Phoenix AKA Paradise

Hubby and I took a vacation a few weeks ago to Phoenix. We went to a Rockies game (they lost), another Diamondbacks game, went hiking, ate lots of food, drove around and generally had a friggin' kick-ass time. I decided I love Phoenix and the surrounding areas, especially Tempe and Glendale. I've pretty much decided we need to move there...now what to do with that pesky little thing called a mortgage...hmmm.

Anywho, for those of you who have been asking, here are some pictures :)





Welcome to Chase Field! Woohoo!







This is a picture of the World Series trophy the Diamondbacks won in 2001. So THAT'S what it looks like. Living in Colorado means I wouldn't know except if I caught a glimpse of when the Red Sox won it on our home field. But I'm not bitter :)







This is the score board with the roof closed. Yes. There is an open and closed position and it's the coolest thing I've witnessed. Seriously.







These are pictures of the roof in various stages of opening. It only takes about two minutes and they play music you'd expect in "2001: A Space Odyssey". It's amazing. Even the walls/bilboards fold open to expose the sky and the downtown skyline like in the last picture.

FYI, I'm in absolute awe of this ball park. Let me give you a comparison. At Chase Field the ushers welcome you in, there are food vendors and apparel vendors and people giving stuff away in raffles and all sorts of things all over the place. At Coors Field there are a few food vendors and one or two apparel stores.

At Chase Field they want you to have a genuinely great baseball experience. At Coors Field they basically dont care if you show up just as long as your ticket got paid for.

At Chase Field fans cheer and shout and yell for their favorite players. At Coors Field drunk women whistle at the good looking baseball playesr (their words, not mine), no one pays attention and Hubby and I end up being the only ones cheering....at our own stadium!

Chase Field is awesome and you feel the pulse of baseball fans. Coors Field has the aura of "sit down, shut up and buy something".



They also have a live organist. How freakin' cool is that?!



This is me and a lifesize cutout of "The Big Unit" AKA Randy Johnson. And yes, that's really how tall he is and how small I am.





Hi From Chase Field!!








Anywhere with palm trees and cactus (is it cacti?) is fine with me!!










We hiked Camelback Mountain. Here's a few of us on the mountain, a view from the top and then a view of the actual, whole, mountain. And us being lame with a cactus :)

Well that's it for now. There's a ton more but I really don't have the patience for that ;)

Prayers

I'll update on our trip to Phoenix soon, I promise. But right now I need people's prayers. Although I work in Downtown Denver, I live in northern Colorado. This afternoon northern Colorado was devastated by at least 8 small tornados and one F4 tornado that was at least a mile wide. It devastated Windsor which is only a few miles away from where I live. Some people's houses just have wind damage, some have been completely destroyed. Homes right next to each other, one was untouched the other is gone.

Please keep northern Colorado in your prayers. I'm still in Denver for another 30 minutes and then me and my carpool head up to northern Colorado to lord knows what.

My home is, as far as I know, fine. There was some minor flooding in our yard, a lot of hail and wind damage but considering it's still standing, that's great.

Stranger....

So, it's obviously been a little while since I wrote last. What can I say...it's been a busy few weeks. I PROMISE I will update everyone when I get back. Yes that's right, back. Steve and I are going on a trip...to Phoenix! We are so very excited. We haven't been on a vacation in so long!

And in true Gaffney fashion we are going to a Rockies game while we are out there. It's an away game for them (obviously) and we're also going to a Detroit Lions game as well.

Updates and pictures to follow when I get back :)

xoxo

Happy Earth Day!

It's strange how some people can be so consumed with going green yet others spend $100,000 on a hummer that eats diesel and just makes you look like you're overcompensating for "other areas". Happy recycling!!

You've Been Rick Rolled

If you have no idea what I'm talking about, just google Rick Roll. :)

Happy Day of Your Wedding Three Years Ago!

I just want to say Happy Anniversary to Miss Megan June and Brandon. Today is their three-year anniversary and are happy as ever. Three down, a lifetime to go. Love you and miss you Meggie!

It's Tax Day. Are You Ready??

If You Don't Like It, Don't Watch It

I get that people think baseball is boring, I do. There's not constant stimulation for your eyes for 9 innings. Guys aren't clotheslining each other, laying on top of each other, checking each other into the boards, slam-dunking, grunting, and yelling. It's a thinking man's game. What pitch to throw next, whether or not to throw the double play. It's tactical.

If you don't like baseball that's your prerogative. But I do. I love it. You might even say it's my favorite sport. But just because YOU don't like it doesn't mean you can trash it all the time in front of me. I understand you don't like baseball but respect the fact that I do.

You say "It's not a sport if you can stand around eating sunflower seeds while participating."

Well, you have a ball be hurled at you going 95 miles an hour, swing with a bat and see if you can even come close to not only hitting the ball, but even try to catch-up with it and not swing yourself into the ground. Try throwing a baseball from deep right field to third base with no hop. Actually, just try getting it halfway to the infield!

Maybe I should start slower. This is a baseball. This is a bat. Right field is the right-hand side of the field when looking out from home plate.

Don't be a jerk. You don't like it, I do. End of story and shut it!

Are you telling me Babe Ruth wasn't an athlete? Are you telling me Joe DiMaggio just "sat around eating sunflower seeds?" Yea, okay.

Yup, Pretty Much!

Say What, Now?

STOP! Grammar Time!

I understand that not everyone can be a word-nazi like I am. I understand that not everyone has taken writing classes or majored in journalism. What I do not understand is people who have graduated high school who still do not know the difference between there, their and they're.

There's also a difference between your and you're. One is YOUR bike the other is YOU ARE going to ride the bike. YOU ARE going to ride YOUR bike.

Here is not prounounced HER and not spelled "herr". It's especially not spelled like that if you're not 50 Cent and you're from Wheat Ridge.

There's also this lovely new invention out there. Maybe you've heard of it; it's called spell-check. Look into it.

There's a difference between affect and effect and no, they aren't used interchangeably. There's no such word as "oblivital". It's oblivious and apparently you are.

If I hear the phrase "He don't work here" one more time I'm going to cringe myself to death.

Don't end every sentence with "..." in a blog, on myspace or anywhere. Every so often is fine if the sentence merits the three dots, but how annoying is this to read?... I mean seriously... It gets annoying, right... Because I'm pretty damn annoyed... Wow...

Don't use a "z" where an "s" should be. It's words not wordz or plez or waz. K?

ETC. is said "et cetera" not eccetera.
It's nu-clee-er, NOT nu-Q-ler.
It's voila, not walla.
There is no "T" at the end of across. It's not acrosst.
It's not pronouned "excaped" or "expecially".

Long Time, No Write

So I admit, it's been a little while since I've written. What can I say? I'm a busy girl!

Blast on Friday was really fun. The show was a tad different because the stage at the Cheyenne Civic center is about the size of my desk at work, but they worked it out. It was a little distracting, however, that pretty much everyone at the theatre seemed to
1) Know each other. "Tell your wife I'll see her at knitting on Tuesday." Mind you, these are like 35 year old women.
2) Be about 2 decades behind the Colorado. I saw more florals, shoulder pads and Farrah Fawcett hair than I knew what to do with. It was like going over the border and back in time.

Now that the writers strike is over it's back to new episodes of everything. CSI started up again last week and The Office is starting back on Thursday!!! Woohoo for Dunder Mifflin!






It's finally baseball season again and tonight will be my and Steve's second game. We went last night and the Rocks beat the Braves. It was finally a good game to make up for the 5 in a row they'd lost previously. Way to find your bats, guys.

The weather is looking particularly nasty for tonights game so hopefully I won't freeze my patootie off or won't get rained out. Cross your fingers!

No Whammy, no whammy, STOP!

Come on tax rebate! (NOT refund, I already got that!) Mama needs a new pair of shoes!......and to pay off debt :) Ya know, details, details.

Blast!

I posted on March 4th that Steve got me tickets to a show called "Blast!". It's hard to explain what it is. Basically it's indoor marching band but with a theatrical/stage flare. It's dorky, yes I know. But you must understand something, I'm a little dorky :) I've been playing instruments since i was in 4th grade and I'm not going to lie, I'm pretty good. I've done marching band, symphonic band, concert band, played with the Colorado Symphony Orchestra, marched in parades, played in college. You name it, I've probably done it. And yes, I've been to numerous band camps. But get your mind out of the gutter!!

SO, I went to "Blast!" my senior year of high school and was absolutely mesmerized. I'm not sure if everyone who sees it is as enthralled as I was, but I was in love with that show! Sadly, it hasn't been back through colorado in 7 years. But can you believe my fortune that tonight, not only is it in Colorado but in NORTHERN Colorado!! I don't even have to drive to Denver.

Steve and I are going tonight. Bless his heart, he's excited to go as well even though it's not something he'd EVER go to on his own. He said he wouldn't pass it up because he's never seen anyone so excited about INDOOR marching band, let alone marching band in general.

I don't think people realize how hard marching band really is. People don't just march around aimlessly, playing memorized music. No, No. It's much harder than that. Not only do you have to memorize (and play PERFECTLY) 15 minutes worth of music but the places you march to, from above, make shapes that correspond to what's going on in the music. And the entire time you have to look at the drum major (not down at your feet or at the people marching just inches from you), you can't run into anyone, half the time your feet are going one direction while you have to keep your upper body towards the front of the field, AND you're playing the whole time while roll-stepping so the crowd can't hear your footsteps in your sound. It's extremely hard!!! When I was in high school, we would practice every day after school until 5:30 and ALL day on Saturdays, every Saturday for 4 months. We had a band camp every year during the last week or two of summer and an overnight stay sometime during the season and do nothing but practice for 48 hours.

Rent Drumline and you'll get a glimpse of what it's really like to be in marching band.

ANYWHO!! Watch the videos below. They're just a minor glimpse into the awesomeness that is "Blast!".

The Earth Has a Fever

I'm not saying I don't agree with Al Gore. I'm not saying I do. But the following video was made by my favorite morning show "BJ Howie And Jennifer" on Alice 105.9 in Denver. It's HIGH-larious. Enjoy!!

Can You Hear Me Now??

Why don't you answer your phone or call back?!

Tribute to My Rockies

I know it's probably lame to most of you that this gives me shivers. I love my Rockies!

A Bone to Pick with the Post Office

I have a letter being held hostage at the Fort Collins post office. I believe it's an invitation to my cousin's wedding shower but I can't be positive. Whatever it is doesn't have enough postage on it so instead of weighing it at the post office it came from, it got ALL the way to Fun Collins and then stopped. If I don't go down to the post office and pay them 17 cents it's getting sent back to the sender.

Does that make sense to you? Because it doesn't to me. It gets all the way to it's destination without enough postage and then gets sent all the way back without enough postage. Just give me the damn envelope!

It says to come get it during post office hours. Oh yea, that should work. Let's see; the post office is opened in Ft. Collins 8-5. Seeing as how I leave Ft. Collins at 6:30 and don't get home until 6:30, I think there's a conflict there.

But, you say, I can go on Saturday. Yes that would work...if I remember to!

Stupid USPS

PLAY BALL!

That's right, folks. Today is Opening Day for baseball and I'm so extremely excited. Nothing says spring time quite like grown men in matching outfits, swinging bats and touching each others butts. I love baseball :)

Pet Peeves

I realized today I have a few pet peeves. One is office supply related. It bugs me to bits when people use the wrong size binder clip or paper clip to keep things together. For example, if you have 6 pieces of paper, use a paper clip. If you MUST use a binder clip use the smallest possible size. Or if you're clipping 15 pieces of paper together do NOT use a binder clip capable of holding quadruple that amount. Please. Stop.

This picture is a little blurry but this is what it looks like when six pieces of paper are in a binder clip made for 50 pieces of paper.

The other thing that just kills me is people who are too stupid to figure out how to put license plate stickers on a license plate correctly. I don't understand how this happens. The registration paper that comes with the stickers even has a diagram of where to put the stickers. Yet people continue to be blissfully unaware that they're idiots.

I MAY let it slide for the year and the month to be on the wrong sides. However it is completely unacceptable for the stickers to be at the TOP of the license plate, in the middle of the license plate, each year on a different corner (instead of on top of last years' sticker), etc. etc.

However, I will cut you some slack if this is your license plate. Steve and I saw this on a Dodge Magnum on The Strip in Vegas on our honeymoon. This guy is awesome. More awesome than you. Just ask him.

I Feel Old

Enough Said.

March Madness! Oh yea, and Spring

Sad but true. Today is the first day of Spring and what will I be doing tonight? I will be parked in a booth, eating wings and watching basketball with my Dad. Why not with my dear husband, you may ask? Because my dear husband is actually going to some of the games...without me...with his Dad. I know, I was shocked he's going without me too. But sacrafices need to be made in a marriage That's what it's all about folks.

I've filled out my brackets and have UCLA going all the way. We'll see if that works out. Come on Kevin Love, you can do it!

Oh yea, and happy first day of Spring. I will celebrate it by going for a walk at lunch in the sun! I'm loving the warm weather!

And now for a moment of silence for Syracuse basketball. They didn't make the tournament but they are #1 in the loser bracket! Let us bow our heads...

Numero Tres for today

Wow, three blogs in one day. Apparently I'm not keeping myself busy at work!! I digress.

I believe in tit for tat. Since I'm obsessed with celebrity gossip in the form of magazines and online sites (thank you Perez Hilton) I decided I needed to balance out all the trash I read with something that will expand my mind as well. I chose to read more books.

I love to read and I always have. So starting this past January, Steve and I got crazy and got library cards! I know, we're thrill-seekers. So far I'm averaging two books a month. That doesn't mean I read one every two weeks; some only take one week, some take longer if I'm busy or the book is not as easy to get through.

Research has shown that people who read more books have a better vocabulary and are more worldly. However, that doesn't apply to people who only read ONE type of book, or read mostly Chick-lit. I happen to read many different kinds.

This next statement is going to sound nerdy and I admit that. I joined this cool website called goodreads.com where you can track all the books you've read, all the ones you want to read, write what you thought about a particular book, etc. It's neato :)

So far this year I've read:
Confederates In the Attic
The Nazi Officers Wife
A Mighty Heart
The Memory Keepers Daughter

I'm currently reading:
Class Matters- It's a book of essays that ran in the NYTimes about different classes in the US and what that means for health care, education, offspring, etc. Very interesting.

As you can see my tastes are all over the place :) And that's not even the tip of the iceberg.

It it plegm or flem?

Everyone around me lately has been sick; people in my van, people at work, people in stores. It's terrible. And to top it off, I'm allergic to cigarette smoke and a lady in my van is a smoker. She has a cig right before getting in the van so every commute home, my throat starts to get scratchy and my eyes start to itch.

Do you ever have that feeling like your lungs are on fire and your throat is closing up? Pretty picture, eh? Well that's what I feel like right now. Between the cigarette smoke and the fact everyone seems to have the flu, I'm trying desperately to ward off the cold I seem to be getting.

I will be damned if my three day weekend turns into a sick weekend.

<-----Screw a flu shot, I"m getting myself one of these

Say It Ain't So!

If gas gets to be $4 per gallon like they're predicting, what am I supposed to do? Give up my HD programming? That's blasphemy, I say!

Daily Card

I have been banned from WebMD by Steve. I believe this is because I come home every few days with a new "diagnosis". If I have a headache or my leg hurts or my eyes are unexplicably hurting I make my way to WebMD and try to figure out what it is. I've come home with many diseases but I think Steve finally drew the line when I came home with some disease that only affects Chickens.....in Asia.....in the 1500's.

Kiss Me, I'm Part Irish

Happy St. Patty's Day everyone! I love this day because 1) it gives me an excuse to wear green. 2) The only gene larger than my Irish one is my Italian. I don't have to pretend to be Irish because I already am. You're jealous I know. 3) Today is my New York Grandma Anne's birthday, so HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRANDMA!!

So for all of you that think that Irishmen just drink and fight I give you Flogging Molly's "Drink and Fight" because we Irish love our beer and heaven help you if you do something to make us mad, like walk by :)

Weekend Update

Let me tell you about my incredibly exciting weekend. Trust me, you'll be green with envy and not just because it's St. Patrick's Day.

First, Steve and I cleaned the house. Now, most people might say this is boring or terrible but not I! I love a clean house, I love cleaning and organizing my house and there's no better feeling than starting a lazy weekend with a clean, uncluttered living room. Like someone once said, "An uncluttered house makes for an uncluttered mind."

Then we really got wild by going to Comcast and getting a new remote control. *gasp* This was exciting because our volume button on the old remote had ceased working and that was just not acceptable. So I'm happy now with my new, volume-working remote.

We felt like mere teenagers again when we went to King Soopers to get groceries and gas. I have to get gas there because it's 10 cents cheaper than everywhere else with my grocery purchases.

I know, you're jealous. It's okay :)

Why I'm a Nerd and My Husband Loves Me Anyway

So I've had an eye opening reality. As much as I'd like to think I'm cool, hip, jiggy, pimp, down, crunk, superfly, off the chain or whatever the kids are saying these days, it's just not true. This realization comes three fold:

1) I received a degree in journalism from UNC. I love words and I love writing. It's come to my attention that one of my largest pet peeves is people who use bad grammar. Example: "He don't work here no more." Say what, now??? I'm also a grammar nerd. I was going through a closet this past weekend and found my AP Style grammar and writing book. It's full of rules for writing according to AP style. I was elated! I had been looking for this book for a year and was overjoyed I finally found it. I consequently spent the next hour flipping through it. Steve just shook his head and laughed.

2) I was a band nerd in high school and college. This is true and I'm proud of it! I love Broadway and the symphony and marching band shows. I'd also like to be modest but I pretty much rock at playing the flute.

When I was a senior in high school I went to see a show at the Buell Theatre in Denver with some band friends. The show was a broadway show called "Blast!" and it's hard to explain. It's basically indoor, theatrical marching band. It's only brass and percussion and there are lights and props and it's amazing. Well, that was 2001 when I went to see it and it hasn't been back through Colorado since! Well, in three weeks it's back and Steve got me tickets!! He said he'd never seen anyone so exicted about marching band...indoors. :)

3) There is this main street in Ft. Collins called College Avenue. It borders the west edge of the CSU campus and is the busiest damn road in FoCo. Steve and I were driving down it last weekend on our way to Target Boutique and we had our windows up. There was a college girl in the car next to us with her windows up yet I could still hear her music perfectly. I looked over and Steve and said, "Does her music really need to be that loud?" Steve looked at me like I had three heads, laughed and said "Did you seriously just say that? How old are you??"

Daily Card

I would like to say this doesn't remind me of Steve and myself but that would be lying. And I don't lie.....ever.

Daily Card

This is funny to me because we all know those people. Every time they have a status update it means they have to profess their undying (read: gross and lame) love to the person they are currently dating. You know what I'm talking about! Every single time it's something along the lines of: "Sally is totally in love with Josh" "Sally has the best boyfriend ever" "Sally can't wait to be with her adorable boyfriend again" "Sally's boyfriend is the hottest guy ever!" Well, Sally is probably scaring Josh off with her insanity!

And after a few days of reading these declarations of love you really just want to poke something sharp through your eyes so you don't have to read it anymore.

Great, you love someone. Wonderful, you finally found someone to put up with you long enough to date. But for the love of everything holy, do you need to plaster it all over your Facebook and subject everyone to your crazy stalker ways? In the words of Napoleon Dynamite: "Gosh!"

Spring Time

Every time I hear the phrase "spring time" I think of a particular little ditty from The Producers. If you know what I'm talking about, you think it's funny too. If you don't, well...that sucks for you :)

Anywho, yesterday was so beautiful and warm here in Colorado. I went for a walk at lunch in short sleeves and was actually hot. The sun and all the people in the park were just such a shot of happiness that I really needed. It got me thinking of all the things I need (well....want) for Spring/Summer:

Flip-flops are the quintessential item for summer. I live in them and love them! They're comfy and casual. I think I need, mmmmm, about 6 pairs for the summer. Sounds about right.



A snazzy new summer purse needs to be had as well. You can't possibly expect a girl to use the same purse two seasons in a row, can you??



This summer I'd like lounge outside under a canopy in my new (albeit, expensive) patio furniture. A girl can dream, can't she?



And I can't possibly live another day without my very own margarita maker.



Yay for Spring!

Daily Card

This is going to be new and different every day depending on my mood and what's going on around me or in my life :)

My Babies

LITTLE TITLEIST


"I'm too sexy for my cat..."



Titleist says "I'm not spoiled, but this is the life"



BABY PALI


"What? I'm not supposed to be inside the couch?"



"These my shoes"--Pali

Weekend Update

This weekend was rather uneventful, really. Steve played basketball, I went for a walk, we cleaned the house...and oh yea, some creepy guy tried to come into our house.

This is how it went:
Steve and I are lounging on the couch, watching television and trying to adjust to the fact that it was 5:00, not 4:00 (stupid time change!). Someone knocks on our door and it's this just-barely 20-year-old lookin' kid. He hands Steve a roll of paper towels and asks if we have a few minutes to take a survery. Begrudgingly, we say yes. About this time, I notice a beat-up, champagne colored minivan with an older gentleman in it parked in front of our neighbors house. Well, this 20-something goes up to this van, pulls a long cardboard box out of the back and starts walking back to our house.

I shot Steve a "WTF is going on?" look and he made me go inside. This kid then proceeds to tell Steve he needs to come in for a few minutes and set the demonstration up in our kitchen. Steve says no. The kid starts to get defensive and say "Aw, bro, you said you'd take the survey. Now if I could just come in for a minute, it won't take long." Steve says he can't come in the house. He throws every excuse at this guy: We're about to leave. We work hard all weekend and just want to be left alone on a Sunday afternoon. We have a large dog that likes to hump people (we don't, actually). NOTHING was working!!

So Steve eventually gives him back the paper towel and tells him he's just not interested. The guy goes on and on "Man, bro. I'm trying to work hard too and you don't have 5 minutes? My boss really needs people and their opinions, bro" Steve says he does on the porch, not in the house.

The kid takes god-knows-what in the cardboard box and stacks it back up in the van. At this time I'm looking out the window getting the license plate number. I notice that there are four different Abercrombie & Fitch reject looking boys combing the houses on the block. I see them ring the doorbell, hand homeowner paper towel, walk to van and get cardboard, walk back to door, stand for a minute, walk back to van with said cardboard and go on to the next house. I HAVE SMART NEIGHBORS!!

No one lets those guys in. The van didn't even have hubcaps! We called the HOA who ended up calling the police. The police patrolled the neighborhood for the guys but didn't find them.

My husband is somewhat of a salesman (albeit, not door-to-door) but give me a break! You interrupt my peaceful SUnday afternoon to either
1) have some fake shit in a box, we let you in, you rob us.
2) throw something on my carpet or sofa or whatever and watch the magic whatever you're selling get it out.

Moral of the story: Don't call my husband "bro". You'll get nowhere. :)

Basketball and Such

Steve and I went to the Nuggest/Suns basketball game last night and in short, it rocked! Those are my two favorite teams in the NBA and I was in awe of Steve Nash, Shaq Daddy, Grant Hill and Stoudemire! I've never seen any of them in person and it was awesome. The Nuggets schooled the Suns and it was a very exciting game. Except for one thing.....

I had a chatty Cathy next to me. I was not surprised...let me give you some back story:
My dad and Steve have a joke that it never fails, no matter what sporting event we're at the annoying people who don't watch the game and gab the whole time are always next to or near me. It kills me because then all I can focus on is their convo. At one particular Rockies game, there were a few single women sitting in front of us and they were talking very loudly. I found out the blonde one was getting divorced and just wanted to go out, get drunk and screw someone. Well, that's lovely.

Anyway, at the Nuggets game, Miss Chatty McChatterson was on, what I'm guessing, was a second or third date. She got chinese food (it was Club Level) and proceeded to talk the whole....freaking....time! I learned about Kaiser Permanente, everything there is to know about Buddy Passes at Winter Park, some lawyer friend, "how dumb people can be", and just how annoying her cackling voice/laugh can really be after 45 minutes. I felt for the guy, I really did. But it's HIS fault she was there. That is, until there was a really great play on the court, I yelled (yay! woohoo!) and then got a dirty look from him like I was interrupting something with my yells.

Well excuuuuse me! I thought I was at a very exciting game but maybe I was wrong. I didn't realize the ENTIRE arena was there to cater to your date gabbing about her braces when she was 15 years old. Maybe I should just sit here quietly and pretend the world revolves around you. Would that make you feel better??

Anywho, Steve switched spots with me at halftime to put me out of arm swinging distance and I could focus on the game a little better. The Nuggets won, yay! So it was a nice late anniversary date :)

<----Game Action!
<---Steve Nash warming up.
<--- It's go time!

Two Years and Counting

Steve and I have been married for two years today. I can't believe it's been two years already but in another way I can't believe it's been only two years. We've accomplished so much since March 2006. Steve got transferred to Vail so we lived there about 7 months. I worked at a music festival and met some awesome people. Then Steve got offered a job in Ft. Collins so we decided to buy a house and move. We became home owners and I started working at 1st Bank, hated it and got my old job back at the place I am now.

Steve and I have had a lot of great times, silly things, fights, and love. I've fallen in love with him over and over again. My favorite part of any day is getting to come home to our warm house and being with Steve. He's my best friend, my partner in crime and the only person who truly understands who I am (and loves me anyway, HA!)

I learn new things about him every day but we face life together. Two years down, a lifetime to go.



This is the song Steve and I walked back up the aisle to after we were married :) (ignore the pictures in the video!)

Random Observation

Lives around me play out like soap operas and I am merely a viewer.

Why I'm Not Allowed to Grocery Shop on Sundays

I get annoyed with people easily; people in stores, people in traffic, etc. Generally Steve and I try to avoid the grocery store on Sunday's because it's always crowded. After this past weekend, we avoid them now so I don't "accidentally" run someone over with my shopping cart and laugh maniacally.

Here's an example of ONE of the things that happened:

Obvious rich stay at home mom with her big cart in front of the entire cheese section.
Her spoiled children terrorizing the entire dairy section on those sneakers with wheels. Just seeing that alone, I need to hold back my urge to clothesline one of them as they whiz past me and almost hit an old lady who thinks she's gone crazy because these little beasts are gliding around like birds.

Mom: What kind of string cheese do you want for your lunches?
Evil child: I don't care.
Mom: Do you want white or yellow?
EC: I don't care.
Mom: Well you liked the white last time..... But the yellow is better for you...I think.. I can't remember. Well, cheese can't be bad for you right?
(Evil child has now almost knocked me over twice while I wait for the lady to pick a damn cheese)
Mom: Oh, there's a white yellow mix. What about that?
EC: I don't like things to touch.
Mom: Well....pick one. Yellow or white. Do you want one of these fun shapes?

My automatic urge is to pick up both yellow and white and throw them at her while my internal voice says, "Okay lady, freakin' pick one!! If they don't listen or they don't care, just buy one, or two, or the whole damn section. If they don't like what you pick that's too damn bad."

It's been five minutes of white or yellow, white or yellow. What about mixed? White or yellow.

Steve sees my jaw and knuckles start to clench as I'm making my way toward the cheese section to shove said mom out of the way so I can just get my damn cream cheese. He intercepts me in the nick of time and guides me toward the soup aisle to continue our shopping.

Remind me again why I can't just *calmly* tell the lady to shove the cheese where the sun don't shine? I'd be nice....I swear....

The Past Weekend Wrap-up

Yes, I know it's already Wednesday but it's only my second day back at work since I had Monday off.

This weekend I finally said yes to Steve about getting a basketball hoop for our backyard. We had one about a year ago and putting that damn thing together was more than I could handle. None of the pre-drilled holes lined up, it was missing parts and the directions were so ridiculously vague they may as well have been written in Swahili. Needless to say it wasn't very sturdy, the rim moved when the ball hit it and the wind blew it over two weeks later. So I kept telling Steve we are NOT getting another one.

Well, I caved. :) I thought we would give it another shot (no pun intended) and go with a different brand.

We bought it and then realized it may not fit in my Focus. While trying to figure out how to lay the back seat down I think I may have pulled a muscle in my shoulder. I was tugging and Steve was pushing. I cut my hand on some metal under the seat while running my hand around it to find the latch. Then I think to myself, "Maybe it unlatches from the trunk." So I'm pulling and tugging for close to 15 minutes when Steve goes, "Hey, what does this lever do?" and easy as pie, the seats fall forward. Wow, I feel really smart right now.

So we get it home and unpack it. Doesn't look too hard, right? We start laying out the pieces and I'm glancing through the directions. Have you ever assemlbed something with more than 5 pieces that go together? Well, if you haven't, let me tell you how the directions usually go:

Step One: Take pieces A & B and attach them to base 5 with five #26 bolts, 3 #6 washers and 1 #98 nut. Make sure holes match up. Tighten nut until your hand falls off.

Step Two: Try to hold the rim, backboard, support rail and hoop pole (that all weigh about 70 pounds together) exactly steady and even while you jam a #75 bolt through a hole and screw it in with the octopus hands you'll need to accomplish this.

Step Three: Throw directions and a #82 bolt at husband and go inside for a drink.

Step Four and Five: Go to Home Depot (twice) to find spare bolt since it was dropped and the garage apparently swallowed it. Go to Home Depot again to find spare nut since it was dropped and the garage apparently swallowed it.

Step Six: Once it's all put together (still have NO idea how we accomplished it) step back and stare because you'll be WAY too tired to actually play with it.

Step Five: Drink heavily.

All in all, it was much easier and is much sturdier than the first one. We keep it in the garage so the famous Ft. Collins wind doesn't knock it over and we've actually played with it a few times.

So next time you're in FoCo, stop on by. Look for the serial killer van in front!

It's Sappy Time, sorry

To spare you the long story and details that are too personal to blog on here, Steve has been amazing lately. Well, he's always amazing to me, but the last few weeks have been really special and I keep falling in love with him over and over again. When I hear this song I think of him and thought I would share it because it's a great song.

Everything by Michael Buble

And now, a poem

My friend sent this to me. Apparently she isn't a huge fan of Valentine's Day either. :) Enjoy!

Hearts and roses and kisses galore,
What the hell is all that crap for?
People get mushy and start acting queer,
It's definitely the most annoying day of the year.
This day needs to get the hell over with and pass,
Before I shove something up cupids ass.
I'll spend the day so drunk I cant speak
And wear black for the rest of the week.
Guys act all sweet but soon it will fade,
For all they are doing is trying to get laid.

Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day everyone. :) This holiday is very up and down for a lot of people. Some people love it, some people hate it and some people think it's just another day in February. When I was single, my old roommate, Kelcy, and I used to call it Single's Awareness Day. Nice, right?

Well Steve and I don't celebrate it. One, because I think it's bullshit to have ONE day you express your love to your significant other. It's much more romantic to get flowers or a date night just for the hell of it than because it's Feb 14th. Who cares? You and your guy should be romantic other days as well!

We also don't celebrate it because my birthday is in two weeks and then our anniversary is 5 days after that. So I think that's enough love for two weeks :)

My day started off horribly by the way. I haven't been feeling well the last few days. I'll spare you the details. But I drag my ass to work anyway because I don't feel quite bad enough to justify staying home without feeling guilty. But I digress. SO, I'm not feeling well, we got about 4 inches of snow last night which made my commute so much longer than necessary and I've lost my cell phone. I'm pretty sure it's in the van but I can't be positive because no one would answer their damn phone so I could ask if it was there. *deep breath*

Then Steve and I get into a tiff over something.

Then once I actually arrive at work I find out someone "doesn't feel well today" and needs to go home. *sniff sniff* Does someone else smell bulls**t?



Hopefully this day gets even better and I eat s**t in the middle of the road on my way to lunch or something. That would just top it off, really.

Happy freakin' VDay!

Weekend Update with Mrs. Wonderful

So this was a little bit of a rough weekend. Things have been stressful in many parts of my life for the past week or so but I've had to remain "up"; pretend like everything was fine, push on, push forward. When the weekend came, not only did I crash physically but I crashed mentally. I had a minor setback with my depression and needless to say it wasn't a very relaxing weekend for me or Steve.

So now it's Monday and I'm both physically and mentally exhausted and need nap....or another weekend! But it's going to be another long week and I'm trying desperately to not take the unpleasantness out on Steve because it's not fair to him.

Other things that are going on:

Another one of my friends informs me last night about 8:30 MST (10:30PM NY time) that she's getting a divorce. I wasn't even going to call her back last night because I was content laying on the sofa watching Extreme Makeover:Home Edition but I sucked it up and called her. It's a long, confusing, not-sure-I-have-all-the-facts story. Basically 6 months before she was married, her now-husband joined the Marine reserves against her wishes. Now he's delpoyed to God-knows-where as a sniper. She cheated on him. It was a long conversation but it needed to happen for her to get it off her chest and just say it out loud.
This on will be interesting. Who needs television when I have so much drama with my friends?

Other stuff that's NOT so depressing:
I switched VanGo's a little over a week ago. The new one is MARVELOUS! It picks up in Loveland and goes straight to Denver. No other stops! I've been getting home about 6:15 every night which makes a huge difference from the 6:45 it used to be. Plus I don't have to be around Bitchy McBitcherson anymore. The new van chit-chats but a lot of people sleep or read. Ah, I love it.

Since I get home a little earlier now I've decided to either walk when I get home if it's nice out or work out to FitTV if it's dark or cold. Since I have a little more time on my hands now and motivation, I'm trying to get back into shape; into a shape that isn't round :) Disclaimer: I know I'm not fat but I could be in better shape and have been in better shape. I would just like to tone up and eat healthier.

That's all for today :)

Steve's New Job and other things

Here's a little background: For the last 6 months, Steve has worked for Anheiser Busch in their non-alcoholic division. I know you're probably saying to yourself, "He works for a beer company and sells juice and soda?" The answer? Yes. Don't ask me why.

Well, the point of him working there is to get his foot in the door to eventually get his own territory as a beer merchandiser. A few things happened in between now and then, and to make a long (and confusing) story short, Steve is now the West Fort Collins beer rep. Woohoo! But there goes my free soda and juice hook-up....damn.

Steve tells me that now being on the beer side means he has to trade in his company car, a Pontiac Vibe, for a different one. FYI, the company car is parked in front of our house as Steve drives it to and from work as well. The conversation went as follows:

Steve: I have to give the Vibe back.
Me: Why? It's still the same company.
Steve: I don't know. Because they told me to.
Me: So what do you drive now?
Steve: Well....
Me: Well what?
Steve: It's a white van.
Me: Like the ones serial killers drive??
Steve: Well.....yea. But this one says Budweiser on it! (in a tone trying to tell me that's a good thing) And if we ever need to move something that won't fit in the car, we have the van.
Me: Like a body?
Steve: Yea, or like ten. And beer will still fit too so we can booze it up after we make the drop.

Yes, my husband is a comedian :)


<-- not the van he drives but that's what I'm envisioning.

So yes, we will have a white Budweiser van parked in front of our house. If you ever come over, instead of giving you directions I will just have you look for the van. I wonder what the HOA will have to say about it. They always have SOMETHING to say about everything it seems.



But congrats to the hubby for getting a promotion and FREE BEER! If we ever come over to your house, you know what we'll be bringing. (Beer, not bodies)

Heath Ledger Dead...oh my gosh!!!!

I just found out that Heath Ledger is dead. I am in shock. I am literally in absolute shock. Mostly because I can't believe it. It's always different when a huge star dies than when someone not as well known dies.

I'm partly in shock because I just said to Steve LAST NIGHT that celebrities die in 3 and that means one more celebrity was going to die. Little did I know I was right! Oh my gosh!

Last week it was Merv Griffin, Brad Renfroe and Georgia Frontiere, the St. Louis Ram's owner. This week it was Sam the Butcher from The Brady Bunch and Suzanne Pleshette from The Bob Newhart Show. That's only five. I told Steve celebrities die in 3's so one more person will die. And apparently that person was Heath Ledger.

Random details are coming in via TMZ.com. So far what they know is:

He was found dead in an apartment, originally reported as being owned by Mary-Kate Olsen but apparently that's untrue, in his bedroom. He was face down on the floor with prescription pills strewn about on the bed. There is no implication of foul play and are so far ruling it accidental. A source close to Ledger told TMZ he had a substance abuse problem for the last year or so and was NOT in rehab.

He was a WONDERFUL actor. He was in The Patriot, Brokeback Mountain, and 10 Things I Hate About You. He was recently The Joker in the yet-to-be-released new Batman movie The Dark Knight. He was most recently working on a movie, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. It was supposed to be released sometime next year but no word yet on what will happen now.

He has a two-year-old daughter, Matilda, with ex-fiancee Michelle Williams. The couple broke up in October 2007 unexpectedly after two years together.

Dear Rude and Judgemental People

I think I've had an epiphany. I can be judgemental and what I've come to realize now, quite rude. I've done it behind people's backs and I guess you could call it gossip. And not good gossip.

I've recently seen what it actually looks like and it's ugly and I'm ashamed to have ever said some things I've said. Who am I to judge what someone else is doing with their life? If that's the best they can do, good for them! And no one's job is as easy as it looks. No one is better than anyone else. If you think you are better than someone then you are dead wrong. Everyone has their own strengths, you probably just don't know them very well.

The reason I have come to this realization is because I have witnessed the shit talking and judgement and rudeness coming from someone else aimed at someone and it was ugly. These people are so judgemental of this one girl because they THINK they are better than she is because they have a college degree, and because she cuts hair for a living and because she is young and not really into politics and world affairs. Because she is young and doesn't understand priorities and may be a little airheadded. But you know what? Who cares if she is all of those things. This world takes all people.

My grandmother Mel used to tell me that if everyone in the world was the same it would be a pretty boring place to live. What if everyone drove a white car? What if everyone liked the same genre of movies or music? The great thing about this country we live in is that everyone is free to be different. If you want to watch Access Hollywood, read In Touch magazine and listen to funny, mindless radio shows, that's your prerogative. If you want to surround yourself with politics, NPR radio and the New York Times, that doesn't mean you're better than the person who likes celebrity gossip. It takes all kinds of people to make up this country. You are not better than ANYONE, just different strokes for different folks.

Did it ever occur to you that there are people with "better" jobs than you or who are "smarter" than you that are looking down on you? There's always someone that has come before and done it before and seen it all before. Just because you're in your 40's and these people you talk about are barely 20...that's comparing apples and oranges. They don't care about politics and money because their world is different from yours. I highly doubt you came out of the womb caring about politics and the dow jones. They're young, let them be frivilous and self-obsessed. THey deserve to have a childhood and be young.

Be nice to people! What a concept, right? Do you remember nice? And don't be nice to people because it may bite you in the ass someday. Be nice because it's the right thing to do. Your one smile or one nice deed or even one less rude thing to say might just change someone's whole day which in turn might change another's day.

Pay it forward.

And how would you feel if the person you call "brainiac" and you talk down to heard what you were saying? Would you even feel bad? Or how would you feel if someone who is "above" you said rude things about you? Maybe they do behind your back but you're too high and mighty to realize you aren't "all that". Maybe they say that you're stuck up. Maybe they say you are a know-it-all. Do NOT think you demand respect because you are so "Great" because it goes both ways. You have to give respect to get it.

Just because you are older and have a "more respectful job title" (as you would say), doesn't mean you have the authority to pass judgement on someone you think is below you. As people used to say, "Who died and left you in charge?"

Random Observation

While I was riding to work today I looked over at a 4Runner that was being driven by a man eating cereal out of a bowl. I thought that was odd. With my 90 minute drive to work every morning and every evening I see a lot of strange things. This is the first time I've ever seen someone actually eating cereal out of a ceramic bowl with a regular spoon like he's sitting at his kitchen table.

So angry!

No wonder I don't trust people. How many times do I have to be deceived before I stop ignoring it? How bad will the deception get before it blows up and I wish I would've said or done something sooner. Or is it already worse than I thought?

Is the friendship good enough to keep going or should I cut my losses and all I've invested and run? Are these things I find out worth throwing it all away?

I can't confront this person because I'm not supposed to know what I know. And even if I did confront them, they would deny, deny, deny because they've done that before. Except before I just pretended they were telling the truth so things would go back to being easy.

Maybe it's my fault for not putting a stop to it sooner and letting it go on.

Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy

That's what Jessica Simpson is thinking! She's riding her Cowboy, Tony Romo, and Cowboy fans are blaming her for the fact that Tony Romo has had a few bad (yet important) games since their relationship became public. Some newspapers are coining her "Yoko Romo". HA! I think that's brilliant!

However, I would like to say it's not Jessica Simpson that's making Romo suck it up lately. It's the fact that he's still a young QB and he starts to freak out under pressure. Remember last years first round game? He bobbled the snap on what WOULD have been a game winning field goal. This year he can't seem to make good decisions on the field during the big game and his offensive line couldn't block for him if their lives depended on it. PLUS Romo isn't a very mobile QB. He doesn't like leaving the pocket and therefore gets sacked when there's no blocking.

I'm not a fan of Jessica Simpson's. I think she wasted her REAL talent of singing and decided she was too famous to be with her husband, Nick Lachey. She will do anything to be in the spotlight, even if it cost her a marriage. I think she has NO idea who she is and needs a man to validate what she is. HOWEVER, I don't blame her for the Cowboy's losses. Romo is a big boy.

Romo, on the other hand, blames everybody else for his losses. During a press conference after their loss this past weekend Romo was saying how nothing went their way that night. They had several 90+ yard drives, the wind was blowing, they got bad calls, etc. etc. Maybe he should just say the Giants were a better team that night and stop blaming everyone else for his loss.

THEN, Terrell Owens starts crying when people start to blame Romo for the loss. He says, "That's my teammate. That's my quarterback," as he's crying. GIVE ME A BREAK!! TO has never had any problems throwing his teammates under a bus for...well pretty much ANY reason. Give me a freakin' break.

D-I-V-O-R-C-E

I just got a call from one of my good friends explaining to me that his wife of a little over three months just left him.

Let that sink in for a moment.....

Three months. End of September they were married and over the holidays she called it quits. The reason is too painful for him to talk about right now but the actual details don't really matter. The fact is that he's in about 1000 peices right now and I have NO idea how he's functioning. I would be dead. My heart would have shattered and I would be dead.

My guess is she got scared. Looking back now, there were a few signs that they were both having a few doubts. Yes, maybe the doubts were warranted and maybe they shouldn't have gotten married. But the fact is they ignored the doubts and got married. Now, if the doubts are still there, that's what counseling is for. It's been three months for christ sake, you can't just call it quits. The damn wedding isn't even paid off yet!

She's one of those girls who think a marriage is fun----scratch that, a WEDDING is fun. She probably thought all about her wedding and not much of the marriage that followed. Afterall, that's gotta be easy, right? He's one of those people who couldn't care less about the wedding...he just wanted to be with her.

A marriage and the vows are serious whether some people take it seriously or not. "It's for better or worse", not "until the road gets rocky." Marriage is about two people against the world, being each others partner. You're supposed to take things on together, you're there for each other, not against each other.

Don't get me wrong, there are plently of marriages that break up for REAL reasons. THis isn't about those, this is about my friend and his bitch of a soon-to-be-ex-wife.

Shame on you for hurting him. Shame on you for hurting a man who wouldn't even hurt a fly. Shame on you for hurting the man who would've given his life for you, a man who treated you like a princess, a man who treated you better than any man ever had, a man who was so hopelessly in love with you he overlooked your selfishness and spoildness and bitchiness. Shame on you for not working on it and just leaving him high and dry; for only caring about yourself and not your HUSBAND as well.

Office Pet Peeve

The Correct Way to Use a Shredder:

Put a few pieces of paper at a time into the shredder. When it starts to get full, either empty it or find someone to empty it so it doesn't get jammed.

My Office's Way to Use a Shredder:

Cram 75 pieces of paper at a time in the top of the shredder.

Get Katy when it gets jammed.

When it starts to get full, continute jamming paper into the top until it's stuck and will neither go forward or backward.

Get Katy when it gets jammed.