jen messes with texas

aging gracefully?

2008-03-11T22:10:00.002-05:00

on this, the eve of yet another birthday, I have decided to revive this craptastic blog with the following revelation:

I AM GETTING WRINKLES. WTF. MY ASIAN GENES HAVE PUNKED OUT ON ME LIKE TOTAL BITCHES.

I cannot believe they have the audacity to show up ON THE NIGHT BEFORE MY BIRTHDAY and make themselves comfortable on my previously unlined forehead.

sad.

(okay, so yes, this doesn't really count as an entry, but it's all I've got in me right now... Making Shit Happen takes a lot out of a girl.)

(please send birthday wishes and anti-aging cream, STAT.)

i will never understand

2008-02-08T06:45:00.000-06:00

People who are wide-eyed and fucking CHATTY at 630 in the morning. It's an airport. Can't you be mindful of the people around you? It's still dark outside! I have been awake since 5-something, which is just wrong in my book. So can you please stop talking so loudly about how you don't like flying and the quality of the hotel breakfast? I'd be ever so obliged.

happy Sunday, Austin-style

2008-02-03T14:29:00.000-06:00

unfortunately, I am doing work. that is the only bad part of this post. the good part? it's 70-something degrees in February. I am wearing shorts and flip-flops, and my toes are painted dark pink. I am sitting at Jo's Coffee across the street from my apartment. there is live music including a rather snazzy accordian (who knew accordians could be so snazzy?) playing in the background. the accordian looks kinda like Alton Brown's second cousin, which makes me like him even more. the place is packed but not uncomfortably so. tattooed hipsters with ironic sunglasses are sharing seats with gray-haired newspaper readers and people with beer bellies drinking cold Negra Modelo beers. dogs are barking to each other. I am sipping an iced decaf coffee and watching the passersby. everyone is tapping their toes. everyone is polite: "excuse me, is this chair taken?" and "would you please watch my bag while I use the restroom?" and appreciative applause after every song. there is a cute little baby with pigtails sitting next to me.

so if this is my background as I am catching up on a few things I have to write for work, I really can't complain...

this explains a lot

2008-01-27T16:56:00.000-06:00

as you could probably tell by the mood of my recent posts, last week sucked. sucked royally. sucked in a major way. there was no one particular reason for the suckage... I think it was more of a perfect storm of different elements, such as the horrible weather (gray, cold, rainy, gross), horrible meetings (it's so much fun to walk out of client meetings feeling completely demoralized! except not at all), and long, tiring days.

I realized something, though. try Googling the phrase "most depressing day of the year" and take a look at your results: http://www.google.com/search?source=ig&hl=en&rlz=1G1GGLQ_ENUS257&q=most+depressing+day+of+year

nearly all of the days are in last week!

this explains so much. it wasn't my fault! the stars were aligned against me! screw the long days, the painful meetings, the cold weather, the sadness that I am no longer in Paris... it's a universal sickness and one that has hopefully passed.

I spent the wknd psyching myself back up for another week. martinis w/friends on Fri night, a long run on each day (six miles today!), some quality time spent getting re-acquainted with my friend Harry Potter (okay, I am an unabashed HP fan but even I must admit that sounded a little bit geeky), and lots of happy flip-flop time (today was 70 degrees), and I'm feeling better.

bring on the week, bitches. now that the most depressing days of the years are over, it can only get better, right?

right?

well, if not, there's always this: http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20174022,00.html

(will either cure your depression or make you even more depressed. take your pick.)

how to salvage a bad day

2008-01-23T14:28:00.000-06:00

this morning was, on many counts (or is it by many counts?), pretty crappy. the weather was cold and rainy. I couldn't drag my ass out of bed and managed to snooze for over an hour (it's a special talent of mine) instead of getting up early and going to the gym as I had planned. there was drama @ work on one of my projects, drama which made me really angry that I worked until 8 pm last night to get something really perfect. I also made the decision to pull an old pair of almost-never-worn pants out of the closet and show them some love... but then realized once I sat down at my desk why I almost never wear them: they are super-old and not very comfortable (read: high-rise waist and slightly too-small size).

sigh. I am brilliant!

now, here's where the story gets better. my awesome friend Sabia and I had made lunch plans weeks ago in which we would head over to the lovely Whole Foods culinary center and do a lunch express workshop. basically it's a live cooking class where the teacher shows you how to cook a three-course meal and you get to eat it! so simple yet so wonderful.

here was the menu:

french onion soup (one of my favorite soups in the world)
steak frites (grilled flank steak + twice-cooked fries served with roquefort butter)
chocolate cake fondant (with chocolate glace and frangelico meringue)

I'm telling you, my day has turned right around. the teacher was fantastic - friendly and full of tips and not at all pretentious. the food was deLICious - piping hot and tasty and served by friendly WF staff. they print out the recipes for you so you can take them home and try them, and I am confident that I could pull off pretty much everything she made.

not bad, huh? now if I could only do something about these stupid pants...

dude, I'm so over it

2008-01-22T11:43:00.000-06:00

the whole "make shit happen" plan? the one where I decide to stop living life so passively and start going after things that I want to achieve?

yeah, it's kinda lame.

I decided to FINALLY bite the bullet and sign up for a GMAT prep class. I'm making shit happen! I'm paying a shit ton of $ to take a stupid test and get me some fancy edumacation! I'm shockingly okay with this! it's a free (well, super expensive) ticket out of Austin (which I like, so why am I leaving?) and into Paris (provided I actually get into school, that is)!

being the lazy 21st-century shopper that I am, I signed up for everything online and figured I'd just show up to class this Thursday. no fuss, no muss -- right? yayyy me! way to Make Shit Happen!

...except that I got a phone call from the center today telling me that there wasn't enough interest in this specific class (I had tried to be all bad-ass and signed up for an advanced class), so they were going to have to either refund my $ or switch me into a regular class (which doesn't start for another month).

ugh. must keep my resolve to keep Making Shit Happen, but do they have to make it so inconvenient?

am I boring?

2008-01-20T22:38:00.001-06:00

(continuing in the vein of new year pensive-ness)

I met a new person this wknd, a friend of a friend who is considering a move to ye olde Austin Tejas and is taking a few weeks to consider his decision before moving his life halfway across the country. (by the way, I think that if I took the time to consider big decisions like this properly I would never get ANYthing done because I would come up with a zillion ways to talk myself out of something.)

it was a brilliantly sunny day, and we wandered around downtown Austin and eventually stumbled upon a cozy coffee shop complete with a beat-up upright piano that had a sign advising people that they are welcome to play the piano but if they are not particularly talented they should think about that fact before they subject other coffee-drinkers to their piano playing. I found this really amusing.

anyway, so we're doing the usual get-to-know-you chatting... where did you grow up... what did you study in college... what kind of work do you do... what do you like to do outside of work... etc. I filled him on some of the random things about me -- I used to be a classical pianist and even used to teach piano back in DC, I love traveling and just spent a few weeks in Paris/French Alps, I used to do a lot of singing in college, I love reading, I like jogging on the lake, I work a lot, I like to pretend that I am a good cook, blah blah blah. he seemed to be intrigued by my hobbies and even made the comment at one point that I was "impressive" (whatever that means).

and that's when it hit me. most of these things are things I USED to do. I USED to teach piano in DC. I USED to volunteer in DC. I USED to do more singing in DC. I USED to go to more museums in DC (it helped that DC actually had a lot of good museums). I USED to speak pretty decent French.

now? um. now I work. I travel for work. I squeeze in the occasional vacation. I go out with my friends. I go to bars, eat out at restaurants, go jogging in Austin. I still read a lot, and I watch TV sometimes. sometimes I go karaoke-ing with friends.

and... that's about it.

the more I think about it, the more I feel that I've become really one-dimensional since moving to Austin. work is really my main story; beyond that, I don't do much beyond the typical hang-with-friends, sleep in late on the wknds, work out, hang out, bum around routine of typical 20-somethings.

and... I don't know. I don't think that's okay with me. I should do more! join a book club! take French classes again! train for a marathon! volunteer! learn a new hobby, like photography or painting or something! right? I mean, yes, this is the stage of my life where I can really be selfish and focus on my career, but surely I can make time for other activities? hobbies? passions? interests?

then the lazy side of me kicks in. but... but... I have a demanding job. where would I find the energy for other activities? but... but... I couldn't even keep a fish alive! what volunteer program would trust me? but... but... I looked into some cover bands and couldn't meet the time commitment. but... but... I LIKE sleeping in on the wknds.

it may be time to do something about this, y'all.

is there anyone still out there?

2008-01-17T13:41:00.000-06:00

i'm not sure if anyone is still reading this blog, given that i haven't written any proper posts in, oh, a month or two. but what the hell, why not. this is where i would usually write a paragraph or two on how i'm so sorry that i haven't updated and here's why, i went on vacation for a few weeks and then i went on a biz trip to the world's biggest freak show (aka las vegas) and i've been pretty much swamped at work for what feels like the past three years and blah blah blah.

but given my hypothesis that no one is reading this blog anymore, i find all that backstory pretty much irrelevant.

instead? instead i will talk about my theme for 2008; even if no one reads it but me, i am hoping that it will help to get outside of my own head for a minute and write things down instead. yes, january is half over. no, i have not made a list of tired resolutions a la bridget jones such as "will obviously lose ten pounds and stop getting emotionally involved with any of the followings: perverts, peeping toms, emotional fuckwits, workaholics, megalomaniacs, etc etc etc." there are certain things that i'd like to accomplish this year, some big (leave austin, stop coasting through life) and some small (organize my digital photos, learn how to cook real korean food). there are certain things that i don't want to repeat from last year (feeling like nothing happened, feeling like i've lost my ambition).

so, then, the theme for 2008 is Make Shit Happen.

profound, no?

once i figure out how exactly that will happen i'll get back to you guys.

(i'm taking suggestions.)

in all seriousness, though, i think the reason i haven't made a list of resolutions is that i'm not sure what value it adds. a list of things that i'm not going to do and eventually feel bad about? a realization that you're bad at a lot of things (organizing digital photos, korean cooking) and that you generally suck as a person? i'd rather focus less on the specific action items and more on the overall attitude adjustment, because i feel like a) that's the harder part and b) that will naturally lead to the desired actions items (or at least i hope it will anyway).

so, then, 2008, the year when I Make Shit Happen. i'll let you guys know how it goes.

happy new year!

bonne annee

2008-01-02T12:31:00.000-06:00

wow, has it really been a month since I last posted on this thing? I knew I'd been slacking, but I didn't realize it had gotten quite that bad...

...anyway, I am alive and back from Paris and sitting at my desk at work. there is a strange feeling of comfort and disappointment at the fact that all I hear is English being spoken around me (and very American English at that). I won't lie, though, it's nice to take a hot shower with a full shower curtain instead of the stupid half-screen found in most French hotels. it's also nice to have an unlimited supply of clean underwear/socks and more than three sweaters and two pairs of jeans (both slightly dirty) to choose from.

but what am I doing here? why am I in Austin when I could be indulging my inner Europhile by roaming the streets of Paris, stopping here and there for an espresso and a pastry while I practice my (surprisingly well-preserved!) French and envy Parisians' sense of style?

oh the mind, how it races...

in which i beat the system

2007-12-05T22:10:00.000-06:00

(warning: post from blackberry ahead. May include poor grammar.)

I am pleased to announce that this morning, I decided to do my responsible citizen thing and picked up my phone to call the whole foods manager. I calmly explained what had happened. I told him that I am a frequent customer and that I spend money in their store several times a week, sometimes even several times a day (morning coffee, lunch, afternoon gelato break). I reassured him that he would not be losing my business because of this but that I was extremely disappointed about what had happened and that I thought they had higher quality standards.

He apologized profusely, of course, and assured me that he would look into the problem. He asked what I had ordered and whether I'd ever found anything before. I answered all of his questions and told him that I had to run, I had a meeting to go to but as a frequent customer I thought it was my duty to let him know that this happened and that I told my entire team about it. He told me to stop by the guest services desk at lunchtime so he could reimburse me for my lunch.

Turns out I got more than the $8 my lunch had cost... He left me a gift card for $50!

Now that's what I call an acceptable response... If they could just do something about those bugs and their high prices I'd be all good...

i really love it when...

2007-12-04T14:53:00.000-06:00

...i find a bug in my mostly-eaten lunch.

don't you?

it is totally:
1) awesome,
2) fantastic, and
3) delicious.

it totally isn't:
1) barf-inducing,
2) panic-inducing, or
3) something that requires me to ingest some emergency chocolate, STAT.

nocturnal musings

2007-12-03T15:33:00.001-06:00

I don't know that much about dreams and I don't usually pay that much attention to them, but I remember reading somewhere that some people believe that dreams are useful because it helps your brain process things it couldn't necessarily process when you were awake. the article went on to say that many psychologists think that your dreams are helpful in providing insight into what's on your mind, whether consciously or subconsciously, and that you shouldn't fear weird/bad dreams because it's just your brain's way of processing different feelings and emotions. supposedly, the reason kids have such strong and vivid nightmares is that their brains have yet to develop the ability to deal with big things while they're awake and conscious, so the fact that kids tend to have more nightmares is just their nighttime brains trying to process things that their daytime brains have yet to understand... a theory that I found fascinating. in fact, one psychologist said that he encourages his patients to remember as much of their nightmares as possible because they might reflect the fears or concerns that your conscious brain can't 'fess up to and that when your overall mindset is one of stress or worry, your dream patterns are likely to reflect this.

given my dream patterns as of late, I can see some truth to this. I have been having crazy vivid dreams lately and a lot more nightmares than usual... some of impressive lameness and transparency, e.g. the one where I overslept for an important test. I mean come on, WTF, how lame is that? am I a character on some stupid teenage sitcom who oversleeps for the SAT or something? sounds like a deleted scene from the episode of Saved by the Bell where Jessie Spano freaks out and pops pills because of the SATs. heh. anyway. so yeah, last night I had trouble falling asleep and was probably awake until about 2:30 or so... and then I woke up gasping around 4:30 am from a really strange nightmare. it had completely normal things in it (like family, or people who work at my office which, btw, always weirds me out... I find it really bizarre when work people show up in my dreams. it feels like they've crossed an uncrossable barrier of some sort) and then completely random things, like dark hallways and a PERSON WITH A WAND THAT WAS SAYING SECTUMSEMPRA, WTF (I haven't even been reading harry potter lately). the other night I dreamt that someone was in my room and woke up convinced that someone had just brushed their hand over mine and was trying to climb into my bed (needless to say, that one freaked me out a bit).

I'm pretty good at waking myself up from these dreams but then I usually find myself torn. a majority of me does not want to fall asleep right away because I'm not sure I want to delve back into those weird, dark dreams. this part of me wakes myself out of the dream and then gets out of bed to pee and have a glass of water before getting back into my bed. this part of me leaves the lamp on and tries to think positive thoughts until I feel safely rooted in the real world -- then and only then do I turn back over to re-enter dream world. but then there's another part of me that gets really curious and is all "but what does it all meeeeeeean." this other part of me wonders what magical neurological processes need to happen for me to tumble right back into that dark hole to see what I shall see. it's a strange decision process to have at 4:25 in the morning, that much is for sure.

anyway, the point of this post is to set up the fact that I kind of have a lot going on these days and that although I love you all I may not be posting very much. or, hell, who knows, maybe I'll be posting every three seconds to procrastinate and avoid the 1,425 other things I should be doing.

back to it, then. bring on the weird dreams! at least they make for interesting blog fodder. better than more posts about the weather (I totally wore shorts and a tank top and flip flop yesterday because it was 82 degrees and really hot okay the end HAHA to you suckers who are freezing).

you care! you really care! (sniff)

2007-11-29T19:23:00.000-06:00

Blogging from the berry to say that yes, I am still alive and am touched that you care! (well, all three of you that noticed my absence, that is). I got back from my fantastic trip to DC and walked straight into two days of non-stop client meetings and after-work schmooze fests. It's all rather draining, especially after a four-day mini-vacation where the most difficult decisions I faced were whether to eat mashed potatoes or sweet potatoes for breakfast. It doesn't help that time seems to move extra-fast once you get past Halloween... One minute you're dressed like a fool and eating too much candy, next thing it's time for turkey, the rampant consumerism that is the holidays, office holiday parties, and the navel-gazing that accompanies the end of yet another year of this crazy life.

Thanksgiving was excellent this year, lots of time spent at home with the fam, tons of leftovers and lunch/dinner/drinks with all my favorite people. It felt refreshing to be back in DC again... To surreptitiously people-watch on the metro while pretending to read the paper, then emerging out of the bowels to be greeted by the cleansingly cold winter air as you knot your scarf a bit tighter and square your shoulders against the wind as you head toward the tea shop to meet your buddy. To go out in DC bars and be reminded of the unusual brand of international snobbery that is completely unique to DC... Of course there are globe-trotting brats in every major city but DC has its own strange breed of diplomats that makes it completely annoying but fascinating at the same time.

I'm back in Austin now, on one hand relishing the fact that I can leave my apartment with just a puffy vest or pashmina instead of a winter coat and that it still hits mid-60s and sometimes even breaks 70 when i'm walking to whole foods to grab a salad for lunch, yet on the other hand missing the familiar faces, foods, smells and sights that represent home.

(completely unrelated tangent- apparently I have completely lost my ability to hold my liquor, a fact that troubles me deeply. Perhaps it will be a new year's resolution to reverse this worrisome trend?)

*EDITED TO ADD* I don't think I should blog from the 'berry anymore. whenever I read my berry-posts I find that the grammar is generally crappier and the sentences don't really flow that well (not that the grammar usually rules and the sentences flow like butta but you know what I mean). maybe it's the lack of the QWERTY keyboard? the fact that everything is all properly capitalized and shit? I don't know. but methinks it's time to stop the berry posts.

the problem with living in Texas

2007-11-21T23:23:00.000-06:00

...is that you forget how the weather works in the rest of the country (oh man I sound like a real texan- the bad kind- the kind that doesn't realize there is actually a whole country and world outside of Texas). Exhibit a: the packing that I am supposed to be doing right now. Despite the fact that I have checked the DC weather about six times, I still haven't internalized the fact that the low temperatures are going to be in the 20s. Buh? 20s? What does that mean? Does that mean that I shouldn't bring the outfit of short-sleeved top with jeans and cute flats with no socks that I wore to work today? Does that mean I have to bring a jacket? Gloves? A scarf? Do I even have those things anymore? I am wandering around my room aimlessly, wondering if I can get away with jeans, a tank, a sweater and some sockless flats. For some reason I have become very anti-sock in the almost-two years that I've lived here. The only times I wear socks now are when i'm running or when i'm wearing my cowboy boots (omg 2nd bad texan moment in this post).

For the DC buddies that I will hopefully get to see, please don't laugh at me when you see me freezing my ass off in short sleeves and cowboy boots, ok? I blame Texas.

Happy turkey day to you all.

sometimes I forget that I live in TX. other times I am not so lucky

2007-11-16T13:22:00.000-06:00

there is an admin in our office who is wearing a pretty interesting t-shirt today. it has a camouflage pattern on it with rhinestones across the front that say "He Hunts. I $hop."

kill me now.

obligatory post about the weather

2007-11-13T21:10:00.000-06:00

take a look at the forecast and say it with me now: "WTF?"

I worked from home yesterday because I wasn't feeling great and was forced by the combination of overly warm weather + low-grade fever to actually turn on the AIR CONDITIONING. in NOVEMBER. when thanksgiving is mere DAYS away (yum, turkey).

is it weird that I am looking forward to the WINDY weather on Thurs?

on an unrelated note, I am currently obsessed with the song "Way I Am" by Ingrid Michaelson... apparently it got all this acclaim when it was featured in an Old Navy commercial about sweaters, but I guess I missed that. it's a sweet, hopeful love song that is a cross between jewel's "you were meant for me" and sarah mclachlan's "your love is better than ice cream" (or whatever that song's called).

also, I found out that one of my bestest friends in the world got engaged this past wknd... and then another friend at work (who graduated from college the same year I did) is expecting. what is this world coming to? aren't we still, like, 17?

just another thursday night...

2007-11-09T10:17:00.000-06:00

...at the broken spoke, y'all.

(you think I'm joking, but this is actually what it looks like)

I had to skip the two-steppin' lesson this time, but I had promised my friend Audrey to meet her and her sister (who's visiting from Ireland) for a night of live music and good times -- so I pulled on my awesome cowboy boots, threw on some jeans and a top and headed out the door to broken spoke.

broken spoke never fails to disappoint. it's this run-down looking building with disgusting chicken-fried-steak-type menu items in the front restaurant and a low-ceilinged dance hall in the back. it even has a mini-museum showcasing all the talent that has played there (willie nelson, etc etc etc). the dance floor gets completely packed with swirling couples of all types -- girls with lots of tattoos, guys with Elvis-style hair, men in boots and hats, girls in wrap dresses and cowboy boots, people in t-shirts and jeans, cowboys, yuppies, dorks, music heads, old people, young people, everything goes. you drink $3 dos equis and dance with as many people as you can, stopping every few song for a break in front of the huge fans to cool off. the bathrooms have curtains decorated like the TX flag instead of actual doors, and you have to hold it shut with one hand if you want any semblance of privacy while you pee.

I was joking with my friend's sister about how she's definitely far from Ireland when I realized that I would never been caught dead doing this in DC. it's not that I was too cool,I just don't think this type of place would have even been on my radar. yet there I was, wearing boots and jeans, two-steppin' with all kinds of dance partners from this Napoleon Dynamite look-alike with a TX flag handkerchief tucked into the back pocket of his jeans to a 50-something man with a large beer belly who held with me with a really tight grip and danced surprisingly well for a man of his girth.

there's something to be said to being willing to live different lives. I've done the club scene in DC, I've worn stiletto heels while drinking insanely overpriced martinis in NYC, I've partied until 6 am in Buenos Aires, I've rang in the New Year in Barcelona, I've hung out in fratty bars in Charlottesville, I've channeled my inner lounge singer in piano bars in Switzerland, I've smoked hookahs at Moroccan-style lounges... and now I've worn cowboy boots and two-stepped in a crumbling dance hall in Austin TX where men still hold out their hand while they ask you if you want to dance and then dip you when the song is over.

I want more, more, more... keep it coming.

dragging ass

2007-11-07T15:39:00.000-06:00

I don't know about you guys, but my ass is DRAGGING these days... I don't know if it's the time change or the fact that it's dark when I leave work or the fact that I actually wore long pants and long sleeves and closed-toe shoes and a pashmina today (Austin has finally cottoned on to the fact that hey! it's almost Thanksgiving! maybe we will start cooling off a little... then again, it's supposed to be 87 degrees on Friday so who the F knows) or what, but I do know that I didn't get out of bed until 10:30 this morning. I think the craziness of the past few weeks is catching up to me and the time change is just making things worse.

all's I know is that I want to go home, put on sweats, make Kraft macaroni and cheese and sit on my couch.

anyone want to join me?

seen yesterday while swimming laps

2007-11-04T12:39:00.001-06:00

I was sitting on a ledge near the pool, drying off and resting after my workout yesterday afternoon when I heard a strange noise. it sounded like someone was trying to hock a loogie, and since the pool was relatively deserted aside from 1-2 families and a few lap swimmers I figured it was one of the 15-year-old lifeguards trying to amuse himself in the little side office. the noise persisted, and I looked around to try and find the culprit. turns out it was this 65-ish looking gentleman standing IN THE LAP LANE, trying to dislodge some serious phlegm from his throat as he stood there in the water with his belly paunching out and his ear hairs growing in imaginative patterns.

I became even more horrified when the hocking sounds stopped and I realized that he had successfully brought up all of the offending phlegm. WHAT WAS HE GOING TO DO WITH IT?? please tell me he is not going to spit it back into the water or just casually spit it into his hand and run his fingers through the chlorine. please, please, please, because if he does, I swear to God I'm never coming back to this pool, I don't care that it's free, that it's a great workout, that I can still swim outside in November, etc. as I continued to stare at him from behind the protection of my sunglasses, he casually picked up a green plastic Nalgene-esque water bottle, unscrewed the cap, and spit the contents of his mouth into the bottle as if it was the most normal thing in the world.

WHAT. THE HELL.

I then left and went home and took an extremely hot shower.

blog? what blog? I don't see any blog

2007-10-29T23:45:00.000-05:00

is this thing still on?

*tap tap*
*blow blow*
*testing 1-2 testing 1-2*

(mental image of Bridget Jones testing the mic at the launch party of Kafka's Motorbike, "one of the top 30 books of our time, anyway"... and Lord Archer, yours, aren't, bad, either)

erm... despite what this blog may have led you to believe, no, the cowboys have not abducted me and taken me away to wear boots and eat barbecue and listen to songs about trucks and dogs and missing girlfriends. in fact, I am still alive and kickin', just insanely buried under messy work situations and overly long biz trips (you know, because covering LA, Miami and NYC in one week is a piece of cake) and Major Life Decisions. there are some changes a-brewin' over here @ JMWT HQ, and I'd rather not talk about them because talking about them makes them Real and Real=Scary=Potential of Failure, so for now let's just say I'm finally putting my $ where my mouth is and putting some effort behind plans that I've been yapping about for a long time now.

(vague enough for you? good, I thought so.)

in lieu of substantial updates on what I've been up to I will talk about the weather. yes! that's a good idea. let's talk about the weather. let's talk about the fact that late Oct/early Nov in Austin is abso-freakin-lutely gorgeous and that I went jogging in shorts after work today and swam laps in my outdoor pool on Sun afternoon and took these gorgeous pics while hiking Enchanted Rock on Saturday (we climbed all the way to the top and then climbed back down to loop around the base - a fantastic hike with views that bordered on other-worldly):

let's also talk about the fact that I am officially broke and will heretofore be known as Frugal Fanny: the girl who does nothing but work on her secret plans, jog/swim laps, and avoid spending $. I shouldn't complain, though, because the $ is going toward good causes like 1) going home for turkey day, 2) a beautiful new necklace (I couldn't resist; don't worry, I won't be shopping for anything else anytime soon) and 3) my upcoming trip to PARIS BABY WOOT WOOT (where I will land in a flurry of excitement only to realize that oh wait, it's time to start getting raped by the horrible exchange rate - awesome!).

yes indeedy folks, la famille Kim has chosen gay Paree as the destination for winter trip 2K7: special Dad's 60th birthday edition and I am sooooo excited! I haven't been in several years and can hardly wait to stroll around the city and hear all the French accents and eat crepes and soak it all in. we'll spend about five days skiing in the French Alps and then come back to the city of lights to party it up for New Year's Eve before heading back to.... Tejas, which will be a sad homecoming after the glitz and glamour of Paris. oh well.

I will end this rambly post with the necessary caveat that posting may be rather light for a bit while I try and get my shit together... I promise to update with really important news, like geckos in my shower or glamourous job offers that just magically appear out of thin air (hey, a girl can dream). in the meantime, sleep well, eat good food, get regular exercise, and take care. OH! btw. I read a few good books lately that I must pass along:

The Other Boleyn Girl - great storytelling, especially if you like historical fiction. I'm very curious to see what they do with this movie. I just can't see the casting (Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johanssen). Scarlett Johanssen has done well in period pieces before (I loved Girl with an Earring) but I'm still skeptical...

Feast of Love - a fantastic book. I smiled after reading it and was tempted to read it all over again. amazing how the author develops all these drastically different characters and makes you care about each and every one. am also very curious about this movie although I can definitely see it doing well.

Atonement - finally got around to reading this after much poking and prodding. definitely a bit of a harder read but also worth the effort. you have to dedicate some time to get through this but the book will reward you tenfold. rich imagery, incredibly skilled writing. another one being turned into a movie (weird, I usually don't read so many "being made into movie" books but oh well) that I will want to see.

also, if I haven't said it on here already, go and see the movie Once (if you can still find it playing somewhere). I swear you will absolutely fall in love with it.

signing off for real now. crap it's past midnight. you see how much I love you people??

beach correspondent

2007-10-19T12:01:00.000-05:00

Coming to you live via blackberry from hermosa beach, California. Let me set the scene for you guys. I'm sitting at a sidewalk cafe on "the strand" in hermosa beach after a restful 8 hours of sleep and a rejuvenating jog from hermosa beach pier to Manhattan beach pier and back (don't google it, I have a sinking feeling it may only be a mile or two total). The background music is switching from norah Jones to corinne Bailey rae and now bobby brown (?). The table next to me has four very young at heart senior citizens. One is still wearing her bike helmet. Another is wearing those huge old people sunglasses that block out every single possible ray of sun. I have a view of the ocean, including surfers and hopeful fishermen. The restaurant is called "good stuff," and the wait staff are all wearing shirts that say "you are what you eat... So eat good stuff!" I am eagerly awaiting my order of a California omelette (made with egg whites, of course- when in Rome, after all) and fresh fruit with an English muffin to top it off.

Yesterday (seven hours of watching focus groups in a dark room, eating way too many cookies and listening to crazy LA people talk about cruising) is completely forgotten.

not bad for an airport hotel

2007-10-18T13:01:00.001-05:00

view from my hotel room balcony:

every time I fly into LA I am disgusting by just how thick the smog is. it can't be good to breathe that shit in every day... it's just not natural (like much of LA).

also, my hair? is freaking SHORT y'all! it pretty much sits on my shoulders, although it's angled/layered in a way that the front is slightly longer than the back. I don't think I've had it this short since... middle school? I would upload a pic of the first day I had to style it for myself, but all my blackberry camera self-portraits have turned out pretty horribly... alas.

back to work. it's going to be a long day...

I got my hair did

2007-10-17T16:29:00.000-05:00

(warning: crappy photos ahead)

in lieu of regaling you all with tales of how my wound is not healing as quickly as it should (gory details: I can't get it to scab over, it insists on remaining all weepy and gross), I will instead post a pic of my new haircut!

(please ignore how crappy/tired I look. I had one of those nights last nights where I just could not fall asleep. I think I got into bed around 11ish and I know that I was lying there, completely awake, until at least 1:15 in the morning. I kept on telling myself, "okay now! now is when you bite the bullet and just fall asleep! come on! you can do it!" it didn't go very well. needless to say, when my alarm went off @ 7:20 so I could go get my hair cut I was not very happy)

(also, another side story in which I use too many parentheses -- there was a moment of scariness this morning when I went to the hair salon (who knew hair salons could be scary places?). I was the first app't of the day and my stylist and I arrived around the same time. apparently someone had completely vandalized their storefront last night so when we showed up at the front door it was kicked in and shattered. scary! the door was unlocked, so we walked in and cautiously stepped around all the glass to take inventory of the place but nothing was taken. flat screen TVs, computers, overpriced hair products = all accounted for. she guessed it may have been the scary ex-husband of one of the stylists that works there. a bizarre thing to be confronted with @ 8:15 in the morning when you thought you were just going to a hair salon, not a crime scene.)

okay, so onto the cut already: she chopped off about five inches or so. I hadn't really gone in with much of plan beyond "OMG IT'S TOO LONG CUT IT CUT IT CUT IT" and she asked me if she could do as she pleased. I said yes, so this is what she gave me:

compare, if you will, to how long my hair is in this pic, snapped back in August (please ignore the fact that my bangs are lazily pinned back and that I have food in my mouth):

so there you have it. btw, I'm disappearing to LA for a quickie biz trip for the next two days so my Officially Sucky Blog will probably Officially Suck Even More. am hoping to squeeze in a jog on the beach near Santa Monica... fingers crossed.

this just in:

2007-10-16T14:25:00.000-05:00

confirmation that this blog Officially Sucks.

sorry, people. I got nothin'. last week was the work week from hell. this past wknd was detoxing from hellish work week. this week is trying to catch up on everything I missed during hell week.

exciting, no?

I am also completely preoccupied with the fascinating process that skin goes through in order to heal itself. I tore off a good chunk during a hike this wknd and can't stop staring at it and watching it go through the various phases of cleaning itself out, scabbing, growing new skin, etc.

(sorry. you weren't eating lunch or anything, were you? you WERE? my bad. think about bunnies and rainbows for a minute and you should be set.)

aside from that, I am spending my time thinking about valuable questions like:
a) how is it that Mad Men is the absolute best show ever?
b) how long until my skin heals?
c) why hasn't Texas gotten the memo that autumn has started?
d) what should I do with my life?

you know, important stuff like that.

this may the death of this blog as we know it... stay tuned...

filler

2007-10-09T14:06:00.001-05:00

my head is spinning at work these days, and oh how I wish I could be doing this instead:

(I call this: "Pensive Girl with Drink")

or this:

(this one: "From Pensive to Drunk: A Study in Transition")

I'd also settle for this:

("Um. Does This Girl Have a Problem?")

daydreaming

2007-10-05T10:48:00.000-05:00

there is much drama afoot at ye olde office, and every night I come home and find myself fantasizing about just picking up and disappearing someplace. I look at my stack of travel books and all my old travel photos, and I wonder why I am sweating it out in Tejas when heck, I could be caving in Belize again or hiking glaciers in Argentina or roaming the streets of Venice, gelato in hand... or maybe discovering a new place like Cambodia or Kenya or Ireland.

(side note on sweating it out = I'm not kidding. yesterday it hit 95. in OCTOBER. WTF? this state needs to be introduced to the concept of four seasons. it's not just a fancy hotel!)

I had some very good pals in town last wknd, and as the four of us sat in a corner booth and drank our margaritas we talked a lot about our futures and where each of us might be five years from now. I'm not really much of a life planner -- I tend to float around between having some goals, working hard, never burning bridges, and mixing it up once in a while -- but it was fun to imagine how things might change in the next few years. it boggles my mind to realize that I'm already at a stage where friends of mine are making huge life decisions. in fact, babies and diamond rings and houses were popular topics of conversation that wknd. I found myself amazed to even be involved in the discussion, since there's still a very large part of me that feels very unsettled. kids? husband? buying a house? um... howzabout I take some shots and bat my eyes at that cute guy down at the end of the bar instead? (I'm kidding. I don't really do that... much.) I guess you could say I've made some big life choices as well, though. it's funny: sometimes I get so busy marveling at the fact that everyone around me is growing up so quickly that I lose track of the fact that I'm doing the same thing in my own special little way.

so, then, to go back to the margarita-soaked conversation, I was surprised to discover that I am expected to strike it rich as a corporate whore and live a fabulously privileged life of international vacations and posh habits. um, what? me? the girl who made the impressive post-college salary of $25,000 while her boyfriend at the time was making closer to $60k? surely you jest.

it definitely got me thinking, though. putting babies and diamonds and houses aside for a minute, do you have a dream job? is there such a job or do you think your definition of a dream job changes all the time? or does it change as you go through different life stages? and if you can quickly name one dream job off the top of your head, why aren't you going for it? I don't think I really have one -- it goes back to my whole I'm not really a planner shtick -- but I think I'm getting to a place where I'm realizing that Tejas, it's been fun and all, but it mayyyyy be time to move on to the Next Great Adventure. bring it on!

now if someone could just tell me what that will be...

a post that is not about the cockroach

2007-10-01T10:56:00.001-05:00

(I know! surprising, huh?? but for those of you that have inquired, the cockroach has since been removed from his comfy little set-up and has gone on to cockroach heaven, which, in case you're wondering, can be found by flushing yourself down the toilet.)

instead, I will write a very brief post about how I had house guests for the past five days and am now exhausted, poor, and possibly sick -- yet it was worth every minute/dollar. exploints included texas two-steppin' at the broken spoke (where, apparently, I danced with a man that someone called "Austin music royalty"), breakfast tacos at mi madre's, jogs along town lake, shopping in my SoCo neighborhood, pepper-crust burgers at woodland, seafood-stuffed chile rellenos and pomegranate margaritas at manuel's, champagne flights at cru, gospel brunch with the river city christianettes at stubb's bbq, champassion cocktails and cheese plates at my beloved hotel san jose and, of course, all-you-can-eat bbq at salt lick out in the hill country.

(honestly, it makes me full just thinking about it)

hope your wknds were as fabulous as mine. now, if you'll excuse me, I need some coffee and preferably a nap... wait, what? you want me to WORK? dude. you must be kidding.

R.I.P., motherfucker

2007-09-27T10:17:00.000-05:00

breaking news from JMWT headquarters in Austin, TX:

last night, one huge motherf'ing cockroach met his untimely demise in the bedroom of yours truly. his death was marked by a yell of "OMG! you're still here! and you're in my BEDROOM! oh hells naw DIE YOU PIECE OF SHIT DIE!" he met his little roach-ly maker when he fell victim to the cruel surprise of a heavy magazine falling from above. his remains are now entombed in the carpet underneath the comforting embrace of two magazines and five hardback volumes of harry potter, where he will remain until JMWT can pluck up the courage to lift said magazines + heavy volumes of harry potter in order to dispose of his squished carcass.

it must be noted that the country of Canada was valiantly represented in this battle extraordinaire by Toronto representative Paula Major, who is staying chez hotel JMWT and played a critical role when she helped move the dresser out of the way and later stomped around on top of the magazines to ensure that the roach was indeed dead.

kinda gives a whole new meaning to "earning your keep," no?

(confidential to the visitors who will be staying with me this wknd + anyone else that has ever considered visiting me: I promise you that this is not standard practice at hotel JMWT. please don't let this deter you from coming to visit me. I'm a great hostess, I promise! I'll take you jogging on the trail, I'll feed you breakfast tacos, we'll drink margaritas and go for all-you-can-eat-BBQ, okay?)

GROSS

2007-09-25T11:20:00.001-05:00

so I have updates on NYC (awesome, ate a ton of food, my friends rock), work (drama, busy), and life (am thinking about making some Big Decisions), but instead, I feel compelled to tell you about the run-in that I had last night.

it was a COCKROACH, y'all. but not just any cockroach. it was a cockroach that, I shit you not, was ALMOST AS LONG AS MY INDEX FINGER. possibly even longer. and I have really long fingers, dudes.

*hunches over in corner to sob dramatically*

I armed myself with various tools (a heavy magazine, an empty plastic cup, a Q-tip, a blow dryer to blow him out of tough corners) and kept psyching myself up for the job ("he's just a BUG, you little pansy! he's more scared of you than you are of him! just catch him already and flush him down the toilet! stop being such a GIRL!"). serious combat ensued for about 20 minutes, but much like the gecko from a few wks ago, the cockroach escaped unscathed. the key difference was that I was sad to see the gecko go, whereas the sneaky departure of the cockroach freaked me the fuck out. is it like termites, where one cockroach means there are a billion other little friends hiding behind the walls? or is he just one adventurous little fucker who decided to check out the decor in my bathroom? WHAT IS WRONG with him that he is so abnormally large??

I texted my friend Kelly in a panic and she reminded me that cockroaches don't like light. you can bet your ass that I totally slept with the light on last night.

*whimper* someone come save me. Texas is crawling with creepy-crawlies, y'all.

nothing like a 4:45 wake-up call to start your day right

2007-09-19T17:07:00.000-05:00

I'm in the lovely NY/NJ area for the next few days to attend a few biz meetings + re-unite with some beloved pals. y'all be good while I'm gone and I'll be back at you soon.

my wknd, or, what $150 + living in austin will get you

2007-09-17T11:55:00.000-05:00

jen's very lazy* 2007 ACL lineup:

friday
joss stone (entertaining)
M.I.A. (great show)
gotan project (new one for me-- v. sexy argentinian band by way of paris)
bjork (love how weirdly unique she is)
killers (surprisingly good)

saturday
damien rice (super intense)
indigo girls (always good)
arcade fire (freaking amazing)

sunday
regina spektor/amos lee (preferred amos lee)
wilco (very good, I didn't know them that well before)
the decemberists (victims of crappy sound system)
bob dylan (historic but his voice is shot to hell)

*lazy means that I wasn't hard core enough to spend the entire day there. had I been more hard core this list would have been much, much longer but hey, I was happy with this list.

i just met bill clinton!

2007-09-14T14:14:00.000-05:00

i shook his hand! we chatted!

he is taller and trimmer than expected. thick grayish hair that is quickly getting very white.

he has some serious charisma. i wanted to ask for a pic but i chickened out.

i am all distracted now.

greeted me in my shower this morning

2007-09-12T14:57:00.001-05:00

do you think Geico managed to sneak him in there somehow in order to remind me that 15 minutes could save me 15% or more on car insurance? that would be some impressive direct marketing.

(man I am such an ad geek, wtf)

more lazy blogging

2007-09-11T11:10:00.000-05:00

it's raining cats and dogs here in Austin today, and let me tell you, this is one city that does not know how to drive in the rain. it's WATER people! leave a little bit more space between you and the car in front of you, turn on your wipers, decrease your speed by 5-10 mph and MOVE THE FUCK ON ALREADY. I mean really.

can you tell that I'm in a bit of a bad mood? sorry. I worked a 12-hour day yesterday, slept badly (I woke up in the middle of the night to gulp down half of a bottle of ice-cold water. perhaps my default pho noodle place is a bit heavy-handed with the MSG? eh, I don't care, I love that shit anyway) and then had to wake up early for an 8 am international conference call (damn European time differences) and have been running around like a madwoman ever since. also, I have been abusing parentheses left and right. am a horrible person. but heck, I love those curvy little bitches, what can I say (is it strange that I referred to parentheses as curvy little bitches? can you tell that I only asked that question so I could use parentheses? if so, YOU'RE ONTO ME! mwa ha ha)...

...which means that you're pretty much stuck with more pictures to entertain you at work today. sorry. I'll try and have more good posts soon... perhaps as stories about my upcoming ACL adventures. I'll also try and stop having coke zero for breakfast. it seems to have a negative impact on the sanity of my writing.

as for the pics: more images of my recent jaunt to f'burg. they are known for colorful characters, a heavy German influence, peaches, small-town kitsch, and wine (well, TX wine anyway).

alas, blogger and/or my network is being a fart. more pics at another time...

*EDITED TO ADD* okay, so I realized that part of my overall misery is that I stupidly decided to wear a really uncomfortable bra to work today, and it is driving me crazy. arggh.

**EDITED AGAIN TO ADD** I decided to go free-ball it and just go to the bathroom to remove said offending article of clothing. or undergarments. or whatever. am wearing two shirts so no one will be offended by some unexpected nippage. brilliant plan, yes? well yes. I am feeling much better albeit rather free and breezy. only: once the Deed was Done, I went to wash my hands and as I energetically pumped the soap dispenser some soap totally splooged out and landed on my shirt. it looked... bad. like a very There's Something About Mary kind of bad. I scrubbed it out, but still.

sigh. can I go home now?

texan adventures

2007-09-08T01:15:00.001-05:00

sorry for the lack of posts lately. I've been busy @ work (nothing like a trip to/from San Francisco in less than 24 hours to keep you on your toes, eh?) as well as feeling rather uninspired about the whole blogging thing... just feels impressively lame.

but for now, I have some pictures of my recent adventures to distract you while I decide whether I want to continue with this silly little blog o'mine. these are pics from a day trip down to Fredericksburg, TX. we stopped in a little vineyard/lavender farm along the way, stomped on some grapes, hung out in the town, poked around the shops, and then ended the evening with a beautiful sunset and gourmet dinner.

TX hill country... it may not be Napa, but it's worth a visit...

all the news that's fit to print

2007-09-04T13:58:00.000-05:00

I'm not a big CNN.com fan, but I will do a quick review of the headlines once in a while to stay up to date on what's important and news-worthy.

today's headline: "men want hot women, study confirms"

wow, you don't say...

apparently women tend to play it safe:
Women made offers to men who had overall qualities that were on a par with the women's self-rated attractiveness. They didn't greatly overshoot their attractiveness," Todd said, "because part of the goal for women is to choose men who would stay with them."

bah humbug, I say. pick the hottest guy in the room and go for it, "scientific evidence" be damned!

fun with wiki

2007-08-31T11:42:00.001-05:00

in case you're bored and wondering what the hell it is that I do all day:

read on, dear friends.

oh austin...

2007-08-30T15:48:00.000-05:00

you are too cool for me:

http://www.cnn.com/2007/TRAVEL/getaways/07/03/austin.texas/index.html

actually, not at all, because that span of congress ave that they mention? that is my street!

you sweat me and you know it.

coming up for air

2007-08-28T13:41:00.000-05:00

...to prove that I'm alive, and then I'm sinking back down again...

sorry I haven't been posting much, friends. it's a combination of work + taking a day off + going home for a few days + getting sick of reading my own writing about stupid things like what I ate for dinner.

I may (or may not?) be back soon with the usual drivel and blather.

but, in the meantime, here are a few pics of what I've been up to lately to help you waste those precious few minutes at work (I know how it goes):

look! I went to the alamo! and I remembered it!

I ate a lot of barbecue:

I also walked around the overly-commercialized river walk (sorry, blurry pic):

i got nothin'

2007-08-20T14:44:00.000-05:00

um... is this thing on? *tap tap* *blow blow* "1-2, 1-2"

(reminds me of that awesome launch party scene from Bridget Jones where she forgets to turn on the microphone and gets everyone's attention by yelling out "oi! OI!" and then Salman Rushdie does this awesome cameo and everyone wonders how he gets away with it when half the world wants him dead)

anyhoodle.

sorry for the lack of posts, I've been busy... drinking? being lazy? vegetating? I can safely say that I have been drunk for four of the past four nights -- and if that's not some sort of award-worthy feat, I don't know what is. it all began Thurs night when I had a hellish, drama-filled meeting that went from 5 - 7 pm. I had been going back and forth on attending a free happy hour going on that night (a lot of the local bars near my office do special promos for us because keeping all of us drunkard ad kids in alcoholic check means lots of bank for them), but once the meeting ended, I made a beeline for the bar and ordered two vodka tonics and a french martini.

as you can probably guess, it pretty much escalated to a ridiculous level from that point. I remember downing three vodka/tonic cocktails and two french martinis in the span of... maybe 1.5, 2 hours? and coming to the abrupt realization that OMG NEED FOOD NOW STAT and that only greasy burgers and fries would do the trick. fast-forward to a few games of pool with work people and some late-night antics and then Friday was upon us.

the story pretty much continues in that vein for the rest of the wknd... friday, let's do a low-key movie... and then hey! get a drink! saturday, let's get some dairy queen... and then hey! a glass or four of wine at the apt! sunday, let's just cook in for the night... and then pour way too many glasses of wine while we wait for the food to cook!

blah. my apartment looks like a war zone, I have zero clean clothes, and I am pretty much worthless at work today. score one for responsible, adult-like behavior, eh?

how to jump start a rainy day

2007-08-16T11:05:00.001-05:00

a step-by-step tutorial on how to deal with the dreary effects of Hurricane Erin:

1) come into office wearing new jeans. hurray!
2) fire up computer
3) while waiting for computer, go and make steaming hot latte from the espresso bar with extra froth.
4) fire up iTunes
5) start blaring some Heavy D and the Boyz ("now that we found love, what are we gonna dooooo.... with itttttt") and Bell Biv Devoe ("that girl is poiiii-sooooooon")
6) begin working away happily

ingredients for a soco tuesday

2007-08-15T10:22:00.000-05:00

[soco = SOuth COngress, aka my neighborhood, aka my favorite part of Austin]

begin on the back patio @ hotel san jose. add a few good friends. cool off with several rounds of champassion cocktails (champagne + passion fruit juice served with fresh raspberries) to the trickling sounds of a swimming pool. throw in some stimulating conversation over cheese, bread, fruit and olives and let marinate in warm summer heat. finish off with zesty shrimp quesadillas @ south congress cafe and enjoy.

[pics taken with my blackberry pearl camera. note the cameo of my feet in the first pic. :)]

eco-friendly wedding bash of the year

2007-08-13T15:50:00.000-05:00

what do you get when you mix your most eco-friendly friend (who bears the affectionate moniker of "eco liz" and will take the time to illuminate on the significance of high tide vs. low tide while the rest of your friends are busy getting wasted on the beach), a beautiful summer day in picturesque annapolis, some heart-warming wedding vows and a bunch of lovely singer chicks?

[I will upload pics as soon as Blogger stops being a big fart]

[incidentally, farting was a popular topic of conversation this past wknd. apparently being hot and brilliant and talented doesn't stop my friends from the occasional foray into toilet humor]

so, then, here's a special shout-out to my fabulous lix and will (who are regular JMWT readers), for pulling off a beautiful wedding ceremony that managed to be both special and romantic but also super laid-back and fun. any couple who serves all you can eat steamed MD crabs for their rehearsal dinner is okay by me!

cheers to you, kiddos. congratulations.

i'm going, going, back, back, to DC, DC

2007-08-09T14:19:00.000-05:00

(admit it. you giggled a little at my amusing back-to-back matchy-matchy post titles. admit it!! okay, FINE then, don't. also, I haitchoo*.)

*term stolen shamelessly from katherine kim

as I will be devoting this upcoming wknd to my second job as Wedding Guest Extraordinaire (I also sing, play piano, and do calligraphy -- hire me for your next bash! I'll give you a special JMWT reader discount), I felt it was my duty to bring you up to speed on all things JMWT before my impending departure.

so, an update on some Very Important Happenings:

I ate my first mini-corn dog last night at a post-happy hour happy hour (where I drank nothing but water to make up for my shenanigans at happy hour #1... what can I say... it was one of those nights, nomsayin'?), and... it was freaking delicious! there is just something about meat on a stick that makes me very, very happy. last night's happy hour #2 took place at 219 west in Austin's warehouse district, where the crowd is ever so slightly lame but they make up for it in their happy hour prices. the proof: we ordered a) a huge plate of spicy cheese friends, b) a whole platter of mini corndogs, c) a plate of four mini-burgers with mushrooms and melted swiss, and d) a shaker of mexican martinis that yielded 2.5 full glasses of mexican martini goodness (can you sense the food theme for this meal? it's called I'm Drunk and Hungry). the price? for ALL OF THAT fried goodness? was $20!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I think I just fell over with shock at the price. again.

btw, for those of you keeping score at home -- happy hour #1 was a good-bye happy hour for one of my team members at J. Black's Feel Good Lounge, the new watering hole on "west 6th" (put in quotations because I think the idea of "neighborhoods" in a city this small is a bit silly). it was excellent -- she's a tiny woman, so we kept feeding her dirty martinis until she started smoking cigarettes, flirting with strangers, and telling me and our mutual boss that she loves us. priceless. also, if I ever open up a bar, I am so stealing their sub-head of "feel good lounge." if that doesn't sound pimp, I don't what does.

let's see, what else? I went on a business trip earlier this week -- one of those less-than-24-hours-fly-in-and-then-fly-right-back-out specials -- and we got completely lost in small town Jersey looking for our hotel. it was 11:30 pm and our driver (who had a very strong Russian accent) kept on insisting that the map was wrrrrong, that Sprrrrrink Valley Rrrrroad was supposed to eeent-er-sect with Grrrrrand Avenoo (he had a thing for rolling his r's). I had my google maps open on my pearl (heart! love! can't live without!) and was trying to tell him that he was wrong, this wasn't the right way, why don't we listen to my directions or at least call the hotel to let them direct us. it was pretty funny, and it cemented my belief that all car service drivers should have some kind of foreign accent in order to enhance the riding experience.

I'm still on the fence re: whether I should get another fish... I reeeeealllly want a dog but can't justify the expense and/or the amount of responsibility it would require. I mean, if I can't keep a betta fish alive, why should I be entrusted with something that requires much more than food pellets and an occasional water change? but still, this does nothing to take away from my desire to get a doooooooggie, especially since I spent Sat afternoon playing with a friend's adorable dachshund.

anyhoodle. I think that's about it. y'all be good now, and I'll be back on Monday with a full report on Wedding #3,094 of the summer.

i'm going, going, back, back, to austin, austin

2007-08-08T10:48:00.001-05:00

(doesn't have quite the same ring to it)

back from a quickie biz trip to da east coast and drowning in work. will leave the shortest post ever to share some very sad news with you all: MY BELOVED FISH HAS DIED! he committed fish suicide (fishicide?) and i found him on the floor, all shriveled up and dried.

no idea what happened but i am sad (he was my faithful austin buddy!) and not sure if i deserve another fish.

*sniff* poor cowboy.

also (now there's a segue), for those of you who were wondering, it has stopped raining in austin! the sun, it rises. (eastern middle school shout out there)

also (another impressive segue), i am officially in love with my blackberry pearl. heart! love! completely attached!

ok back to work now bye kiddos

i like this picture

2007-08-03T09:18:00.001-05:00

how is already thursday?

2007-08-02T09:35:00.000-05:00

sorry people-- I have been crazy busy at work and didn't even realize I'd gone several days without giving you access to my life-sustaining wit and insight (that, and stupid stories about me singing karaoke with a bunch of really nice rednecks).

I'm still crazed at work, so I'll ply you with photos to distract you from the lack of writing.

in keeping with the theme of the last post, then, I present you photos from our recent meeting of the Redneck Yacht Club:

first, our fearless captain EO:

second, team John Deere (what impresses me most is how menacing Amber can look with a squirt gun. you better watch yourself...!)

third: don't we clean up real nice and purty-like?

down with nutty brown

2007-07-30T13:28:00.000-05:00

(this post is dedicated to Raymond, who yelled at me for boring him to tears with my gazpacho recipe post. so Raymond: here you go, don't ever let me hear you complaining again! also, my gazpacho was delicious, so there.)

last Thursday was shockingly clear and rain-free here in the ATX. it had been an incredibly stressful week, so when a co-worker stopped by and asked me if I was interested in dinner and a drink I was more than eager to oblige. we headed over to Polvo's, an oh-so-South-Austin Mexican spot complete with tons of outdoor seating, a tin roof, and a well-cultivated vibe of laid-back cool. many margaritas later, we decided it was too nice of a night to head home, so we sat in his open-top convertible, debating our options.

and then somehow... we ended up at Nutty Brown Cafe, which is about a 20-minute drive out from central Austin. it's literally on the side of the highway out in Texas Hill Country, but as we pulled up to the friendly neon sign, we noticed that it was packed. now, I had had a big client meeting that day and my friend had had a job interview, so we were both pretty dressed up -- atypical behavior for sure, since he is usually in designer jeans and a t-shirt and I'm rocking the jeans/flats combo. so we walk into the place, thinking that we could maybe sit outside (apparently they're famous for their outdoor amphitheater space, complete with towering live oak trees and tons of starry sky)... only to discover that it's karaoke night, baby, and the place is hoppin'.

karaoke night. I get all tingly just thinking about it.

to set the scene: we are the only non-white people in the place (my friend is Hispanic). there are men with large bellies who are wearing cowboy hats in complete seriousness -- this is not meant to be funny or ironically hip, this is what they wear when they are heading out to a bar. I am the only woman wearing pointy-toed shoes in the entire place. the karaoke area is relatively small, and there is a steady stream of singers up on the stage. we walk in -- me in a dress and slingback heels, he in Prada eyewear and arty cufflinks -- and immediately get sized up by the crowd. surely we've come into the wrong place and are going to turn around and drive back to downtown Austin where we belong?

but hells no, friends, hells no, I say! we grab two stools at the bar and start drinking up. fast-forward a few drinks and I am up on the stage, singing country songs and winning over the crowd, who are shocked to say the least by the dressed-up Asian chick belting Leann Rimes and Jo Dee Messina (M.Lo, if you're still reading -- I completely thought of you and tried to channel my inner Atlanta debutante while I sang it). I even had one fan that called me "Lucy Liu" all night (insert stupid-white-people eye roll here, but hey, he meant well).

it was, in a short phrase, a total and utter blast. we left the nutty brown with many invitations to return and party with them and headed back to the lights of downtown Austin, happy with our random adventure and reveling in our temporary stardom.

:)

it's.... recipe Monday!!

2007-07-30T09:41:00.001-05:00

(not that this implies a consistent commitment to posting a new recipe every single Monday... I just liked the sound of that title; plus, that's just way too much commitment for me right now)

*ahem*

last week officially kicked my ass in more ways than one, so I made the decision to spend the majority of this weekend on my couch. friday night? quick work happy hour then home for kraft macaroni & cheese and sex and the city reruns on DVD. saturday? sleep for most of the day, then take advantage of the one non-rainy window to go for a long run outdoors -- only to get rained on, lose my keys, kill my muscles by repeating my run while power-walking so that I could look for my keys and have zero success... so I returned to the couch to watch Grease and a What Not to Wear marathon on TLC. oh, and I went out and got hammered. sunday? sleep for most of the day, get sucked into making of the band 4 marathon on MTV (p. diddy is just incredibly unattractive), go for long power walk around neighborhood... and finally go to grocery store.

I decided I wanted to try to make something I'd never attempted before. after scouring a few cookbooks for inspiration, I decided to make some cool, summery gazpacho. it's super easy! here's what I did:

gather your ingredients:
a few ripe tomatoes, chopped
one red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 onion (I think either sweet onion or purple onion would probably be best), chopped
1/2 cucumber (I used the long, skinny kind that comes wrapped in plastic), chopped
1-2 cloves garlic
cilantro
s&p
lemon juice
some goat cheese for garnish
some EVOO for garnish (sigh... Rachael Ray)

I didn't use exact measurements but I pretty much two parts tomato to one part onion and one part cucumber.

now, easy-peasy directions:
grab a blender. put tomatoes, red bell pepper, cucumber and onion in blender and pulse until pureed (I went in batches -- it won't work that well if you jam it all in there at once). pour into container, season with s&p and lemon juice. pour into your serving bowl, drizzle with EVOO, add some chopped cilantro and a dollop of goat cheese.

ta-da!!! gazpacho is ready.

I saw a few variations on this recipe... one called for green bell pepper instead of red... one called for parsley/mint instead of cilantro (I tend to prefer cilantro though)... another called for a dash of hot sauce (which I think would bring out the flavors quite nicely... I think it's just a matter of trying the different twists and seeing what works for you.

i'm alive. just.... molding

2007-07-26T09:50:00.000-05:00

it has rained every single day in Austin for what feels like the past two months. a few of you e-mailed me back in June when the central Texas floods were making CNN headlines to ask if I was okay (how kind!), and although I was indeed quite fine at the time, I think I'm officially starting to mold. think about it: Austin is known for having great weather. in fact, I specifically remember when I came here to interview for my job and they told me that Austin is sunny 300 days a year. yet here we are. constant rain. constant clouds. constant mugginess. constant OMG I JUST NEED SOME SUN IS THAT TOO MUCH TO ASK. bah humbug.

to add to the frustration, it's been one of those work 11 crazy, stressful hours, come home, eat, drink a much-needed glass of wine, sleep, wake up, shower, work 11 crazy, stressful hours, rinse, wash, repeat kind of weeks... hence the rather negligent blogging. (although, miracle of miracles, I have already managed to somehow re-read HP #7. heh. priorities?)

anyhoodle. so yes. sorry about the lack of posts. but trust me when I say you haven't missed much. my life/thoughts these days have consisted of work, rain, Harry Potter, rain, enough with these client meetings already, I'm sick of having to dress like a real professional person, daydreaming about moving to some sunny Caribbean place or heck, I'd even settle for Seattle at this point b/c I'm sure their weather is better than this (exhibit A: Austin weather vs. Seattle weather, I rest my case), blah, blah blah...

I am going to think positive thoughts and think back to this kind of weather instead:

sweet, sweet relief

2007-07-22T22:27:00.000-05:00

I TOTALLY READ HARRY POTTER 7. IT IS SO FREAKING GOOD. GO READ IT NOW.

yes, caps lock is obnoxious, but totally necessary.

I REPEAT. GO READ HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS NOW. I PROMISE YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED.

I had been planning on reading it next wknd when I would have some more time to devote to it -- mostly since a) I still hadn't received my copy, b) I knew I'd have a busy week at work and c) I really wanted to take some time to truly savor it... but I ended up reading it today, in four breathless hours, cramped into an uncomfortable in the bookstore next door to my office.

yes, I am a dork (I prefer to call it "hard-core fan"). I had gone into the office today to get a few things done and ended up wandering into the bookstore to maybe just read the first few chapters... then I got completely sucked in and read all 800 pages in four hours of non-stop reading. I didn't stop, I didn't pee, I didn't do anything.

IT'S THAT GOOD!!!!

more on the rest of my wknd another time...

vent

2007-07-20T15:11:00.001-05:00

fridays are supposed to be the day when you sleep in, roll into work in flip flops, take long lunches, catch up on email, do your timesheets, go to happy hour, read blogs, etc -- not wake up to pouring rain, early morning client meetings, crazy schedules and drama.

that is the end of my vent. or at least all i have time for.

also, i really should not have eaten three slices of pizza for lunch.

oh well. back to work.

gettin' my worm on

2007-07-18T11:41:00.000-05:00

this morning, I voluntarily woke up at 6:15.

...

let's pause for a second and take that in. let it soak into your brain.

six.fif.teen.by choice.

I had agreed to meet my friend Kelly @ Austin high school for an early-morning track workout -- a few laps, some sprints, maybe a few squats/lunges, etc.

(this from a girl who never gets up before 8 unless there is a plane to be caught, and that plane better be flying somewhere interesting. unless, of course, it's for work, and in that case, you better believe that I am going to buy some delicious breakfast tacos at the airport and expense them to my office)

we met. we ran. we stretched. we stared at all the bikini boot camp participants and hard-core runtex running teams strutting their stuff on the track.

I came home. I showered. I ate. and I showed up at work before 9 am.

people, I think this is my own personal definition of "the early bird gets the worm." so much more gets done when you show up before 9 am! it's wildly impressive! I may have to turn over a new leaf.

well, more would get done if I wasn't so busy obsessing over my new pearl. to pearl or to curve, that is (still) the question.

crippled by indecision

2007-07-17T13:25:00.000-05:00

as some of you may know, I can be a bit indecisive. (heh) whenever I go out to eat (which is often), I generally narrow my preferences down to 2-3 entrees and then ask the server for their recommendation (which I may or may not take). I don't know why this is... I've just always been this way.

yesterday I finally decided to upgrade my ancient Nokia brick phone (which, to its credit, has not only survived a million and one business/personal trips around the world but also survived a short stay in my friend Erin's dog's mouth). I have been carrying two devices for a long time -- a work blackberry for work emails and meeting schedules and a personal cell phone for phone calls and text messaging -- and decided that the time was nigh to make the big switch.

after a few cursory Internet searches, I headed over to the AT&T Wireless store to make my purchase... and that's when the indecision set in. blackberry curve or the sexy red blackberry pearl? curve? pearl? pearl? curve? oooooh looky over there at the pretty, pretty iphone (which is admittedly awesome but a horrible business tool -- typing on that thing was a bitch and a half).

I finally decided upon the red pearl (what can I say, I love red accessories and the curve only comes in silver) but am having a bit of buyer's remorse. the pearl looks amazing but I'm still not quite used to the keyboard... I can text like a maniac but the layout of these keys takes some getting used to and now I'm wondering if I shouldn't have paid the extra $50 for a curve with a full QWERTY keyboard. the pearl is prettier, but the curve is probably more practical.

:(

what do you think?

extremely important news that I can't believed I waited so long to tell you

2007-07-13T10:39:00.000-05:00

[I think that wins as the longest post title ever]

on Tues night I got an IM from my work buddy Kelly. she works in our media department and had extra passes to a special sneak preview of the new Harry Potter movie (6 pm, which was way before the national opening time of midnight), was I by any chance interested in going with her?

I nearly passed out in my office due to my excitement.

the new HP movie? for FREE?? before ANYONE else in America gets to see it?!?! with zero obnoxious kids wearing lightning scars on their foreheads and talking through the whole thing?

dude. I think you can understand my excitement.

I think it also goes without saying that I am a BIG.HARRYPOTTER.FAN.

(also, I think it goes without saying that my friend Kelly kicks ass. this is the same friend who had a huge gift card to a fancy-pants seafood restaurant downtown -- given to her by a rep, man oh man why don't I work in media -- and shortly after the invitation to the HP movie, she asked me if I was interested in going to this restaurant to help her spend the $150 on lump crab cake and seared ahi tuna and crab fried rice. scha-wing!!)

without spoiling it for the rest of you schmoes who don't enjoy the ridiculous connections that I do (heh), let me just tell you that this movie kicked some MAJOR wizard ass. it was dark, it was scary, the acting was better than past movies and the dueling scenes were visually amazing. and when I say it was pretty dark and scary, I'm not lying -- I probably watched about 65% of the movie through my fingers (this coming from a girl who's read the book at least five or six times, so it's not like I was going to be surprised by some unexpected plot twist). interestingly enough, it was surprisingly short -- I think I read somewhere that this is the shortest HP movie so far -- so there are never any parts where you feel like the movie is moving slowly or that this is a good time to get up and go to the bathroom. no, you're pretty much engaged the whole time, eyes riveted to the screen, completely caught up in the drama (omg! Harry's going to kiss Cho! omg! this is when they meet Grawp! omg! watch out! the Death Eaters are behind you!)... I actually came out of the theater with a raging headache because I had been staring at the screen intently, entirely wrapped up in the experience.

they left out a lot of the details that are in the book, so if you haven't read the book in a while you may be a bit confused -- but the movie is so well-done that you won't mind. only dorks like me who say "hey! the sneak who snitches on Dumbledore's Army is supposed to be jinxed with the word 'sneak' across her face and I so wanted to see that" are going to notice the plot differences. (man. I think I just established myself as a complete and utter dork. oh well.)

in summary:
1) I kick ass with my cool connections,
2) I saw it before other people,
3) when I came out at 8:30ish the line for the midnight showing was already out the door,
4) go see it now.

worth a thousand words

2007-07-11T15:33:00.000-05:00

the Canadian cottage life:

o Canada! f*ck yeah! (no idea why I decided canada is so hard core that it needed not only an angry expression and a stuck-out tongue but also a hand signal and a yellow headband)

urban graffiti/directions in the famous Kensington Market:

Charlie's Angels?

whine

2007-07-09T20:45:00.000-05:00

the whirlwind tour of canada and north carolina has come to an end, and I have reluctantly returned to my regular workday schedule. charlotte was awesome -- for you new-ish JMWT readers, my college buddies have an annual Redneck Yacht Club meeting @ my friend Erin's parents' lake house in NC. it's very serious. you must wear redneck gear (I wore a John Deere hat), you must be willing to "pop the top @ 10 am" and you must listen to country music while out on the boat. oh, and you must be willing to imbibe unhealthy amounts of alcohol whilst consuming piles of delicious bbq ribs.

I came back to Austin feeling exhausted, dehydrated, tanned, and incredibly lucky to have the friendships that I have. these are amazing, interesting, accomplished, kind, hilarious, kick-ass, talented women (and men, of course, but it's mainly about the women) who are loyal friends and, most importantly, upstanding members of the Redneck Yacht Club.

as I went into work this morning, I faced the worst possible coming-back-to-work-after-vaca scenario: an all-day client meeting (dun dun dun DUNNNNNN -- beethoven). all I could think about throughout the entire meeting was "why did I choose TODAY to wear these pants?" I had decided to resurrect some fabulous white slacks that had long been languishing in the back of my closet. I paired them with black heels, a black three-quarter sleeve blouse and a turquoise chunky necklace (long pants and long sleeves being necessary because I still have residual marks from the Attack of the Killer Canadian Mosquitoes)... and then as I sat down in my meeting, I realized why I never wear these pants.

they are high-waisted pants.

read: normal waist.

as in: practically up to my belly button. channeling the Mom Jean. cutting off my circulation at every possible moment. as in: please kill me now, I am dying over here in these pants.

it was seriously all I could think about all day. that and "why do these heels hurt my feet so badly" and "why did they choose to have barbecue for today's client lunch when I am totally wearing white pants?" and "what possessed me to buy natural-waist pants?" and "how do women wear these every day?"

I mentally whined all day. work drama. all-day meetings. staying until 7:45 when your mind is completely dead. uncomfortable pants. uncomfortable shoes. leftover prescription anti-histamine grogginess. gross feelings of "all I've done for the past week and a half is drink obscene amounts of alcohol, OMG I want to go on a long, long run but it is too hot outside." whine, whine, whine.

so the first thing I did when I came home (at 8 pm, argh) was shuck off the offending pants, take off the constricting button-down shirt, change into a tank top and underwear and nothing else, flop on the bed and call my friend E to catch up.

life is now officially good.

attack of the killer canadian mosquitoes

2007-07-05T17:17:00.001-05:00

you'll be glad to know that despite combined efforts of Paula's incredibly hard-partying friends, the wonderful lure that is Toronto and venomous flock of canadian killer mosquitoes, I have survived my trip to Oh Canada and lived to tell the tale. it wasn't without a ferocious fight on their parts, however, as the non-stop partying of these crazy canadians' annual Paula's birthday / Canada Day blowout was fierce to say the least. when I (stupidly) suggested that I was tired around 2 a.m. on Fri night, they gave me a look that made me realize just how blasphemous my words had been. staying up until sunrise was a normal thing, so we spent our days/nights hanging out on the lake, drinking, playing bocce ball, drinking, grilling, drinking, sitting in the hot tub, drinking, building bonfires, drinking, stargazing, drinking, setting off fireworks, drinking and roasting marshmallows. oh, and did I mention the drinking? holy crap. I'm surprised my liver still functions.

as a whole, I must say that our neighbors to the north are indeed a friendly people, they do indeed mispronounce "out" and do indeed say "eh?" after every single sentence. it's a funny place, that Canada -- I kept on giggling because I just felt like it was a fake America... which, I'm sure, is something only a presumptuous, self-absorbed American would say, but I can't help it! it's just so bizarre. I will say, however, that I was very impressed with a few things in particular:

1) lay's ketchup chips - why don't we have these in the states? hot damn they are good. potato chips + ketchup = it's like the best of both worlds. I brought two bags back with me to prolong the goodness.
2) tim horton's (aka timmy ho's, heh, I like that version better) - like dunkin donuts, but perhaps slightly better, and on every single street corner. fantastic coffee, excellent timbits (like holes).
3) cesars - bloody mary made with clamato juice (clam juice + tomato juice). spicier than most average bloody marys and with a slightly more complex flavor.
4) toronto - what's not to like? an international city, clean, polite, cultured, great food, lots of bars, a young and upwardly population.
5) the "cottage" life - everyone has cottages here (as opposed to lake houses). you pack a cooler, a tent, some cesars, and you hit the road. aside from the seven-hour car trip we endured on the way back to Toronto on Mon night, it was fantastic.

I've saved the only negative bit for last = Attack of the Killer Canadian Mosquitoes. holy crap. when I say that I am covered in mosquito bites, I am not exaggerating. the only reason I'm not uploading a picture as proof is a) because I like you all and do not want to scare you away and b) my camera is at home. apparently I got eaten alive by mosquitoes and then had a severe allergic reaction to them -- severe enough that I went to the dermatologist today to get a steroid shot and some prescription-strength antihistamine. I am also considering bathing in calamine lotion for the foreseeable future. the worst part? I am going on another vacation tmw morning (to another lake house, ah yes, this is the pimped out life that I lead) and am supposed to spend the entire wknd in a bathing suit. I'm not sure if I can achieve this without scaring small children and people with sensitive digestive systems, but I will do my best and report my results back to you all.

happy belated 4th!

o canada

2007-06-28T11:37:00.000-05:00

to the ten loyal readers of JMWT: I am off for a little vacation to the land of maple leaves and the Royal Mountain Police (or whatever they're called). be good while I'm gone, remember to always cook with sharp knives and try pilates -- you'll like the results.

if you need a good movie recommendation to keep you company while I'm gone, I just re-watched Monsoon Wedding last night (a Mira Nair film). loved it -- the pace, the energy, the chaos, the intertwining stories, the mood of the piece -- absolutely fantastic.

if you need a good book recommendation to keep you company while I'm gone, I just re-purchased my copy of The Red Tent by Anita Diamant... it imagines the story of a forgotten character in the Old Testament, is earthy, passionate and rich.

cross your fingers that the non-stop thunderstorms will stop long enough to let me fly out of Austin today...

a lil' bit o' this and that

2007-06-26T16:20:00.000-05:00

a sundry list of things that i have been up to / thinking about lately:

my unhealthy obsession with jane austen movies. i FINALLY got around to watching the bbc version of the mini-series and was blown away by the colin firth / jennifer ehle duo. then i watched sense & sensibility (major girl crush on kate winslet). then i re-read pride & prejudice. then i read little women (not austen, but you get my drift). they're just so... charming. simple. wholesome. with great characterization and plot.
i bought a knife sharpening steel at bed bath and beyond this past wknd, and holy moly. it's like i have a whole new kitchen. if you suffer from dull knives, get thee to the nearest store and buy one of these babies. they work miracles, i tell ya. plus you feel like a bad ass when you stand there making malicious knife-sharpening steel. mwahaha.
inspired by my sharpening steel, i made a delicious dinner on fri night: lime & honey glazed salmon over a black bean/corn/spinach salad. delish.
the weather in austin for the past week or so is best described as "swampy, humid, stormy rainforest" - and it looks like it's here to stay, wtf? i don't think it's rained this much in the entire 15 months i've lived here. good thing i'm escaping for vaca!
saturday night i went to my first tx lonestar roller girls derby. let's just that if i ever meet any of these girls i am going to do my best to stay on their good side. the best part was when they settled penalties with arm-wrestling matches or pillow fights. the mother fucking holy rollers ended up upsetting the putas del fuego, but it was a vicious fight to the end... and when i say vicious fight, i mean vicious fight. it went wayyy beyond the realm of thrown elbows and pulled hair -- we're talking full-on wrestling on the ground in roller skates, throwing punches and slamming helmets. yowza. this clip isn't fantastic, but it gives you a sense of what it's like. check out some of the fights that happen at about 2:00 left in the video:

they really take the whole "keep austin weird" thing pretty seriously, dudes.

"being a grown-up"

2007-06-22T11:06:00.000-05:00

one of the blogs I read, the lovely Sass Attack, has a category called "being a grown-up," and it's got me to thinkin'. I am now 26 years old -- an age which when you're, say, 14 or 15, seems totally grown-up and chic and cool. you have a job, you have a paycheck, you don't need to get a ride to the mall from your mom, you can go on dates with boys who aren't in high school (think of Jennifer Garner's character in "13 going on 30"). on the other end, however, I'd imagine that when you're say, 43 or 44, you're going to look at 26-year-olds like they're children who happen to inhabit fully-grown bodies. I mean, don't you feel like you read lots of interviews with men and women who reminisce about their twenties as a wild, tumultuous time when they thought they were adults but were really full-sized children making poor decisions?

if you let society's institutions and laws decide the matter, I am definitely an adult. I pay taxes, I am entrusted with responsibilities at my job, I can vote, buy alcohol, gamble, watch R-rated movies, buy cigarettes, drive a car, rent a car, get married, or even adopt a child. or hell, I can blow that all off and buy alcohol, gamble, smoke cigarettes, hop in a car, and avoid paying taxes -- but then I'll be considered an adult if I ever get caught.

it's weird, though, because on one hand I really do consider myself an adult. I pay all of my bills on time, I do my taxes myself, I check on my credit score, I get my oil changed every 3,000 miles (well, close enough), I have renter's insurance, I work hard at my job -- well, when I'm not blogging, of course -- I try and treat other people with respect and kindness, I have an apartment that has more than just milk crates and rock-band posters and ramen noodles. but on the other hand, I feel like a total kid. I spend a lot of daydreaming about what I want to be when I grow up, I marvel at my friends who've made the decision to get married or are (gasp!) even considering children, I eat cereal for dinner if I feel like it, I go out drinking and come back to blog about Dick Cheney and halibut (naturally), and I feel stunned when I realize that my mom was already married at my age.

I wonder when it all "comes together" and you feel like a legitimate grown-up. is it the realization of how many responsibilities you have? is it when you make the incredible decision that you're ready to become responsible for the life and growth of another human being? is it having a strong sense of self? is it maturity, or the way in which you treat other people, or not thinking about your self all the time (said the girl who has a blog, which is pretty much the 2007 definition of incredible narcissism)? is it when you realize that you and only you are responsible for your actions/happiness/life, so you can either shape up and take some ownership or just float along for the rest of your life, blaming other people when things go wrong?

what do you think? what makes a grown-up? and is it weird that I only sometimes feel like one, despite the fact that all the numbers point to yes?

also, is this the face of a trustworthy, responsible, legitimate grown-up (featuring a cameo by the lovely courtney botts-now-schaefer on the eve of her bachelorette party)?

since i'm sure you were DYING to know

2007-06-20T14:23:00.001-05:00

so. last night i was sitting in my apt, finishing dinner, watching some old SATC reruns and working on my laptop while waiting for my laundry to finish (quite the impressive show of multi-tasking, no?). suddenly i heard a STOMP STOMP STOMP overhead that, i shit you not, sounded like either a) they were having a dinner party with elephants or b) they decided to host an nba-style dunk competition in their living room.

i decided that enough was enough and that it was time for me to be an adult about it and go up there to meet my upstairs neighbor. i hoofed it to the third floor, resolving to be polite but firm, and knocked on their door (again, dreading that it would be some 600-lb morbidly obese fellow who clearly could not help sounding like an elephant/basketball star as he tried his best to walk around his apt).

the door opened... and a nice, normal, cute guy answered the door. my heart sank. damn! why did he have to be cute? but i stuck to my guns, apologized for barging in on him like this, introduced myself as his downstairs neighbor and then asked if he wouldn't mind keeping it down just a bit. he was extremely nice about it -- it was obvious that he and his roommate (girlfriend? no idea, i didn't see the roommate) had just moved in, and he said they didn't realize whether they were being loud but that they would definitely keep it down. i thanked him, said that i didn't realize he had just moved in and that i totally understood there would be some moving noise for a while, and we parted ways amicably.

so there you have it. score one point for polite, mature, adult-like behavior on my part...?

just made my day!

2007-06-19T10:25:00.000-05:00

i just found out that the TACOS HAVE RETURNED! since we were moved to another building i have been sorely missing the possibility of having a $1.50 breakfast ($1.25 taco +$0.25 soda). but! i just walked through the kitchen, and lo and behold! the tacos are BACK, bitches, and she said they're here to stay. fresh tomatillo salsa and pico de gallo, here i come...

yee-haw.

separately: the guy who lives above me is driving me CRAZY. i don't know if it's a new tenant b/c i've lived there over a year without any major problems, but whoever is living there now stomps around all day like the world has done him a major injustice. i am seriously considering going up there, knocking on their door, and politely asking him to try and keep it down. he may hate me and express his rage by stomping even harder, but i'm seriously going to go postal if i don't do anything about it... or at least try. my only fear is that i get up there and he turns out to be some 600-pound morbidly obese dude who is just trying to get around his apt. that would be bad.

i'll keep you posted.

thursday and friday and saturday, oh my!!

2007-06-18T10:52:00.000-05:00

(alternate post title: thursday and friday and saturday, oh my lord i was drunk each night what the hell was i thinking?!)

yes, friends, it appears that i have regressed back to my college / just recently graduated days in which any day that started with "thurs," "fri" or "sat" was a good day to drink. it was good times all around but i am clearly out of practice and need to ramp up the boozing if i plan to keep up with this pace (note: i don't).

thursday's booze-fest centered around a milestone alamo drafthouse event: my first-ever boy band sing-along. now, if you're one of those too-cool-for-school types that cannot appreciate the sheer beauty and emotion in an entire theater full of people standing on their feet, singing backstreet boys at the top of their lungs while the video blares on the movie screen -- i don't want to be your friend. because, people, it was an emotional moment. there was new kids. there was boyz II men. there was new edition. justin timberlake made several apperances (via video, of course). once the sing-along was over, we decided we had not had enough quite yet and ventured up to north austin to the open-until-4-am-because-that's-how-we-koreans-do karaoke joint to sing our little hearts out some more.

you'd think that i would take a break on friday (which i sort of did if you count my 10:30 arrival time to work), but there was a huge happy hour planned for a few co-workers' birthdays and i did not want to miss out. no major shenanigans here... just a ton of (really cheap) drinks and drunken memories with work buddies at the preferred watering hole (key bar, for you few austinites that read this -- it's co-owned by some work people).

saturday was one of those "i promise i didn't plan to get drunk" evenings. it started out innocently enough -- a movie and some beers at the alamo on south lamar -- and then progressed into a full-on multiple-martini kind of evening. we saw "knocked up" (absolutely hilarious although i could have done without the overly graphic birth shots) and then made a tour of austin hot spots (apple bar for caramel apple martinis -- delicious cocktails + excellent people watching, six for a really quick drink -- crowd was totally wack we didn't stay long, and then cedar street to see some 80s hair band -- some strong mexican martinis and sweaty crowds).

sunday included some much-needed r&r, which including sleeping in, re-watching the BBC version of pride and prejudice (i'm obsessed), swimming some laps at my neighborhood pool and stocking up on groceries at the cheap grocery store (not to be confused with the much more high-quality but high-priced central market, which i love dearly, but i'm going through a poor phase). i made a delicious tofu stir-fry and a pot of chicken soup from some leftover rotisserie chicken -- yum!

and thus the week begans. i spent the morning at the doctor's office getting my teeth raped at my six-month cleaning and came into the office for some great news about new business. good times all around. should be a good week...

in praise of jetblue

2007-06-14T11:53:00.000-05:00

it's official: i'm a jet blue fan (said in the tone of consultant bob in office space when he says "i'm a michael bolton fan").

i had long been interested in flying them based on many a positive review, and was pleased to discover that my office had booked the first half of my biz trip on a direct flight from AUS to JFK. my pleasant experience began long before the flight itself when i created an account online and became a true blue member. just like southwest, jet blue has bypassed the stupid frequent flyer mileage programs embraced by so many other airlines and done a straight up point system where once you reach 100, you get a free flight. no muss, no fuss.

check-in was a breeze... i'm a big fan of the kiosk system, and the screen savers on their kiosks were programmed with fun and quirky and non-TSA-seeming messages like "hey, what's up?" or a simple but effective "hello." once i got onto the plane, i was pleased to discover that despite its relative smallness (one aisle down the middle, 2-3 seats on each side -- pretty much standard for austin flights and something that i'm used to by now), it didn't disappoint on its promise of leather seats and a TV screen in each seat.

dude. the TV was money. the channels! the fact that you can start watching from the second you can in your seat! i started off with some food network (barefoot contessa, queen of the hamptons) and then decided to pony up $5 to watch a movie (easily purchased by swiping my debit card). i chose to watch the namesake and absolutely loved it. jhumpa lahiri is one of my favorite writers and although i still prefer the book to the movie i thought mira nair did an amazing job bringing the story to life. i even teared up at a few moments.

the service was a hybrid between continental's firm professionalism and southwest's (occasionally extremely annoying) quirkiness -- friendly but not overly so, professional but not robotic. they served drinks and snacks but otherwise left us the hell alone, which i appreciated. once the movie was over, i got completely caught up in TLC's show "miami ink" and started wondering if maybe i should get a tattoo (i haven't... yet).

we landed @ JFK 10 minutes before our scheduled arrival time and had to hang out on the tarmac a bit until our gate became available but all in all i would say that my first jetblue experience gets a 9 out of 10 (not a whole 10 because that just seems silly).

well played, jetblue.

who cares about zen

2007-06-12T13:08:00.000-05:00

scene: newark international airport, newark, NJ. monday night.

key players:
1) yours truly (YT)
2) dippy flight attendant chick (DFAC, not to be confused with AFLAC)
3) rocker TV producer guy (RTVPG)
4) evil, evil continental airlines (EECE, who i generally love and who my friend di is genuinely obsessed with)

and.... action!

EECA: "attention, ladies and gentlemen. we just wanted to come on the PA to let you know that we hate you. i know you're tired after a long day of client meetings. i know you are going back to austin against your will and that you'd rather stay in NYC to play with friends and enjoy the sunny-but-disgustingly-hot weather. but mwahaha! we are delayed."

YT: "hate. hate for everyone. i know austin has made me chill and whatnot but still. haaaate."

EECA: "ok, it's not that bad! i know your flight was supposed to leave at 8:15, but newark is a giant cluster fuck that was thrown off by a teensy bit of weather. it's 8:45 now, let's board."

YT: "not so bad. haaaate is diminishing somewhat. may make it home before midnight! rejoice!"

(we board airplane)

(sit at gate)

(sit at gate)

(meet seatmates, DFAC, who is very earth-mothery looking with a fantastic complexion and RTVPG, who is very tan and tall and fit-looking)

(one hour has passed. we still have not yet left gate.)

(movement! hurrah! the plane groans its way toward the tarmac.)

EECA: "so yeahhhh, ladies and gentlemen. i know you've been sitting at the gate for an hour. i know you are hating life. i know your seatmates are annoying the shit out of you by their incessant chatting. maybe they will fall in love and become life partners, but still, can't they do so more quietly? i mean really. anyway, so yeah. i've got some bad news. we're going to be parked here on the tarmac for... [dramatic pause] about another hour and a half. we're at the end of a long line."

YT: "rage. seeeethe. hate."

DFAC, talking to RTVPG next to her: "so yeah, i'm a vegetarian. i just, i don't know, the way those animals are killed just seems so wrong, you know? don't get me wrong, i love me my fish. in fact, i had this amazing fish in lisbon the other night, but there were just so many bones? i thought i was going to choke on a bone! and i don't eat shellfish. i mean, don't get me wrong, i've had fresh oysters, and they are so delicious! but then i realized they're fresh out of the water and i just felt so BAD! and how they boil crabs alive? it just makes me so sad!

RTVPG: "mm-hmm, yeah. right. okay."

YT: "hmm. am suddenly craving some MD crabs served with a healthy dousing of old bay seasoning and an ice-cold corona served with lime. or maybe some fresh oysters on the half shell with plenty of tabasco and lemon juice."

DFAC: "i mean, i just think that my destiny here on this earth is to give out peace and harmony wherever i go, you know? wherever i'm heading to next, i want to give out as much love as i can while i'm here. i really think that's my calling. i think it's so important. that's why i love to travel so much. i just feel like i'm a citizen of the world, you know? even though my passport says the U.S.? that's why i'm a flight attendant, although i just have a really hard time with the bureaucracy of it all, you know? all the corporate stuff? i just want to give all my passengers love and take care of them like they're my family."

RTVPG: "mm-hmm, yeah. right. okay."

YT: "excuse me while i barf. the usual austin jen would have said now i'm sure she's a lovely lady and she has great skin and the world needs some more love, kumbayah and all that, but right now? i'm trying to sleep you dippy bitch! shut the f up!!!!!!!"

EENA: "hiiii, ladies and gentlemen. have you gone completely postal yet? okay, so i have great news! we're totally great. we are going to take off EARLIER than we said! isn't that fantastic? i mean, aren't you totally blown away? so yeah, now that it's after 10 pm and you've been sitting here wanting to die for the past few hours, let's embark on a three-hour journey to texas! hurray!"

DFAC: "so yeah, i just don't understand the celebrity stylist thing. i mean, true musicians are supposed to be artists, you know? i'm a singer, and a lot of my friends are musicians. and they're real artists, and their styles should reflect their PASSION, and their individuality. i'm friends with this norwegian band, they're kinda like psychedelic pop? and their leader, he writes all their songs, he wears these great velvet suits which are just so right for their ART, you know?"

RTVPG: "mm-hmm, right. yeah. okay."

so this went on and on and on and on and on until i couldn't take it anymore. i was annoyed, i was exhausted, i had been up since 7 am, the entire plane was silent and dark except for these annoying yahoos who were yammering on like a pair of fools. my ipod was blasting into my ears in an effort to drown these two out, but that wasn't working and besides, my ears were starting to throb and i really wanted to sleep. i finally turned to them, put on a big smile, and said "excuse me, i'm so sorry to interrupt you, but i was wondering if you wouldn't mind speaking a little more quietly? it's just that i can hear your conversation and i don't want to feel like i'm eavesdropping. that'd be greeeeat, thanks. YOU ANNOYING FUCKERS."

okay, so i didn't really say the last part, and about two hours into the flight they finally quieted down a bit and i was able to get some sleep. does saying this makes me a heartless bitch? honestly i couldn't have cared less. i do think i've chilled out a lot since moving to austin but last night i just couldn't take it anymore. who cares about zen when you have annoying DFAC sitting next to you and waxing poetic about the meaning of her life.

argh.

fascinating

2007-06-08T16:29:00.000-05:00

i found this photo gallery (found through fark) to be completely fascinating. topic: what a family eats in a week in 15 homes around the world.

things that stood out to me:

mayonnaise sandwiches in the U.K. - gross!
the african refugee camp family
the amount of packaged foods in the american families' pictures
the amount of neon-colored things in the NC family's picture
the overflowing amount of fruits/vegetables in non-american families' pictures
how much $ the germans spend on their food
how good some of the recipes sounded (i.e. chicken biryana with basmati rice and fried shredded pork with sweet and sour sauce)
how unappealing some of the recipes sounded (pig's knuckles with carrots, celery and parsnips or bacon & herring from germany)
how much i loved the ecuadorian family's hats
how the bhutan family feeds what looks like ten generations of relatives on $5/week

what stands out to you?

bits and pieces

2007-06-08T11:05:00.000-05:00

nothing super thought-provoking here, just a collection of things that have been going on with me lately:

IN THE WORLD OF FOOD:
i have revived my love affair with cinnamon toast crunch. it's just so GOOD! the cinnamon-y taste! the crunch of the little squares! feels like a decadent treat, and makes me drink milk. i also tried to grow a basil plant. that did not work very well. i got two caprese salds out of it before it decided to up and die. *sigh* guess i don't have much of a green thumb.

IN THE WORLD OF EXERCISE:
i have recently started up with pilates class. i took a few private lessons (with an ex-ballet dancer of an instructor who told me that she retired at 22 because she was starting to getting arthritis and rewarded herself with a new set of boobs) and a few classes and am officially hooked. i like how strong you feel afterward.

i have also recently started swimming laps in my neighborhood pool (not to be confused with the melrose place-esque pool in my apt complex, where all i do is tan and wish the frat boys wouldn't play their music so loudly). dude, swimming laps is much harder than i remember. i always get annoyed during my workout for two reasons: 1) i think i'm going to crash into the other swimmers in the lane and 2) my goggles always fog up / let in water / feel uncomfortable (i guess that's what i get for buying the cheapest pair). actually there was Major Drama at the pool the other day -- i didn't pay too much attention because i didn't want the guy to feel like a spectacle but i guess some guy was having heart trouble and they had to call in an ambulance and cart him away. not good.

IN THE WORLD OF WORK:

i am heading to NYC for a meeting on monday, and i get to fly jetblue! i am excited. hopefully they will not strand me on the tarmac for countless hours on end. i promise to report on the comfort of the leather seats and the quality of the cable TV.

kind of like three little birds upon my doorstep, but worse

2007-06-06T13:37:00.000-05:00

as I came out of the shower this morning, I was greeted with the lovely sound of male voices on my balcony and shadowy figures visible through my mostly-drawn mini-blinds. I was immediately all "WTF?! CALL 911!" and then realized "wait. I knew this was coming. they are painting the side of our apt building and they had papered up all my windows in preparation." even though I knew the painting was happening soon, it would still have been nice to receive some warning that people were going to be all up on my balcony. I've got BAGGAGE when it comes to this sort of thing, people. this means: story time!

today's story: The Time(s) When Mandy and Jen Had A Peeping Tom

this is a double-whammy. one night as I was driving home from work, I got a call from my roommate-at-the-time, the lovely Mandy Corrie (M: do you still read this blog? if so, hi! I'm so excited for the new HP book and plan on calling you as soon as I finish it so that we can trade theories! snape = GOOD OR EVIL? we will now know!). it had been a late night for me and she had already gone to bed, and she was calling to let me know that I shouldn't be alarmed to come home to police officers in our apt. umm, wtf? turns out she had seen a shadowy figure outside her window (that was the first and last time I live in a ground-floor apt) and called 911. they didn't catch him, but we were both thoroughly freaked. there were bars on our windows, so he couldn't necessarily have climbed in... but the idea that someone is watching you while you sleep is still a freaky idea.

time #2: this time we were both home and in our respective rooms, reading in bed. all of a sudden my phone beeped -- I had a text message. it was from Mandy in the next room, and all it said was "he's at my window again. call 911, then meet me in the living room." I dialed 911, asked them in a whisper to send someone out as soon as possible, and stealthily crept into the (dark) living room. Mandy (who had sneakily rolled out of her bed and army-crawled into the living room so he couldn't see her moving -- this is why she is now a special agent for the state dept) met me there and we hid on the living room floor, wondering when the police were going to get there.

when they eventually arrived, they went around back and found his footprints in the snow -- he had been standing so close to Mandy's window that had it been open, she could have reached out and touched him. he had obviously escaped by then and despite their efforts to find someone, it was a lost cause. we told a few of our neighbors about it and they told us that things like this had happened before (note that we lived in a pretty nice part of DC) and that peeping toms would figure out which apts had women and then just hang out, waiting for a glimpse (?).

... which was basically a huge tangent to tell you why I was (understandably?) freaked out to be greeted post-shower with the image/sound of men on my balcony (even though they were being paid to be there). it's a better wake-up call than the smell of coffee, I'll tell you that much.

I'm easily amused

2007-06-04T17:52:00.000-05:00

I was working on something for a Year End Event at work, and when I looked at my print-out of the document, I realized I had typed "Rear End Event" instead.

heh. Rear End Event.

now that would be something to check out, doncha think??

weekend in review

2007-06-04T16:02:00.001-05:00

after a week-long illness and general blah-ness, I was pretty ready for a wknd that would achieve the perfect blend of fun... yet lazy! fri night after a quick drink @ a wine bar, I headed to my beloved Alamo Downtown for an evening o' fun with a buddy from work. it was Master Pancake Theater time - where they take a deliciously bad movie and make some delicious bad comedy out of it (with comedy sketches before and during the movie + running commentary throughout). fri night was breakfast club, and although there were moments of hilarity I'd have to say that it paled in comparison to Titanic and Pretty Woman - or maybe those movies are just so much worse and therefore funnier in comparison?

after the movie we wandered around downtown to take in the scene that is the ROT rally... or, to be more specific, the Republic of Texas Biker Rally. oh yes. you read that right. it could easily be summed up in the following phrase: lots of leather, leathery skin, old and leathery tattoos, and leathery-looking boobs. it was fascinating. there were over 50,000 bikes in town and these people were SERIOUSLY ready to party. they had blocked off a main part of downtown for parades, rallies and speeches... it was like another world.

saturday I went to a pilates class (and my abs are still hurting) and then spent the afternoon recovering by the pool. Texas is HOT these days, people -- it was 90-something and sunny -- and the pool was completely packed. I've said this before and I'll say it again... I seriously live at the modern 2007 reincarnation of Melrose Place. I was the only non-blond non-fake-boobed chick in the place. everyone was drinking beer, listening to music, and tanning their already-ridiculously-tan bodies. I felt like a total academic in comparison with my reading material (a book) and drink of choice (ice water). later on I ended up going to a neighborhood pool to swim some laps and was extremely relieved by the lack of overly tanned fake boobs.

saturday night I had the following conversation with a stranger while on my way to meet a friend for dinner:

(I had noticed that the block was packed with people who were clearly waiting for something to begin)

me: "'scuse me, but can you tell me what's going on? is it the biker rally"
him: "no, it's the gay pride parade."
me: "really?! um... did they not realize that this wknd was biker wknd?"
him: "actually, it's always planned for the same wknd."
me: "on purpose?! get out. that is hilarious."
him: "more leather for everybody!"

(which led to much amusement on my part)

anyway, sat night was dinner + drinks with a friend, after which I fell asleep on top of my covers with all the lights on and my contacts still in. klassy, no? sun morning I had the BEST DIM SUM ever (in Austin! who knew?!) with my buddy Jordan. we were completely blown away by the amount of asian people in the joint... I mean seriously, where have these people been hiding? then I went to a wine-tasting, where I had to watch my intake so I wouldn't end up completely drunk on a sun afternoon.

the rest of the day passed with grocery-shopping, laundry, and errands... all in all, an excellent wknd, wouldn't you say?

perhaps dentures and Botox are right around the corner?

2007-05-31T16:11:00.000-05:00

I've always admired bloggers that are ridiculously open and honest about real things, i.e. topics of actual substance (as opposed to posts about The Best Retail Experience Ever, although let's face it, that was pretty f'ing great). unfortunately, this is not one of those blogs where you will get thoughtful, well-written, insanely personal commentary about topics like religion, or raising children, or world poverty, or the Inconvenient Truth of global warming... more like "hey! here's a purty picture of Austin! and guess what! I got drunk the other wknd! woot!" or "hey! I am working 24/7! isn't that exciting to read about? oh, and I traveled to yet another random place!"

it's a good thing there are only about nine of you reading (ten on a good day, maybe 15 when I blog drunk).

I will say, however, that the topic that is taking up a lot of mental space lately is my age. it's funny, because I spent some time talking to my family about it this past wknd, and none of us "feel our age." I still think I'm 22, my dad is in disbelief that he's turning 60, I think it's funny that my brother is almost 30, my mom forgets that she's in her 50s, etc. then again, there are times when I look at other 22-year-olds and think "are you kidding me?! grow the F up!" -- and it makes me wonder about the expectations we have of age. why don't I believe that I am 26? I'm pretty happy with my life (I generally feel insanely lucky and grateful, actually), so why do I recoil at the idea of being 26? it's a perfectly good age, just as good as 24 or as good I'm hoping 27 will be, so why is the idea of being 26 so hard to stomach? I don't know if it's so much the aging process as it is the pre-conceived ideas we have of what we should "be" at each age.

the topic really struck home when I was attending wedding #2 of the wknd (Nay's fabulous wedding extravaganza, complete with ice sculptures, 10-piece bands, personalized light displays, and made-to-order omelette stations at the morning-after brunch). I sat at a table with some of dearest buddies from college, my beloved sillyhoos, and as I looked around our table I had a sudden realization: I was the Token Single Chick. it wasn't even that every single person at my table had brought a date and I was flying solo, it was the fact that every single woman was wearing either a diamond ring or a diamond ring and wedding band on her left finger.

it was then that it hit me: we're getting old! I'm 26! my peers have somehow reached the point of maturity where they are ready to make Real Adult Decisions, like Getting Married or Buying a Home. next thing you know, they'll be popping out BABIES and swapping toddler-training tips while I sit at my ad job and daydream about what I want to be when I grow up! crap. apparently I didn't get the memo.

it's very bizarre, this concept of age. on one hand, women of my generation are taught that we can be anything we want to be. you want to be an astronaut? knock yourself out? you want to be a supermodel? it's your choice. want to be a chemist? here's your lab coat. but when the options are seemingly limitless, they can also be a bit daunting at best... and somewhat paralyzing at their worst.

there's no neat and pretty ending to this post, since it was mainly a motley collection of my thoughts as opposed to some neatly organized argument with thesis statement + detailed support points. in lieu of a proper ending, then, I present you with a pretty picture of me with the aforementioned Married/Engaged Mafia, and, just for kicks, the Insanely Bad-Ass Ice Sculpture:

5-day vacation

2007-05-30T13:01:00.000-05:00

sorry for the lack of updates, people. I've been suffering from the Raging Sore Throat From Hell and Fun Dizzies That Unfortunately Have Nothing To Do with Alcohol since I got back into town and have spent most of my time a) sleeping in and coming into work late, b) spacing out and feeling dizzy at work when I should be working, c) wondering if 4:30 is too early to go home and lay on the couch, d) wishing I had some live-in help that would fan me with palm fronds and go to the grocery store to buy me fresh orange juice.

but! sickness is no excuse, and I must forge ahead with the sharing of my wknd adventures. I left Austin on Thurs for a nice, long FIVE-DAY WKND, which, now that I'm back, was exactly what the doctor ordered. we didn't do much on Thurs, and on Friday I slept in and bummed around the house with my mom... but then we went shopping and I had the Best Retail Experience Ever (theme of the post = Excessive Use Of Capitals), which I absolutely MUST tell you about.

Official Tangent to Tell My Story About the Best Retail Experience Ever
setting: Montgomery Mall

so I dutifully followed my mom and my aunt into Ann Taylor, despite the fact that I haven't bought anything at AT in probably a year and a half. they immediately begin attacking the sales racks, and I wander aimlessly around the store while I wait for them. and that's when I saw it. The Best Work Bag Ever (again with the CAPS). I had been looking for a good work bag that I could take on biz trips for a looooong time now (ever since I bought a cheap one from Target that broke during a trip to Munich due to the ridiculous weight of my ginormous laptop), and I was officially staring at the Mother of all work bags. it was large. it had small pockets on the outside for boarding passes. there was a space for my cell phone and another for my blackberry. there were zip compartments, and separate compartements for work documents. it was black, leather, had sturdy straps and was stylish enough so I wouldn't look like a moron taking it to meetings.

the price tag said $168, which was a bit steep but I decided it was completely worth it, because hello. Best Work Bag Ever. I decided to suck it up and pay the price and headed over to the cash register. while I was walking over there, I was suddenly hit with the remembrance that OMG! I have an old Ann Taylor merchandise credit in my wallet that's been sitting there for years. I pulled it out, asked the cashier to check the balance, thinking it'd save me 20, 25 bucks at most -- and then she informed me that I had a credit of $108. SCORE! so I happily handed her the bag, and as soon as she rung it up, she told me that it was on sale for $99.99. WHAT?! I love you! and THEN she took off another 15% for a tiny scratch that I had discovered in the corner that will probably come off with some good leather conditioner.

summary: I found the best bag ever, it was marked as $168 and I only paid $85 (and used up a credit that I had left in my wallet for years).

SIGH.

[thus ends the long-winded tangent]

now that the tangent has ended, I'm pretty sick of this post, as are you. heh. sorry. I will tell more wknd stories at another time, but the short version is that I hung out with old buddies, spent lots of time with family, attended two very lovely weddings and came back to Austin happy, well-rested, and sick.

interesting, if you like navel-gazing

2007-05-29T10:29:00.001-05:00

give it a shot: http://dna.imagini.net/friends/

disappearing for a while here...

2007-05-24T21:25:00.000-05:00

while I head home to pay attention to my other job, which is Professional Wedding Guest. yessiree folks, if I hadn't mentioned it before, aside from my ad job which keeps me in the money and on the road to strange little towns across America, I also have a job a Wedding Attendee Extraordinaire. I'm quite good at it by now, actually, and even have experience as a Bodacious Bridesmaid, Minxy Musician, Crazy Calligrapher and Coordinated Coordinator.

I'll also get some much-needed down time while I hang with the fam and delicious food. will resume official blogging duties when I'm back in the ATX next week. will also post soon about the awesome night of Austin-ness that I experienced a week ago. there's nothing like a beautiful summer evening, a large picnic blanket, beer, good buddies and some free live music with a view of Austin's beautiful skyline and Town Lake to put you in a good mood... plus some wine and cheese afterward. people brought families, some people were drunk, there were hippies, hipsters, old people, young people, punk rockers, yuppies, and everyone managed to get along nicely and appreciate the live music. it pretty much everything there is to love about this town, and then some. also, Bonnie Raitt is a ridiculously awesome bad ass.

back to lounging...

geeky ad humor

2007-05-23T13:17:00.000-05:00

trust me, I won't hold it against you if you don't visit this link but as an ad-person I found it somewhat amusing: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1zv6w_the-break-up

real posts to come soon, I promise. I'm a bit out of it because I was in Knoxville, TN for one of those less-than-24-hours fly-in-and-fly-out business trips (side story: when I asked the hotel clerk to recommend a good restaurant in downtown Knoxville, she told me she doesn't know any because downtown is "really, really far" and she never goes there. customer service issues aside, I was confused because on the map it had looked relatively close to my airport hotel. I asked how far was far and she said "really far -- like 10 miles away." I tried really hard not to laugh. and then I got in my rental car, drove myself downtown and circled until I found a decent-looking seafood restaurant, where I had a half-dozen deliciously fresh oysters on the half shell with lots of tabasco and horseradish, some incredibly rich crab bisque, a few bites of calamari, and a large glass of wine. bon appetit!).

although Little Rock and Knoxville were both perfectly nice places to visit for a brief business trip, let the record show that moving to a place like that would basically constitute cruel and unusual punishment. there's just... not much there.

ok, back to work now--

easy like sunday morning... except not at all

2007-05-20T13:34:00.000-05:00

ahh... nothing says "lazy sunday" like an entire day SPENT AT BLOODY FREAKING WORK.

boo.

had a very magical oh-so-Austin night last night, though... will blog about that soon.

back to work. 25-cent diet coke, anyone?

things you do not want to hear during the focus group you're moderating

2007-05-18T12:11:00.001-05:00

me: "so, by way of introduction, I'd like to get to know you guys a little better. tell me about your career choices. why did you want to be a general contractor?"

respondent: "well, you know, it was the only job I could land with my criminal background."

me: "oh. right. so, moving right along...."

---

me: "so, thanks again for coming. we really appreciate all of your feedback and insights. as promised, here is an envelope with $250 as a thank you for coming by and talking to us."

respondent: "maybe you can help us spend this money by coming to the bar with us for drinks."

a different respondent: "yeah, did you know you have a beautiful smile?"

am drunk bitchesssss

2007-05-16T23:27:00.000-05:00

yay f9r alcohol'

yay for alc0h0l tha ti s purchased by other people

work peoplet hat are reps

i won't ever give them business but they can give me halibut\\

halibut rocks

halibut! but not haalliburton. because halliburton = diciikk cheney = bad. plus MC rove which is also bad; if you arfe a politician you AR YOUOR BRAND STUPID and rapping for middle age white men = bad. what staffer lsot their jobb over that incident?! haha

oktired n ow

*EDITED TO ADD: OMG you guys I am laughing hysterically because I TOTALLY FORGOT about this. I didn't realize I had written a drunk post until I saw the comments in my inbox this morning. freaking hilarious. E, I will do my best to drunk-blog more often. dear lord above. okay, back to work now*

good morning sunshine

2007-05-16T12:16:00.000-05:00

last night I went to bed around 11 pm. this is REALLY EARLY for me, but I knew I had to be at work by a disgustingly early 7:30 am the next morning, and I decided to be all responsible-like for once in my life. so I congratulated myself on being all adult-ish and responsible-ish (I figure age 26 is as good a time to start as any) and hopped into bed. I was sufficiently exhausted from my 11-hour work day and figured that I'd be counting those proverbial sheep in no time.

here is a timeline of how the rest of the evening went:

11:30 - so I'm still awake. that's okay. it's only been half an hour. I'll be asleep in no time. and then I will be all well-rested for my meeting! is great! I am a real adult! finally!
midnight - hmm. it's been an hour. this is not good. okay, must focus on falling asleep. sleep is your friend! I love the letter z! ZZZZ, damn it!
12:30 - shit. the hour mark has come and gone. why am I still awake? this sucks. I hate everyone.
1:00 - double shit. this is serious now. WTF? this makes no sense. I am tired. I know I am tired. I know I must wake up early. WHYYYY does my body hate me?
1:15 - well, hell. at this point I feel like I should order some pizza and make it a slumber party. I mean, really. come the fuck on.
1:30 - tomorrow is reeeeeeally going to suck.
1:35ish? - blissful zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
3 am - WTF WAS THAT?! (outside my window: thunder, lightning, loud noises, general biblical-ish monsoon weather) okay seriously? someone hates me.
6:15 am - BEEP BEEP BEEP time to get up, I don't care how little sleep you've gotten.

sigh. and thus went my evening. but I'm here. I made it to my meeting, showered and looking presentable and immediately started chugging the coffee they'd provided.

does this still count as responsible adult-like behavior?

other items of extreme insignificance...

2007-05-14T15:23:00.000-05:00

...to entertain you with (since the last post was about my weekly social calendar, i figure i may as well continue with theme of "random crap that is on my mind that you probably don't care about anyway"):

i am covered in mosquito bites. i feel like i am ALWAYS getting attacked by mosquitoes. i hate mosquitoes. i also hate that high-pitched buzzing sound they make when they are really close to your ear. that's generally when i start channeling my inner mr. miyagi and chase after the bug myself, expecting to somehow catch it and squash it using my bare hands (or maybe a pair of chopsticks).
i bought new shampoo (i know! don't you find yourself overwhelmed with how much you care?). it is fancy-pants expensive frederic fekkai shampoo. we will see if it was worth the price ($20 at target).
speaking of target, how is it that i can never get myself out of there without spending gobs of money? i am one person. single. no pets (well, aside from cowboy, but he is fairly low-maintenance, even for a fish). no children. how is it possible that i can spend triple digits during a quick stop that was only supposed to be for lotion and toothpaste?
i am currently eating organic peach yogurt with a knife. i usually have a stash of plastic utensils stolen from whole foods in my right-hand desk drawer (it's my little way of sticking it to the man), but my stash is currently low on supplies. once i retrieved my yogurt from the fridge, i had two options: plastic knife or splintery wooden chopsticks. which would you have chosen?

and thus ends the list of meaningless thoughts that are rolling around in my head right now. aren't you disappointed that you just wasted three minutes of your life on that?

(also, can you tell that i'm procrastinating at work right about... now?)

(you can?! aww, you're so smart. here! have a prize! splintery wooden chopsticks, just for you!)

i'm alive

2007-05-14T14:49:00.000-05:00

sorry for the lack of posts, people. I promise you all that I am alive and somewhat well (well... well enough. ha. how many times can I use the word "well" in one sentence?), just buried at work and experiencing some overall malaise. I've decided to pack what little free time I have with plenty of activities to keep me going... this week I'm looking forward to a benefit concert tmw night, some more quality time @ the Alamo Drafthouse this Fri (we're going to watch another pancake theater event, where they do sketch comedy around a hilariously bad movie... this week's selection is "pretty woman"), and then an outdoor concert on Sat (how DID Austin becoming the live music capital of the world? hopefully I will be able to tell you soon).

let's see if it works.

o caffeinated, zero-calorie bliss

2007-05-09T11:21:00.000-05:00

oh happy day -- they've replaced the old soda machine in our kitchen with a new COKE BRAND machine that sells DIET COKE for a QUARTER!!!!!!!!! no more yucky diet pepsi for ME, bitches!!!!

my life is now complete.

I made a delicious tofu and vegetable stir-fry for dinner last night (marinated tofu, asparagus tips, bok choy, red bell pepper, shrooms, some ginger, garlic, and chilies with a soy/black bean sauce) and will enjoy the leftovers for lunch today with an ICE COLD DIET COKE.

(this past wknd I had another culinary victory when I made my first risotto... springtime risotto with green garlic and leeks. delicious! yay for Kim O'Donnel, best food writer ever!)

(also, apologies for the lame/random collection of words and photos that are masquerading as real posts. I know I have not fooled you o wise readers. am just swamped at work if you haven't guessed that already. the bad news is that I've been glued to TV screens, reviewing footage of my Arkansas interviews, searching in vain for the perfect quote to support our creative ideas. the good news is that I've perfected my Arkansas redneck accent -- elongated vowels, drawn-out last syllables, frequent pauses -- and can sound as Southern as they come. yee-freaking-haw baby!)

oh how I wish I could be doing this instead:

back to work. back to diet coke. back to craziness. someone help me.

more photographic gold

2007-05-07T13:11:00.000-05:00

when I saw this picture I was sure that I was going to die in Princeton, TX, and that my body parts would be chopped up and used as animal feed:

and then I met the dog and realized that, aside from his preferred activity of terrorizing the pet chickens, he was a big fat baby who just happens to look like the meanest son of a bitch to ever set foot on this earth...

(I love how he is staring down at the chickens like "who's your daddy?! yeah, you know it! say it again, bitch!" and the dalamation is looking off to the side with the expression of "sigh. here he goes again with the chickens. why, God, WHY ME???")

identity crisis

2007-05-04T14:10:00.000-05:00

CITY JEN (the dominant personality):

(featuring cameo appearance by the lovely Di Johnston. also, notice the near-nip-slippage of the left boob. heh. apparently even small boobs need double-sided tape?)

COUNTRY JEN (only comes out during business trips to rural Arkansas):

("hey there Billy Ray! tell the dog to get the hell out of my way! I'm a-comin' through! hey wait, who took my beer?")

country roooooooooads, take me hooooooooome

2007-05-02T22:21:00.000-05:00

that has been the theme song of the past three days, a.k.a. "how many miles can I put on a rental car while I drive through the backwoods of Arkansas and the boonies of Texas to interview John Deere owners about their tractors and mowers?"

the answer: hundreds and hundreds. all driven by me. all driven in crappy rental cars (our Arkansas car -- a Ford minivan -- was affectionately referred to as "the crappy lunchbox" because it looked like a big, boxy rectangle, our Texas car is a Chevy Impala that drives okay but is extremely uncomfortable to sit in for extended periods of time).

I've met more hunters than I've ever met in my entire 26-year lifetime, I got to drive a riding lawn mower (that was fun), I checked into a crappy roadside hotel and then checked out a few hours later and made my travel department put me up in a swank hotel in downtown Little Rock when I realized the first hotel was around the corner from a state penitentiary (also when my interviewee said "ooooh... yeahhhh... make sure you lock your doors at night"), I drove around for 40 minutes in a desperate attempt to find a decent expense-account lunch that wasn't a) McDonald's b) Burger King or c) Sonic (I love Sonic, but come on... if you want to sit at a table and prep for a business meeting you don't want fast food) and had to settle for Pizza Hut, I drove past a sign that said "Penitentiary Area - Do Not Pick Up Hitchhikers," I interviewed a man who leaves his John Deeres in the garage but parks his cars in the driveway, I met another man who prefers to drink a six-pack while driving his riding lawn mower, I had an interview where the man put some Skoal into his lower right cheek as soon as our interview was over, I nearly got eaten by a Doberman Pinscher (the sign on their gate had a silhouette image of a Doberman that said "I can get to the gate in 2.9 seconds. Can you?") then realized he was a big baby who wanted to lick my face off, and I've met some lovely people who have truly proved the age-old adage that you can't judge a book by its cover.

it's been good times, people. it's a long cry from some of my past biz trips (e.g. flying international business class to Munich, staying in the Ritz Carlton in Miami Beach, long jogs on the Santa Monica shore and cruises on the Mexican Riviera) I'm exhausted and sore from all the driving in shitty cars, but I can't say it hasn't been fun. I'm too brain-dead to write much more, but I will upload pics soon. yee-freaking-haw!

sheer dumb luck?

2007-04-29T16:43:00.000-05:00

I drove Di to the airport around 3:15 this afternoon after a long wknd filled with excessive amounts of food, alcohol, and shopping. the road to Austin-Bergstrom International Airport is quite familiar to me, since I've probably flown through there at least 20 times in the year that I've lived here... and the drop-off road in front of the terminals is quite familiar to me as well, since I've dropped off numerous buddies there after a long wknd of good times.

this afternoon's visit to ABIA started off like any other. head out from apt, take the short 15-minute drive to reminisce over the fabulous wknd, pull up to the curb in front of the Continental gate. pop trunk, help Di grab her bags, give her a big hug and then hop back into the rice rocket to go on my merry way (to work, which is where I am now). as I pulled out of my spot and eased back into the main flow of airport traffic, I went over the usual huge speed bumps and turned up my music as I drove toward the airport exit.

...except this time was different. because this time as I was rounding the curve that would bring me outside of the immediate drop-off area, I noticed that a cop turned his car around and began to follow me. not only did he begin to follow me, he turned on his sirens and tailgated the shit out of me. WTF? so I pulled over, put on my hazards and sat there, wondering what the hell I had done wrong in the 90 seconds or so since I had left the curb.

the officer (tall, white, sporting a yellow Live Strong bracelet) ambled up to my window and asked for my license and proof of insurance. as I was leaning over to oblige, I asked him what I had done wrong... and he informed that I had been pulled over for SPEEDING. apparently the area immediately in front of the airport has a speed limit of 15 mph, and I had been driving at the exorbitant speed of 25 mph. I apologized for the mistake and handed him my wrinkled proof of insurance and brand-new TX drivers' license, all the while thanking my lucky stars that I had decided to Do The Right Thing and pay the money to get a TX license that would match my TX tags (a recent acquisition, and only because my MD tags had expired)and TX insurance card (acquired on practically the first day I moved here because my rates went down when I moved here, heh).

someone must have been looking out for me, because not only did I get off with just a polite warning to "watch my speed, ma'am, and drive careful," but also because if I had decided to hang onto my MD license I would have been in major trouble. so, then, not only did I have a great wknd with Di (highlights included champagne cocktails + cheese @ hotel san jose, shopping for jewelry in my "SoCo" neighborhood, interior mexican food and margaritas @ manuel's, a relaxed viewing of bend it like beckham aka the best DVD ever, delicious breakfast tacos @ mi madre's, a long walk around the town lake trail, homemade margaritas by the pool at my apt, the most INCREDIBLE sushi ever @ uchi, cocktails in the warehouse district, make-up purchases @ sephora, hyde park bar and grill's famous fries and a root-beer float stop @ sonic), I got pulled over and only walked away with a warning! I feel like I need to go do something nice for someone else now to continue the cycle of good karma. anyone need a hand with anything? call me and I'll hook you up.

btw, friends, I'm on the road for the rest of the week to such exciting places such as "Pine Bluff Arkansas" and "McKinney Texas," which should be hilarious... I'll try and update as much as I can. in the meantime, peace out!

portrait of a morning

2007-04-26T10:13:00.000-05:00

my alarm clock went off at the ungodly hour of 6 a.m. this morning. there was no happy Texas sunshine streaming in through my blinds to greet me. three little birds were not singing on my doorstep. instead, I fumbled around in the dark to snooze once (okay, twice) before dragging my ass out of bed and into the shower. it reminded me of winter mornings back home when I'd purposely get ready in the dark for as long as humanly possible so I could delay the painful moment when I had to turn on the excruciatingly cruel bathroom light. in fact, I did the same thing this morning... washed my face in the dark... peed in the dark... brushed my teeth in the dark... hell, even put in my contacts in the dark. I didn't turn on the light until right before I jumped in the shower because I had done a hair experiment the night before (sounds serious, doesn't it?) and I decided that my desire to see the results was worth the pain of turning on the light (in case you were wondering: the hair experiment was going to sleep with my hair in a bunch of braids to see if that would make it curly. it sort of worked but the OCD part of me was bothered that the top half and very ends were straight, so I don't think the plan will live past the experimental stage).

thankfully, the shower worked its usual magic of erasing the last remnants of sleep and getting me fully awake for the day ahead... although let's not get ahead of ourselves... it's not like I jumped out of the water singing songs or doing jumping jacks or anything. I had my eyes open -- that was victory enough. the usual post-shower routine followed... apply lotion... blow hair dry while checking the crackberry... apply make-up... stand in closet half-naked while I try and scrounge an acceptable outfit together... make bed and roll out.

once I was out and about (with a steaming vanilla non-fat latte from my neighborhood coffee joint in hand... the shower can only do so much sometimes), I felt a lot better and drove to work with the windows open and NPR on the radio. I got a sweet spot in the parking garage, headed into my office, collected my laptop and notebook and project folder and crackberry and trekked over to the main building for my 7:30 am meeting (WHY GOD WHY).

the meeting was a success. they loved most of the work, and it's all systems go. boo yeah, etc. I had another meeting immediately following that one... which brings me to now. 10:23 a.m. it feels like I've been here for an entire morning, although I must (begrudgingly) say that I've already gotten a lot done.

the main problem of getting such an early start? is that it's only 10:23 (well, 10:24 now) and I'm already starving for lunch. if I didn't have another meeting in five minutes I would so be at whole foods right now buying a slice of pizza or something.

mmm... pizza...

in praise of my brilliant career choices

2007-04-25T14:16:00.000-05:00

I must say, I gotta hand it to this guy, because he hit the proverbial home run with this brilliant gem about (my) bullshit jobs. [note my comments in brackets]

Advertising Executive

Create perceived need/value for inherently generic or worthless products [an excellent description of what I do for a living, although I must be a geek and argue that I am lucky enough to work on a great client whose products are definitely expensive but not necessarily generic nor entirely worthless]

$$: Ground-level workers with writing ability move quickly to the top, immediately snagging low to mid-six figures; those who can spin mythological concepts surrounding quotidian household objects can command up to seven figures. [very, very true about the power of being able to wax poetic about common household products. however, wtf is this about seven figures? someone's holding out on me here.]

The upside: Great expense account living [yes - mwahaha], see your handiwork everywhere [also a yes -- I am always keeping an eye out for ads that I've worked on], the wonderful feeling of being creative and corporate at the same time [yes again... I'm wearing jeans to work today and working with my feet up on my desk].

The downside: Must take meetings with the AFLAC duck. [I've luckily been spared from that ridiculous duck, but who knows what the future holds...]

The dark side: You're considered a dinosaur at forty. [very, very true. some may even consider me a wise old veteran at the ripe age of 26.]

here is a link to the page of awesome-ness, in which you can click on other bullshit jobs to see how you stack up.

erm... is this thing on?

2007-04-23T15:18:00.000-05:00

sorry for leaving such a doom-and-gloom rant-filled post up there for so long... I promise you that I am still alive and kickin' here in the ATX, just a bit swamped with being angry at work, the media, and the weather. but today is Monday, and a fresh opportunity to make it a kick-ass week instead of one in which my ass gets kicked, so let's be optimistic, shall we?

reasons to be optimistic:

I painted my toenails pink on Fri night
my lovely friend Paula is in town
although I am much more likely to endure extreme suffering the next day, I can still booze with the best of them
I bought kicky red shoes on Sat and am wearing them to work today
my lovely friend Di is coming to town this Thurs
I had delicious SONIC this wknd! old-fashioned root beer float for LESS THAN $2. oh how the mind boggles.
I'm working on a new business pitch at work and I! love! new! business! the energy! the adrenaline! the pressure! the opportunity to show off! mwa ha ha bring it on people. I'm going to kick ass.

see? optimism? warm and gooey feelings? do I not overwhelm you with my sunshiny outlook? my happy red shoes and (hot-rollered into submission) curly hair? my health-conscious and nutritious snack of fresh orange wedges?

is it too much for you? crap. sorry, my fellow cynics, do not run away. here are some reasons to have a Serious Case Of The Mondays:

yesterday's weather was all misty and undecided, like should I rain? yes? no? yes? no? hmm. I know! I'll just mist in the meantime and drive people crazy while they debate whether an umbrella is a) necessary or b) guaranteed to make the user look like a high-maintenance geek.
the kicky red shoes I bought are slightly too big and make flapping sounds while I walk.
Austin is known as a city with fantastic weather, where it's sunny nearly 300 days out of the year. this week's forecast? gray, stormy and unpredictable.
am afraid that the looming piles of work will prevent me from spending quality time with the aforementioned lovely Paula and lovely Di. crap.
the fresh orange wedges were a bit old and therefore a bit hard/crusty on the corners.
the pressure of the new biz pitch (the first one I've worked here in ATX-land) just may be the death of me.

just choose your preferred list of reasons and roll with it, you know?

knee-jerk reaction

2007-04-17T17:39:00.000-05:00

depending on when I wake up in the morning, I usually try to listen to NPR as I'm getting ready for work. like most of the other people in this country, I was incredibly saddened as I listened to the coverage of the VA Tech tragedy... wondering how those students' lives have been affected... feeling sad for the families of the victims... etc. and then I heard them reveal the name of the shooter and the fact that he was a 23-year-old Korean kid, an English major from northern virginia.

and my heart sank even further.

and I can't really articulate why.

is it that he's Korean? is is the fact that they repeatedly referred to the guy as "South Korean student" even though he'd lived in the DC area since he was a kid? was it the fellow English major-ness? or the memories of mentoring younger Asian students in college and learning that Asian students have significantly higher rates of depression, mental instability, and suicide than their fellow college-age peers? maybe sadness at the fact that so many Asian kids are under intense pressure, yet lack the systems necessary to deal with it in a way that is both healthy and effective? I mean come on, to complete the stereotypes, his parents work at a dry cleaner. were they so busy working to chase the American dream that they forgot about their kid?

or maybe it was more just "shit. why did he have to be Korean? how is this going to affect his family? their community? the VA tech community? the larger Blacksburg community?" my friend Di pointed out that there is no rhyme or reason to mass murderers (in terms of ethnic profiles), yet for some strange, inexplicable reason I am bothered that the largest massacre to take place at an American university will be because of one Korean kid from NOVA.

it's a complicated set of feelings that don't really add up to one neat and clear diagnosis/takeaway. on one hand, I feel empathetic, and sad, and wonder what kind of life he led, and what would lead him to do something like this. on the other hand, I'm pissed that he sold us all out like this. that he killed this many innocent people. that he put us out there in such a horrible way. on another hand (yes, I am some kind of three-handed freak... roll with me here), I wonder if this will help bring important issues to light. if this will teach Asian parents (hell, all parents, but in this case, Asian ones in particular) to talk to their kids, to give them the love and support they need, to push them in a way that's still safe. far more educated people than I have written about the effects of raising children in a post-Columbine world. pale kids who wear black trench coats were forever villified, and parents lived in fear of raising a kid who might turn out to be a social outcast. what will the effects of this tragedy be? will the stereotype of the over-stressed Asian kid cause others to back away? I mean, geez, way to blow the "model minority" myth out of the water, you know?

I'm going to end this here for fear that this will turn into a preachy post, and who the hell am I to preach intelligently on this kind of topic? I didn't have this kind of upbringing, I don't have kids, I haven't studied psychology. there are people who are far more intelligent than I am who will be writing about this for years to come. in fact, I can only imagine the field day that the media is going to have with this one... race issues, psychology issues, child-rearing issues, gun-control issues, school safety issues, immigration issues, etc etc etc. I can only describe my knee-jerk reaction, which was "damn. did he have to be Korean?"

UPDATED TO ADD A LINK TO AN EXCELLENT WAPO ARTICLE:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/17/AR2007041701924.html?hpid=topnews

weekend stories

2007-04-16T22:33:00.000-05:00

so maybe it's presumptuous of me to assume that you care what I did this weekend... or maybe it's just a really boring story? but that is what I'm going to write about here, so... pls close your eyes if you think this post will bore you.

friday night was one of those "okayyy, twist my armmm, I'll come out for ONE DRINK and ONE DRINK ONLY" nights that turns into "hey! I'm drunk! when did that happen? wait! I've been drinking for four hours! heyyyy, who tricked me?" deals. the "one beer after a long day" plan quickly turned into a "drink with my work buddies for four hours and then go eat fish tacos afterward to sober up" situation.

saturday was deliciously lazy. I slept in late, spent the morning cleaning my apt and watched a horrendously bad movie on the Disney channel (princess diaries, in case you're wondering... I heart Julie Andrews and would seriously stab the doctor who screwed up her vocal chords with a butter knife if I ever came across him. that asshole. I mean seriously, you mess with fraulein maria, you're so asking for it). you know those days where you are really just craving some alone time? it was one of those times. eventually (around 3:00? 4:00? something like that), I decided that hey! maybe I should change out of my pajamas! and went for a quick run before meeting up with some buddies to watch a friend perform at the south asian festival here in town. she was fantastic, and the indian food they had was absolutely delicious... mmm... grilled chicken... beef biryani... chickpeas. yum.

sunday... hmm. sunday was a beautifully warm and sunny day. after saturday's incredible slothfulness, I decided to be productive. after some errands, a quick stop at the office and a long run on town lake, I met a friend downtown for the annual austin fine arts festival. there were several blocks of downtown austin that were blocked off with hundreds of artist booths, fresh food and live music (of course... it's austin). it was one of those sunny afternoons where it's cool in the shade but as soon as you step into the sunshine it feels like warm honey is dripping down your cheeks and shoulders. absolutely delicious. the rest of the night was spent doing some work and cooking dinner.

and thus another week begins. it promises to be a pretty hectic one, so apologies in advance if I'm not posting that often. today was already a pretty long day... one that could only be redeemed with a delicious homemade meal (thin pork chops, some asparagus spears, and red potatoes), a few large glasses of wine, and some quality television. cheers!

from the mouths of babes

2007-04-16T16:18:00.000-05:00

am rushing around like a madwoman today, so instead of a proper post, i bring you this piece of comedic genius:

http://funnyordie.com/v1/view_video.php?viewkey=3efbc24c7d2583be6925

cherishing the normal

2007-04-12T16:02:00.000-05:00

yesterday, I went to work. I had a busy-ish day filled with meetings, though I managed to steal a few moments to catch up on the news and my favorite blogs. I had a breakfast of diet coke (um... oops), some homemade pasta salad for lunch, and an afternoon snack of all-natural microwave popcorn. the day ended on a positive note when we saw some new creative concepts that were fantastic.

after work, I put on my brand-new sneakers, clipped on my ipod and went for a run along town lake. I tried not to get too jealous when I ran past the dog park ("I want a dog! oh, wait, that's a lot of work. hmm... crap. plus I know nothing about raising dogs. hmm... crap. plus my job has unpredictable hours and random trips out of town. hmm... crap"), and I tried not to stare too hard when I jogged past a cute guy. I admired how my new sneakers made it feel like I was running on clouds, and I mentally thanked my parents for the birthday $ they gave me that paid for these new sneakers (which I had desperately needed).

when I got home, I took a quick shower and then ambled next door to Doc's, a great neighborhood bar with a huge outdoor patio. I sat at a picnic table with an ice-cold greyhound (vodka grapefruit) and a huge salad and laughed at my buddy Jordan as he told hilarious stories about his horrible new job. then I went home, watched some old Sex and the City episodes on DVD, and went to bed.

with advance apologies for the uber-cheesiness of the following statement, it's days like this that make me realize how fortunate I am. ordinarily I would have tried to write a funny blog post about how boring my day was, how you'd never think this was from a girl who considers herself reasonably adventurous and will climb wet rocks to go waterfall-jumping in Costa Rica or go spelunking with human skeletons in Belize. day of meetings? yawn. you spent your birthday money on new sneakers? dude, what about some Manolo Blahniks? and great new creative concepts? you ad geek.

but sometimes? I think about all the people who would kill to have this level of normalcy in their daily lives -- just one day in which you don't have to worry about some international hunger crisis, or deal with hate crimes, or wonder whether your family is safe, or hope your health would improve to the point where you could go for a jog, or be afraid that your cancer will spread -- and I realize that you know what? sometimes a boringly normal day is just what the doctor ordered.

(okay I'm SOOOO done with the cheeeeeese. sorry people. I'll try and write something super-cycnical next time. how about chronicles of my dating life? heh. that'll be good and cynical. but also way too personal for blog material, so maybe not. hmm. well I'll come up with something.)

apparently denture cream and depends are just around the corner

2007-04-10T18:57:00.000-05:00

as I was celebrating my cousin's kid's 8-year-old birthday with family in virginia this past wknd (what does that make her, btw? my cousin? my second cousin? my cousin once removed? does anyone know?), I spent some time catching up with my uncle. he's gotten somewhat sentimental in his old age (I think he's 70+ and thankfully very healthy and strong), and I make it a point to spend at least a few minutes chatting with him at every family gathering. he's known me since I was born (obviously), and he and my aunt were pretty much my surrogate grandparents while I was growing up (since I never really knew either of my grandfathers and both of my grandmothers still live in Korea)... you know, the usual stuff... we would have to do whatever he said, they would spoil us rotten at Christmas, they liked listening to me play piano during family events, etc...

so we chatted about my job, about my potential interest in grad school, about my current clients, yadda yadda yadda. and next, in what's starting to become a tradition at every family gathering, he began lecturing me on how I should find a nice man and get married soon. I politely laughed it off and told him that while I am open to the idea, it's not likely going to happen any time soon, that I'm only 26 and have plenty of time (this is quickly becoming my stock response, along with a quick retort that he should be talking to my brother, who is three years older than me... but you know, the whole Asian family / he's a boy thing... etc.).

he agreed that "my generation" was doing things differently but then told me that he wanted to see me married before I turned 30, which gives me exactly four years to get my MRS degree. no pressure or anything. when I asked him what the logic was behind that very stringent timeline, he told me that "once you hit 30, the next thing you know... you're 60!"

I know I majored in English and everything, but it seems to me that he might be missing a few decades in there, no...?

preparing for the onslaught of ass-cold weather

2007-04-05T13:06:00.000-05:00

i'm heading home to my beloved DC this wknd to hang out with family and friends for the long wknd. i'm writing this quick last post before i head to the airport and am sitting on my couch with the balcony door wide open. the sun is streaming in, a gentle breeze is blowing, and it is a perfect 72 degrees (which is actually a bit cool!). in fact, earlier today, as i finished up some errands and stopped to chat with my dear EO, i decided to take the call while laying by the pool, settling deep into the comfy chaise lounge and stretching my bare toes to meet the sun.

yet as i was packing last night, i was confronted with a serious dilemma: what the hell am i supposed to pack for my trip home? i had just checked the DC weather forecast and it said the wknd would be really.freaking.cold (lows in the low 30s!), and i was having trouble figuring out what clothes to bring. a friend helpfully pointed out that i had lived in the DC area for over two decades of my life and should therefore be used to the schizophrenic weather that characterizes a mid-atlantic spring (warm and sunny one day, freezing temps the next)... but now that i've in sunny tejas for an entire year, i feel like i've forgotten how to dress for cold weather.

so this was me, packing last night: "okay, so, a sundress for my friend naomi's religious ceremony on sat morning, maybe a cute little sleeveless top and jeans and sandals when i meet some friends for dinner... wait, no, crap... 30 degrees, think 30 degrees, woman! shit. i'm out of practice. okay, try #2. sooo, wool skirt plus knee-high boots and nice sweater for naomi's religious ceremony, perfect... wait, no, crap... my knee-high boots have a tear in the leather and i never got around to getting them fixed because i hardly ever wear them here. and why the hell do all my sweaters look exactly the same? oh, right, it's because i didn't really buy any news last season because i didn't wear them that often. crap."

and on and on it went. DC buddies: if you see me this wknd stubbornly wearing a short-sleeved shirt and open-toed shoes in 34-degree weather and freezing my bollocks off, don't make fun of me, okay? promise? i live in texas now. have some pity.

coming from a cultured, well-traveled 26 year old who loves to cook...

2007-04-03T17:44:00.000-05:00

this is what i had for dinner for last night:

1) half a box of kraft macaroni and cheese
2) corn out of a can, heated up in the microwave
3) large glass of orange gatorade (i had just gone for a long run)

i attempted to "fancy it up" by adding some grated parmesan and shredded cheddar to the macaroni and cheese (for maximum cheesiness!) and then a few pats of butter and a dash of s&p to the corn...

...but that was my dinner, and honestly, if you didn't know me, you'd think i was a 12-year-old kid who's not allowed to use the stove instead of a woman who recently bragged about roasting her first whole chicken and making chicken soup from scratch.

i'm obviously a wee bit embarrassed... but... well... the truth... is that i enjoyed every (processed, pre-manufactured) bite. :)

gross... but funny... but gross...

2007-04-02T13:54:00.000-05:00

dudes. our main building has a sewage leak and it seriously smells like a fragrant combination of rotten eggs, potpourri, and ASS. yum-diddly-umcious! and do you want to know how much of a dork i am? i am such a huge dork, that my first thought upon encountering the horrific smell (aside from "HOLY CRAP!... literally, holy CRAP!") was "hmm. i bet this is what dungbombs would smell like."

(btw, for all you fellow HP lovers out there... who's excited about book seven?! i am! i am! snape is totally going to be revealed as having murdered dumbledore on dumbledore's orders. and i think harry will continue to hate him but they will manage to reconcile their differences. okay, enough HP geeking out over here.)

ahem. ignore that little aside. so yes, our office smells like complete and total ass today, and i feel awful for the people who have to sit in it and pretend like they can work while the smell of sheer nastiness fills their nostrils and seeps into their every pore... and admittedly feel a bit guilty that i am nice and safe over here in our little satellite office next door.

on an unrelated note, as i was telling my mom yesterday, i am getting old and cannot party like i used to. well, i can, but i end up paying a dear price for it the next day. this past wknd was my dear buddy paula's last wknd in austin, so we partied it up both fri and sat nights... the end result of which was me being a completely lazy waste of space on sunday afternoon. saturday i at least made it out the pool (it was mid-80s and sunny on both days this wknd) and out for a few quick errands, but sunday was spent lying on my couch, alternately popping advil and orange gatorade (nectar of the hungover gods) and watching drumline on tbs ("one band! one sound!").

MOST IMPORTANTLY, i must tell you all that i had my first sonic experience this past wknd, and oh my dear lord, it is just as good as i knew it would be. i mean come on! it's a drive-in! where you order from your car, pay with your card right at the little menu screen, and they bring your food to you! they serve breakfast all day and over a thousand drink combinations (i had peach iced tea, paula had cherry limeade... or was it strawberry?), and you can order tater tots instead of fries! plus they give you mints and bring extra condiments out on a "smile tray!" i'm telling you, all you DC people who see the commercials on TV but don't get to experience the magic that is sonic's drive-in, i feel your pain because i was once one of you... but not anymore, suckers, because i totally had a foot-long coney with tots on saturday and relished every second of it! we enjoyed our food with the sunroof open and all the windows down with motown music blaring out of the speakers.

good times, good times...

one of my fave austin memories so far

2007-03-31T19:51:00.000-05:00

thursday night i decided to face the music and accept that the texas license plates on my little acura are not a hallucination and that i am, in fact, an actual resident of this crazy state... and that i would embrace my texas-ness and do something that was authentically texas and completely removed from the urban city life that i had once led...

...so, naturally, i decided to go line dancing.

yes. you read that sentence correctly. i went FREAKIN' LINE DANCING (although technically speaking, i guess it wasn't really LINE dancing so much as texas two-steppin' and country-western swing... but line dancing has more shock value, so there you have it).

this coming from a girl who used to get all gussied up (heh) in tight jeans and high heels and cute little tops with dangly earrings and clutch purses to go swill $14 martinis and hob-nob with the ambitious DC crowd. instead, i put on a thin fitted t-shirt, some jeans, and my new cowboy boots and headed over to the broken spoke (home of the disgusting chicken-fried steak that megan and i had sampled a mere week ago) with my buddy paula for some dancing lessons and live country music.

and you know what? we had an absolutely fantastic time. the "dance lesson" was about an hour long, and they taught us the texas two-step as well as some basic country-western swing moves. amusingly enough, the men outnumbered the women, so us girls took turns dancing with the different guys so that no guy would have sit out for more than one dance in a row. after the lesson, we drank shiner blondes and chatted while we waited for the band to set up (some of our other buddies had joined us... actually, it was me, aka a korean kid from the DC 'burbs, one canadian, and two irish kids... what a motley, non-texas crew eh??).

once the band got started, the dance floor was pretty much packed for every song. we two-stepped, we spun in circles, we ducked under our partner's arms and pretty much had a boot-scootin' good time (oh my lord i can't believe i just used that phrase). i had a bunch of different dance partners (there is something undeniably charming about a man asking you to dance, whether he's sporting a cowboy hat and boots in some texas dance hall or a pair of fitted jeans and fly-ass pumas in a dark DC club), although i must say that the best dance was with my friend paula... we realized that neither of us are any good at playing the boy and leading and decided to spin each other around the dance floor for the entire song instead.

(the second-best dance was with this portly gentleman who had a GINORMOUS beer belly, and although he was a smooth dance partner and strong leader, i had to bite my lower lip the entire time to keep from giggling at the fact that his belly was doing more of the work of leading me around the dance floor than his hand on my back.)

many hours and many beers later, we headed home, exhausted and sweaty and completely satisfied. am i true texan? absolutely not. i love that i lived in a big city and will still put on my tight jeans and high heels for a night of martinis on the town (in fact, that's exactly what paula and i did the very next night). also, i still couldn't help myself from noticing that i was one of the few non-whities in the place and that i never would have been caught dead in that kind of place back home. but hey, why the hell not, you know? i learned the texas two-step, danced my pants off, rocked the hell out of my new cowboy boots, drank piles and piles of beer, and realized that i don't have to take myself so seriously all the time...

this made me profoundly uncomfortable

2007-03-29T10:22:00.001-05:00

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-yn/content/video/2007/03/29/VI2007032900559.html