Awww, Summerfest is officially over. I’m always a bit saddened at the end of it all, because I feel that my summer has an official lull in it. I never made it to the final night, but I went out with a bang on Saturday, seeing Pink for all of 4 songs and pigging out on the final combination platter at Saz’s for the year.

Tara and I started out our Saturday festivities with martini’s at the Hi-Hat near my apartment and by the time Erin arrived at my apartment around 6:30 that evening, we were half in the bag already. *cheers to summer*. We polished off a bottle of champagne with Erin at my apartment, chatted about wedding stuff (sorry Tara), then headed back to the Hi-Hat to get one last drink, and a free ride to Summerfest.



The bus took a bit longer than we had anticipated, and we didn’t end up getting to the grounds until close to 9:30 which put a damper in our evenings plans but we weren’t willing to sacrifice any portion of the evening: Saz’s, booze, and Pink. We would just have to hurry along this way.





We hurried over to the Saz’s stand, waited in an obnoxiously long line (which is pretty common for the famous restaurant) and pigged out on our combination platters on our way to the Briggs and Stratton stage on the South end of the grounds. We quickly grabbed a drink (a beer for me, mixed drinks for Tara and Erin) and headed to the stage, disappointed to find that actually seeing Pink was going to be a pretty hard feat to accomplish.





Annoyed at some of the Summerfest patrons, and sick of hearing Erin complain about not being able to see Pink, I decided to lead the group up the front of the stage, in hopes of getting a better glimpse of pink. I was sadly mistaken as I realized the further up we went, the more condensed the bleachers became and the harder it was to see above the screaming heads. We got a few quick glimpses, enough to say we actually “saw” Pink that day, and hurried back out the way we came.







Ready to leave, we decided to foot it the rest of the way home (my brilliant idea) and I think about 45 minutes later we finally made it to my apartment…ready for bed.



It was a great end, to a terrific 11 days of fun. I can’t wait to do it all over again next year!

Fourth of July

Today, a week’s worth of festivities has finally caught up with me. My throat hurts, my body aches, and I really could just sleep. But alas, it’s summer and it’s summerfest, and rest is not on the radar until early next week. Yes, I am a Summerfest junkie. There is no better time to me than a cold beer, great friends, and a night of fabulous food and music. I feel so lucky to live in a place that for 10 days out of every year, I can pay my $15 and access hundreds of different bands. Not many other places can boast something so marvelous. Not to mention, for anyone who loves people watching, what better place than in Wisconsin! Summerfest has some of the best people watching EVER. In just a few hours you'll see a great mixture of many different types of people. Thanks to the likes of Nine Inch Nails playing on the same night as Dirks Bentley, you're bound to see a wide aray of people. It's great!



I’ve been there three days so far, and have three more lined up. Thursday’s outing was by far the most intense but Sunday’s trip was equally as entertaining. Katie, her sister Julie, and Julie’s friend showed up to my apartment around 6:00 and we headed down to the grounds, Cabby top down, boppin’ away to the sounds of Brittney and Rihanna. Parking is always absurd around Summerfest, but luckily we found a lot close enough spot for only $7 (a steal of a deal).

We started off the night with…Saz’s of course…and made our way to the Harley Davidson Stage to watch Pat McCurdy perform (One of Katie’s favorites). He was AWESOME. He had this unique gift of being able to get the crowd jumping and singing to anything he decided to spit out of his mouth. I laughed hysterically as I watched the crowd turn from hick to hip hop in a matter of seconds and they laughed along the entire time. He had quite the following and not to mention the Dirks Bently concert had begun to draw quite the crowd at the stage as well, so by 8:30 we were pretty much trapped on our bleacher seats. I guess we were staying for the concert =)



At 9:00 A CMT producer came on stage and informed us all that this specific concert was going to be televised on July 16 and we laughed at how random it all seemed. Here we were, stuck on these bleachers, and were about to be televised on national television. I love Summerfest. =)

The concert was awesome. I had never heard of Dirks Bently prior to the concert, but I left a full fledged fan. I even went out and bought his newest CD the next day. He was personable, and fun, and super cute. Minus the drunken morons that frequent Summerfest, we girls managed to have a fantastic time.





My third trip to Summerfest came a bit spontaneously. Tara and I woke up early Tuesday morning and decided we wanted to go see Kenney Chesney that night. 10 minutes later, we had 15th row seats…I was pumped. Before the concert however, we had plans to meet up with Katie and Mary at Miller Park for the brewer’s game that afternoon. We met them in the Petit National Ice Center parking lot at 10:00 and made our way to the stadium.

Only in Wisconsin can you enter a place at 10:00 in the morning, and find the parking lot full of people with grills, lawn chairs, and plastic footballs. If there’s one thing us ‘sconies are known for, it’s our ability to drink. *cheers to us* ha ha.

Anyways, we grilled out and drank in the parking lot until well after the 4th inning and finally made our way inside the stadium. It was Bobble Head Day and we were WAY excited about leaving with our free little toy. However, we soon realized that you cannot expect stock to remain well into the 5th inning and so we left instead with a blue “rain check” for our bobble heads. We were a bit disappointed.









We left the stadium at the top of the 9th inning, still bitching about not receiving our Bobble Heads. We decided to wait out the crowd and play a few games of cards outside our car and we ended up meeting a group of really great people who were waiting out the crowd as well. A nearby Chicago girl had heard us all bitching about how we never received our Bobble Heads, so she came over and dropped hers off at our table…she was never going to use it again. We were like kids in a candy store. I have never seen four grown women more excited about a Bobble Head in my life! We took pictures, and named it, and talked to it…it was a little ridiculous. But I suppose that’s what alcohol will do to you sometimes =)







After the game, Tara and I made our way to Summerfest and soon after to the Kenney Chesney concert at the Marcus Amphitheatre. We had fantastic seats (as we usually do when it comes to Kenney) but I was a bit disappointed in the concert itself. The entire show just seemed awfully random to me. Generally when I go to a concert, the headliner lets you know that he’s going to be starting…in some way. The lights go off, the music plays, there’s a moment of anticipation. But for whatever reason, there wasn’t any of that. Suddenly I just hear “Summertime” playing, and I look behind me and he’s standing on some bleacher singing in the middle of the theatre. What?! Um...okay there’s Kenney. As the rest of the concert went on, random people came out and sang with him. Sugarland. Why? Uncle Cracker...from where?! I just found myself trying to stay focused and enjoy what was going on, but was being way over stimulated =)







Regardless of the randomness of the concert, I enjoyed myself immensely. It was the best Fourth of July I’ve had in a long time. I love summer! I’m so happy that it’s finally here.

Summerfest 2006...Day 1

Every year, Summerfest roars into Milwaukee and every year I anxiously await its arrival. The festival kicked off on Thursday with a full day of music, food, and beer and I was bound and determined to be there for it!

After work on Thursday, Katie D and her two friends showed up at my apartment, ready to party it up, the way Milwaukeeans do. We mixed a few Rum and Cokes, girlified ourselves, and headed out the doors at 8:30 destined for the Milwaukee lakefront. We had a bit of trouble figuring out transportation but luckily we met a very nice woman, and a very helpful bus driver, and we were able to get ourselves to the lakefront with very little hassle. I’m really bad at telling stories, so I won’t go into detail about the bus ride and events leading up to it. But luckily, we made it =)



We started off the night with a Miller Light and an REO Speedwagon concert. We only caught the last couple of songs, but were there long enough to hear “Roll with the Changes”, “Keep on Loving you” and “Ridin’ the Storm Out”. I was sad to have missed “Can’t Fight This Feeling” but what can you do right?





After REO was finished, we made our way to Jo-Jo’s Martini lounge, sipped on a few Cosmopolitans, and awaited the Big Bang fireworks. The fireworks were amazing, a little long, but still amazing. They really are the best fireworks display all year…in the state of Wisconsin I think! Not that I’ve seen that many to compare it too, but I’m sure it’s up there!

For the remaining couple hours we spent some time at the Harley Davidson stage watching Common and then headed to the Miller Light Oasis to watch the Bodeins. At 12:30 the grounds closed and we made our way back to my apartment for some Pizza Shuttle, sobering talk, and a pass out session =)

I’m hoping to make it to Summerfest a few more times before it all ends. I’ll definitely be there on Sunday with Katie again for the Love Monkeys and then on Monday for Phil Vassar and Keith Anderson with Tara. Thursday is The Frey and Saturday Pink is playing and I’m going to try really hard to make it to that as well. Luckily I have a free ticket in my wallet to utilize. Summerfest is getting quite expensive! But it’s totally worth it. $15 gets you inside the grounds, and access to a ton of bands….FOR FREE! It’s the greatest festival ever! For anyone not from Milwaukee…get your ass up this way. You’re missing out on a fantastic time.

Bee Bop Shoo Wopp

I spent my time last night, immersed in the sounds of the 50’s and 60’s, while people watching amidst my favorite generation of people…senior citizens.

Last night, I accompanied Erin to a performance of Four Guyz in Dinner Jackets at the Marcus Center in Milwaukee. The show consisted of four guys, in dinner jackets (surprising right?), who bee bopped to the catchy tunes that made the 50’s and 60’s so famous. While the harmonies were awesome, and the singing itself very entertaining, I found myself lost in many of the “50’s humor” jokes and a bit annoyed at the overly done jokes and randomness of the show. But I suppose that just has something to say about the generation gap that exists between then and now, because as I looked around the room at all the men and women laughing and clapping and singing along, I realized that this was probably a huge treat for them! To be transported back to the days of their youth, and to hear the songs they all loved as teenagers! I know I’d be exstatic to hear “Like a Virgin” from Madonna 50 years from now =) I found myself smiling endlessly as I focused on the room and saw so many of them having such a great time, and watching them wiggle in their seats as the guys on stage harmonized to “Love Potion Number Nine” and “Runaround Sue”. As I’m sure many of you know, old people just warm my heart, and to be in an entire room of them was a slight taste of heaven to me.

I’m not sure if I would go see the show again, but I’d DEFINITLEY recommend it to my grandmother and her friends! The men were highly talented and truly entertaining to watch. It’s just hard to get into something fully, that you don’t really understand.

Religious Balance

Questions about religion enter my mind almost on a daily basis. Growing up Catholic there are certain things I was brought up to believe in: An almighty God, a miraculous virgin birth, an arc to save the world, a single man and woman who produced human life, a heaven and a hell. As I’ve grown up, I’ve struggled with my faith as I developed a more in depth understanding of mythology and its origins, as well as science and research. As a result, I’ve sort of left behind my Catholic roots, and embarked on a different path of spirituality.

Coinciding with my upbringing and struggle with religion, I’ve always been a firm believer in the balance of the universe…in the Yin and Yang of the world if you will. For every bad there is good, for every negatively charged situation is a positive one waiting right around the corner, and for every dying life form is a new life developing somewhere else.

Utilizing these two concepts I found myself thinking today, on my drive to work, about the existence of what religion and mythology will deem as a heaven and a hell…the ultimate universal balance. The optimist in me wants to believe that only a heaven exists and there is no such thing as a devil or a hell. The agnostic in me wants to believe that neither heaven nor hell exist in the manner in which I was taught to believe, and it is more so a metaphor for our spirits…of how they will continue to be remembered through generations to come. And then there’s the Catholic in me that wants to believe that there is in fact both a heaven and a hell, and it is up to us to live our lives fully so that on judgment day we are accepted into the Kingdom of Heaven and not deemed to an eternity of flames and torture.

In thinking about the balance of the world, it seems only necessary that if a good place exists, a bad must exist as well. But I have a hard time believing that there is truly an inherently evil place, and that some humans are destined to spend eternity there.

Thus, without starting a religious debate, I was just curious how the rest of the world feels about this Heaven and Hell concept. If you believe in a Heaven, do you believe in a hell? If not, why not?

Just some weekend stuff

I am making it known to the entire blogging community, that on Friday of last week, I went on an interview with the Kohl’s corporation and, as I cross my fingers, it went really well. Of course there is the chance that I’m delusional in my thinking, and the interview went horribly, in which case I just admitted failure to many, many people, but I’m optimistic for the time being. I originally interviewed for a Sample Specialist position which is an entry level position feeding into the entire company. But as the interview process continued, I was introduced to even more people, in a few more departments, for a few more open positions in the company. At the end of all of it, I was taken to the buying offices and introduced to a few people there as well. The recruiter is also in the process of passing over my resume directly to them. At the end of three hours I had met with 5 different people, and interviewed for three different positions. Hopefully SOMETHING will turn up =)

I was so thrilled with how well the interview went that I was definitely in the mood for some celebrating. Tara and I thus, met up with Katie and Mary for some drinks at The Harp and headed over to Out and About a little later for some drinking and dancing with some more friends. I’m not a big bar fly, but I definitely enjoy the occasional drunk night out =)

I awoke on Saturday with a bit of a hangover, but had to quickly nurse it away as I had to work all day Saturday. The day went by quickly, thankfully, and at 6:00 Erin, Dave, and Tara showed up at my parent’s apartment, ready to head to Heather and Eric’s. They were having a small get together of close friends, celebrating their new house…and of course their new life together. Their house is ADORABLE: two bedrooms, one bath, cute little backyard, and a cute little dog to compliment it. They’re your typical storybook couple: high school sweethearts get married right out of college, buy a cute little house and a dog =) I love them. We spent the night playing games and chatting around the fire pit.

Sunday I spent lazing around trying to get my stomach into some sort of normal routine again. Feeling full I decided to jump on the scale to see how “full” I actually was and I realized that for the past month I have been consistently gaining weight. For the first time in my entire life I am above 124. While I by no means need to go on a diet, I think this was my first indication that I should probably start watching what I eat a little bit better. My metabolism seems to be slowing a bit more. I think it’s time to incorporate some fruit into this diet of mine =)

WICKED!

Ever since I had heard that Wicked had come to Chicago, I have been dying to see it. I have heard nothing but unbelievable things about the musical and I myself wanted so badly to enjoy it.

For a few months after I moved back to Milwaukee (still not having seen Wicked), I joined a book club and through that club I was given the opportunity to read the book, to which sparked my curiosity even further. As countless people around me headed down to the Windy City to enjoy the much talked about theatrical presentation, I sat back and pouted knowing I may never get to see it on Broadway, as its end is drawing closer and closer.

Suddenly, an extension of the musical was announced and I hurried to purchase a few tickets, only to find that they were well in the upper hundreds, a price way outside of my budget.

And then Fathers Day 2006 came upon me and when asking my dad what he wanted to do on his special day he responded with “I want to go see Wicked again”. I screamed, literally, and hurried to the computer to purchase our tickets. 6th row center in the orchestra section was where we ended up. I couldn’t wait!

My family and I arrived in Chicago around 12:00 yesterday afternoon, and stopped for lunch before arriving at the Oriental Theatre. As we took our seats I sat in awe at the artwork surrounding the theatre. It’s a true joy to experience something as I was about to experience in such an old and decorated building. Modern buildings just don’t seem to have the same charm.

At 2:00 the orchestra began to play, the curtain drew up, and for the next three hours I was engulfed in a wave of emotion. Throughout the entire production I sat with a beating heart, tingles through my body, and tears in my eyes. I was so moved by the singing, and the dancing, and the overall story. Words cannot describe what I saw yesterday afternoon and for all of you that have been fortunate enough to have seen Wicked, you know exactly what I am talking.

I have never before seen a live production that I have enjoyed half as much as I enjoyed Wicked. I would go back and see it in a heartbeat.

The joys of being a woman

For the first time in a very long time, my alarm went off this morning, and I didn’t want to slam the sounds of Wes, Ronnie, and Alley from KISSFM into the wall. I instead, laid in my bed for a few more minutes, allowing my body to adjust to the morning, and hearing out Wes’s story about golfing.

I was FLOORED with what I heard.

For the first time in my entire life I was listening to another man speak of how lame other men can be.

Let me explain.

Apparently KISSFM hosted a golf outing yesterday in which the entire morning show cast was in attendance. Apparently throughout the outing, Wes spent some time riding around on the beverage cart with the girls working it. He continued to tell a story of the repulsion he felt for men as with each and every hole she stopped at, she had to endure ongoing remarks and comments from the men at each of the holes. FINALLY for the first time, a man was seeing this situation from our eyes.

He laughed as he made fun of some of the comments, and he sincerely apologized on-air for the way that men act towards women sometimes. It was a refreshing thought to wake up to. I turned off the alarm with a smile =)

Now unfortunately, I am not as tolerant as apparently this beverage cart girl was for she responded to Wes saying “It doesn’t really bother me, I’ve gotten used to it”. This little lady on the other hand, has had to endure these situations my entire life and I am not so willing to just brush it off with a little giggle. I just sometimes wonder why it is that men feel the need to hoot and holler and spit their game at every walking pair of breasts they see. Is there really a point? Do they get more "booty" that way? Do women truly respond positively towards these situations?

But then I have to wonder where us women stand in all of this. After all, we are the ones giggling for tips and oogling our goodies for men to stare at. Maybe we're bringing this all on ourselves. Or at least we should take some credit for it.

Either way it's no excuse for a man to make a woman feel completely uncomfortable in her surroundings, and the cat calls are really unecessary, regardless of your chosen profession. I hope that a number of these men were listening to the KISS morning show this morning and heard how stupid they actually sound. Who knows ladies, maybe there’s hope for them, and our social lives after all.

Lazy Summer Days

As summer is approaching faster than I anticipated, I'm finding that my schedule is filling faster and faster with festivals, concerts, weddings, trips, and other occasions of the summer. Thus, when a weekend such as this past one arises, I welcome the opportunity to spend a few days relaxing and gearing up for the coming weeks that lie before me.

I had the entire weekend off of work which I utilized to my full advantage to take care of a few things I've been meaning to take care of for a number of weeks. I get a lot of running in, a lot of reading, and a lot of errands done. It was great! By Sunday, I was ready for some socializing so Tara and I packed up the Cabrio and headed to the Milwaukee County Zoo to meet up with some friends for a leisurly day at the Zoo.

Before arriving, I was telling Tara how I remember the days when I was little, of going to the zoo and spending the entire day there!! We would walk, and eat lunch, and shop, and just make an entire day out of it. As time grew on however, the full days seemed to end and now I'm lucky if my trips to the zoo last more than an hour.

And then I realized what it was like to be there with small children.

We met up with my friend Rosy, her husband Ben, and their son Sean, as well as Kiersten's sister Stephanie, her husband Andy, and their son Braden. Them, along with Tara and I and Kiers and Angie, wandered the park taking in all of the sights as well as the gorgeous weather we encountered. We stopped for lunch, chatted over a few beers, and laughed at the children's reactions to certain animals going about their daily "zoo-ish" business. Suddenly 4:00 rolled around and I realized we had been at the zoo for over 4 hours!! We had spent the entire day there!

Walking out to the car I had a big smile on my face knowing that I had just spent a "family day" just as I used to only this time, we were the adults! It was a little strange at first, but I quickly warmed up to the idea. I love this getting older stuff =)

Memorial Day Weekend '06

Beneath the sunburn, behind the exhaustion and the full belly that remains from a weekend full of eating, lies a three day Memorial Weekend packed with memories. It was a weekend filled with great friends, great food, and plenty of sunshine to top an already amazingly good time.

The weekend kicked off on Friday as I hurried home from work to meet up with Tara, her roomate Dobry (Jeni) and Ashley for a night of grilled food and beer. We (read: them) cooked up hamburgers, hot dogs, steaks, corn on the cobb and some baked beans and hurried upstairs to enjoy a fresh grilled meal.

Fast forward a half hour.

With full bellies we assessed the beer situation and decided we had plenty to keep us going all night. Thus, with beers in hand we busted out the board games...my favorite part of friendly get togethers. We started off with Yahtzee, as Ashley insisted she wasn't drunk enough yet for a game of Cranium and she proceeded to kick our asses in the coming rolls of the dice. Saddened at my defeat, I pulled out Cranium, ready for a game I KNEW I could win.

Drunken Cranium is probably on my list of top 5 things to do at a get together. I never laugh harder than I do while watching someone try to draw "Rock, Paper, Scissors" without looking at the paper, while their partner continuously yells "Square, Apple, Scissors", all the while thinking her guess is perfectly accurate given the picture being drawn. We never ended up finishing the game, but Tara and I were way ahead by the time we called it quits to play Circle of Death (more commonly called in B-Town, Kings Cup) =) We again failed to finish the game as Dobry left to vomit and Ashley and I engaged in an argument about whether feemer and leaner rhymed (which I must digress and admit I was wrong). It was then, we decided to call it a night.

I awoke early Saturday for work, which ended up being slower than usual, making it for a touch day to sit and stare, and wish you weren't hung over. At least I had the evening to look forward to, as Katie and I made plans for a late night out at our favorite B-Town bar: John's Main Event.

We arrived at 11:00 to a semi-crowded bar, but still managed to secure ourselves a seat at the bar, and a few rounds of shots courtesy of our favorite bartender. Seeing as how our money was obviously no good there, we decided to plug the juke-box with dollars and fill the bar with the sounds of Katie/Christi music. Def Leopard's "Pour Some Sugar On me" always gets me into the partying mood, so we opted for a few more shots, a few more drinks, and plenty of friendly run ins with old friends. But alas, at 2:00 a fight had broken out, dampening the mood of the night so we left the bar, destined for some late night eats at White Fox Den. Bed time didn't come until around 5:00 and I dragged myself out of bed three hours later to get to work.

I spent two hours at the salon on Sunday then quickly closed up and drove home to meet Tara at my apartment. I threw on a tank top, grabbed my flip-flops, and we were out the door, ready for a day by the lake.

We strolled to Altera, wandered through the Kite Festival and spent a lot of time lounging around on picnic tables, talking and people watching. It was the perfect way to spend a 90 degree day in Milwaukee. As dusk fell, we opted for an easy night in, rented a few movies, and by 9:30 I was sleeping on the couch.

Finally, memorial day came and the sun was shining as beautifully as it had the day before. I jumped out of bed, threw my swimsuit on, and we headed, with the Cabby's drop top down, to the beach to spend a few hours lounging in the sun. A few hours quickly turned into a half hour and we realized we had less time to spend there than we had originally hoped. It was a wonderful half hour though.

Tara and I reloaded up the Cabby and drove to the Metro Market to pick up BBQ essentials for our cookout with Erin and Dave. We loaded up on fresh fruit, buns, and of course Metro Market's famous free samples! The Metro Market rocks!

We arrived at Erin and Dave's exactly on time and we chatted for a while (us girls) while Dave manned the gril. Ah yes, the fine display of gender roles =) KIDDING! After dinner we played a few games, Dave kicked our asses in Trivial Pursuit, and so we moved to Taboo where Erin and I dominated the round.

And with that, my weekend ended and I sit her now recapping it and nursing my sunburnt shoulders. As the last weekend in May bring about the first week in June, it also brought with a hint of summer that still remains in the memories of the weekend. But as a cool air blows from the open door in front of me, and the signs of rain linger in the air, I am reminded that this summer is indeed still around the corner. I just can't wait for it to fully arrive!

Hints of Summer...everywhere!

As I sit here at work, eating my lunch, I can look over to my right and see the M&I Bank’s time/temperature gauge blinking 75 degrees. If I look further past the bank I can see a mother walking her dog while pushing her young son in a stroller. Behind me, the faint chipper of baby birds can be heard as the mother Robin, who has declared our tree right outside our store door her home, feeds her young who have only hatched days ago. Through the store a warm breeze blows, and it occasionally carries with it the scent of lilacs from the bush just outside our doors. Cars with carriers strapped to their hoods prepare for a weekend getaway in the great outdoors and next door men and women are coming in by the dozens, picking up last minute flower arrangements for their Memorial Day Weekend get-togethers. Memorial Day Weekend is upon us. The kick-off to summer has begun!

I, unlike my fellow peers, will be spending the majority of my weekend here at the store, but I am anxiously looking forward to Monday where a barbeque with my two best girls awaits. There is nothing like 3 of my favorite people in the world, a grill, and plenty of sunshine to kick off the summer. I cannot WAIT for the season to arrive!!

90 degree days
Cabby top down
Summer drinks at outside cafes
Lake Michigan
Suntans
80 degree nights
Warm thunderstorms
SUMMERFEST
Poison!
Las Vegas
Camping and campfires
Rides on my dad's Harley
Wine on our front porch
Flip Flops
The Ice Cream Man!
Bustling Milwaukee streets

...and I'm sure there's many more.

So today, as I sit here with my diet coke, I put up a toast to the M&I Bank's 75 degree declaration today. *Cheers* to everything that is summer. I definitley can't wait.

Hollywood Superhumans?

On my day off yesterday, I decided to relax on my couch and browse through a few pages of my roomate's "Us Weekly" magazine...a magazine that I rarely pick up on my own these days. I had heard through the grapevine that Britney was in deed pregnant again, and the radio has been buzzing about something regarding Richie Sambora and Denise Richards, so I decided I should probably catch up on my celebrity gossip, for conversation purposes of course.

I was floored when I read THIS!

Is it really newsworthy that Jennifer Lopez is gray? Is it really that hard to comprehend that Hollywood royalty really is human after all?

I did a Google search just to see how much of an impact this topic is having on the world and I came up with over 87,000 sites related to Jennifer Lopez, and her graying hair. 87,000 different people care enough to discuss this topic. In fact, it has even stirred up so much commotion that Jennifer Lopez's rep had to comment saying "Jennifer is not gray". As if a public statement regarding her human nature was even necessary.

Jennifer, I salute you for showing your human roots. I commend you for giving your hair a break from it's consistent dye jobs (as if I should talk). Maybe you should embrace your humanity! The rest of the world will learn to accept it. I promise.

To the rest of the world, stricken with grief over this terrifying news, it's time to bust out your boxed dye and get rid of those roots! If Jennifer Lopez can't get away with it, there's no way in hell the rest of us commoners can get away with it. I just wonder if they'd be as interested to know that my mom has been mostly gray since before I can remember. Hell I'll put out a public statement for her too!!

Kudos to UsWeekly and Jennifer Lopez's rep for promoting such positive values to the world.

I now remembered why I don't read those magazines =)

Bridal Question

As a member of the bridal industry I have a very important question that I would like answered by anybody that can give me a straight forward answer:

"What is it about David's Bridal that makes people want to keep shopping there?"

On an average basis, I see about 4 to 5 brides a day and each day at least one of them sits and complains about the David's Bridal experience. The $700 in alterations they wanted her to pay, the rudeness, the hidden fees, the lack of personal attention, the sizing problems, the chaotic atomosphere.....It's enough to make you wonder why anyone would continue to refer people there? And it's aggravating to me as a bridal salon owner (okay daughter of), when it's up to me to fix the numerous mistakes and get the bride back on her happy trail to the altar, simply because David's Bridal refused to offer her any additional service once her dress was purchased and gone!

I'd like to state that I am in no way knocking their product, because I have heard from a few people that their selection is quite great and I've seen friends get married in David's Bridal attire and the dresses are very pretty! But you can get pretty dress anywhere, why do people continue to go to David's Bridal if the service and the experience is so shitty?

Is it the fact that you can take your dress home with you right away that brides are willing to compromise service over convenience? Is it the fact that it's a large chain? Is it their prices?

Just a question. I'd truly like to know.

A Birthday Thought

At 1:01PM yesterday afternoon, I officially turned 24…24! As I do every year, I took a few minutes to reflect back at the time I’ve spent here on Earth and I can honestly say with all certainty that my life truly does just keep getting better and better as each year passes, and better and better as one more candle is blown out. I’m not sad that in turning 24 my youth is behind me, because I have my adult life to look forward to! I have professional accomplishments to achieve, houses to build, families to make, and a lifetime of experiences to learn from. How can one not be excited about what lies ahead!

For a moment yesterday I thought “Omg I’m 24!” But it was only for a moment because in looking back at my life, I can’t think of a single place I’d rather be, than where I am right now and where I am going in the future. I’m another year older, and another year wiser, and it’s only going to get better from here.

I spent my day celebrating yesterday with friends and family; a spa day with my mom, dinner with my family and Tara, drinks with Erin and Dave, and many phone calls and text messages from those around me that remembered my birthday. It was a low-key day, but a wonderful day. At 24 I didn’t need a big “All About Me” birthday party, I didn’t need a million presents, and I didn’t need a restaurant full of people singing Happy Birthday to me. All I needed was my amazing family, my wonderful girlfriend, my dear best friends, and the meaningful phone calls to make me feel like the luckiest girl in the world. And yesterday I really did.

So cheers to another year older! Bring it on 24!

Heather and Eric's Wedding

I work in the bridal industry and for a living, I immerse myself in weddings. Between the gowns, and the cakes, and the bridezillas and the momzillas and the bridesmaids...it’s a never ending process. Day after day the girls come in and day after day the girls leave each with their own unique story and each with their own unique set of demands. It can be tedious, god knows this industry is not all butterflies and sunshine as one would think, and it leaves me bitter many days towards the entire concept. As I lock up the doors night after night I find myself breathing a sigh of relief as I finished out another day without strangling one of the over demanding mothers that came into the store. It leaves me wondering if I’m just a bitter girl with no real romance left.

But then suddenly, you’re at a wedding. Not helping a bride choose her dress, not dealing with the bridesmaids size issues, but instead are sitting in the pew, listening to the sound of the piano up ahead and taking in the soft murmur of the other voices in the chapel. Suddenly the music changes, “The Wedding March” is playing and everyone is turning over their shoulders. Within a matter of moments familiar faces are smiling at you, holding a beautiful bouquet of daisies wrapped with yellow ribbon. You smile back politely and anxiously await the music to change yet again. And then you see her, your dear friend from High School. She looks AMAZING; more beautiful than you’ve ever seen her look in her entire life! She begins to walk down the isle and it is then that you see the look, the smile. It’s only for a moment but it brings an instant tear to your eye. It’s that look that only a bride can give to her awaiting groom. The look of excitement, of nervousness, of “Are we really doing this?!” It’s the look of love in its purest form and when I saw it, I melted from the inside out. As Heather took her place alongside her life long love, I smiled and sat down. I wasn’t heartless after all. It just all doesn’t mean anything to me unless it’s someone that I love.

The ceremony was gorgeous. It was untraditional, and heart felt, and just absolutely beautiful. Heather sang, Carrie cried during her reading, and I sat through it all in awe at the love these two still share after 8 years together. As they walked out of the chapel together, hand in hand, I caught a smile from both of them. They were finally Mr. and Mrs. Whitten. It was time to celebrate!

The reception was held at Hawks View Golf Club in Lake Geneva, WI. Tara and I grabbed a table with the rest of my friends and we spent the next few hours chatting over martinis, beer, and yummy buffet food. Soon the music was blaring, and the girls were on the dance floor dancing the night away. The end of the evening came really fast and before I knew it, I was hugging the bride and groom goodbye and we were on our way back to Milwaukee.

I had just watched my two dear friends promise their love to each other. I was ready to head back to work =)

For more pictures from the wedding, Click Here

Life Update

I have nothing of substance to post about today. I just figured I was well past due for an update.

WORK

Besides seamstress issues, things have been great here at the store! We're anxiously preparing for the Fall 2006 season (I know it seems way too soon doesn't it?) and I've been up to my ears in preparations for our summer/fall store promotions. You won't hear any complaints from me though...I love it! My only complaints arise when our seamstress can't seem to do her job right, and our brides get pissed at us as a result. I sometimes wish I had the authority here to just hire and fire as I saw fit. This seamstress would be OUT OF HERE in no time! But alas, I must hold my tongue and hope my mom does what she knows is best for the store. She knows what she has to do.

LIFE

I hate how it takes death to make you appreciate life sometimes. A close friend recently lost her very quick battle with breast cancer, and has left us all feeling just a bit sickened, a bit frightened, and a whole lot more grateful for our own personal health. It is such a mind-numbing experience to know that one day you can be at work, chatting away with co-workers as if nothing in the world mattered, and the next day you are being told you have 6 months to live...and you only get to see two of those. It just goes to show how important regular examinations are.

MONEY

Oh yeah, I'm broke. Sing it with me all. Maxed out Credit Cards, bills due, no pay date in sight. It's a joyous time to be alive =)

FRIENDS

Heather and Eric are getting married on Friday!!!!! HOLY HELL!! I just got my dress back from my seamstress. She altered it for me so that it wasn't a long dress, but instead a tea length.

(Side Note: Can I just gripe about etiquette for a sec.? Who the HELL made up the "rules" for weddings? MOH does this, MOB can wear this, MOB can't wear that, attendees can't wear this....WHY? Since when does a party have so many damn rules?!)

I was obviously told by a few sources that it is seen as improper to wear a long dress to a spring/summer wedding because then you'll blend in with the bridesmaids (god forbid). So, whatever, I'm not going to start unecessary drama at my good friend's wedding. So I sucked up the extra costs and hacked it all off. So Heather, you'll be happy to know I will not be blending in with any of your bridesmaids (although now we're both wearing tea length so you tell me the logic here) =) I'm obviously being quite sarcastic and a bit mello-dramatic. But hey, I'm way excited about my new Michael Kors sandals to go with it! A long dress would just cover those up!!

HEALTH

Without any success, I have been trying repeatedly to acquire my mom's Laryngitis. There is just something slightly sexy to me about having a rhaspy voice for a few days. But, no such luck. I'm stuck here with a healthy voice.

Aside from that, my numerous doctors appointments have gone perfectly! OBGYN-Check, Dentist-Check! Okay, so the dentist didn't go AS well. I ended up having to have a root canal a few days ago but other than that, I'm a healthy girl. Horray! Now if only I could get my shoulder to stop acting up!

Heather and Eric's Bachelor/Bachelorette Party

Yes! I am the first of my blogging friends to jump on the documentation of our fabulous weekend in which we partook in the sacred tradition, of seeing our friends off on their last days as single beings. Saturday, was Heather and Erics bachelor/bachelorette party, something many of us (including the couple) have been waiting for 8 years!

I had never been to a joint stag party before and I was curious to find out just how something like that would come together. But take out the clich strippers, take out the cheesy party games, and your left with a group friends just out to have a good time, and celebrate true love. It was a great evening!

We started off with dinner at Houlihans in Lake Geneva. I was a little sad that our entire wasnt able to sit together, but we made it work none-the-less with our two tables. We all sat side by side our couples (minus oneMINE) and chatted amongst ourselves over martinis, beer, and a tequila shot for Eric. Oh, and two BIG ASS Sunset Martinis for Eric and I, and Greta and Wendell. At around 10:00 we were all full and ready to begin the evening. Our first stopChamps.

The couple of honor wanted to go out dancing, but at 10:00 there wasnt going to be too much happening, so Champs seemed the perfect place to get our drink on for a bit, while waiting for the crowd at Hogs and Kisses to arrive. We had a few more drinks, and laughed as Amanda told off a very rude man for staring at my ass. You can always count on her to speak up thats for sure! Greta met a nice fella who proceeded to buy the entire party drinks and after a round of free drinks, we were ready for some dancing at Hogs.

Hogs was packed, as it usually is on a Saturday night, but we had no problems squeezing our way through the people and on to the dance floor. The music was a bit old school and I was disappointed that the DJ didnt know many of the songs we were requesting, but with good company you can dance the night away to pretty much anything. So it all worked out.

Our last stop in our bachelor/bachelorette tour of Lake Geneva was Carvettis and overly packed bar already at capacity by the time we arrived. It took some convincing on our part but we finally convinced the bouncer to let us in, with the stipulation that we went right to the outside patio. He heard no complaints from me. We pushed our way through the crowd of people, and planted ourselves at a table outside. Ahhh, a chance to relax and talk. It was probably a good thing that we never ended up making our way back out to the dance floor because after sitting for a bit and talking, the majority of us realized just how tired we were and so within an hour, we had all gone our respective ways and the fun of the bachelor/bachlorette party was a growing memory.

But the fun is not over, and its truly just beginning. In two weeks we will all reconvene, this time to celebrate the official union of these two high school sweethearts. On May 5th, Heather Cawley and Eric Whitten will become Mr. and Mrs. Whitten and well all be there to witness and celebrate it. I cant wait.

I apologize for the lack of pictures, but Blogger has been giving me nothing but grief all day long. For whatever reason, it won't let me post!!! So, if you want to see the pictures from the evening...

FOR PICTURES OF THE NIGHT, CLICK HERE

Easter 2006

Another great weekend in the good old B-Town.

Katie was in town again this weekend for Easter, so the two of us headed out for another evening out in B-Town. John’s Main Event is becoming a major favorite of ours, especially considering my drink hookup there on Saturday nights =) We chatted amongst ourselves for the first hour and soon found ourselves immersed in a game of bar dice with a few high school classmates. I refused to play dice for money, and instead insisted on playing for shots. You can imagine the shape I was in after about 12 rounds of dice. Word of advice: DO NOT PLAY DICE FOR SHOTS. TAKE THE MONEY WHEN YOU CAN =)

The people of the bar began to filter out and head to the Blue Carpet, but Katie and I hung back a bit to listen to the songs she played on the Juke Box and chat a bit more with Steve. Around 1:30 we made our way to the Blue Carpet for a bit of dancing and by 2:00 I was far from done and needed to go home and sleep.

Sunday I awoke with quite the hangover but I tried to put on the best face I could for my mom’s family as they started to arrive around 12:00 for our Easter get together. It was a failed attempt though, and I ended up spending most of the day on the couch with my little cousins, watching movies. Once Madagascar was put in though, the rest of my mom’s family piled into the living room and we all curled up for the next hour and a half. It was a nice little bonding session over a ton of laughs. It’s a great movie!

Around 3:00 my aunt tried to motivate me, and so we took a trip to Adrian’s to treat the fam to a few quarts of their tasty custard. It was a great little outing and put my stomach over the edge. I was stuffed for the rest of the night. Between the ham and the potatoes, and the deserts, the custard…I was stuffed! I left my parents house around 7:00 and went right home to bed. I was exhausted and full =) The perfect way to sleep he he.

Motorcycles, my new calling

Motorcycling. You either love it, or you hate. You don’t meet many people that have luke warm feelings towards the cycling phenomenon of the world. Sure there are those that don’t really think twice about it…but those are the ones that have never been on a motorcycle =) I personally am in love with them, and I hope someday to buy my own…seriously.

I’ve always loved driving and even more so than driving is the open road that has attracted me out on so many nights. The feeling of the Cabby top down, the wind in my hair, and open sky above me is one of the most unbelievable feelings a person can experience. The freedom, the view, the way that the world looks through an open window; it’s something I look forward to every season. Multiply that feeling times 100 and you have the sensation of a motorcycle. Of course I would love it.

The weather hit a record high of 80 degrees for the year, and you can imagine the cabin fever I was feeling as I watched everyone outside, enjoying the day, while I was stuck inside. Finally an angel arrived at our front door. It was my uncle, clad in his Harley attire, ready to take me for a ride. I willingly hopped on the back of his motorcycle and for the next half hour I was taken away to a place far away from the bride’s problems, far away from the bridesmaid’s demands, and far away from the overpriced charges of the seamstress world. I was on the open road and I loved every second of it.

The world looks so different on a motorcycle. Colors seem brighter, the air seems cleaner, even the smell of cow manure takes on a new sort of “earthy” scent. Every ounce, of everything I encounter when I’m on the back of the motorcycle is one more thing for me to smile about. I just love it all.

I was sad to see the ride end, but I’m looking forward to finishing up this post, throwing the Cabby top down, and cruising my way into Milwaukee to enjoy the rest of the fabulous spring day. I look forward to the day when my skinny, girly ass will be behind my own hog. Until then, my purple rag top will do just fine.

Pure Perfection!

*Cheers* to perfect weekends. It was a mixture of old friends, great love, and beautiful spring days…the perfect combination to any perfect weekend.

My weekend began on Saturday with an extremely busy bridal salon. Wedding season is in full bloom and the brides were out and shopping! Adding to the hustle of the salon, were the procrastinating prom girls, out to get a look at the last of the season’s dresses before they disappear for good. 8 hours later the store was finally quiet again, and I was on my way out the door to meet up with a good friend for drinks.

I hadn’t been to Katie D’s house in YEARS, probably since High School, so it was nice to reminisce a bit around the house I called my second home for so many years. I chatted with her dad for a bit, commented on how old her little sister had gotten (seriously last time I saw her she was like 10...now she's 15 and dating!!!!), and then headed out with my bubbly blonde friend for some drinks in good old Lake Geneva.

We started things out at Champs, ended up meeting up with Dave, and then the three of us headed over to Cavarellis (I may be WAY off in that bar name) for a few more drinks and a shot. As the night wore on though, the music intensified and we decided to leave in search of a more chill avenue (this was definitely not a night out for dancing…we had catching up to do!). We ended up back in Burlington, at John’s Main Event, where we met up with my mom and some old High School classmates that we hadn’t seen in many years as well. Katie and Dave played pool, I played darts and chatted, and before I knew it, it was 2:00 and I had to get going. I hugged Katie goodbye in the middle of the street and we planned for our next outing. Dancing next weekend anyone? =)

I drove back to Milwaukee after leaving the bar and curled up next to Tara, thrilled that I had the entire day off on Sunday to just laze around, and spend with her.

We awoke around 9:00, made some coffee, and hung around the apartment for a few hours before finally showering and getting a move on to enjoy the gorgeous spring day that lay ahead of us! I took her to the sporting goods shop on Capital Drive so she could pick out a bat and some softball equipment for the upcoming softball season. For Christmas I had purchased her a gift certificate so she could FINALLY buy a nice bat for herself, and she left satisfied with her brand new DeMarini F2 bat. I know nothing about bats, but it sure is pretty =)

Already in a shopping mood, we decided to head over to Wheel and Sprocket to check out their bike sale, and pick out a pair for us to enjoy this summer (she insists on buying me one for my birthday). We know nothing about biking and were overwhelmed with the choices! Mountain Bikes, Hybrid bikes, racing bikes, tall bikes, short bikes, girl bikes, boy bikes…what happened to the days of pink standard bikes with pom poms on the handles!!

We hung around for an hour and half attempting to figure out, on our own, which bike would fit out needs. We tried unsuccessfully to attract the attention of a sales associate to help us with our questions and we laughed at the “May I help you” options we came up with. I finally just started to ring the little bell attached to one of the bikes I had parked myself on and I think it helped because a few minutes later we finally had a sales associate to answer our questions. 2 hours in Wheel and Sprocket and all we were able to find out is that we need a Hybrid bike, size 18 (for me) and 17.5 (for her). I guess we’re one step closer to buying a bike though! Yay!

The rest of the day we just spent running errands: Target for birthday presents for her neice and nephew, Barnes and Nobles for more birthday presents, and finally Pick ‘n Save for some food so we could grill out. There is no more perfect end to a perfect day than hamburgers and corn on the cobb on the grill! I love Sundays.

Sometimes, I wonder if things will ever change.

And then I explain to him how naive we were, that the world did know and remained silent. And that is why I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere. When human lives are endangered, when human dignity is in jeopardy, national borders and sensitivities become irrelevant. Wherever men and women are persecuted because of their race, religion, or political views, that place must - at that moment - become the center of the universe.
- Elie Wiesel, Night.

On Tuesday, that place was the center of my universe.

I'm not naive to the cruelty of the world. Granted it is true that I live in a sort of bubble, sheltered from the negative effects of the outside world. But the bubble is clear, and I can see it, and ultimately, it affects me. I'd also just like to say that I in no way am comparing the cruelty that I witness throughout my days, to the tragedy that Elie Wiesel experienced during his time at Auschwitz. I am merely making a connection between his words, and their relevance...even today.

When I was 17, I laid witness to a number of my fellow high school classmates, chucking plastic footballs at the head of an openly gay student, as he paraded across the football field during our Homecoming game. He never hung his head, he never lost his smile, and I felt embarrased to call some of these young boys my friends. I think that day I started to hate high school just a little bit.

On Tuesday, on my walk to Walgreens, I was blasted back to the past as I watched a man cross the street in fromt of me, being ridiculed by a couple of young men standing outside a local Brady Street bar.

But this man hung his head, ashamed of who he was in the eyes of these men.

He was a crossdresser.

As this man crossed in front of me I tried to give him a reassuring "You're not a freak" smile, and I hope that because of it he went home knowing that not everyone out there is that cruel or judgemental. But I know that a smile sometimes is not enough, and in my silence, I allowed those men to continue living their cruel lives and gave them the opportunity to do it yet again to another innocent human being.

In my silence I cried. Cried for the humility of the man in front of me, cried for the cruelty that exists in the world today, and cried for the shame I felt as I silently walked into Walgreens, not saying a single word to anyone.

The Best Things In Life Are Free

And here are just a few:

Bubblewrap
The first warm day of the year
Laminating anything
Watching old people purchasing cell phones
The feeling you get from wearing an AMAZING pair of heels
A drive with the Cabby top down
Best friends
Crossing the finish line at the Chicago Marathon
A smile in the middle of a fight
Tears of pure love and happiness
Watching your life long friends, marry their life long loves.
The smell of plastic
Dancing all night long
Laughing until you cry
Petting a puppy
The sound a big city makes
A baby’s laugh
Candy Cane Lane
Falling in Love
The crackle of a campfire
Watching ducks cross a road

.... and I could just go on and on =)

It's Just Plastic

Does anyone else find laminating to be one of the coolest, most facinating things out there?! I am completely 100% enthralled in that little piece of plastic that I fear if we ever purchased a laminating machine for the salon here, I would hole myself up day in and out...laminating!

I am heading to BHS tomorrow to hang out at the High School and promote our store and the Prom lines we carry. In an effort to do this, I went to Wal*Mart early this morning and purchased a bunch of candy, celophane, little twisty ribbons, and of course some laminating paper, and headed to the salon to being my crafts.

I created business cards on the computer stating simply that "We Carry Tuxedos" and then announcing our Prom sale on the other side, to give to each of the students that come to our table. I of course laminated each of these cards, punched a hole in them, and tied them to my carefully, celophane, wrapped candy. A brilliant idea! I then created a mailing list page and purchased a candy gift basket to raffel off to the students that fill out a form both allowing us to give the students something fun to take home, and also giving us a well equiped mailing list for next year's prom season.

But I have to say the most fun through all of it, was the laminating! Why? It's a stupid piece of plastic but I found myself trying to find things in the store, other than the business cards, to laminate! Size charts, call lists, pens...they all became free game. Good thing I was too busy with customers to start doing any real damage (ie: I think the computer screen could use a good protective laminate coat). No, I stuck to the intended business cards but rest assured my mind is moving with new laminating options as we speak. I do after all, have an entire extra box at my disposal!

Poor, Poor, Piggies!

Back in October, my family had to make the executive decision to release custody of our two pugs Cooper and Farley, and hand it over to a sweet girl named Jenna. While the idea of them no longer being in my care saddened me, it made me happy to know that wherever they were they were happy and they were together.

Occasionally from time to time I think of my two little piggies and wonder how they're doing. If they're still fat or if they still cuddle like they would on the floor of my Lakeview apartment in Chicago. I wonder if the noises they make are still obnoxious and gross and if Cooper still hasn't quite grasped the concept of fetch. I miss them every day and wish to see them even more. But the idea of visiting my own dogs just saddens me even more...I'd have to say goodbye all over again, every time.

Then yesterday we receive a phone call from Jenna who said she had to talk to us about the pugs. Scared that one of them had gotten sick or worse, died, I made my mom call Jenna back first thing this morning to see what was going on. I've since spent the entire morning in tears, trying to keep my mind off of it.

Long story short:

Farley hurt one of Jenna's other dogs (Farley thinks he's a big mean pit bull sometimes...especially when he's protecting Cooper) so Jenna gave them to a woman that lives near her where she could still visit them every day, but where Farley would be away from her own dogs. Suddenly, without notice to Jenna, the woman moved, giving Cooper and Farley away to another caregiver. Thankfully Jenna somehow found the address for this woman and was horrified to find that this woman was crazy, leaving the pugs in the car for hours, locked in cages, no attention, etc. Just a bad caregiver in general. Jenna was able to get Farley back, she literally walked into the house and stole him away, but couldn't find Cooper anywhere. After weeks of searching she finally found him at the Lakeview Animal Shelter, and my mom has been on the phone ever since trying to get him out before he gets adopted, which was supposed to take place today!

I'm so sad thinking about my poor little piggie all alone at the Animal Shelter. If anyone knows my dogs they would know that they cannot be split up. Cooper doesn't exist without Farley! It just hurts my heart to think of the horrible things they have been going through the past few months, and it's all because neither of us can have stupid animals in our stupid apartments!!

My lease is up in August, I'm getting a place where I can have animals and I'm getting my two little babies back. I can't handle thinking about them suffering at the hands of someone else. It hurts entirely too much.

Quote to Live By

I can't help but post this. Everytime I get it in my inbox it just makes me smile!

As we grow up, we learn that even the one person that wasn't supposed to ever let you down probably will. You will have your heart broken probably more than once and it's harder every time. You'll break hearts too, so remember how it felt when yours was broken. You'll fight with your best friend. You'll blame a new love for things an old one did. You'll cry because time is passing too fast, and you'll eventually lose someone you love. So take too many pictures, laugh too much, and love like you've never been hurt before because every sixty seconds you spend upset is a minute of happiness you'll never get back.

I was going to blog it, BUT....

You know what the great thing about the blogging world is? When you hang out with two of your friends, that each have their own separate blog, you KNOW they're going to be blogging about the time you three spent together, and therefore, saves you the effort of having to regurgitate the weekends activities a third time! Horray for time saving! Granted everyone does have their own points of view on how the weekend unfolded, and I'm sure I could add a few details here and there that both Amanda and Erin forgot, but who cares right? If you want to know about our fabulous weekend full of surprises, wine, and dildos (yes I did say dildos) then click on their blogs. Plus, it's good exposure for them =)

But I do just have to say one thing about the weekend... WE'RE GOING TO VEGAS!

That's it.

I myself, am on day 2 of my fasting/detox diet and I have to admit that I'm feeling pretty good. I'm a little hungry but other than that I'm well on my way. 22 more days!

I had my second belly dancing class last night. It is so much fun I can't stand it! I just miss getting out there and learning a dance, and seeing it all come together. It's the Pom-Pom girl in me. My mom and I bought our little coin skirts last night and I have to say I was feeling pretty Middle-Eastern after that. Minus the blonde hair and blue eyes of course. Just give me my finger symbols and I'm ready to go! =) We learned some belly twists (which if I can brag my teacher said mine were BEAUTIFUL) and learned a few more steps to our dance. By the end of 6 weeks I'll be able to do a full routine! I'm excited.

Round 2

HAPPY FIRST DAY OF SPRING BLOGGING WORLD!!!

It sure doesn't feel like spring right now though! I'm looking out the window at the bank thermometer and it keeps blinking 32 at me. Instead of it being a bright, sunny, spring afternoon, I am instead surrounded by cold and gloom as I patiently wait for the temperatures to finally rise again. I hate waiting for spring. It can never come fast enough!

Aside from today's cold weather, I have to say that the weekend was pleasantly warm. In fact, much of the snow we received here in the Milwaukee area melted away by Saturday. Not necessarily because of warm temperatures, but because of the bright brilliant sunshine. That works for me!

Now that the weekend is overwith (which I'll post more about later), I can get back onto my fasting diet. Yes, I AM going through with it. I have my schedule cleared (for the most part) and my body is ready to be detoxed! I'm sitting here right now with my fruit smoothie (minus the yogurt) and my cup full of vitamins, anticipating the hell my body will go through for the next 3 weeks. I WILL do it though!!

Okay, You Win

To all you Christi skeptics out there...You Won! I have failed in my detox diet.

Maybe failed is the wrong word. I have POSTPONED my detox diet. There, I like that better. After a full day of eating apples, pinneaple, and a very bland tasteless salad, I began to think about my weekend and how much I would be missing out on if I continued through with this 23 day detox. Between dinner and drinks on Friday and Heather's wedding shower on Saturday the timing on this program just couldn't be any worse. My mom said I should just detox until Friday, go off of it for a few days, then continue on after the weekend, but what's the point in that. I'll just shock my body right back to where it was after a few days off of it.

Therefore, I have decided to clear my schedule for the next three weeks (starting Monday) to allow myself ample time to succesfully complete this detox program.

I know that I can do this! Regardless of how poor my daily habits are =)

Detoxification Issue

I'm running with this Trend idea!

For the past few months, I have been hearing countless stories about detoxification and fasting, and the benefits it has on our bodies. I'm always a little skeptical of trendy diets but I guess if it's popular to the masses...it must work right? Otherwise people wouldn't do it!

In Hollywood it is tres chic to compliment your detoxification with a colon cleanse, but I think for purposes of this blog...I'll stick to the diet. One trend at a time =)

Before I decided to do this detoxification cleanse, I knew that I couldn't just do it, and trust the stars on it's health benefits, so I opened up Google Scholar, and did some research myself. I found an article written by Pioneer Nutritional Formulas that speaks about the detox program I am currently following, a 23 day, fruits and veggies program. So far everything I've been reading supports the health benefits of it! Sure there are a few health officials that think the program be a waste of time, especially since it doesn't promote any sort of drug intake (sarcasm), but for the most part my findings have been pretty positive.

So it's full speed ahead!!

Today, I begin my fast and for the next 23 days I will be in hell as my diet is limited to fruits, vegetables, and a whole lot of salads. THAT'S IT! No Jimmy John's, no amazing Honey Mustard Sub from Quizno's, and no Diet Coke during my daily lunch run. It's just me and nature!

I'm ready to be cleansed.

Belly Dancing...The New Fad

The fitness world moves through its fads almost as fast as my jeans move in and out of style, and it can become very tiresome to try and keep up with them all. Instead of mastering each of the trendy techniques that arise in popular culture, I prefer to just dabble in them all. Get a taste of what exists in the world; see what I like!

I've taken a Spin class with the bike Nazi's, I've centered my chi with a Yogi, I've even stripped off my clothes and climbed a pole during a Cardio-Strip session at Crunch Fitness in Chicago. In the end however, I always end up back to the basics of the running and sit-ups…as much fun as everything else is =) But it doesn't hurt to keep trying them all out!

Tonight, my mother and I discovered the ancient Middle Eastern art of Belly Dancing, the 2006 workout fad of the year!

We arrived at the little studio ready for some dancing and a hard workout, but were completely taken aback when the instructor showed us where to put our tennis shoes, and then where to sit. What? Sit? Bare Feet? What kind of place was this?! You can't possibly expect us to get a good workout in without my shoes can you?

I decided to humor my instructor a bit longer.

We took our seats and she ran through the coming weeks with us. The dancing sounded really exciting, the stretching was just up my alley (I have to admit out of all the trendy workouts, Yoga is still my favorite…enter my love of stretching), but I was most excited when she pulled out the little skirts with coins on them in flashy colors that were available to buy…and encouraged to wear! (Jayne, I know for sure you can relate…I hear Dorothy is borrowing yours he he). Note to self: bring $28 dollars for cute little coin skirt to wear around during my 6 week Belly Dancing class, and then never again after. By the end of the discussion, I was willing to ignore the fact that I was barefoot, and get down to business.

It's been a while since I've done any real sort of physical activity, and I must admit that just the opening stretches had me groaning in pain. Good pain though of course. After stretching, she ran us through a few of the basic moves and then we learned our first three steps of the dance. Hooray for dancing! One of the most exciting things in the world for me is learning a few steps and then feeling the rush of putting that all to music and seeing how it all flows and coordinates together. I felt myself wanting to bump and grind a few times to the music (It's the modernist in me) but I had to remember that we're working on control and isolation, not random movements of whichever body parts happen to feel the music at the time. It's hard though…I love to dance!!

I wouldn't say that I left feeling as though I had done a fantastic workout, but I did get some stretching in, a lot of laughter, and a great hour of fun. I think its well worth my time for the next 6 weeks…or at least until the next big workout fad comes along ;)

Hmm..I think I may have just found my purpose for a blog....Trend research!! I'm going to look into it and get back to you =)

Pictures

PICTURES FROM THIS WEEKEND!

It's a LONG post, but it was a LONG weekend =)

I had forgotten how much I truly LOVE to ski!

On Thursday of last week, the Anderson clan (Aunt Micki and Neil and their 3 kids, Uncle Johnny and his 2 kids, Aunt Dianne and Paul, Grandma, and our family) piled into an R7R Limousine shuttle bus, destined for Chicago, IL. The 15 of us were headed for the Amtrak stations to catch our train to Pittsburgh PA.

Ever since my Grandpa Dave died a few months ago, the family has been adamant about spending more time together (other than at each other’s funerals). So my dad and Uncle David set up a ski weekend away in the mountains of West Virginia and by March 2, 15 of us were on our way.

We arrived at the Amtrak station within plenty of time before our train so after getting our tickets, checking our baggage, and doing whatever it is a group of 15 people do, we headed to our gate so as to ensure we were first in line for boarding. After all, we all DID want to sit together!!

After an hour delay, a gate switch, and a whole lot of “Get off the Tile” yelling by Amtrak employees, our crew finally made it to the train (together of course) and anxiously awaited the next 9 hours of relaxation.

The train ride itself was not so bad. I had my books, my IPod, and of course my family to keep me occupied and entertained. Sleeping on the other hand, was a completely different story and as our train rolled into Pittsburgh around 4:30 am, I realized that sleep for myself and most of the Anderson clan, was just not going to be happening that night. Instead, we exited the train and took our seats in the waiting area to wait for our luggage.

I loaded up on coffee and mingled with the fam as I tried to ignore the fact that I had not yet slept and instead was spending my exhausting morning sitting in the Pittsburgh train station. About 45 minutes later our luggage arrived, but the waiting was not yet over as the men still had to pick up our rental cars…30 minutes away!!! The rest of waited patiently (some slept) and by 7:30 the caravan of SUV’s was outside the train station. We could finally leave!!!

The ride to my Uncle David and Jackie’s house was about a 2 hour one, which wasn’t exactly the most appetizing of endeavors considering our long train ride, but we made the most of it. We stopped along the way for some more coffee and waffles at the Waffle House just outside of Pittsburgh, which was enough energy to keep us awake for the rest of the trip. If you’ve never experienced a Waffle House before, you’re missing out on an experience! =)

We arrived to David’s around 11:00 at which point I was dying for some sleep! But it just wasn’t happening yet. We helped David and Jackie pack up their own SUV and then hit the road by 1:00 for yet another 2 hour car ride. This time, into the mountains of West Virginia!

I find it very unfortunate that West Virginia gets such a bad wrap. Sure the state is relatively poor, and yes those “mountain people” do exist, but the beauty of the state is so much more than it’s people. The rolling mountains, and the green prairies and valley. It’s really an unbelievably beautiful place! I tried to enjoy the view from David’s to our cabin in the mountains, but the winding roads made me quite sick and I spent the majority of the trip hunched over my legs.

By 3:00 we had arrived to our cabin. Our beautiful 6 bedroom, mountain top, ski-on, ski-off cabin. I had officially arrived in heaven. After figuring out room situations, unpacking, and getting the kids settled in, we gathered in the living room to relax and unwind. We watched the skiers pass us by out the living room windows and anxiously anticipated our own ski trip in the morning.

As the children one by one filtered to bed, the adults took full advantage of the empty cabin by popping on our swimsuits, and enjoying a few glasses of wine in the outside hot tub. We waved at the night skiers as they passed right by us, and chatted about life. We soon retreated inside to play a quick game of Phase 10, my new favorite card game, and by 9:00 I was ready for bed. I could finally sleep.

We woke up early on Saturday to get as much skiing in as possible. I was nervous at first as I had not skied in a number of years, but the second I placed my boot into my binding, 15 years of skiing all came back to me. It took once down the hill before I was comfortable enough to hit those double blacks I love so much.

After a few times down, I ventured to the bunny hill to see how the rest of the family was doing, teaching their children how to ski. I offered my helping hand and spent the next few hours snowplowing along side my cousin Jesse, showing him exactly how he needs to stop while on a pair of skis. I was so proud of him. He picked it up after just a few runs down. Hooray for skiing!!

We returned home around 5:00 once the cold set in and headed straight to the hot tub to relax our sore muscles. I had forgotten how much work skiing is! Especially when you’re completely out of shape! The rest of the night we spent just relaxing in the cabin. I love being secluded in the mountains! =)

On Sunday, I woke up bright and early again to get a jump on skiing before we had to leave. Today, was a bit different as I was going to try snowboarding. Seeing as how I have been skiing almost my entire life, I was ready for a change. I figured snowboarding was just the winter change I needed. My cousin Melissa and I headed to the hill before everyone else arrived so we could rent our snowboards, and figure out just how the stupid things worked. Thank god we had my professional snowboarder brother along (He’s been snowboarding about as long as I’ve been skiing) otherwise I don’t think we ever would have gotten out of the lodge. He showed us how the bindings work, which foot to lock in, and how to walk with this huge board attached to our foot. He took us on and off the lifts and taught us about the stomp pad and finally, he showed us a few quick snowboarding moves.

We started off on the 2 mile long green hill, Salamander, thinking that would give us just enough time to learn the basics instead of practicing on the little bump they call the bunny hill. BAD IDEA! I didn’t realize how much I would fall. Every time I got up, I fell right back down. Up, Down, Up, Down, Up……….Down. This was how it went for the first hour of skiing. Melissa and I laughed and laughed as everyone kept lapping us on the hill. “Christi, I’ve seen that man three times since we’ve been on this hill, and we’re still not even half way down yet!” It’s true we spent the remainder of the run on our butts, but along the way we finally got the hang of it. Our boards turned and stopped when we wanted them to, and we were actually able to snowplow a few feet before falling face forward into the snow. Once I was up I was able to balance long enough to actually move down the hill, and a few times I was even able to turn the board back and forth to move out of people’s way! Of course near the end I took a few very hard falls and that pretty much ended my snowboarding experience. There is only so much falling you can take in one day before your body just yells. 2 ½ hours was my bodies limit =)

We made our way back to the cabin in pain and ready to go home. I was a little annoyed at snowboarding since I couldn’t pick it up right away, but I had a lot of fun regardless. I think I may have to think about taking a lesson around here before the winter ends. I could just become a snowboarder soon =)

It was a fast weekend complete with a lot of traveling, but it was a lot of fun regardless. Between the mountains, and the skiing, the family, and the laughter, it is something I’d do again in a heartbeat. No questions asked.

I’m just glad to be home. For the moment =)

It's New To Me

Yesterday I bought new glasses. I'm VERY excited about them. After my last favorite pair were stollen out of my car, I thought for sure I'd never find a pair I liked more than those. I was wrong =) These are D&G, wire, lightweight, square frames. They're adorable. I apparently didn't quite understand the whole purchasing process of eyeglasses because as I was browsing through the styles, I found it relieving that the ones I really liked were only $171!!! I was thinking well in the $400 dollar range for a pair of designer frames. I quickly found out however that the frames are a completely separate entity from the prescription and the glass extras (ie: anti-glare). I was apparently pretty dead on in my original estimate =)

I officially signed up to be a volunteer at the Milwaukee Humane Society. I have my first volunteer orientation on Wednesday March 1. I'm going to be a dog walker! YAY!

Today, I sent in my check to begin Belly Dancing classes here in Burlington. Inspired by both Jayne and Amanda, I'm ready to try my own luck at the belly dancing phenomenon =)

And that's what's new with me =)

A First Taste of Spring

The thing I've always loved most about living in the Midwest is the ever changing seasons. We get a little bit of everything (some a little more than others): our Summers are hot, our Springs are mild, our Autumns are crisp and colorful, and our winters are white and brutally cold. It's a nice balance in life, which I am a firm believer in. But occasionally, the seasons tend to drag on a bit longer than is wanted.

Such is the case with Winter.

By mid-February I am fighting the cold, and begging for warm air. The green grass, and the jacket-less days cannot come fast enough once Winter is upon us, and I welcome the first spring-like day with wide open arms.

While today is nowhere near Spring-like, it has a Spring feel in the air...a smell of what's to come if you will. It's funny how a simple scent can remind you of so much. I walked out of my apartment early this morning, and an instant smile came upon me as the hint of Spring lingered in the air. Suddenly I was brought back to days off of school with my mom, Freshman year track practices, and spring walks around downtown Chicago.

I love the first spring day with the Cabby top down, blaring music through the speakers, and jamming with my oversized sunglasses on. I like the Spring bounce in people's steps, the sound of snow melting and running down the street, and the first glimpse of new life budding on the trees around me. I love the hope of spring, the new life, the fresh start. It's coming! I'm so excited.

Martinis, laughter, and one Icelandic Princess

Last night, I took a much needed break away from life to enjoy an evening of cocktails with my roomate Nicky. Although the two of us have lived under the same roof for 7 months now, the amount of time that the two of us actually spends together would amount to the equivalent of a weekend visit...once a year! With our opposite schedules, significant others, and personal responsibilities our time together is very limited, and it makes me sad to think that I still barely know this girl!

Thus, we took some much needed bonding time last night and plopped ourselves at the bar at The Knickerbocker for some fab martinis, a few shots, and a lot of laughs and catching up. Mid way through our evening, a mob of people came strolling the doors of the quiet little bar, including one Icelandic Princess, Anna. She was in from Iceland promoting the Icelandic Vodka Reyka. She bought us all a round of shots and Nicky and I chatted with her posse who reminded us more of the New York Mafia. After about an hour at the bar they were ready to party hop a bit more, and off they were.

What began as a chill night with a few martinis, ended in laughter over meeting the Princess of Iceland. What a night! =)

Snapshirt Fun

I've been seeing this pop up on a number of blogs throughout the cyber world, so I decided to succumb to the masses and do this myself. Here is my blog jumble from Snapshirt.com. Check it out for yourself fellow bloggers! =)

I'll Pay Your Way, And Mine

I LOATHE freeloaders! It absolutely positively just makes my skin crawl, when I think of the people that are living day to day on someone elses tab!

- The man and woman that walk by my store twice a day, every day, with bags of food from Love Incorporated. All of it is 100% free for them to fill their lazy mouths.

- The man or woman or group of kids that broke into my car this summer and stole all of my clothes and accessories needed for my job interview that morning! I truly hope you enjoyed your used makeup.

- The person that picked up my phone New Years Day and downloaded $125 worth of sports games onto my phone. THANKS FOR THAT BILL!

Ugh. Get a job people! Work for you own food, buy your own makeup, and get your own damn phone.

My Own Encyclopedia of an Ordinary Life

I am currently reading “Enclyclopedia of an Ordinary Life” by Amy Krouse Rosenthal; a book that came highly recommended from my dear friend Erin. It’s a strange read as it doesn’t follow the typical flow of traditional memoirs, instead follows the format of the common encyclopedia!

I have been reading the book for about 2 days now and each night I mark a few pages that have sparked interest with me, mostly interest in blog ideas. You know, just something new to write about, instead of my everyday life (as exciting as that is sometimes).

Last night, as I read through the “C” section, I came across an entry that she titled “Childhood Memories” in which she, in chronological order, went through the major happenings of her childhood. Some of them are funny…okay most of them are hilarious and one in particular struck me as highly interesting and got me thinking about my own life! Therefore, I decided to blog about it.

Amy writes about “Things That Have Confused Me For Much Longer Than They Should Have”. In this entry she describes a number of thoughts that confused her as a child. My favorite was when she asks, “Why would terrorists take credit for bombings…why would they want to admit that?” With that, I began to compile my own list. And it goes a little something like this.

Things That Have Confused Christi For Much Longer Than They Should Have

How was Jenny ever going to get married when she was an only child? I was convinced for the longest time that every family had one boy and one girl and that was the person that you would marry someday.

Why didn’t the cops ever catch the bad guys right away on Unsolved Mysteries, instead of just video taping them? I didn’t understand the concept of reenactment. I honestly thought what I was watching was real.

Why did the girl in the song take a piece of meat with her everytime she went away? I later found out that the song was titled “Every Time You Go Away, You Take a Piece of ME With You”.

How come nobody ever saw me on TV, and how come I never saw anybody I ever knew either? It took me a while to realize that TV was FAKE, and that those weren’t real people living out their every day lives. I would honestly walk around during the day trying to look my best and be as interesting as I possibly could thinking that someone somewhere was watching me on their TV at that very moment. Yes, even then I had an ego on me =)

When I was full, I thought that meant I could open my mouth and see my food filled up to the top of my mouth.

So that's my list! I could probably come up with a million more, but for space purposes we'll just go with those. You get the idea of how I thought as a small child =)

Do any of you have any every day occurances or thoughts that were just way too confusing for you as a child?

A Weekend Off

Having days off, after a few weeks of really hard works, makes them feel a million times more worthwhile.

I spent my 5 days off doing what I like to do the most…relaxing!!

After a Tuesday night rendezvous with Erin to watch the fashion show video, as well as my TV interview, I went home feeling stress free and relaxed. There is nothing like the anticipation of a few days off to put you in a really good mood. I crawled into bed earlier than usual, only to awake 10 hours later.

I was tired all day Wednesday, as I put my body through a recovery routine of watching my favorite Soap Opera (Days of our Lives) and eating my favorite lunch time meal (Velveeta Shells and Cheese). It was a perfect beginning to a perfect week end.

On Thursday I awoke bright and early to drive to Burlington to pick up my mom for our day of pampering. We were going to spend the day at Fusion Salon and Day Spa in Lake Geneva. Our 5 ½ hours at the spa included a body elixir complete with body exfoliation, massage, and 15 minute hot bath. We also indulged in an hour facial, a fabulous spa lunch, scalp treatment and shampoo, hair style and makeup touchup, and finally a fabulous pedicure. It was the perfect place to distress ourselves! We finished up the day with margaritas and appetizers at the Cactus Club then headed home to vedge on the couch to some Chick Flicks (not my first choice, but I humored my mother).

The rest of my weekend involved a number of cultural activities. On Friday Tara and I went and saw Memoirs of a Geisha at the Mayfair Mall Theatre and I absolutely loved it of course. I had just finished reading the book and was dying to see the movie, so Tara took me to see it. The book was definitely better but the movie was great as well. I just love Eastern Geisha costume!

Saturday Tara and I headed downtown with our first stop being the Milwaukee Art Museum. I unfortunately can’t say that I have much of an appreciation for art but it was still a great experience none-the-less. Even if you aren’t a huge art lover, the building itself is such an aesthetically pleasing structure that it alone could merit an entire visit just to study its architectural greatness! I was quite fond of the building =) Much more than the paintings on the walls. Tara did manage to find a few that she really liked, including one with a painted rainbow in it…go figure.

We finished off the Art Museum tour with lunch at the Museum Café which has fabulous sandwich wraps. I highly recommend it! Tara and I chatted over our Chicken Caesar Wraps, BLT Sandwiches, and herbal teas and people watched as the intellectuals of Milwaukee came in and out. For those of you sensitive to the people in your surroundings (i.e.: ERIN =) ), the Art Museum may be the perfect place for you to spend your day. There are well-kept people everywhere!

After the Art Museum we headed even further downtown to visit the Milwaukee Public Museum, a favorite Milwaukee spot of mine….well, it used to be anyways. I was so excited to show Tara what I thought to be one of the greatest places to spend an afternoon. With the streets of Milwaukee, the large dinosaur exhibits, and the many levels of interaction with Milwaukee past and present, what could be better! Unfortunately, the museum hasn’t changed a bit since I was a little girl and I found most of the exhibits to be rather old and tiresome.

The streets of Milwaukee still have granny rocking away on her rocking chair, the Native American exhibit still contains scantily clad Indians harpooning Buffalo while a toy rattle snack rattles in the distance, and the rainforest exhibit is still playing the sounds of crickets and frogs that they have been since I was a little girl…and apparently well before that. It’s sad to think that this place may in fact be shut down but I guess I can see why. While they do receive their occasional special exhibit, such as the new Vatican exhibit which is currently running, the majority of their exhibits have been there for an absurd amount of time and they’re really quite dated.

I remember walking through the museum in awe and wonderment at just how cool the place was, but this weekend I found it to be just old. I felt bad as I’m sure Tara was quite disappointed seeing as how much I had talked up the museum, but how was I to know it’d lose all of its nostalgia as the years went on! =)

After the museum we headed for home and bailed on dinner plans as my back was in very rough shape. I blew it out this weekend, don’t ask me how, and I was in a lot of pain. So we opted for an evening in with our favorite Chinese and some home made martinis.

Sunday was spent lounging around and a quick trip to Mayfair mall to pick up some much needed items. I needed to go to Barnes and Nobles to pick up a few books, including a book on fasting/detoxifying/purifying which I plan on doing come next week. A 7-Day detox plan is something my body definitely needs right now! I only hope I have the will-power to follow through with it all.