How Palmer’s Saved Christmas January 12, 2011

I know, I know, I know. I’m terrible at updating this thing, and have been lately. Busy, travel, etc. You know the deal.

In hopes of making up for it, here’s a poem a few of my friends wrote. For some context, Palmer’s is a real hole-in-the-wall bar here in my hometown that has been around forever … and it is ALWAYS open, even on Christmas. A few of my friends ended up there after their traditional Christmas movie-watching tradition was sold out, and wrote this poem in thanks. As a result, they get free drinks all day on Christmas every year from the crew at Palmer’s.

Without further adieu:

How Palmer’s Saved Christmas
By David, Jason and Mike

This tale starts with a movie on Christmas Day
Just three guys and Brad Pitt; I swear it’s not gay

But the tickets were gone; they were all sold out
“What do we do now,” David said with a pout

So they went to the Tully’s to do some thinking
And with a shrug David said, “Let’s just go drinking.”

So we called all the bars and not one gave an answer
We just wanted to drink and sing “Tiny Dancer”

But they forgot ’bout the bar that in town sucked the least
A little hole in the wall called Palmer’s East

He pulled out his iPhone and called in a flash
“What’s that, you’re open? Hooray! Kick ass!”

“I love you,” shouted Jason and hung up the phone
They’d soon all be drinking and not going home

They fell in behind Jason, who led them astray
“Dammit,” said Mike, “You’ve been drinking all day.”

A left and a left and a left once again,
He led them to placed they’d already been

Their toes were all frozen, but all hope was not lost;
For nothing can warm you quite like the sauce

“It’ll be empty,” said Mike, “And rather depressing,”
But lo and behold Palmer’s was full—a true Christmas blessing!

On Jager, on Stoli, on Cap’n and Henny!
“A pitcher my good man, the first of many!”

On barley and hops, on water ‘n yeast
Their ale was filling, a true Palmer’s feast

And you most of all, little shot of tequila
You’re always there for us when we really need ya

So with bellies full of beer and table full of glasses
Jason, David and Mike were drunk off their asses

So it was there that they sat and drank straight through Christmas
It was depressing that our families did not even miss us

And so ends the tale of how Palmer’s saved Christmas.
Cheers!

I can take no credit for this. But I’d like to.

Currently loving: My job (seriously, not joking/brownnosing), hard-boiled eggs (weird, I know, I know), and Grooveshark (when will Apple let them put their app through!?)

Whirlwind September 23, 2010

Many apologies for the lack in posting. It’s certainly not for lack of things to write about. In fact, things have been CRAZY.

Instead of writing some 1,000+ word post that nobody will get all the way through, I figured I’d just kind of do a bulleted list. I’m in PR and social media, see … bullets are our lifeblood.

Anyway:

• Working from home is not the party people make it out to be. (Well, people who don’t work from home seem to think working from home is awesome.) It is really hard to do full-time, both because of distractions, and the temptation to work ALL THE TIME. As with anything, you need a freaking break every once in a while.
• Behold: If you live solely on credit for a month, your credit card bills will reflect that. I don’t know how this one got past me, but I choked when I looked at my credit card bill this month. And then promptly created a payment plan for myself.
• Live music is awesome, whether it’s in a coffee house, at a festival, or at a concert. I experienced all three in the last two weeks. I also forgot how many bands there are in the Seattle area … and how many of them are good. Les Marseilles (sp), for instance.
• I am repeatedly disappointed with the Redhook Brewery in Woodinville. The last couple times I’ve been there, the food has been subpar, and the service was terrible. Honestly, their beer isn’t good enough for me to put up with that. This did not change at last weekend’s SausageFest event (Yes, “sausagefest”). They had ONE beer tent, and the event was held at the brewery. Are they serious? Poor planning. 6,000 people, 1 tent.
• At said festival, I definitely tried a beer called “Meat Hook.” It was a bacon-infused ale. First taste: Pleasantly smoky. Aftertaste: “I just ate bacon and now I have reflux” taste in my mouth. Would not drink again. So, I retaliated by eating a bacon-wrapped meatball instead.
• My 360′s hard drive is having problems. While this has freed up a considerable amount of time, it is also SO frustrating. I just hooked it up again, dammit!
• I am officially making a goal of running in the Seattle Rock n’ Roll Marathon next summer. I did the maths, and I have time to do the couch to 5K plan (I’m in week 4 right now), the couch to 10K plan, and then a half marathon plan before then, with a couple weeks of breaks/fun runs.
• That being said, my shin splints are just getting worse and worse. It hurts so badly to run some days (like today). I’m rocking the post-workout stretching and icing to try and help it, and as I start to run longer (and further) I’ll probably have my sister tape them to see if that helps.
• I discovered today that hanging out on the elliptical for about 15 minutes after a run does a pretty good job stretching my shins and calves out. I’ll try that, too.
• I got hired at a local restaurant/bar last night to pick up a few shifts a week. I worked a “follow” shift last night, and even though I was on my feet for 6 hours straight, I had SO MUCH FUN. I forgot how much I enjoy serving.
• It’s a tequila bar, so I have a lot to learn.
• My dog is the best coworker ever. He may not answer phone calls or help me proof my work, but when I am freaking out about something stupid, he gives me a “shut up already” look. When I’m legitimately upset, stressed and freaking out, he knows that it helps if he comes over to cuddle. Also, he’s always hungry, so he reminds me to eat. I just wish he wasn’t so gassy all the time. He can’t help it, he’s just getting old.
• LDRs still suck. Looks like early 2011 before BF will be up here. It’s a hard balance to strike. We are saving so much money and paying off so much of our debt in our current arrangement. I guess it’s just sort of a “how long can we put up with this” situation.
• Rehabbing my shoulder is not going well. I’m pretty much constantly in pain when doing upper body workouts, so it’s been a challenge to keep motivated. Stupid scar tissue.
• I put this up on Facebook … and I know a lot of people say this … but I really have the absolute best group of friends a girl could wish for. From my best friend of 18 years to people I met in college (and those in FL of course), no matter who I hang out with or what we do, I usually end up relaxing, laughing until I cry, and having so much fun. I love them so much. This was a huge reason I moved back to Seattle, and it’s proving to be 100% worth it.

I guess that’s all for now. Back to a semi-regular posting schedule

Currently Loving: C20 coconut water (best I’ve found so far), The Vampire Diaries (I’m so sorry, I got hooked and couldn’t help it), rainy weather (there’s something that is just so comforting about the soft patter of Seattle rain), hearing the high school baseball games through the open window as I lay in bed tonight (the park is across the street from our house), surprise “I love you” text messages from BF

image from the Seattle P-I

Well, you only get ONE July 5, 2010

As I type this I am post-weights/yoga session sweaty. (And my laptop is really warm too … which isn’t exactly helping things.) For breakfast I had a bowl of museli with almond milk and a huge pile of strawberries and blueberries. Lunch was an enormous salad devoid of meat, cheese and bread (my three weaknesses).

Before you tell me to shut up and quit bragging, there’s a reason I’m telling you this. During my yoga session today (YogaDownload.com detox yoga #3), I realized something. I’ve finally come into the stage where I want to take care of myself, and my body.

I was raised in a household that relied mostly on alternative medicine. Not to say we didn’t go to a doctor when we were really sick or anything … my parents were just hesitant to hand out medicine for each little ache and pain. Their philosophy was that you should try and treat the source of the problem, not just mask it with medication. At the time, as my head was pounding because I’d been to Starbucks twice, not eaten breakfast and gotten two hours of sleep the night before (high school was a bitch), I hated it.

“Look what modern medicine can do!” I always protested. “I don’t have time to address the problem, so it gives me a way to get through the pain until I can!”

That didn’t fly very often.

When I finally moved to college, I was all about meds (OTC stuff). I took terrible care of myself freshman year. I managed to eat decently most of the time, but I drank way too much coffee, way way too much alcohol, didn’t get enough sleep and wasn’t exercising enough. As a result, I was constantly sick, hungover, bloated, dehydrated … and generally toxic. I remedied this with a variety of things like NyQuil, DayQuil, Tylenol, diuretics, and occasionally Adderall.

It took about 3/4 of my freshman year to realize that waking up without a hangover/being sick/etc was VASTLY superior to having some sort of malady all the time. I continued to treat my body pretty badly, but it was at that point that I began to make some slight lifestyle changes.

Fast forward seven years later: Today. The changes have been more noticeable in the last year, but I’ve been gradually making some lifestyle changes that reflect how I’m beginning to feel about my body … that I need to take care of it. I eat better; mostly when I’m hungry, and what I want to eat. Even if that means a slice of apple pie on the 4th of July (guilty), I go for it. Treating your tastebuds every now and again is as much a part of taking care of your body as giving it what it needs to function (IMO).

When I do have health issues, I’m hesitant to take anything at first. I like to give my body some time to figure out what’s wrong and address the issue, instead of jumping the gun and suppressing it right away. Because really, if you’ve got a headache because you’re dehydrated, that headache is still going to be there when the Excedrin wears off in 6 hours. And, if you haven’t hydrated, it’ll come back even worse.

Not only am I officially losing weight, but I can tell my body feels better when I work out. I’m starting to see some definition in my legs, and I really find myself enjoying the relaxation period at the end of yoga sessions. I’m stronger, more flexible, and less achy.

Please don’t think I’m on my soapbox about this, because it’s your decision how you want to live, and how you want to treat your body. Everyone has a different level of functionality, and mine may be different than yours. My intent with this post is to point out what’s in the headline — you only get one body. How are you going to treat yours?

Currently loving: My new iPhone (I know, like 5 years behind everyone else)!, YogaDownload.com Detox classes (mayjah twists), that the Vitamin Shoppe by me has coconut water!

image from lululemon athletica

Coffeehouses April 24, 2010

The past few weekends (and weeks, really) have been outrageously busy for BF and I. I should say this with the caveat that he and I are pretty much homebodies. We don’t go out all that much (cheaper to drink at home and nobody has to take one for the team and drive!), we don’t go out to eat (we like to cook), we like video games and watching movies in our “comfies” (read: jammies).

Both BF and I were pretty hardcore partiers and “do stuff”-ers in college, so while friends of ours would likely be surprised at this … I think we just wore ourselves out after four years.

I really thought I’d have a great weekend this weekend because we had very little planned. There are a couple festivals I wanted to check out (Orlando GreekFest, Orlando HopFest and the Great American Pie Festival), and I wanted to volunteer at Pet Rescue by Judy. I did a hardcore clean of the apartment last Sunday, so besides a quick dusting/vacuuming, that doesn’t need to be done.

And I will never iron. I have come to this conclusion. I might as well as cross it off my to-do list, because it’s not happening.

I woke up this morning, eagerly anticipating a fun day … but for some reason the “get up and go” in me just kind of died. I was informed by BF that his friend was coming over later in the day for some “guy time” (read: GTFO of the house) … but I no longer WANTED to leave the house. Really, a day full of Dante’s Inferno, Final Fantasy VI, a gym stint and maybe some pool time sounded solid to me.

Not really wanting to go anywhere but being forced out of the house, I defaulted to something I haven’t done in a long time: A local coffeehouse.

So, here I am at Barnie’s at Waterford Lakes, remembering why I used to love doing this all the time. I am prepared to entertain myself for several hours, with my laptop, DS, and a couple books. I have already powered through a 16oz iced soy latte and a 160z iced tea.

I had a premonition that I wouldn’t be able to access my work computer from my laptop (I actually have paying work to do), so I took the initiative to download Steam. Braid should help ebb some time away.

What do I love about this? I love coffee (especially non-burnt beans), I love tea, I love being surrounded by people who just needed to get out of the house, like me. I love being surrounded by people who are probably much like me … they don’t necessarily want interaction, but they are nice and content being hooked up with free wi-fi and some sort of caffinated beverage.

I also discovered there are no less than THREE coffeehouses within 1 mile of my house. This could become a habit. Thank GOD I didn’t get rid of my laptop … no matter how much of a dinosaur it is.

Currently loving: Barnie’s iced Ginger Peach tea, Stumbling On Happiness, vegetarian, dairy and wheat free meals

image from DeusXFlorida

Pet Peeves (this is long overdue) March 17, 2009

As an ode to one of my most favorite ranting web sites EVER (I think it says something that the last post was 3 years ago and I STILL love it), “Things I Hate,” I’ve been  meaning to create a “pet peeves” post for quite some time. I haven’t decided if I’ll just come back and edit it, or if I should just create new posts when pet peeves arise (because I’m not one of those people who has like 5 … I have about 39029084390184319). We’ll see. Maybe I’ll preface pet peeves posts (tee hee p’s) with “PP.” At least then I can include relevant lolcat photos for each post. 

It should be noted that I have a lot of driving pet peeves.

• People who staunchly, STAUNCHLY refuse to get out of the left lane on the freeway, even if they are only going the speed limit. I’m glad you think you are going fast enough, but get out of my way. I want to go faster.
• People who stop when there is no stop sign, and then have the nerve to look at you all exasperated as you wait (at your REAL stop sign) for them to figure it out. This really seems to be a problem at malls down here in Orlando, especially Seminole Town Center and the Oviedo Marketplace. 

• Onlooker delays. Need I say more? WTF if I get rear-ended I will chase you.
• People who don’t wipe their mouths after taking a messy bite, and instead try to lick the remnants of their food off of their faces. Seriously, who are these people? Were they brought up by wolves?
• People who brag about how much they drink. I know I’ve been over this, but it wasn’t that cool in college, and it’s definitely not cool now that we’re older. In college, you had the “I’m in college” excuse. Now? You’re just pathetic.

• The words, “I’m just being honest.” That is such a passive-aggressive, bullshit cop-out for saying something that offended someone. Not everyone cares about honesty. Have some fucking tact. GOD! Need an example in action? Check out Ramona from the Real Housewives of New York. I want to poke her bug-eyes out every time she pulls this garbage. Also, my bf has been guilty of this in the past. Honesty is not noble. 
• People who actually go 25 through toll booths. I know it’s the law, but it seriously cramps the style of people like moi who drive older cars that take FOREVER to get back up to speed. 
• People who claim they can’t cook. Yes, you can. I promise. “Cooking” does not always have to be stuffed scallops, souffle, mayo from scratch, or anything else super complicated. “Cooking” might just be spaghetti and meatballs. Just because you failed making something ONE TIME IN THE PAST does not mean you are doomed to a life of culinary fail whale. Fucking try again!

• Failure to know the difference between homonyms. I distinctly remember learning the difference between “two” “too” and “to,” “your” and “you’re,” and my personal favorite, “their” “there” and “they’re” in FIRST FUCKING GRADE. My teacher made us write them on notecards, with the definition on the back, put them on a metal ring that we kept in our desk, and we studied them for five minutes a day. Grammar is not rocket science. It SHOCKS me the amount of educated people I interact with who are not aware of these differences. Even worse are the ones who try and argue with me about it. I will die on this hill BECAUSE I KNOW I AM RIGHT. Lolcats are the lone exception.
• People who ask the same question repeatedly. I understand that people forget. I am one of the most forgetful person I know. But when you ask me the same question every week over a three month period … AND I answer it in writing every time (the last time titled “DON’T DELETE THIS LOGIN INFORMATION”)? Yeah, I’m going to just start fucking with you at that point. Too personal?
• How I am always the most sober person at parties. This is kind of a two-fer … I hate having to take care of selfish, drunk douchebags, but I also don’t want to drink myself under the table just to avoid having to take care of them. That is a no-win. I hate being responsible for the well-being of selfish people. 
• How my computer freezes up or goes SUPER SLOW right when I need it to be normal or fast for 2.5 seconds. This usually happens when a reporter or client is on the phone, or if my boss(es) page me out of nowhere looking for an answer. 

• People who still insist on sending attachments larger than 10M without letting you know first, and who DON’T GET IT. You are a huge company, and it really slowed down your server for a few hours? That shit will crash our server in a heartbeat and ruin several people’s days. 
• When people double space in between sentences. While this may be acceptable in some industries, it is not AP style. Do not try and tell me my business about this. Also, it makes things a nightmare to edit and format. 

Binge drinking is no longer impressive February 18, 2009

… it’s kind of sad. 

This weekend, an unattached friend of mine proceeded to go on a 3.5-day bender with one of his old fraternity brothers, who he sees quite often. 

Whatever, I say. Rough week + single on V-Day (and we all know how much I care about that) … sure, why not. 

But then, he keeps going on about how there were four empty fifths (a fifth is just about equal to a regular bottle of booze, for those not hip to the slang) on the counter when all was said and done. He even TOOK PHOTOS and sent them to me. Just some empty bottles. To show me how much he and his friend drank.

I humored him at first (well, not really, I didn’t say anything), but then I took him to task. Was I supposed to be impressed by this? Did he expect me to say, “oh wow, you’re a crazy cool dude!” I hope not, because my severely restrained response was, “I can’t believe you actually took a picture of that. Dude. Those were the kind of pictures we took in college.” Read: That’s kind of pathetic that you took a picture of this simply to brag about how much you were able to drink. 

He initially said that his friend was a fraternity brother, and I definitely shut that down with “but you aren’t in college. You are in your mid-twenties.” Seriously, drinking on weekends with friends is fun, but the days when bragging about how it was cool are OVER (and none too soon, I always hated those people). Honestly, it’s kind of pathetic. 

He took the point, and the conversation went semi-awkwardly into another direction. 

Was I too harsh? I guess it’s just (yet another) pet peeve of mine.