only 12 shopping days left

here are a few things i'd be ever so grateful to receive for my birthday:

machine dreams - little dragon


a box of fresh chocodiles


lemon love candy

thanks in advance!

by request

new year, new update

today my match account expires. at least i think it does. i'm gonna log in when i get home and see.

i ordered a new computer. which means i may be blogging more once i get it. you don't understand how cold it is in my basement. the new computer will go wherever i go. my buddy!

i can't stop shopping. this anthropologie chair i've had my eye on for the longest time is on sale for 50% off. i'm slow-rolling on making the purchase bc i feel like i've bought so much already. but i should probably do it bc who knows when it'll be that price again.

is it possible to love a fabric so much you want to marry it? because i do. once my mom clears her stuff out of her old room it's being turned into a guest room/office. the color scheme will be gray, yellow, black, and white and i purchased this lovely fabric for curtains. oh i'm so into curtains now. i still need to hang my bedroom curtains but i bought new living room curtains and they look great. no pictures now i'm at work.

and that's my new year new update.

*curtsies*

i'm on vacation

i mean, really...i can't be expected to blog while i'm on vacation, right? besides, my home computer is in the basement and it is fuh-reeezing there. at any rate, here i am checking in live from the arctic inner sanctum.

despite it being cold, i've been enjoying my vacation very much. i hosted a dessert swap and made peppermint bark brownies, sock-it-to-me cake, oatmeal raisin choc chip cookies, and also a spinach & turkey lasagna as well as spinach dip. things were shaky at one point but by the grace of god everything turned out delicious. and there is still dessert left. i love hosting parties!

i also got to visit friends and family. my roommate's sisters held a scrapbooking party to collect memories for her daughter (she's such a little cutie!). my aunt made a sunday dinner for us and sent us home with a boatload of food. we spent christmas with my mom at her friend's house and both of them sent us home with food. i think they all believe we're here starving since my mom left. if i play it right i won't have to cook until tuesday or wednesday.

best of all though, i've met someone that i like a lot. like FINALLY! i can honestly say that i'm happy. yay for me :)

oh and i got to hit up woodbury commons for the first time. great outlet shopping. i probably bought too much. i can't (meaning i don't feel like) post(ing) pictures but i'll just say shoes, handbag, jeans, sweaters, blouse, serve ware, springform pans...holler.

the only thing i want for christmas

ok i'd really like a new computer too but that's probably gonna have to wait. in the meantime...

it's a blanket with sleeves!

do you know how annoying it is to be all snuggled under a blanket on the couch (cuz i keeps the thermostat at 67°F) then have to maneuver your arm just so in order to change channels with the remote? do you know what a perfect solution this blanket is? i can just see myself snuggled up (with myself) watching law and order on a saturday afternoon.

found a cure

i'll admit it - i've suffered from roasterphobia for a long while now. but this wknd i think i conquered it.

i'm not really big on cooking - i much prefer baking. i've had the comfort and convenience of living with my mom for the past four years and if i had to choose between my cooking and hers? mom wins EVERY time (except for her dressing, she makes it too dry so i'm in charge of that at thanksgiving). but yeah even in the months before i moved back home my meals had gone from protein/starch/vegetable to turkey pot pie hot pockets (10 for $10 at shoprite). even with the occasional party here and there, it'd been a long time since me and cooking had been acquainted.

now that my mom's gone i have no choice but to cook. when i did cook back in the day it was always something easy like chicken breasts or shake n bake drumsticks. never ever a whole chicken. my biggest issues being salmonella (touch the chicken, wash my hands, touch the chicken, wash my hands © me via filbert) and the chicken not being fully cooked. but i'm a big girl now and it's time to do big girl things. so i perused the grocery flier and saw that oven stuffers were on sale. i called my mom for help and she was so impressed at my attempt. i did what she said and a little bit of my own thing and viola! this is how homie the chicken turned out.


i seasoned it with salt, onion powder, garlic powder, and paprika (i forgot the pepper while caught up in touching the chicken and washing my hands). i also shoved an onion in the cavity for more flavor. i dunno why but it took almost 4hrs for this bird to finish and it was only 7lbs. after the timer popped up i checked by the leg and it was still pink. maybe i'll move the rack up a little higher next time. this lovely little bird was accompanied by fresh string beans from the farmer's market and yellow rice. i brought some in for my lunch today and it was DEEEElicious.

gold star for me!

ch-ch-ch-changes

in a few days my mom will be starting her new job in another state. i have mixed feelings about this but mostly i'm happy she has a better job and that all her STUFF will be out of the house. STUFF is the amalgamation of things she brought from our last place that should've been sorted and thrown out but was instead piled willy nilly in the basement. Goodbye STUFF!

i'm probably gonna have to get a pt job. i've been kind of lax about it but i need to go ahead and find something before there's nothing left. i'm also gonna have to figure out a new workout routine. my beloved cardio kickboxing class was cancelled until further notice at the beginning of this month and i haven't worked out since. i'm gonna be fat and broke if i don't get a move on with these things.

love, need, want...

love:

law & order! yes this show has been around for years but it's only recently become sort of an addiction for me. i only watch it in syndication and when it's a particularly good episode i shake my fist in the air and exclaim "law and orda!" regular law & order is my least favorite bc i get mad at sam waterston for losing all the time. i used to hate criminal intent but it's my favorite now. i like svu too but sometimes i just want tell 'livia "it ain't all about you, boo!"

need: sweaters

it's chilly now and i need to transition my wardrobe into autumn. i hate all my sweaters from last year so i need to get up on some new ones. bargain shopping is the plan for this wknd.

want:


all of these! gimme gimme gimme! *sigh* the first pair is just plain cute. the second would go lovely with this turquoise dress i copped recently. and the third are my sort of odd. i'm hesitating though and i really am on restriction so i most likely won't get them.

happy birthday to me

yeah so today's my birthday and i decided that it'd be a good time to post 100 facts about me. sean asked me to do this like a year ago probably and i've been working on it since then. it's not that easy trying to think of 100 things about yourself. anyway, i finally finished (like 5 minutes ago) so here are my facts. questions about any of them may be posed in the comment section.

100 facts about me

1. i am my mother’s oldest child
2. i have a sister seven years younger than me
3. i got my first “c” in school after she was born
4. i have an older brother and sister from my dad that i don’t see all that much
5. i grew up with my mom’s side of the family including her two older sisters and their children (& their children); i consider them all immediate family.
6. i can attribute my musical tastes to almost each one of those family members
7. i was reading/memorizing books by age 3
8. when i was young my cousins called tv guide because i would read it and memorize the listings and synopses. i always knew what was on.
9. i attended a small private school in newark from pre-school through sixth grade
10. the couple that ran the school became my godparents
11. i suck at keeping in touch with them (and ppl in general)
12. my affinity for 80s r&b comes from all the radio i listened to during my commute to that private school
13. i skipped kindergarten
14. i stopped eating yogurt after vomiting from some bad yoplay yogurt drink in pre-school
15. i studied piano with my godmother for several years but i don’t even remember how to read music now
16. i was always picked to be narrator for our school plays
17. the few feature roles i had were mrs. claus, one of cinderella’s stepsisters, a random princess, and the back end of a cow
18. i attended catholic school for seventh grade
19. i tapped to “pyt” in the seventh grade talent show
20. i got in trouble for writing a scathing essay about my seventh grade teacher keeping our class after school
21. since the school was across town i had to take a cab home. i was left stranded a lot.
22. once i got stranded during a snowstorm and i had to stay at the rectory with the nuns. they made some nasty mac & cheese i refused to eat and we watched jeopardy.
23. i had my mom rewrite a note to my seventh grade crush so he wouldn’t recognize the handwriting and put it in his desk before school. i don’t remember everything it said but i do remember calling him dense.
24. wow...i’m kind of a jerk sometimes
25. when i transferred to public school in eighth grade i had no idea how to dress
26. i had a slight obsession with alf (his poster was over my bed for a bit)
27. i placed second in my eighth grade spelling bee. i misspelled abrasive.
28. i was salutatorian of my eighth grade class
29. my first science project was determining the effect of light on bean growth
30. my first boyfriend was via telephone
31. he subsequently broke up with me via telephone. babyface’s tender lover was playing on video music box at the time.
32. i didn’t get my hair relaxed until tenth grade
33. my first job was a summer internship at exxon r&e
34. i took latin for two years in hs
35. bloom county was my favorite comic strip (i still have my stuffed Opus)
36. my lunch throughout hs consisted of any combination of the following: cheez doodles, choc chip cookies, soft pretzel, fries, and a large mix (fruit punch & grape drink)
37. i graduated hs at 16
38. i was vice president of my hs environmental club
39. i was on the debate team
40. for mock trial i played a woman whose premature baby died bc she was a druggie. i cried on the stand and our team won.
41. my first concert was the ne heartbreak tour at msg
42. my favorite color is green
43. i heart margaritas
44. i don’t like wine
45. i’ve only been in love once
46. i’m a homeowner
47. i’ve had more crushes than relationships
48. i hate to cook
49. i love to bake
50. i’ve seen prince live at least 8 times
51. i enjoy the planning/anticipation aspect more than the actual event
52. i originally wanted to be a dentist
53. i’m a chemist
54. i’m a worrier by nature
55. i can be extremely shy
56. i didn’t start getting my eyebrows arched until after grad school
57. i change my hair often because i get bored with it
58. i lived in atlanta for 7 years
59. i worked at the high museum during the '96 olympics
60. i have a great rack
61. i’m not very patient
62. i used to be a bigger than average *nsync fan
63. i’ve seen them in concert three times
64. i sleep in a pair of USA shorts from the limited (mid 90s) during my cycle
65. i’m currently addicted to law & order (criminal intent is the fav right now)
66. i have a ridiculous sweet tooth
67. i didn’t learn how to ride a bike until i was 12
68. i haven’t ridden once since my brakes failed while careening down evergreen hill (i was 14 maybe when that happened)
69. i finally figured out how to do the roger rabbit six years ago
70. i can only do it really well to “every little step i take”
71. i didn’t know how to blow my nose until i was like 7 or 8 (maybe 9 or 10?)
72. as a result, i used to get my nose cleaned with bobby pins
73. i was constipated a lot as a child so my mom would stick suppositories up my bum
74. i caught the chicken pox in either pre-school or first grade
75. i still have a pox scar on my scalp near the nape of my neck
76. my most vivid memory of pre-school is dancing to disco inferno after nap time
77. speaking of pre-school, i got a piece of cellophane wrapper from a box of ludens cough drops stuck in my nose. it was there all day until my mom picked me up and got it out with some tweezers.
78. i have a mark on my left arm from walking into a curling iron
79. my left eye is bigger than my right eye
80. i used to have a wart on my right ring finger but it fell off one thanksgiving while i was washing dishes
81. i also had a callus on that same finger from holding my pencil the wrong way
82. i stopped wearing open toe shoes after this guy in hs told me i had fred flintstone toes
83. i’m not ashamed of my toes anymore
84. the first cassette tape i owned was al b. sure! in effect mode
85. the first cd i bought was brandy’s debut
86. i didn’t own a dvd player until 2002
87. i used to make clothes for my barbies out of paper towels. i would cut out patterns and stitch them together with whatever i could find in my mom’s sewing box.
88. i also used to set their hair with foil & water. i would cut their hair too.
89. i don’t know how to cornrow
90. or jump double dutch
91. i do know how to french braid
92. i’ve never liked rkelly and judge ppl that do (including my bff)
93. i hate my middle name but not enough to have it legally removed
94. the smell of cereal in milk makes me sick to my stomach even though i ate it as a child
95. i’m lactose intolerant
96. my voicemail greeting from sophomore year of college was me rapping over the instrumental to “it ain’t hard to tell”
97. i really do play the cowbell
98. in grad school my bf and i had a standing friday night date to watch homicide: life on the streets
99. i’m 5’1”
100. i have to sleep on whichever side of the bed is closest to the wall

ugh

my bday is soon and i'm not happy
i'm happier than i was last week
but still i'm not all that happy
i wasn't gonna blog abt it
bc i really don't feel like explaining

i was a monster last week
and i wanna cry
but i haven't been able to
it just won't come out
i can't remember ever feeling this bad around my bday
i need fairy dust and new shoes
and lots o cake

tag i'm it!

miss lenee tagged me with the following meme:

Rules
1. Put your itunes/music player on shuffle
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER WHAT
After you’ve answered all of the questions, tag 5 other people and then let them know they’ve been tagged to do the meme themselves!

ok. heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeere we go...

IF SOMEONE SAYS “IS THIS OKAY” YOU SAY?
"adore" - prince (live)

WHAT WOULD BEST DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONALITY?
"anotherloverholenyohead" - prince (i swear this is on shuffle...i'm cracking up right now)

WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL?
ok another prince song came up :(...i'm clicking next again
LOL still prince..."extraloveable" (it was "endorphinemachine" before)
btw i'm skipping the prince stuff from now on otherwise my answers will be all prince

HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY?
"too high" - hugo montenegro

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE’S PURPOSE?
"kije's ouija" - the free design (i don't think i've ever listened to this song before)

WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO?
"don't disturb this groove" - the system

WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU?
"cold blooded" - rick james (HA!)

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR PARENTS?
"detroit winter" - ppp feat invincible

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN?
"always on my mind" - brandy (awwwwwwww...sniffle)

WHAT IS 2+2?
"closer" - slum village

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND?
"that girl" - stevie wonder (that's *my* theme song though)

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
"one lovas" - dwele

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY?
"everybody wants to rule the world" - tears for fears

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP?
"far beyond" - locksmith

WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
"happy song (tonite)" - blackstreet

WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU?
"just like a baby" - sa-ra creative partners

WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING?
"let me love you" - lalah hathaway (*does the wop*)

WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL?
"i love you" - cheri dennis feat jim jones & black rob

WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST?
"i'd die without you" - pm dawn (that's kinda sick)

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET?
"good love" - daru & reggie b (hubba hubba)

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS?
"the smurf" - tyrone brunson (i'm dying yo)

WHAT SHOULD YOU POST THIS AS?
"after the worries" - ppp


i'm tagging whoever reads my blog. that means YOU, pal.

FOR SALE

size 8 gladiator wedge
worn approximately 5 minutes
gel pads included

wtf was i thinking?

i mean what in the world would make me think i could possibly wear 4" heels (even though they were wedges) traipsing around the uneven streets of nyc in search of sustenance and then stand for hours on the hardest floor amongst all music venues? must've been all that tunisian myrrh i inhaled (jokes n jokes n spaghetti).

i had this dress in mind to wear to the j*davey show last night (yup, saw them again) but i wasn't completely satisfied with my choice of shoe. so i hit the mall in search of something better and left with the aforementioned pair of sandals. now i knew in my heart when i bought them that they were going to hurt. but they were so dang'on meOW i had to get them. i told myself, "self, just buy some footpads. you'll be gellin!" when i got back to my office i compared my two shoe choices (the 2nd choice being a pr of kitten heel metallic slides) and even emailed pics to my homeboy for his opinion. he said the wedges gave the outfit more edge* (no he's not gay...perhaps he should've been).

with that in mind my plan of action was as follows:

1 - buy gel pads to cushion balls of my feet
2 - keep flip flops in purse in case i don't make it
3 - if worse comes to worst, put on choice #2

and here's what happened:

1 - bought dr. scholls gel pads
2 - realized they don't really cushion the balls of my feet
3 - changed to flip flops while driving (DO NOT RECOMMEND)
4 - changed back to wedges at venue
5 - back straight, shoulders back, chest out (rawr)...walked with my homie to find food
5a - calves began to throb (ruh roh shaggy)
6 - noticed cabbies, truck drivers, and the like giving me the slack jawed ogle
7 - felt like a hooker, stinging sensation grew in the balls of my feet (MAY DAY, MAY DAY...WE'RE GOING DOWN)
8 - changed into flip flops on somebody's stoop
9 - found food (Rare Bar & Grill chicken burger DO RECOMMEND)
10 - eventually changed into slides and threw those godforsaken torture devices into my trunk

really i brought this on myself. i knew it wasn't gonna work but i wanted to believe! i'm gonna try some different gel pads that actually cushion the balls of my feet. if that doesn't work these chumpies are indeed for sale. i'm determined to conquer heels though. i'm a grown ass woman and i need to learn how to make them work for me.
________________________________

*don't NEVER EVER EVER take shoe advice from a man. they don't care about your comfort and they don't see you in the shoe -- they just see a foot in a shoe. and they probably see that foot in the shoe in the air, on the wall or over their shoulder.

o buddy...what a waste!

there is a perfectly good thunderstorm happening right now and i'm at work. i'd much rather be at home enjoying it. alone or not.

they're all gone

this photo was taken after my grad school commencement ceremony. the three people pictured here with me were my closest friends during college and beyond -- our little jersey crew. they have all passed away.

i met warren and kyle my freshman year of college. one of my roommates was dating their friend and we'd all hang out on the wknds. warren was the oldest friend i'd had at that point so i used to call him "uncle warren" just to annoy him. kyle was really skinny and fond of singing/rapping along loudly to whatever warren was playing in his bronco.

i first met kira the summer before ninth grade. we were in a summer science program together at at&t. we would go on to be friends in high school since we had a lot of classes together and we ended up going to the same college and grad school. we weren't really close until college where i became her unofficial roommate first semester sophomore year (she had a single and i lived off campus) and official roommates from junior year through grad school.

we experienced a lot together -- all of us. good times and bad times. good relationships and bad relationships. a whole lot of fun though. even as each of us branched off into our own things we still all kept in touch.

kyle died first. i can't even remember what year...i wanna say 2001. it was cancer. i remember the last time i spoke to him on the phone we joked about his chemo. i asked him if he still had hair on his ass and he said he did...lol. it was kira who called to tell me he had passed. i didn't make it to his funeral.

warren had a heart attack in 2003. kyle's girlfriend called to tell me and i had to call kira. it was too much for her so she didn't make the service. i had to go though...it was my very first funeral. out of all of them i was probably closest to warren. he was like a brother to me and i could talk to him about anything. he used to clown my boyfriends and wash my car for free at his detailing spot. i still miss him so much.

kira passed two weeks ago. two days after giving birth to her first child. i blogged about attending her wedding last year and her baby shower in april. i'm still not exactly sure how it happened but i was devastated by the news. her funeral was harder than i thought it would be. seeing her family grieving was so heartbreaking because i know firsthand how close they all are. i just can't believe she's gone.

i feel some kind of way about all of them being gone. i never imagined they wouldn't be here with me. i can't even wrap up this entry with some they'll always be with me cliche because i'm still processing.

i really do miss them all.

smitten

out of the mouths of babes

so yesterday i hosted my alumnae chapter's monthly meeting at my home and one of the women brought her daughter along. she's a precocious child, so tall for age that i can't remember if she's 4 or 5 or 6 and blessed with the gift of gab. i ended up sitting with her in the kitchen during meal time to keep her from 1) stabbing my chocolate cavity maker cake and 2)dropping food on my hardwood floor.

we conversed about a myriad of topics including what i put in the cake, what i put in the rest of the food, her neighbors, and my neighbors. she asked if my neighbors have any kids ("no") and are they getting any kids ("no"). then the conversation turned towards me...

do you have any kids?
no.
are you getting any kids?
no.
why not?
because i'm not married yet. you have to be married to have kids.

at this point her eyes opened real wide and rolled to the back of her head. then her neck swung to the right and came 'round back to the left as she sighed, "gurrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrl..." (she moved in close to my face)"...you mean you're not married yet?!"

this little girl sonned me in MY OWN HOUSE THAT I PAY FOR!

i couldn't do anything but laugh.

things done changed

yeah so some things that i thought might've happened or wanted to happen ain't really gonna happen. i'm cool with it. i just really hate when things don't come to fruition - part of my whole perfectionist deal. O WELLZ! lots of other things coming down the pipeline so my lamenting will be brief.

i got my kanye tickets yesterday and from the looks of the seating chart the seats are pretty suhweet. i'll be wearing my "i <3 pharrell" glow in the dark tee that i haven't made yet. (omg i can't believe i really used to make tees and wear them in public. i should unearth my donwill tee for the next tanya morgan show.)

my lil homie called me at work today and we had a full conversation (hi. how are you? good. miss you. mwahh!) it's so amazing to me bc she's not even two yet. i guess this is old hat to ppl with kids but it's very fascinating to me. i have video of her making her mean face (her dad taught her that) and also of her applying chapstick. i'm gonna be the WORST when i have my own - i just know it.

spring fever

i got it bad!

despite my allergies (which aren't so bad today. i guess the claritin finally started kickin' in), i am so distracted by all this beautiful weather we've been having here on the east coast. last wknd i traveled a little ways south for a baby shower and i'm telling you i didn't want to go home. just being outside walking around for no other reason than to enjoy weather had me in a really great mood - not to mention the outdoor dining (nj really needs more outdoor dining).

my room is completely painted now. i've noticed some spots that could use another coat and the trim needs to be touched up in several places. i blame the colt 45. if i had to do it over again i would shell out the $$ for a professional to get things done in a timely manner but what are you gonna do?

now that the painting is done i'm picking curtains next. actually my mum is gonna make them for me so i ordered some fabric swatches. i've narrowed my choices down to the following:


out of these i have two favorites but we'll see how i feel once i get the swatches.

i'm also selling a bunch of stuff including a dining room set, a desk brand new still in the box, two rugs, lampshades, and pillow shams.


so far i'm going the craigslist route but i may end up having to do another yard sale. i just know i won't get as much money for the items with the yard sale and this stuff is in really good condition. i just need to find the screws for the dining table.

time 4 sum aksion

(red, u were kinda reaching with the phonetics there bud)

i've been getting on my own nerves lately talking about what i wanna do and what i'm gonna do. the time has come for me to put my money where my mouth is. i've never been one to dive head first all willy nilly into a venture - i'm a planner by nature. but you can only plan so much. there comes a time when you have to bite the bullet and go for it.

first up is getting my bedroom painted. if you've seen my bedroom you know that this is no small feat. my cousin is coming on sunday to work it out for me. that means i have a week to buy a ladder, figure out how much paint i need, pick out a trim color, buy paint and supplies, and decide how much i'm gonna pay my cousin. now, i have been agonizing over paint colors since 2006; i even submitted a post about it on apartment therapy. i've watched countless design shows looking for rooms similar to mine to see how they handled painting slanted ceilings. well, now i'm just going for it. it's only paint (she says nervously).

next up is the backyard. i got an estimate for the sump pump issues and while it's more than i want to pay it's not super duper expensive. we're also gonna get the yard cleaned up and a new fence by the driveway. in this same vein, i am currently looking for a lawnmower. my old lawn guy stopped by this wknd but i had to tell him we won't be using his services this year. it's just too expensive, especially when we can do it ourselves. really after paying him for three months i could've bought a nice mower. so yeah, i'm trying to find a nice self-propelled 20-21 incher. i still have no idea what kind of torque i need but hopefully my internets researching will lead me in the right direction.

third up is the bathroom. in a perfect world we'd have a gut reno that would only take a day or two to finish. in the real world i'm gonna try to get the most important things done (new subfloor, floor tile, new toilet & sink, medicine cabinet, lighting, fan installation, and paint) and save the other stuff (new tub & tile and window) for next year. my mom knows a handyman who's done work for her sisters and my grandma gave me electrician info. ideally i'd like to have this done by june.

so this is what will be occupying my time for the next couple of months. i'll also be attempting to have a more enjoyable social life. and since my sister keeps dissing me i'll have to learn to enjoy rolling solo too (luv u boo!).

blah blah blah

- i'm so ready for it to be warm. all this sunshine is such a tease because it's pretty much cold and i'm still wearing my winter coat, scarf, and gloves. today on the way home i cracked the windows anyway and blasted one of my summer songs.

- speaking of music, everything i have is old. my new car has a cd player (i miss my tape deck...how am i supposed to listen to my don't be cruel cassette now?) and all of my cds are old. i mean yeah i bought erykah and janet but umm...i guess i'm not used to them yet? typing this just now i realized that i like things that are familiar to me. but still, i need some new stuff to listen to in the car.

- speaking of listening to music in the car, i haven't quite figured out the best place to mount my xm radio. there's just no convenient place to put it. i'm thinking of having a unit permanently installed...or maybe i'll get rid of it altogether. i haven't decided yet.

- speaking of being indecisive, i need to figure out what to do. i haven't yet and i'm not sure where to start or how to approach it. at least i've decided that i definitely have to do something. and not the same thing i've been doing either.

- speaking of doing something, i'm having a shopping party next month at the local spa. it's gonna be fresh and i'll be posting more info very soon.

- speaking of fresh, why yes...yes i am.

- ok not really because although i've been having better luck doing my hair myself (new products, less laziness) i'm really ready for it to be grown out. at least another inch. next appt i'm getting a roller set.

- i semi-organized one of my closets this wknd and every time i walk past it i get a little tingly in my special spot because (almost) all the hangers match and i can see everything i have. i have way more dresses than i thought and i really need to start going out so i can wear them.

- i'm getting an estimate tomorrow for my sump pump issues. how much can it cost to dig a trench and lay some pipe? ooba dooba © george jetson...pray for my wallet.

- i ight-may e-bay oing-gay oo-tay uh-thay each-bay af-ay er-tay all-ay. i just had an urge to type phonetically in pig latin.

- i'm still waiting for my uncle to send me photos from the concert. he took like a bajillion of them. he's performing in newark on friday so i plan to show up and harass him. or i could call.

i think that's it

and then it hit me...

...all at once.

i am so tired right now.

like i wanna put my head down on my desk and take a nap.

everyone enjoyed the concert. i'm not sure yet how much we made because money is still coming in. there are several things i would do differently next year but for the most part things ran smoothly. my only regret is that i didn't get to see the girls perform.

i've been craving and indulging in sugar for the past three days and i feel like crap as a result. and i've been trying to write up this report for two days and can't even concentrate.

so this holiday wknd i'm hoping to reboot and get right. i'm confident i can do it.