New Year! What's your resolution?

December 30, 2006 - Saturday

Anyone else love that anticipation that New Year's eve brings? That's what I thought. Let me say that all I remember are fights, drunken idiots, bad service and empty wallets after five years of New Year's eves where I could legally drink. (I worked one year until 2 a.m., and that was the most memorable New Year's eve I have had!)

This year Dave and I didn't really make plans. We are going to a dinner party and ringing in the New Year in our new house. Yes! Cheap champagne and bad TV. I can't wait.

I have two resolutions this year. (I am proud to say that after four years of making flossing my resolution, it finally stuck.) One is to be kind in small ways -- the whole random acts of kindness thing. The other is to start writing a book. What journalism graduate doesn't want to write a book? Most likely a service-industry piece. Non-fiction. I have some ideas, but I welcome any others! Let me know...

So...it's Christmas?!!

December 22, 2006 - Friday

Yeah, did that sneak up on anyone else? Seriously. I don't know what I thought all the crazy lights were or the excessive amount of money I have spent lately or the merry music on Kool108 was, but I was rudely awakened to the fact that THIS WEEKEND IS CHRISTMAS!

Oh dear. Well, happy holidays everyone. I don't even want to think about what the new year is going to do to me, although I have been writing 2007 on things all year long. Is that odd or what?

The turkey day resolution

November 27, 2006 - Monday

My Thanksgiving turkey was a success. At least I was pretty proud of how well I did. My turkey was basted every 10 minutes with olive oil, butter and fatty goodness. And it was moist and delicious. Laura and I also made artichoke dip (of course!), guacamole, cheesy potato yuminess, stuffing, gravy (I made gravy!), candied yams, pumpkin pie and chocolate-coconut-raspberry squares.

I have to say sticking my hand into a turkey was pretty unnerving. I don't think I'm alone in this. I called my mom's cell phone and started going on and on about how freaked out I was; my aunt Sherry had answered the phone and thought it was pretty funny. She talked me through it and assured me that she also thought it was pretty freaky. That bird used to fly around! Eeek!

Anyway, I posted a picture of me holding the giblets. Of course I have rubber gloves on. I just couldn't do it otherwise!

Turkey Day starring Becca

November 22, 2006 - Wednesday

In journalism school they taught us to figure out how to tell the story differently. Being that holidays come around every year, the story ideas inevitably became stale. The story I want to tell for Thanksgiving this year is my turkey adventure.

I realize that I don't write for a newspaper (thank God!) and that I really don't intend on this being informative, but I think it will be fun regardless. I can't say if anyone will read it, but it may provoke thought and discussion -- or something.

I will be cooking my first ever Thanksgiving turkey tomorrow. I really have no idea what I am doing, but apparently I have to wake up at the crack of dawn and baste every 10 minutes. I hope to be a little more prepared by tomorrow. I have my turkey and I think it is thawed. (How do you know?)

Now I will run and get things to put around it, and which may end up being the main course if I totally mess up. And I must get wine -- lots of wine to cover up a dry/burned turkey through the subtle art of getting people drunk ... hey! I don't hear anyone complaining about wine being too dry at the dinner table.

My first California memory... the In-N-Out Burger!

November 19, 2006 - Sunday

Most people know I am a huge Big Lebowski fan. We got in to San Fran and were really hungry but didn't want to sit down because of a certain family we were going to see (read--my nephews). I had a brilliant idea! The In-N-Out Burger!

OH DELICIOUS BURGER!! The bun is so soft (and cooked everyday fresh!) and there is onion, tomato and lettuce with super-yummy sauce. If you haven't eaten one of these cheeseburgers, you must. Especially for $3. I'm not kidding.

Tomorrow I go check out the biggest trees in the world. I am a big tree hugger, so expect a new picture soon! I can't wait to be humbled by one of my favorite plants. Yes!

What was I thinking?

November 9, 2006 - Thursday

Dave and I decided to get a kitten. His name is Sir Gordon Branch, Etc. Yes I know. Well our other cat is Claude Perry Graham, III!

He is 5 months old and I can't believe how obnoxious and cute he is. And he and Claude fight like crazy! It is hilarious. Check out his MySpace video of the two cats. It is just like the two of them. He has video of our kitties fighting, but I don't know how to put it up. Hmmm....

Anyway, Gordon likes to eat my plants and I had been punishing him like a puppy. Not working. Then someone turned me on to a water squirter. Ha! It works like a charm and is sooooooooo funny.

My absent brain!

October 26, 2006 - Thursday

Friday is the day that Dave and I become home owners! Yes, we rule! We've only been trying to do this all summer. Oh well, we got the house we want and that is what it is all about.

But because of this wonderful event, living in boxland and my new job, I have completely lost my brain. I don't remember where anything is and I don't know what I am doing! Ga! I am suprised I'm doing as well as I am at my job, which requires me to spend days away from home and then inside my "office" (read- the kitchen). Add onto that the fact that this is one of the busiest times of the year, and I am a big ball of stupid. So, if I have forgotten about anyone, I am truly sorry.

Riding the Greyhound Bus is ...

October 19, 2006 - Thursday

... actually not at all bad. I can't believe it.

So, my car was on the fritz last week and I had to get up north for some job training. Flying was a little pricey and so I decided, Why not take an adventure? And I took the bus. Now, I take the city bus all the time, but that is for about 8 minutes, whereas this would be 2.5 hours. Could I handle it?

Well, there were about 6 people on the bus so I got my own seat. The price of a ticket was less than a tank of gas and I got to read the whole time instead of driving. There was an old guy talking to himself for a while, but he calmed down after 20 minutes or so. All in all, not a bad experience.

Delayed and hampered excitement

October 5, 2006 - Thursday

I don't even want to talk about the last two days of my life because, yes, I was at the Dome and saw my first live in-park homerun. Blech! But onward to Oakland to sweep the A's! Yes ... excellent. Then what will I do with my Game 5 tickets? I can't go. Anybody want them?

Anyway, although I don't want to talk about the last two days of my life, I must. Because in these two days two wonderful things happened. I was offered and accepted a job managing an insulation construction company. It's full time and I work from home most days. I did some work like this about seven years ago and really liked it. I must say I am thrilled.

And ... Dave and I are buying a house!!!!!!!!! Yes! Pending inspection and appraisal, it is ours. Thank goodness. Robbinsdale here we come.

And so, although bad things had to happen, two superb things came along to counter my absolute depression about the Twinkies. Because of that, I will cheer with renewed spirit. Go Twins!

Yes, I was there!

October 2, 2006 - Monday

Saturday night I was being a little demanding. There was an extra Twins ticket floating around work and I wanted it! I realize that I have been to a bazillion games this season, but it was our last chance to win the division: I had to be there! Finally, my coworkers saw the light and gave me the ticket. Thank God!

I can't explain the magic that ensued inside that Dome. I have never felt like that before. And I couldn't believe I was part of that dramatic end of an already dramatic season. (For those who don't know what happened: The last game of the regular season was Sunday. The Twins had to win and Detroit had to lose -- to the Royals -- in order for the Twins to be division champions.

This was highly unlikely. But the Twins won, and KC staged a ridiculous comeback, beating the Tigers in extra innings in Detroit! About 35,000 fans stayed in the Dome and watched the end of the game and the Twins celebrate. I was one of them!) Totally sweet. And now tomorrow and Wednesday I will be completely irresponsible, blow off work and go to the playoff games. Yes! I can't wait.

Soon we may be (cross your fingers) homeowners!

September 28, 2006 - Thursday

Dave and I went house hunting today. We talked about it last night; I've been discouraged with a lot of things that have happened on our path to home ownership. The first house we put an offer on was abruptly taken off the market because the agent (who was also the seller) decided her asking price was too low -- shady. Another house we were intending to put an offer on was just a little too close to murderville. So I finally caved and agreed to move to the suburbs.

This morning was our fourth excursion of seeing about 10 properties. (Our poor Realtor. He has been great.) The first house we saw today was it! It is perfect for us. It has room for us to grow (don't read too much into that) and realistic sweat equity. Sweet! We put an offer on the house at about 4 p.m.

Now we wait. Another test of my patience. But as I was told yesterday by two people in my life (who both happen to have the same birthday): Sometimes it's not about the destination, it's about the journey.

Patience

September 27, 2006 - Wednesday

So the saying goes: The best things come to those who wait. Basically, patience is a virtue. I couldn't agree more.

For the past few years I have been running around like a chicken with its head cut off. I have been working at least two jobs and going to school, all while trying to maintain some sort of social life to keep me sane. I complained a lot about it, but I miss the madness. I really do. I'm one of those people who really likes to be busy. It is sort of a catch-22, however. I like to be busy, but when I'm busy I would love to have a night to watch TV and read a book in the bathtub.

So, here I am with one (part time) job and nothing to do but read and watch TV. I take walks with my sister, and I'm trying to play the piano more often. I do get bored by myself so I go out with friends, but a part-time job means less money to do things with. I have been job hunting, which is time-consuming, but it requires serious patience. I am not a fan of waiting for the phone to ring.

I guess patience is something special. But my Type-A personality just won't let me enjoy it!

How about those Twins?

September 25, 2006 - Monday

Tell Patrick Reusse in April and he would have laughed. Ask my sister and she would have told you she was just hoping for a .500 record. I was just happy the Twins still existed. But after all of that, the Twins are going to the playoffs!

I don't care if you're a baseball fan or a Twins fan, this season has been so amazing that everyone has gotten involved -- just the way the Twins like it. Here are my faves: Lewwwwwwwww (my boyfriend), Torri Hunter (HR #30), Justin Morneau (MVP), Joe Mauer (AL batting champ), Johan Santana (Cy Young), Phil Nevin (who? well, why not?), Mike Redmond (super cheerleader and supreme backup catcher), Luis Castillo (I'll let the #1 jersey slide for now), Jason Bartlett (batting champ in my mind), Nick Punto (a goalie in a different life), Michael Cuddyer (dimples), Pat Neshek (Minnesota boy #2), Jason Tyner (my backup boyfriend), and on and on. Seriously, I could go through the whole roster.

The only thing I'm hoping for is a division title. Let's go Twins and (although it hurts to cheer against my Grandpa's team) let's take out those Tigers!

Pictures and a new kind of pack rat.

I just returned from a beautiful wedding in North Carolina. It was a wonderful time -- great to see family and meet new people who will become part of my life and David's life.

I came home and uploaded some pictures from my digital camera. I didn't take many because Steve, Dave's dad, took plenty -- as did many other people. As I get them, I will put a few online. For now, there is a picture of Brian, my ridiculously funny brother-in-law, wrestling with Dave. I'm quite proud of the action shot.

With this wedding, and with many other occasions, I have started thinking about where I am going to put all the pictures I have. Between Dave and I, we have about 10 actual picture albums with about 200-300 pictures sitting in boxes. I stopped printing a lot of pictures after my nephews were born because I just can't keep up! My hard drives are filling up with MP3s and pictures (I thought I would never use 60 gigs. Boy was I wrong.), and I have mountains of CDs with pictures on them. What will I do with all of these? I have been told that the CDs only last about 7 years. What will I do then? Is this really something I should be freaking out about?

What it amounts to is this: I have too many pictures. I have too much stuff. It isn't in my house; the lack of space keeps me under control. It is in my computer and on CDs. Is it necessary to keep it all? Will I ever look at it? I know wedding pictures and baby pictures are priceless, but with digital cameras and 512 megabyte memory cards, is a picture really worth a thousand words?

Nephews!

September 19, 2006 - Tuesday

My cute 1-year-old nephews are coming to visit today and tomorrow. I can not wait! I will definitely put a photo or two up on MySpace. Apparently they are talking to each other in their own language, (they are twins) which I'm excited to hear.

They are still pretty small but can crawl all over the place and walk with something to steady them.

Whenever I am going to see them I have dreams about being an irresponsible aunt. I just had a dream where I was driving with Bryce on my lap, a la Britney Spears! Freaky! I think babies bring that out in a lot of people, though -- the worry that you aren't responsible enough or don't know what you're doing. My sister told me when she first had them she would have dreams where she had lost them. How frightening! But we are a family with weird dreams; at least the sisters are.

I'm off to see my nephews! Yay!

If you believe that ...

September 18, 2006 - Monday

It is pretty widely known (at least within the service industry) that people tend to say things that aren't true or that they have no intention of actually doing when they are drinking. Whether it is "We should have lunch tomorrow" or "Tom Cruise is my uncle, and I want to give you a million dollars," it happens quite often.

So imagine my surprise when a man told me that he owned the Crocs company and that he just moved into the area and is trying to get restaurant workers to wear them. The premise made little sense until he told me they just made a lace-up version of the shoe. I told him I would wear the shoes because the sandals are extremely comfortable, albeit quite ugly. He then assured Marcy and me that he would send us two pairs of the shoes for free. Hmm. Now I begin to see this for what it really is.

Well, a quick Internet search reveals that there is no Paul who was involved in the beginning of Crocs. I tell myself that maybe he got into the business later, or he was exaggerating a bit. But there is no evidence online of a tragic death of one of the investors either, which he was upset about. But I feel kind of bad doubting something like a person's death. Finally, there doesn't seem to be any lace-up Crocs on the company's Web site. Well, I guess that's it -- just another drunk story. So why am I still hoping to get some free shoes?

Jon Stewart questions the question mark.

September 14, 2006 - Thursday

Being that I love words and punctuation, this segment of The Daily Show last night was great. What makes me laugh is the fact that copy editors at the newspapers I have worked for have been boggled by the same thing. Why the increase in question-mark headlines? Regardless, check it out. It's only about three minutes. It will make you laugh.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ki2GWdOIYxw

P.S. Please don't get hung up on the fact that he rips on Fox News, which would seemingly make him "liberal." Some people on YouTube made a big deal about it. Come on, it's comedy.

A new phone

Finally! I got a new cell phone. Yes, I have joined the new millenium. I am not even kidding. I had it for a long time, and Dave had it before that. Yikes.

But (and I know I'm not the only one) I miss my old phone. I don't have the same ring -- so obnoxious and so fun to dance to. Now, whenever my phone rings I think, "Geez, someone needs to answer their phone ... oh wait." And I feel like a big idiot.

And one other thing: Do NOT go to the Sprint store on West Lake Street. Wow, did they make me upset. When we picked out our phones, Stewart (our not-so-helpful salesman) told us it would take 10-15 minutes to transfer numbers. We left and returned in said time, to which he said it would be about 10 more minutes, clocked out and left! Yeah, thanks Stu. After about 25 minutes, Dave went to the back and the "manager" told us it would be at least an hour. He said he didn't know why Stu would have said differently. Funny, we heard another sales person tell someone else 20 minutes, so we knew everyone there was full of it. Dave had to work so I took my phone and said I would do it manually. Good thing there was a baseball game on TV. So next time we need to go to the Sprint store, we will be heading to Edina.

But, I have a new phone. And I will slowly learn to love it, I'm sure.

Primary elections today ...

September 12, 2006 - Tuesday

... and everyone should vote! (Excuse me while I pull out my soap box.) I know it may not be as sexy as the presidential election, but these people are instrumental in how our state government is run.

I don't care who you vote for (that isn't true, but I think being an informed voter is all I can really ask for), just do it. The polls are open until 8 p.m. tonight. Don't know where to vote or what candidates stand for what? Check out the new-fangled Internet. It's a wealth of information. Here is one of many sights: www.startribune.com/myvote

It can be easy to get discouraged with democracy, but if you don't vote is it really a democracy?

Cold enough for you?

September 9, 2006 - Saturday

I love how everyone finds something to talk about on an elevator or the bus. The weather! Who decided it was so entertaining? Minnesotans love to talk about the weather, or rather I should say, Minnesotans love to complain about the weather. The winter is long and cold; the summer is too short and hot. People say only death and taxes are certain. I believe this complaint is certain even with global warming working against it.

On that note, why is it 52 degrees in September? I am not OK with this -- maybe at night, but not at 2 p.m. There is something so cozy about pulling out the sweaters and big blankets, but I don't expect to do that until October. I wanted another month of skirts and tank tops. The weather forecaster warned me that the warm days would come back, but I don't trust meteorologists. Since when is telling the future a legitimate science? Not that I'm bitter ...

Ah fantasy football!

September 6, 2006 - Wednesday

Another year, another draft. I have to say I think I like the auction style better. But that might have something to do with the fact that I became a financial backer this year instead of a player. Don't get me wrong; I dig the draft: I have been involved four years running. However, I just didn't have the brain power to waste on knowing *all* those players. I think guys have a special part of their brain dedicated solely to stats like the fact that Antonio Gates had 1100 yards last season, averaging about 70 yards a game. (68.9 as Dave has informed me.)

So, I watched Bryan -- the one who gave me the nickname I have on this Web site -- draft our (his) team, which I have to say is pretty sweet. Now I get to watch all the games, cheer for the players and maybe win some cash. I can't wait to hear the sweet, sweet sounds of NFL pregame on FOX. Na-na-na na-na-nuh!!!!! Combine that with baseball in October (forget October, what about September?)and it's a good time to be a sports fan.

I love old computers.

Tonight Dave is using my laptop, so I figured I would use my old desktop computer. No biggie, right? It's only 5 years old.

I laugh at myself. I am such an optimist sometimes. The computer isn't bad, just not good.
All the programs are up to date, (Windows XP, Photoshop 7, Office whatever, blah blah) but can I expect a 5-year-old processor to handle all these things, especially when I would like to install Flash? Silly Becca!

I spent about an hour troubleshooting and no more! I'm contemplating throwing it out the window, but I think the city frowns upon those things. Soooooooooooooo, it sits in the corner and wastes space. I love old computers.

Summer comes to an end...

...and I don't have to go back to college. It is just a little weird to me. Of course I spent a few years not in school when I moved to Minneapolis, but after being back in the swing of things, it is hard to get out. Labor Day means getting books and folders ready for class and memorizing class schedules and figuring out how the hell you're going to swing this for another sememster. Now I have none of that. On with the job hunt!

Of course, tomorrow will begin two weeks of jury duty. Here in Hennepin County they offer a system in which you can call twice a day to see if they need you instead of sitting in an uncomfortable chair all day in the courthouse. Of course, you also run the risk of being involved in something really enthralling and forget to call in. Oh well, I'm sure it will be an adventure.