Straight On Till Morning - Version 2.0

Awesomeness from London Fashion Week

2010-02-26T11:43:00.005-06:00

I'm going to give up apologizing for all of my posts being fashion-related lately. I write about things that are influencing me, and this is what I've been obsessed with lately. I do promise some regular posts soon, though! Lots going on in Crystal-land.

But let's talk London Fashion Week for a second. Tell me what is unusual and a little bit awesome about these photos:

The first two are from Mark Fast's Fall 2010 RTW collection. I am not a fan of his designs in general- I don't think he has the understanding of how to work with a woman's body that some designers have (and I haaaate the styling on this particular show, it just looks trashy). But o-m-g. Actual plus-sized models. On the runway. At fashion week. In a show with "regular" models. Even if I hate your clothes, this gets a thumbs-up from me!

For the record, it's not just the plus sized designs I dislike from his line. Even the stick-thin girls look... unflattering:

I think the third photo is my favorite, though. Hellooooo, Granny! That one is from Sykes Fall 2010 RTW. I don't even know what to say beyond HOW COOL IS THAT? Fashion should be about doing the unexpected, pushing boundaries, shaking things up. How cool to have models that make the statement that you don't have to be 20 years old and 98 pounds to be fashionable?

A "plus-sized" (aka something like size 8, which I would only be if I was just this side of starved to death) girl won America's Next Top Model a few years ago. "The girl on page 194" in a recent issue of Glamour magazine got people buzzing as women freaked out about seeing an image they could actually relate to. (It was a big deal, y'all. Google "the girl on page 194". Behold! Or check out examples of people's reactions here, here, here or here or... you get the point.) I hate when people refer to curvier girls as "REAL" women, because ALL women are real women. We're different shapes and sizes and colors and ages and personalities, and we are all flawed, and we are all beautiful.

Obviously, there is also a lot of resistance to this type of thing. Last season, when Fast first used plus-sized models mixed in with his runway, "his show stylist quit over the designer's insistence on including three models from a plus agency on the runway amongst regular girls." (quote from style.com)

I can imagine the shock of being audience when Fast opened the show with THIS look:

I mean HELLO! Normally when you see larger models in a sexy dress, it looks like this:

(Which I actually think is much sexier, but you get the point.)

However, when he used plus sized models again this season, it still caused a stir, but not to the same extent. If he continues, and maybe a few other designers join in, will this eventually seem normal?

The world is changing, and I'm excited for the crazy, fascinating ride!

McQueen is dead, Long live McQueen.

2010-02-22T12:23:00.004-06:00

Can I take a moment to mourn the death of Alexander McQueen?

(Sorry, btw, that this seems to be turning into a fashion blog lately! I tend to get obsessed with random things for periods of time, and right now this is it. I promise non-design stuff soon!)

His Spring 2010 ready to wear collection blew my mind. The idea was, to quote style.com,
"an apocalyptic forecast of the future ecological meltdown of the world: Humankind is made up of creatures that evolved from the sea, and we may be heading back to an underwater future as the ice cap dissolves."

The more reptilian side of the collection didn't appeal to me much, but the sea side...

The hair and makeup had me totally convinced that these guys live in the depths of the sea.

The Little Mermaid WISHES she had these shoes!

And THESE are my new obsession:

My heart still belongs to the Ann Demeulemeester Fall 2008 triple lace boots, but if these found their way into my life, I think we could be very happy together. I wonder how tall those would make me?

I got so excited scrolling through the pictures of this collection that I momentarily forgot WHY I was digging up picture for this post. I found myself excited to see what would come next, but of course, there is no next. Sadness.

Check out past Alexander McQueen collections here. And then slip into a pair of shoes that look like bedazzled armadillos to mourn.

molto bene, del gatto

2010-02-21T18:24:00.003-06:00

This spread in Italian Vogue has made me totally rethink my future crazy cat lady aesthetic:

New To Do List:
*Find kitty-sized sunglasses
*Decorate bathroom in awesome blue tiles
*Teach cats to play guitar
*Procure snazzy pink wallpaper and lots of yarn

Please donate a zillion dollars to the "Crystal needs new clothes" fund!

2010-02-05T21:56:00.003-06:00

These are my favorite boots. Or at least they have been for a long time, but they are now literally falling apart! Add the fact that little chunks of the faux leather type exterior fall off every time I put them on to my recent drooling over awesome shoes (see previous post), and I decided to head to the fancy schmancy mall in Orlando to try on totally overpriced stuff I can't afford.

I started out here:

At the top of the escalator, my bellydancer gene kicked in, and I was instantly drawn to shiny things!

This slip is by Free People, and is something like a billion dollars. (Okay, i think $78.) It's kind of an awkward length- too short to wear as a dress (for me, at least!), but too long to be a shirt due to how stiff it is. It did kind of make me feel like a Vegas showgirl, though, so lots of points for being fun!

I almost didn't try on the second one, but I'm glad I did!

I reeeally wish I'd gotten a better picture of this one, because I LOVED it! It had fewer sequins than the first, so it wasn't as stiff, very light. And I never wear gold or white (this is white material with gold sequins), but somehow these colors looked so good on me!

So, shopping lesson #1- don't wear a bright red bra when you are going to try on a bunch of clothes! But besides the $$$, I couldn't get this because I don't have a bra that would work with it. Given that my cup runneth over, I can almost never find strapless bras that actually work, and wearing one with straps with this kinda kills it. Plus the bra would obviously need to be a nude color, since we see how bright colors work out above!

Close-up of the fabric over jeans

They're both made by Free People, btw, which might be my new favorite clothing brand. I tried on a ton of their stuff! And this slip comes in all kinds of colors- I totally want the silver, too!

They do all kinds of layering pieces. LOVE!

I looove this sheer ballerina slip! I would never have the body to pull it off, though!

Next stop, Anthropologie!

I could LIVE in Anthropologie. It's one of my favorite stores ever! I totally fell in love with this top:

Sadly it is $98, so I'm going to have to wait till it hits ebay, or win the lottery!

I also love this shirt from Anthropologie, but didn't see it in the store:

My final stop was Macys, where I through I would just pop in, but ended up with a ginormous pile of stuff in the dressing room!

I made a total dork of myself stopping upstairs to take pictures of the awesome white butterfly display hanging from the ceiling:

(At least I think it was Macy's with the butterflies! It may have been Neiman Marcus. But all the following clothes are def. Macy's!)

Another one I fell seriously in love with, this top from Guess! It's such a flattering shape, and the leather accent is amazing! This is what the back looks like:

I am seriously considering going back to get this. It is $54, but Macys is having a wear red sale where you can get 20% off if you wear red, so that drops it down to... well, still more than I should be spending. But man is it tempting!!

I just have to point out one more thing:

How awesome is it that the shirt looks better on me than on the model?? In what alternate universe does THAT ever happen? Hello, ego boost! YAY for boobs!

When I picked up this shirt, I also decided to try the jacket/wrap thing that was on display with it, even though it isn't my usual style:

Ok, so this one does look better on the model, but I loooove it! It's not quite a sweater, because it doesn't close, more like a wrap with arms? Or if a sweater and a big scarf had a love child. ($79 from Guess)

This one is by Weston Wear, but I haven't been able to find it online! Hard to see in this dark dressing room pic, but there is a seriously fun ruffle thing on the shoulder!

Pardon the bra, again. This top is by Jaloux, and again I can't find it online! I really considered this one, it's my favorite shape for a shirt, and it's sheer in places and solid in others, so you get little peeks of skin here and there without showing too much (except I kind of am here, sorry!).

One more top by Free People:

If it were longer, I probably would have liked it! I'm 5'11, so a lot of shirts tend to be too short on me. Too short + voluminous fabric = hello, 20 extra lbs!

I have no idea who these last two are made by, sadness!

I didn't buy anything, and actually left kind of bummed because I couldn't bring anything with me!

Do you like trying clothes on just for fun, even when you know you are broke, or does it just depress you?

Shooooooes!

2010-02-04T06:14:00.003-06:00

Ten pairs of boots and shoes I would buy if I suddenly had a bazillion dollars:

Maison Martin Margiela Cut-Out Knee-High Boot

It's a high heel! It's a boot! I looooves it!

Alexander McQueen leather ankle boots

I can see wearing these with pretty much anything!

Alexander McQueen multi-zip leather boots

I need these! They have little skulls on the zillers! And they're just... mmmmm!

Ann Demeulemeester Triple Lace Boots

These are my new favorite boots in the whole wide worldiverse! If they weren't $2000, I would buy them today! The last time I fell in love this hard was the Kenneth Cole Stitchless shoes like five years ago, which I did finally end up buying on ebay. Those, however, were $160 shoes, and these are $2000, but maybe someday we will be together!

Christian Louboutin Very Galaxy Platform Pumps

Just in case I ever wind up at Studio 54

Burberry Laser Cut Lace Boots

We loooves them, the precious!!!

Christian Louboutin Jessica 100 knee high boots
They look comfy! And awesome! And... more awesome!

Loubitin python pumps- I love them! I would feel like a serpent! Hiss!~~~

Studio 120 peep-toe pumps

Gucci Helena Cutout Boots

There is no way I would be able to walk in these, but I would probably just sit around and snuggle them and breathe in the leathery smell! But if I ever did learn to walk in them, I would probably wear them everywhere. Can't you picture these with my work uniform? Me, either.

I wish I had prices, so I could give you a grand total for this page! Imagine something higher than what I paid for my car, I am sure!

The voice behind the news

2010-02-03T15:23:00.001-06:00

There was a discussion on the radio earlier that I'm trying to decide how I feel about, so I thought I'd post here and ask for your opinions.

In a nearby town, a man came off an exit ramp at a bad angle and ended up with his car in a retention pond. He called 911, and was calm for most of the call, until the last 30 seconds or so when he started freaking out that he couldn't get out, and was starting to panic. The man ended up drowning, and the debate has been on if news companies should play the 911 audio or not.

Should the news play this kind of audio? Would you want to hear it? Does it add a level of interest to the story, or is it totally insensitive? Have we become desensetized to this kind of thing from movies and tv? Would it make a difference to your opinion if it was a video instead of audio? If it was you, would you want people to hear your last phone call, or have it kept private? Is playing the audio in bad taste, or just a normal part of journalism?

Click here to read the story on the Orlando Sentinel's site. I'm told the audio is already on youtube, if you fall in the "want to hear it" crowd.

How to screw kids up for life

2010-02-03T10:32:00.004-06:00

The Buckethead Show recently did a feature on really screwed up old sex ed videos. These are a few they played and posted on their site that I felt the need to share with you guys.... However, please do not blame me if watching these makes you never want to have sex again, and if you experience an erection lasting longer than four hours, well... call me.

a) I love that the kid has a "Make Love, Not War" poster on the door. Oddly fitting.

b) OMG, Mom, have this talk later! For now, maybe stick with "Sorry!" Yeesh.

c) Um, is the kid continuing his... business... while picturing his mom's face and echoing voice? EWW.

I think that I am randomly going to break out with the phrase "One never knows when the homosexual is about", because hello, awesome. I am pretty sure that if I printed it on red t-shirts, I could make a billion dollars the first week of June!

And just remember the lesson here kids: Hitchhiking is totally ok and safe, unless it is these guys picking you up:

This one is pretty long, but worth it. (That's what SHE said!)

I... don't know where to start. I think "Puberty? That would take a little explaining. Maybe later?" will be my new pickup line. And yes, many things were new to Billy, like conversations about penises while on a lawnmowing break. Wait, lawnmowing DATE break? (One never knows when the homosexual is about!!!)

The transition in there where the coach says "So that afternoon in the locker room...." I was 99.8% sure we were going to transition into porn. And then he says something about "your bodies are changing from boys to men", and I cry a little inside because nobody breaks out into Motown Philly or On Bended Knee.

Also, THAT IS THE WORST DRAWING OF A PENIS EVER. And parents, do you really want the guy who points to the middle of a drawing's chest as he says "and your face" teaching your kids about anatomy physiology? But he does have really pretty handwriting.

I love that in the credits of one, the boys are billed not by name, but "From the Boys Clubs of San Francisco". Can you imagine walking into the local Y today and saying "Hey, we need a group of young boys for a video about sex. Can we borrow a couple dozen for the afternoon?" (OMG, even in the safe haven of San Francisco, You never know when the homosexual might be about!!!)

You know, I kind of want to create a comic book superhero called The Homosexual, just because he already has a catch phrase.

Anyway, there is also a part 2 to this one, but other than one kid saying "Someone needs to give you guys the word!", it's not as awesome. Except the part about women giving birth to chickens. And the mental image of the coach sitting around in his office after school drawing up some diagrams of the uterus. And the part where he says "Well, what you want to know about is sexual intercourse. That happens like this..." and I am reeeally afraid to look because I think he might take off his pants.

There are a few more videos in the original post I linked to, including one that tells you not to square dance while on your period (but going on a picnic is ok!), and two that are, I kid you not, about teaching sex ed to people with mental disabilities.

I am pretty sure that when my currently nonexistant baby is born (his/her name is going to be Awesome Hardcore), I am just going to sit him/her down in front of this blog post and let youtube do the teachin'.

So, do you think the people in these films put these jobs on their acting resume? "Oh, I played a pedophile with a case of 'the gay' in a movie once!" or does little Jimmy have.... wait. I was going to write a possible character title for the kid in the first video, but I realized just how many unsavory google hits it might bring me. So let's just skip that, shall we? I fear you, Google!!!

And thus ends my short but illustrius career as a sex blogger. I think.

Free stuff!

2010-01-30T16:02:00.002-06:00

How much do you love Benefit cosmetics? Almost as much as I do? Their Big Beautiful Eyes set is something I can't live without!

Fellow 20-something blogger Becky is giving away the new Benefit Celebutante set here! Go enter! And then share with me if you win and I don't!

Crossed off the List!

2010-01-30T01:16:00.003-06:00

I have a couple of items to cross off my 101/1001 list!

5. Open a new bank account (Sun Trust sucks!) *Complete 1/14/10*

36. Open a savings account, even if there is hardly anything in it *COMPLETE! 1/14/2010, and it has ten whole dollars in it!*

I've been meaning to transfer from Sun Trust for over a year now, and I finally did! I opened a new checking account with Regions, and they were having a promotion- if you set up a savings account with direct deposit, and have $250 in it by the end of the year, and haven't touched it, they will match your $250! I am a fan of free money, so I signed up! I plan to set it up to take three or four dollars per week from my paycheck, so that I hopefully won't miss it.

I recently added my 101/1001 list to my sidebar, but I can't decide if I like it there or not. It just feels like too much maintenance, as well as a lot of clutter. Any suggestions for what else to do with it? I keep a copy in Google Docs that I update as I finish something, so I don't forget, but it would be nice to have an easily accessable version on the site, too. Or I can stick with just posting periodic updates. Suggestions?

I'd rather fly with him, thanks...

2010-01-29T21:08:00.004-06:00

I was recently sent the book Fly With Me, by Tera Leilani Walker by Dorrance Publishing Co. in exchange for reviewing it. I was pretty excited, because I devour all books travel-related, and this one, billed as "a humorous guide to a better flying experience" written by a flight attendant sounded fun.

I was excited to find the package in my mailbox, but really surprised when I pulled the book out- it is TINY! Only 43 pages long, which immediately made me think I would have been a little disappointed if I had paid the cover price of $8 for it, unless it turned out to be *really* good. I mean, for a paperback, I could get Neil Gaiman's awesome novel Stardust
for an entire dollar less on Amazon- one of my favorite books ever, and a respectable 288 pages of awesomeness. But that's my inner cheapskate talking, and in the book's defense, it does list it as 43 pgs on the publisher's site, I just overlooked that and was therefore surprised!

I really wish I had better things to say about this book, because I went into it really wanting to like it, especially since I recieved it a few days before vacation, so I thought it would be a fun plane read (and certainly wouldn't take up much room in my carry-on!). I only ended up reading a few pages on the plane, though, before dropping it for another more interesting book that would help the time pass more quickly.

The book is divided into fourteen "chapters", which I put in quotes because each one is only about two or three pages long, usually a page or two of narrative followed by a half or full page "poem", which I put in quotes because they are really bad. An example of a few lines from the "poem" from the "chapter" on passengers with stinky feet (I am totally not kidding.):

"Everybody's talking, they're deep in conversations;
word is... the odor's causing hallucinations.

It's like a really bad trip... you know LSD;
this could be Woodstock Flight 103.

It's not so much they're ugly and creepy;
vehemently, it's they're down right stinky."

This is what you just paid $8 for. Do I even need to point out that Creepy and Stinky don't rhyme?

To the author's credit, she does jump right to the topic of the mile-high club right after the intro chapter, but it's all downhill from there. Although the book is advertised as being educational about flying, the only tip I picked up was the best kind of airplane for airplane bathroom sex. (Seriously.)

I could probably overlook the less than stellar writing and come up with something better to say about the book if it weren't for the awful editing. There were so many spelling, typographical, and gramatical errors in this book it hurt. I counted at least eight, which is insane in a 43 page book, 9 of which are only half-filled with text since they are the end of a "chapter". I understand that even the best editor can miss something here or there, but having a chapter title read "The Worse Flight Attendant" (it is correctly printed as "Worst" in the chapter index, at least), should not have gotten past anyone.

My best guess is that the author was a woman who always had great work stories to tell her friends over drinks, and they all encouraged her "You should totally write a book about your job!" a few too many times. I always want to root for the person who actually sits down and writes the book they've always wanted to, so I wish I could find something redeeming to make me recommend this one, but I just can't. And now I think that my review may officially have a higher word count than the book itself.

If you want a fun book about flying from a flight attendant's point of view, can I recommend Plane Insanity: A Flight Attendant's Tales of Sex, Rage, and Queasiness at 30,000 Feet by Elliott Hester, instead? I read this one several years ago and loooved it. (I should point out that I did NOT recieve this one for free, and am linking to it only out of love, because it is so freaking much better! It doesn't appear to be available directly from Amazon anymore, but there are lots of used copies, or your library might have it.)

I have a few more book reviews coming up, so I'm hoping you guys like them. Luckily this book was the worst of the bunch so far; of my four upcoming reviews, one is lukewarm and the other three are positive, possibly even glowing. Yay for GOOD books!

Now for the tough part where I have to send a review to Fly With Me's publisher. Ouch. I hate, hate, hate sending a negative review, but honesty is the best policy, right? Have you ever had to review a book that you couldn't find anything nice to say about?

Who we become

2010-01-29T20:30:00.002-06:00

I've been thinking a lot lately about how much we change in just a few years. I guess it comes with the end of a decade, and thinking back to 2000, or even 2005 or 2008. I've probably evolved the most since 2007, when I moved to Florida, and started a totally different life. However, I think we can look back at any good three or five year chunk of our lives, and see a lot of change, hopefully for the good.

More about all that soon, perhaps, but I couldn't resist sharing this video I found at mamamia.com.au of Lady Gaga back before she was, well, Lady Gaga. This first video is from 2005, and I am totally in love with the first song:

And for comparison, current day Gaga:

Thoughts?

I did nothing

2010-01-25T20:29:00.003-06:00

This is pretty much a "What I did on my Summer Vacation" post, just replace "summer" with "January"- you have been warned!

I flew home on Friday the 15th, and immediately froze to death! Did you guys know Missouri is cold in the winter? I probably should since I lived there for about 26 years, but yeesh! I will stick with Florida this time of year, thanks!

Before I left, I told everyone who asked that I was going to spend my vacation sitting on the couch with my cat, watching TV, and eating, and that is pretty much what I did! My mom met me at the airport, and we stopped at Quick Trip on the way home for coffee, because we don't have QT here, and they have good coffee! They actually have vanilla cupcake cappuccinos! NOM!

Once I made it home, the first thing I did was snuggle with my cat Tallulah for about fifty hours. I have missed her more than words can say! I took a break from kitty-cuddling to look through some of the boxes that were still in my apartment downstairs.

A little info, if you are new around here- I used to live in a "mother in law apartment" (which we called a "poor daughter apartment") downstairs from my mom's house. I moved out to FL with just one car load of stuff, and my mom has mailed out a couple of boxes since then, but a LOT of my stuff is still back in MO, including a lot of clothes, books, dvds, and all my furniture. It felt like Christmas digging through boxes of books and clothes that I had forgotten I owned! I spent most of the week trying clothes on and deciding what I wanted to smoosh in my suitcase to bring back to FL with me, and what I could still live without.

Other than a lot of stuff looking through, I pretty much did exactly what I said I would: I watched TV, snuggled my cats, hung out with my mom, and ate, a LOT. And it was good! When you live at Disney World, you get used to being kind of over-stimulated, so just doing NOTHING for about a week is a welcome change! And when you can never afford food, having a house full of food is AWESOME. Throw in satelite TV when you haven't had a TV in two years, and that is my vacation. By the time I was leaving the next Saturday, I thought of all of the things I had wanted to do while home and never did, but I was ok with my lazyness. Sometimes, you just need to sit around and rest!

I got back to FL at 7pm on Saturday, and by 9pm, Ashlee and I were on our way to the Haven to see Lost in Chaos and Ambertone play. Both bands were amazing- Ambertone has a new guitarist from Venezuela, and he was really good, a little bit of a harder sound. Lost in Chaos was on fire, my friend Simon is their new guitarist, and they played a couple of songs he wrote that sounded fantastic. After Lost in Chaos, we jumped back in the car and sped to Sloppy Taco to try to catch the end of Johnny Plastic and the Rubber Band's set, but the guys were already loading equipment into Nic's truck by the time we got there. Epic fail! Somewhere on the way home from STP, we started laughing, and it evolved into a total giggle-fest that resulted in us barely making it up the apartment stairs and collapsing on my living room floor laughing for about half an hour. Excellent night!

Here's a video I took the last time we saw Ambertone at the Haven. It's my favorite part of my 2nd favorite Ambertone song-- sound on the video sucks, but it still makes me happy!

Dave took this awesome photo of Ashlee and I in between sets.

This one turned out much better!

Ash and I were trying to take this silly bar bathroom mirror pic, when some random chick walked in. I think we scared her, a lot!

Amazingly fun night! We get to see both Ambertone and Lost in Chaos again in a few weeks, and can't wait!

I was back to work today, teaching the orientation for my resort. I had 21 in my class today, so I had no voice by the end of the day! It was a good group, though, and a pretty easy day. I had to drive the 15-passenger van again, and didn't hit the curb once this time! (Last class kept a running count of how many I hit! Ok, it was only 2...)

I work in concierge tomorrow night, and then thankfully have Weds/Thurs off! Teach again on Fri, regular work on Sat, and then weirdly have Sunday off because they switched my days around next week so I can teach an extra day. Whew! I think I need some sleep!

Cat and mom, in that order.

2010-01-10T10:58:00.005-06:00

I GET TO GO HOME ON FRIDAY!

Hold on, I am not sure if you just got the magnitude of that statement. Let's try again.

***I GET TO GO HOME ON FRIDAY!!!1!1!***

Oh yes, I went there with the dancing bananas.

I haven't been home since August 08, so it has been like a year and a half! Here is what I am looking forward to:

1) Seeing my cat
2) Seeing my mom and possibly other family
3) Eating
4) Watching TV
5) Doing abso-freakin-loutely nothing for a WHOLE WEEK and getting paid for it.

Yes, I have two cats in Florida, but Tallulah, who is MY cat, and the love of my life, is still home in Missouri, and I can NOT wait to see her and snuggle! Seeing my mom is also good, since she has done such awesome things as give birth to me. And given that I NEVER have money for food, and am slowly approaching supermodel size, I am going to STUFF MY FREAKING FACE for the whole week. I am also going to park my butt in front of the TV, because I do not have one, so the glowing magic box fascinates me. And thanks to paid vacation days from work, I get PAID for all this!

It WILL be freaking cold. But given that I am going to be on the couch with a cat and a blanket and a pizza, that is totally okay.

FOUR days to go! Squee!

Cooking with Crystal, Volume 1

2010-01-09T09:58:00.002-06:00

Today, gentle readers, I would like to share with you some advice that comes straight from my kitchen this fine morning.

Say that you are, perhaps, a friend of all things carbohydrate. And let's also say that you opened a roll of croissant dough about a week ago. Just for giggles, let's also say that you have been sick for eight hundred and fifty-seven (or two) months, and as a result, have the appetite of a very small and fragile bird, and therefore know there is NO FREAKING WAY you will eat all 8 croissants before they get funky and inedible.

POP QUIZ!

If you should only make 4 of the croissants from the little triangles of dough that day, is it a good idea to freeze/refrigerate the rest of the dough for a week, in hopes that you can have the rest of the yummy baked goods another day?

Learn from my pain, friends. It is not ok. You will get all excited about bready goodness, only to have your every hope and dream crushed.

This is exactly why one should always have a box of pop tarts on hand, for nutritional emergencies.

Here Endeth the Lesson

Jasper and Kevin

2010-01-07T16:31:00.004-06:00

1224090007a.jpg, originally uploaded by crystalw07.

Jasper got a new toy for Christmas. These feathery toys are the total meaning of his existance, but because of his undying love, they don't last all that long. Because they are brightly colored and feathery, we have taken to calling them Kevin, after the bird in Up.

I am totally not kidding you about Jasper's undying love for his Kevins.

This is an hour after he got the new one.

This is three hours later.

And later that night...

And this is his old one next to his new one, which I think explains pretty well why they need replaced.

I can't even begin to imagine what he would do if he ever saw an actual bird. Well, actually, knowing my Fraidy-Cat, he would hide.

2010-01-07T16:22:00.002-06:00

I mentioned in my last post how COLD Florida has been lately, and now I offer photographic proof! Jasper, my "no hugs, not EVER" cat, has taken to curling up in bed with me in my lap, under the blankets, while I am sitting in bed online. Observe:

I think that is a look that says "I am not particularly okay with this whole touchy-feely thing, but you are warm, so I find it acceptable for now."

What do you mean this post is poorly-written, random, and full of tangents that make no sense? I think it's just fine, apple naked noodle pool frogs!

2010-01-07T08:02:00.003-06:00

I went on weather.com yesterday morning to find out exactly how many layers of clothes I would need to pile on before heading out to Epcot. (Answer: 73) When I pulled up the site, I noticed this:

Are they stalking me? See how subtle they are, all "e.g. Disney World", like "Oh no, we aren't stalking you or anything, we just happened to suggest the place here you live and work and are going to lunch today." STALKERS.

The reason for my weather related inquiry was that I had lunch plans with a big group from work, and needed to know if I was going to freeze to death on the 10 minute walk from where I park to the restaurant.

You should probably know that pretty much ALL of my cold weather clothes are still in Missouri. Actually, pretty much all of my stuff in general is! Furniture, books, dvds, tv, cat, you name it, it is sitting in boxes back home. (Minus the cat. She is too big to put in a box.) I moved out here with exactly two suitcases plus one car load of stuff, and mom has mailed out a couple of small boxes in the two years since, but in general, that's still pretty much all I have. As a result, I was pretty selective in which clothes I brought; Sweaters? Who needs em in Florida? Well, this week, me! I do!!

I have exactly three sweatshirts and one sweater in this state, and all of the above are dirty. And I am out of laundry detergent. And will not be able to afford more for at least a couple of weeks. (Try not to be too jealous of how awesome my lifestyle is. Also, if you happen to be the maker of a fragrance-free laundry detergent, now would be an AWESOME time to send me your product to review!!) I have to admit that I am still kind of getting over the disappointment that, given that I live at Disney World, small forrest animals do not swoop into my house on a weekly basis and do my laundry for me in a refreshing song and dance number with bubbles. At least the little bluebirds to still show up to help me do my hair on a pretty regular basis.

But back to my lack of clothes. Oh, crap, now you are picturing me naked, aren't you? Stop that! Unless you are Ewan McGreggor, in which case go right on ahead. And then call me.

Wait, did this blog have a point?

Oh, yes! It was cold. And Florida people do not know how to do cold. We look at our flip-flops and try to decide which would be the warmest. Which one of my t-shirts has the thickest fabric?

So I started to do the "maximize warmth at all costs!" thing, with lots and lots of layers, but then the Bellydancer Gene kicked in. There seems to be this genetic thing among bellydancers that attracts us to shiny things. We should be kept away from bedazzlers and bead sales. Does it glitter? Let's stick it on my bra and dance around! Whee! Even though I haven't technically preformed or done classes in years, the bellydancer gene still lies dormant, drawing me to big dangly coin earrings, and tribal-looking jewelry.

Basically, if I had my choice, I would go to work every day looking like this:

Well, maybe not work, but still. How awesome is the giant kuchi pendant in her hair?

Basic point: we like to decorate ourselves, all shiny shiny. And lunch yesterday was a Moroccan restaurant, with a bellydancer, so I had to return to my natural state! The closest I could come up with was a glittery paisley-print tank top, with my khaki colored jacket on top, with my giant leather coat over all that. Plus big earrings, and my boots that are literally falling apart, but were my only closed-toe option that were not either a) high heels, or b) toe socks with flip-flops.

How did this turn into a post about what turned out to be a boring outfit? I need an editor. Anyway! We had lunch at Restaurant Marrakesh, in Morocco, at Epcot.

(This is totally not my photo. Found it on flickr, here.)

The manager came out and talked to us for quite a while, and told us that they would be bringing us a sampler of some of the menu's offerings, which I was kind of thankful for because I hadn't been able to decide what I wanted to order. We had two or three waiters working our table (gotta love being VIP's!), one of which was from Casablanca, so I think I deserve major credit for not making any Rick's Cafe jokes to him. Another one, who I think was from Tangier, unless it was Fez, had FIVE language tags on his nametag. If you are new around here, I should explain that I am a language nerd. I eventually want to be fluent in at least a dozen languages, so I love talking to people who speak some of the same ones I do. A coworker and I recently totally bonded over both speaking French and Swahili (and I think the fact that I was the only person to ever ask him if he was from Republic of Congo or Democratic Republic of Congo, since his nametag just says Congo. I think he was more pleased that I actually knew things about DRC, too.) Anyway (This post might win an award for most unneccessary tangents ever!), I made a comment to Six Language Dude (the five on his nametag plus English), but he just kind of said "yeah", and handed us bread. Sadness!

We had giant chunks of bread, which we all gobbled up pretty quickly, and then were served plates with couscous, vegetables, and both beef and chicken shish-ka-bobs. I'm not as big meat eater (that's what she said!), but I was a fan of the couscous. I still have pretty much no appetite from having just spent 6 weeks home sick, so most of my entree ended up in a handy to-go box. They also brought us out trays of baklava, both almond and pistachio. I love pistachios, and gobbled up the sweet square of nutty goodness with joy. Too bad I couldn't get an extra box of THAT to go!

I found an updated Marrakesh menu here if you are interested.

So, here is the weird thing about the people I work with: We actually LIKE each other. This is a very good thing, since we see WAY more of each other than we see of our friends or family. Like any group, there are people you get along with better than others, but it's nice to be able to go out with coworkers, and have it feel pretty much exactly like being out with your other friends.

We posed for a picture by the fountain near the restaurant, which we flagged down some poor unsuspecting but awesome tourist to take, with three different cameras:

Observe: people who do not own warm clothing, trying to look warm. Note my awesome coat over jacket ensemble. That plus jeans that are two sizes too big for me only add about fifty million pounds to this photo.

I thought our outing was over at this point, as we all meandered back to the van, but I found out they had also arranged for us to get to go ride Soarin' with no wait! SCORE!

If you are not a Disney person, Soarin is a ride at Epcot that opened a few years ago, but is so astoundingly popular that the waits are always pretty crazy, and the fastpasses run out fast. I hardly ever ride it because I am way too impatient for lines, so getting to ride with everyone was great! I love Soarin, I love the music, and the smell of oranges as you fly over the orange groves, and trying to kick the people in the boats near the beginning of the movie, since my feet are already aimed at them. And this time I got to obnoxiously talk through the whole thing with my "little brother" Mike, who I should probably never be allowed in a theme park with again, because we would probably get kicked out, fast.

Here, have some Soarin'. It's not the same without being able to feel the movement and breeze, and smell the sea and oranges, but at least you get the music!

And so ended our afternoon at Epcot. I guess I could have made this post a lot shorter. Maybe I should go back and just say "It was cold. I don't have warm clothes. Yay, bellydance! We ate lunch in Morocco and rode Soarin." Maybe someday, I will learn to write, but don't count on it anytime soon.

In which I confess that I have the technical skills of a wombat

2010-01-01T20:23:00.008-06:00

I am pondering changing the image in my blog header, that thing up there with the title and the two me's with the two cats. Why? It has been there for a few years, and I have a short attention span. And to be honest, I am not really sure why there are TWO of me. Well, yes, I am. So that there was one with each cat. Because I couldn't be standing with Tallulah on one side, and have Lily all alone on the other! Plus, the thing I used to make it wouldn't let me put both a camera and a coffee on the same person, and both of those things are essential, so I just cloned myself. If only real life were that easy!

And so once I started thinking about my image, I realized how confusing it probably is for people who are new to my site, because... a) why are there two of me? Is this a blog by two people? (No, I am just indecicive with graphics. Camera or coffee? BOTH!) b) Those are not even the cats I live with anymore! Lula and Lily live in Missouri with my Mom. (WOW that was some alliteration! I would like retroactive high school English credit for that sentence.)

I could make an all NEW banner with Cricket and Jasper (the cats who actually share an apartment, and a time zone, with me), but then I would feel terrible for not having Tallulah on it. And here I bet you thought that being a crazy cat lady was easy! HAH!

However, making a new banner featuring me and four cats is just a tiny step too close to becoming an ACTUAL crazy cat lady than I would like to go.

I suppose the best option is to come up with a new graphic that features something ELSE. Suggestions? Ideas? Random perfectly-designed banners that you just happened to stay up all night making for me?

Blogs are sort of like houses where once you start maintenance, you seel all this OTHER stuff that you should probably fix, too. For instance, my font. When I type on Blogger, it looks like this:

(Like how this image bleeds over into my sidebar? Me, too!)

Since that is what I see when I hit publish, my brain thinks that is what the font looks like on my blog. Of course, when I do look at my actual blog, it looks more like this:

***

***
Just in case you did not notice, THOSE ARE VERY DIFFERENT. I really prefer the larger size and actual font on blogger, but try as I might to fight with my CSS, I can not get it to look the way I want. This is pretty embarassing, because I have been blogging for something like TEN YEARS at this point, and holy crap, shouldn't I be able to change my FONT at this point?

Part of my problem is that I don't use a blogger template, mine is all custom, and I don't publish to blogger, I use it to publish to my own site via FTP, which makes a lot of the customization stuff not work. And it makes the Google Friend Connect follower widget thing not work, which sucks.

Speaking of which, does anyone know of a follower widget that DOES work if you do not publish to blogger?

I just realized that this post is one giant cry for help. And upon looking at this blog published, that seeing an image of your blog IN your blog is really freaky.

And now that I just looked at it again, I am wondering why exactly I felt the need to add an image of what my blog font looks like.. ON the blog that you are reading. Wow.

Best of 2009

2009-12-31T09:50:00.006-06:00

Blogger Gwen Bell put together a "Best of 2009" project, with one topic for each day of December to wrap up the best of the year. I just found it today, so I thought I'd throw them all into one post and see what I came up with!

You can click on each topic name to see blogs of the bazillion other people who have posted about that subject, too, if you are so inclined!

(I apologize in advance for the purple font. I wanted a way to distinguish my answers from the questions, and by the time I decided the color was annoying, I had already nearly finished, and was way too lazy to change it.)

December 1 Trip. What was your best trip in 2009?

Unbelievably, for someone as obsessed with travel as I am, I only left Orlando ONCE this year, and that was just for a day trip to Cocoa Beach with Ashlee, so it wins by default! Here's to much more travel in 2010!

December 2 Restaurant moment. Share the best restaurant experience you had this year. Who was there? What made it amazing? What taste stands out in your mind?

I am not a big eating out in restaurants person, because I am incredibly cheap, and don't eat all that much to begin with. All of my restaurant memories of the year are more about the people I was with than where or what we were eating. Katie and I had a silly, fabulous time at the Garden View Tea Room, where the manager asked us to keep sampling new teas they had gotten in, and we got on a rediculous sugar high. Dave and I had an equally silly time eating hummus at Urban Flatts after a Battle of the Bands, trying to decide what was in what we were eating (and deciding upon monkey brains.) Kouzzina with Mike and Ashlee, because the spanikopita was yummy and we got to see Cat Cora, and it's an oddly vivid memory.

December 3 Article. What's an article that you read that blew you away? That you shared with all your friends. That you Delicious'd and reference throughout the year.

Sadly, I don't think there's anything that stood out to me this year!

December 4 Book. What book - fiction or non - touched you? Where were you when you read it? Have you bought and given away multiple copies?

Oh my, I've read SO much this year that it makes this hard to pick! The first thing that came to mind, though, was Neil Gaiman's "The Graveyard Book", which was fantastic, as is everything Neil does.

December 5 Night out. Did you have a night out with friends or a loved one that rocked your world? Who was there? What was the highlight of the night?

Ooh, there have been some good ones! It's a tie between two; the first was back in February when Ashlee helped me get over my recent house breaking into and moving trauma with a LOT of alcohol at AKA Lounge. Plus it was a fun full circle moment, because it was the venue where I had first seen Black Ship Sky almost exactly a year before, and we were there to see them again. And there was silly fun!

The other one that stands out is going to see Black Ship Sky, Ambertone, and Lost In Chaos
at the Haven, because hello, those three bands at once is pretty much as good as it gets! And the company that night was excellent.

December 6 Workshop or conference. Was there a conference or workshop you attended that was especially beneficial? Where was it? What did you learn?

None of those, sorry!

December 7 Blog find of the year. That gem of a blog you can't believe you didn't know about until this year.

I have found a LOT of new ones in just the past few weeks, but I will be decicive and pick one and go with The Bloggess because that is the first one that came to mind.

December 8 Moment of peace. An hour or a day or a week of solitude. What was the quality of your breath? The state of your mind? How did you get there?

No one moment stands out, probably some time spent sitting out soaking up the sun outside, just enjoying some quiet.

December 9 Challenge. Something that really made you grow this year. That made you go to your edge and then some. What made it the best challenge of the year for you?

I'm actually REALLY proud that I finally completed/won a NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month.) I've don it several years before, and I think the best I ever did was 40,000 words during the month. Actually sticking with it and pushing to get word count at the end was pretty hard, but I did it, yay!

December 10 Album of the year. What's rocking your world?
Ambertone's Shifting Stars & Disregards has been in my car's CD player ALL YEAR. I mean, it is a 6 cd changer, but still, to hold one of those coveted spots for an entire year is pretty impressive.

December 11 The best place. A coffee shop? A pub? A retreat center? A cubicle? A nook?

I spent a lot of time wandering around Disney's Boardwalk this year, but I always do that, so it isn't particular to 2009. Still, it's where I go to think and write and such.

December 12 New food. You're now in love with Lebanese food and you didn't even know what it was in January of this year.

I can't think of any culinary adventures this year that have become a new favorite. Something else to add to next year's list, I guess!

December 13 What's the best change you made to the place you live?

The end of January, I moved out of the apartment that got broken into TWICE, into the place I live now, which I love. Quite the upgrade!

December 14 Rush. When did you get your best rush of the year?

This is a tie between getting to go over 100mph in a race car at the Richard Petty Speedway, and parasailing at Sammy Duvall's watersports center, both free (love my job sometimes!). Stuff like this is going to turn me into an adreneline junkie!

There is another story involving getting rained on, but I can't tell you that one. Maybe someday!

December 15 Best packaging. Did your headphones come in a sweet case? See a bottle of tea in another country that stood off the shelves?

I think the best evolution in packaging is that Oreos and Chips Ahoy and various other nutritional necessities (read: cookies) now have the little pull tab on the package to make it resealable, so your cookies don't get all funky if you happen to not eat the whole package in one day. Huzzah for progress!

December 16 Tea of the year. I can taste my favorite tea right now. What's yours?
Eros from the Garden View Lounge with LOTS of sugar! Quantity-wise, I drank about eighty gallons of Bigelow Apple Cinnamon tea, because that is what we have at work, and if you add a LOT of sugar, it will help you be nice to guests and not punch them in the face. That is the real secret of my company's success- a LOT of sugar.

December 17 Word or phrase. A word that encapsulates your year. "2009 was _____."

Long. I wish I had a happier word to describe it, and that my year end wrap-up was more jolly in general, but the naked truth is that it has been a LONG year, an exhausting emotional rollercoaster, and I am worn out from it, and could really use a cookie.

December 18 Shop. Online or offline, where did you spend most of your mad money this year?

This was The Year of the Poor, so I had no mad money to spend. My idea of living it up was buying the name brand cat food for 12 cents more per can. In fact, right now I have some gift certificates to use on Amazon, and I can't bring myself to spend them! I will find myself starting to put a book in the shopping cart, and then thinking "$12! That would pay for blah blah blah insert boring expense here!" And then I remember that no... I can't use this money to pay for gas or food or bills, it is just for fun books and dvds and such! And my brain is all "Does not computer!", so yeah. I haven't spent them yet.

December 19 Car ride. What did you see? How did it smell? Did you eat anything as you drove there? Who were you with?

There are two, and I can't tell you either story. I am so very sorry! I hate that there are certain things I can't post about, but someday if circumstances change, or the people involved are no longer a part of my life, I promise to share.

December 20 New person. She came into your life and turned it upside down. He went out of his way to provide incredible customer service. Who is your unsung hero of 2009?

I didn't meet a lot of new people this year, oddly enough. Oh wait! My wif, Shelley! (Yes, "wif". Like wife, but not.) We accidentally got married at work one day, and even though she is totally engaged to some dude now, she is still the best wif ever!

December 21 Project. What did you start this year that you're proud of?

I started my new 101/1001 list. I like lists!

December 22 Startup. What's a business that you found this year that you love? Who thought it up? What makes it special?

I really can't think of any new businesses that came into my life this year, hmm...

December 23 Web tool. It came into your work flow this year and now you couldn't live without it. It has simplified or improved your online experience.

Google Docs!!!

December 24 Learning experience. What was a lesson you learned this year that changed you?

Don't ever take Colonial Drive to anywhere you want to get to on time? No, I think my BIG lesson of this year was not to take ANYTHING for granted.

December 25 Gift. What's a gift you gave yourself this year that has kept on giving?

I wish I had something great to put here, but I haven't been particularly generous with myself this year. I will put a serious effort in taking better care of myself next year, so maybe that lesson was the gift.

December 26 Insight or aha! moment. What was your epiphany of the year?

I think I'm still working on getting to one.

December 27 Social web moment. Did you meet someone you used to only know from her blog? Did you discover Twitter?

I've probably actually been LESS internetty this year than in the past. I've realized just how much of my time it sucks up, and tried to cut back on that in favor of other things.

December 28 Stationery. When you touch the paper, your heart melts. The ink flows from the pen. What was your stationery find of the year?

I can't say I got all that excited about any paper, so I'll go with the awesome peacock notebook I got on sale at Target for like fifty cents that I used as a journal for a few months:

December 29 Laugh. What was your biggest belly laugh of the year?

Oh, wow. The first thing that came to mind was early this month when Katie tried to said she was going to give me back a book she had borrowed like a birthday present, but her mind somehow translated that to typing "I will give it to you like a bitch." Awesome. And then just a couple of days ago, I was on the phone with my mom, fretting about impending financial DOOM, when my cat Cricket walked in wearing a plastic Wal-Mart bag as a superhero cape, and carrying one of her toys in her mouth. I lost it, and was laughing so hard I couldn't even talk, and I'm pretty sure my mom thought I had just been shot and was dying of an asthma attack or something, because it came out of nowhere, but then I e-mailed her pictures, and she understood.

December 30 Ad. What advertisement made you think this year?

The beautiful thing about not having a TV is that I am very rarely subjected to craploads of advertising. It's a delightful thing!

WAIT! I totally take that back! There WAS one excellent ad this year!!!

If you aren't from Orlando, it probably isn't funny until you know what they are spoofing:

December 31 Resolution you wish you'd stuck with. (You know, there's always next year...)

I didn't make any actual resolutions last year, but I did say I would go back to trying to take photos every single day, which I totally failed at. Maybe in '10? (It will take me approximately three months to stop accidentally saying "0-ten", since the past decade has been "09" and such.)

No real NYE plans for me this year. I am still getting over my whole End of the Year Health Debaucle, which I can't even spell, so I'm still not quite celebratey. I will stay up till midnight, and let out a whoop of joy that the year is over, though, and welcome a fresh start with arms wide open!

This is why I don't cook

2009-12-30T17:41:00.002-06:00

The scene:
The camera fades in on the star of our story, standing in her small apartment kitchen, peeling the wrapper carefully from a roll of premade croissant dough, flinching in expectation of that popping thing dough does when you crack the roll.

Dough: *Does not pop*

Words on Package: Press on seam with spoon and twist roll to open

Crystal: What if you only own plastic spoons? *smooshes hard on package with thumb while trying to twist it. When that doesn't work, tries whacking it on the countertop.*

Dough: *does not pop*

Crystal: *reaches in silverware drawer for sturdy looking plastic spoon, and uses it to push down on package while trying to twist at the same time. Eventually abandons this for cautiously stabbing package with a knife*

Dough: *does not pop*

Crystal: *pokes package a little more firmly with knife before taking it in both hands and twisting as hard as possible*

Dough: *does not pop*

Crystal: I NEED AN ADULT!!

(Our Star walks out her front door, tube of dough in hand, and knocks on the door of the pastry chef next door.)

KNOCK KNOCK!

Dough: POP!

Crystal: *SCREAMS LIKE GIRL*

Door: Does not open

Crystal: Um, nevermind, I got it! *scurries back into own apartment*

Text from Ashlee Next Door: Um, was that you knocking?

Lesson learned: Buy pre-made croissants.

I would walk 500 miles...

2009-12-29T11:55:00.003-06:00

I've had a lot of free time to read lately, and two of the books I've just finished have made me really wish it was much warmer outside so that I could head out for a walk in the woods!

A Blistered Kind of Love is written by a couple (Angela and Duffy Ballard) who walked the Pacific Crest Trail from the US/Mexico border all the way north to Canada. The authors take alternating chapters, so you get two distinct points of view, a sort of he said she said. Neither of the two had much prior hiking or camping experience, which made it more relatable to me than if it had been written by someone who was used to walking thirty miles in a day, since I was able to understand their struggles. The trail is not just a test of their physicality, but also of their relationship. I've always said that traveling with someone is one of the best ways to test your relationship with them, and from the book I'd say that walking a thousand miles or so with that person is pretty effective! Despite all the crazyness of their trail adventures, this one left me with the urge to look up hiking shoes on Amazon, and find some local trails to hit! I don't think I could ever do the five straight months of walking thing, nor am I sure I would WANT to, but some day hikes sound awfully good.

The other book was A Walk Across America, by Peter Jenkins. I've heard this one recommended by travel book afficionados for a while, and finally picked it up. (It's been out for longer than I've been alive, so I'm a little late to the party!) I have a kind of embarassing confession- up until when I actually picked up the book, I had been mentally confusing Peter Jenkins with Peter Jennings, and always thought it was by the news anchor. Oops!

In the early 70's, Peter decided to get a first hand view of what the country and its people were really about by walking acorss America with his dog, Cooper. He set off from New York, and hiked down to Louisiana, with plans to continue West across the country. This book covers the NY to Louisiana part of the journey, but his trip west and subsequent trips have books as well, which I am looking forward to reading. Unlike the first book, where they stuck to a set trail, Peter is mostly walking along highways and through small towns, with the intention of meeting everyday people and seeing how they live. He ends up living with a few different families along the way, offering a look into the lives of some pretty diverse people and places. The real star of the book, though, is his dog Cooper, who I totally fell in love with. However, (spoiler alert! Highlight the following sentences to read:)

*books should totally come with some kind of warning label if the dog dies! I ended up crying in my doctor's office waiting room. *

Both books reminded me a little of Bill Bryson's "A Walk In the Woods", probably the best (and best-known) hiking book I know of. The latter also reminded me a little of Blue Highways, by William Least-Heatmoon. I really enjoyed both, although A Walk Across America would probably appeal to a wider audience.

Are there any books that make you want to lace up some hiking boots and go play in the woods? Do you think Jennings's walk would even be possible today, given how safety has changed? (I find it less likely that you could currently meet someone at a gas station and end up invited to sleep in their house that night!) Do several months spent doing nothing but walking through nature sound like a dream to you, or a nightmare?

A Double 101 Update

2009-12-24T08:36:00.003-06:00

Now that Day Zero, the main site for the 101 things in 1001 days project has been overhauled and my site is now listed there (yay!) I thought I'd take a moment to update you on the progress of my lists!

If you are unfamiliar with 101 in 1001, the idea is to create a list of things you would like to do (101 of them), within 1001 days. It's kind of like a bucket list, but you have to also keep in mind what you can reasonably actually accomplish within that time frame (not quite 3 years), so while visiting the Galapagos might be on my big list of Adventures for my lifetime, chances are I'm not going to make it there within the next couple of years, so it doesn't go on the list. Instead, you find things that will brighten up your everyday life, smaller adventures. I tried to keep most of my list narrowed down to things that a) weren't super expensive, and b)were only a few hours away from home, making them easy to reach. You, of course, are welcome to set up your list however you want, these are just the rules I went by!

I actually have two lists! There is one that I started about a year before the newest one, but I thought of so many new things, and really needed the motivation of having another list, so I have two separate lists of 101, each with different end dates. It's a lot to keep up with, but fun!

First, here is my original list, which I now have less than a year left to complete, as it will be over 12/13/10! (YIKES!) (Completed items are BOLD, in progress are Green, and my comments in varying shades of blue, because I am too sleepy to consistantly click the same color today!)

1. Take photos every day for a year (Well, crap! Given that I am about 10 days short of a year to complete this list, this one isn't going to happen. Maybe I can aim for every day for 11 months? I could start New Year's Day and go until the end of the list, with promises to finish the month when it is over)

2. Go horseback riding It has been years. I can’t *believe* it has been years! I used to ride every day. Of course, that’s when I had my own horse, which made a difference. But still. Get thee to a stable! (I've looked at a few different places near Orlando, and have it narrowed down to two. One place actually has overnight cattle drive type experiences. This is one of the list items that is being seriously held back by lack of money, since the rides I am deciding between are both in the $70-$80 range.)

3. Do another Blogathon August 2010, I'm looking at you!

4. Enjoy Afternoon Tea at the Grand Floridian (again)- Complete Oct 1, 2009! I should blog about it, it was much fun!

5. Ride a Segway- Nobody at Disney has been dumb enough to hand one over to me yet!
6. Take a yoga class
7. Kiss someone new *complete*
8. Buy a teapot
9. Behind the Seeds tour at Epcot’s Land pavilion
10. Eat crème brulee *complete* Thanks, Epcot!

11. Try 30 new things in 30 days
12. Visit Coronado Springs and Caribbean Beach, so that I will have officially been to every WDW Resort (And Fort Wilderness! I forgot it!) *complete*
13. Try the school bread from Norway at Epcot that everyone raves about
14.Clean up my Favorites folder in IE. I have SO much stuff in there! Sort through, organize, clean out the sites that no longer exist or I no longer need, rediscover stuff I forgot about.
15. Blog every day for a month

16. Take an American Tribal Style bellydance class
17. Find at least one thing each day that makes me happy and record it everyday for a year- I saw this on someone’s list at 43things.com, and thought it sounded very good.
18. Attend the Orlando Fringe Festival
19. Visit London I’ve been drawn to this city for as long as I can remember. Bill Bryson has a theory that everyone has numerous "homes" in the world, and we travel because we are in search of them. (Oh man, I think it was Bryson... it may have been Steinbeck!)
20. Do another "26 Things" photo project

21. Get a tattoo- I’ve been trying to decide what I want to get for ages now, so if I don’t make up my damn mind within the next few years, I am going to kick myself. I might let you kick me, too.
22. Dentist! I have several things that I need to have done, and will finally have insurance soon!
23. Try the Rooibos "Miracle tea" at Animal Kingdom *complete*
24. Go to Jellyrolls
25. Catch a show at Comedy Warehouse (Um, crap. It closed!)

26. Go to the FL Keys
27. Eat pancakes at that place Katie told me about, the name of which I am too lazy to look up.
28. Take photos in a photo booth. Must be one that prints out a strip of photos, no lame 5x7s or anything.
29. Slow dance-*complete*
30. Finish up my trip report on the DIS boards. Preferably in *less* than 1000 days. (I finally started!! It's so weird to write about 2 years ago!)

31. Eat at the Sci-Fi Dine In at Hollywood Studios. *complete*
32. Try something new at Starbucks *complete*
33. Star Wars Weekends! (Crap, I totally missed 09! I still have time for 2010, right?)
34. See a space shuttle launch.
35. Take a non-bellydance dance class

36. Do a 40s/50s Pin-up girl style photoshoot (not nude, just cute!)
37. See "Across the Universe" *complete*
38. Read something by Jane Austen
39. Get a massage
40. Go to I-Bar *complete* Hehehe, magical!

41. Read a Shakespeare play that I haven’t read yet, or see one of his plays that I haven’t seen
42. Go on a cruise
43. Try a new fruit or vegetable *complete* Jackfruit is... interesting.
44. Stay up all night having a great conversation
45. Buy a reusable grocery bag *complete* I think I have 3!

46. Visit a new state
47. Pay off at least one credit card
48. Back up my laptop
49. Watch Season 1 of Heroes *complete* Thanks for lending it, Katie!
50. Catch up on Season 1 of Pushing Daisies *complete* Thanks to Netflix!

51. Read 10 books recommended by friends (Start leaving suggestions in the comments!)
52. Find out what my credit score is (Most likely it is something like 2.)
53. Do volunteer work through VoluntEars (or in general)
54. Eat/Drink at Raglan Road Irish Pub (preferably on a night with live entertainment)
55. See Todd- There’s something wrong about not seeing one of your very best friends for over 4 years!

56. See 20 live bands (Seeing Black Ship Sky 20 times does not count, sadly.)1. Black Ship Sky 2. Built to be Broken 3. Ambertone 4. Johnny Plastic and the Rubber Band 5. Soulswitch 6.Weszt 7. KC and the Band 8. Andy Matchett 9. AM Conspiracy 10. Sugar Free Music 11. Afterglow Radio 12. The Broken Inn 13. Godpawn 14. Traverser 15. Orange Avenue 16. Mr. Bella 17. Lost in Chaos 18. Shut up and Dance 19. Needham and Weep 20.
I'm only short one band now! Score!

57. See Cirque! (La Nouba) *complete* Thanks to free tickets from work! Twice! WOOT!
58. Read 100 books (I am not actually sure what my total is so far! I may be close.)
59. Actually use the pool at my apartment complex *complete*
60. Actually use the gym at my apartment complex (HAH!) *complete*-more than once, even!
61. Finally read Kingdom by the Sea by Paul Theroux (this appears on every one of my lists as a sort of running joke- for some reason, I NEVER get around to reading this book!)
62. Go to Universal Studios
63. Visit Islands of Adventure
64. Stand in the ocean (Hopefully both Atlantic & Pacific!) *complete* Cocoa Beach with Ashlee~
65. Nap in a hammock
66. Play board games-*complete*
67. Dance like nobody’s watching *complete*
68. Try ice wine *complete* Yay for food & wine fest 08!
69. Walk the trail between Wilderness Lodge and Ft Wilderness
70. Read "Walking in this World" (the sequel to Artist’s Way) *complete*
71. Do the Sharon Kihara tribal dance dvd that has been on my bookshelf for months now *complete*- Picked up some fun new bits and pieces!
72. Have at least 5 friends teach me to do something they’re good at (Volunteers?)
73. Meet someone I admire
74. Get a great fortune cookie fortune
75. Attend a nerd convention of some sort

76. Actually write morning pages every day for a month
77. Either play Star Wars Galaxies or Matrix Online again, or try WoW or LOTRO
78. Attend some form of religious service- preferably one I’m unfamiliar with.
79. "Go to one of those target practice gun shooting things" (Katie and I agreed that this should go on the list with the exact wording in which it came about.)
80. Actually wear heels somewhere. (Bonus points for not falling over!) *complete*
81. Take a class at Ilham’s bellydance studio
82. Take a burlesque dance class
83. Visit home
84. Have photos I’ve taken published
85. Do some kind of acting, even if it’s just a job as an extra. It’s been fo-ever!

86. Flower & Garden festival @ Epcot *complete*

87. Food & Wine fest @ Epcot (again!) Try at least 10 things (not ALL wine…) Started 09/09- So far the Irish cheese plate with kerrygold butter, brown bread, and apple chutney, and cheese soup from Canada, which I cant count since I've had it so many times!, Goats Do Roam Red and Rose from South Africa, Airship Red from New York, Sangria from Morocco, Bailey's chocolate ganache from Ireland, Escargot from France, Praligne bread pudding from New Orleans

88. Go to another ren faire
89. Attend a film festival
90. Gatorland!
91. The Wine Room in Winter Park- they have machines that sell wine by the ounce!
92. Work our way through the martini menu at Blue Martini
92b. Apologize to liver for damage done by various numbers on this list
93. See white alligators, bears (#1 threat to America!), and ride glass bottom boats at Silver Springs in Ocala
94. See the ducks at the Peabody Orlando
95. Eat fondue at the Melting Pot
96. See wild manatees (Or, as I call them in my conversation with Katie, "REAL manatees!")
97. Dine and dance on the tables at Taverna Opa *complete*
98. Enjoy the food and art at Café Tu Tu Tango *complete*
99. Buy a piece of original art
100. Buy/acquire a small digital camera that I can toss in my purse for easy everyday access. (My good camera is a little bulky to carry *all* the time)
101. Post blog updates about all of the above items!
The Bonus Items:
102. Celebrate the end of 1001 days on Monday, Dec 13, 2010
103. Write a new list to start over!
104. Donate $1 to charity for every item not completed

WHEW! That's a lot of stuff to do in the next year!

But of course, I still have the OTHER, newer list! This one goes until March 28,2012:

1. Try 100 new foods or drinks (10/100)
2. Update my drivers license address
3. Buy hot sauce from Tijuana Flatts
4. Take 100 self- portraits
5. Open a new bank account (Sun Trust sucks!)

6. Do 10 scrapbook pages
7. Complete 10 of the old "26 Things" projects
8. Rewrite the "100 things about me" for my website- *Complete!*
9. Collect photos of 100 Hidden Mickeys
10. Participate in NaNoWriMo again- Completed Nov 28, 2009- I finally won!
11. Collect handwritten recipes from 20 friends to put together a book
12. Get a tattoo
13. Go to the main library branch downtown
14. Play The Sims 3
15. Make a list of 100 things that make me happy
16. Get a new cell phone *Complete!*
17. Take a month of Suhaila classes online
18. Take a dance class
19. Visit one of the Disney water parks- *Complete!* 9/10/09, went to typhoon lagoon! And Blizzard Beach the next week!
20. Go parasailing again (for free, yay! Thanks, Sammy Duvall!)
21. Eat at 3 Disney table service restaurants I haven't eaten at before Kouzzina 9/16/09 , Wolfgang Puck Cafe on 9/17/09,
22. Get a debit card for my old bank account
23. Earn $100 online (surveys, mypoints, mturk, etc.) in one month
24. Complete a dewey decimal challenge (Read one book from each Dewey Century (000-999))25. Try two new drinks at Starbucks
26. Wash my car and vacuum out the inside
27. See ten movies in the theater (2/10)

28. Redesign my website
29. Get my desktop computer to FL so I can do things like #14 and #28
30. Give "Catch 22" another try.
31. Either do 100 sketches, or fill my current sketchbook
32. Purchase a new moleskin notebook
33. Finally put together a functional notebook for work, instead of just sticking a bunch of loose papers in my moleskin!
34. Catch up, or at least leave a comment to say hi to, at least 100 of my facebook or myspace friends, preferably people I have fallen out of touch with.

35. Treat myself to a silly simple pleasure, like a new lipstick or magazine, at least 5 times. (I suck at actually spending $ on myself!) 1/5
36. Open a savings account, even if there is hardly anything in it
37. Rearrange/organize/whatever my closet until I am actually pleased with it
38. Write morning pages every day for a week, at least 12 times
39. See all 3 Disney fireworks shows within a year (1/3)

40. Go up in the "Characters in flight" balloon
41. Learn to drive a stick shift
42. Acquire a fun, floaty summer dress
43. Private! :)
44. Buy/get cd's from at least 5 local bands I enjoy (1/5)
45. Do ten random acts of kindness (1/10)
46. Resubscribe to one of the magazines I used to read. It's like junk food for my brain!-Complete!- Used some of my Amazon gift certificates, because they were having a $5 off sale! 9/09

47. Go to the beach at least 10 times
48. Update my resumee
49. Cook 10 meals that require actual recipes/effort
50. Experience 3 Disney attractions I've never done (there are quite a few!) 1/3

51. Ask my mom to help me put together a basic family tree (she is one of 18 kids, it's a big family, y'all!)
52. Get copies of some family photos I like, especially a couple of old ones of my dad
53. Have at least one month where I can pay rent on time with no worries at all
54. Acquire a denim skirt that actually looks good on me
55. Try a new product from Lush *Complete!*

56. Make my own soup
57. Make my own salsa
58. Do 3 things to the apartment that make it feel a little more like home *Complete!*
59. Go three straight months with no overdrafts on my bank account
60. Drink a Lapu Lapu at the Polynesian, preferably while hanging out in a hammock on the beach!

61. Visit the new Kidani Village at AKL, so I can once again say I have explored every Disney resort
62. Be able to do the splits again
63. Add this list to the dayzero master list
64. Get up at 9am every day for a week to see how much I can accomplish with the extra time
65. Do 10 cool cast only disney activities/previews

66. Spend an entire day with no internet. (Doesn't count if I am out of town!)
67. Go to House of Blues-- Complete! 8/09
68. Re-watch all of Wonderfalls- Complete 12/09
69. Feels like I should use this # for something dirty. I've got the idea in my head, but I'll leave you wondering!
70. Reread The Alchemist- Complete! 8/09
71. Reread Still Life with Woodpecker
72. Blog about 100 books, movies, albums, products or songs that I consume over the 1001 days- 10/100
73. Make Orlando area bellydancer friends!!!
74. Go shopping with a friend and try on clothes they pick out for me, instead of the things I usually gravitate towards.
75. Cross off 10 of these items within one month

76. Make a list of 1000 places I would like to visit in my lifetime
77. Have three meaningful, honest conversations with people I care about
78. Totally clear out my AOL mailbox (it usually has 100-200 emails in it at any given time)- Completed Nov 2009! It only took a day for it to get back up to 25 again, but it was nice while it lasted.
79. Spend time at the pool at least 10 times (1/10)

80. Find out if I can still ride a bike
81. Visit three museums
82. Take a seriously girly bubble bath
83. Relax in a hot tub
84. Eat zebra domes at DAK Lodge

85. Curl up at Wilderness Lodge with my favorite brownies and milk
86. Get my cell phone turned back on! (Holy crap, a lot of $ to come up with!)
87. Buy some sort of lottery ticket, either the drawing or scratch-off.
88. Do ten things that scare me
89. Choreograph something, anything!

90. Watch every James Bond film (14/22)
91. Decide on at least one tattoo design
92. Work my way through The Artist's Way again, actually taking a week for each chapter, and doing everything in them. (This will do wonders for my morning pages goals, too!)
93. Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party-Complete 11/09!
94 Submit something for publication- an article, a poem, anything!
95.-99. Leaving 7 spots open for future additions. It seems like just after I posted my last list, I came up with a ton of new ideas!
100. Go for a walk in the woods
101. Create a Flickr set for photos of my 101 adventures, and upload at least 101 photos to it

So, all together, a LOT of stuff! Lots still to cross off, but it should be fun!

The year in searchyness

2009-12-20T01:14:00.002-06:00

I was looking at my website's stats today... okay, wait, that is a lie. I was looking at the only part of my site stats that I find interesting today, which is what people typed into their search engine of choice that ultimately sent them my way. I do this every few months, because the results never fail to please, but today I discovered a feature that compiles all of the search strings from the YEAR! Oooh, ahh! So in another deligtful year-end wrap up, I offer you the top 10 search strings that brought people to my site, plus a few extras for good measure:

1. Adventure List (Actually, a lot of the top 20 or so were variations of this, like "list of adventures" and such, so I am going to skip those.) I love that this is the #1 thing that brought people here! Adventure in itself is worthwhile. If you have a list and I have not yet seen it, please share!

2. 2 headed animals- Okay, wow. You post ONE photo of a two-headed cow on your site, like... YEARS ago, and this is still the #2 thing bringing people here? I'm a little worried about humanity. Although I guess there are worse things you could be searching for...

3. Highlighted hair- Again, I had highlights once. FIVE YEARS AGO. Crap, am I totally past my glory days??

4. love many things (and lots of variations on that)- Given that it is my url, this makes sense. But I wonder how many people were actually looking for me?

5. Fattest man in the world- Gawsh, I'm just... I'm honored! I wonder what # I am on google if you search for that. Let me check.

Okay, I looked through 7 pages of google results, and I wasn't there. And then, because I love you (and omg you owe me now), I looked through Google Images for 8 pages, and will now never eat again.

So here's what's disturbing. Again, the post that is bringing me up is from something like three or four years ago! And that also means that people are clicking through MORE than seven pages of results (my own personal loss of patience point), still totally soaking up fattest dude stuff. Really?

6. The Sims Grim Reaper- This was on my blog so long ago, it was Sims 1. (But oh man, when I ever get a desktop again, and get Sims 3... there will be some excellent blogs to come!)

7. I hate Suntrust- The fact that so many people found me by searching for this brings a little tear of joy to my eye. Join hands, brothers and sisters, and share the hate!

8. Suntrust extended overdraft fee- Yeah, I should count this as a variation of #7, but it is just too beautiful.

9. Taco bell sauce sayings- Yeah, we have those here.

10. Brownie magic carpet- Oh. Um, of course! I totally wrote about that... um.. never? What exactly IS a brownie magic carpet? Do you get to go all Aladdin flying around, and then EAT it? Wait, it combines travel and chocolate? I think I might have to search for this now!

Honorable Mentions:

pictures of good looking italian men
flipflops
bubble nests
sean astin speedo
armadillo roadkill
tiki gods
scary houses
dead manatees
sex in the bed (kinky!)
mud me
real bats flying (as opposed to fake ones, I guess?)
naked mole rats
monkey coconut drink holders
pink speedo
fire naked
scrapbook punchers (I know what they mean, but I am picturing people who hate scrapbooking so much they get violent!)
new clear fish discovered
stupid oops
pet wombats
real magic castle
lion with peacock wings (AWESOME. I want a tattoo of this!!!)
an apple sprout, what to do with yellow starbursts
bad whales (do you whack them on the nose with newspaper?)
stop being a zombie in the sims (I am so glad they added "in the sims")
Tasmanian devil costume how to make (I wonder if it is a costume for a person, or for a tasmanian devil?)
How far will suntrust let you overdraft (I don't know what you are planning, but I support it.)
list oof adventures (I am tempted to rename my adventure list this!)
chicks with mohawks porn
wash your arm (possibly after the mohawk chick porn?)

and finally:

"In harry potter why dont they just dump out the potion"- THANK YOU. I have been asking that since book 6. If you find out, let me know!

I do aim to please, so here is my best attempt at making as many of you happy as possible:

So what brought YOU over to my little corner of the world?

<3

2009-12-18T05:17:00.002-06:00

I have been home sick for *weeks* now, and as a result of such, have spent a crazy amount of time on the internets. As a result, I have some new favorite sites to share. First on the list:

Lovely Listing is a collection of awesome photos from real estate listings. I have been reading back through all of the archives. Seriously, ALL, I am on page 24 and am not yet tired of it. Beyond just the pictures, they also feature the best comments on each one, which makes it that much better!

Behold:

Of *course* this one is from Florida. Of course.

OMG CREEPY!!!

What's sad is that I would totally love to have that staircase in my bedroom. I would reenact the balcony scene of Romeo & Juliet like... ALL the time. (Aren't you sad you aren't dating me?)

Now this is my idea of a great dining room! Personally, I would probably decorate with my giant Legolas and Aragorn cardboard stand-ups, but ya know, different strokes...
(And of course, it is from Missouri. I love that pics I picked randomly represent my two "home" states!)

2009-12-15T02:26:00.002-06:00

I was looking through photos for my end of year summary, and this one from the Christmas party:

Reminded me that as of Dec 10th, I have officially lived here two years! This time two years ago, I was at the Speedway, but more like this:

Do I miss smelling like car exhaust? Not so much!! Although there are some fun things about attractions I miss.

A lot has changed in the past 2 years, but a lot is the same!

Thankfully I no longer sleep on the air mattress, but otherwise, my furniture situation hasn't changed. And of course, that laptop got stolen over a year ago. I mournz you, lappytop!