Finnology 2

April 30, 2010 at 5:52 am | Posted in family, funny bone, my nephew is awesome | 20 Comments

This is an inadvertent guest post from my Mom.

Finn is a Super Hero. (Please excuse my messy office cubicle. But hey, at least I have capes lying around!)

She picks up Finn from school and most days will email Dokey, Double B and I some tidbit he’s shared. It is usually hilarious because my nephew, as well as being freaking adorable and smart as a whip, is a total crack up. Please keep in mind that Finn is not yet four years old.

So yesterday she emails us this:

Today I picked up our happy little man Finn who was seen hugging and kissing in the playground with his girlfriend Nadia. Actually, he was trying to sweep with a broom just his size as one of the teachers was sweeping the leaves off the walkway and Nadia kept hooking him with her arm around his neck and kissing him until he gave up and laid down on the sidewalk.  She followed and they both laid there in the sun shine smiling up at the sky. Priceless moment for a Grandma.

When we got in the car and had our usual conversation which went something like-

“How was school today?’

“Ok. I got a cookie today but it didn’t have sugar in it.”

“Did you see any birds today? I saw a hummingbird last night at dusk right before it gets dark. They must like to eat before they sleep.”

“Well actually they are probably nocturnal.”

I laughed and said, “Do you know what that means?”

He said, “It means that they sleep during the day and are awake at night!”

I said ‘very good Finn’ but I am actually thinking “Holy Crap! This kid is smart!”

But then we somehow get to the topic of penises.

(INTERJECTION: This happens to me all the time. Penises have a way of cropping up in conversation. Clearly this is genetic.)

I told him I got the pictures out of our trip to the Trek and there is a picture of the black bear he liked sleeping. He said, “I saw his penis.” I inquired, “How? He was sleeping.” And he said, “It was sticking up in the air and he put it on the brown bear’s vagina.” **

I am not making this stuff up honest!!! I don’t think you will need to have the birds and the bees talk with him you guys.

**I’m not sure if this is a typo of my Mom’s or if Finn really said the penis was ON the vagina, not IN. Because if he thinks you put it ON then Doke & Double B do have some explaining to do. But maybe later. Like when he is at least 5.

Motivation

April 29, 2010 at 7:25 am | Posted in health, my neurosis | 23 Comments

Yesterday I started back on Phase 1 of South Beach because I need a kick-start, something healthy to focus my energy on, and, frankly, a wake up call. So I made myself get on the scale, document my measurements and clear out my fridge and pantry of any off-limits foods.

It isn’t that I’ve fallen off the SB wagon completely. It’s just that I’ve made concessions here and there that have added up to a lifestyle that I’m not comfortable with. Socializing around food and drink can be dangerous for me because I will probably drink and I will probably let something I shouldn’t eat go into my mouth. Bad food abounds when you eat out. And booze is delicious.

It’s been a year now since I’ve been following the SB lifestyle, this way of eating (lean proteins, veggies, whole grains, fruits, very limited alcohol, no refined sugar, no white flour, no processed foods) and it’s hands down the best for me. Everyone has to find their “thing” and South Beach is mine. It just makes sense with how I live and what I enjoy eating. Do I enjoy eating sugar and pasta and french bread with salty butter? You bet I do. But how those things leave me feeling after having cleansed my body of them for months? Is very, very not good. I seriously crash from eating refined sugar. And it is not pretty.

Would I like to lose more weight? Yes. Hell yes. I dropped some 30 lbs in the past year but in the past 6 months have just been hovering at the 5lb gain range. I’ve completely slacked on following an exercise routine. For a while I blamed work and my schedule. But there is no excuse. I prioritize what is important to me and clearly, exercise is not at the top of the list. There’s a bunch of emotional baggage that goes along with that which I discuss ad nauseum with my therapist so you don’t have to listen to it. (You’re welcome.) So I am trying to figure this out. How do I make my life work for me? How do I fit in all my obligations AND work out and find time to cook? Because living a SB lifestyle means you have to cook. A girl cannot live on celery and no sugar peanut butter alone.

The weather is changing which inspires me to get outside. We Seattleites soak up any rays of sun we can get, they are so fleeting. I see walks and hikes and maybe tennis in my future. More pool time and definitely, a yoga routine at the new studio near me. I see  making my health a top priority and work/social obligations not having as much weight. Because I want to feel good about my body. I want to be IN my body. It’s hard to describe but. . . I’ve spent most of my life hating my figure and battling against it. It’s difficult to be present inside of something you actively loathe. This is why I spend most of my time inside my own head. But that coping mechanism is not working for me.

I’m going to be blogging more about this because I need to be honest with myself and other people about where I am at, where I am struggling. I’ll also be sharing recipes of good-for-you food when I make something especially good.

I’ve still got a long way to go but at least I see the path. And I’m on it.

*****

I made Spinach Souffle Stuffed Chicken last night. It was yummy!

Tattoos and Mustaches and Bloggers, Oh My!

April 28, 2010 at 6:42 am | Posted in adventures, blogger meet ups, bloggers rule!, tequilacon | 19 Comments

My original impetus for crossing the border was to attend the annual blogger meet up, TequilaCon. The last time I had  been to one was back in 2007 when it was held in Portland at the Kennedy School. It was, in a word, debaucherous, and a hell of a lot of fun.  It is where I first met the likes of Dave2 of Blogography, Neilochka from Citizen of the Month, Vahid of IronFist, among many, many awesome others and where, yes, I first licked Long Story Longer. It was where many budding on line friendships came to life.

What? Don’t most of your friendships start on line and involve drinking and licking?

Hmmm.

So this year when I heard it was being held in Vancouver, I knew I had to go. And with Mr. Darcy and I basically being inseparable (What can I say? He’s a good kisser. And funny.), I invited him along. Knowing already that he could hold his own among a group of rowdy bloggers, he bravely said yes. And off we went.

He also models free schwag like a pro.

Mr. Darcy sportin' the TC 2010 commemorative cap.

After we’d spent the greater part of the day in search of a hat, one was handed to us at TC. Is that what you’d call irony? It came in handy the following day when it insisted on raining again.

The event was held at Steamworks Brewing Company which has nice vistas and good brew.

Reminds me a lot of Seattle's port.

Little known fact: Drinking tequila is not required at TequilaCon. But wearing a fake tattoo is.

IronFist is spongeworthy. I MEAN, he is the Sponge Master. (Ahem!)

Mr. Darcy rockin' the neck tat. Kids, do not try this at home. Real neck tattoos are not recommended.

Oh Sarah Joy poses with bad ass One N Jen & her Ed Hardy tattoo.

The tats were all from Ed Hardy which made me sing, “Thought it was a perfect party but now it’s just a lot of Ed Hardy…” Thank you Garfunkel & Oates. Though, thankfully, this party did NOT go to the douche.

California REPRESENT!

Thanks to Hillary there were mustaches galore which gave us ample opportunity for even more photo opps.

Dustin, resurrected from blogger ashes, sports a 'stache.

Oh Sarah Joy is so demure in her mustache.

If you can’t tell by the photo-documentation, it was a grand gathering of really cool bloggers. My thanks go out to the TequilaCon planning committee who work their butts off, fueled only by their love a blogger meet up and copious amounts of booze, to pull off such a tremendous feat. Thanks guys! And if I didn’t mention it, you make hockey jerseys look very stylish.

You should come next year. Yes! YOU!

For more photos, check out our Flickr pool.

We Took Our Love International

April 27, 2010 at 6:33 am | Posted in adventures, travel | 29 Comments

I dragged Mr. Darcy, who is not a morning person, out of bed at the ripe hour of 6:30am to get ready while I ran around stressed out because travel makes me anxious.  I was trying to get dressed and finish packing- to remember snacks and passports and chargers and a flat iron and seven different types of earrings because OF COURSE I will need that many options even though we’re only gone for three days and what do you mean two pairs of boots are impractical to pack? We made it to the train on time and Mr. Darcy promptly fell asleep.

I hope Mr. Darcy does not break up with me for posting this as I was planning on spending the rest of my life with him. P.S. Have you noticed how long my boyfriend's eye lashes are?

Do you blame the guy?

There was a woman on our train who felt the need to talk to everyone, regardless of their interest level in doing so. It got so bad that I told Mr. Darcy that if she so much as looked our way we were going to promptly start making out as to discourage her from approaching us. I think he was secretly hoping she’d try.

We took a lot of taxis which is a great way to view the city if your feet hurt or you are tired or you are lost and finally flag one down with such sweet relief- finally someone will know where we are going because I sure as hell don’t!- or your hotel is clear across town along the English Bay.

The Sylvia is a historic hotel that's perfect for those who don't want to be in the hub of the city but close enough to cab there. Plus, it's along the water which makes it picturesque.

The Sylvia is lovely. We recommend it. It sits along the English Bay and along the border of Stanley Park. We meant to do more exploring of the Park but weather and energy did not permit it. There were naps to be had and beers to be drunk. We did, however, spend a good deal of time on Sunday sitting on a park bench in the glorious sunshine (finally! sun!) with our iced teas looking out on the water and watching the people run, stroll, roller blade by.

Quite a view. Plus, if you sat there long enough you'd probably hear snippets of every possible language. Vancouver is very international.

We visited Granville Island with Kerrianne, OneNJen, Hans and Angella. We ate crepes and walked around taking in the market and all the interesting shops. We stopped to snap shots from the dock. If we’d known it was going to be sunny later, we’d have picked up some snacks at the Market for a picnic.

Mr. Darcy packed a sweatshirt for his jacket/coat/outerwear on the trip. So of course it was raining a lot and that would just not be sufficient. We went in search of a hat and ended up walking Denman to Robson to God knows where until we flagged a taxi and then I promptly pulled the wrong address out of my head and we ended up clear across town nowhere near where we had intended. So after some deliberation, we walked some more and I became quite grouchy at the thought of walking 3,000 blocks to the store we were looking for and the fact that there were suddenly no  taxis. We ended up at a gas station where the attendant graciously called us a cab. Once to our destination, we found no hat and the store I was looking for was way over-priced for my pocketbook and so, we again flagged a taxi and all in all spent 2 hours and $40 getting lost then found then home again.

So we went back to the hotel and drank in the lounge. Because that’s how we roll. And all this was pre-TequilaCon which I will tell you about tomorrow.

I will leave you with these gratuitous couple shots. Because we’re cute.

He's a good sport letting me snap so many pictures.

My newest favorite photo of us.

It was a good time. But, in my book, anywhere with Mr. Darcy is.

*For more Vancouver shots, go here.

Sounds fun, eh?

April 22, 2010 at 6:11 am | Posted in adventures, tequilacon, travel | 29 Comments

Did I tell you Mr. Darcy and I are Vancouver-bound? We leave at the ripe hour of 7:40am tomorrow morning via the train. This is somewhat painful for Mr. Darcy as he is not a morning person. I’m pretty sure we’ll grab our seats and he will promptly fall back to sleep. It’s a good balance between us- I navigate the morning and he takes care of the night. And besides, between all the apps I’ve downloaded on my iPhone and my book club book I will have plenty to occupy myself while he slumbers beside me.

I have visited Vancouver once before many years ago with my sister. That was back when I was not even a Washington resident and Dokey and Double B were new transplants to Seattle. I am excited to go and see the city with new eyes, along with my love who has never been. We are staying near Stanley Park and plan to do a lot of exploring of the city. So far we do not have an agenda for the trip except for attending TequilaCon Saturday night at Steamworks Brewing Company. It’ll be a great time with some awesome bloggers- many of whom I already call friend. But for the rest of the time it’s about Mr. Darcy and I vacationing together. He’s been very stressed out about work stuff and I’m just over-worked period so we’re going to take the trip as it comes and just BE together away from obligations. If I don’t respond to your emails or texts despite the fact that I now have an iPhone just chalk it up me being distracted by romance.

Ah, love.

If you’ve been to Vancouver before, feel free to recommend any sites, restaurants or must-sees or give us any tips about the city. And if you’re going to be at TequilaCon, I’ll see you soon!

This Conversation Is Being Recorded

April 21, 2010 at 6:30 am | Posted in everyday frustrations, the super | 19 Comments

I’ve had a few run ins with the Music Man in that last couple weeks. None to the level from before like where he’d leave multiple harassing messages on my voicemail accusing me of recording his messages (HELLO IT IS A VOICEMAIL WHICH RECORDS MESSAGES!) or of someone squatting in the apartment above him or any number of random thoughts that ran through his addled brain. It’s been downright quiet where he is concerned even though he still insists on playing his music at  a volume that neighbors a block away can hear.

He has a new neighbor above him. This neighbor has complained a couple of times that MM’s music is played at a bothersome volume. Apparently MM has gone up to his neighbor’s apartment and request that he stomp on the floor when the music is too loud rather than report it to me because when he reports it to me, I write him up. Three writes up in a certain time period can mean eviction. MM does not want that so he goes all super uber passive aggressive and manipulative and tries to play all sides. Sadly for him, we’re all more clever than him to fall for his bullshit.

In typical Music Man fashion, when the upstairs neighbor did stomp on the floor as he had asked him to do, MM retaliated by slamming something repeatedly against his ceiling and keeping the music at top volume. Um, this is not a compromise. But this is exactly what you get when trying to reason with crazy.

That’s not the worst of it though. Recently, Music Man has decided to turn his laser paranoia eyes to his former neighbor, the infamous Pot Head who recently vacated the building. MM claims that Pot Head has hacked into his internet and is stealing it. I ran into him while cleaning the laundry room and he went on and on about Pot Head and that he knew he had keys and was upstairs in the apartment above him. I tried casually saying that Pot Head and his upstairs neighbor do not know each other to which MM rolled his eyes and basically called me naive.

Whatever, Mister Paranoia.

I saw him last night as I was unloading groceries from my car in the driveway.  He was walking by and at first just nodded towards me but I said hello because I am friendly to my tenants. I’m keeping the line between nice and door mat firmly in place, especially with him. He stopped, looked at me with a kind of crazy eyed look and proceeded to tell me that Pot Head has keys to the apartments and I should be careful. That he is upstairs all the time saying things about him, making fun of him, and laughing. I foolishly said, “He doesn’t live here anymore and he gave me his keys when he moved out. Besides, they don’t know each other.” He scoffed. HE ACTUALLY SCOFFED AT ME. Then his face changed and became much softer and he looked me up and down and said, “You look amazing, by the way.”

Uh, thanks?

I walked towards the front door and encouraged him to call the landlords if he had these concerns. Because that is what he is SUPPOSED to be doing but instead he complains on the sly to me and apparently is “keeping a log” of all the transgressions against him.

Awesome. He should start a blog.

Who’s the Dip Now?

April 20, 2010 at 5:57 am | Posted in family, flashback, float my boat | 22 Comments

When my sister and I were in high school, we had a large group of friends who regularly invaded our house to hang out. (Some of those people are still in our lives. I’m looking at you -Jenny Two Times and Tomato.) We had (still have!) what everyone considered “a cool Mom” and she didn’t mind a hoard of loud teenagers taking over her living room and raiding her kitchen. It got to the point where my Mom would stock the fridge with stuff we all liked because it was such a regular occurrence. One thing in particular she would make is what is commonly referred to as Seven Layer Dip. But in our house we called it “Walking Taco.”

For years and years I’ve thought that we called it Walking Taco because you walk the chip across the plate of the seven layers of ingredients. Even typing that makes me pause and wonder how I came up with this definition because it doesn’t make much sense. Over the weekend, the dip came up as a topic of discussion and my sister said that it was called Walking Taco because you dip the chip in and WALK AWAY with what is essentially a “taco” on a chip.

Well, duh.

But I was not convinced. Screw logic! I wanted to be right. I called my Mom the next day to confirm the true meaning behind the term Walking Taco. She laughed when I told her the reasoning behind my definition and corroborated my sister’s definition. It was in fact because you WALK with it. Not because you walk the chip across it.

Who walks a chip?

Me, apparently.

Hello 37

April 19, 2010 at 6:56 am | Posted in birthday, float my boat | 33 Comments

I had a super awesome birthday. It’s okay to say “super awesome” at the ripe age of 37, right? Am I dating myself? Like how when Kaply and I were in MAC on Saturday and they were playing all this great music like The Smiths and we were singing along, remembering our youth, and the girl who was ringing us up wasn’t even 30 yet so she was giving us a look like “I’m humoring you” even though she was very nice and did a kickass job on my make over.

That keeps happening more and more. Ah, aging! You bitch.

Besides a make over, Kaply & I dined on some sushi and I accidentally bought myself an iPhone. I wasn’t planning on it but I walked into the store and was OVERCOME with the need for it. I also got a super cute owl hard case for it because I like my accessories to be cute. I am in love with my phone. Don’t worry, Mr. Darcy is already well aware. If people thought I was on my phone a lot before with the piece of crap I had then, woah! better watch out. It does allow me to take fun photos. Like this one-

Awww, love.

Or this one-

Have I mentioned lately how hawt my boyfriend is? He is.

My boyfriend spoiled me with a HUGE bouquet of gorgeous flowers and a lovely necklace plus he took me out to dinner after we went to the theater yesterday AND he’s coming with me to Vancouver next weekend and putting us up in a swank hotel near Stanley Park. I AM THE LUCKIEST. My friends took me out to Moroccan food which was yummy- you eat with your hands and share food. I loved it! And there was belly dancing which was very tantalizing. Ahem. After dinner we all sat around my apartment drinking wine, sharing stories and laughing while gorging ourselves on chocolate fondue. (Thanks Dokey!) It was a perfect evening in my opinion. THEN if that wasn’t enough, my family made me brunch the next morning and bought me gifts and sang me happy birthday. PLUS it was perfectly sunny in Seattle all day. I know some of you put in a good word with Mother Nature about that- thank you.

Everything was just. . . peacefully lovely and wonderful. Not to mention the outpouring of birthday wishes and love via text, calls, Facebook (what did we do before it!?), and Twitter. I felt very special and can’t thank you enough for helping me welcome in my next year of glory.

Because trust me when I tell you, it’s going to be epic.

I'm gonna rock thirty-seven.

Annual Sizzle Birthday LoveFest

April 16, 2010 at 5:37 am | Posted in birthday, jubilation | 52 Comments

*Who cares if my actual birthday isn’t until Sunday? Let’s start this party now! It’s The Annual Sizzle Birthday LoveFest time. For those of you who are new, my friend Bird started a tradition of having everyone at my party go around the room and tell me what they love about me on my birthday. In recent years many folks have chimed in and hosted the LoveFest. This year, I’ve enlisted the boyfriend. You can participate by leaving a comment if the spirit moves you.*

Hello fellow denizens of the Sizzleverse (yes, Sizzleverse. My other choice was Sizzlesphere, but that sounds too limiting for my tastes). Mr. Darcy here helping out with a guest blog for Ms. Sizzle’s birthday.  Let me first say that it’s an honor that she even considered me to write one of these, and let me apologize in advance for inflicting my literary ineptitude upon all of you. Kaply has mandated that this entry not be too sappy, and I will try my best. No promises.

As many of you probably already know, I am relatively new to Ms. Sizzle’s world and I thought I might share how I ended up here. My first encounter with her was on a local singles site on the interwebz – I checked out her profile and thought, “That girl is waaaay too cute and hip for a guy like me.” Not long after, you can imagine my surprise when I received a sweet, flirtatious message from her in my inbox. This was my first taste of the strong, independent woman that I would come to love.

From the moment I first met her and she stood up to hug me “hello”, I knew she was a pocket-sized firecracker. She has a way of making anyone feel at ease and like her partner-in-crime. And that’s how I felt at the end of that night. I have learned to love everything about Sizzle. (Me: Even the snoring? Come on now!) That sly little giggle of hers that can turn into a throaty laugh is a sound I live to hear. That sparkle in her lovely eyes when she has a plan is exciting with the promise of infinite possibilities awaiting you.  She is a whirlwind of adventure, caring and responsibility all rolled into one. Is that all even possible? With Sizzle it is.  The only thing I like more than one of her jaunts is when she quietly rests her head on my chest while we chat away the mysteries of the universe.

Sizzle is also a challenge. She challenges herself to care deeper, think with more compassion and live her dreams to the fullest. She’ll challenge you too. And you will want to keep up with her every step of the way. She brings out the best in everyone she interacts with. Being part of her life makes you a better person – maybe not by plan but just by participating you will find your life a richer experience because of her. I don’t think I’ve ever met someone with so many friends who care so deeply for their well-being. Trust me, I know a lot of cats.

We were born the same year, and though she came into the world a little before me I am thankful for meeting this sexy cougar with a penchant for slightly younger men. (Me: Meow!) She’s the best thing about Seattle, even if the rest of the city doesn’t know it yet.  They will eventually. I am sure of it. One person at a time. She is the best thing in my life, and I’ve got a lot of really good things going for me.

It’s hard listing all the things I love about Sizzle. Her fabulous hair. Her style and flair. Her ability to say what everyone else won’t.  Her delectable cooking. That she tries really hard to use her turn signals all the time. (Me: Snort! Here we go again with the turn signal business!) There’s just too much to list.  I knew this was going to be impossible when she asked me to write on her blog. So now I’m asking you to help me. Help me articulate everything there is to love about this funny, sexy, smart and confident woman who makes my heart flutter like a schoolboy.

I love you, shmexy girl. I love everything about you and everything you do to make the world a better place for me and everyone you know. Happy Birthday. xoxoxo

37 in 37

April 15, 2010 at 5:46 am | Posted in adventures, big dreams, birthday, living out loud | 42 Comments

Tomorrow is the Annual Sizzle Birthday Lovefest hosted by none other than, my love, Mr. Darcy. Don’t miss it! But today is for my next year’s wish list. You know I couldn’t resist, right? These are all the things I hope to do, experience, be in the coming year. . .

  1. Visit Canada (here we come TequilaCon!) COMPLETED 4/10
  2. Participate in a Flash Mob SOMEDAY!
  3. Start taking guitar lessons NO LONGER INTERESTED
  4. Lose 30lbs NOT MY FOCUS
  5. See my dear friends, Dumpling & Jersey Girl, get married COMPLETED 8/10
  6. Fly a kite at Gas Works Park WHEN IT STOPS RAINING I WILL
  7. Meet Mr. Darcy’s family COMPLETED 11/10
  8. Visit New Jersey for the first time (see #5 & #7) COMPLETED 8/10
  9. Go kayaking IT RAINS TOO MUCH
  10. Commit to an on-going yoga practice DOING IT!
  11. Read a book a month NOT QUITE
  12. Go on a trip with just my mom and sister NOT YET
  13. Write down three things I am grateful for every day OOPS
  14. Lose the guilt over giving myself “me time” 90% THERE
  15. Pay off any outstanding debt SO CLOSE
  16. Sign up for a First Time Home Buyers workshop POSTPONED
  17. Get the moles on my back checked COMPLETED 5/10
  18. Make a meal from Julia Child’s cookbook NOPE
  19. Become a season ticket subscriber to the theater WENT TO A LOT MORE THEATER
  20. Take a road trip COMPLETED 12/10
  21. Have a monthly date with Finn MOSTLY
  22. Take a dance class DOES NIA COUNT?
  23. Send more real mail to people I love Could have done better
  24. Give time to my creativity Instead dreamed up a side business
  25. Take naps 1 or 2 were taken
  26. Eat Here and Here ATE AT HOW TO COOK A WOLF 3/11
  27. Go on picnics I DID!
  28. Start a wine tasting club (I am looking to you Supple) NO LONGER INTERESTED
  29. Get new glasses (FINALLY) COMPLETED 8/10
  30. Have monthly date with my family DID BETTER BUT NOT GREAT
  31. Go to California with Mr. Darcy COMPLETED 5/10
  32. Go white water rafting COMPLETED 6/10
  33. Do a video blog post COMPLETED 4/18/11
  34. Get a complete physical COMING UP IN 5/11
  35. See the tulips COMPLETED 4/11
  36. Shack up with Mr. Darcy COMPLETED 8/10
  37. Get my tattoo VERY SOON!
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