Sick as in, it was me who was sick for the last portion of it. The first half was pretty sick though, as the boat was going fast, and the wind and water made our outing today especially aggressive according to the guys sailing it. I'll write a more thorough recap later, but here's a video I took from the boat, pre-sickness. This is a good size boat, 54', so it's meant to handle some rough seas and is capable of sailing from one country to another, if one desired.
Not sure if you can tell by this video, but the boat was at definite angle, I didn't have my protractor on me, but it was not upright, part of which contributed to the thrill of it all, and also my close encounter with the toilet/bathroom floor for about 30min. Downing some Lucozade now and feeling much better, but puking your guts out does take a little out of you! Another story to add to my book of life.
I didn't feel so bad when I found out our boat had to call the coastguard on another smaller sailboat who was whipped right into the side of a cliff and pretty much stuck. I missed that little bit of drama because I was too busy locked in the bathroom. There go my dreams of racing sailboats.... :)
Vacation day is here! Besides Christmas and my birthday, this is my 3rd most favorite day of the year, and it’s the best because depending on how many trips I take, the day comes around more than once. Stay tuned for lots of updates, pics, and stories of whatever adventures (or mishaps) I may encounter, hopefully more of the former.
NBC10 had a ‘town hall’ meeting with Mayor Nutter yesterday, taking questions from Facebook, Twitter, etc. I’m never shocked by the generic questions posed to any politic figure, but I’m always left wondering about the morons who ask the stupid questions. One was along the lines of “I moved across the river from Jersey, and Philly is so full of trash. Why isn’t this cleaned up?” You know what? I loved his answer. “Because [some of] the people of Philly are slobs!” The city provides trash pickup and fancy solar-powered compacting trash cans, and people continue to litter, continue to junk it up. He threw it straight back on us- and he’s right! He then asked: “Do we throw trash on the living room floor? Then stop throwing it on the streets of Philly” Lazy people of Philly- SYAD
Rumors of Chris Christie for a Presidential run? First off, if you can’t run a 5K without keeling over, you have no business being president. Yeah, Bill Clinton is a bad example with his yo-yo diets of fried chicken and salads and then he got all into the running thing for a while… but for one of the most stressful jobs in the world, you have to be mentally AND physically fit. Just sayin…
I don’t foresee any distance running on this vacation, sooooo that run in 3 weeks is going to be awesome *sarcasm*
I’m going to miss my birds this week… but they are the background pic on my phone and iPod, so I’ll have a constant visual reminder. No morning tweets though…
I’m doing a little experiment and created a Dublin-specific Twitter list. I’m going to see if social media is beneficial in any way while I’m there by following some bars and tourism accounts. I’ll let you know if it was helpful or completely futile, cause I know you’re all dying of curiosity.
Gotta go! Hopefully I'll have a great pic to post on the blog background when I return. Unless everyone wants to look at the staged super cool Euro wall shot forever...
...something so delicious you are going to run out and get it after reading this post.
If you'veread through this blog, you know I'm a fan of Nutella and all other things chocolate and hazelnut. I had the genius idea around 1am last night this morning to take the mini waffles and make a Nutella sandwich! This is OMG good, just warning you. I'm usually a fan of the salty snacks, but this is too good to resist! And adding the vanilla flavor to the waffles... and they also make chocolate chip(!!)
Get yourself to Whole Foods and get some!
P.S. Should I just turn this whole thing into a Wednesday Randoms/Food Blog? WR are the favorite, and I'm always talking about food...
It's almost here! Yay! After a really great Friday and Saturday I've followed through on my plan for a productive Sunday. Everything is almost done. I get so super excited for trips. I'm glad traveling isn't a part of my job, as I know it would kill any excitement I get stepping inside an airport.
Africa is the next big trip in the plans. That definitely requires a lot more planning, $$ and time off. There's not much more to do than book it with a reputable tour guide and let them take care of planning everything. There's always the concerns of malaria and such, but from the few people I know who have gone, it's a must do at some point in your life.
I can't imagine how great it would be if I were on the 10mo schedule at work. I'd take those 2 months off and do Europe from one side to the other. I haven't ever seen the entire US, but I can guarantee Switzerland is a lot more exciting than Oklahoma. The size of our country alone makes it difficult to hit a lot of different states in one shot. You can drive the entire width of Ireland in less time than it takes to go from Philly to Pittsburgh.
Off the travel topic... I worked 2 great events yesterday. The Guinness events might be my favorite out of everything we do. Because it is a specialized pour, people are always so shocked we actually know what we're talking about when we run these promotions at bars. I would hope so, as Diageo is pouring loads of $$ into executing these events. I've already been there, but I might have to take a trip back to St James Gate. After launches in test market cities, Guinness has come out with their own lager, aptly named: Guinness Black Lager. So if you're looking to switch from the usual Yeungling that everyone drinks, give this a try.
I thought I had a spark of brilliance today. Listening to a few different stories and situations, I thought up the perfect thing to describe all the nonsense. That is, until I checked http://www.urbandictionary.com/ and found out it was not so unique after all. SYAD!Ever heard of that one? Let me spell it out for you: Sit Your(Yo) Ass Down!
Used to describe people who are acting ridiculous, out of sorts, or downright stupid and who need to be told about it.
My example for today? All the whiners and complainers about the new Facebook page setup. Get over it and... SYAD! Have they no concept of change? Are these the same people who get all flustered when someone takes their 'usual' parking spot? Or someone who scoffs at change because 'that's the way it's always been done'? New flash people: you will be left in the dust if you refuse to adapt and move with the current of change. Who wants to sit around and do the same thing over and over? Aren't we a more complex species than that? Come on. Quit the whining over a few cosmetic changes Mark Zuckerberg cooked up and focus your energy on something worthwhile. Okay. Rant complete.
Got a cool new digital camera. This is in addition to my SLR. At 14 megapixels, I can't wait to see what I come back from vacation with... I love new toys.
Summer's over and I'm back to Casper. What little 'tan' I had from running outside all summer (or from that tan in a bottle I used a time or two) is loooong gone. Back to my natural shade of ghost. Yes, I realize in the big picture this is extremely insignificant, but between the red eye in every picture taken of me (with a non-pro camera) and the pale, I should just change every pic of myself to b&w. Whatevs
For all the non-coffee drinkers out there like me, I highly recommend a pomegranate black tea. Amazing flavor without all the sweetness. At least with fall arriving, I won't have to drink boiling hot tea in 90deg like I did during summer.
Wondering if I should dress up for Halloween this year. A few years ago it was so much fun working a promo on Halloween and being a Guinness witch, branded black pointy hat and all! Oddly enough, I've been a witch several times for Halloween in my life... hmmm
Sigh. I miss Oprah at 4pm
I just read REM broke up after 31 years. Whoa. That's a long time to spend with the same group of people no matter who you are. They had some great albums for sure.
About a month to go until the 8mi Halloween run. I think I'm going to keep running 5, and then just bang out 8 that day. What's an extra 3 miles when there's goodies at the end? No sense in overtraining. Don't worry, I'll definitely own up to it if I run a crappy time!
Alright, I'm all randomed out for the day. Gotta go- I've got a suitcase to pack!
Alright, who can explain this sticker that was on this bunch of bananas I bought? Are they suggesting bananas are now suitable to roast over a fire like smores or hot dogs? Um... according to the website... yes!
Sure, I'll check it out quickly, because it's not like I have about 10 other things I should be doing now... so I'll be in bed by 1am again...
This crazy site www.dole.com/bananas has really offered up some different ways to eat bananas: A 'Dirty Banana' cocktail recipe and Banana Margaritas? Interesting. I guess bananas by themselves aren't doing so well aymore? Something did catch my eye, however. A recipe for Banana Hazelnut Dessert Wontons (!!!) I love bananas and LOVE hazelnut, so I might just have to make these. And the cocktails. Definitely the cocktails. All because of a silly sticker on a bunch of bananas.
Super fast version of Wednesday randoms comin at ya this week. So fast I didn't even have time to capitalize or space the blog title. That's an exaggeration. You get the idea.
It's time for a vacation when you've been using your office key to open your house and house key to get in your office 3x in one week.
Speaking of vacation- It's BOOKED!! Yay!! My credit card has seen more action this past week and I don't care! 2 weeks and I'm outta here. It has been almost an entire year those Euros have been sitting in that cup on my counter. They will be spent soon enough! :)
Training in Philly tonight for Job2. New Capt Morgan program and.... Guinness has a new product... a lager!! Oooohhh boy, I can't wait to hear all about this. This Saturday is halfway to St Paddy's Day, where I will be serving up some car bombs courtesy of Guinness, Bushmills, and Bailey's at a local bar. Guinness season is upon us and I'm so ready to get back to work.
Thanks to the powers of social media, my company got wind of a launch party tomorrow at 5pm for one of our major competitor's new product. I've been assigned a bar to conduct a little happy hour espionage and report on it. I lovelovelove this kind of stuff. This is when I get truly excited about work, doing things like this. New products, advertising campaigns, capturing competitor data... I'm really looking forward to it.
My adventures in dog sitting was a success this past weekend. Those 2 are the sweetest dogs ever. The only bad thing is my dog allergy has seemed to creep back into my life, after disappearing for 20yrs... ugh. So now it's back to being allergic to dogs and cats. Guess I'm sticking with birds for a while.
Finally took advantage of a LivingSocial deal. Not quite a Groupon, but me and nearly 1million other people bought the Whole Foods deal yesterday. There's one right down the street from me, so it was an easy choice. Can't wait to see this credit card bill next month : O
I have about 20 things to do and 4 side jobs to work in the next 2 weeks before I leave. I'm not the biggest fan of pressure, but being pressed for time is where my organization and efficiency skills shine. Go me.
Looks like it's time for me to write Barack O another letter. I'm seeing things at school that have so many loopholes, there's no sense having a law in place. Not going into detail, but people are taking advantage of the system and the thought that karma will get them isn't cutting it anymore for me. I could just run for congress. Sure, then they can dig up all my Twitter posts, this blog, and anything else to discredit me. I hate politics, and liars, and anyone else who finds a way to blatantly cheat the system. #sickofit
When are they ever going to finish all the construction on 476?
This wknd it's going to be in the 60s. My fav running weather! A trip to VF is definitely in order. I love everything about fall. Sorry summer, so over you once I start smelling the pumpkin spice everywhere! : )
After 7 years of unwavering devotion, you leave me hanging at the US Open, missing 2 match point opportunities and letting Djokovic steal the title right out of your hands! Oh, Roger it hurts.
Roger Federer and tennis are as close as I get to reaching 'sports fanatic' status, and I'm keeping it that way, because I really don't think I could take the highs and lows these teams/players put us through. Rearranging my schedule to watch a match, sitting tensely on the edge of my seat, and occasionally yelling a spirited "YES!", or an incredulous "Noooo!" are as far as I take it. Sports are so entertaining, but when your team/player isn't doing so well... not fun anymore!
Obviously, there are much much bigger fanatics out there than me and my love of professional tennis. I remember I was in Vegas, and we were passing some time in the sports book watching football in one of the major casinos (which at the moment is escaping me), but I encountered possibly one of the biggest football fans ever. This guy and his wife, who were definitely my age, were sitting near us watching the Colts. Being from Indianapolis, this guy was your typical psychotic fan. All decked out in his Peyton Manning jersey, he was screaming at the wall-size TV like he was coaching the team himself. Any time they scored, intercepted, or made a great tackle, he did this leap frog victory lap around all the leather chairs in the entire seating area, high-fiving everyone from the waitresses to people walking in off the street. He also had a bottle of vodka, fresh from the hotel lobby store, and poured everyone a shot for every TD they scored. Absolutely entertained by his antics, I started talking with his wife, who I honestly asked "Is he like this for every game?" She gave me a knowing smile and answered "Yup. Every game and has been since high school." Wow. You go girl, marrying your Colts-crazed HS boyfriend. Have fun dealing with that... forever!
Back to tennis. I'm not throwing in the towel on Roger. Not yet. What I don't want to see happen is 2 or 3 years with little to no major titles, and him becoming a has-been, someone who was 'once great' until their career took a downturn and they didn't know when to call it quits. I had that discussion with someone the other day. There's a big difference between 'quitting' and 'knowing when to quit'. Where Roger is concerned, I think it's the perfect storm of maturing, having a family and other priorities besides tennis, and the younger players coming up fast and furious under you, making the competition even tougher. I hope he can turn it around; and if not, know when to gracefully bow out and be satisfied to be one of, if not the best, player to ever play the game.
Given today's date it doesn't seem right if my post is filled with tennis talk, and I don't comment on the 9/11 anniversary. This morning I watched 'Flight 93' on A&E, which basically shows what happened that morning on the hijacked flight which crashed in Western PA. Besides all the obvious heroes from the FD and police at the WTC that day, these people on that plane knew they were being held captive and knew the plane was on a suicide mission straight for a major building. Imagine the panic and feeling of utter dread. They had time to make their phone calls home, and eventually get a plan together to overtake the hijackers which, unfortunately, was not successful. They did succeed in preventing more deaths and an even bigger disaster in Washington where the plane was headed, but no one made it out alive from that flight, despite all their effort. Props to them for stepping up, when death was staring them right in the face, and giving one last big effort. They deserve every accolade given, and then some.
Every time I turn around it's Wednesday again. Not a bad thing. Especially when it's time for.... you guessed it.... (do I even have to say it at this point?)
I'll start off my Wednesday randomness with an observation that as I sit here and churn out these words of wisdom, I feel like I'm in a terrarium (Google if you don't know). 80deg and 90% humidity makes for one big can't-win fight with the indoor temperature.
I've managed to get myself on every distribution list for running events. The most recent today was the 'Skeleton Skurry 5K'. This is part of the same holiday theme events who also run the 'Turkey Trot' and 'Reindeer Romp' (love it!). Truth be told, I ran the Reindeer Romp last year... 2 weeks before Christmas, in 35 degree overcast, windy weather. I did this for no other reason than I realllly liked the reindeer logo on the shirt, and considering when it comes to Christmas, this #1 fan toughed it out through the cold. And I've worn that shirt maybe twice. Perhaps I have an affinity for alliterations and 5Ks? I give ya nothing but the truth people. No lies on this blog.
Yes, this is the logo that sucked me in.
My man Fed is on the hunt for revenge against Tsonga. On a non-Roger side note, I was really impressed watching Alexandr Dolgopolov play Djokovic. He's 22, lightning fast, and built more like a soccer player than a tennis player. Novak beat him, but he brought some fire that really caught him off guard in the first set (and an intense tiebreak). I'm keeping my eye on him.
Not surprised to see lots of ads for September 11th and all the 10th anniversary shows and events. Knowing my love of current events, and incessant thirst for anything newsworthy, I was all over the coverage after this happened. I watched all the documentaries, all the in-depth interviews with the police and fire departments. Deep stuff. Since I moved into my building, the few times I take the stairs and I'm out of breath at the 8th floor, (these are those deep concrete, no-joke stairs), I can't imagine having an extra 75lbs of gear and climbing 100+ floors to save everyone. Obviously there's a lot more I think about when that date is brought up, but every time I climb those stairs, that image always flashes in my mind.
Definitely bummed there's no more Danny Bonnaduce on WYSP in the mornings. His 'Life Coach' segment was the perfect way to end my drive to work at 7:30 every morning. That just means more time to listen to my carefully crafted play list on my phone. Unlimited downloads is such a beautiful thing. I'm constantly adding new songs and searching for the hottest remix.
The only good thing about the Republican candidates debate tonight is the fact Brian Williams is moderating. Enough said.
Still bitter with Chris Meloni for ducking out of Law & Order SVU. Let's see if Danny Pino from Cold Case can bring it. Stabler was such a great multi-dimensional character, but I'm looking forward to the shift in dynamic with the lead cops.
Some excitement at Job2 with a new sampling concept- a mobile wine bar! I was pretty disappointed when my Wegman's event was cancelled due to hurricane hysteria a couple weeks ago, so this event should be really great. My features wines are (get ready for the Diageo name drop) A by Acacia Chardonnay and Acacia Carneros Pinot Noir. Both fantastic wines; of course, I prefer the red, but this event should be really fun, engaging, full of sales, and a great refresher for me in the wine category- so so much to learn. I can't wait : )
Thanks to YouTube, there's no excuse for ever sitting around bored as long as you have an internet connection. I try to limit my browsing in one sitting, but if I have some time to burn, oh yes, I will lose 10 minutes of my life watching people foolishly sled off a ramp they made on the roof of their house. (I'm not the only one; there are millions of others who've wasted time doing this too- just like me! Okay, I feel a little better.)
It's really those sidebar suggested videos that kill any intention of watching just a few funny things and being done with it. Of course, Google knows every move we make online and so does Zuckerberg and his entire Facebook army. These people know exactly what I search, what I like, and FILL the sidebar of YouTube with things I just can't resist watching! Such a setup.
It goes something like this:
There's a link in a news story I'm reading to a corresponding YouTube video. I click, watch, and all of a sudden I see a 'related' sidebar video about baby ducks crossing the street all in a row! Ahh! I'm a sucker for baby animals (especially ducks), and they're doing one of the cutest things: walking all lined up. I must click.
So I watch said duck video and then I see another 'related' video about some other animal and, long story short, in 20 minutes I've managed to watch ducks, dogs, tennis, Daniel Tosh, and some random (but completely worthwhile) 80s music video all by clicking 'related' links. True story readers. Getting sucked into the vortex of 80s hair band videos happens to the best of us. Oops.
Anyway
Back to the subject of this post. No work today, looking forward to watching Roger's match later on, and I found some of my favorite tennis vids to post.
I love this interview and Andy Roddick's bone dry sarcasm. Yeah, it's a bit of an act, but he's a normal guy who just gets pissed by stupid questions from the media. I can't say I wouldn't answer some of them the same way. There's a hint of arrogance, but I think he just wants to play the game and avoid the media nonsense. And rep Lacoste like there's no tomorrow.
Watch this video and tell me you don't start laughing every time Roger does. Poor Rafa. His Spanglish has gotten better over the years, but that goofy look he sometimes gives, all while trying to sit down and film a commercial...I can understand why Roger had trouble keeping it together. It's great. Love it.
Amazing shot. I've tried this myself (unsuccessfully) on the courts and it's next to impossible. Then again, I'm not a professional tennis player... just an average blogger who loves the game and on occasion tries to serve a Roddick style ace on her local courts (read: this effort usually results in a 45mph double fault). Points for effort?
3 day weekend, I’m so happy to see you! I guess 12hrs sleep and a special concoction of tea and vitamins were enough to get me feeling back to good, after feeling like a truck ran me over at the end of day yesterday. A full week of stress, minimal sleep, junk food, and only 1 day of running left me feeling like absolute crap. But don’t worry- I bounce back quickly.
I got up early to hit VF for a run, before it got too hot and turned into the overcast day they predicted. I prefer a run in the sun. As I was walking out the door, my neighbor opens hers to get the newspaper. She’s really nice, one of the many ‘seniors’ who live here. I assume she’s late 60s/early 70s, but I’ve never asked. I don’t run into her too often, but when I do, she always has some really honest statement/observation she shares with me… and it’s usually about me. Today it was: “Even on your free day, you’re still going going going!” She’s right. I don’t think leaving at 8:30am on a Saturday is that strange, but maybe she thinks I’m part of the lazy generation who sleep until noon every weekend (only if the night before was a wreck!) Her mind is sharp, but she has some hip or back problem which causes her to use a walker and move slow as molasses all the time. I really do feel bad for her. She pops her head out the door and sees me in my running gear, and it takes her 5 minutes to walk down the hall to get to the elevator. I never want that happening to me. Obviously she didn’t have a choice in it, but running around doing a million things like I always do, I simply cannot imagine any kind of physical hindrance. It would kill me.
Had a good run, except for that bird that pooped on my head around mile 2 of 5. It felt like an acorn hit me, or a bee flew smack into my head. I go to brush whatever it was away, and then it got all over my hands. Ugghhh. It was on part of my shirt too, so I run as fast as I could to the bathrooms along the trail, which are thankfully only about 1/2mi further up. I don’t care who sees me sweating, but God forbid anyone sees I have bird poop in my hair! A temporary interruption… and the culprit wasn’t a little sparrow- more like a crow. They say it’s good luck, so I’ll take it. I understand it’s more likely to happen on a crowded boardwalk where tons of seagulls are flying overhead, but I was running… under ONE tree. Bad timing I guess. So by the end my eyes were burning with sweat, I had crap in my hair, and I wasn’t wearing my favorite Dri-FIT gear. No wonder it all fell apart! Oh well, good material for the blog, right?
I’m so excited to watch a few hours of the US Open before selling some vodka and then meeting up with my friend later tonight. I haven’t seen her in a while, so we have some catching up to do. There’s nothing I like more than watching Roger play. Rafa too, but Roger’s my favorite by far. Speaking of Rafa… Wow, who’s seen those new Armani ads?? First David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo, and now Rafa? Hot! Tennis doesn’t get nearly enough love from the American public. It’s such an amazing game to watch and it gets so intense! John McEnroe’s commentary completes it. He was such a hot head, and it’s so funny when they play those old clips and he doesn’t even try to justify his crazy behavior. Can’t fault a guy for being passionate about the game.
I hope Andy Roddick sticks around longer this tournament. I follow him and a bunch of others on Twitter and besides loving that nasty serve of his, he seems like someone I’d want to hang out with. Him and Ochocinco. I know he has over 2 million followers, but maybe one day he’ll reply to one of my tweets. I won’t hold my breath though : )
