rock n' roll

My most darling brown boy had a birthday party this past weekend (in case you missed it, his birfday was May 2). We made awesome party favor bags complete with Aneil's seasonal mix tape, $1 movies from half price, stickers, pencils, and candy. Ready to paaaartaaaay:

We headed to the bowling alley, where they had $3 white russians, poured from pitchers! And there were tons of friends there. I mean, most of these folks are shellzana guest stars, since they are technically Aneil's friends, so if you are interested, check out photos here. (Aneil, you should email this link to all the people on your evite...I don't have access to do it from my account.) In the meantime, here are some folks you may know and love:I bowled in a lane with Carol, Sean and Kevin. Kevin had an unfair advantage, being the high school bowling coach, and all, but we tried our best. Despite the fact that Carol was totally kicking Sean's booty at the beginning of this game, they still paused to show off all their adorable pink/redness:Aneil was so excited the whole evening, his face was achy by the end of the night. Here he is smiling with his friends Bob and Kenneth:Check out my amazing bowling score! I was tops amongst the ladies, and most of the boys. I rule:

Also check out this AWESOME ninja turtle cake:

So the party was really fun, and I am so glad that this boy was born 27 years ago. I lub him (he's handsome, huh?):

Work is super busy this week, but I am still in a happy mood. I am leaving for Philly on Thursday, and thanks to your generosity, I raised over $1000 for Race for the Cure! I am so proud/amazed by everyone! :)

In other news, I joined Netflix. My first selection was "Just Like Heaven" with Reese Witherspoon and Mark Ruffalo. I sort of loved it. For all you kids who are constantly irritated that I never watch movies, add a comment with your recommendations and I will add them to my queue. (I love that Netflix has put the word "queue" into mainstream use.)

I am sad/relieved about the cancellation of Gilmore Girls. While I love the girls ever so much (not to mention Jess), it is time to say goodbye, methinks. In the meantime, my current tv obsession is Law and Order: Criminal Intent. Sort of love Vincent D'Onofrio. Ha.

Until next time's Philly update, good luck on finals and graduation, everyone! This week I love: boiled eggs, Netflix, bowling, birthdays, and my dearest Aneil!

Lemonades and Tow Trucks

Oh so many events to speak about!

I am almost done with school for this semester. We have to make a bibliography and our paper will be done and done. Huzzah! All that’s left is one more test (on which I need a 65% to keep my A) and completion of my biodiesel project. Joy of joys!

I am going to Philly in a few weeks to visit my friend Val, and she suggested we run in the Komen Race for the Cure. We are raising money for breast cancer research, and I am real impressed with my best friends and their extremely generous donations (over $700 so far!!). Here is a link to My Race Page in case you want to make a donation and/or check out how adorable I am. Everyone who donates will receive a photo of me finishing the race (it might kill me but oh well) and a copy of my training mega mix cd.

Aneil came over this weekend, and we were actually extremely productive. We met up with Maria and various and sundry medical school pals, plus Kevin. I drank tons of raspberry lambic, and I tried the cherry kind but it wasn’t as good. Kevin lectured me about not adequately training for my race, but I promise to run a mile tonight. Seriously. But I mean American Idol is on tonight, so we’ll see.

Then Saturday Aneil helped me hang things up on the walls of my apartment. He also made me a charming coat rack (which I have no idea how I lived without before). Aneil had various power tools and levels and whatnot. I remember when I decorated the old apartment I just used a hammer. But I guess his way was more efficient. It looks real great and homey.

We also ate at Spaghetti Warehouse, which was yummie as usual. Our waitress was adorable and called herself a “chili ninja”. Aneil also won me this Bart Simpson from the claw machine (best claw machine in town!). Afterward, I worked on my paper at the bubble tea place.

And BIG NEWS, the Kelvin Arms started serving glorious glorious Frozen Vodka Lemonade again. To tune of “Here Comes the Sun”: Lem-o-naaade, it’s been a long cold lonely winter. Lem-o-naaade, it feels like years since it’s been here. Needless to say I got Drunky McDrunkerson and Aneil managed to convince me to play Golden Tee and the equivalent bowling game, which I will call Bowling Tee. Bowling is much easier, as there is no slope, sand traps, water hazards, or wind, i.e. Golden Tee for Dummies. I got over-zealous (also was drunk) and missed the rolly ball and banged my hand into the machine and I now have this huge hand bruise! Did you know that you could bruise your hand? At any rate, I suppose my injury will keep my on the sidelines next time I’m at Kelvin Arms. Also, here’s a shout-out to Jeremy and Emily, who we also saw at the bar. Crazy Jeremy had to be at the plant at 5am, yet was still partying like a champ when we left the bar at 1am. At any rate, he said he reads the blog, so I am excited to have another fan. Ha.

Sunday I ate dinner with Maria and Lamonica (oh Chuys tortillas I love you so), then we headed to Numbers to see Tapes n’ Tapes, which I had never listened to before, and was just going so Lamonica would have someone to go with. WELL, we both drove there, and parked next to each other, and we go outside after the show only to discover we had BOTH been towed! It was a lil scary, since Lamonica left her purse/phone in the car, and I had absolutely no one to call to come get me. Here’s the mortifying part: I saw Joel from Town Hall (Ho-el, as you may have known him) at the show and we chatted and (Thank God!) exchanged numbers. So I call him up and he gives us a ride to the police station. I was mortified! It was like, oh hi Ho-el, I haven’t seen or heard from you in 5 years, can you give me a ride? UGH. He is still just as nice as a person can be, so I’m sure he didn’t mind, but I was still so embarrassed. At any rate, here is what to do when your car gets towed in Houston: call the Tow Hotline: 713-308-8580 and be sure to memorize your license plate number because they need it to find your car. They will be able to tell you where your car got towed. Luckily, Lamonica’s mom came to pick her up, and the tow place was only 10 minutes from my house, so we were able to get the cars. At this point it was like, 2am, and we were in the lovely 5th ward, and that’s fine. Also it cost me $180 to get the car plus I got a $65 ticket. I am chalking this up to a rather pricey lesson learned, and am not eating out for the next month to save up $245. BLAH.

To end on a not-complaining note, here is a list of food items that Aneil and I have been given in the past 3 weeks. We do not ask for these things, and I’m pretty sure our lil round bellies do not make us look undernourished, but we keep receiving free things (which I love):

1) As Aneil orders a shake at Chick-Fil-A, I ask the guy at the counter if the new flavor is any good, and he gives me one to try. A whole shake!
2) We go to Chili’s, where you stupidly have to pay for chips and salsa. We say no thanks we don’t want chips, but a few minutes later our waiter brings out chips and says he just hates to see people not eating something, so have some free chips!
3) Aneil orders this spaghetti covered in “beer chili” rather than tomato sauce every time we go to Spaghetti Warehouse. The waitress brings out the food and we are all excited, but she comes back and says that there is not enough chili on his spaghetti, and it is because the manager is skimpy with the chili. She then proclaims she is a “chili ninja” which was pretty much the most adorable thing ever, and comes back with a small bowl of supplementary chili.
4) As we walk into Kelvin Arms, I immediately ask if they started up the lemonade machine again (apparently it is only a summertime drink), and when the guy actually says yes I yelped with joy! Then he was like, do you like raspberry? I’ll swirl some raspberry liquor into it for you to try. It was yummie, and FREE!

So, I am trying to count my blessings and not get too bummed about the towing incident. So thank goodness for generous waiters/bartenders, moms being there when you need them (the whole ride to the tow yard made me feel 15 yrs old again), and Joel and all my other darling boys who I know would have done the same for a damsel in distress.

Happy birthday to Amanda!

Home is where i want to be, but I guess I'm already there

Hello world!

Well here I am in the new apartment. Seriously though, it doesn't really feel like I moved at all, since it’s the exact same apartment layout, only 2 doors away from my old one. It has some “upgrades” to flooring and accessories (I must admit the bathroom and kitchen look much fancier), but all in all not worth the effort of moving at all. I am hoping that my next move will be into a place that I actually own, such that I can’t be evicted on a whim.

My darling brown boy, mom, and Fro came over and helped me pack and move the majority of stuff. Aneil also scrubbed the bathroom in the old apartment, so I’m pretty sure I owe him everlasting love and affection. My engineer friend Dan brought his cute kids over and they were really helpful as well. Shelby also did an excellent job rearranging my refrigerator magnets. Lamonica got there just in time to watch us all collapse from exhaustion, but I love her for making the effort anyway.

School has been extremely busy, but my biodiesel start-up company project is going well. The company owners are excited about our work and I think they are going to have us act as financial advisors when they meet with the bank to get their loan! This sounds lame-o but I am sort of excited about it. Now I know how to project financials and value a company and build a business plan to take to a bank. I am very proud!

My other classes are coasting along. Lots of work, but I am done with everything by the end of the month, so huzzah!

I am trying out this new self-improvement program: Complaint Free World. I read about it in my mom’s People magazine. Basically, it takes 21 consecutive days to form a habit, so the objective is to wear this little purple bracelet and try not to complain/gossip/criticize/bitch for 21 days. Every time you mess up, you switch the bracelet to the other wrist and start over! Apparently it has taken people months and months to actually accrue 21 days of not complaining. I mean, I realize that it is a futile effort (Amee even pointed out that we won’t have ANYTHING to talk about if we can’t gossip or complain), but I am hoping that it will help me have a more positive outlook in general. Also the church that started up the whole thing has really cute and completely inoffensive beliefs.

Not much else going on. Am still completely obsessed with American Idol. I have had 2 dreams in which contestants have made cameo appearances. If you want to hear about it, ask me. All I will say is that in one of them, I HELD HANDS (!) with a contestant, and if you know me, you know that's about as risque as my dreams get. Ha.

In an effort to unload some unwanted books from my overflowing library, I'm making an effort to read the chick-lit type books that I have either bought on a whim or received as a gift. I figure I should read them, but probably won't keep them when I'm done, thus reducing the burden on my bookshelf. They almost make me feel dumb because I kind of get involved in the stories and enjoy them, while simultaneously knowing that I have gotten absolutely nothing out of the book whatsoever. But I like some of them. Hmm. Anywho, here's my recent reading list:

The Year of Yes - Memoir in which girl says "yes" to literally anyone who asks her out for one year. I actually liked this one somewhat. The author tries too hard to seem cerebral though. Lots of obnoxious literary references. Lame.

The Room-mating Season - Good grief, this book was stupid. Also lots of awkward romance-novel-ish scenes in which our heroines do it with older men. Blech. The only high point was the fact that sometimes the author would refer to a character by stating their full name and then a key personality trait, like, "Shelley Ewing always was the intelligent one of the group. Yet she had a sparkle in her big brown eyes that suggested something more." Hahahaha. Reminded me of my good old Sweet Valley High books I loved at age 12.

The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing - I actually liked this one, and it occasionally had charming insights and good sentences. Reading the section in the middle about her dad was painful, but I can actually reccommend this one.

The Lovely Bones - Dead girl watches her family from heaven. Just started this, but it's basically a Lifetime movie so far.

Anywho, I should get back to watching America's Next Top Model reruns. I realize that the quality of my reading and tv watching material have taken a nosedive recently, but I really can't handle much more mentally taxing activities until school is done. In the meantime, I love: chick-fil-a shakes, halfprice books, hanging out with Erik, my family, and brown boy supreme. I am omitting the "I hate" segment of the blog due to aforementioned attempt not to complain. Listen to your Talking Heads and smile! Oh what I wouldn't give for a Talking Heads-themed week on American Idol!

My heart

Today is my dad's birthday. He would have been 53. It made me really sad when I first wrote the date on a memo this morning at work and realized it. I cried in public numerous times (which is always great) and I'm pretty sure my team from school thinks that they have driven me to tears because I am stressed about our project. Albeit this has helped to motivate them so I will stop crying already.

Anywho, I think I was just sad because I couldn't call him and tell him happy birthday and I haven't been baking a chocolate cake or shopping for his present all week. I just miss him a lot.

This is just not my week. I'm hoping that once I move and finish this round of tests and presentations I will feel better in April. I'm trying real hard to hold it together.

I promise to update more soon, but in the meantime I'm going to study for my test. Love you.

i'm getting old and i need something to rely on

You know you are becoming a lame-o when you open up your blog entry with a lyric from a Keane song that is so 2 years ago, you don't even think you like Keane, and you only like the song because the cute boy on American Idol (who you voted for, by the way) sang it on the Tuesday night show.

Oh well.

I wanted to blog last week, but got too busy, so you're getting my now-fuzzy recollection of 2 weeks ago. Sometimes you have these simple days/hours/moments that make you feel really happy, and I had a lot of them that weekend.

My life as I currently know it is never serene or normal or the way I think it should be. That's a sad, depressing fact. There are lots of little things that aren't the same anymore. I don't work with my best pals from my old plant. I only see Amee every few months instead of on a day-to-day basis. And my dad is gone, so my family dynamic is shifted and strange-feeling and I always feel a little lost without him. Sometimes it's hard to face this fact, and I've gotten really good at swallowing my pain and just I dunno, dealing with it, but I can tell you, it sucks all the time and apparently always will.

But there was something about last weekend that made me feel alive and normal and back to my old self. Even if it was just for two days. Maybe because I was done with my first round of tests and completely left schoolwork behind for 3 days. Or maybe because the sun came out and it was safe and warm to play outside. Maybe because I got to ride to Austin with Maria and got to chat with Amee along the way. Maybe because I went out with friends and it felt normal and comfy and happy. Maybe because Amanda called me just to tell me what she ate/drank the night before. Maybe because Aneil and I had a crazy-fun day of arcade games and putt-putt and hot wings. I just felt like I had my old carefree life back for a little while and I loved it. Thanks to everyone who participated in it.

The fun continued on Tuesday when I realized that the dreaded Reliability Conference that I attended was also being attended by my best work friends from Bayport. Oh joy of joys to sit in the smarmy hotel bar having after-work drinks with Dan and Val. And giggle at discussions about safety critical variables with Dona and Ben. Joy.

Things turn back to reality eventually though. Mom and Fro came to town so we could take Mom to the airport to go to the Philippines to see my Grandma (who is real sick). I love that lady, and can only hope she gets better so I can visit her soon too.

This past weekend was also good. I got to hang out with my brother, which is rare, but I can't tell you (or him especially) how much I love to just hang out with him. He is a good egg. Also Aneil came over and we shopped on Westheimer and I got to drink Raspberry beer in the middle of the day, which is always a good thing. I love him the most.

I hope you all have some happy moments this week. Even though they are fleeting, aren't they wonderful? Seriously, full of wonder.

This week I love: mini-M&Ms, raspberry lambic, and reliability conferences. This week I hate: saying goodbye.

up & up you go for to steal the secrets of the heavens...will you share them with me my bright and brilliant spy?

Spending weekends (mostly) alone can be a treat sometimes, although I miss you all. My school schedule this semester is slightly more exhausting since I am taking an extra class. If I continue at this rate, I will be done with my degree one semester early, which in dog years is like, 3.4 years or something like that.

In addition to constant schoolwork, I am also currently on a self-imposed “budget.” In my latest attempt to play grownup, I am trying to save my money so that I can someday own a home or whatever. When I announced my thrifty new budget plan, one of the actual grownups at work asked me what program I was using to help with my budgeting. This is a fair question, I suppose, since my raison d’etre at work involves meticulously accounting for changes in performance metrics (not unlike meticulous budgeting) so I suppose I have the aptitude for it. But the very idea that I would apply this sort of skill to my actual personal life was pretty laughable…truth be told, my idea of “budgeting” has thus far involved only purchasing clothing from Target or off sale racks, and frequenting the Subway $3.99 fresh value menu. I know it is a slow start, but I am feeling very thrifty and accomplished and am certain to have THOUSANDS of dollars saved in no time.

Studying for inane tests, eating off value menus, and watching 5.5 episodes of “My So-Called Life” on Saturday got me waxing nostalgic about my undergrad experience. This, on top of my lack of showering for 48 hours and re-wearing the same jeans for 3 days actually made me feel like it was 1999 again! I guess enough time has passed since college that I actually recall it with a mix of embarrassment (how could I have been so DUMB) and overwhelming affection. Saturday night, while taking a study break, I yearned for a trip to Will’s dorm room, where we would talk about the universe and its largeness and/or our smallness. And at lunchtime I wanted to call Amanda and make her go with me to ponder over why lord why we didn’t have boyfriends and eat mountains of thai noodles. Then we would feel super decadent and call Chad and make him go with us to buy second-hand treasures and collectibles to decorate our apartments. And I would force my poor roommate (and in her absence, her cat) to help me analyze in great detail every email and/or IM conversation with boys: a) I liked, b) I made out with but didn’t really like, c) I thought maybe liked me but couldn’t tell, d) who really just needed help with their thermodynamics homework, but maybe there was a subtext about loving me?

So yes, hearing Angela Chase muse over how she kept waiting for life to begin and for something to happen and for things to really kick start her life made me wistful for the time when I felt the same way…and when hanging out with friends was something I took for granted. But I guess we can’t be Angela forever. Decisions have been made, life has happened. Friends have gotten married and they’re having babies. Loved ones have been lost. Hearts have been broken and healed again. Is this what I was yearning for?

I feel so far removed from my angsty former self, but am desperately in love with her anyway.

Anywho, back to this week…I hate: stomach viruses, veggie booty for its questionable but totally possible involvement in the great stomach revolt 2007, the fact that during illness I watched a marathon of “Grease: you’re the one that I want” and now I actually sort of care about the outcome. This week I love: you (you know who you are), getting mountains of valentine cards from my favorite brown boy, Subway sandwiches, and Jordan Catalano.

cupid, draw back your bow

Last weekend was Neha's wedding extravaganza. She was unbelievably beautiful, as expected. What is it about brides? I just fall in loooove with them every time. Anywho, here she is getting ready:

The final product was really amazing. I started crying (ridiculous, I know) because she was so pretty! Also all of this stuff was sooooo heavy I have no idea how she could even walk.

The ceremony was surprisingly short at only about 1.5 hours. The priest was real funny and did (approximate) translations for everything. e.g. "So Neha's brother is like, hey, Julian, will you love Neha and make her happy? Then Julian is like, hey, of course. And they are like, hey, okay then." It was charming. He sort of sounded like Strongbad from homestarrunner. Ha. Also, there were mango smoothies and snacks (!) served during the ceremony. YUM. My camera is a lil wonky ever since festivus, so this one is a lil blurry, but it's the only shot I have of the ceremony and it includes Jules:

As promised, here is a photo of me in a sari. It is not really fair because I am standing next to Amee, who always looks amaaazing in Indian clothes, so I look sort of bleh, but I tried real hard. I only sort of felt like a taco, but it was still a relief to take that thing off at the end of the night.

So the ceremony was real nice, and the cocktail hour was fun (me and Aneil ate tons of samosas!). The reception room was gorgeous and so so so nice...I am realizing that my wedding will pale in comparison to my fancy friends. It's fine. There was tons and tons of dancing it sort of felt like one of those dance marathons, but I think we pulled it off well. At the end of the night, Aneil and I were super-sweaty, but still managed to snap one last pic:

We are adorable!

Hope everyone is having a good week. School sucks, but I'm doing okay otherwise. This week I love: weddings, Neha and Julian, songs by Sam Cooke, and Veggie Booty. And I love you!

oh how i love tater tots

I was real delighted by all the comments about my previous post, so I will address those now:

• Sure, let’s be friends. I am always up for hanging out, although it should be noted that I never have “slow time” and pretty much have to be booked 1-2 months in advance. This is not because I am hip or fun, but because of self-inflicted double-booking.
• My life is not always wacky and/or good times. You may notice that I only blog approximately 1-2 times per month, so a lot gets packed into those entries. Most of my life is spent reading things like “Reengineering the Corporation” or “Strategic Management” and/or waiting for the next episode of American Idol.
• I love my belated Christmas gift. I do indeed love gifts that combine science jokes and rock n’ roll. I will start calling Fro “Phreaux” in the future when he is being particularly Louisiana-ish.
• I mean I do like mayonnaise and think it has a place in ham sandwiches and various salads, but I think maybe it has too high of a fat content for me to fully embrace. Also in junior high I was obsessed with this infomercial about this hand blender that you could use to make your own mayo. The image of the eggs getting blended into a jar full of oil has been with me all these years and it makes it hard to eat liberal amounts of the stuff. I tried dipping fries into mayo (per your suggestion) a couple of weeks ago, but I just…didn’t get it. Sorry, sour cream is still A#1 in my book.
• But it’s a different story if you’re talking about jalapeno mayonnaise though. OMG it is delicious! We will got to Kerbey together and partake sometime soon.
• Not only was there karaoke at my party, but tons of fried lumpia as well. I am very filipino indeed.
• I talk to him all the time and date him and whatnot, but I still got nervous/excited when I saw that Aneil posted his first-ever comment on blog. I am pathetic.

Anywho, the past few weeks have been extremely busy. I started school, and I am taking 3 classes this semester as opposed to my usual 2 so that’s already sort of exhausting. One of my classes is online, which I think will be difficult for me, since I am a Procrastinator Supreme. I am also taking an independent study class in which my team is helping complete a valuation of and business plan for a biodiesel start-up. Biodiesel is a pretty cool technology although apparently we couldn’t grow enough crops to replace petroleum even if we covered the whole US with soybeans. If scientists can just figure out how to harvest oil-producing algae, we will be in business. Can you imagine being an algae farmer? Ew. If you’re interested in biodiesel and other alternative fuels check out this link: National Biodiesel Board.

I am getting kicked out of my beloved apartment so that the complex can renovate and add upgrades. This means I have to move to an identical apartment in the same complex, which is stressing me out. I tried to find a new place to live altogether but that proved to be exhausting and expensive, so I will stay put. I have also made a vow to be budget-minded in the meantime, so all the money I am saving by staying in my stupid apartment complex will go into my new money market savings account. I am very excited about it. My goal is to save $15,000 by next year. I think I can do it. I am going to glitter glue a chart similar to the ones used at tele-thons and put it up on my wall.

Also, this weekend is Neha and Julian’s wedding! It is totally surreal, but I am very happy for them. I get to wear Indian clothes, so I am sure to be adorable so I will post pics next week. The sari I am wearing is real cute although my lil Shelley tummy pokes out of it. I don’t mind. So it should be super-fun and I’m already real excited about it. Here is a rough approximation of what I will look like in the sari:
As you may or may not know I am addicted to the Canadian teen drama “Degrassi: The Next Generation”. Only recently have I discovered that the 1980’s original series, “Degrassi Junior High” comes on at like 4am on Saturdays (God bless Tivo!). It is super-dramatic and has pretty bad acting and lots of teenage issues. The current version is much more daring, but I suspect that the 80’s version (which plays like an after-school special in which kids say “a-boot” and “sawry”) was scandalous at the time. I currently have this Degrassi Junior High – Complete Series in my amazon wish list.
I am a dork. Thanks for loving me despite that fact.

What's so amazing that keeps us stargazing?

Hi! So I guess I took a long enough hiatus, and am back in blog business. Hope you all had great holiday and got to hug lots of people you love.

Since last update, I got to have a festivus, which was real fun and of course my heart was nearly bursting with love and happiness. I think everyone had a good time although we didn't manage to have the gift exchange, and there was no dance party portion of the evening. Maybe next year I will ditch the karaoke in favor of dance party. Here is a link to my photos: Festivus 2006.
And here is a link to Bo's much better photos...as it turns out having a) a better camera, and b) well, talent, makes for far superior party pics. This has further humbled me, and my pathetic lack of photography skill: Bo Knows Photos. I hope everyone had a great time...Maria and I are tentatively planning another party in March sometime...maybe in Austin?

Dreamgirls??

Don't mess with us.

Best Frens (plus loads of Chardonnay)

I gaze adoringly at Chad and Reido.

Like cute Neapolitan Ice Cream.

Super cuteness. They are probably laughing at...

Me and Fro rocking out brother/sister style.

See? Bursting with Happiness!

I then went home for Christmas. Fro's cute new gf came along for Christmas eve too so she was fun to have around. We played board games and gorged on steaks and potatoes...it was glorious. My favorite gift was my new crock pot! I used it this past Friday to make pot roast...you put in raw food, go to work, and when you get home you have a hearty meal! Amazing.

Then New Years was in Austin this year. Mom's BFF threw a party so we went and ate delicious gumbo and filipino food. Afterward, Aneil and I went to his friend Jenny's party, and we danced the night away! It was pretty fun. Also, New Years Eve-eve, Aneil and I went to Alamo Drafthouse with his pal Aly and her bf Klaus, and we watched these guys make fun of Die Hard, Mystery Science Theater style. It was super funny. Then we went out on the town with Aneil's friends John and Johnny. They were most excellent dancers and we had a great time. Aneil and I are all about the boogie lately. Next time we are in Austin, we all have to go to Red Fez and shake our moneymakers together!

I also attended the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans. Mom and I had fun and the Tigers won, so hurrah!

Here we are in the superdome. It was LOUD.

Fro is the one in the middle playing the quads. We were real proud.

Hooray! Go Tigers!

I have since returned home and after a whirlwind week of driving through Louisiana and Texas, I was exhausted. So this past week has been all about maxing and relaxing (chillaxing?) so that was glorious. I start school this week, so it will be back to constant activity for the next few months, but I don't mind.

Here is a list of things I love this week:

• White Condiments - I have been putting sour cream on most foods, but for sweets I prefer cool whip.
• Sarah Mclachlan's cover of Kermit the Frog's "Rainbow Connection." It nearly brought me to tears last week. Just so pretty.
• The SAINTS! NFC Championship here we come!!!
• My Boss - made me a pan full of homemade lemon bars and they were delicious...how cool is that guy? Also he quoted "The Big Lebowski" during lunch and couldn't stop giggling about it.
• "Irreplaceable" by Beyonce. I realize it is a lil dumb and she rhymes the word "minute" with, well, "minute", but I love it so.
• The TV show "Sports Night". Have you seen it? You should.

This will have to do for now. Before I sign off, here is a great recipe I tried for super-low-fat pita pizzas. They were DELICIOUS. I recommend dipping them in SOUR CREAM.

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Place pita on cookie sheet and spread store bought pizza sauce on it (I used Contadina...it came in a squeeze bottle!).
3. Top with mozzarella cheese and sprinkle on some Italian seasoning.
4. For toppings, I used low fat turkey pepperoni (which is surprisingly really good) and I sauteed some onions, peppers, mushrooms, and tomatoes in olive oil. YUM.
5. Bake 6-8 minutes.
6. Enjoy!

Love you all!