More Vacation Photos

Above:  This was taken from some point inside Acadia National Park.  I don't remember what prompted me to take the picture...perhaps my interest was piqued by the layering of the triple hills.
Above:  This is Sand Beach in ANP (Acadia National Park).  The sand is not really sand at all; rather, it is very small pieces of shells that have been ground up by the ocean over time.  It was extremely foggy this day, with water temps in the 60s, and there were still a great number of people actually swimming in the ocean.  Crazy!
Above:  Inside ANP.  I remember taking this pic to see how well distant greenery would show up in all the mist/fog we were having.  Getting the bird in the pic was just a lucky accident, but I really like it.  He is perfectly positioned.
Above:  This is one of many stone bridges supporting the carriage road system in ANP.  It was raining this day, and it took me a while to get the shot because I stopped my car on the road and kept having to wave traffic around me.
Above:  I rented the right side of the nice townhome on Mt. Desert Island.  I found it on vrbo.com, and it was lovely.
Above:  The large catamaran pictured here is the Atlanticat, the boat I was on for the whales/puffins tour.  More on that entire hellish experience later:  four hours of torture, in all seriousness.
Above:  The windjammer Margaret Todd.  It was always docked at the Bar Harbor Inn pier.  I never saw it with sails raised in all her glory...somewhat disappointing.
Above:  The Bar Harbor Inn.  I believe this was our first day in town, and it was chilly and dreary.
Above:  The woodworking above the shop windows of a Native American Art Gallery on Main Street.
Above:  My adorable car (Tangerine Metallic Honda Element EX-P 4WD) is shy and hid behind a rock when I took this picture.  Isn't he handsome?

It's the FOOD Portion of the Vacation Blog Entries!

Congratulations, you are reading the food portion of my trip-to-Maine blog entries.  Sorry for the delay in posting an entry, all 8 of you loyal readers.  I'm trying to squeeze this one in before I go to work at 11, so here goes:

This is Jordan Pond.  The Jordan Pond House Restaurant is famous for its tea and popovers.  The only appropriate place to be seated, in order to fully enjoy the experience, is on the lawn over looking the pond.  Above is the view of the pond from the lower lawn.
Behold the famous tea and popovers.  I elected to try to blueberry tea, as Maine is known for its blueberry industry and owes much to its continued success.
Geezum, Petes!  Lookit the size of that popover!  So warm and wafty with goodness.
My luncheon meal also consisted of a Maine lobster roll, ridgey tater chips, and some very tasty grapes.  
And this is an awkward looking shot of the back side of the Jordan Pond House.  Lovely gardens.

Travel Journal Entry:  Day 9, July 4th, 2008  (Happy Independence Day!)

"What a beautiful day!  After yesterday's hideous roiling in the sea in 30 degree weather (I'll save that for another entry, dear readers), today is sunny and clear.  We wanted to go back into town this morning to go to the shop that sells handmade musical instruments, but there was so much traffic leading into town for the parade, and cars parked alongside the road for a mile along Route 3, that we made a U-turn and went back to the Park entrance instead (Acadia National Park).  

We decided to try to have lunch at Jordan Pond House, and we very easily found a parking space in the North lot and followed a very pretty little trail to the restaurant.  It was only 10:45am, and lunch would be seated at 11:30am, so we looked around the gift shop for a long while.  Blueberries, lobster, and moose are all the rage here, and there was also an assortment of Jordan Pond products, mostly tea and popover related.

We asked to be seated on the lawn, and we had a nice view of the beautiful water and hills behind.  My friend and I both ordered the lobster sandwich which came with chips and grapes and a popover.  We also split the cranberry, apple, feta cheese, pecan salad with house vinaigrette which also came with a popover.  I failed in my duties as photographer by forgetting to take a picture of the salad.  I ordered blueberry tea and my friend ordered the house blend, so now we can say we had tea and popovers at Jordan Pond House." 

And now for some notes added later:  I found my tea to be somewhat bitter and had to add sugar to it.  I was hoping to be able to experience it straight and naked, free from any additional ingredients.  Still, it was enjoyable, though it did cool off quickly due to our being seated outside.  

Our server was Sasha, and he was quite courteous and patient with us as I tried to decide whether or not I wanted to experience a full Maine lobster meal at 11:30 in the morning.  I opted instead for the lobster sandwich which was advantageous, as I got to taste of the succulence without participating in its extraction from the shell.  I win!

No mention of a meal at Jordan Pond House would be complete without describing the pleasure of eating one (or more!) popovers.  So simple--eggs, flour, salt, baking soda---and yet that simplicity translates to a light and airy palette for mixing the butter and strawberry preserves.  I don't recall ever having a popover before, so I wondered what all the fuss was about, and now I know!  I could easily have made a meal of several popovers.

Tasty food in a beautiful setting.  It felt solid.  It felt good.  

And now I have to run off to work.  

My Thirteen Original Colonies

Please enjoy this photo of the lighthouse at Petit Manan off the Maine coast.  I am in amazement that I was able to take a level photo while the catamaran was tossing and pitching in 5-6 foot waves.  

I have a large number of errands to run today and a baseball game to attend tonight, so while I am hopeful that I'll be able to create a full length entry sometime today, I cannot promise it.

This blog title, "My Thirteen Original Colonies" refers to the thirteen states I drove through on this vacation:  Texas, Arkansas, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine.  Whew!

I could also call this blog title "The 4400" as that is the number of miles I put on my car during this trip.  My car also celebrated it's 50,000 mile birthday while on the return drive...it is only 2 1/2 years old.

More later...it's already 9am and I have miles to go before I post...

Sand Sculpture: Amateur vs. Professional

Wow, and I was impressed by my friends and my ability to create a sand pyramid.  Check out the sand sculpture that recently won top honors in a contest held on the east coast.  A work in progress in this photo and still amazing.

My New Crush

Colin Ferguson of Eureka.  I Netflixed the series and watched the pilot and first episode today before work (when I should have been cleaning, of course).  

I searched him on imdb and it turns out he's only 9 months older than I.  Why is it that I think everyone close to my age looks so much older than I do?  I had this man pegged for almost 40.  I am unforgivable.  Remind me never to enter into a discussion on age with anyone whose feelings I don't want to hurt.  Well now, that sounds all wrong, too.  

I'll just shush myself now and go to sleep.  I have a busy day of vacation-prepping tomorrow!  I leave for Maine in 28 hours.  Ohhh, I can't wait!

...and I'm too old to have crushes.  But at least I don't look like I'm too old to have crushes, hah!

Three-ish Days to go

I have a lot of work to pack into Monday and Tuesday.  Then I'm off Wednesday....and I leave Thursday!

I told my nephew I would send him postcards during my trip, and he ran off to get his mom to write down their address.  Now I just have to remember to actually do it.

I super-cleaned today, and need to do some super-picking-up-and-putting-away of things as well.

So, the 4400 has been dropped by their production company.  Nuts to them.  Though I imagine it's difficult to gain a loyal following when a show only produces 13 episodes per season.  I was interested in seeing how the promicin war played out, and what new things the writers would come up with.  Though, I was getting tired of looking at character Jordan Collier's long oily hair.  And that character's viewpoint of having everyone take the promicin shot and either die of develop an ability...he says it's so the world will be a better place and no one will outnumber or 'keep down' those with abilities.  But my question is:  if everyone has an ability, even if the abilities are different for each person, then we're right back to where we are now.  The character thinks he's leveled the playing field, but all he's done is switched to a new field.  Anyway, it hardly matters now.

At work I have proclaimed that Tuesday is Funky Shoes day.  We'll see what kind of fun shoes people wear to work that day.  I think I'll wear my orange/yellow/lime green KangaRoos.  Sounds nifty, eh?

I Leave in Five Days

And just 3 days of work between now and then.

I think I have purchased almost everything I need for the trip except for stamps and a re-loadable Visa card.

I'm traveling with a friend, and we split the gas and hotel 50/50, but it's such a pain to pay cash from our kitty every time we stop for fuel, so we're each buying a $500 Visa card.  We'll be able to pay for gas at the pump, hotel, and any meals we want to share.  We both have a tendency to think we didn't pay our own share of things (awww, aren't we nice?...), so the cards will also help alleviate that.  And, it's a heckuva lot easier to carry around one card and some cash than a huge amount of cash.

Off to work I go...

I Leave in Seven Days!

Exactly one week from today I leave on my 12-day trip to Maine.  I have been anticipating this trip for over a year and am excited it is almost here.

An update regarding yesterday:  a change of plans regarding certain things career-related.  I speak with someone tomorrow instead of us trying to squeeze it in yesterday.  Great opportunity, and that's all I will say.

Fish update:  there is still ick/ich in the aquarium at work.  I think it is almost gone, as I've been treating the tank for over a week and don't want to overtax the fish with the treatment.  They seem perky and happy as always, though, so I guess they're basically ok.

It has rained here the past 3 days...not all day, just a few showers, and it's wonderful to have that rain to help ensure our water sources don't drop too low during a hot Texas summer.  I cannot believe June is 2/3 finished.  Goodness.

I am off today and have great plans of thoroughly cleaning my apartment, watching The 4400 on DVD, and looking for a jacket to take to Maine...ahhh, relaxing simplicity.

Big Interview

I have a big big store visit on Wed. which includes an interview (or two).  I didn't apply for the opening, but I was sought out.  That makes me feel special and good.  I really want the job, but didn't know it was a possibility for me until I was contacted 4 days ago.  I'm very tired...we all are...wish me luck.  

So LOUD!

My apartment building is being re-shingled, and it is incredibly loud.  I live on the 3rd floor, which is the top floor, and the entire apartment is vibrating from their hammers.  Actually, they've got to be using super-powered nail guns or boulders, actually.

I needed to sleep late, but that's not going to happen.

Geezum petes, it sounds violent!

They were working on it yesterday, removing the old shingles.  It's a fairly simple roof, so maybe they'll be done in a couple of hours.

Salieri Fishie Died on Tuesday

poor poor fishie

Pictures of New Aquarium

Above you can see my pleco, then Tchaikovsky on the left and Salieri on the right.  So cute!
This view shows most of the tank.  See the little fish in with the big boys?  The little darker one by the head of the glass seahorse is named Mart.  He is the one who liked to swim upside down in the corners for a few days, but is a scrappy fellow and is thriving now.
Behold the belching toad!  He's like the buddha of the tank.
The pleco and Salieri forage for food above.
Rimsky-Korsakov and Tchaikovsky, best friends forever.  See the pleco's tail?  He thinks he's hiding.

New Aquarium

When I came to my new store I knew that my fish had to come with me.  A couple days before I took over the store, I went to the pet store in the same shopping center and bought a new 29-gallon aquarium and all the supplies to start another tank.  

The initial setup of a tank can be kind of pricey, but the upkeep is very inexpensive once the tank is established.  I've found that purchasing an aquarium starter kit, which usually includes the filter system, heater (for tropical fish use), some amount of water conditioner and bacteria starter, along with samples of food, is a good way to begin.  So I selected the 29-gallon size, the same size as my tank at home, picked up 30 pounds of colored gravel, a couple ornaments, an air pump and tubing, an air stone, and went about the business of setting up the tank.

It can be a laborious process, rinsing out the tank, rinsing off the gravel thoroughly, setting in ornaments, filling it with water and ensuring the initial balance is ok, and setting up the filter and the aerator system.  

You're supposed to let the tank cycle for at least 24-48 hours before adding any fish, so I let it sit for about 4 days, then I went to get some live plants and some cheap fancy goldfish (4), so start off.  I wanted to be sure the tank was ready before transplanting my big boys from my old store.  I fully expected at least one of the tiny goldfish to die, and the smallest one actually floated belly up in the corner off and on, but persevered.  All 4 were still alive after 4 days, so this past Wednesday I took a small ice chest/cooler to go fetch my 3 big boys and my pleco and move them to their new home.  

The transfer went smoothly.  I also picked up Worf, a glass goldfish, and a large glass seahorse that were decorations in my old tank.  I promised that I would come back to clean out that tank (hopefully I'll have some time tomorrow evening), and now my big boys are comfortably residing in their roomier house.  

I'm having a problem with the light on the aquarium hood.  I've already gotten a replacement bulb from the pet store, but I'm going to go back and ask for a new electrical component.  The light worked for one day, then stopped working, and both the fish and the plants need some direct light for a few hours a day.

So now I have a fresh, new, clean tank with 7 fish and 1 pleco in my office.  As soon as I get the light situation solved, I'll take some pics and post them here.  My big boys look happy, and they don't seem to be bothering the smaller fish.  It's difficult to think that they used to be that tiny when I bought them a couple of years ago.  I understand that goldfish can live to be 20 years old or more.  That's amazing.  

My favorite part of the new aquarium is a fat plastic toad that is hooked up to an air supply, so it looks like he's belching bubbles every 10 seconds.  So cute.  And once the plants grow in, it will really be a lovely home.

My new staff is quite enthralled with the fish.

Happy happy fishies.

Almost Summer

It is almost Summer, and the mentioning of summer vacations in my previous entry started me thinking on how I spent my summers as a kid.  I shall reminisce here:

I played Softball for 11 years, from 1st grade through I guess my Junior year of high school.  I finally had to give it up because my Springtime was extremely busy with Jazz Band, Symphonic Band, Marching Band Boot Camp, the school musical (I played in the orchestra), UIL Solo/ensemble contest, not to mention my school classes and all Senior-class-related things.  

I can still remember my daily schedule:  7am Jazz Band (I played the 5th trumpet part on the flugelhorn), 8am Symphonic Band (French Horn), school classes until 3pm, at 4pm the Boot Camp for incoming Freshmen began (I was Band Captain), then after that ended I think we had an hour or two until musical rehearsal began at 6pm, maybe 7pm and lasted until 11pm or midnight.  Many of my friends ran this gauntlet day after day alongside me, and we loved what we were doing.  We completed our homework in the orchestra pit during musical rehearsal when the director was working on the acting parts with the cast.  

And I digressed greatly there....

Back to softball.  So, for 10 of those 11 years, I spent each summer playing in tournaments on the All-Star team for our league.  I loved the years of fast pitch, when I played catcher and was the only kid in the league who had the arm to throw out a runner trying to steal second.  I was 8 years old, and my accuracy was inconsistent (read:  crappy) so one never knew if I would hit Maria's glove or send the ball into center field.  We placed first in many of the tournaments, and I absolutely loved playing.  My dad, worried that I would get hit in the head by an errant ball, or worse, an aluminum bat, took me to the big local sporting goods store (this was before big chains like REI, Academy, Dick's, etc.) and got me a helmet that covered my entire head, a catcher's mask to fit onto the helmet, and a throat guard.  All that combined with the chest protector and shin guards made for one hot outfit in the 100+ degree Texas heat.  But you know how kids often don't realize exactly how hot it is.  

I was a very aggressive kid, and I'd chase runners back to their bases, stare down batters, and 'own' home plate, guarding it against any would-be run-maker.  I wasn't trying to be mean or nasty, I was just very serious about winning.  I thought losing was for losers and didn't understand people who thought just trying was good enough.  Years later I learned that some of the girls were afraid of me.  If I had known that then, I would have been upset about it, but knowing it years later just made me laugh.

I practiced for hours by myself in the backyard, throwing pop flies into the air and catching them, and my dad would play catch with me frequently as well.  I looked forward to each practice, and was disappointed if a game was cancelled because of rain.

I wasn't very many years into my softball career when the organization, and many around the country as well, switched from fast pitch to slow pitch to prevent injuries and make the game easier for more girls to enjoy.  At the time, I didn't understand why we were changing over, and we all just adjusted, because the grown ups said that is how we would play the game going forward.  This is also where softball lost some of its luster.  No more stealing, no more drop third strike, no more windmill pitching, no more playing catcher, because now catcher was nothing more than a person to throw the ball back to the pitcher. There was an additional position called left-center field, which is now where most of the action happened.  Guess what my new position was.   

In slow pitch, you really want the batter to hit the ball, and the fielders make all the plays.  It's difficult to strike out unless you're either not swinging at all, or are really inept at it.  More people get more hits, but if your pitcher can't get the ball over the plate (again, when dealing with kids it can be difficult to get that ball over the plate) then everyone is left standing around for a good 5 minutes until something happens.  During the regular season it got kind of boring.  During All-Star season it was much better.  The pitchers could pitch, the girls could hit, and the fielders could field, so there was some actual action happening.  

Fast pitch softball has become common at high schools now, but there was none of that when I was in school.  If there had been, I am confident I could have played and gotten a college sports scholarship of some kind, and I would be in a very different place having taken the sports route rather than the music route.

I remember batting orders, our sleeveless jerseys, thinking I looked fat in my softball pants, a pair of cleats I had that cut holes into my heels, the year we began wearing visors instead of hats, rules regarding hair clips and bands, many of the cheers, walking down the line and slapping hands and saying 'good game' at the end, and running to the snack shack after the game to get either a small cup of soda or a fla-vor-ice.  I remember many of the girls I was on the team with year after year, and their moms and dads and families.  I remember my dad taking me to those tournaments on the weekends during the summer and how he would perch his ballcap on top of his head, but never really pull it down.  I remember Becky and Maria's dads coaching us most summers and how they both smoked and occasionally said 'damn', and how they sometimes scared me with their intensity.  I remember we had batting signs and code phrases, and I remember when we switched from itchy polyester jerseys to cotton ones.  I remember how I was on the Maroon team in T-ball in the 1st grade, on the orange team one year, but was on either the Red or Blue teams almost every year thereafter.  I remember in regular season how one of us better players would always warm up with Ida Jane, a sweet silly girl who probably had some sort of disability that we didn't know what to call.  

I remember one summer Saturday at a tournament we played probably five games, and we all got sunburned despite the best efforts of the moms to keep us lotioned-up.  That was also the day that we ran through quite a few big coolers of gatorade yet never had to go to the bathroom because we were sweating it out as fast as we could drink it.

I remember end of season and end of summer parties with all the softball girls and parents and families.  If there were bad or terrible things, I don't remember them at all, and I'm not inclined to try to conjure up those memories.  I prefer to remember the smells, oh the smell of the mown grass, the sight of the red dirt, the numerous fields and parks and league areas where we played, the Army duffel bag full of old softballs and equipment, my Bombat...I think I have it around here somewhere still...and playing the game to win.

Softball was a big big part of my life for a long time.  I'm glad.

Good memories. 

Quit Your Bitching About the Price of Gas

This goes out to everyone who says they've 'changed or cancelled summer vacation plans' due to the high cost of gas.  This was inspired by the article on AOL regarding people changing or canceling their Memorial Day plans this past weekend.

Shut up, already.

If you don't want to go on vacation, then don't go, but quit blaming the price of fuel for the collapse of your vacation.  Here's why your complaining is ludicrous:

I know someone who owns a spiffy 4WD Honda Element...oh wait, that's me!  This gorgeous tangerine metallic vehicle, because it's a 4WD, gets worse gas mileage than its front wheel drive sibling, and considerably worse gas mileage than, say, a Civic.  But the Element has tons more room and is a joy to drive, and really is just perfect for long road trips.  Civics are tiny and cramped and not well suited to a long road trip.  

I've been averaging 24 mpg on my recent road trips, and my summer vacation trip to Maine is 4076 miles round trip.  That means I'll need 17o gallons of gas.  At $4/gallon that's $680 worth of gas, which really does seem like a lot of money.  But if gas were $3/gallon, the trip fuel cost would only be $170 less.  That's it....$170 less for taking a trip of over 4,000 miles. 

Really, folks.....you're telling me you're going to cancel your summer vacation over $170?  You could easily save $170 by packing sandwich fixin's and soda and chips in an ice chest rather than eat at a restaurant or fast food place each meal.  $170 is a few less t-shirts or crappy souvenirs...it could even be 2 fewer tickets to that fancy theme park.  It's $34 per person in a family of five $42.50 per person in a family of four.

But truly, if a single person, a couple, or a family have enough money to consider taking a road trip vacation in the first place, I cannot imagine that $170 would be the deciding factor.

I realize fuel prices are ridiculous.  I agree they are.  But quit using them as an excuse.  If you want to go on vacation, then go.  If you want to find a reason not to, then join the blubbering masses.  If you want to make an argument for other prices rising in stores/restaurants/hotels as the result of rising fuel prices, then I might think you a bit smart and be inclined to listen to your data.  Otherwise, you're just part of the group of people 'freaking out' over this.

And so, I say again....shut up.

By the way, Mount Desert Island has a free Island Explorer propane-powered shuttle bus system that runs all over the island, so I'll be taking advantage of that perk and save the island and Acadia National Park from the fumes of my $4/gallon gasoline.  

Short Stuff

1.  The first week (partial week, actually) at my new store went very well.

2.  I really want to see the new Indiana Jones movie.

3.  Joe Mallozzi is ignoring me on his blog.

4.  I'm ignoring Joe Mallozzi on his blog.

5.  I leave for Maine in less than 5 weeks.

6.  I got to see my family today.

7.  My nephew didn't want to play with me.

8.  I told my nephew he wasn't getting a gift for Arbor Day because of it.

9.  This was my first day off in 8 days.

10.  I watched several episodes of Smallville.  I'm up to season 6.  

11.  I got locked out of my Treasury Direct account because I couldn't remember the answers to all the security questions.

12.  Who the hell actually has a favorite teacher, childhood pet, film, and author?  

13.  I set up automatic fund transfers to my Roth IRA, making it much easier.

14.  Last night I grocery shopped for the first time in 3 weeks.  I spent $135.  Insane.

15.  Tomorrow, Memorial Day, I work 7-4.  I'm leaving right at 4.  I can't work these 17 hour days any more.  I ain't as young as I look.

16.  My torso muscles are ripped on my front left side from all that coughing when I was sick.  Putting on deodorant or turning over in bed is crippling, though less painful than a week ago.

17.  I'm going to bed now.

New Bigger Store for Me

I haven't said anything about this before, though I've known for about a month...

I have moved to a bigger (higher sales volume) store at work.  The store is just 3 miles from my current store, but it was remodeled last year to be a test store for many of the fancy new concept store elements you may have read about or seen.  

I will miss my old store and staff terribly, as we had really built an excellent team and had a well-oiled machine running there, but new challenges await me as my career grows and goes.  After all, you never learn by just doing the easy stuff again and again.  There is enough opportunity in this new store to make me a superstar.  

So people had better hold on and prepare to be Wow'd, because here I come! 

Cruisin' Part II

I took the underwater disposable camera to Walgreens at lunch today, and just picked up the pictures and disc.  The pics didn't turn out all that great, but I'm attaching a couple of the better-looking ones.  Again, neither the fish nor the coral were brilliantly colored in Belize, a fact which disappointed me greatly.  H&D had snorkeled and sea kayaked the prior day in Cozumel and said that the colors were more vibrant there.  Belize is supposed to be astonishingly beautiful for snorkeling, having the second longest barrier reef in the world.  I was sadly disappointed...too common a theme during this trip.

Before writing about the final full day at sea, I'm going to back up and briefly write about the journey from Dallas to Ft. Lauderdale, since I frequently get questions from people curious about my driving such a distance.  

This was the third time in 10 weeks that I had driven from Dallas to Florida.  I had twice before driven to Orlando, once in March and once in April.  This time I was going a couple hours further to Ft. Lauderdale.    I dislike to fly and love to drive, so car travel makes for a perfect transportation method whenever I can work it in.  Usually I do all the driving, but since I was still in the early stages of that nasty illness (though no longer contagious), I asked A to drive a leg for me.  

In the wee hours of a Sunday morning, I drove north to the city where A lives to pick her up, then we got on the road about 5am.  In case anyone cares, we traveled east on I-2o, south on I-49 in Louisiana (a state which I loathe), the hop over east on I-10, bypass New Orleans by taking I-12 east, pick I-10 east back up and ride it through Mississippi, Alabama, and all the way across the Florida panhandle until reaching I-75 and going south.  It's almost exactly 1,000 miles from Dallas to Lake City, Florida, which is where I usually stop for the night.  There is a Best Western in Lake City that is nice and clean and has a chorus of very loud frogs singing each night from their pond out front.

One thousand miles is about my limit of driving in a day.  I am a significantly less capable driver at night in unfamiliar territory, and losing the light means I stop soon thereafter.  I've driven the route so often now that I know where the cops sit and hide, and I am able to go about 75 mph on cruise.  That extra consistent 5 mph above the speed limit gets me another 70 miles or so in a day, and thusly saves me an hour.

I was coughing pretty hard all day long on Sunday...poor A had to listen to me all day long, bless her heart...and I had pulled several muscles in my torso from the coughing, so I was ready to see the Lake City exit off of I-75....hooray!  

The next day we got up and skeedaddled  to drive the final 350 miles to Port Everglades in Ft. Lauderdale.  We took Florida's Turnpike from I-75 all the way down to the loop in FTL, and the tolls were over $18 total.  Abso-freakin-lutely ridiculous, if you ask me.  We have toll roads in Dallas, and I have a toll tag for them, but I still don't like them.  I think all the other fees we have to pay for our cars and licenses and registration should cover the cost of the roads.  Anyway.........

We arrived at the Port and had to show our passports, drivers licenses, and cruise 'tickets' to get through the first security checkpoint at the gate.  The security person at the gate quickly glanced at our documents then gave us directions to terminal 25 where our ship was docked.  I'd never been to a sea port before, so it was kind of exciting to be there.  That excitement quickly turned to a realization that everything looked really old and dirty.  I guess I was expecting a crisp, clean place...don't know why....I just was.

I pulled up to the unloading zone, gave our bags to a porter, tipped him way too much, and then we hopped back into the car to drive the short distance to the parking garage.  We easily found a spot, parked, then walked back to the terminal and joined a line of people outside.

While in this line we first went through another checkpoint where they looked at our passports and licenses again.  I can't remember if they needed our SeaPass document at that point or not.  Then we went through an actual security checkpoint with metal detectors and parcel x-ray machines and all that.  It makes perfect sense to want to check that no contraband is being taken on board a contained vessel, but I guess it just didn't occur to me that it would be necessary for a cruise ship.  Silly me.  If I remember correctly, we then got into line to be helped by an actual Royal Caribbean employee.  It was just a few minutes before we were helped.  The lady took our SeaPass documents, retrieved our SeaPass cards for us, and we moved on to the next station.  It turns out that the next station was an opportunity to have our photograph taken in front of a backdrop.  What is it with cruises and photos?  Geez, there was always someone wanting to take my photo or a photo of the group I was with.  I always told them no and to go away.  I think I pissed off the photographer at dinner on the first night when I told him in no uncertain terms that I would not be in the picture and would he please drop it.

Ok, so we bypassed the stupid pre-boarding-still-in-the-terminal-so-why-the-fuck-are-you-taking-peoples'-photos line, and we went up an escalator to get in yet another line where they ultimately scanned our SeaPass card and took a photo to marry the two items together for security reasons.  I was ok with that, by the way.  If someone loses their SeaPass card I'm sure that is one of the ways they ensure that the correct person is receiving the replacement card.  So finally, after what....5 different stops/checkpoints/security screenings, we were finally walking up the gangway to the ship.  We quickly found our stateroom and laughed at how tiny the bathroom was (and the shower!), but also remarked at how roomy it was, all things considered.

Our luggage would not arrive outside our stateroom until many hours later, so we went up to the Pool Deck where we ran into H&D, had a couple drinks, ate some crappy food from the Windjammer for lunch, and started checking out the ship.

Today's Photos Include:

The top two are of the coral found at Rendezvous Caye in Belize

The next one is of parrots at Playa Mia in Cozumel

The fourth one is monkey towel origami by Sean, our stateroom attendant

The final pic is the view of the Port Everglades terminal from our stateroom before we embarked 

Cruisin' Part I

Once again I kept a little journal during my trip.  I have found this offers me something calm to do while on vacation, and it also keeps some thoughts fresh for when I might write them here.

In very general terms I'd have to say that I did not enjoy myself on the cruise.  I am glad and thankful for the opportunity and experience, but I won't cruise again unless somebody else pays for it...again.  There were so many other highly satisfied people, that I simply must surmise that the cruise experience is a highly individualized one.  I entered into this voyage with high expectations and was disappointed on every front, which may or may not be the fault of Royal Caribbean International and the Enchantment of the Seas ship and its crew.

And so, with that introduction, here goes:

May 12, 2008 10pm-ish

Whoever it was who told me you really can't feel the motion of the cruise ship is a big fat liar.  We're moving at a fairly good clip now to make up for leaving more than an hour late from port...something about cleaning something under the ship.  At least I have this motion sickness patch.  While I don't like the motion, at least I know I won't get sick from it.  I'm really too tired to write much of anything right now, so I'll try to write more tomorrow.

Tuesday, May 13 1:38pm   Key West, Florida

Ahhh....to have a good night's sleep.  I haven't had one in over a week, but I slept wonderfully last night.

This morning we slept in.  H called and woke us up.  We got ready and met them for breakfast then headed down to deck 1 to get of the ship at Key West.  We walked the entire length of Duvall St., down to the southernmost beach in the U.S.  D & H swam for a bit while A and I just chilled in the lounge chairs on the beach.  H was kind enough to ret the chairs for us at $5 a pop.  Can you believe that?  You have to pay to rent a lounge chair?

I looked over at one point and there was a man who had taken off his swim trunks, and his bare bottom was bright and exposed.  It's too bad I didn't get my camera ready in time.  It was too funny!

We took a cab back to near the pier and stepped into a CVS.  We lost H & D at that point, but I just saw them in an elevator a little bit ago.  They were heading to the pool.  A & I decided to return to the room for a little bit to rest.  All that walking today tired me out!  But the weather here is beautiful.  Sunny, breezy, and not too hot.

We should be embarking again shortly...for Cozumel, which we will reach tomorrow morning.  We're going to gamble in a little bit...slot machines in the casino...neat!  

-----I'm back in my stateroom.  We cleaned up for dinner earlier; it was formal night.  I didn't bring a dress so I wore black slacks and a shiny turquoise blouse.  I selected the escargot appetizer which was good and tasty but I'll be ok if I never eat snails again.  They were in a butter & garlic sauce...yummy.  For the main course I selected the beef filet, which was 'meh'.  

I have been completely underwhelmed with the food on this cruise.  The food in the Windjammer Cafe is especially poor.  I guess at least it's preventing me from overeating.  We took such a long nap this afternoon that I felt odd for most of the evening.  After dinner I came back and changed.  Then H, D, A, and I all went to the Orpheum theatre to watch a show...a lively broadway show tunes revue with selections from West Side Story, Sweet Charity, Hairspray, Little Shop of Horrors, and Chicago.  The performance was good quality.  The orchestra was marginal.  After the show I went to the casino and dropped $40 in the slot machines.  

Then A & I each put $20 into a machine that pushes quarters over a couple of ledges.  It was great fun.  I came back to the room, and A went to go join H & D at the Viking Lounge for drinking and 70s dancing.  I don't want to either drink or dance tonight, as I'm still feeling sucker-punched due to the pneumonia that still has its hold on me, so I just got ready for bed.

Wednesday, May 14 6:20pm

We left Cozumel a little while ago.  Now we're headed for Belize.  We're just a few miles from shore, sailing along the Yucatan Peninsula before we cross over to Belize.  I love it when the Captain speaks on the intercom system, explaining our location, velocity, sea conditions, and the like.  He is from Croatia and has that hunky Eastern European accent.  Our head waiter said the Captain is a 'nice man'.  I don't care if he's a nice man or not; I care if he can Captain this ship well, and I only have reason to think he can.  

We've passed by the place called Playa Mia where A & I went today on the "Deluxe Beach Break" excursion.  As of breakfast this morning we still didn't have any fixed plans for the day, so we grabbed an excursions sheet and decided upon the Deluxe Beach Break.  

We got off the ship, walked the length of the pier, and stood around waiting for our group leader to call us.  Then we shopped a little, too.  I bought a big bottle of water and some big bandaids for my blistering heel.  Finally we boarded a bus for the drive to Playa Mia.  We lounged on the beach, swam in the pool, partook of some alcoholic beverages, ate some crappy food, A did some shopping, then we re-boarded the bus to return to the pier.  

I cut my foot on the rocks below the water at the beach.  Fortunately, A has some Neosporin, so I should be ok soon.  

I had my picture taken holding an iguana...$20 for the pic and frame.  It was nifty.  We were so hungry when we returned that we quickly showered and went to the Solarium to grab a quick bite.  We all agreed that the Windjammer Cafe is completely yucky, so we're avoiding it.  I had a slice of pepperoni pizza then went back for chili fries, a move which I am now regretting.  We're resting now; we'll have dinner at 8:30pm, then we plan on coming back to the stateroom and going to sleep.  I keep having to go in search of ice because my stateroom attendant, Sean, is not taking care of us in this respect.  In all other respects he is wonderful, but if the ice machine is off limits to passengers, he needs to make certain we have ice available to us in our rooms.

Thursday, May 15, 2008  2:47pm   Belize

I have just returned from lunch with N & M in the Windjammer Cafe.  All the food in the Windjammer is sub-par, so I went with a baconburger again.  All the food has been 'meh'.  

Snorkeling was a good time this morning.  Our excursion was called "Catamaran Snorkeling at Rondezvous Caye".  All the folks on morning excursions met in the Orpheum Theatre this morning, and we waited until our tour was called.

The ship is anchored a few miles off shore along with 2 Carnival cruise ships.  Apparently the water is way too shallow to dock at the pier.  So we boarded the catamaran from the tender station below deck one...maybe it's actually on deck one.  It's where all the crew quarters are, I know that much at least.

H, D, A, and I went to the upper deck of the catamaran while N & M were seated on the first floor.  It took us about 45 minutes across choppy seas (thank goodness for the anti-motion sickness patch!) to reach the tiny private island.  And boy was it tiny!  It probably wasn't 150 feet long and maybe 70-100 feet wide.  We jumped off the boat in our flippers, and with masks and snorkels in hand, then began to snorkel.

It's a bit of an odd feeling, really, to breathe through a snorkel.  N had some lady near her freak out and clutch onto her.  N pushed her away, put the lady's snorkel in her mouth and told her to breathe through it.  Then she did the double waving arm signal for help.  N said the guys in the sea kayaks came immediately and pulled the lady out of the water.  Way to go, N!  She probably saved that lady's life.

I was able to take pictures with the underwater camera I bought.  I have another camera to A, so it'll be interesting to see how the pictures come out.  I was disappointed that there weren't more fish, but I took pictures of what I could.  I started getting tired, and I kept getting water in my snorkel because of the big waves crashing over our heads.  I swallowed more than my share of saltwater but am no worse for it.

This little island started as a dumping ground for conch shells.  Apparently it was the local spot for hundreds of years for shops to come to, clean their catch of conch, and toss the shells overboard.  Over time the island built up.  Now it has a handful of palm trees, a thatch-roofed shelter, and still plenty of conch shells all around it.  The guides told us where to step and where not to, to avoid getting cut by the shells.

I saw some conch on the bottom that were enormous...perhaps 2 feet across.  Huge!  We weren't allowed to take any shells with us.  After the snorkeling was done, we swam back to the catamaran where the rum punch started flowing.  The combination of heat, exercise, and alcohol made for a very fun spectacle.  I didn't drink the rum punch, opting for my big bottle of water instead, but almost everyone else on the top deck did.  Oh, what fun we had!  Some of the guides started dancing, the music was turned way up, and people generally enjoyed themselves.  There was a limbo game, lots of wacky photographs, and people talking and laughing.  I was an observer and still really enjoyed myself.  As the tender hooked back up with the ship, many of the other people were staring at our revelry in a jealous manner.  ha hah!  I carried everyone's stuff back to my stateroom while H, D, and A caught another tender into Belize City.

More Later.

Gone Cruisin'

I leave in 7 1/2 hours for Florida.  I still feel icky, but I'm coughing a bit less and was able to sleep last night after heavily medicating myself with Nyquil. I'm also no longer contagious-yay.  

I think with all the coughing, though, that I have done something to my pipes, as every intake of breath for the past few days hurts...it feels like it's icy cold from menthol or something.  

I hope to have safe travels and will think of you all quite fondly while I'm thoroughly enjoying myself.

And I'll leave you with one parting thought:  Michael Buble' is so adorable I just want to take his face in my hands and kiss him on the lips.  What a cutie pie.  

Total non sequitur, I know.  Blame the drugs.... 

And the Winner Is....Pneumonia

I went to the doctor today because I still don't feel well, and I'm not going to miss out of my cruise.  I have a bacterial pneumonia which the doctor called atypical pneumonia.  I don't really know what that means, but am surprised to hear that word.  

I have medication to help be get better, and I will hopefully be fine and dandy to travel on Sunday.  

I still need to clean and pack and do some last minute shopping, so I'd better feel better pretty darn quick.  No one likes to clean when they're sick...I need a manwife.

101.3

That's not a radio station.  It is my temperature, or it was at midnight tonight.  Now it's down to 100.4 because I took some Alleve.

I struggled through work tonight, not able to go home because the other leadership team member went home at her dinner break with a fever and illness (she was out sick Tuesday as well).  My staff was so sweet to me and kept checking on me.  I had to sit at the desk in the receiving room and try to run things from there rather than from out on the salesfloor where I was supposed to be.

I've had this deep, wrenching, chest muscle-pulling, painful to my body but not my throat oddly enough, cough since Monday.  I thought it was just the final farewell of my sinus infection from a couple weeks ago.

While I feel terrible, I am grateful that I am not nauseous.  And apparently I feel well enough to be able to sit here and type this.  My skin always looks great when I have a fever.  Why is that?

If I still feel terrible tomorrow, I'll go to the doctor.  I leave for my cruise early early Sunday morning, and I want to be fully well so that I can completely enjoy it. 

And bummer...I have no soup and no gatorade or ginger ale in the house. 

Now I need to try to get lots of sleep.  Fortunately I am scheduled off tomorrow.

Kidney Karma

Someone I know has a career in assisting people with Diabetes (and perhaps other illnesses) and their families.  Yesterday this person was telling me she had a client + family appointment where the father needed a kidney from one of his three kids (adult children, I'm assuming) in order that he live.  No kidney transplant = death.

I was first aghast that there even had to be a meeting about this kind of thing...deciding if any one of the three would offer up an organ for dear old Dad.  I was told the family was dysfunctional, and that the purpose of the appointment was to make a decision:  let the father die, or someone pony up a kidney.

And so I thought about this a bit last evening, through my fits of wretched coughing and blasted headache, and wondered why in the name of all that is medical and surgical would anyone refuse to donate a kidney to their parent.  After all, I surmised, they can't be that dysfunctional if they all agreed to this appointment, right?

Well today I spoke with my acquaintance and asked how the appointment went.  She told me that they made a decision.  And then I just knew what they had decided.  The children had decided to let their parent die rather than donate a kidney to save his life.  Then I learned that there was incest involved in the family and the kids felt that their donating a kidney would just be another form of rape at the hands of their father.

And so finally, now that these folks are old enough to have control over their bodies and their situations, they are in a position where they can refuse to be a victim.

That takes guts and courage and resolve.  I bet that father never once thought that he'd one day need such a vital thing, literally, from one of his children as he stole their security and childhoods.  I wonder if he's thought about how he has sealed his own fate.  I wonder if it would have made a difference.

Five more Days

Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Leavin' for Cruise Day

I have 5 full days and 4 work days before I leave for Florida (again) to hop on a ship.  This will be the third time I've been in Florida in the past 10 weeks.  I hope the drive is as lovely this time as it has been the past two times.

Now if I can just lose this terrible cough that is making my head hurt and my body ache because it is so severe.  I need to try some hot tea with honey a bit later.  

I've sworn off sugar sodas, candy, cakes, desserts, and other really bad-for-you things.  All that junk running through my veins, organs, body in general, was making me run less than optimal.  I wonder how long it takes to really work that stuff out of one's body...days?  weeks?  

I'll be missing the Mother's Day celebration at my parents' house this coming Sunday because I'll be en route to FL, so I need to go now and find something nice online to send to her at work to make her feel all kinds of special.  Any suggestions?

Success--Read All About It!

The Jenna and Laura Bush event was wildly successful.  It was hot, packed, and people were excited, but I didn't encounter any problems at my post.

I was talking with one of the Secret Service agents on their detail, his name was Tim, and he was telling me how he'd been up since 5am and had been wearing his bullet-proof vest since shortly thereafter.  Poor guy, it was damn hot in that store because of the hundreds of people moving through it.  

Everyone had to go through security and a metal detector, and the whole prep and get-up was interesting.  

I'm so dehydrated.  I probably sweated off a few pounds of water, and having just showered, I'm going to re-hydrate myself then retire.  

I'm supposed to be off tomorrow, but I have a meeting/project all morning at another store and then a conference call in the afternoon.  

I got a signed copy of the book that I think I'll give to my nephew's school.  It's still in my car.  I'll try to remember to bring it up and post a pic or two of it tomorrow.  It really is a cute story and a wonderfully illustrated book.

I Have Returned

I got sick at my conference...a raging sinus infection...so I was uncomfortable and snotty and stuffy, but I still thoroughly enjoyed myself, learned a great deal, got a lot of free stuff, and accomplished many things.  

The run-down on the author speakers:

Bob Woodward was engaging, Harlan Coben was difficult to understand, Jenna Bush was overly articulate, Lisi Harrison was delightful, Tom Avitabile was excited, Dennis Lehane was interesting, and David Sedaris was, well, hilarious as you might guess.

I am pleased and proud to say that I rocked the house with my presentations.  My boss called it 'perfection', and her boss said I was 'wonderful', along with a host of other compliments from my peers and several home office people.  There's nothing like a compliment to give one an ego boost.  I was particularly pleased that I was able to present so well because that was the day I felt the worst and had not been able to sleep much at all the night before because of it.  That was my first time to present in front of a group of 150 people, so I am happy with the result.

I got lots of goodies from our vendor partners as well as a box chock full of Ghirardelli chocolate squares.  It's a good thing they're dark chocolate, and I don't like dark chocolate, otherwise I'd be tempted to eat them!  As it is, I'm taking them to the store.

My store won an award which is always nice.  But the funny event during the big awards ceremony is that one of my peers was in the bathroom when his award was announced, so we sent another GM up on stage to accept it on his behalf.  We teased him mercilessly when he returned from the bathroom.

Above are pictures of the signed books I got.  The rest of my loot is still in transit.  And you can also see the box of chocolates.  No Charles, you cannot have my David Sedaris book.

The last picture is a warning sign for an underground cable.  Trust me when I say that when driving 70 mph in the South and seeing this on fenceposts from a distance, it really does look like a swastika.  I was very relieved to learn, after having stopped in Pascagoula, Mississippi and seen it up close, that it is something far more benign.

I was back at work today and got caught up fairly quickly, which is easy to do when everyone was basically out of office last week.  Exactly 2 weeks from today I'll be on a cruise ship sailing from Ft. Lauderdale.  I know the route to Florida by heart now.

I think that's all for now.

Whew!--Cleared Again

I say that tongue in cheek because I am a moderately dull person with no strange or subversive undertakings in my past.  I'm ok with moderately dull, actually.

I was cleared again by the Secret Service to be able to work an event at a sister store--a book signing with Jenna and Laura Bush--about 10 days from now.

Now, I have little to no personal interest in those two folks, but I have to say the goings-on surrounding the event are a sight to behold.  It is worth the extra fuss on my part to participate in such an entertaining undertaking.  

Events with people who have Secret Service detail are actually the easiest big events to run:  there is an extremely strict set of rules/guidelines, and they must be followed, no exceptions.  I love that.  With all big events involving an author or artist/musician of some fame, there are always people who attempt to join the entourage:

"He and I went to school together in the 3rd grade.  He'll want me to be with him at the signing table.  Let me through." and "I'm a cancer-survivor.  She was such an inspiration to me.  She won't mind signing this quilt I made." and "When you say he'll only sign the book, that means he'll sign my T-shirt and magazines, too, right?" and "My daughter was in the same Girl Scout Troop as his niece.  I know the guidelines say no pictures, but I want to pose for a picture with him to give to my daughter because she's his biggest fan and could not come tonight."  You get the idea.

With regular events the person's publicist and publisher sets the rules, not the store, but it is up to the store to enforce them.  It's a difficult position to be in, to play the bad guy, because we're in the service business, and people/event-attenders try to push around and sometimes bully the staff into giving them what they want.    

But with the political people events, two of the constant rules are:  no posing for photographs, and bring absolutely nothing through the line/to the signing table.  What does that mean?  Well, the no posing for photographs is obvious.  The 'nothing' rule is for the safety and protection of the political person.  And there are always a host of other rules that exist to ensure their safety. 

I can see how it is difficult, especially for those who are accustomed to carrying a bag or backpack, to not carry something in their hands or in a bag, but that's the way it is.  People enter the front doors in droves with purses, messengers bags, magazine articles, gifts, cameras, other books, etc., and get indignant when told they must take all those items back to their cars.  The rules are made available well ahead of time, so there is ample opportunity to make preparations on their part. 

Again, I understand the frustration, but these are times when the rules absolutely cannot and will not be compromised.  How refreshing that is.  In a world of gray, there is finally some black and white.  And when people start to argue or make demands, and believe me they do, I get to tell them, "I'm sorry.  You cannot bring that into the line with you.  The Secret Service will have you removed if you do."

All that being said, most folks are perfectly compliant and willing to work with us to make the event successful for everyone, but it is those 50-ish people who argue, try to manipulate, bully, posture, try to drag an employee into a political conversation, or try to make a scene to get attention, that makes it such a fun thing to both participate in and observe. 

I've been yelled at by the best and the worst of them and lived to laugh about it.  And I simply have to laugh about grown adults acting like petulant children.  Ha!

Bizzee Bee

It's been a full schedule for the past 10 days.  

My boss was on vacation from Wednesday to Wednesday, so I filled in for her while she was gone, in addition to running my store and doing my trainer job.  Next week is our big work conference of the year, and I'm presenting part of two sessions (just to my zone, not to the whole company).  I work overnight tonight to complete a big messy project at the store, and I leave for Orlando early Monday morning.

I'm tired, but feel I have accomplished a great many things.

I'm looking forward to the meeting, as I get to see all the GMs I have come to know and only see once or twice a year.  I also enjoy spending time with others in my district.  

And two weeks after I get back from Orlando, I go on the cruise.

Life is good.  So say we all.

Casper & Gizmo

These are my friend's cats with their portraits that I made for them.  The kitties are brothers and are such a hoot.  Casper is the kitty on the top, and he is hamming it up for the camera.  He wears a red collar which is why his portrait is in red hues.  The bottom picture is that of Gizmo and his portrait.  A very aloof kitty, Gizmo was unusually happy to have me snap his pic.  His portrait is in blue hues because he always wears a blue collar.

Silly kitties.

A Menagerie

Someone else (I'm thinking Mom & Dad) contributed to my heifer.org gift registry and purchased a share of a pig, a share of rabbits, and ducks/geese.  

Thanks!

Back in Action

Yesterday was my birthday.  Happy Birthday to me.  I had the day off, as I mosttimes do on Thursdays, and I was cruising around to my favorite sites online when I knocked over a bowl of cereal milk all into my Mac keyboard and all over my mouse.  It was quite a bit of milk.  Both were ruined, so today I went to the Mac store at lunch and bought new ones...at a whopping $49.99 each.

Insanity.

At least this new aluminum keyboard doesn't have all the nooks and crannies where food particles and such can shimmy into.  It is an extremely flat keyboard.  The mouse is mostly the same.  I just can't believe they cost so much.  Ack.

My Sister Bought Me a Goat!

For my birthday this year I'm asking my family and friends to donate to Heifer International via heifer.org in lieu of gifts.  I created a gift registry a couple of weeks ago and sent my older sister the link.  In yesterday's mail I received a confirmation that a goat had been purchased through my registry.  

Hooray, a goat!

My birthday is April 10th, this coming Thursday, and if you feel so inclined, a $10 donation can buy a share of an animal.

Click on this link:  My Registry to donate.

Thanks!

Authors I'll Get to Meet...

Or at the very least hear speak at my upcoming work conference in 3 weeks:

Dennis Lehane (s'ok), Bob Woodward (bit o' history there), David Sedaris (O..M..G...this will be fun), Lisi Harrison (I admit it, I read those Clique books), Jenna Bush (hmmm).

Sounds like a fascinating and varied lineup, doesn't it?

Practice-Walking in My Shoes

My spanky new shoes arrived several days ago, and I've been practicing walking in them because I quite frankly need to so as not to fall on my ass in three weeks.  The shoes are pretty, pointy, and black and have a 2-inch heel, if I'm measuring it correctly.  They are close-toed with strappy heels.  Elegant and sophisticated, I think, which is everything I'm not.  I wouldn't consider them high heels, but rather medium heels.  I'm completely incapable of walking in anything other than flats.  

Anyone have advice on how to walk in heels?

My dress also arrived today.  It is black, simple, and lovely.  I found a black 'shrug' to wear over the sleeveless dress, and the skirt portion comes down a bit past the knees, which is a good thing for me.  I need to accessorize, and I am thinking bracelet and necklace in silver.  Good choice for black?  Or I could go with some color.  I am not fond of the closure for the shrug (two very ugly buttons), so I'm thinking of ripping off the buttons and fastening it with a pretty pale green and pale blue on a silver background pin in the shape of a dragonfly that I bought a few years ago. 

Would this be too much with a necklace?  The necklace would sit higher up.  

Good grief, I don't know.  I'm completely inept at these sorts of things.  And I also need to figure out where I'm going to put my hotel room key (which is all I will need to carry with me) since there are no pockets on the dress.  Any ideas there?

Fondly,

Your Fashion-absent dork

Dreams of Bunnies...and...New Shoes

I dreamt of bunnies last night.  I think it was because I was playing one of those 'free for 60 minutes' games last night involving running a pet shop.  I love those games.  There were bunnies for sale in the game.  That's the only thing I can think of as to why I would be dreaming of bunnies.

I think I have decided to wear a dress to the awards ceremony at my company's spring conference in April.  I haven't worn a dress or skirt in 10 years, and I'm thinking I would like to wear one now.  I think I know the dress I want and where to buy it.  It is a simple black dress that comes down to the tops of the knees, but it is sleeveless, and my arms don't do sleeveless, so somebody help me out with what I can drape or layer over it to make it snazzy and hide my arm flab.  Also, should I or should I not wear black pantyhose?  We're talking April in Orlando, and I don't know pantyhose etiquette.  Can anyone help me out?

I have also been looking for cute shoes to wear with such a dress.  I hate sandals, as I think my feet are ugly...everyone's toes are gross...so I wanted a shoe with a bit of a heel, but not too high, black in color, with a closed toe but a strappy back.  Tonight I ran a search on Zappos and found the PERFECT pair, and they were only $46.  And they had one pair left in my size.  Holy cow.  I got lucky.  I was also able to find a pair in vanilla bean (read:  off white or cream) that I can wear if I buy this other dress I saw and want.  The vanilla bean pair was only $41, and again they only had one pair left in my size.  SCORE!

I love Zappos.com because you don't have to pay any sales tax and there is free shipping both ways.  Most of the time I get my shoes within 24 hours, though since I ordered at 1 am, I'll probably get my shoes Friday.   

I was such a tomboy growing up and never had a good role model for being feminine, so I kinda like feeling all girly sometimes.  And if I show up in a dress, it will shock all my co-workers, so that kind makes it worth the effort, too.  Ha ha!

So let me know about the what-to-wear-with-a-sleeveless-dress part as well as the pantyhose part.

Thanks! 

No Worries

If you know who I work for (for whom I work), and you have thoroughly read Thursday's press release, then you'll know that borrowing money from an investor to finance operations while continuing forward with your huge, ginormous, mind-blowing, innovative, truly amazing strategic initiatives does not mean that a company is a sinking ship.  It means that a company has a plan...a good one...a good plan to continue the turnaround...a plan that includes said company out-performing its competition 3 quarters in a row...a plan that includes the buyback of its dot com to relaunch on April 11...a plan that includes a concept store model that has business leaders and vendors taking notice and getting excited...a plan that includes partnerships that are new and strategic and successful...a plan that has this person very excited to be working for said company at this particular point in time...a plan that will ensure the continued growth and vitality of the company for many many years to come.

Disclaimer:  Everything stated above has been included in prior press releases, in differing wording, of course.  I cannot imagine the word 'ginormous' being used in a press release.

Have Passport, Will Travel

My passport has arrived.  According to the tracking number, it was delivered to my mailbox yesterday, a mere 15 days after I applied for it.  I was fully prepared for it to take up to 6 weeks to arrive, so I am quite pleased.  

I need this passport for a very specific reason:  I won a cruise.  My company held a sales contest for the 4th quarter (fiscal Nov-Jan), and the GMs of the top 40 stores as measured to a particular goal won a cruise on Royal Caribbean.  Four stores in my district made the cut as well as my boss.  We each get to take a guest, and since I'm currently boyfriendless, I invited one of the other GMs who is a friend of mine.  Another GM is also without a significant other, so she invited one of our other GM friends.  We're very excited that all of us get to go on this cruise!

The itinerary is Ft. Lauderdale, Cozumel, Belize, then returning to port in Ft. Lauderdale.  I've been to Ft. Lauderdale before, but I've never been to Cozumel, and I certainly have never been to Belize.  I am very very excited, and the passport's arrival has made it all seem concrete now.

I can't wait to try all the onboard ship activities as well as some sea/shore excursions.  Apparently all the cruise fees, tips, meals, taxes, etc. are covered, but alcohol and activities are not.  

If you've been on a cruise before, I would love to hear your advice.  What did you enjoy doing on the ship?  What should I absolutely make sure that I do?  What should I avoid?  What off-ship activities/excursions did you participate in?  Would you recommend those activities?  I'm willing to try just about anything, so please let me know.  Oh, also, what is the best way to have meals?  Man, oh, man, I want to thoroughly enjoy myself in all aspects on this cruise.  

I'm so excited!  On May 12, I'll be on that ship!

On the Road Again...

I leave in 7 hours for Florida.

Wish me safe travels.

Quick Check-In

I have just returned home after an arduous and harrowing 22-hour drive.  I am alive and well, and my car is fine, though I got a speeding ticket 70 miles from home for doing 75 in a 65.  It's a good thing no one pulled me over in western Arkansas when I was doing 85 in a 65.  There is much good to be said for dry roads.

I have to work in the morning, so this is all for now.

Catch-Up

...And I don't mean the condiment.

Work has consumed me these past few weeks.  I have been preparing for my trainer conference this next week in Michigan, preparing for the training session in Florida the week after, and preparing for a super-boss visit that happened a couple of weeks ago.

The super-boss visit went extremely well, and I learned that super-boss and my boss rated my store as the best of all the stores they visited during the two-day super-visit.  Yay go me.

The Texas Primary is on Tuesday, and for once our state's late Primary actually has an impact on the results.  I know a lot of people who have early-voted and a lot more who are planning to vote who normally never do vote in the Primary, so it will be interesting to learn the results.

My sister works for a company that does market research and polling, and her company's poll shows that Obama will will the TX Primary.  

Early tomorrow morning I leave for Michigan, and I have spent a good deal of energy communicating with and building my trainer team ahead of this conference so that we can be an actual team right off the bat and not have to go through that awkward phase where some of us know each other but not everyone does.

But all of that takes a great amount of time, and it's challenging to balance the needs of my store with the needs of the entire zone training program.  I think I've done very well, so far, mostly because I haven't had much rest in the past month or so.  After I get beyond these back-to-back weeks of being out of the store and traveling, I think it will get less complicated for a while.  

Altogether, I am loving the challenge of handling all this and am thankful that my year isn't dull or boring. 

It may be a couple of weeks before I can post again, so have fun.