Week over Week

As I sit in the dentist's chair waiting to learn the fate of an upper left molar, I'll attempt to explain why I think this week has got to be better than last:

1. After celebrating mr price's bday in lovely style... He became deathly I'll with the flu. poor guy; never seen him look so miserable. and it lasted alllll week. which meant a couple things: (1) he was in quarantine upstairs and i brought him food and drink, little more than sliding it on the bedside stand and bolting for the door for fear of catching this dreaded illness or worse... passing it on to the Shorty. (2) sick and in quarantine = needs help, not helping. so all morning, evening and middle of the night duties were passed to yours truly.
2. between the snow and the below freezing temps, there was quite a bit to maintain around the house - dripping pipes, running the pool pump, fishing leaves out of the pool (which involves holding a large aluminum pole for extended periods at below freezing temps and no, i did not stick my tongue on it), carrying the citrus trees to the cabana, and other manual labor.
3. still in the wrist brace
4. severe tooth pain brought on by a girl scout cookie. (they look all sweet and innocent...)
5. our cousin's dog had to be put down. broken hearts all around.
6. VERY heavy work load this week + a work event which meant having to stay late
7. earlier in the week I declined some additional (& substantial) volunteer work. by mid week I found myself having just agreed. hello rush advisor. what? yep. for all the fun I am SURE it will be; i still might be crazy.
8. the nanny missed monday due to a cut foot. while it was surely an accident, it totals a LOT of missed days. So tuesday involved a very serious 'talk' with her and the other nanny-share mom. no fun. but definitely necessary.
9. Friday was a 'snow day' funny thing about snow days when you work from home: NOTHING CHANGES other than it's cold and a bunch of other people are working from home who usually don't so conference calls start late, people no-show and progress is gerenally slower and more frustrating.
10. All weekend plans were cancelled - not just because or Mr. Price's aforementioned illness, but because all three other families ended up sick, too. Did I mention my hands are raw from contant washing?
11. this was the last week to get in all final details for a large fundraiser of which I am on the board. many emails and phone calls. see item #6 above which indicates: it is not ideal timing to need to wrap up a bunch of loose ends.
12. despite substantial effort - the car search is still no closer to closure. oh, and the cabana renovation has not had a finger lifted in it's direction... which leads me to additional odds and ends, but at this point i'm exhuasted myself.

But some lovely things happened last week, too.

• Besides for the birthday celebration and the lovely new shoes that had their debut
• I had a lovely lunch on Friday with Arin, little Will and my babino at 34th St Cafe
• Late Saturday night while the babino slept and Mr. Price felt up to it...I saw a movie for the first time in ages. Loved the cinematography & lighting plus very interesting dialog and speed to The Social Network. It was pretty darn good I have to say.

So the bottom line: this week I'm looking for a multi-digit percent improvement over last and i'm pretty sure that can be achieved. =)

Sent from my iPhone

Beads, Blogs and Butts

I'll spare you the resolution talk... we know i don't believe in those anyway. but happy new year!

BEADS
While in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains I began beading Shorty's Christmas stocking (yes, the week after Christmas) but there was no getting to it sooner and it was a lovely thing to do while relaxing in NC. I haven't beaded since living in Dallas with the good ol' "Stitch and Bitch" group. For all the creations I made along the way, I was surprised to realize that I gave away almost all of my creations with the exception of a couple snowflakes I found shoved in with my bead and sequin supplies. It's still a work in progress, but the most time consuming part was designing and cutting out the items. So while i was at it, I cut out an extra set to make a 'kit' for future stockings. good times.

BLOGS
Sadly, though my mind has been cranking away on blog posts, i've not been cranking them out. it takes a lot longer and a lot more body involvement to type these days. However, i go back to the doctor at the end of next week and we'll see what he says about the hand/brace. cross your fingers!

BUTTS
And the most shocking post-holiday news of all: I have been working out. yep. gone twice now to my neighborhood non-chain gym and am 50/50 on enjoying it. However, i'm hurtin' today. Not because of the dinner last night celelbrating Mr. Price's company being funded. And not because the baby woke up after we got home and remained awake and unhappy until finally giving up around 3:30. I'm hurting because of Tuesday's equipment pilates class (my first ever! which I would have enjoyed, I believe, if not for the raging b!tches in the class that I had to contend with) and yesterday's 'boot camp' style class with an inspiring and energetic (but not obnoxious) teacher and interactive and fun class. Hopefully i'll keep it up! You never know. =) The fact that it takes under 6 minutes from my door to walking into the gym and thatI can go during the day while the shorty is with the nanny makes it much more likely that this could continue.


Hitting the ground running this week. It's been great to be back home and have a smooth re-entry into work after a couple weeks off. Thanks to CES, collegues both internal and external are all doin' it up in Vegas - leaving me to actually get some stuff done. yay.

Not Going Postal -or- The Never Ending 'To Do' Item

A confessional story of inefficiency and disorganization of mammoth proportions

Generally speaking, I'd go ahead and give myself an 'A' for getting things done in an efficient, timely manner. From thank you notes to blogging, photo albums to friends' birthdays I think I do all right. Oh wait, that should be "USED" to do alright. Not now; oh, whoa, not now. I have managed to make an utter and complete mess of anything related to the post office since Shorty arrived.

Here's the saga of the breakdown of how I have managed to waste RECORD amounts of time with absolutely nothing but a disaster to show for it:

It started with the birth announcements. Before he arrived, I took the time to review my mailing list and ensure names were up to date, even getting together a set of address labels and painstakingly ensuring the addresses were all correct and present. However, I didn't complete the last task I'd intended which was to pre-select the card so I could simply pick the pic, upload and order.

Post-bebe photo uploads and camera clearing was a disaster and it took at least a month before I took any suitable pictures, let alone get them on my computer to review. Around the time I was ready to go.. (design selected, created on an online account and awaiting purchase... just needed to decide between two different versions...) Someone whom I am SURE was a well-meaning bystander strongly discouraged me from using any current pictures and waiting until he looked more like a 'regular' newborn and less like a sonogram. Ouch. I thought my baby was beautiful but seems some think preemies are scary. Birth Announcements squarely placed on back burner.

Then the three month bday rolls around and I've been receiving BA's from babies born long after mine it seems... time to get a move on. Plus, I'd really like to get some thank you notes out for all the kind deeds and gifts and how lovely to send with some pictures and an announcement! Although the 'thank you' list goes temporarily missing... we take some pictures thinking surely there will be a suitable picture from these, right? Around this time though, I head back to work and *kapow* nanny shenanigans and other figure-out-work-and-baby demands just about make this ever-present item on the 'to do' list, invisible.

Incredibly, a month or so passes and I choose some pictures but none fit into the BA design I had poured such thought and effort into previously chosen from the online gallery. Then I decide that given how late I already am with these, I just need to go ahead and create/design my own and have it printed... Given my history at this point, I suppose it might be quicker than taking more pictures and getting them loaded onto my computer (with the completely full hard drive), select, upload and order. And now that I somehow swept into this web of perpetual delay the thank you notes, I had gotten a few dozen out the door but finally gave up on finding what was a 'temporarily missing partially completed thank you list' and decided to just recreate it by wandering around Shorty's room and writing down gifts and what kind souls had bestowed them upon my son. Let's not forget the sweet love-shrouded friend who gently told me to quit thanking her. You see, without a list it seems one can easily forget thanking someone once and send additional thank you notes while remembering sending a thank you that was never sent at all. The mind reels.

Another month later, the design/announcement had created and file sitting on my computer collecting dust. At this point I am in complete awe that I could have taken this long already. Seriously, what is going on here? Ah, we aren't halfway there yet, reader. Because ANOTHER MONTH passes before I finally proclaim it to be 'finalize the birth announcements week' and enlist the help of the nearest person I can find: the Nanny.

Yet somehow, even with two people working on the effort, I manage to bog it down another few weeks until she takes it upon herself to just have the file printed. Ahhh.. a ray of light on a cloudy day. Bless her heart.

A bit unconventional, but printed and in-hand a couple weeks later. The next day, by the way, I get the most gorgeous pictures of the little man's 6 month portraits back from the photographer. Stark contrast to the photos I cobbled together. But whatever... if I keep critiquing myself on this it may NEVER HAPPEN I tell myself - anyway he is 6.5 months old... just mail them.

Somehow, -this should not be a surprise- I have lost the labels I so painstakingly worked on months before. Not wanting to recreate all that work, I look for the labels in my spare time thinking 'it will be so much faster once i find the labels' and yes, a few more weeks pass before I find the labels. The darling nanny even came over to help out one Sunday afternoon so that I could address the cards and get them out the door. I couldn't find the stamps that day so decided I would just drop them off at the post office and have them stamp them for me. I managed to find a single sheet of stamps later that week, so stamped and mailed a handful of announcements. Incredible. 7 months and barely a dozen out the door. GAH! And to save my life, I could not tell you which ones had a stamp placed on and were sent on their way.

Labels on the cards and thank you notes written (in some cases re-written, but awaiting at least a picture I tell myself- thinking i should AT LEAST include a picture for being so late to get the notes in the mail...) and around this time I start to worry that the postcard format of the BA just doesn't seem right. I need to wrap it up! So now they wait for envelopes (which can't be found to match exactly) and now the labels have already been adhered to the cards and will all need to be re-written. Again, the stack sits.

A couple weeks later, determined to finish this massive disaster of an effort: The cards are spread out on the kitchen island for a week and a half as I tried to connect thank you notes with announcements and at least package them together. Then it's time for the new nanny to return to our house with the kiddos and by Monday night I accept that with an event/activity every night for the rest of the week, i'm not going to have time to complete the effort and stack them up and set them aside.

Weeks pass and I give up and decide to just walk the remainders into the post office, stamp and ship. This was today at lunchtime, My friends. My stack of half thank you notes, birth announcements going out at 8+months with pictures of a 3 month old are finally on their way. NOT SO FAST... already feeling self conscious about some of the announcements not being in envelope (it was a really cute postcard design in the beginning)... Then the lady at the post office tisks me for not 'puttin that baby in an envelope' And after her SECOND plead from the post office lady (seriously!) to "take 'em back home and bring them back when they are in envelopes" I give in. And I sh!t you not: I heard someone say "you better hurry and get those out before he turns one!" (insert mental image of one of "The Peanuts" characters)

Yes, I returned home today with a stack of unmailed cards. Unbelievable. I'm pretty sure I've put enough time and energy into these damn cards to have sent out 4 different sets... yet, I most certainly have NOT DONE THAT... nope, i still haven't gotten the first ones out yet. However, I received a beautiful BA last weekend of a baby born (3rd child in the family) after I had the postcards in hand. *sigh*

Sadly, I've even omitted half of the fumbles and mishaps of this story in this recounting of events. And it is still WAY to long for a blog post.

At this point in the saga, I ought to just give up and start focusing on Christmas cards. Or announcements for his first birthday. Maybe they'll eventually be completed and out the door, maybe I should just pretend they are done and cross it off my list. Who knows at this point. But I definitely think that the ying and the yang has returned to come to balance out for the rest of my life when I was *otherwise* efficient.

Promise You'll Tell?

Yesterday, while in the bathroom at the office I felt like I was in a time warp. Like, hello-and-welcome-to-the-late-nineties time warp. And you would have said so too if the shoes in the stall next to you were black loafers with a 2 inch chunky heel with a square toe and elasticized jersey material. to take it a step further: there was a thin woven leather belt on the ground next to it. I honestly stopped and started flipping through to try to remember if today was a dress-up day and I'd somehow overlooked it. I expressly remember when that was in style, and it would not be fair to say it was 'a few' seasons ago. I fully expected to step out and see full-on mom jeans with a heavy color blocked rugby shirt on top... tucked into said jeans and cinched at the waist.

But instead of waiting around to see, I darted out there feeling shocked and a little guilty for mentally trash-talking someone's unintentional retro outfit. (yes, of course I washed my hands)

Which brings me to this: promise that when the day comes that I am that person dreadfully out of style, even to the point that a new mom who rarely 'dresses up' past yoga pants for the day (yes, work out clothes and I've yet to work out), promise you will tell me. Drop me a copy of last season's Vogue if you can spare it, forcefully clean out my closet, demand I hand over the belt. Whatever it takes. Because a true friend will tell you.

Still Got It

Apparently, my previous post stirred quite a bit of speculation... so please allow me to share a proud moment from last weekend to clarify:

We went out (yep, that's right!!) for a friends 41st birthday which started with drinks at the Driskill and continued to Travernia on Congress and then up the million steps to Speakeasy. No, the fact that I can still physically climb that staircase isn't the part I'm most proud - albeit a noteworthy feat.

We were the last to arrive at the Driskill and everyone was drink-in-hand. What was I to imbibe? Could it be? YES! I was going to have my old standby cocktail. The Shorty has been sleeping through the night (for the most part) and I was ready to relax, enjoy and deal with it should he decide to wake up at 3am, or 5 or 7... you get the picture. Age had made hangovers gradually (yet notably) more difficult to overcome but the prospect of being up repeatedly during the height of 'sleeping it off' has turned the 'hangover' into something to be feared.

I digress.

The cocktail! So I ordered (geez, do I even remember how to do this) it was as if I was walking a tightrope: one new step with each word... martini, vodka. Dirty. Belvedere! Generous with the Vermouth!! =) yayyyy. i made it to the other side! oh, the anticipation.

then the waitress arrives my glorious reunion in hand all cold and pretty. sip 1. hmm.whew! wow. okay, it's okay... it's a been awhile.

--chit chat with the ladies about the 5 month old--

Sip 2. wha? yeah, it happened again. what is going on here? sure, its been well over a year, but could I have possibly lost it?

--chit chat about their recent trip to vegas--

Sip 3. okay, something IS wrong here. it just can't be that we aren't getting along this well. no time to waste, i helped myself to the bartender.

as I approached the bar, glass in hand (and possibly a bit of a fretful look in tow) he preempted me: "Belvedere, right?"

me: "Yes"
bartender: "I made it" (reaching to take it from me)
me: "Oh"
bartender: "I completely forgot the dirty (walks over to splash in the olive juice)"
me: (smiling and relieved) "and the vermouth?"
bartender: "sorry. that too..."
me: (as he hands it back) "thanks! i have a baby and it's the first time in over a year-- i thought it was me!"
conservatively dressed 40-something woman at the bar, looking me over with a slight smile: "impressive. You've still got it"

Sip 4: perfect.



Post Script: After finishing half the martini, I helped myself to half a glass of wine at dinner then eased up, having two glasses of water by Speakeasy and calling it a night.

Self Portrait on Mescalin

If I were to draw a self portrait, it would really be more of a caricature, resembling me, biting the corner of my lip while attempting to focus through the sleep deprivation and aphasia, juggling multiple items with each limb -except for one foot, pushing down on the gas peddle- while shoveling bites of food in my mouth, talking on the phone -handsfree, I assure you- and pumping. (what?! yeah, I said it...)

Of course, there would be a big silly grin on my face and my hair, dusted with dry shampoo, would be pulled up into a pseudo-french twist. Any remaining mental energy (that little bubble above my head in aforementioned caricature) would be plotting out the next 8 things I need to accomplish within the next 7 minutes, prioritizing for the order most efficient - oh, and re-evaluating the balance of my life (what are we doing for date night this week?)...to ensure things are as they should be...

Yes, the image I paint is that of a working [breastfeeding] mom. And yes, the breastfeeding part does get it's own shout-out because it is incredibly difficult and time consuming to maintain.

I know I'm not unique in this, but I have a whole new appreciation for what new parents mean when they comment dryly about 'how much work' a newborn is or the level of sleep deprivation. Ironically, I only have the energy to even comment on the sleep deprivation now that it is improving-- we are on the downhill slide with the shorty sleeping through the night(!) at least for the time being... I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop (aka the teething to kick in and the sleep schedule to run amok.

Regardless of the strain, physical/emotional/mental -- I'm sure I'll look back on it as 'not that bad' and even in the throws of this attention-deficit delight, there is a calm happiness. Oh, hello. So good to see you!

Right here, right now

These are the things on my mind right now on this lovey rainy morning where i've been so fortunate to work from my kitchen table (and yes, in my pajamas). When not on the VP's WW Town Hall meeting or plowing through emails and fielding urgent work calls to my cellie, i took a couple moments to peel an orange, watch the rain fall and listen to "Dear Mr. Fantasy" off the blog. Lovely, lovely, lovely.

Here's what's on my mind:

1) Peeling oranges. Turns out, I love peeling oranges. seriously. always have. never really appreciated this until earlier this week when a co-worker seemingly went bonkers at seeing me peel an orange, belaboring how much she *hates* peeling oranges. Didn't know you could hate it; I enjoy it quite a bit. it's fun to punch my nail into the peel, it smells so good when that delicious orange oil squirts out and then the gratification of scratching off the bits of rind that remain... you get the picture

2) I had the funniest dream last night that keeps replaying scenes in my mind. Mainly that the shorty came along (which in the dream we knew exactly how early he'd arrived) but i realized that i couldn't remember what labor was like -- so that was good-- and he was okay, even if three months early - and then i was holding him and he was a sweet fluffy grey kitty. We were SO excited and SO in love with the little furry fella. =)

okay. that's all i got for now. happy friday, friends!

Best Comment of the Week

I love this:

So I'm wearing a lovely new sweater today and a shirt under it. In other words: some padding between the two layers I have on, one of which is rather thick.

Keep in mind that Shorty continues with his routine kicking, flipping, etc.

After a meeting today, this very sweet guy from the catalog team asked how I was doing. I replied "good" and laughed something about his wiggly-ness today. He responded immediately by looking concerned and shaking his head with "yeah, I didn't know if it was rude to say anything, but your sweater kept moving around and forming bumps during the meeting..."

Just to be clear: I classify this comment as awesome. I feel bad for the guys in the office that feel like they can't say anything or it's inappropriate to acknowledge the bump, etc. ...and as soon as you open the door for them, they come gushing about it. It's good stuff.

Shower Story

It's been awhile since my last 'gross' post - but what can I say, this one just fell in my lap.

So as previously mentioned, my car got smashed by a massive falling tree limb. With the rain we've gotten over the past few days (yay for rain!) we realized that the damage also included pulling the door away from the frame just enough to no longer be water-tight. Therefore: raining outside = raining in the car. Awesome. --but this is just background building up to the funny part-- So sweet Mr. Price scurried to get the car into the shop only to get a "CUBE" of a car. Strange little thing that it is-- i've actually never seen a real-live car that so closely resembles a cartoon-mobile.

While the cartoon-mobile is entertaining, it doesn't exactly feel like a fortress of security. Therefore: (per Mr. Price) I am in the truck until further notice. =)

Meanwhile: Manager Man (who is more like a brother than a boss) was giving me a hard time yesterday for my nails. Well, really just my thumb nail. Admittedly, it was way too long, but i kept forgetting to cut it and thinking that it would break off like all the others did last week. So I was already self-conscious of it. this morning he teases me again. rat farts!

--okay, set-up is done. starting to feel like this has been a long haul for a short slide. oh well, too late now--

So i go to the truck to leave to get lunch today and... lo and behold! there is a nail clipper! way to go Mr. Price! how handy. so I pick it up to go to town on my thumb nail - bring it over my lap and... a confetti-like shower of nail clippings! so gross, but i suddenly can't stop laughing. looked at the clippers and they were some fancy kind that has a 'clip catcher' (think along the lines of a hole punch).

anyway- there's the short slide. i'm quite sure this story didn't convey nearly as funny as it was to me at the time. surely just as gross. but man, i AM still laughing on the inside.

The Best of the Worst

Once again, I worked through lunch today. In order to counterbalance the resulting bitterness, I decided I would go to Zorba's for some baba ghanoush and hummus (among other things) for my 3:30 lunch. Pulled up and ...that cracking sound you heard about an hour ago was my heard... because they close at 2:15, which I never realized before today. Heart wrenching, I know.

Despair not, dear reader - I made lemonade! (Figuratively, obviously, since it was late in the afternoon and I was sans any food in sight). I did not panic. Nearby was a handy selection of fast food restaurants I usually don't even see for the fact that I rarely -if ever- eat there.

I quickly determined to gather my favorites as a consolation prize. And with each stop, I was tempted to just finish out my list and head back to the office, but ultimately, I stayed the course.

(1)Driving though first at Chick-fil-a for an 'Original' chicken sandwich
(2)Next driving through McDonald (yes, I went to McD's!) and got my since-high-school favorite combo of fries and their hot mustard sauce --got to give props to Sarah's mom for teaching me that little gem.
(3)Pulling into Sonic for a Cherry Limeade.

Motivation & Marble

Clearly blogging makes me a better version of myself: apparently griping about my own inadequacies works as a call-to-action. (Oh, wait, only on occasion. See any references to 'excercising') After seeing in black-and-white text yesterday and realizing that "my lack of decision making with regard to the flooring was soon to become the bottleneck" (I believe those were my exact words... at least, that's what is blazoned in my mind) ... I actually did something about it.

In fact, not only did I MAKE a decision on the flooring, I already located and purchased the lovely carerra marble which will be picked up this weekend and installed starting next Wednesday. Whoo-hoo!

Meanwhile, the wood will be placed upstairs Monday so that it can 'acclimate' to the room for at least a week prior to them starting installation. Who knew?

For those always asking for pictures... here's a visual, albeit a not-very-good one (from my phone) Don't know why the center of this picture turned out reddish. Maybe that's a special feature of the camera. =) Anyway, it is a white & grey marble. ta-da!

i made cookies

so, in spite of my horrific attitude lately - springing mostly from the jobby-job - today was quite a good day. and it was a monday to boot!!

in fact, i even got a wild hair and made some cookies. peanut butter chocolate oatmeal praline cookies, thanks for askin'.

The general disposition was most certainly helped by the fact that I worked from home today. Still productive, but didn't get my daily dose of 'life-sucked-out-of-me.'

and for that, i'm grateful. ;)

cookie, anyone??

I have a witness

I worked out yesterday AND today. That makes three times since
returning stateside and I intend to continue.

Mr. Price's favorite thing to say when I do is: "she little but she
Str-ong!" which hasn't failed to make me giggle.

Sent from my iPhone

Shocking News

Are you sitting down? Don't fall off tour chair or anything... But while in Asia, it seems I picked up a shocking habit. Let's go with: I has some 'stressful experiences' which lead to... (are you ready?) ...me working out. Not just once! No, my friend, Five (5!) times!! Yes, you heard that right. We shall see if this dirty little habit continues Stateside.

There you have it. Shocking, I know.

In Full Bloom

konnichiha (pronounced as konnichiwa)

No, not me. That would be the magnificent cherry blossoms coating Tokyo right now. It is breath-taking; they are everywhere.

Cherry blossoms are to the Japanese what firecrackers are to Americans, or bluebonnets to Texans. But maybe even more so... Hanami is literally the tradition of looking at the cherry blossoms when they are in bloom which can last just a few days if there are strong winds or rain in the 10 day window each year that they bloom. They are quite delicate and even a mild wind and they will fall from the trees like snow.

People all around town have been lingering and congregating under the trees at lunch and breaks, smiling, laughing, taking pictures.

It's Friday night in Tokyo. Tomorrow morning I'll wake up bright and early, head to the fish market to check it out... then off to Ueno park to join the masses that will likely already be there. From what I understand, it is as if the entire country will be tailgating tomorrow, ear-marking their spots in the parks with blankets and spending the whole day drinking sake and gazing at the trees. And with them I plan to join! Here is a 'How To' for Hanami

I'm a bit in disbelief that My week in Japan is coinciding with this magical weekend here. There are literally 'Cherry Blossom Weather Reports' created each year because the days in which the trees bloom varies and rolls up the country from south to north as the temperature warms. Even the difference between yesterday and today is remarkable.

This page describing Hanami is great. It is all anyone talks about between meetings, walking to lunch, on the trains..

Of course I LOVE to partake in the quintessential 'things' of any destination. "When in Rome..." is the law that governs my travel. Even when it's silly or strange. Eat fish & chips in England? Gross, but check. Mehndi in New Delhi? Check. Surfing in San Sebastian? Check. Discothèque in Prague? Check. Bargain shopping in the markets of Chichicastenango? I'll take it. Topless in Juan-les-Pins? Check. Champagne on the Champ-du-Mars and baguettes and cheese on the Siene? Check & check, and repeat. Even absinthe in Barcelona.

But this... this one might take the cake. After this week, I'm considering it Karma.

Sayounara.
(8pm Friday night, Tokyo time)

Late

i was on time to work yesterday, but my first meeting ran over... i had back to back meetings so was late to each consecutive meeting as the day wore on.. at the end of the day, boss man looked at me and said "you're wearing that to dinner?" which i immediately dismissed for him getting his days wrong (i have had several partner dinners lately) and told him i didn't have a dinner tonight. in short: there was an awards event i was apparently invited to and it started a few minutes later. it was 10 minutes north of the office (the office is 20 minutes north of my house), and it was a semi formal event. yet, i was in khakis a sweater and hair in a pony tail (it's cold and rainy in Austin this week). Sweet Mr. Price dropped what he was doing, put on a suit, grabbed a change of clothes from my closet and headed north in the middle of Austin traffic. so again: late for the awards dinner.

nothing about yesterday was on time, it seems.

Drying out

Some how I managed to drink every day last week. Not exactly proud of this... a little more shocked after looking back on it and realizing: "Oh, $#*%! I drank every day last week!"

How'd you manage that!? - you ask... Quick recap as to how this transpired, innocently enough:

Sunday *thankfully* at family dinner last week, I didn't feel quite right -likely allergies- so I didn't have any wine... otherwise, you might be calling AA on me because the count would be higher...
Monday = Brittany is in town! Left work a wee bit early to go hang out with her and pequeno Presley. After Presley eats- the timer starts and wine is poured. Woohoo!
Tuesday = wake up at the crack of dawn for work. go to Dallas and back only to go to a junior league meeting which means cocktail hour is required. Over to Leah's with martini in tow.
Wednesday = work event- Quarterly Business Review followed by dinner at Jasper's (Mmmmm....) with Partner Company with expense account. One Martini, Two Martini... Kate joins me and we switch to wine. late night.
Thursday = We go to The Mansion at Judge's Hill for dinner. Need I say more?
Friday & Saturday = acceptable drinking nights, no need to outline unique event that would lead to cocktail hour. however... Saturday did entail some serious celebrating: Leslie's Baby Shower = Mimosas in the Morning and Supper Club = Martini (in theme with my week, apparently), freshly made margarita (in theme with Supper Club) and -of course- plenty of wine. Which really made for a 2-for-1 day.
Sunday family dinner = at this point... why stop now? may as well round out the week.

Tonight? Officially ON the wagon with every intention of detoxing my poor liver. Uggh.

Confessional over; more on upcoming travels soon-- (as the details roll in)

Freedom

Apathy.
ap·a·thy (noun)
1.lack of enthusiasm or energy
2.emotional emptiness

This is my goal at work. And has been in effect for over a week now and seems to be working out quite nicely, really. And when I start to feel a little guilty for not caring... i quickly remind myself to not care. then Whoosh~ I feel nothing.

And it's nice. Hell, I'd even call it pleasant.

I think of it as "a healthy amount of apathy in all the right places."
So when I say "A 'healthy' amount..." I mean that occasional use of the word that equates to "plentiful." I have a mental image of myself smearing something fun and fluffy --like cool whip or cotton-y padding-- all around me so that the stress and 'chicken little' mentality in the office bounces off without ever getting to me. So 'all the right places' really refers to any space surrounding me while I am at work.

Part of me is concerned because I have always so passionate and diligent when it comes to my work. What if this ruins me? I believe that it won't. Given that I am (and have been) at the end of my rapidly-fraying rope, it comes just in time. Jackie says it's good to have a little apathy and to 'disengage' a bit given my recent burn out. Erin & Jim have applauded the effort. So along with a couple other votes of confidence in my recent 'laissez faire' approach, I continue on through the beat-down that has been work. Apathetic. Like water off a duck's back. Working hard, but not taking it to heart. If I don't get to it, the sky is *not* actually going to fall. Oh, AND: if I have need to leave early from a mind-numbingly long meeting that is barely more than a monument to bureaucracy... so be it. Especially if it is so that I can call and make a massage appointment on the walk out to my car.

Punchy

You know when you hit those patches where you're really stressed out? and you've been real stressed out for awhile so it's starting to feel like normal... but then you're annoyed once you realize that this uber-stressed level is becoming the norm... and the annoyance makes the stress worse... oh, fun with the downward spiral...

I've realized that I've become quite punchy lately. Let's call it "edgy with a sense of humor" or maybe 'bitchy with a grin" or even "apathetic and ah, whatever - who cares?"

Needing a break or a time-out. Remember that 80's sit-com where the girl was from outer space and could freeze time by touching her two pointer finger tips together?? The theme song ended with "...you could be swinging on a star..." Well, I remember it enough to know that I want that ability. I want to freeze time-- just long enough to catch up on a few 'to do' lists... Alas, all that's happened lately is that my my work day has extended to the point that I was leaving work at 8-9p last week (booooooo). Really? And what about the meeting that started at 7:30? Are these people insane!?!?!

While I'm ranting & reminiscing: there was a children's book "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie" that has been running through my mind lately. I'm not *exactly* sure what it was about, but I'm pretty sure that the theme is essentially giving someone an inch and they take a mile. As in: you give a mouse a cookie and next thing you know, they want milk to dip it in. Once they have some milk, they want you to heat it... and so forth. Metaphorically speaking: I think I'm going to quit baking. Or at least for those who either (a)take it for granted or (b)think it means they are then entitled to can expect [fill-in-the-blank] .

So anywho-- I've been quite punchy at work lately-- 'cuz it seems i don't really have time (nor patience) for anything else. Needed toothpicks to keep my eyes open at dinner on Friday. Punchy-ness, in my case, means I say/do things with much less of a filter than I normally reserve for a work environment. I think from the outside looking in, this would be amusing, but frankly - i can't remember any of them right now and this gripefest post is already too long.

Sister needs a break. If for no other reason than I am becoming a complete and utter bore. (Ref above: whiny post)

When things aren't black or white...

Yep. Kinda bitter. Celebrating Mr. Price's bday this weekend, but I'm the one with the signs of aging.

Turns out, those really bright strands of hair aren't blonde (denial). I've got grey hairs (acceptance).

That's it. That's all I got today.