Why Today Rocks. . .

After 5 months of waiting, I'm going to see Les Mis tonight. In case you didn't know, it's one of the best plays ever written! I sang the soundtrack in my car all week until today. Sad. . . I'll never make it to broadway - they just don't appreciate my talent for singing and driving at the same time. Their loss, I guess? So excited! 3 hours and counting. . .

Reality Overload

What a night it was. I'm still overwhelmed by what I saw. A bird? Nope. A plane? Nope. Superman? Not really. . . unless you consider Blake, Andrew and Apollo supermen. . .which really isn't that far fetched, by the way!

I wouldn't say that under normal circumstances I'm what you would call a "reality TV junkie' - that is of course unless it comes in the form of former MTV casts competing for great prizes in the middle of Africa. "What? Such a show exists?" you ask? It sure does. In the form of The Inferno 3. I'll be the first to admit that I can't get enough of it, not for a second. I love it, I live it, I breathe it. So what? So trashy. . .

Anyway, with the exception of my little MTV addiction, I'm not really into reality TV that regularly. Sure, I'll catch an occasional episode here or there but nothing that I can't walk away from. Last night, I discovered why it is that people get sucked in like a bug in a vacuum to these things. My two great friends Melissa and Rachael follow a good number of reality shows including, but certainly not limited to, The Bachelor: Officer and a Gentleman, Dancing With the Stars, and American Idol. Last night, they made me watch and honestly. . . I thank them for it. I don't know if I am more grateful that I watched because I had something to discuss at work today or because they didn't make me watch the whole season, just the final two episodes of each show. Now THAT'S how you watch reality TV people. . . take the final two episodes and multiply it by 20 and you have the whole season! SPOILER ALERT: if you haven't seen these final episodes, you may not want to read on. . .

I got to see, over the course of about 4 hours, Andrew pick Tessa (the good girl) on The Bachelor, Apollo hip hop his way to victory with the Utah girl (who says we don't have rhythm?) and frankly, Jordin kick Blake's booty in America's favorite talent show (I know earlier that I said that Blake was a superman and he was, Jordin was just better. "Shot to the Heart. . ." and I'm to blame, but she was!)

Anyway, 4 hours, 3 shows on tivo plus a Jazz game (I don't care what you say, I still love Fisher!). Now that is some effective TV watching. I may just have to take up watching reality TV. . . the last week of it that is!

The Power of a Sandwich

I went to grab lunch today at the closest place to work. . . The Sandwich Loft. Shameless Plug: 5" Turkey and American = 5 inches of heaven. And, they've gotten me to like soup again, even in 80 degree weather. Way to go delicious food makers. Anyway, I'd like to say that I went there because I'm in a big time crunch and I'm too busy to drive far, but it was more shear laziness than anything as here I am, writing, again, on my lunch hour.

Anyway, on my way back from lunch, I stated reflecting on things. This fine establishment is only about 3 minutes away so there wasn't actually a lot of time for reminiscing, but the fact that even a little took place is pretty amazing I would say. Ahh, the power of a simple sandwich. It can really get a girl thinking.

Sidenote: there is either a baby in the office right now or one of my coworkers has taken up an awful whining habit - worse than usual.

So, back to the story. What was I thinking about on my quick jaunt back from The Sandwich Loft? Oddly enough, my New Year's resolutions. Weird, huh? Here we are, just over 4 months since I first published my New Year's Resolutions for the world to see. So, I thought I would take inventory and see how they are coming. I think, off the top of my head, I've actually done pretty well. Let's look, shall we:

1. Live on Purpose. Remember this? it was the one about me being a chicken and how I needed to be brave and live like I mean it? Well, I'm proud to announce that I'm still a chicken. . . wa, wa, waaaah (for those of you who don't get sound effects, that was the disappointing "Kimmy Gibler did it again" music that you see on cheesy sitcoms). I will tell you that I have had my defining moments though where bravery has at least popped it's ugly head in, one last weekend in fact. But I can do better. Time to tell people how I feel. . . maybe? So far, I would say that 2007 is more the year for bravery than 2006 was so at least this resolution isn't a total flop. Still need to work on it though. Where are you people? You're supposed to keep me in check, remember? That's your job! (Sounded brave, huh?)
2. Stop Swearing. Self-explanatory. And I did. . . for a while I even went cold turkey! I am proud to say that I, again, have a clean mouth. The only time that I have really said inappropriate words in the last 5 months has either been for extreme comedic value or to mock my brother for his rants while he watches the Jazz games. Shameless plug: Go Jazz! Western Conference finals, baby! They didn't think you could do it, but you battled through. Just call me Mrs. Fisher. . . Derek Fisher that is! Anyway, I feel better about my language and the big three 'soft' swear words no longer come out unexpectedly.
3. Cook More. Hasn't happened. But, I did stop eating out so much so that's a step in the right direction. I have made more sandwiches for lunch. I just haven't found the time to actually "cook" per se. I did also buy some new cooking items at a Pampered Chef party a couple of months ago so that shows intent, right? Unfortunately, still in the box. I'll get on that one. Oh, I also bought a new b-b-q grill for my backyard so that should help. That counts, right?
4. Don't spend so much on useless crap. Done! Again, sort of. Since my resolutions were made public, I started getting my nails done and that's expensive. But, just last weekend, I took them off in resolution to save the money for something else. So, I'm kind of making progress. I haven't bought many clothes, so that's good. And I didn't go overboard on souvenirs in Hawaii, also good. I would give this one a 5 on a scale of 1-10. . . you decided which end is good and bad! Hahaha.
5. 20 bye 20. I did great on this. This was the no sugar bet that I had and I have to say that I did it with flying colors. I made it all the way until April 24! I did it in hopes of loosing 20 pounds and I lost 13 so that's pretty good, yeah? I also added on a Pizza and Fries fast so I was totally deprived of goodness. Post-Hawaii is a different story. I don't run away from sugar anymore, but I for sure don't eat as much as I did. So, I think it was a good thing. Back on the horse though, need to do it.

So, that's where I stand. Overall, I'd give myself a C+ or a B- on making the grade. I still have some work to do but I am not forgetting that I resolved to do these things in 2007. Keep on me people. . . I'll be a better person yet.

How are your resolutions coming? It's already summer so if you haven't, it's time to get started! If you don't remember what they were, go get a sandwich. It'll get you thinking.

And I'm back in the Game. . .

ALO-O-O-O-O-O-HA! So it's been a long while since I've ranted and I've been feeling the writing itch for about a week now. My best excuse for my absence has been my recent excursion to Polynesia. . . ok, the American part of Polynesia. Melissa, Rachael and I went to Hawaii for about a week and just returned last week tan and happy.

I thought about filling my first blog back with photos of my trip and talking about the glorious things that we did, but I'm not going to do that. . . at least not now. First, my photos are yet to make their way onto my computer to transfer over. Second, we have some more important things to discuss. . . and to do so, I'm returning to the list format that I love ever so much. There are so many things that I could title this list and so many directions that I could go! So, since it's going to be a fairly eclectic list, I should probably just call it: Things I Learned from My Hawaii Trip (boring, I know, but all encompassing so it serves it's purpose.)

1. Don't take that with you! I don't care who you are, everyone always over packs. I think that my bag was AT it's weight limit when we left, which doesn't say much for returning with souvenirs, right. I think a key chain would have put me over. What is it about going on vacation that makes people think they need everything that they might wear or use over a month's time? Maybe it makes us feel like we are more at home but that's the irony - we are leaving to get away from 'stuff' and home. Not to mention, even Hawaii has a Wal-Mart - just in case. So, unless you are truly traveling to a deserted island (again, irony rears it's ugly head because last I checked, you can only bring ONE thing to deserted islands, right? That's what the question book says anyway. . .), fight the urge and leave it home. You'll be ok.
2. Relaxation. . .squashed. Just because you go on vacation and relax and let your nerves die does not mean everyone will be receptive to that when you get back. In fact, nobody else changed while you were gone - remember that. Be prepared for a quick stifling of your mood. It's sad. So, if you are the 'stay at home' part of the equation, do your part and leave the vacationer alone for 2 days. Let them 'climatize' through someone else's emails. They will resent them and not you.
3. Aloha spirit directly translated means pot. I thought it was just a calming spirit of brotherhood and relaxation. . . and it is, but now I know that it's chemically induced! Hawaii, Jamaica. . . there is a lot to be said for those tropical climates and their 'agriculture'.
4. Truly and fully vacation - that's the only way. On my way to Hawaii, I was half sleeping and half thinking about all of the things I left at work. I know I'm not the only one who thinks like this. I was excited to see that my hotel had Internet access and I was only two floors away from checking my work email. Then I realized the battle that was about to ensue. I put myself on work timeout. I could have worried about work at home for free, and heaven knows this trip was not free. So, I stopped. I'm proud to say that I didn't even think about work one time after that minute. It's the only way to come back with that true vacation glow. Testified.
5. I have it so good. Don't get me wrong, there is a lot to be said for living on an island and teaching the 'white man' how to surf (I literally thought about making that my career at multiple points on my little excursion). It's a great life and I have brought back a lot of the feeling that I had in such a laid back environment; some of those things include a new found need to simplify my life and get rid of the unnecessary clutter that cramps my surroundings. BUT, I also gained a new love for the life that I live and a gratitude for the things that I have. I have a new found appreciation for my values, my house, the dry weather and my air conditioning. Mostly, I love the fact that a trip to the grocery store doesn't break the bank. $8 for a gallon of milk? You have to be kidding. My diet of cereal in the morning has returned and I am SO grateful that that stuff is readily available and cheap. Thank heavens.

Those are pretty much the major lessons learned. I'll try and get some pics uploaded soon so you can see the sites of the islands. Loved the trip, glad to be back. And Aloha!