I love Christmas. Seriously. LOVE. CHRISTMAS. (Or the holidays to all you non-Christmas celebrators.) I'm so happy around Christmas! Ask anyone! I've decorated my entire condo and my boyfriend's house, too! I just LOVE Christmas! So in a VERY un-like Christmas spirit I have a bone to pick. Yes, this is my Holiday Hate List 2010. I'm sure it'll grow and become another blog post in the following week, but here are the things that drive me crazy this holiday season (Note: Most of these have been observed while sitting in INSANE Atlanta traffic)!
- People with the Apple logo sticker on their car. SERIOUSLY? You love your computer that much that you need to put a sticker on your car to support it. People put college stickers on their car, pro-football stickers, and you have your computer company's sticker on your car - for real? N-E-R-D.
- People with antlers on their car. WHY? That is so cheesy! FYI - your car is not a reindeer. As much as you want it to take flight and bypass all the traffic we are both sitting in, NEWS FLASH, it won't. I also classify Christmas lights and garland in this category.
- People that work in a job that REQUIRES specific knowledge about the products they sell! Normally I'd say this definitely applies to Best Buy, Home Depot, RadioShack; however, come this holiday season, it should apply EVERYWHERE. In the Buckhead ULTA today, I'm trying to decipher the difference between a $99.99 Chi Straighter, a $159.99 Chi Straighter, and a $179.99 Chi Straighter. The box is in Swedish and the English subtitle is very minimal. The sales person has no idea the difference between the three and tells me she doesn't use Chi straighteners. Um, do you work here though? The cashier also doesn't know how to call another store to ask. WOW! I didn't even wait for her to make a 2nd attempt. I left the store and went out to the ULTA in Alpharetta, where service is phenomenal, and they were able to answer my question in 2.2 seconds. Moral of the story: KNOW YOUR STUFF PEOPLE!
- Websites that advertise "Gifts under $25" and the first item listed is $29.99. Hm...pretty sure I didn't need to go to Georgia Tech (Go Jackets!) to tell you that $29.99 is not under $25. WHY! This is such a tease!
- People driving bad while on the cell phone. If you can't drive and talk at the same time (not that hard), then DON'T. I was almost hit about 14 times today by people on their cell phone! This is also the slow person driving 10 MPH in the left hand lane and when you pass them and look over, oh WOW! , they are on their cell phone! It's the 21st century, go buy a bluetooth; it's $20! Or put it on speaker phone. And if you don't have that functionality, I work at the big T (NYSE) so I'll point you in the right direction.
Phew! So glad I got that out! This cocktail I'm drinking is definitely helping :) Now, my next post will be more Christmas upbeat because I can't wait! Christmas is in less than 10-days!
Ciao yall!
Kristin
PS - Thanks to the other K and A for their shout outs to Kirk-a-doodle! STATE CHAMPS BABY!
Friday, December 17, 2010
Sunday, December 12, 2010
CONGRATULATIONS COUGARS
On Friday, December 10th, the Chattahooche Cougars beat (actually, let's be honest, destroyed) Starrs Mill High School with a stunning shutout of 24-0! Therefore becoming the 2010 Georgia State Champions!
Congratulations to the Chattahoochee Cougars and our favorite player, Kirk!!
Congratulations to the Chattahoochee Cougars and our favorite player, Kirk!!
In the presence of Excellence! Kenneth, Kirk, & Kristin
Friday, December 10, 2010
GOOD LUCK COUGARS!
Pictured: Kristin Dumont and Kirk DumontJust wanted to let all viewers know that tonight, the Chattahoochee Cougar football team is going to the State Championship game at the Georgia Dome! Good luck to all Cougars tonight, especially our favorite Cougar, KIRK DUMONT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thursday, December 9, 2010
The Things You'll See on a Plane...
...never fail to amaze me.
Besides my luggage loading issue, I encountered some fantastic things in the last two days on my way to-and-from San Diego and I'm looking forward to more this weekend en route to NYC and back.
I had a total of 4 flight segments. Tampa to Atlanta. Atlanta to San Diego. San Diego to Kansas City. Kansas City to Tampa. Normally I don't see many pets on flights but somehow, I ended up with a pet on every leg of this trip. First it was a cat a few rows in front of me which I'm certain did not help the way I was feeling. Next was a fat sweater-wearing Chihuahua across the aisle who is apparently too good for his carrier because he sat/slept on his mother's lap balled up in a dog-inspired homemade fleece knot blanket. Granted, his back end stayed in his little box, if that's any consolation. Today, on both flights, there was a little black what-seemed-to-be-Chihuahua huddled under my seat. I'm pretty sure I kicked her a few times because I forgot she was down there. Her retaliation was horribly stinky dog farts. Either that or she pooped her box.
I think the highlight was on my 7am (10am EST) flight out of San Diego, the two women in the row across the aisle ordered jack and cokes during beverage service. This was at 7:30 PST/10:30 EST...so while it may be 5 o'clock somewhere, it sure ain't 5 o'clock in the US! Then I realized, they weren't actually drinking "jack and coke", they were enjoying jack with a side of coke. One drank the jack straight and the other drank it with water. As if 1 round each wasn't enough on this early morning flight, they ordered round 2. To top it all off, one was flipping through a book titled "Fighting Fat" while sipping on her breakfast jack. Perhaps you should cut back on your early-morning booze consumption in favor of some nice water or tea, you'd be more successful it "fighting the fat"...It's just a thought...
Besides my luggage loading issue, I encountered some fantastic things in the last two days on my way to-and-from San Diego and I'm looking forward to more this weekend en route to NYC and back.
I had a total of 4 flight segments. Tampa to Atlanta. Atlanta to San Diego. San Diego to Kansas City. Kansas City to Tampa. Normally I don't see many pets on flights but somehow, I ended up with a pet on every leg of this trip. First it was a cat a few rows in front of me which I'm certain did not help the way I was feeling. Next was a fat sweater-wearing Chihuahua across the aisle who is apparently too good for his carrier because he sat/slept on his mother's lap balled up in a dog-inspired homemade fleece knot blanket. Granted, his back end stayed in his little box, if that's any consolation. Today, on both flights, there was a little black what-seemed-to-be-Chihuahua huddled under my seat. I'm pretty sure I kicked her a few times because I forgot she was down there. Her retaliation was horribly stinky dog farts. Either that or she pooped her box.
I think the highlight was on my 7am (10am EST) flight out of San Diego, the two women in the row across the aisle ordered jack and cokes during beverage service. This was at 7:30 PST/10:30 EST...so while it may be 5 o'clock somewhere, it sure ain't 5 o'clock in the US! Then I realized, they weren't actually drinking "jack and coke", they were enjoying jack with a side of coke. One drank the jack straight and the other drank it with water. As if 1 round each wasn't enough on this early morning flight, they ordered round 2. To top it all off, one was flipping through a book titled "Fighting Fat" while sipping on her breakfast jack. Perhaps you should cut back on your early-morning booze consumption in favor of some nice water or tea, you'd be more successful it "fighting the fat"...It's just a thought...
Be Considerate of Others at Work!
I love where I work, it's a fun advertising agency! The office space is very open and we have a full kitchen right in the center, we have three refrigerators always stocked with people's food, mainly their lunches but other snacks as well.
I've recently started to bring my own lunch. It's easier then running out every day, it saves money and I can eat healthy! One of the main reason's I do it, is probably because I'm lazy and I don't like to run out every single day, it's a waste of time.
Out of the 70 people in this office, probably half bring their lunch every day. Good for them. Here is what I have a problem with:
Is it absolutely necessary for you to cook a shrimp Lean Cuisine nearly every day? Here list of daily smells that I have the pleasure of experiencing:
Popcorn - Any time of the day... Although I do LOVE popcorn I do not want to smell it at 10am. I only like to enjoy popcorn at the movie theater.
Some sort of seafood - I kid you not. There is always so sort of fishy smell lurking through the office at lunch time. The only time I want to smell seafood is when I'm in Florida at Joes Crap Shake eating crab legs till I explode.
Catfood - Yes, I know what you're thinking. Not really cat food, I'm assuming tuna. I'll admit, that I'm a tuna fan, but how on earth do you manage to make it smell like cat food?
Peanuts - You wouldn't think this is a problem, but if someone is munching on peanuts right near you... with their mouth open or maybe on a conference call. It becomes a problem.
Hand Sanitizer - I know this isn't a food (for most) but this is one of the most obnoxious smell's I've ever experienced. I personally loathe hand sanitizer. It makes me want to vomit. But I don't mind if people want to use it to kill germs, I just need to know if it's necessary to bathe yourself in it hourly?
Grandma's basement - Another non-food item. How do you shower every morning (I can tell you do) and still show up to work smelling like your grandma's old musty basement? Are you showering if her basement before you come here? Or maybe that's a new cologne/perfume they are selling at Walmart. Either way... you are getting some Dove from Santa in your stocking this year and I would really enjoy if you used it.
I'm sure there are many other scents, that I will think of around noon today, but those are the main ones! Happy Smelling!!!!! :)
I've recently started to bring my own lunch. It's easier then running out every day, it saves money and I can eat healthy! One of the main reason's I do it, is probably because I'm lazy and I don't like to run out every single day, it's a waste of time.
Out of the 70 people in this office, probably half bring their lunch every day. Good for them. Here is what I have a problem with:
Is it absolutely necessary for you to cook a shrimp Lean Cuisine nearly every day? Here list of daily smells that I have the pleasure of experiencing:
Popcorn - Any time of the day... Although I do LOVE popcorn I do not want to smell it at 10am. I only like to enjoy popcorn at the movie theater.
Some sort of seafood - I kid you not. There is always so sort of fishy smell lurking through the office at lunch time. The only time I want to smell seafood is when I'm in Florida at Joes Crap Shake eating crab legs till I explode.
Catfood - Yes, I know what you're thinking. Not really cat food, I'm assuming tuna. I'll admit, that I'm a tuna fan, but how on earth do you manage to make it smell like cat food?
Peanuts - You wouldn't think this is a problem, but if someone is munching on peanuts right near you... with their mouth open or maybe on a conference call. It becomes a problem.
Hand Sanitizer - I know this isn't a food (for most) but this is one of the most obnoxious smell's I've ever experienced. I personally loathe hand sanitizer. It makes me want to vomit. But I don't mind if people want to use it to kill germs, I just need to know if it's necessary to bathe yourself in it hourly?
Grandma's basement - Another non-food item. How do you shower every morning (I can tell you do) and still show up to work smelling like your grandma's old musty basement? Are you showering if her basement before you come here? Or maybe that's a new cologne/perfume they are selling at Walmart. Either way... you are getting some Dove from Santa in your stocking this year and I would really enjoy if you used it.
I'm sure there are many other scents, that I will think of around noon today, but those are the main ones! Happy Smelling!!!!! :)
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Traveling this Holiday Season?
If you plan on traveling this holiday season, please be kind to your fellow travelers. As I am mid-air right now, I feel it's important to reflect and share my thoughts on some of my pet peeves that seems to anger me more and more every time I fly...
PLEASE USE THE OVERHEAD BINS AND UNDER SEAT STORAGE APPROPRIATELY! If your bag fits in wheels/handle first, put it in the damn bin in that direction! And let me tell you folks, most bags fit wheels first! If, and ONLY if, your the bin does not close when you put your bag in wheels first can you then turn it sideways, therefore taking up at least half the bin with your oversized carry-on.
Trust me the space under your seat is larger than you'd expect. If my dog (who, I'll admit isn't all that big) can fit under the seat, your briefcase/purse/backpacks/lunchbox/etc will surely fit under the seat.
I also recommend thinking ahead. Start scouting out overhead bin spaces a few rows early. Count out which row is yours, look above it to see if there appears to be bin space, if not, put your bag into the first bin you see. It's a lot easier to claim your bag when the plane lands if it's in front of you. If it's not in front or you or above/below you when you reach the gate because of limited available space, just sit quietly until there is an opportunity to head towards the back of the plane to claim your stuff. Don't start pushing and shoving your way through the antsy crowd because you're a rude dumbass.
I could go all day but I'll end there. This holiday season, practice considerate traveling. Stop being so selfish and start being kind to others. Otherwise, be prepared to hear from me because I'm not sure how much longer I can watch people pull these stunts.
On a related note: I'd like to thank the Delta flight attendant today who went through the cabin, rearranging the overhead compartments to allow others to safely store their belongings. To the woman who insisted on jamming her suitcase into my bag because she decided to not to in wheels first (despite knowing damn well it fits because the flight attendant later turned it, saving my bag): I hope you have a rotten Christmas.
PLEASE USE THE OVERHEAD BINS AND UNDER SEAT STORAGE APPROPRIATELY! If your bag fits in wheels/handle first, put it in the damn bin in that direction! And let me tell you folks, most bags fit wheels first! If, and ONLY if, your the bin does not close when you put your bag in wheels first can you then turn it sideways, therefore taking up at least half the bin with your oversized carry-on.
Trust me the space under your seat is larger than you'd expect. If my dog (who, I'll admit isn't all that big) can fit under the seat, your briefcase/purse/backpacks/lunchbox/etc will surely fit under the seat.
I also recommend thinking ahead. Start scouting out overhead bin spaces a few rows early. Count out which row is yours, look above it to see if there appears to be bin space, if not, put your bag into the first bin you see. It's a lot easier to claim your bag when the plane lands if it's in front of you. If it's not in front or you or above/below you when you reach the gate because of limited available space, just sit quietly until there is an opportunity to head towards the back of the plane to claim your stuff. Don't start pushing and shoving your way through the antsy crowd because you're a rude dumbass.
I could go all day but I'll end there. This holiday season, practice considerate traveling. Stop being so selfish and start being kind to others. Otherwise, be prepared to hear from me because I'm not sure how much longer I can watch people pull these stunts.
On a related note: I'd like to thank the Delta flight attendant today who went through the cabin, rearranging the overhead compartments to allow others to safely store their belongings. To the woman who insisted on jamming her suitcase into my bag because she decided to not to in wheels first (despite knowing damn well it fits because the flight attendant later turned it, saving my bag): I hope you have a rotten Christmas.
Friday, November 26, 2010
Happy Holidays from the KAK Team!
http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/MOETrfPB5B6i6FgK?cmpid=ey_fb_friend
(Thanks to Kirk Dumont for making this!)
(Thanks to Kirk Dumont for making this!)
Monday, November 22, 2010
We Survived...Barely
Well folks, we made it through Engaged Encounter in one piece. Every second of the weekend was exactly what I expected. The good news is, throughout the entire weekend, we were only forced to participate and share with the whole group once, most of the time the "sharing" was done on our own. Here's the breakdown:
Day 1: We started off strong by getting there a little late, luckily we weren't the only ones. Upon entering our rooms, which were in separate "cottages" we were greeted by a fairly nice but stark bedroom and bathroom. There was a queen bed and a cot in each room...that's an awkward way to make friends. My roommate had already been by to drop her stuff because, of course, she wasn't running a little late. We started promptly at 8:00 and the 2 "presenting couples" (aka couples that have been happily married for a long time) and the priest introduced themselves and we went around the room and did the same (this was the only forced group share). Then we jumped into our first 2 activities. What did we learn? I don't necessarily remember but each activity went the same way. Listen to the presenting couples talk for about 20 minutes about real-life examples of whatever the current topic is and then the priest wraps it up. We then separated (the girls and guys take turns leaving the room) and we had 20 minutes to write in our little journal about the topic at hand, luckily there were some leading questions to help this process. Then, you go find your fiance and spend the next 20 minutes reading each others journal entry and discussing. At 10:40 we were released to our rooms where we crashed. PS my roommate, Grace, a very nice girl from the Philippines, insisted I take the queen bed and how could I argue?
Day 2: Let the torture begin. Breakfast, which began with a prayer of course, was promptly at 8am. I tend to try to avoid 8am on Saturdays but I guess this wasn't an option. Breakfast consisted of fake eggs, french toast, bacon, sausage, fruit, cereal, yogurt, coffee and tea. We then had more "activities" from 9-12. Noon was lunch: sandwiches (turkey, ham or tuna), chips, cookies, chili, cheddar and broccoli soup. Then from 1-2 we had another activity and then the best part of the day. We had a BREAK...FREE TIME from 2-4 where we could do whatever we wanted, on the property. Many people took their comforters onto the lawn and laid in the sun like a weird picnic, we wandered around and rocked in the big comfy rocking chairs. From 4-6 we had more sessions, dinner was at 6 (caesar salad, tortellini, meatballs in marinara, shrimp alfredo, garlic bread, strawberry cheesecake). We had another sessions from 7-8. At 8 we hit the chapel for a teaching-mass where the priest did a normal mass but stopped along the way to explain things to those who aren't catholic (or don't pay attention normally). I actually enjoyed that because I finally knew what the heck was going on. Also interesting: In the cycle of 1 year's time, they entire Bible is read during sunday mass. Which leads me to my next question: If you get through the whole Bible every year, why go to church every sunday for years and years and years? Mike said until I memorize the Bible, that's flawed logic. I disagree. More activities after mass. One of these activities included pulling questions from the box in the front of the room where people could submit questions for the group to answer. These questions included "Is it true that priests hate weddings", "How does the church feel about women who undergo a sex change and marry a man?" and "If I'm not Catholic, can I still take communion at the wedding?". Most of these were nothing but awkward until we got to this communion question where one delightful soul ended up going into a fit of rage that ended with yelling "MAYBE YOU JUST SHOULDN'T GET MARRIED" at the couple who asked the question. I caused a scene in the middle of all of this because 1 person from each couple had to sit on the floor, Mike voted me. Of course while I was on the floor some strange bug-like creature was crawling quickly toward me causing me to jump up in the middle of the circle while Mike and his neighbors tried to find the monster and everyone else stared at me as I hopped around. As soon as I sat down it started crawling around again and the guy next to me had to kill it. Not sure how the church feels about that either but the person who was talking continued through my display of nonsense. Back to our rooms around 10:30. Oh and there are no TV's in the rooms, only in this little lounge that's in each cottage so we went and watched football with another couple.
Day 3: Breakfast at 8am. Our tummy's hurt but it's breakfast time: more fake eggs, biscuits and gravy, some garbage disposal mixture (which seemed to consist of ham, sweet potatoes, onions, green peppers and other unidentifiable objects), fruit, yogurt, cereal. Needless to say I ate very little and by this point, Mike was threatening to go find the completion certificates and make an escape. 9-noon, more activities. Lunch rolled around at noontime, I thought it was a joke. Actually it was a nice gesture but still a little poorly timed: Turkey, mashed potatoes, green beans, cranberries (which were too tart to even consider eating), rolls, and apple pie. The apple pie stuff was the best part and made up most of my lunch. After lunch we had a little seance or something. I just know there were candles and when asked to hold mine, I was certain I'd drop it and burn the place down. Turns out I just blew it out...hope that's not a sign of our marriage! Because we had mass on day 2 instead of day 3 as planned, we escaped from Alcatraz at 2ish.
Topics Mike and I discussed during our hourly 20 minute sessions to discuss our feelings: 5 minutes of feelings, 15 minutes of whether or not the duck in the pond was real (it wasn't), how sick we feel from the food, what we should get people for Christmas, schedule for Thanksgiving, the houses we've looked at and hated, reflection on how Belle's weekend at the pound was...ok you get the idea.
More details on the girl who exploded: She is weighing in at a very unhealthy weight but that's not as disturbing as her overall demeanor. She is having her reception at the Buccaneers stadium (which doesn't please her) and it's a Buccs themed wedding (which also doesn't please her) and her fiance is doing the planning. The colors are "red and pewter". When the presenting couples were talking about having a fair argument and not to use name-calling, they asked if anyone was guilty of that. While most people wisely kept their mouths shut, this kind lady shouted "YEA! I CALL HIM STUPID"....that happened early on Day 2 and basically set the stage for the rest of their weekend and probably their marriage.
PS...this post got very out of control in the length department!
Day 1: We started off strong by getting there a little late, luckily we weren't the only ones. Upon entering our rooms, which were in separate "cottages" we were greeted by a fairly nice but stark bedroom and bathroom. There was a queen bed and a cot in each room...that's an awkward way to make friends. My roommate had already been by to drop her stuff because, of course, she wasn't running a little late. We started promptly at 8:00 and the 2 "presenting couples" (aka couples that have been happily married for a long time) and the priest introduced themselves and we went around the room and did the same (this was the only forced group share). Then we jumped into our first 2 activities. What did we learn? I don't necessarily remember but each activity went the same way. Listen to the presenting couples talk for about 20 minutes about real-life examples of whatever the current topic is and then the priest wraps it up. We then separated (the girls and guys take turns leaving the room) and we had 20 minutes to write in our little journal about the topic at hand, luckily there were some leading questions to help this process. Then, you go find your fiance and spend the next 20 minutes reading each others journal entry and discussing. At 10:40 we were released to our rooms where we crashed. PS my roommate, Grace, a very nice girl from the Philippines, insisted I take the queen bed and how could I argue?
Day 2: Let the torture begin. Breakfast, which began with a prayer of course, was promptly at 8am. I tend to try to avoid 8am on Saturdays but I guess this wasn't an option. Breakfast consisted of fake eggs, french toast, bacon, sausage, fruit, cereal, yogurt, coffee and tea. We then had more "activities" from 9-12. Noon was lunch: sandwiches (turkey, ham or tuna), chips, cookies, chili, cheddar and broccoli soup. Then from 1-2 we had another activity and then the best part of the day. We had a BREAK...FREE TIME from 2-4 where we could do whatever we wanted, on the property. Many people took their comforters onto the lawn and laid in the sun like a weird picnic, we wandered around and rocked in the big comfy rocking chairs. From 4-6 we had more sessions, dinner was at 6 (caesar salad, tortellini, meatballs in marinara, shrimp alfredo, garlic bread, strawberry cheesecake). We had another sessions from 7-8. At 8 we hit the chapel for a teaching-mass where the priest did a normal mass but stopped along the way to explain things to those who aren't catholic (or don't pay attention normally). I actually enjoyed that because I finally knew what the heck was going on. Also interesting: In the cycle of 1 year's time, they entire Bible is read during sunday mass. Which leads me to my next question: If you get through the whole Bible every year, why go to church every sunday for years and years and years? Mike said until I memorize the Bible, that's flawed logic. I disagree. More activities after mass. One of these activities included pulling questions from the box in the front of the room where people could submit questions for the group to answer. These questions included "Is it true that priests hate weddings", "How does the church feel about women who undergo a sex change and marry a man?" and "If I'm not Catholic, can I still take communion at the wedding?". Most of these were nothing but awkward until we got to this communion question where one delightful soul ended up going into a fit of rage that ended with yelling "MAYBE YOU JUST SHOULDN'T GET MARRIED" at the couple who asked the question. I caused a scene in the middle of all of this because 1 person from each couple had to sit on the floor, Mike voted me. Of course while I was on the floor some strange bug-like creature was crawling quickly toward me causing me to jump up in the middle of the circle while Mike and his neighbors tried to find the monster and everyone else stared at me as I hopped around. As soon as I sat down it started crawling around again and the guy next to me had to kill it. Not sure how the church feels about that either but the person who was talking continued through my display of nonsense. Back to our rooms around 10:30. Oh and there are no TV's in the rooms, only in this little lounge that's in each cottage so we went and watched football with another couple.
Day 3: Breakfast at 8am. Our tummy's hurt but it's breakfast time: more fake eggs, biscuits and gravy, some garbage disposal mixture (which seemed to consist of ham, sweet potatoes, onions, green peppers and other unidentifiable objects), fruit, yogurt, cereal. Needless to say I ate very little and by this point, Mike was threatening to go find the completion certificates and make an escape. 9-noon, more activities. Lunch rolled around at noontime, I thought it was a joke. Actually it was a nice gesture but still a little poorly timed: Turkey, mashed potatoes, green beans, cranberries (which were too tart to even consider eating), rolls, and apple pie. The apple pie stuff was the best part and made up most of my lunch. After lunch we had a little seance or something. I just know there were candles and when asked to hold mine, I was certain I'd drop it and burn the place down. Turns out I just blew it out...hope that's not a sign of our marriage! Because we had mass on day 2 instead of day 3 as planned, we escaped from Alcatraz at 2ish.
Topics Mike and I discussed during our hourly 20 minute sessions to discuss our feelings: 5 minutes of feelings, 15 minutes of whether or not the duck in the pond was real (it wasn't), how sick we feel from the food, what we should get people for Christmas, schedule for Thanksgiving, the houses we've looked at and hated, reflection on how Belle's weekend at the pound was...ok you get the idea.
More details on the girl who exploded: She is weighing in at a very unhealthy weight but that's not as disturbing as her overall demeanor. She is having her reception at the Buccaneers stadium (which doesn't please her) and it's a Buccs themed wedding (which also doesn't please her) and her fiance is doing the planning. The colors are "red and pewter". When the presenting couples were talking about having a fair argument and not to use name-calling, they asked if anyone was guilty of that. While most people wisely kept their mouths shut, this kind lady shouted "YEA! I CALL HIM STUPID"....that happened early on Day 2 and basically set the stage for the rest of their weekend and probably their marriage.
PS...this post got very out of control in the length department!
Friday, November 19, 2010
Please Pray for Us
Tonight Mike and I embark on one of the final pieces of our pre-cana adventure with the church: Engaged Encoutner.
Engaged Encounter, aka church camp, is a weekend long event through the Catholic church which we must complete before we can get married. This begins tonight, promptly at 8pm and ends on Sunday around 4pm. Here's what I know:
**Updates to follow**
Engaged Encounter, aka church camp, is a weekend long event through the Catholic church which we must complete before we can get married. This begins tonight, promptly at 8pm and ends on Sunday around 4pm. Here's what I know:
- This takes place in the middle of the woods north of Tampa in what looks like a very nice, fairly new church retreat center complete with "cottages", conference center, youth center, and ponds
- We have to bring a snack to pass: cookies, chips, etc (We're bringing those cookies I sorta messed up the other day but turned out being fine)
- We have to have a same-sex roommate with whom we share a bathroom. It sounds like there's 1 queen bed and 1 single hideaway bed in each room.
- There will be activities/meetings/etc from 8:30ish in the morning until 9:30ish at night
- We will be fed 5 meals over the course of the weekend: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner on Saturday and Breakfast, Lunch on Sunday
- Cell phones are not permitted in meetings and must be left in the room unless special permission is granted
- Mike and I aren't really "feelings" people so talking about our feelings could get interesting.
**Updates to follow**
Monday, November 15, 2010
The Night I Got Attacked by Lady Antebellum...
As many of you know, I'm the Maid of Honor in one of my best friend's wedding in December. Of all the MOH duties, the Bachelorette party was probably the one I was most excited about it!
After weeks of planning and spending $100's buying inappropriate, skanky Bachelorette decorations and games, which I can't detail because my Dad is an AVID follower of this blog (shout out to The Big Dog Daddy Dumont!), the Bachelorette Party was finally here on Friday night!
Keeping up with my food theme, I'll take a sentence to detail what I made: mini croissants with chicken salad, shrimp cocktail in individual cocktail glasses, veggie plate, baked brie, and chili cheese dip! My co-host, Sara Slugger, brought the booze!
We started the party at my condo (again, won't be detailing the activities - Hi Dad!) and then went out on the town. Everything was going as planned, each girl was completing her required tasks, the Bachelorette was having a blast, and the drinks were flowing.
That was until he showed up. Who is he you ask? I'm not quite sure his name. He has a beard, he's from Augusta, and, oh yea, he's a lead signer in the group Lady Antebellum.
Now, mind you, it is one of my BFF's Bachelorette parties! I wouldn't be a good MOH if I didn't try to get a photo of her and Lady Antebellum. And here goes the conversation:
Me: "Hi! Lady Antebellum (I didn't know his name so I just kept calling him Lady Antebellum). It's one of my best friends Bachelorette party. Do you mind taking a photo with her?"
Lady Antebellum: "Sorry I don't do pictures."
Me: "Um seriously? I didn't even know you were famous - someone had to tell me!"
I turn around and continue talking to his dumpy friend. Lady Antebellum follows me and grabs my arm pulling me aside leaving a bruise on my arm!
Lady Antebellum: "Listen I'm really sorry. I just don't take photos in a bar."
Me: "Again, I don't care! I was just trying to be nice to my friend. I didn't even know who you were!"
Lady Antebellum: "Oh, sorry."
Me: "Well since evidently you are famous - you must know famous people. Have you been on Regis and Kelly? I love Regis - he is my heart and soul!"
Lady Antebellum: "Yea I know Regis - nice guy."
Lady Antebellum's friend then proceeds to interject and tell me how he is not a Georgia Tech fan.
Me: "So you are a UGA fan? Figures!"
Lady Antebellum's dumpy friend: "No, not really a fan of anything."
Me: "So you stand for nothing!"
Then a groupie approaches me to inform me that Lady Antebellum (the group) won Artist of the Year.
Me: "They won artist of the year at the Country Music Awards! Not the Grammy Awards!"
By this time, I'm annoyed and Lady Antebellum is killing my buzz, so I say my goodbyes. The night continues on and I have forgotten about my horrific experience with Lady Antebellum.
I woke up Saturday morning in a haze (take a wild guess why?) to an aching arm. Then it suddenly hit me "I WAS ATTACKED BY LADY ANTEBELLUM AT THE BAR LAST NIGHT!"
A few Tylenol later and a hand print on my arm, I've got a good story at least! And someone else to hate besides Justin Timberlake! KTBSPA!
Ciao yall!
After weeks of planning and spending $100's buying inappropriate, skanky Bachelorette decorations and games, which I can't detail because my Dad is an AVID follower of this blog (shout out to The Big Dog Daddy Dumont!), the Bachelorette Party was finally here on Friday night!
Keeping up with my food theme, I'll take a sentence to detail what I made: mini croissants with chicken salad, shrimp cocktail in individual cocktail glasses, veggie plate, baked brie, and chili cheese dip! My co-host, Sara Slugger, brought the booze!
We started the party at my condo (again, won't be detailing the activities - Hi Dad!) and then went out on the town. Everything was going as planned, each girl was completing her required tasks, the Bachelorette was having a blast, and the drinks were flowing.
That was until he showed up. Who is he you ask? I'm not quite sure his name. He has a beard, he's from Augusta, and, oh yea, he's a lead signer in the group Lady Antebellum.
Now, mind you, it is one of my BFF's Bachelorette parties! I wouldn't be a good MOH if I didn't try to get a photo of her and Lady Antebellum. And here goes the conversation:
Me: "Hi! Lady Antebellum (I didn't know his name so I just kept calling him Lady Antebellum). It's one of my best friends Bachelorette party. Do you mind taking a photo with her?"
Lady Antebellum: "Sorry I don't do pictures."
Me: "Um seriously? I didn't even know you were famous - someone had to tell me!"
I turn around and continue talking to his dumpy friend. Lady Antebellum follows me and grabs my arm pulling me aside leaving a bruise on my arm!
Lady Antebellum: "Listen I'm really sorry. I just don't take photos in a bar."
Me: "Again, I don't care! I was just trying to be nice to my friend. I didn't even know who you were!"
Lady Antebellum: "Oh, sorry."
Me: "Well since evidently you are famous - you must know famous people. Have you been on Regis and Kelly? I love Regis - he is my heart and soul!"
Lady Antebellum: "Yea I know Regis - nice guy."
Lady Antebellum's friend then proceeds to interject and tell me how he is not a Georgia Tech fan.
Me: "So you are a UGA fan? Figures!"
Lady Antebellum's dumpy friend: "No, not really a fan of anything."
Me: "So you stand for nothing!"
Then a groupie approaches me to inform me that Lady Antebellum (the group) won Artist of the Year.
Me: "They won artist of the year at the Country Music Awards! Not the Grammy Awards!"
By this time, I'm annoyed and Lady Antebellum is killing my buzz, so I say my goodbyes. The night continues on and I have forgotten about my horrific experience with Lady Antebellum.
I woke up Saturday morning in a haze (take a wild guess why?) to an aching arm. Then it suddenly hit me "I WAS ATTACKED BY LADY ANTEBELLUM AT THE BAR LAST NIGHT!"
A few Tylenol later and a hand print on my arm, I've got a good story at least! And someone else to hate besides Justin Timberlake! KTBSPA!
Ciao yall!
Kristin
Please Note: Forgive me if I sounded rude, I was over served and was utterly offended that Lady Antebellum wouldn't take a picture with my BFF on her Bachelorette night! I know Cohutta would have done it..................
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
A few years ago I discovered God's gift to the fall: Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies. After making a few tweaks to the recipe I started with, they've become a mainstay to my fall baking endeavors. But, if you know anything about me at all, it's that I'm prone to disaster. I'm a klutz and there's no disguising it. And if you know anything about cooking and baking it's that it's ok to play around a little when you cook but not ok to play as much when you bake. This was a lesson I heard loud and clear the summer I tried to invent my own strawberry daiquiri cookies (don't try that at home, it was one of the biggest mistakes of my baking life).
So here I sit, 7 minutes and 45 seconds away from pulling my 2010's first pumpkin chocolate chip cookies out of the oven. I'm anxious and nervous...because I screwed them up...
First I spilled the oil as I was dumping it into the bowl. How? I don't know but I did so of course I guessed at how much I spilled and just dumped it right back into the bowl. Unfortunately this happens a lot so I'm not concerned about that.
Second, I learned an awesome lesson: baking powder reacts with egg white in a similar fashion as baking soda and vinegar. I learned this when a little baking powder hit the sink where an oozy egg shell was hanging out and the combo began sizzling and bubbling.
Third, another lesson although not as awesome: the cooking spray which was used to grease the cookie sheet should not be ingested...it's nasty.
And finally, my biggest potential mistake. 4 minutes and 35 seconds away from the verdict. The recipe calls for 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Always having this in my cupboard because I'm an avid baker, I grab it without thinking and add it into my 90% complete cookie mixture, the last step before chocolate chips! As soon as I measure and dump it into the mixture I smell something. Hmm, I don't remember vanilla having such a strong odor. I panic and realize what that smell is without even looking at the bottle. It's the secret ingredient for one of my other famous cookie recipes: ALMOND EXTRACT! and 1 teaspoon of that stuff is A LOT!!!! It's very potent.
I'm 2 minutes and 32 seconds away from finding out if I actually screwed up all of my cookies or if I've made a new discovery. Here's to hoping almond extract can't overpower pumpkin!!!
**UPDATE** I screwed up. 1 teaspoon of almond extract CAN overpower a cup of pumpkin. I almost want to throw that almond crap away because it ruins another recipe! The cookies don't taste bad, just not as pumpkiny as I would like...
So here I sit, 7 minutes and 45 seconds away from pulling my 2010's first pumpkin chocolate chip cookies out of the oven. I'm anxious and nervous...because I screwed them up...
First I spilled the oil as I was dumping it into the bowl. How? I don't know but I did so of course I guessed at how much I spilled and just dumped it right back into the bowl. Unfortunately this happens a lot so I'm not concerned about that.
Second, I learned an awesome lesson: baking powder reacts with egg white in a similar fashion as baking soda and vinegar. I learned this when a little baking powder hit the sink where an oozy egg shell was hanging out and the combo began sizzling and bubbling.
Third, another lesson although not as awesome: the cooking spray which was used to grease the cookie sheet should not be ingested...it's nasty.
And finally, my biggest potential mistake. 4 minutes and 35 seconds away from the verdict. The recipe calls for 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Always having this in my cupboard because I'm an avid baker, I grab it without thinking and add it into my 90% complete cookie mixture, the last step before chocolate chips! As soon as I measure and dump it into the mixture I smell something. Hmm, I don't remember vanilla having such a strong odor. I panic and realize what that smell is without even looking at the bottle. It's the secret ingredient for one of my other famous cookie recipes: ALMOND EXTRACT! and 1 teaspoon of that stuff is A LOT!!!! It's very potent.
I'm 2 minutes and 32 seconds away from finding out if I actually screwed up all of my cookies or if I've made a new discovery. Here's to hoping almond extract can't overpower pumpkin!!!
**UPDATE** I screwed up. 1 teaspoon of almond extract CAN overpower a cup of pumpkin. I almost want to throw that almond crap away because it ruins another recipe! The cookies don't taste bad, just not as pumpkiny as I would like...
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
She's stalking my life on the boardwalk...
A Jersey Shore quote that I always found hilarious, yet hoped would NEVER apply to my life.
Here's to hoping..
My roommate from my freshman year of college is literally stalking me. I haven't talked to her in about two years (when her son was born to congratulate her). I did not keep up with her during college and up until a couple of weeks ago, haven't thought about her at all. We are facebook friends (duh) but we don't exchange messages or wall posts. I don't look through her stuff because she is very private (still trying to keep that two year old son hush hush).
A few weeks back she sent me an e mail out of the blue "heard this Christmas song and though of you, since its after my birthday (Oct 12) its time for Christmas music to be in full blast". Ok, I didn't respond (rude I know) but what was there really to say?
Last week. I get an e mail asking me to confirm things only my closest friends know. Weird. How did she know these things? Apparently there is a rat out there... someone who is obsessed with me and talking about me constantly. My stalker admitted that I come up in conversation quite a bit. She even went as far as using a nick-name that only THREE people use and was developed WELL after she transferred from Albion. Then, she went as far as to name drop someone from Albion, saying they were her source but followed it up with a "just kidding haha". That person did not go to Albion when Stalker went there.
To wrap this up nicely with a bow, I'm completely creeped out.
Has anyone out there ever had a stalker? How do you deal with them?!
Here's to hoping..
My roommate from my freshman year of college is literally stalking me. I haven't talked to her in about two years (when her son was born to congratulate her). I did not keep up with her during college and up until a couple of weeks ago, haven't thought about her at all. We are facebook friends (duh) but we don't exchange messages or wall posts. I don't look through her stuff because she is very private (still trying to keep that two year old son hush hush).
A few weeks back she sent me an e mail out of the blue "heard this Christmas song and though of you, since its after my birthday (Oct 12) its time for Christmas music to be in full blast". Ok, I didn't respond (rude I know) but what was there really to say?
Last week. I get an e mail asking me to confirm things only my closest friends know. Weird. How did she know these things? Apparently there is a rat out there... someone who is obsessed with me and talking about me constantly. My stalker admitted that I come up in conversation quite a bit. She even went as far as using a nick-name that only THREE people use and was developed WELL after she transferred from Albion. Then, she went as far as to name drop someone from Albion, saying they were her source but followed it up with a "just kidding haha". That person did not go to Albion when Stalker went there.
To wrap this up nicely with a bow, I'm completely creeped out.
Has anyone out there ever had a stalker? How do you deal with them?!
We'll never "figure it out"?!
Finally taking a much-needed, 5 second break from the daily grind I stumbled across this article on cnn: http://www.cnn.com/2010/LIVING/11/09/generation.thrisis/index.html?hpt=C2 It mentioned "thrisis" in the title and all I wanted to know was what the hell a thrisis is. Turns out it's basically that moment of panic you feel when you realize you're 30, or almost thirty. A cousin of the mid-life and quarter-life crisis, this is a 30-crisis...aka thrisis.
Funny enough, turning 30 has been popping up into my head a lot lately. No, I'm NOT almost 30 although I'm now less than 3 years away as I entered my late-20's this year. But my "pre-hubby" (as he was appropriately named earlier today) will be the big 3-0 in a year. Every year, around my birthday, I wonder "maybe this is the year I'll 'figure it all out'". Luckily I no longer have to wonder when that'll happen because the article tells me I won't figure it out. Ever.
At what point does someone become an adult? It's certainly not 18. Nor is it 21. You can't really be an adult when you're in college, it just doesn't work that way. Plus, I don't know about you, but I was a total moron in college. A lot's changed since then. I don't get carded as much as I used to. In fact, the only people who card me are the people at the grocery store who have to scan my license in order for me to purchase wine so it will allow them to scan the next item in my cart. Does that make me an adult? Nah, probably not.
Hmm...welcome to my thrisis.
Funny enough, turning 30 has been popping up into my head a lot lately. No, I'm NOT almost 30 although I'm now less than 3 years away as I entered my late-20's this year. But my "pre-hubby" (as he was appropriately named earlier today) will be the big 3-0 in a year. Every year, around my birthday, I wonder "maybe this is the year I'll 'figure it all out'". Luckily I no longer have to wonder when that'll happen because the article tells me I won't figure it out. Ever.
At what point does someone become an adult? It's certainly not 18. Nor is it 21. You can't really be an adult when you're in college, it just doesn't work that way. Plus, I don't know about you, but I was a total moron in college. A lot's changed since then. I don't get carded as much as I used to. In fact, the only people who card me are the people at the grocery store who have to scan my license in order for me to purchase wine so it will allow them to scan the next item in my cart. Does that make me an adult? Nah, probably not.
Hmm...welcome to my thrisis.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Annoyed in NY
I'm in Long Island this week for the annual kickoff meeting for work. It's always nice to get together and see everyone in person that I secretly praise or bash all day long in the comfort of my own home. The problem is that I'm cold and there's a frost advisory tonight. Actually, I take that back, that's not the problem at all. The problem is that I'm tired and this hotel (aka grandma's house cuz it's decorated so awfully, complete with decorative plates hanging on the walls of some rooms) is the worst ever.
I have a room with twin beds. Yep, 2 twin beds. WHAT?! YES! ugh. I'm not June Cleaver (God rest her soul), I don't need a pair of twin beds with a nightstand between them. To make matters worse, my OCD is out in full force because the ceiling isn't quite right so it's kinda saggy. This means I'm basically walking around with my eyes closed to avoid the annoyance I get by looking up and the anger I get by seeing my 2 twin beds. I don't even had a nice TV. It's like a 15 inch tube TV and, for all I know, it might be black-and-white. I wouldn't know though because I don't do tube TVs. Then last nightt, after a day of traveling and an extra long dinner, I just wanted to crash but my phone was almost dead so I needed an outlet. The most accessible plug was near the other twin bed but the bed was partially covering it so my charger wouldn't fit. I went to try to push the bed over a smidge but it wouldn't budge. My next attempt was to just lift the bed slightly to get the headboard to shift like half an inch so I could get to the plug. Much to my surprise, I ended up taking the headboard right off the WALL!. Needless to say, I found a plug, located behind my bed, duh. If they had hotels during Little House on the Prairie, I imagine they'd be like this and I imagine I would not stay in them if given the choice.
Here's the icing on the cake though. As I nestled into my twin bed tonight, I went to check the time so my OCD could lull me to sleep while I counted down all the minutes I wouldn't be sleeping tonight. After a quick glance around the room, I realized there was no comfortable red glow. In fact, there's no glow at all. In shock, I turn on the light thinking the annoying alarm clock must be hidden somewhere odd and blocked by something. Nope. Of course not. There's just no alarm clock. Great.
Twin bed. Saggy ceiling. No clock. And I'm pretty sure I have bed bugs because I have all of these annoying bites that keep cropping up on my ankles and it's really obnoxious. Thanks LI, you never fail to impress me.
Two more days...I think I can...I think I can...
I have a room with twin beds. Yep, 2 twin beds. WHAT?! YES! ugh. I'm not June Cleaver (God rest her soul), I don't need a pair of twin beds with a nightstand between them. To make matters worse, my OCD is out in full force because the ceiling isn't quite right so it's kinda saggy. This means I'm basically walking around with my eyes closed to avoid the annoyance I get by looking up and the anger I get by seeing my 2 twin beds. I don't even had a nice TV. It's like a 15 inch tube TV and, for all I know, it might be black-and-white. I wouldn't know though because I don't do tube TVs. Then last nightt, after a day of traveling and an extra long dinner, I just wanted to crash but my phone was almost dead so I needed an outlet. The most accessible plug was near the other twin bed but the bed was partially covering it so my charger wouldn't fit. I went to try to push the bed over a smidge but it wouldn't budge. My next attempt was to just lift the bed slightly to get the headboard to shift like half an inch so I could get to the plug. Much to my surprise, I ended up taking the headboard right off the WALL!. Needless to say, I found a plug, located behind my bed, duh. If they had hotels during Little House on the Prairie, I imagine they'd be like this and I imagine I would not stay in them if given the choice.
Here's the icing on the cake though. As I nestled into my twin bed tonight, I went to check the time so my OCD could lull me to sleep while I counted down all the minutes I wouldn't be sleeping tonight. After a quick glance around the room, I realized there was no comfortable red glow. In fact, there's no glow at all. In shock, I turn on the light thinking the annoying alarm clock must be hidden somewhere odd and blocked by something. Nope. Of course not. There's just no alarm clock. Great.
Twin bed. Saggy ceiling. No clock. And I'm pretty sure I have bed bugs because I have all of these annoying bites that keep cropping up on my ankles and it's really obnoxious. Thanks LI, you never fail to impress me.
Two more days...I think I can...I think I can...
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Girls and Sports
It's fall which means there's a whole slew of things going on in the sports world. The kickoff to the NBA season was last night and this week has been dubbed "premiere week". The World Series begins tonight which marks the beginning of the end of this year's baseball season. We're more than halfway through the college football season and the NFL is out in full-force. Soon enough we'll have college basketball also. This seems like an appropriate time to discuss girls and sports.
Do I think girls should play sports? Of course. Should they play the same sports as guys? For the most part, yes. Should they be playing football in their underwear? Probably not. Should they be playing softball in the Olympics? Yes. Should women/girls sporting events be on TV? Probably because it's only fair but I'm not going to watch them. Yes, I could continue and go into a nice long rant about girls playing sports but that's not nearly as exciting as girls watching sports.
My sisters, as much as I love them, are a perfect example of who I don't want to be near when a game is being played although they aren't as bad as other girls I've run into. Here's a run-down of girls and sports:
P.S. If I offended you, I probably won't apologize because it probably needed to be said and you probably needed to hear it... :)
Do I think girls should play sports? Of course. Should they play the same sports as guys? For the most part, yes. Should they be playing football in their underwear? Probably not. Should they be playing softball in the Olympics? Yes. Should women/girls sporting events be on TV? Probably because it's only fair but I'm not going to watch them. Yes, I could continue and go into a nice long rant about girls playing sports but that's not nearly as exciting as girls watching sports.
My sisters, as much as I love them, are a perfect example of who I don't want to be near when a game is being played although they aren't as bad as other girls I've run into. Here's a run-down of girls and sports:
- Manly Girl - This girl is absolutely one of the guys. She probably plays at least 1 contact sport. The amount of sports knowledge she has is greater than most of the guys in the room and it's scary. She doesn't ask questions about the game and if you do, she probably won't answer them. She loves football and hates the new rule about suspensions for hard hits. She may or may not be a he.
- Sporty Girl - This girl definitely knows what's going on. She can talk a good game but isn't necessarily smarter than the guys. She'll dress for the occasion and if you're at a local bar watching a game she won't show up in heels. She may ask a question here or there and will probably be willing to help others who have questions. Some may be intimidated by her.
- Average Girl - She knows enough to get by. She pays attention, cheers for the correct team, and has a good time. She doesn't know all of the rules of the game and may ask a few questions but probably won't be obnoxious about it. When filling out her March Madness bracket she might choose based on team names and colors but at least she's trying.
- Girlie Girl - This girl knows enough to know that guys like sports, so if watching/attending the game means she gets to hang out with the guys, she's in. She'll know what sport she's watching but she won't really know what's going on and she won't care. She uses sporting events as social events and uses her time to text and chat with her friends. She'll cheer...but only because everyone else is.
- Barbie Girl - She has no clue. She doesn't want to have a clue. She certainly doesn't want to mess up her new shoes and she doesn't really want you getting excited about what's going on because you may spill a beer in her fancy purse. She doesn't want to go to or watch the game and she can't figure out why you would want to either. She won't have a good time.
P.S. If I offended you, I probably won't apologize because it probably needed to be said and you probably needed to hear it... :)
Thursday, October 21, 2010
What the Shore Means to Me...
I remember the first time I saw the Shore. Sitting in my condo, flipping through the channels one fateful evening. Stopping on MTV to see my fellow tanned Italians guidos. Little did I know then, what all that the Shore would do for me.
Ever been in an elevator with an executive and can't find anything to talk about? Break the silence with a little GTL talk! Ever wanted to make the mundane task of getting dressed fun? Start screaming "It's T-shirrrtttt time!" Ever failed a test or blown a presentation at work and feeling stupid? Just watch the Jersey Shore! It's a cure all!
So what all has the Jersey Shore done for me? Let me count the ways:
- Helped improve my look. As The Situation says, "If you don't go to the gym, you don't look good. If you don't tan, you're pale. If you don't do laundry, you got no clothes."
- Taught me war tactics. How to handle grenades and decipher landmines.
- Improved my vocabulary. GTL, DTF, GFN, MVP.
- Showed me what NOT to do in a relationship. See Sammi and Ronnie.
- How to dance. FIST PUMP!
- How to be efficient at work. The Boardwalk T-shirt Shop. The Gelatto Shop.
- To take a breather when eating. Vinny's mom proved you can eat more if you just take a break between courses. Although, let's not pull a Ron.
- That you can drink all day, everyday. And be ok. That's all.
Here's to you Jersey Shore on your Season 2 Finale tonight! I'll drink a cup of Ron Juice for you!
Ever been in an elevator with an executive and can't find anything to talk about? Break the silence with a little GTL talk! Ever wanted to make the mundane task of getting dressed fun? Start screaming "It's T-shirrrtttt time!" Ever failed a test or blown a presentation at work and feeling stupid? Just watch the Jersey Shore! It's a cure all!
So what all has the Jersey Shore done for me? Let me count the ways:
- Helped improve my look. As The Situation says, "If you don't go to the gym, you don't look good. If you don't tan, you're pale. If you don't do laundry, you got no clothes."
- Taught me war tactics. How to handle grenades and decipher landmines.
- Improved my vocabulary. GTL, DTF, GFN, MVP.
- Showed me what NOT to do in a relationship. See Sammi and Ronnie.
- How to dance. FIST PUMP!
- How to be efficient at work. The Boardwalk T-shirt Shop. The Gelatto Shop.
- To take a breather when eating. Vinny's mom proved you can eat more if you just take a break between courses. Although, let's not pull a Ron.
- That you can drink all day, everyday. And be ok. That's all.
Here's to you Jersey Shore on your Season 2 Finale tonight! I'll drink a cup of Ron Juice for you!
House Hunting = Little House of Horrors
Oh. My. God. We're house hunting. We tried to give it a go on our own and realized we work best under pressure and because we're not under pressure to buy a house, we're not really giving it our all so we enlisted the help of a realtor who also happens to be dad's second cousin. I'm pretty sure I've viewed every available house in the area online and what I haven't found, she's doing a great job of digging up.
Here's the problem. I have one thought that rolls through my mind every time I click through the pictures of another house, "Oh. My. God. What were these people thinking?!" What were they thinking when they chose those decorations? What were they thinking when they took those pictures. I've carried over my dating-website philosophy to house-hunting: you're only going to post the best pictures you have to paint yourself (or your house) in a positive light so what you see in the picture, is the best it'll ever be.
Here's what I've come across:
Here's the problem. I have one thought that rolls through my mind every time I click through the pictures of another house, "Oh. My. God. What were these people thinking?!" What were they thinking when they chose those decorations? What were they thinking when they took those pictures. I've carried over my dating-website philosophy to house-hunting: you're only going to post the best pictures you have to paint yourself (or your house) in a positive light so what you see in the picture, is the best it'll ever be.
Here's what I've come across:
- Wood paneled walls...sometime in the last 30 years it didn't occur to you that wood paneled walls are not ok?
- A cornucopia of flooring options...different carpet, different tile, wood, a little of this and a little of that all in the same lovely house
- A neon green pool...really? you didn't think to maybe dump a little algaecide or chlorine into the pool before you took the picture?
- Odd paint jobs...yes, I know paint is the easiest thing to fix, that's not the point, the point is, why do people do the things they do? One house blinded me with the pictures as the rooms changed from neon yellow to bright red to sea-foam-green and a mural of a tree from an illustrated children's book on the wall behind the TV
- Clutter...doesn't anyone watch the 200 TV's they have scattered around the house? turn on HGTV and pick up a few tips. I don't need to see your sprawling basket collection. I don't care to see your tchotchke's scattered about. Box it all up and get rid of it, better yet, throw it all away! It's crap!
- Matchy-Matchy...it's probably unnecessary to use your leftover kitchen floor tiles for a counter-top. Parquet floors aren't my favorite but using 2-tones of parquet flooring to create a design is going too far. Aqua blue kitchen cabinets with a perfectly matching aqua wall oven can't possibly be safe because you know that oven was once used by the Alice and the Brady Bunch.
- Floral patterns...whether it's wallpaper or furniture or accent pieces, it's time for those to go bye bye
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Dreams weaver...
Do you wake up every morning feeling like P Diddy? Are you one of those people that wakes up every day and remembers their dreams from the night before? If you answered yes to both these questions then you and I are very similar. I've always wondered what my dreams mean. I'll fill you in on the last couple of nights:
Monday night/Tuesday morning-
I was spending the night at a neighbors house, and they had a pet tiger. They made me sleep on the floor of the first floor of their house, which is also the floor that the tiger slept on. They told me that if the tiger came to bother me that I needed to be very stern and tell him to go back to bed. Of course, the tiger came over in the middle of the night, and I didn't want to yell because everyone was sleeping. Instead I had scratches all over my back from the tiger. The next morning the people were very upset with their tiger and they punished him.
The next thing I knew, I was in my car with Ashley and we were in a trailer park out in the woods. All the people from the park came out of their homes and they were attacking us!
Then I woke up.
Tuesday night/Wednesday Morning-
We were at home (Ashley Kady and Gianna). No one else. All the sudden these two men show up, one was a felon and the other was his attorney. We did multiple things to the felon, including injecting him with poison, hitting him over the head with shovels and stabbing him numerous times and he got back up every time. He was trying to break into the house.
Finally we were informed that he did all this for the trial he was on, kind of like Joaquin Phoenix, and there was no way we could kill him.
Then I woke up.
What exactly do these dreams mean? I guess I will never know!!!
Gotta run, cabs are here!
Kady
Monday night/Tuesday morning-
I was spending the night at a neighbors house, and they had a pet tiger. They made me sleep on the floor of the first floor of their house, which is also the floor that the tiger slept on. They told me that if the tiger came to bother me that I needed to be very stern and tell him to go back to bed. Of course, the tiger came over in the middle of the night, and I didn't want to yell because everyone was sleeping. Instead I had scratches all over my back from the tiger. The next morning the people were very upset with their tiger and they punished him.
The next thing I knew, I was in my car with Ashley and we were in a trailer park out in the woods. All the people from the park came out of their homes and they were attacking us!
Then I woke up.
Tuesday night/Wednesday Morning-
We were at home (Ashley Kady and Gianna). No one else. All the sudden these two men show up, one was a felon and the other was his attorney. We did multiple things to the felon, including injecting him with poison, hitting him over the head with shovels and stabbing him numerous times and he got back up every time. He was trying to break into the house.
Finally we were informed that he did all this for the trial he was on, kind of like Joaquin Phoenix, and there was no way we could kill him.
Then I woke up.
What exactly do these dreams mean? I guess I will never know!!!
Gotta run, cabs are here!
Kady
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Fruit Fly Frenzy
I hate bugs...so moving to the South may have not been my best idea ever. The random dead roaches (and the occasional living roach) have me on edge a lot of the time. The good news about these fast, disgusting little creatures is that they hate the light. I, on the other hand, hate the dark so we rarely run into each other.
For a while we had an ant problem where the ants came marching 1 by 1 hoorah, hoorah! After days of drowning hundreds of visitors in windex (ala my days at IU and My Big Fat Greek Wedding) and spackling and caulking all holes/cracks and putting a death trap in the one gap we couldn't fill, the ants surrendered.
Enter fruit fly - Public enemy #1. From my days back in college, experimenting in a dreadful biology lab, I learned two things. First, I learned which tanning lotion provides the best tan. Second, fruit flies multiply quickly. When I moved to Florida there was a massive fruit fly problem hidden in one of the cabinets. What I can only assume to be an onion we left in the cupboard and biology + chemistry + zoology quickly created a disaster. We handled that situation and after a few days we were fruit fly-free.
I'm now left with just the occasional pesky fruit fly which seems pretty normal except these fruit flies are out for blood. The problem arises when 1 fruit fly, with nothing to snack on, turns into a nasty, hungry fruit fly. This 1 lovely fruit fly enjoys dive bombing my face, sitting on my breakfast and circling my food when I'm in the kitchen. Here I sit, minding my own business, trying to accomplish things today, and this fruit fly keeps appearing in front of the computer screen. What he doesn't know is that I'll cut a bitch. Watch out fly guy, this isn't over. I'm onto you!
For a while we had an ant problem where the ants came marching 1 by 1 hoorah, hoorah! After days of drowning hundreds of visitors in windex (ala my days at IU and My Big Fat Greek Wedding) and spackling and caulking all holes/cracks and putting a death trap in the one gap we couldn't fill, the ants surrendered.
Enter fruit fly - Public enemy #1. From my days back in college, experimenting in a dreadful biology lab, I learned two things. First, I learned which tanning lotion provides the best tan. Second, fruit flies multiply quickly. When I moved to Florida there was a massive fruit fly problem hidden in one of the cabinets. What I can only assume to be an onion we left in the cupboard and biology + chemistry + zoology quickly created a disaster. We handled that situation and after a few days we were fruit fly-free.
I'm now left with just the occasional pesky fruit fly which seems pretty normal except these fruit flies are out for blood. The problem arises when 1 fruit fly, with nothing to snack on, turns into a nasty, hungry fruit fly. This 1 lovely fruit fly enjoys dive bombing my face, sitting on my breakfast and circling my food when I'm in the kitchen. Here I sit, minding my own business, trying to accomplish things today, and this fruit fly keeps appearing in front of the computer screen. What he doesn't know is that I'll cut a bitch. Watch out fly guy, this isn't over. I'm onto you!
Monday, October 18, 2010
Jackass 3D = 3 times the bad!
This past weekend the boyfriend (let's call him KT$ - because he's a baller) "treated" me to a night on the town. Dinner and movie. How sweet!
After filling up on margs (yes, tequila!) and queso (I managed to not get any in my hair...for a first), KT$ insisted that we needed to go see a movie. He coerced me to go with promises of anything I wanted from the concession stand! As you can imagine, I was delighted with thoughts of butter-soaked popcorn, Sour Patch Kids (only the red ones), and freezoni (Diet) Coke!
This was turning out to be quite the romantic night for me and my favorite foods...oh, and KT$, too ;)
OR so I thought! This fabulous evening suddenly became intertwined with the worst 90 minutes of my early-20s life! (I refuse to believe 24 is mid-20s.)
JACKASS 3D is NOT A MOVIE! Listen to me people! It's a bunch of 5 minute shorts with ugly, hyena laughing guys playing stupid tricks on each other meshed together into a 90 minute homage to idiocy. Ranging from wheelbarrowing down a water slide (pretty sure I did that in first grade, big whoop!) to falling into a pit of snakes (Indiana Jones did it better!), their "stunts" just weren't that funny.
To make it worse, it was in 3D! So the too-tight-for-my-big-head 3D glasses started giving me a headache, I couldn't take them off. You know what's worse than watching a bad movie in 3D? Watching a bad movie in 3D, without 3D glasses- blur centch!
And you wouldn't believe my dismay, when I woke up late Sunday morning to hear the news......
JACKASS 3D is the #1 MOVE IN AMERICA!
REALLY PEOPLE! Who would spend money watching this piece of junk? Even though KT$ footed the bill, I felt guilty we contributed to the $50 million it made! I feel embarrassed about it...must be like what people that voted for Obama feel. Well maybe not THAT bad, because, well, that is REAL BAD!
Moral of the story....Jackass 3D = 3 times the bad!
Ciao yall!
Kristin
After filling up on margs (yes, tequila!) and queso (I managed to not get any in my hair...for a first), KT$ insisted that we needed to go see a movie. He coerced me to go with promises of anything I wanted from the concession stand! As you can imagine, I was delighted with thoughts of butter-soaked popcorn, Sour Patch Kids (only the red ones), and freezoni (Diet) Coke!
This was turning out to be quite the romantic night for me and my favorite foods...oh, and KT$, too ;)
OR so I thought! This fabulous evening suddenly became intertwined with the worst 90 minutes of my early-20s life! (I refuse to believe 24 is mid-20s.)
JACKASS 3D is NOT A MOVIE! Listen to me people! It's a bunch of 5 minute shorts with ugly, hyena laughing guys playing stupid tricks on each other meshed together into a 90 minute homage to idiocy. Ranging from wheelbarrowing down a water slide (pretty sure I did that in first grade, big whoop!) to falling into a pit of snakes (Indiana Jones did it better!), their "stunts" just weren't that funny.
To make it worse, it was in 3D! So the too-tight-for-my-big-head 3D glasses started giving me a headache, I couldn't take them off. You know what's worse than watching a bad movie in 3D? Watching a bad movie in 3D, without 3D glasses- blur centch!
And you wouldn't believe my dismay, when I woke up late Sunday morning to hear the news......
JACKASS 3D is the #1 MOVE IN AMERICA!
REALLY PEOPLE! Who would spend money watching this piece of junk? Even though KT$ footed the bill, I felt guilty we contributed to the $50 million it made! I feel embarrassed about it...must be like what people that voted for Obama feel. Well maybe not THAT bad, because, well, that is REAL BAD!
Moral of the story....Jackass 3D = 3 times the bad!
Ciao yall!
Kristin
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Dinner & A Movie
We went to our favorite Arabic restaurant on Friday night to celebrate the end of the week. The atmosphere was great, the music was killer, and our waiter was.....Javier. Really? Javier? I don't have a problem with Javier being a waiter, I have a problem with Javier being a waiter at a Lebanese restaurant where 95% of the employees are obviously Arabs and 75% of the patrons are also Arabs. Javier also insisted on calling Mike "man" as in "need another drink, man?" The highlight of the night was the belly dancer who danced in Mike's ear with her little finger bells. In case anyone is interested, she teaches belly dancing on Saturday's and she "doesn't discriminate so guys are welcome as long as they aren't going to be pervs."
We went out again Saturday night. We were greeted by a friendly bartender who had plenty to say. Including wondering why the guy at the other end of the bar with the heavy southern accent was getting so riled up about "just a baseball game". Once we stepped outside for a nice relaxing dinner, we caught wind of a conversation at another table. A lovely woman who looked a little too much like Kathy Griffin was screaming at her husband. "You said 'stupid dog and stupid kids'?! Oh shit!" and then decided to continue chewing him out about this and other things for the next hour+, only stopping for air when the waiter stopped by. Mike said if they weren't married, he would have waited for Kathy to go to the bathroom and he would have screamed at the guy to run while he still can! Where are people's manners? How is it an enjoyable dinner when you yell at someone the entire time? I'm pretty sure that guy works 20 hours a day to avoid being home with Kathy. I know I would.
We also saw Wall Street 2 and we really enjoyed all of the cameo's from all of the players from the original movie. Well done.
We went out again Saturday night. We were greeted by a friendly bartender who had plenty to say. Including wondering why the guy at the other end of the bar with the heavy southern accent was getting so riled up about "just a baseball game". Once we stepped outside for a nice relaxing dinner, we caught wind of a conversation at another table. A lovely woman who looked a little too much like Kathy Griffin was screaming at her husband. "You said 'stupid dog and stupid kids'?! Oh shit!" and then decided to continue chewing him out about this and other things for the next hour+, only stopping for air when the waiter stopped by. Mike said if they weren't married, he would have waited for Kathy to go to the bathroom and he would have screamed at the guy to run while he still can! Where are people's manners? How is it an enjoyable dinner when you yell at someone the entire time? I'm pretty sure that guy works 20 hours a day to avoid being home with Kathy. I know I would.
We also saw Wall Street 2 and we really enjoyed all of the cameo's from all of the players from the original movie. Well done.
Friday, October 15, 2010
Cast Member Bio: KRISTIN
You think you know, but you have no idea, this is the Real World, Atlanta.
If you know Kristin, then you know that any time with Kristin is a good time! Spend 5 minutes with her and you will know the following..
Kristin is a lover of:
Anything Georgia Tech
The Backstreet Boys
Her family
Italian food
Harrison Ford
Shia Labeouf
Celebrity Gossip
Diet Coke and Rum
Oh and Kenneth!
Kristin is not your average girl next door, she's full of life, laughter and her mothers cooking. Don't get me wrong though, she loves to hit the gym when she's not busy saving the world! Kristin is also one of the biggest hypochondriacs that I've ever seen, so don't ask about a random freckle or she will run to the ER.
If Kristin walked into a room, her theme song would be "UPTONS UPTONS, JUST WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR!"
Kristin is a great catch, but she is NOT single, maybe ready to mingle, but probably not accepting applications!
Love to ya brotha,
Kady
If you know Kristin, then you know that any time with Kristin is a good time! Spend 5 minutes with her and you will know the following..
Kristin is a lover of:
Anything Georgia Tech
The Backstreet Boys
Her family
Italian food
Harrison Ford
Shia Labeouf
Celebrity Gossip
Diet Coke and Rum
Oh and Kenneth!
Kristin is not your average girl next door, she's full of life, laughter and her mothers cooking. Don't get me wrong though, she loves to hit the gym when she's not busy saving the world! Kristin is also one of the biggest hypochondriacs that I've ever seen, so don't ask about a random freckle or she will run to the ER.
If Kristin walked into a room, her theme song would be "UPTONS UPTONS, JUST WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR!"
Kristin is a great catch, but she is NOT single, maybe ready to mingle, but probably not accepting applications!
Love to ya brotha,
Kady
Cast Member Bio: Meet the A in KAK!
I have the great pleasure of introducing all you people (all zero of you) to Ashley Elizabeth Abdelnour - aka ASH $CASH$ (her self-proclaimed alter ego). Ashley was born, had a childhood, grew up, you get the drift. But it's the story along the way that makes Ashley, the owner of the world's ugliest dog, who she is. I had the pleasure of knowing Ashley in high school where she was very popular and had a MASSive amount of friends including one "Charlie Blue Eyes" and Jason Barker (rawr!).
After too many rides in Ms. Shorty's convertible, Ash headed up north to her "Sports Mecca." Her favorites include: IU, Notre Dame, Michigan, MSU, Detroit Tigers, Boston Celtics. How can someone have so many favorites, you ask? She has a rolodex of "favorites" so that she can always say "her" team won.
There are a few factors that separate Ash out from the KAK:
1) She's old (er than KK).
2) She's engaged to a VP (let's call him Cayman - because he owns one).
3) She's a health nut (expect to see many blogs on grilled chicken and grapes).
4) She's wise beyond her years (gives the tough advice).
5) She lives on the beach (she'll be tan year round).
From Ash you'll find sarcasm at its finest, matter of fact philosophy with love behind it, and wedding blog posts because after marrying Cayman she'll finally have fulfilled her dream of becoming ASH $CASH$!
Ciao all!
Kristin
PS - She is a hater of all things Twilight, yet her dog is named BELLE (Bella) - expect hypocrisy!
After too many rides in Ms. Shorty's convertible, Ash headed up north to her "Sports Mecca." Her favorites include: IU, Notre Dame, Michigan, MSU, Detroit Tigers, Boston Celtics. How can someone have so many favorites, you ask? She has a rolodex of "favorites" so that she can always say "her" team won.
There are a few factors that separate Ash out from the KAK:
1) She's old (er than KK).
2) She's engaged to a VP (let's call him Cayman - because he owns one).
3) She's a health nut (expect to see many blogs on grilled chicken and grapes).
4) She's wise beyond her years (gives the tough advice).
5) She lives on the beach (she'll be tan year round).
From Ash you'll find sarcasm at its finest, matter of fact philosophy with love behind it, and wedding blog posts because after marrying Cayman she'll finally have fulfilled her dream of becoming ASH $CASH$!
Ciao all!
Kristin
PS - She is a hater of all things Twilight, yet her dog is named BELLE (Bella) - expect hypocrisy!
Cast Member Bio: The DL on KD
When you look at Kady, the first thing you notice is her hair: she’s our token ginger and my younger sister. Does that say enough or should I keep going?
When she is not fulfilling her role as house-manager, KD tends to be very cultured. The first and only books she has ever cracked opened were Harry Potter followed by Twilight. She’s not necessarily a sports fan but is excellent at pretending to know and care what is going on. If I had to guess her favorite teams I’d say “the home team or whoever is winning”. To stay up-to-date on current events, she tunes into her Facebook newsfeed or watches reality TV. She can not survive without her phone and is anxiously awaiting the day when Verizon has iPhones.
Over the years we’ve found ourselves in a fair amount of sticky situations including, but not limited to, shattering the glass table on the patio while our parents weren’t home, dropping a large, heavy Christmas tree box on our heads, and getting socks stuck on the chandelier.
She has kind eyes but maintains a good mix of subtle hilarity, honesty, and sarcasm. Expect Kady to help you better understand the meaning of life, her latest antics as house-manager, or perhaps her thoughts on the latest movies and hot tracks!
Chat at ya soon,
Ash
P.S. She’s a great catch AND single & ready to mingle! Now accepting applications…
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Welcome!
Well, we've decided to give blogging a try. What do we expect from this? Not a whole lot more than a few entertaining blog postings. What will come of this? Probably nothing but you never know...Zuck did get his start blogging! What will we write about? Anything and everything we can think of...it could get scary! We will try not to but if we offend you in any way, well, there's a decent chance you deserved it :)
Please stay tuned for cast bios!!
**No animals were harmed in the making of this blog...
ENJOY!!
PS. Can we meet with the Winklevi twins?? ;)
Please stay tuned for cast bios!!
**No animals were harmed in the making of this blog...
ENJOY!!
PS. Can we meet with the Winklevi twins?? ;)
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