Blissful Mishaps

North to Alaska

2011-06-27T23:51:00.000-07:00

Sea Lions and Whales and Bears! Oh My!

As you may have heard, The Boy and I went on an Alaskan Cruise not too long ago and I finally finished sorting through the 4500+ photos from the trip! Let me tell you, "AWESOME" doesn't even begin to explain it. It was an absolutely amazing adventure. I could yammer on about it for hours on end, but instead, I will let the pictures speak for themselves.

BLACK BEAR PHOTOS

For those wonderful folks who were on the DYEA DAVE TOUR with us and had a change to see this beautiful guy, you can see all of the photos here. Please shoot me an email if you would like any high resolution versions. I would be more than happy to send them your way. =)

View all the photos from the trip in my Flickr Gallery: Alaskan Cruise 2011"

Happy Easter Cupcakes

2011-04-21T23:27:00.003-07:00

Because Easter just wouldn't be complete without something sweet!

This Easter I decided to make cupcakes inspired by one of my favorite springtime desserts: My Mom's Pineapple Coconut Cake!

As you can see, they were adorably delicious! Here is the recipe so you can make your own Eastery cupcakes!

Pineapple Coconut Cupcakes

Cupcakes:
1 box yellow cake mix
4 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
Vegetable oil (amount called for on the box)
1 tsp pineapple extract/flavoring (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 24 muffin cups with paper liners.

Follow the box instructions and mix all of the ingredients in a large bowl. Spoon into cups.

TIP: I like to put my cake batter into a gallon sized ziplock baggie. Snip one corner off and use it to fill the liners. I can get a more even (and less messy!) fill in the cups, and it is a bit quicker to fill them up.

Bake for 15-20 mins or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove cupcakes from pan and place on a wire rack. Allow to cool completely before decorating.

Pineapple Filling:
1 can crushed pineapple

Drain the liquid from the crushed pineapple. Set aside.

Take cooled cupcakes and using my favorite angled spatula or a butter knife, cut a small 3/4 in square hole in the top of the cupcake taking care only to cut about halfway down into the cupcake (not all the way to the bottom). Remove the inside of the cake from the cake hole. *snickers* You can toss or eat the inside, we won't be using it.

Take a small teaspoonful of crushed pineapple and put it into the hole in the center of the cupcake. You can squish it in there a bit using your spatula.

Here is where I varied a bit. Normally I would make these cupcakes using whipped cream (homemade or store bought, your preference) for the frosting. Which I recommend if you will be serving these cupcakes same-day. But since I needed these cupcakes to keep overnight to take to work, I needed something that would stand up a little better. So I made some slight changes to my favorite cream cheese frosting.

Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting:
1 stick butter (softened)
1 8oz pkg cream cheese (softened)
~ 1 box (16oz) confectioners' sugar
2-3 tablespoons of milk
2 teaspoons vanilla or coconut extract

Combine the sugar and cream cheese in a medium bowl. Mix for about 3 mins until light and fluffy.

Gradually add the confectioners' sugar, vanilla and 2 tablespoons of milk and beat until smooth. Add the remaining tablespoon of milk if the mixture is too thick, add more confectioners' sugar if it is too thin.

Using my favorite angled spatula, frost your cupcakes!

I kind of eyeball this frosting until I get the right texture. I also may add in more vanilla or coconut flavoring to taste. Baking is an art, not always a science. ;) I choose to make this frosting nice and thick.

Decorations:
1 1/2 cups flaked coconut
Green food coloring
1 teaspoon water
Candies/Mini eggs (jelly beans, Robin's Eggs, whoppers, your pick)
1 ziplock baggie or sealable container (I used a gladware bowl)

Place a few drops (lets say 5) of food coloring and 1 teaspoon of water into your baggie or container. Seal it up and shake it around to coat the bag. Dump in your coconut and shake it, shake, it shake it like a polaroid picture to coat the coconut and color it green! This is our easter grass.

TIP:You can add more or less food coloring depending on the color you want your grass. For pastels, start with less food coloring. For a bright green, use more. It is best to start with less, as you can always add more food coloring to darken it up.

Sprinkle coconut grass on top of your frosted cupcake.

Next take your various candies and place on top of the grass to look like little easter egg nests or baskets.

You can also leave the coconut white for a non-eastery variation or use my favorite garnish - mini umbrellas! Piña Coladas anyone? This is the fun part so get creative!

I hope you have as much fun making, and eating these cupcakes as I did. Oh my are they delicious! Enjoy! =D

A lovely night out

2011-02-18T00:17:00.000-07:00

Tonight was the kind of night that makes me remember why I really love the city.

I went out in Old Town Scottsdale tonight. Not the bar-hopping scene filled with cougars and 30K millionaires that one generally associates with "going-out on the town" in Scottsdale. But the artsy, locally owned, fine crafted, handmade, community centered Old Town Scottsdale tucked just a few streets back behind all of the rowdy happy hour goers.

It was one of the nicest nights out that I've had in a while. It wasn't particularly fancy or special, just a laid back and relaxing kind of evening with beautiful weather and pleasant company.

The evening started off "sweetly" as I met up with some of the girls at Citizen Public House for the Cupcakes & Cocktails Event put on by the lovely ladies of Cupcake Lovein. Cupcakes & Cocktails!? Does it get any better than that? The event was great and I got to mingle and meet with some of people I have been working on websites with.

We were treated to tasty cupcake creations on the patio, all baked with liquors; cherry martini, raspberry lemondrop (with vodka) and Guinness chocolate stout cupcakes. Citizen Public House had also created 3 delicious cupcake inspired cocktails specially for the event: Butterscotch Creme, Carrot Cake, and Lemon Cream Pie. They were all amazing and I regret now, not getting photos!

After having our dessert first, we decided to walk to The Herb Box for dinner. I had forgotten that Thursdays in Old Town were the Artwalk so I was pleasantly surprised to walk out from the parking garage and into a street filled with booths and the sounds of live music.

We enjoyed the view of the waterfront outside on the patio and listened to local band Vinyl Station play beautifully. They had fabulous original songs and fantastic covers including "Little Lion Man" by Mumford and Sons and "Falling Slowly" by Swell Season. Such beautiful, melodic acoustic songs, I could have listened to them play all night.

For dinner we tried a sampling from their appetizers which included falafel balls, hummus plate, and brown sugar pulled pork sliders. The sliders were amazing and now I want to try making something similar myself! =9

After dinner we joined the other art lovers on the waterfront bridge to look at some beautiful artwork and jewelry. There was one painting that caught my eye that I absolutely loved. Unfortunately she did not have any large prints (I couldn't afford to buy the original!) but she did have a magnet. I asked if the binary in the background spelled anything and she said indeed it did. The message spelled "Retweet". It was perfect for this bird loving, geeky girl. You can see more from the Binary Birds collection here.

There is just something about the buzz in the air of people gathered together enjoying good food, local music and art. Getting out in the crowd, chatting with new people, and being a part of that buzz really filled me up tonight and made my spirit hum with excitement and creativity.

It is moments like these when I forget about the heat, the traffic, snotty people, bad air, worse drivers, and remember the reason I fell in love with this city in the first place. It is so alive.

Back to the Grind

2011-01-03T19:52:00.000-07:00

or the First Working Day of the Year

It wasn't as painful coming back to work after 10 days of vacation as I expected it to be. I thought that my lazy schedule of being up past 2am and waking up after 9am everyday for over a week would make for a brutal Monday morning requiring no less than a gallon of coffee to make it through the day. But waking up at 7am and getting back into the routine was a much more natural thing than I expected...thank goodness.

But still...I wasn't exactly ready to go back to work. Not to say that's anything to do with my job. I absolutely LOVE my job (no, really. It is fabulous.) but I could have totally said "yes" to another week of vacation.

2010 was a busy year. A new job, new network connections, new friends, new freelance clients, and new lifestyle changes kept me busy and buzzing. It was great! It was also great to unplug for a few days with no where to be, kicking it in my jammies and enjoying the simple things in life, like cups of tea, trying out new recipes, playing video games (omg it had been over a year!) and the pure joy of sitting on the couch all day reading a new book.

I didn't get the curtains hemmed, my website updates finished, any blog posts written or really half the things on my "ToDo List" done but it was a fabulously relaxing vacation and I really got a chance to unwind. Which is a rare and valuable thing!

Now it is back to the grind, back to the routine, back to the busy and back to the fun. I have my handful of New Year's resolutions to attest for - one of which is to FINALLY complete the dozen unfinished posts sitting around in my drafts box =S. So here's hoping this year is healthier, happier, and more productive than ever before!

Cheers to 2011!

My Wish List 2010

2010-11-26T10:57:00.003-07:00

Back by popular demand (and by request of my Mum)...it's The Heidi's Wish List! Yays! So Let's get to it!

This year, most of my fancies reside in some well organized Amazon Wish Lists, nicely sorted as follows:
A few of my Favorite things
Baking & Cooking
Movies & Games
Books & Comics

MISC

Kitty Kitty

WANT #1: I found the Scott Pilgrim kitty artwork!!! If someone makes me a mug out of this...you win the prize for being amazingly freaking awesome and I totally owe you a cupcake!

Colour Rain Artwork - 100cm X 140cm

I really love these prints. They are so neat, modern, and fresh. I think they would look great in my new office. ;)

Ninjabread Men Cookie Cutters

And...because these are just too damn cute to resist Ninjabread Men Cookie Cutters!

The Winchester Tavern Pint Glasses from Shawn of the Dead

Nothing like a cold pint to calm the nerves before a zombie bashing.

GIFT CARDS

Target
Ikea
Home Depot
Micheal's Crafts
Joann's Crafts
Starbucks
Borders Bookstore
Barnes & Noble Bookstore

Why I didn't vote today.

2010-11-02T23:38:00.001-07:00

As I am sure that you all know, today was election day. This however, was unknown to me until I got a company wide email excusing us to leave early or take long lunches in order to go vote. It wasn't that I forgot, I just was never paying attention. Oops.

You see, I am making a confession here, I am not a political person...at all. So much so that I only vaguely know the difference between Democrats and Republicans and good luck asking me to name anyone of said persuasion.

So it is the same every year. The voting day approaches and it is like the Spanish inquisition as soon as you walk in the door. "Did you vote yet?" "When are you going to vote?" No one dares to ask WHO you vote for, because that would be "too personal". But they can give you the 3rd degree about IF you are voting. And when I say "no", my answer is met with open mouths and aghast faces as if I had just confessed to something as absurd as not liking ice cream or kittens. "How can you NOT vote?" they exclaim with wide eyes that make me feel like a dirty freedom hating traitor.

I don't really have a good reason for never voting. I remember kids that were so excited for their 18th birthdays so they could reister to vote. And here I am 27 and never voted in my life. 9 good voting years that I have squandered away.

As a good American who respects the freedom of opinion and choice, I should be honored to take a stance and do my Americanly duty to vote because I CAN. Especially after all of the fighting my fore fathers and mothers went through in order to win me this freedom to vote. I don't want to disrespect that.

I WANT to get involved. But the moment I open my mind to the political debates and debauchery and TRY to care, all I become is angered and disgusted by the mudslinging and trash talking that goes on. These people don't care about the issues at hand. They just care about the WIN. It is like a high school popularity contest all over again. How is candidate one telling me that candidate two is full of lies going to convince me to vote for candidate one? It is not, and thus - no voting. It is in some ways, the same reason I don't watch the news. But that is a post for another day.

It is not that I don't care or don't have opinions. It is just that my opinions and those of politicians generally don't coincide. I am a rather openminded individual. I am pro choice, pro gay marriage, and pro vegetarian. haha. I maintain that as long as you are not hurting yourself, others, animals or the planet, you are probably alright. Who am I to say what you do with your body, in your bed or with your food. We have plenty of so called "normal" stereotyped people out there in the world causing trouble and harm and yet we are worried about whom is sleeping with whom. I just have no patience for it. Sadly most snooty politicians don't agree with such open-mindedness so it is hard to side with them and hand over my vote.

It just doesn't seem right or fair for me to vote when I don't have a stance on the issues at hand, or don't agree with any of the ideals of the candidates running. I feel that by blindly voting for the sake of voting isn't helpful and just skews the results. Picking someone because their name sounds better than the other guys doesn't seem very fair.

I also don't believe in the "lesser of two evils" approach. So if all of the candidates suck, I am supposed to pick the least sucky guy and hop for the best? WTF?

I feel that politics, like religion, comes from family influence, and my family was never very religious, nor were they very politically active. They voted when it concerned school things or raising taxes, but we didn't really discuss politics at home. We didn't have family feuds over conflicting political views at holidays parties that lead to year long grudges. I was involved in a few political campaign team things for History class in school, but that was about the extent of my involvement.

That is not to say that to say that my life is totally devoid of political influence. My best friend is a principal at a local school and my step mom is a teacher. As you can imagine, they care greatly about the laws and propositions going up for vote, as they do see the direct effects on such things on their schools, budgets and fellow teachers. So I try to pay more attention and care for the sake of others.

I suppose that I would have a more opinionated stance on the issues at hand if I felt that I was directly affected by them. Don't get me wrong, I KNOW that what happens in the voting booths ultimately has an effect on our government, schools, taxes, and what have you. But as a young person that doesn't own a house, doesn't have kids, and is never going to see Social Security it doesn't seem like much changes in my world post-election day.

I know this "young and naive" demeanor is not one that I can maintain very much longer as I'm rounding the corner to 30. But it is difficult to cut through the shit coming out of the mouths of politicians and filter out what would be best course of action. To vote is to make a decision that could ultimately better, or totally fuck up some peoples lives. I am not comfortable being responsible for that. As I am sure you can imagine, I am not alone in these and similar views on the politics. It is a dangerous game we play.

A new November

2010-11-01T07:27:00.002-07:00

Image from vladstudio.com (one of my favorite artists)

Hello November.
You snuck right up on me you ninja! After my ridiculously busy October, things are slowing down and taking a breather for a moment before the hustle and bustle of the holidays is upon us before we know it. There are still so many things I want to accomplish before the year is out so I would like to commit to a few of those goals now. Sort of like a pre-new years resolution, I guess. I feel that by posting my goals "out-loud" instead of just keeping a list in my head, they feel more real and I am more likely to hold myself accountable for them. =P So here we go:

Keep up the good work on C25K
Start my eating healthy plan...again.
Finish the billion drafted blog posts sitting in my inbox
Try to blog about something once a week
Finish my BlueSparrow website that has been oh so close to complete since August
Make handmade christmas cards and enjoy crafty time
Take time to read (and finish the books I started last month)
Read one spiritual book a month (and by "spiritual" I don't mean religious, more like "self-help")
Start meditating again

I don't know if I will get to that last one, but it is a goal that I would like to work towards. I would like to become more in tune with my mind and body again. This past hectic month has proved rough to maintain my calmness. I got a bit overwhelmed and stressed at points, and while I know this is totally normal, I still think it is a good time to re-center myself before things get too off-kilter.

Whew, there is a lot to be done before 2011 is here, but I think I can conquer it! Rawrs!

Tricks & Treats

2010-10-31T22:10:00.003-07:00

Happy Halloween my freaky darlings.
View all the Halloween fun on my Flickr album!

My Batty Pumpkin

October: My Favorite Season

2010-10-08T23:00:00.001-07:00

October is more than just another month. It is a season all its own.

To me, October is the official start of Fall. Especially here in Arizona. October is the beginning of the end of summer when it ceases to be so unnaturally hot and begins to take on some semblance to normal weather, albeit lacking the crisp-air and orange leaves of a true "Fall", but still a lovely time non-the-less.

October is a season of pumpkin spiced lattes, cool weather, pumpkin ale, oktoberfest, golden orange colors, crisp apples, pumpkin pie, warm homemade chili, butternut squash bisque, pumpkin chocolate-chip cookies, candy corn, holiday baking, cute jackets and boots, pumpkin roll candles, carving pumpkins, Halloween and of course, my birthday.

So welcome October, and all of the wonderful things that you bring! You are my favorite season.

C25K Day 2

2010-09-24T18:46:00.001-07:00

Before I get started, I just want to say that I will try to not to be one of those people who blog about their health and fitness progress and what they ate everyday and all that stuff all the time (I will start a new blog for that if I feel the need to be so detailed). BUT I did want to say that running day two was great! It went so much smoother than day one and it is really motivating to see even a teeny smidgen of progress from day to day. And to not be mostly dead and ready to pass out afterward is good too! ^_~

I slapped on some blister blockers so my current owies didn't get any worse and got to it. I also shortened my stride and didn't have any problems with my hip hurting today which was fabulous! My legs muscles burned pretty good (as expected) but even right now as I am writing this they hurt less then yesterday when I didn't run at all. It is amazing how quickly your body heals and adjusts!

The hardest part was the "Battle of the Bed" and laying there at 5:30 as the alarm went off and arguing with myself about whether to go out or not. "But I'm so sore." "I have a late night tonight so I need more sleep." "My blisters hurt." *whine* But I sucked it up and got to it and am so glad that I did.

I like that Jon is participating too. Having someone else to go with really helps. I can make excuses for days for myself to stay in bed, but if I am committed to someone else then I am less likely to back out.

Another bonus was that it was refreshing to be outside so early in the morning. It is like Arizona woke up yesterday (conveniently on the first day of Autumn) and decided "okay, it is time to be fall". And even though the days still creep up to 100 degrees in the afternoon, the mornings have been crisp and beautiful. I am happy to have been awake and outside to enjoy them. =) This might bode very well for my wanting to be a morning person goal.

Lastly, my new running shoes shipped today and should be here next week! So excited!

Thunderstorm Zen Moment

2010-09-22T23:13:00.002-07:00

Last night I stood outside on the patio and watched the thunderstorm. It reminded me of when my dad and I used to sit on the front steps and watch them back home in Idaho. We both love storms - snow storms, crazy wind storms, pouring rains, lightning storms (those were the best!) - all of them.

As I stood there, lost in the moment, I felt the warmth of the concrete on my bare feet. I watched the lightning flash in the sky. I watched the wind whip the trees around in a graceful dance. I listened to the thunder roll across the whole world. I smelled the fresh, earthy dampness of the rain on the trees and grass. I felt the soft drops of cool rain on my skin. And for a few unbroken moments I forgot I was in the city. It didn't sound like a city. It didn't smell like a city. It didn't feel like I was in a city full of 6 million people. It was just me and the trees and the rain. And for a few unbroken moments I felt alive and wholly connected with the world around me.

It was a beautiful moment of peace.

One Step at a Time

2010-09-22T23:05:00.002-07:00

Today I took the first step in a healthier lifestyle. The Boy and I started the Couch to 5K (C25K) running program.

It was a great day to start. We are (hopefully) coming to the end of a long, hot summer and are experiencing a few cloudy and rainy days. Today at 6:30am it was overcast, 67 degrees (which is a much welcome change) a bit humid out, but otherwise a beautiful day.

I downloaded the C25K app for my iPhone so that I wouldn't have to worry about keeping time of the walking/running intervals and just ran or walked till it beeped at me to change.

Overall it went about as well as I expected. It was tough, tiring, and almost fun. I think that doing strength training with EA Sports Active this summer helped to build up my endurance so I wasn't totally dead by the end of the run. I was sweaty, flushed, and felt like I might pass out or throw up. But I hear that is common for a newbie. ;)

On the plus side, I didn't have any knee pain or shin splints which is very normal for me when I do any high impact sports or exercises and is mostly why I hate running so much. But I didn't experience any of those problems, which was a huge relief! (Thanks again EA Sports!)

I still had issues towards the end of my workout with my hip hurting (again, another common issue for me) which limited me to walking for the last two run cycles which was kind of a bummer. But it will just take some time to build up strength in those muscles and I didn't want to overexert and injure myself on the first day and be put off on running all together.

I also read up a little today about hip-injuries in runners and there are some things I can do to try to help with the issues so I will try some of those things and see if it gets better. =)

The other problem I had was blisters. I also expected this. Even though it's sandal season, I have very soft, callous-less feet, that I take pride in thank you very much. But those delicate toesies make it easy for blisters to form. I also didn't have the best shoes or socks for running. But had I kept letting not having the right equipment get in the way, I would have never gotten started. ;) Excuses, excuses. So I think that The Boy and I might go shopping for proper shoes sometime this week if we plan to keep things up - which I hope!!

Oddly enough, the hardest part of the whole thing wasn't the running. It was getting out of bed in the morning. I have been trying all summer to "force" myself to become a morning person, and this too will just take time to form good habits. But whether I'm getting up at 5:30am or 11:00am that part is never easy. =P

Suck it, Sucktember

2010-09-12T17:15:00.022-07:00

My December 2009 Calendar

So it begins, the busiest time of the year, with Sucktember - as I have so affectionally named it.

The fall/winter months are normally very busy for me, what with birthday shenanigans and the many holidays. But this is also the time of year that Phoenix comes alive. Now that it is nice enough to be outside again after the long hot summer, it is a time for Beerfests, Zoolights, Luminaries at the Botanical Gardens, artwalks, drive-in-movies, Movies in the Park, culinary festivals and all sorts of fun outdoorsy events. This is a busy, but much looked forward to time of year.

But this year, it is no longer just the busiest time of year for my personal calendar, but also the busiest season for my work calendar as well. My company is basically an online women's magazine, and we, like most sites of this nature, are fueled by ad revenue - and as for most retailers, Q4 is a Bad Mamma Jamma.

So we kicked off the busy season with a crazy trip to LA and the deadlines for 3 large projects due the first of October. I have already scheduled in several "late nights" into my work week because I know they will be needed. And the fun doesn't stop till February.

While I totally understand that this is the name of the online advertising game, it still really bums me out. =/ My calendar will be jam-packed already with me trying to cram as much in as I can in the few spare hours between work and bedtime. The extra work hours eating into my already full days is going to be exhausting.

I am beginning to see now why they close the office and give everyone a week off at Christmas - to preserve their sanity and keep their employees. (Christmas. Fuck. That is a whole other stress-inducing holiday.)

PLUS, we are currently looking for a house, which the chances being high that we will be moving sometime this season. Good lord...there's still so much to do.

Costume making, holiday shopping & baking, long work hours, packing and moving into a new house, social events and activities (if I can even squeeze them in!) - it's so overwhelming! >_<;; I am trying to mentally prepare for it.

And I am totally whining about the whole thing.
"But it's so haaaaaaaard." *whines*

*sigh*

Cupcakes = Fail

2010-09-11T17:48:00.003-07:00

Not all kitchen experimentations can go 100% smoothly every time. Sometimes you have to fudge up a few things to learn what-not-to-do next time. This was one of those occasions. =P

And this...

...was the culmination of the entire ordeal, a tipped over, half-melted, cherry flavored mess - with sprinkles. It was an all over "cuptastrophe".

Last week I was invited to a girly-girl bday sleepover and pool party for my BFF's 10 year old daughter. We stayed at the Squaw Peak Pointe Hilton in a gorgeous casita and spent most of our time floating down the lazy river soaking up sun - which was all very lovely. I was asked to bring the b-day girl some cupcakes, to which I gladly obliged as I am always looking for an excuse to bake something new.

My recipe plan was for White chocolate vanilla cupcakes with cherry frosting. I bought all my supplies ahead of time, I was so totally prepared.

But then the cuptastrophe started, as a frazzled Hyd rushed home from work an hour behind schedule. I mixed up the cupcake mix, funneled it neatly into the shiny foil liners and was about to toss them in the oven when I realized...OMG I am such an moron!! I forgot to put the white chocolate chips and coloring into the batter!

I first thought about tossing the chips in on top and stirring them in and just forgetting the color all together but I had filled the liners so full there wasn't much room for the chips. So I carefully poured all of the batter back into my mixing bowl, added the chips and coloring and re-poured it back into the liners and into the oven to bake.

But now my batter was settling and those white chocolate chips...they sunk right on through the batter and into a pile at the bottom. So instead of pretty pink cupcakes with white chocolate polka-dots inside, they were hole-filled vanilla cakes with a hard layer of white chocolate plastered on the bottom that you literally had to scrape out of the liner.

It was too late to start over so I globbed cherry frosting into a piping bag and frosting and sprinkled those suckers before running out the door. At least they would be adorable little cakes.

But cuteness too was a fail. While waiting for the girls to arrive at the hotel, my cupcakes slowly melted. No amount of cranked up AC can save a sugary frosted treat from the hot Phoenix sun.

Alas...in the end I suppose it all turned out alright. I did learn some things, and the cupcakes tasted okay even if they had a "surprise at the bottom" as one of the girls exclaimed later that evening. And as another friend so positively put it: "Now you can make cupcakes AGAIN!" ^_~

Dr. Seuss Sneaks

2010-09-05T17:09:00.003-07:00

These are my new shoe loves. I actually got them a few weeks ago but haven't had a chance to post any pics yet. These sneaks are inspired by Dr. Seuss's book "If I Ran the Circus" and are totally cute and pic-worthy, especially since the pics online don't do them justice.

I first came across these adorable kicks at work while doing a site sponsorship on our website for Converse. Their ads focused on these new Dr. Seuss All-Stars and I fell immediately in love. I had to have them.

I thought about putting them on my wish list since my b-day and the holidays are only a few months away, but that would mean taking a risk that these limited editions might sell out and I would be S.O.L. So I gave in and bought them. I am so happy I did. <3

Catching Thoughts.

2010-09-03T18:41:00.013-07:00

I always think of really great things to write about when I am not in a convenient place to write about them, such as sitting at my desk at work, taking a shower, driving in the car, etc. I draft it all out in my head, and can't wait to sit down and write it! But then when I have the time to write, I can't remember all the fabulous things I wanted to talk about. So I end up jotting some ideas down in a draft, and then it sits in my blog for months. I probably have about 12 drafts pending right now that started out awesome and ended up unfinished. *sigh*

I need to find a better way to document my thoughts. I tried keeping little post-it notes to remind me, and that did well to remind me of the idea, but not of all the points I initially thought to write about. I tried using my iphone voice recorder a few times to record myself dictating my ideas, but that only works when in the car (or when others are not around) and is harder to work with since I have to listen to the the playback instead of just scanning a list that is easy to navigate. I also used to keep a moleskin notebook with me and jot down ideas and sketches as they came to me. This worked fairly well so maybe I will have to get back into that habit and just keep on it this time.

In any case, I am going to have to learn to be more organized. After all, I need all the writing practice I can get before I write my children's book(s) - for which I have several fabulous ideas for - someday. ;) If you have any suggestions or helpful hints on how you catch your toughts, I would love to hear them!

Mixer Magic & Baking Therapy

2010-08-18T22:01:00.013-07:00

I have long since been weened off of "store bought crap" ever since I really got into baking and discovered that I could make things myself that were far superior to anything I could buy at a store. Which has been awesome for my willpower in resisting the sweets and baked goodies that tend to linger around my office.

But now, since the arrival of my new fabulous cornflower blue KitchenAid Artisan Mixer, there is a new temptation...to bake more goodies myself!

"But Hyd, how on earth can this be bad!?" you exclaim in surprise (don't deny it, you totally just thought that).

It is bad because now I won't be able to resist! I have a weakness, and her name is cookies...and cupcakes, and muffins, and...okay I have a lot of sugary-delicious weaknesses. =P

Also, I LOVE to bake. It is like therapy - baking therapy. This is a practice that is common in my family. I would oftentimes find my mom up baking cookies or banana bread at midnight or later because she couldn't sleep, or was stressed out about something.

Whether stressed, in need of a chocolatey pick me up, or just plain hungry, baking has always been a pastime that I thoroughly enjoy. There is just something about adding a bunch of seemingly ordinary things together in a bowl, tossing them into a hot oven and pulling out tasty perfection 12-15 mins later. It is like magic!

Then there's decorating these magical goodies! Wow! That is a whole other talent in itself! A baker is like a chemist meets a cook meets an artist - all rolled into one. =D

What with all this experimentation in the kitchen, being able to concoct my own recipes for tastilicious treats has been most satisfying. Some of which I hope to share, at some point. =)

Proud Kitty-mama

2010-08-10T21:00:00.011-07:00

I was not fast enough to catch her in the act, but this is a pic from earlier this week - Ashi's famous "road-killed" pose.

I've just experienced the proudest moment a kitty-mama could have - my little kitty is hunting a cricket! You might think this is a normal act for a kitty, and right you are. But if you have ever met my kitty, she is not so much of a vicious hunter (unless you happen to be The Boy). You can show her a bug and she could care less, but throw her a pom-pom ball and she goes crazy. She stalks pipe cleaners and pieces of string but ignores moths or grasshoppers. She will occasionally bite your face off if she is provoked, ignored or just feels like it, but there is not a lot of planning that goes into those moments, as she usually just uses the element of surprise!

She is really not the most stealthy little thing either. She is pretty clumsy and tends to get overly excited and fall off of things. So this really is a shining moment in her growth as a kitty-cat!

I'm almost not freaking out that there is a large cricket in my kitchen, because I am so excited for my kitty. Almost. *goes for the paper towels*

Update: As it turns out, there was no need for the paper towels. I found cricket legs on the kitchen floor. Where the rest of him is...only Ashi Sparta knows.

Summer days...drifting away

2010-07-31T08:02:00.004-07:00

Phew...Goodbye July. You were fun-filled, stress-full, very expensive, short days, long nights, laid-back, hard working, full of smiles, wet with tears, and all around unforgettable.

This summer has been...interesting. So many crazy things have happened, both great and bad. It has been a roller-coaster for sure!

Summer of Social Solitude

2010-07-30T21:32:00.003-07:00

This summer has been surprisingly social-less. Correction, social-media-less. I have been plenty social with those lovely people I have been so lucky to see face to face. ^_^

The social-media drought started shortly before I left to go on my long anticipated summer vacation back home to Idaho. I was so busy preparing for the trip, and then with kitty getting sick, that I almost completely stopped connecting with my usual social media outlets (which need I remind you is an enjoyable part of my day), but with everything going on it, just didn't happen.

As it turned out, it was kinda nice. I didn't have that constant distraction nagging at me to check my Facebook and Twtiter apps every 5 mins. I didn't care who was doing what on Twitter, or who they were doing it with on Facebook or where they were doing it on 4-Square nor did I have a desire to see So-and-so's new pictures they just uploaded to Flickr. I simply didn't care. Not in an emo-I-hate-the-world-and-everyone-in-it-so-I-am-going-to-be-antisocial-this-week-and-see-who-will-even-miss-me kind of way, but in a people-will-do-what-they-do-without-me-having-to-know-about-it kind of way.

I felt untied to the world. Free to do whatever I felt like without having to "check-in". I was able to enjoy the time with my family uninterrupted and while driving home through the boonies of Utah with crappy cellphone reception, I barely even noticed.

I expected I would get home and fall back into my usual social media routine without batting an eye, but it is proving to be harder than I thought! Having not been enveloped in all things online for an extended period of time, you tend to forget they are there. Sitting on the couch reading through book after book or working on my scrapbook pages have proved to be more valuable pastimes lately than spending 2 hours a night (or more!) playing online.

But alas, my heart is tied to the interwebs and it is only a matter of time before I start feeling the inevitable tug of the data at my consciousness and my lappy starts staring at me with big-round-pouty-kitty-cat-eyes.

<-- How can you resist something that cute? You can't.

So even though I am again plugged in, I feel as if I am being a little more picky about where I choose to spend my online time these days. ^_~

A Sickly Kitty

2010-07-29T21:01:00.008-07:00

Ah-choo.

Ashi Sparta has been sick. And not just "the sniffles" sick, full blown doc exams & meds sick. Poor thing just can't cut a break.

It started with a sad kitty day. She was obviously not feeling well and wasn't eating so the next day I took her into her least favorite place, the vet. We have an awesome doctor, mind you, but Ashi is just an anxious, very uncooperative and VERY bitey kitty. She does not play well with others and thus has to be sedated for nearly everything.

So over the course of the month it started out with a fever, constipation and not eating. Got better. Got worse. Got better. Turned into swollen kitty paws (caused by an unknown allergy). Got better and ended in kitty sneezes.

5 doctors visits, 1 trip to the ER vet, a kitty enema, an ultrasound, a liver biopsy, multiple medications and antibiotics, kitty laxatives, fancy Rx kitty food, 2 blood tests, and a couple thou later, we still don't know what the heck started it all.

But the good news is that she is doing better though she still has the sneezes and is skinny from loosing 2 lbs, which is a huge amount for a cat that only weighs 9 lbs to begin with! But I am fattening her up right quick!

So this has been my ongoing drama for the month. Having not had to deal with much stress for quite some time, my once well stress conditioned self had a pretty hard time dealing with it. It is tough being a kitty-mama.

I heart you kitty-pie. I'm so glad you are feeling better.

Idaho Summer Vacation

2010-07-29T20:46:00.008-07:00

"Here we have Idaho, winning her way to fame..."

Having not been home to visit for over 2 years and having not been home in the summer for 5 years, I was overdue for a trip! We planned our 9 day vacay over 4th of July weekend and The Boy and I packed our suitcases, refreshed the iPod playlists, filled the cooler and loaded up in the car for a road trip!

With only a couple of stops along the way to swap drivers and grab food at the beloved Taco Time, we hauled-ass across Arizona and Utah and the drive went by pretty fast. One of my favorite parts about the drive to Idaho is watching the landscape change as we drive from the cactus speckled red rock of the dessert, to rolling hills covered with patchwork green fields, to towering snow-capped mountain peaks. It is really quite an experience.

Once we got to Idahome it was like we never left. We sat and chatted with my family and shared stories and hung out as if no time at all had passed between us. The fam took us out for all kinds of adventures. We rode 4-wheelers and went camping, took a few scenic drives to look at the beautiful mountains and historic sites. Jon even went fishing for the first time since he was young (or maybe the first time ever as he can't really remember).

We ate really awesome food including the fresh bass that Jon caught, though I think his favorite culinary experience of the whole trip was cooking hotdogs over the campfire. As for me, it was the smores (I don't remember them tasting so good) and the chocolate cake that my mom made for me from my Great Grandma's recipe. It tasted just as delicious as I remembered. =9

And of course, we took lots of great pictures!

The best part was that it actually felt like a vacation! It felt relaxed and fun and we came home feeling refreshed instead of tired-out. The only downside of the trip was saying goodbye and the inevitable wave of homesickness that follows. I heart you my Idaho family and I miss you already!

A new face, a fresh start

2010-07-26T19:19:00.000-07:00

I spent a little time this past weekend playing with the new template design features of Blogger that, as it turns out, are surprisingly nice. (Nothing against you Blogger, but as a web designer, I tend to be a fair bit more picky about my designs.) So I have given up the semi-custom cute design in favor or something cleaner and more easily manageable. It is hard to compete with cute, but it is equally hard to compete with lazy.

And though I haven't nailed down a fun background design just yet (I am still searching for the right bird and/or owl pattern at a fair price of free) it is nice to have a facelift and a fresh start.

Hopefully I can keep the content as current. (I KNOW! I keep saying that!) ^_~

Happy Sweethearts Day!

2010-02-14T17:32:00.006-07:00

So many people have such a dislike for Valentine's Day. "It is an overly commercialized excuse to spend money so that the jewelry, flowers, and chocolate industries can make a fat buck." But honestly...EVERY holiday is totally commercialized these days. You can't escape it. So I figure, what the hell, just roll with it!

After all, it is fun to dote on each other! It is fun to give and get flowers, gifts and goodies. Any holiday intended to celebrate the ones you love is a good enough excuse for me.

If you want to feel rebellious and not give in to the commercialism and clichés of the holiday then do something really awesome! Spend the day doing something fun together. Do an activity you may not often have the chance to do or try something new. Go on a hike and have a picnic, take a drive, take a new class together, plant a garden, try making a new dinner or dessert recipe at home. Homemade gifts are always a winner. Make a scrapbook of your favorite trip, make a photo collage, knit a scarf, sew a quilt, create a piece of jewelry, bake cookies. There are plenty of fun and creative "non-commercial" ways to spend the day showing someone you care and just having fun together.

And sure, you don't need a "special day" to have an excuse to tell someone that you love them. But admit it, everyone needs a little reminder once in a while. ;)

So Happy Valentine's Day, Chocolate & Flowers Day, Hearts Day, Singles Awareness Day...whatever you choose to call it and however you choose to celebrate, have a good one! <3

Driving Therapy

2009-09-10T21:30:00.007-07:00

I had the most lovely drive home last night. I just can't get over how great it was.

The streets were empty, the windows were rolled down with the warm breeze blowing through my hair, the radio turned up, and I just kicked back and cruised about 5 mph under the speed limit. Which anyone who knows me, knows that that is a big deal. For me the rule of thumb is that 5 over the posted speed limit is a totally acceptable speed.

With the windows down I could hear and smell everything that I normally miss due to loud traffic or filtered AC air. I could smell the fishy smell of the Hayden Park pond, sage brush, wet grass, BBQ, and McDonalds french fries. I could hear...quiet. No zooming of cars or police sirens or honking horns. Just the sound of the wind, my tires on the pavement and the radio. There was a moment when I thought I would just go on driving all night. It was beautiful.

I have been very stressed, depressed, busy, and just overwhelmed the past month or so. But when I got home I felt so calm, relaxed and centered. I haven't felt that calm peace for a while, so I went straight home and went promptly to bed so as not to spoil it. =) It was car therapy.

It's not the first time that I have retreated to the car for some "Hyd Time" and then I go to thinking just how much of me comes from driving in cars.

Ever since I was little, my family would take drives into the country. Which sounds so old school and cliche I know, but those were some of my most cherished memories. Living in Idaho also made for some beautiful drives. Whether it was driving up through the mountains on the twisty, dirt roads, starring out into the forest, or cruising along across the open dessert watching the sun go down, I was always happy in the car (or in most cases, the truck).

My parents tell me that they used to take me for drives when I was a baby because sometimes it was the only way they could get me to stop crying and go to sleep. And so driving was instilled in me since childhood. As was falling asleep in the car. A terrible and dangerous habit I have been trying 10 years to break.

I have always enjoyed road trips. For me, it has always been just as much about the drive, as it is the destination. Packing up the car, picking the snacks, music, games, and color books that I will be needing to get me through the trip. Planning all the stops and attractions along the way. Getting there is fun too! Road trips have been a chance to get to know new people. A time to chat and catch up and spend time with friends and family. A time to self reflect while you are cruising along alone. A time to embark on a new adventure because you never know what kinds of crazy things might happen out on the open road.

I have spent so many hours in the car. Chatting with a friend for hours in the parking lot. Crying with my head resting on the steering wheel. Driving around exploring the city. Discovering new music. Some of the most serious conversations I have had in my life have taken place in the seat of a car. It is kind of amazing to think about.

My car, to me has always been the one thing that was MINE. My ultimate personal space, the place I didn't have to really share with anyone else unless I invited them into it. A place I could retreat to to be alone. My safe zone.

My car is my "happy place". <3

Just Get Going

2009-08-11T23:24:00.002-07:00

Each of us has much more hidden inside us than we have had a chance to explore. Unless we create an environment that enables us to discover the limits of our potential, we will never know what we have inside of us.
- Muhammad Yunus

Amen brother. I am working on it. =)

Violet-Hued Hyd

2009-07-10T22:25:00.006-07:00

"Violet! You are turning violet, Violet!"

I have been rocking the purple hair this summer and loving it!! I have always loved coloring my hair but the fad faded during my starving college years due to a serious lack of fundage. But lately I have indulged a little, and gone crazy a little too!

My fabulously awesome hair stylist Miss Haley* loves my hair and had been begging me to let her color it. I hadn't colored my hair for 5+ years so I figured, what the heck. So she put a few blonde streaks in my hair the first time and since then I have been hooked! And this summer, I was jones'in for some purple!

I know there will be a time when I will go back to semi-conventional hair color. Maybe some reds for the fall/winter season, but for now, this summer is violet-hued.

*If you'd like some awesome colored hair, or just want a regular cut, Haley is a freaking magician when it comes to hair. She is the most amazing hair stylist I have ever known and the only one who has been able to rock my hair so well. I have never loved my hair so much ever ever! I highly recommend her! You too boys! She rocks men's locks too! Make an appointment...NOW!

Choppers Salon Scottsdale
480-922-0262

1 Fish, 2 Fish... Part 4

2009-06-23T18:39:00.005-07:00

So I am not sure what the deal is with me finding goldfish in the most random of places, but last week my tank became home to four new finned friends. Last Wednesday I went to visit my college and sit-in on a presentation by one of my professor-friend's classes. She needed people to review her students and give them feedback on their presentation so I and a couple of good friends from college decided to help her out.

In the classroom on top of the rollaway TV cart, was a seemingly empty Starbucks cup. But when one of the students went to toss it out she noticed that it was not empty at all, but contained a small amount of water and four little goldfish flitting about the bottom.

"Are you kidding me?" I exclaimed.

No one knew where they had come from and assumed it was from a former presentation earlier that day. But why the heck someone would use some poor live fishies is beyond me (as I have already made clear).

I examined them closely and being much less scurvy looking than the last bunch, I decided they would be okay to take home. So they rode with us in the car, in their Starbucks cup in the cup holder. They also accompanied us to dinner at Wendy's where they received a water change in the soda dispenser.

They have been with me a week and so far so good. They are actually kinda pretty little fish. They are white and orange spotted like Koi fish. =) But while my heart has endless capacity for saving abandoned critters, my fish tank capacity is well beyond full, so please people...stop with the fish abuse!

Playing catch up...

2009-06-04T00:14:00.001-07:00

Whew...what a past few months! My goodness I have been busy. You may have noticed the sudden surge in posts, that were obviously not posted a few days ago. No you didn't forget to refresh your browser, they weren't there before. I have adjusted the dates of the events to fit in chronologically with my life timeline. You will find that I do this often. Why? Because I am OCD and it drives me crazy to have them out of order! So there.

I had started a number of posts, and they have been sitting as drafts in my blogger for months now, I just had not finished them and tonight I decided to do some blogging therapy and catch up. So technically I did start them around the correct time, I just didn't published them. It is so not cheating! "Whatever I WANT okay!! I swear!!"

I will try to be more on top of things in the future. And if not...how are you gonna know anyway! muahahahah! Man...I wish I could alter real-time this easily. ^_~

The Happiest Place on Earth

2009-05-11T00:10:00.009-07:00

My First Mickey Mouse ears!

I had originally planned on writing more about this trip, but there is just too much to say. Where to even begin!? But what it really comes down to is this; The Happiest Place on Earth...really is happy. You can't help but be happy. It is really kinda freaky, almost evil, but it is not. It is pure happy magic. I dunno what that fairy puts in her pixie dust, but damn, I was high on happiness.

I bought a new camera so that I could take pics so I will let the pics do the rest of the storytelling.

It was such an awesome trip! Thanks again D+H for making my first Disneyland trip an adventure!

My Cruise Vacation: The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

2009-04-29T15:56:00.009-07:00

Jon's family and I just got back from taking a 3 day cruise to Mexico. It was the first time I had ever been on a cruise. Heck, it was the first time I had ever been on a boat in the ocean before so naturally I was excited!

The Good:
Road Trips and listening to comedy routines on the iPod.
Little Italy in downtown San Diego where we had a yummy dinner at a neat Italian restaurant.
14th floor bay view from the hotel room where we could see sailing ships and watch the sunset over the ocean.
The perma-drunk feeling that comes with being on a huge rocking boat. One min you are fine and the next your equillibrium tries to adjust to the rocking and you have a moment of drunken stumbles.
Free food. It wasn't the best food ever like the rumors say, but their was alot of it, and it was free. Even free sushi and cappuccino.
Marvin, our awesome head server who was always smiling, joking around and even gave us Table Etiquette 101 lessons!
Fish tacos at a Mexican restaurant in downtown Ensenada were surprisingly yummy.
New leather jackets that we got a great deal on in Mexico (lightweight so I can even wear it in AZ.)
Deep dark starry skies that go on forever and the cool patterns of rolling shadows of the waves in the night.

The Bad:
The weather, while beautiful wasn't warm enough so I didn't get a chance to use my awesome new swimsuits.

Sleeping in a strange place like a ship rocking on the ocean was tough to get used to. I kept waking up in the middle of the night in a panic attack because I would hear a loud noise and instinctively thought the ship was going to sink. =S

My Janky Knee. I dunno what happened to it, but I had to go to the doc and wear a knee brace for a few weeks because it was all out of whack. So all the walking irritated it.

The Biggest Bad of all:
Lost my Camera and cried for days. I had been taking lots of really great pics of our trip. I haven't been much of a picture taker the last few years and I was lacking in scrapbooking material, so I had been taking pics of everything and all the family and it was great! I was going to make scrapbooks of our trip and give them to the family as Christmas gifts. No one else was really taking pictures because I was taking pics for them and was of course going to share. I remember the exact place that I last saw it, but when we went back it was already gone and no one turned it into lost and found. I think someone pocketed it.

The Ugly:
Old baggy-skinned ladies in swimsuits. *shudders* (Hey I know it is mean, and I may be an old baggy-skinned lady someday. But you can bet I sure as hell won't be in a swimsuit showing it off!) And to be equally sexually discriminating, old men in speedo-esque swim shorts. Eww.

Ensenada. Cultural rich land my ass. Mexican Ghetto culture maybe. Let me paint a picture for you...

Imagine driving through a town of old stone buildings and through fields of derelict cars and stinky goats for 45 mins on a bus that smells so bad of diesel exhaust we had to breathe into our shirt so as to not get high so that we can get get to a wretched tourist trap called "La Bufadora" (or in English "The Blowhole") to walk through a street that was more like a tunnel laden with cheap souvenirs, designer knock off bags, and fake jewelry, all the while we are bombarded with shop owners whistling, yelling, and asking us to step inside for "just a mexican minute" as we make our way to a mossy, crab infested crevice of rock on the shoreline that if you watch will suck in ocean water and spray it up in the air in a "spectacular presentation" of water that is "wow", about 2 whopping stories high and nothing to rival Old Faithful and so we turn around and make our way back through tunnel of peddlers and get on the smelly bus for the ride back to town where we are encouraged to "take a nap" on the ride back, I imagine because they don't want us to see the rest of the town as we roll into a "historical monument" of an old church that smells of rotting wood and the bathrooms smell like nasty because you can't flush the toilet paper due to the old sewer pipes so all the poopy paper is tossed in the overflowing trash cans where I wanted to barf into because my germaphobia was at its peak, but that would make things even worse so I doused myself in Purell, and cried a little on the inside and then walked into the "nicer" part of town (which meant that this area had paved roads) and so we had lunch at a little semi-Americanized restaurant where we drank bottled Coke (like you can get at Costco) and then walked back to the ship but not before getting hassled by a little wide eyed girl that was selling bracelets and "chicle" and who gave me the evil eye when I didn't buy anything as she tailed me all the way across the bridge where after only a few more run ins with crazy shop merchants we finally got to the boat where I could take a much needed hot shower and scrub off a few layers of skin before laying down for a nap.

*deep breath in* And that was Mexico. And also the longest running sentence in the history of this blog.

Haha! Nah, the LaBufadora was kinda cool. The water was pretty colors and it was neat to see all the crabs and seals and stuff, but it was alot of hype and annoyance for just a little water. =/ Kinda anticlimactic. I had some really great pics of the rainbows in the geiser which are now, oh lost!

My thoughts towards the jerk who pocketed my camera have also been very ugly. I hope bad karma wails on you buddy.

Hahpee Eaztur!

2009-04-11T23:26:00.007-07:00

Here's wishing you all a wonderful day! I hope that you get to do something fun to celebrate. As for me...I colored eggs today. =) I colored brown ones, which I have never done before, but that is all I had in the fridge so that is what was used. They actually turned out pretty good. The colors are deeper and some of them came out really dark. Overall I was pleased.

Have fun all! Happy Easter!

From Easter 2009

Rain Meditation

2009-04-11T01:57:00.004-07:00

There is something special about the rain that really energizes and electrifies me. The sound it makes hitting the roof and window panes is one of the most soothing things in my world. I don't have alot of patience for many things, but I could sit contently for hours and just listen to it rain.

And when it is paired with lightning storms is the best! There is a change in the pressure of the air and I can feel the air buzzing with electricity all around. Like when you pull clothes out of the dryer and you can feel the static on them, I can feel the static in air during a lightning storm and I get crazy energized and revitalized like a fresh new pair of batteries has been put in.

I am like a kid in a candy shop for lightning storms. My fascination started with my dad because we would sit on the front porch and watch them together. I will sit for hours and hours watching the sky and I am awed and amazed every time the lightning strikes. The last time we had a big storm I sat in the living room watching through the skylights, oohing and ahhing, and laughing, and being just pure happy.

Rain is even more special to me now living in Arizona, as we don't see too much of it. Let me tell you, I get so sick of blue skies after months and months in the sun. My heart skips a beat every time there is a little gray cloud moving through.

And then, when it is all passed, everything feels fresh and new and alive. It smells sweet and earthy. It is like the rain washed away all the negative energy building up inside of me and now my soul is refreshed and ready to start anew.

Thanks rain, you are just what I needed.

The Best Shopping Day Ever!

2009-04-10T23:08:00.000-07:00

Jon and I are going on a Mexican cruise next week and so this means that I need a new swimsuit for the trip. Ugh! Swimming suit shopping is never a good day. In fact, it is a nightmare, especially if you are not rocking the body of a stick figure. ^_~

So I called my girlfriend Etch to assist me in the dreadful task. I did a bit of browsing online beforehand and psyched myself up for a long, hard, self-esteem killing day of shopping.

You see, the last time Etch and I went went shopping we spent 6 hours shopping and nothing to show for it. So really, shopping karma owed us!

...And karma paid up! We went into ONE store, found some cute suits, and were in and out in a flash! It was amazing! And not only were the suits good, they were fabulous! I have never felt so cute and confident in a swimsuit before. I have to say they are the best suits I have ever had! And as you know...good things come in pairs so Etch got one too! Yays! Matchy-matchy!

Also, another breakthrough in awesomeness is Sunscreen! I finally found a sunscreen I am not allergic to! Dood...after being allergic to sunscreen for the past 20+ years, you have no idea the joy this brings me and the doors it opens up! Living in Arizona and being allergic to sunscreen is hell. I don't have to wear long sleeves and floppy sun hats every time I want to spend time outside anymore! Hooray for Burt's Bees organic awesomeness!

1 Fish, 2 Fish... Part 3

2009-04-09T21:36:00.001-07:00

Houston, we have reached cruising speed! It has been about a month and the fishies are doing very well. Apparently 7 really is the lucky number! =D They have finally adjusted to their new home and are off all the meds. They are just normal, happy little begging-for-food-all-the-time piggies. They aren't even scared when I clean the tank now! It is so funny because they try to swim in front of my gravel vacuum, like it is a game to see how close they can get before they get sucked up. They play in the stream of water when I refill the tank, and they even nibble at my arm and fingers when I put my hands in the water! I think they are pretty happy as far as fish go. And so am I. =) Silly little things.

Where did my electricity go?

2009-03-29T15:46:00.011-07:00

Sometimes...this is how I feel.

(great comic btw! I can see alot of myself in many of these frames! haha!)

There's nothing like a show on Broadway...

2009-03-22T17:38:00.009-07:00

...nothing like a Broadway show!! (Or an off Broadway show anyway.)

I went to see the musical RENT this weekend with Jon and his cousin Liz and one of her high school friends. It was a terrific show! First of all we had amazing seats in the 8th row left of center (courtesy of Liz's refusal to sit past the 20th row - those drama geeks! ;P). We could see all the fun set details and most importantly we could see expressions on the performers faces! It was also very cool because the two main characters (Mark and Roger) were played by the original Broadway actors who are also the guys who played in the movie!

For those of you that are familiar with RENT you know that it is a great story that is very funny and extremely touching. It has a very "human" aspect and I think that everyone can relate to it is one way or another. I have to give mad props to the actors because they were phenomenal! All of them did a wonderful job and the energy and passion between them was amazing. I also must confess that I cried. Not just boo-hoo *tear, but tears streaming down my cheeks for many minutes while I am holding my breath so as not to make sobbing noises and give myself away. (yes, I am weak...fail) But I just couldn't help it. It got to me. =*) Well done everyone. You are beautiful.

I also have to say that I am very grateful to have a boyfriend who enjoys theatre too, especially musicals. In fact he has seen many more plays and musicals than I have. RENT is one of his favorites and he first introduced me to the movie a few years ago. I may have his father to thank for that. He is the funniest guy! He is big into sports, loves going golfing (he lives on a golf course!) and yet you will find him sitting on the sofa watching The Sound of Music. The man has a musical collection! He is great!

Living in Idaho I saw alot of great college theatre productions but there weren't many "mainstream" shows that came through town. If you wanted to see a show you had to drive 3 hours to SLC so it just didn't happen alot. I was very excited when I moved to Phoenix because I was finally going to get to go out and experience some cultural arts while I was in a city so thriving with opportunities.

But even after living here going on 7 years, I hadn't really gotten out much yet. The first few years I was going to school and was tight on money and spending $60 on a show ticket just wasn't something I could afford. So now that I finally have a real job that pays more than crackers, I can indulge a little bit here and there.

I went to my first off-broadway show last year when Jon took me to see Sweeny Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. It was a fantastic show! The set was very minimal without many props, and it was very interpretive. But the performers were amazing! They all played instruments and did the music for the entire show. Each cast member could play 2 or 3 different instruments and it was crazy to watch because they would dance around and one character would come out of the scene and take over an instrument from another character as they entered the next scene. They swapped instruments around so fluidly that they would never miss a beat. It was amazing to watch and you had to give the performers kudos for their superb timing and talent. I was hooked!

After that I saw Chicago, The Lion King, RENT and we have Wicked tickets for the show in July. The Producers and Avenue Q (squeeee!) are coming to town as well and we are hoping to get tickets for those too. Yay!

Last year was the year of the concert, so I guess this year is the year of the Theatre. =D See you at the Theatre!

Sword Play

2009-03-20T21:39:00.007-07:00

I had a crummy week this week. Probably the crummiest so far at the new job. And not just because it was a long boring week or I feel creatively stifled, but because my boss was being a whiny douche bag and needed thwarted. >_<;; grrr....

So I came home today after a particularly irritating day feeling frustrated almost to the point of tears. I open the door and here come kitty and The Boy bouncing across the room to meet me. (as if that isn't enough to cheer one up by itself!) The first thing kitty said was "mrrroow!" and the first thing The Boy said was "Hi honey! Want to go to Toys-R-Us?" I smiled. "Yes, I would love to go to Toys-R-Us. That is just what I need."

So we hopped in the car and headed off to the toy store. Apparently we were on a mission. I assumed that it was a game of sorts but after we left the toy store empty handed I was confused. I asked what he was looking for and all I got was "You will see when I find it." A secret mission.

So after searching a Target, two Toys-R-Us's and a Wal*Mart, all to no avail, we took a break for dinner before hitting up the Über-Target. And Target came through for us! Yay, the mystery search was over!

And what did we get you ask? ...Nerf Swords. But not just any Nerf Swords, apparently these were "new and improved" Nerf Swords that are more sturdy and long lasting for your foam dueling fun. I lol'ed right there in the store.

We bought two of them and considered stopping at a park on the way home, but we had a hungry kitty waiting for us, so after we took her for a walk (it is really becoming a part of her routine...she loves the walks! Who knew.) and fed her dinner, we got out the Nerf Swords, moved the furniture aside and duked it out in the living room!

It was awesome and very stress relieving! I think we are going to go to the park on Sunday and play some more. =D Haha what dorks we are! What a great way to end a rough week. Thanks hunny. <3 I needed that.

1 Fish, 2 Fish... Part 2

2009-03-15T17:18:00.005-07:00

Sigh...so this has been a tough week in the lives of the critters in the glass box. I have spent the past week researching fish care, fish illness, fish recipes (just kidding) and I swear, if they can have it, my fish got it.

The poor things were not too good starting out, as they were victims of intense trauma, and stress. All of the basic "stressed out fish" signs were there. Then within two days a few of them started showing signs of Ich, a very common fish illness that happens to 98% of fish at some point in their lives (especially if they did not come from a decent fish store). But I was prepared, because my research said to have some Ich meds and Aquarium salt on hand in case of this.

So I gave them all a salt dip to kill the bacteria and was doing the suggested water changes and adding the Ich meds for the whole week and the Ich started to clear up and the fishes started to look and act better.

Then I came home Friday night and one of them had died. =( So I did an emergency water change as recommended. (This is at 2:30 in the morning mind you, after I returned from a bday party.) And then when I woke up the next morning, another one had bit the dust. Then another one gone, and another one this morning.

They were all the littlest fish. I think that between the shock, stress, and illness they just couldn't take it. Jon thinks I have a fish murderer. I say it is Bubbles. That one likes to chase the others around and nip at them. Maybe they got nipped to death. Jerk fish.

So I am down to 7 (7 is a lucky number right...) and hoping that the rest will make it through the week. Two of them have Fin Rot, another common fishy illness due to stress. Poor things. I have meds for that now. What I really need is some fishy Prozac. =/

Home Improvement

2009-03-08T16:32:00.007-07:00

"Heidi-Ho good neighbor!" (That was a great show.)

The last few months we have been doing some work on the condo. After Jon took it off the market back in the fall, because of the crashing housing market, he decided that if we were going to stay here for another year or two, then we should at least make some improvements to make our stay more pleasant. To which I gleefully replied "So does this mean that I can paint the bookcases!?!"

So that is where it started. I had been itching to repaint our lovely HUNTER GREEN bookcases. I don't have anything at all against green, but my gawd, that color has no place on the living room walls. Eeeew. So we started by turning this...

...into a much more peaceful, neutral color on the eyes. "Toffee Crunch" is the name of the color. Tasty!

Here's the finished product...

Next I tackled my personal workspace. I had it all picked out at Ikea, but was planning on waiting till after we moved to get a new desk. But since that was looking to be further in the future than originally planned, the heck with it, I needed a happy personal space to work in and was not going to wait!

So I turned my blackhole of a desk...

...into my happy place.

I love the bookcases because I have eveything thing I need for both my web work and my fun scrapbooking and crafting things, out where I have handy access to it. No more digging through boxes in the closet to find my hole punchers! Yays!

Next stop...the kitchen!!

Okay, so the kitchen was really in need of help, and was probably the worst room in the condo. It had old green countertops (again with the green!?) and appliances that were from the original build back in the early 80's.

We had a stove where one of the elements was messed up and you could only use it if you put a heavy pot on it. Plus it was slanted so you had to turn anything in a pan around in circles otherwise it would pool on one side. And it was the only large element!

The washer was off balance and sometimes it would shake so much it would come out from the wall. When it was in the last spin cycle you had to stand against it so that it wouldn't come rocking out of the closet. Good times!

The dishwasher pooped out back last summer and we had to have it replaced. It was only a matter of time before the rest of it went.

We got a call from the Realtor saying that her granite guy had some scrap pieces that would fit our kitchen and we could get a really good deal on it. We decided to go for it and figured we better get our upgrades now and get it all knocked out at once. So after some research and measuring, we headed off to Home Depot to pick out some appliances and a sink.

Ahh the sink...our whole kitchen project pretty much revolved around this sink. At our house, I cook and Jon does the dishes, and he hated the old sink. Hated it with a passion. So the first thing he picked out was "the perfect sink". He had sent the measurements to the granite contractor to make sure everything would fit and even said he would hire a carpenter to move out the cabinets if he had to, in order to get this sink in there. He has an unhealthy love for the sink. Luckily it fit just fine, so no extreme action was needed. =P He also picked out the faucet and I think that whole thing came together beautifully.

The awesome sink...

In addition to the countertops and sink, we also replaced the stove (thank goodness!) and the clunky, buzzing, fluorescent lights. We got a new washer and dryer as well, which was just in time as our old washer died 3 days before our new one was to be delivered. (whew!) So now we have a much happier kitchen, which in turn, makes us much happier people when we have to use it! =D

There are a few more things we plan on doing, but the major project is done. And boy does it feels good!

View all the Home Improvement pics here»

1 Fish, 2 Fish...

2009-03-08T00:12:00.006-07:00

Today I caught a fish. Well, 11 fish actually.

It actually started with a Baby Shower. A weird place to pick up fish, I know! The party was a Luau theme and the house was decorated with Hawaiian leis, tiki masks, the works. And on the luncheon tables were pretty glass vases with colored stones and fish...real fish.

My initial thought was "GASP! Those poor fish in those little jars! Eeek!" The feeling seemed to be mutual around the table. I guess it was one of the hostesses decoration ideas, and the shower recipient didn't think too much of it herself.

After the party started to wind down I asked her what was going to become of the little guys. Apparently they were "up for grabs". And if no one was grabbing the plan was a one way ticket on the porcelain express. (the horror!!)

Now it is weird enough to use live fish as table decor, but someone really didn't think this through. They just bought these little fish for decoration and then planned to flush them? What the hell is that!? I have to say I was a little bit appalled by it.

So offered to take them home. "All of them? Heidi, are you sure?" Yes. All of them. So all of them, save for two who were claimed by someone else and whose fate is unknown, came home with me, riding in a plastic container on Sami's lap.

I have wanted a fishtank for a few years now. My Dad has a huge fishtank and I always enjoyed watching the fish play. I even bought a book on Aquariums a few years back to study up on what I needed to have a healthy aquarium environment. Luckily my notes were still tucked inside the book. So I spent the later part of my afternoon brushing up on fish care, shopping, and setting up the tank. Yays!

They are nothing fancy. Just little goldfish. But that is what I had planned on getting for my first tank since they are hearty, can tolerate a wide range of PH and temperature level, and they are cute. (look at them! Aren't they cute?)

Right now they are chilling in the bedroom until we can find a table or stand that is structurally sound enough to support 200 lbs of water. Then they will move out to the living room where all can enjoy them. The kitty hasn't taken too much interest in them yet, but she isn't the best hunter. (Sometimes I swear she grew up with dogs because she is so uncatlike.) I have to admit that my wallet took a considerable hit in the process of all this, but I think the lives of 11 little fishies was worth it. =)

Resolutions of the New Year

2009-01-13T00:01:00.003-07:00

So as we are kicking off 2009, I ask myself where the heck did 2008 go!? I really dislike this time flying by thing. It makes me feel, I dunno...rushed? Sometimes I feel a little panicky, like I am letting too many days slip through my fingers and there are so many thing I want to do and see and I don't want to be old and gray before I do them. I need to act and do something with my life NOW!! I swear I am having a midlife crisis in my mid-twenties. =P Then I take some deep breaths and remind myself that it is what it is and that I just need to live in the moments, no matter how fast they slip by. That is the reality of things, though that is not very comforting. heh!

So...I have never really done a "New Year's Resolution" before. So I thought this year that it might be worth while. But I can't really decide what it is I want to resolve to doing/being/etc. So I am making a list of all the things that I want to strive for. They are the usual things I try to remember to work on or make time for, but hey, maybe if they are out there in the open, I will try to be more committed. Riiight.

Spend more time with friends. I just don't think I see some of you nearly enough.
Stay in touch. Answer my emails and facebook messages from old friends, call my family more, write letters.
Take time to read more. I really miss it. Maybe a book a month goal?
Finish my unfinished video games. They really do bring me lots of enjoyment.
Finish the paintings I started two years ago and start new ones.
Take time to smell the roses...and read web comics.
Take more time to play scrapbooking! (And take more pictures to scrapbook with)
Take better care of my health. (Like going to the dentist. Hey, it has only been two years!)
Draw a doodle everyday. =)
Takin care of business. Work harder towards expanding my freelancing business.
Learn more. I feel I have been falling behind on all my fun tech web stuff. I need to take time to keep up with the trends and experiment with fun new things.
Be balanced.
Love more. (Who could not do with a little more love in their life?)
Blog more. (good luck with this one, but I will try)

That may seem like a hefty list, but most of them are little things. I will try to peck away at them as much as I can! Good luck to you and whatever New Years Resolutions you are shooting for this year. Happy 2009 Everyone!

Avast Bitches! (That is Pirate for Happy New Year)

2009-01-01T23:14:00.003-07:00

As if we didn't have enough murder this holiday season, we decided to end the year with a treacherous murder in the Salty Dog Inn!

We kicked out the New Year with a pirate murder mystery party at Heather and Douglas's house where there were shiploads of swashbuckling pirates and plenty of rum! Everyone dressed up in their piratey best and we had a blast as we chatted away while trying to discover what scurvy dog committed the fiendish murder!!

View the pics here and read the Heatherie's tale here!

(My brother makes a good pirate doesn't he?)

Happy Holidays and Merry Murders

2008-12-30T20:49:00.002-07:00

With the holidays comes all sorts of wonderful things. Warm cocoa and mittens, frosty snowflakes, spending time with family, and murder. Wait! Murder?

Well, that is what seems to be the popular theme this holiday season. No Frosty and Ruddolph, how about a good old fashioned murder mystery. Tis the season!

This year my company holiday party featured a Mafioso Murder Mystery story. Everyone at the party were given lines and funky props and a little piece of the mystery puzzle. As we sat down at dinner at The Godfathers 85th birthday party everyone warmed up as the 3 professional actors led our company cast through the story. It turned out to be a pretty fun night as we played through the story as we had dinner and dessert. And guess what? It was I, Abbey Cuss, who killed the Godfather....muaaaahahaha! Yup, I got to play the merry murderer. And (embarrassingly enough) was awarded the "Best Actress" award. Oh my...it was some pretty lame acting. Heehee.

The next night I became Tia Maria Sangria, the thrice widowed town priest (and undertaker) at Sami's, who played Indian Chief Dark Cloud, holiday party. (I got to be her date! Weeee!) We ate dinner and chatted with her coworkers while we tried to figure out who shot the Sheriff in the Western Themed dinner party. Another merry murder mystery hit!

So...who knew murder for the holidays were so popular!

In close, I hope that all of you had a wonderful holiday season! =D
View more holiday pics here »

Happy Heather-Hyd-Day

2008-11-10T22:07:00.005-07:00

Sorry, I know this post is just a wee bit late. I had wanted to write a nice post with some pics but I had a little trouble getting my photos together. So... belated thanks to everyone who helped to make Heather-Hyd-Day wonderful!

The party was fabulous. Filled with food, fun, and friends! We had a good turnout and the night was decorated with stars and colored lights and paper lanterns. Heather in her pretty party dress shows off the decor.

Sami surprised us with a starry cake, but she forgot the candles so we said cheers and made our wishes on some tealight candles. hee hee. It was really cute.
We had a good time opening presents, eating cake, and playing Mario Kart. Heather and I were definitely driving under the influence. =D

All in all, a good time was had! Thanks to everyone for coming out to play and for making our night wonderful!!
View all the party pics here »

Merry Malloween!

2008-10-31T23:50:00.003-07:00

Happy Halloween! I hope that you all had a great Halloween! Mine was spook-tacular!

I recycled my witch costume from last year with a few new changes and it was a hit at the office.

We carved pumpkins again this year and it was a great time! My friend Adeline joined us. It was the first time that she had ever carved a pumpkin and her kitty turned out great!

View all of the Halloween trick and treats »

Halloween Cookie Making

2008-10-26T23:28:00.008-07:00

Halloween kicks off the holiday season for me. We always made a big deal out of Halloween at home. Costumes, decoration, and of course...COOKIES!!
This year I had some help in the kitchen. Heather, Phoebe, and Lauren came to play!

We started out making popcorn balls. Grandma Cheryle's recipe of course! Phoebe was fascinated by the popcorn making and we had a fun sticky time gooing them all together. Sadly their are no pics of that moment as we all had our hands covered in caramel!
Next we made sugar cookies!

...and ate sugar cookies!
Yummy!Thanks girls for your help in making and eating all the yummy goodies!
View all the Cookie Making Fun »

Happy Hyd Day

2008-10-16T22:54:00.017-07:00

Today I turned 25. A quarter of a century. Wowie.

It was a nice day to turn 25. I got woken up by a phone call with my Black-haired granny. Followed shortly thereafter by a lovely duet singing a "Happy Hyd-Day to you" song. =D I even imagined that I got extra loves from the kitty kat.

Work surprised me with a balloon and a gi-normous piece of German Chocolate cake.
I also received a very nice b-day card in which one of my bosses signed with bold tags. It was cute and geeky.

An easy day at work was followed by a lovely evening. The boy took me out for dinner and shopping to get some new sunglasses. My old sunglasses had an unfortunate accident in the bottom of my purse and got really scratched up. So I was in the market.

It was very hard parting with my trusty, durable, lovely, Vogues. I felt like I was cheating on them as I perused the other pairs. They are quite different from my old pair, but I like them. A little more fragile, which I am kinda worried about. But I think I can handle it.

What do you think?

I also got some other goodies...

And lots of fun cards and goodies from my Idaho family.

Kitty liked my b-day ballon too...*nom *nom

Ah bdays. A good excuse to eat lots of cake and play with colorful balloons. I mean really...who doesn't love that?

The snake came out to play last night....

2008-10-12T22:58:00.009-07:00

No, that is not a sexual innuendo. I have a pet snake and last night she escaped.

Opi Snake has lived with me for almost ten years. I have had her from the time she was an itty-bitty worm of a snake that my dad gave to me for x-mas in a jewelry box. What a surprise that was! Especially since I thought I was getting a boring piece of jewelry. I am a werid girl. She is now quite a bit bigger (about 3 feet long) so she isn't so easily lost.

In our decade together Opi has made escape attempts before. She used to be very crafty at it actually. She would wedge her whole little body along the edge of the cage door at the top, and slowly roll over the edge so that her body would push the lid off. Clever.

This attempt however was not so crafty, but rather she took advantage of a fortunate situation. As I was cleaning out her cage last night, I got distracted by a phone call and left the lid off. Then I forgot about it and went on with my evening.

Then as I was getting ready for bed I noticed the lid askew. "Oh this could be bad..." was my thought as I peered inside the empty cage. She had had about 2 hours to get out and go who knows where.

So where does a snakey go when she acquires her freedom? Crawl into the AC vents? (my biggest fear since her cage sits next too the main air return) Make a break for the bathroom? Go play with the kitty? No. She crawls under the tight 1/2 space under her terrarium and chills out. She's not much of an adventurist I guess.

"Busy"

2008-10-10T18:02:00.002-07:00

That just about sums up the past few months. Lets see...

Got a new day job
Launched some new websites (freelance)
Picked a name for the biz
Cursed GoDaddy for not forwarding my blog domain name
Paid off all my credit card debt (and seriously depleted my laptop fund =P )
Went rollerskating for the first time in years!
Caught an out in a softball game!
Got a haircut
Read a good book
Read a bad book
Finished a terrific anime series
Spent lots of time with my girliefriend
Discovered my new Booze-a-palooza drink for 2008 (Amaretto+Coke)
Went to a great concert (and a...unique bar) with my girlfriend
Discovered something new about myself
Cursed GoDaddy again for still not forwarding my damn blog domain name. (WTF!?)
Didn't post on my blog...

...and that's how it has been. The winter is shaping up to be more of the same. B-day parties, holiday parties, holiday baking, vacation trips, theatre shows, softball games, freelance work, and more busy busy busy! Oh well, I guess I always say "it is better to be busy than bored". (though a little bit of nothing wouldn't hurt once in a while!!)

Doh!

2008-05-29T20:26:00.002-07:00

Site Down! Site Down!

That is what happens when you transfer a domain name and forget to redirect the domain. =P Oops.

In other news...check out the awesomeness on my portfolio site: www.hydart.com

That is all folks.

Amazon, I love you too.

2007-12-11T16:54:00.000-07:00

Consumerist.com post:
Amazon Sends "Best Customer Service E-mail I've Ever Received"

Holy RockStar Batman!

2007-12-11T11:14:00.000-07:00

Wow...just wow.
9 year old Guitar Hero Rocks the House

Wah, yu whan Google? Kanna haffe Google!

2007-10-18T09:21:00.000-07:00

Damn Chi-a-neeeze.

So the President awarded the Dalia Lama some peaceful citizen award and apparently that pissed China off. So how do they retaliate?...
They hax US serach engines! LMAO.

Apparently when accessing Google, Yahoo & Microsoft search engines using China based IPs, you were redirected to the Chinese search engine Baidu. I thought that this was hilarious! Oh noes!

On a positive note, as a friend of mine pointed out, "This is a good sign though, that wars between countries will be fought online in the near future." Which, while there will still be plenty of physical warfare, keeping war to digital world would indeed be a improvement! War of the Hackers commence!

Come on guys. Can't we just settle this over a pint?

Polar Bears make Great Pillows.

2007-10-16T11:55:00.001-07:00

So my coworker sent me this very amusing link.
The Sammy Suitcase Vacation Fun-A-Lysis

It is a rather detailed little Flash interface that is supposed to help you determine what sort of vacation you are in need of. So I went through it and put everything from palm trees, margaritas, hammocks, video games, hot coco, bikes, and all sort of random things in my suitcase and my results:
I am apparently a Zen Master in need of an Alaskan Adventure!

I won't argue with the Suitcase. ;)

So check it out and see what vacation you are in need of. The fabulous musical number at the end is well worth it. LMAO.

Rule 34 - Helping Keep GoDaddy in Business

2007-09-25T17:17:00.000-07:00

sam says:
lol, i remember us having a conversation about something similar to this: http://www.xkcd.com/305/

Hyd says:
If I purchased all the useless domain names that I came up with on a whim just because there should be a site for them....I would be paying the wages for Bob Parsons.

sam says:
lol no kiddin

Facials for Lunch

2007-09-18T16:27:00.000-07:00

So, I bought this Salon/Spa card a few months back that included all this really great girly pampering stuff for cheap as free. I would never have gone into this salon where a haircut is $50. (that is ri-goddamn-diculous!) But it was over $200 worth of coupons for services that I got on a promo for $49. So yeah...awesome!

I used up my haircut coupon and it was amazing. I have never had someone pay so much attention to my hair and getting it just the way I want. So I went back for a summer 1/2 off special as well. And I have an appointment next month. I am hooked. (I heart you Claudine.)

I am nearing my deadline to use up all my freebies so I scheduled a facial for tonight after work. However the lady was not going to be able to make it tonight, so she called to see if she could get me in early. So I went and had a facial at lunch. It was only the second one that I have ever had, and it was fabulous.

I had a 30 min express treatment with cleanse, ex foliation, moisturize, and massage. Ahhh...the head pets. * drools * It was such a nice little break in the day and definitely a well needed service after the past few harsh weeks at work. I came back smelling rather nicely, a little oily, but otherwise very clean, refreshed, and wonderfully relaxed.

So I have a new goal in life...to become comfortable enough monetarily that I can get a facial/massage every week...or bi-week...or month. (Just something more than once a year!) Wouldn't that be glorious.
* daydreams *

Moments of MisMis 2

2007-09-13T17:09:00.002-07:00

Moments of Music:
Artists on the Playlist this week:

Soft: Feist (because sometimes I need to be calm and centered)
Chick Rock: Paramore (because sometimes angry chick rock is good for the soul!)
New Band: Waking Avalon (because "6 Billion People can't be Wrong" and I can't get that song out of my head. =P)

Also kudos to Douglas and Jesse for becoming "regulars" at the Salty Senorita! Nice music boys!

Moments of Humor:
"Little Bitty Kitty wanna fight! Fight! Fight!" Hahahahaha

Moments of Movement:
The Voluntary Human Extinction Movement (www.vhemt.org)
Oh, I am so on board with this one.

Moments of Frustration:
"I can't get the fucking code...DAMN! I will kill everyone in the world!"

Moments of Friendship:
A Friend bringing Frosty and French Fries.
A balloon blowing therapy session.

Moments of Love:
Head pets and e-flowers.

Moments of Memories:
Happy Birthday Sethie. =*)

Namu Butsu

2007-09-06T17:50:00.001-07:00

So the blog is back. I lost my old hosting account so I reverted back to working on Blogger. On the downside, I can't customize it to all the coolness that it could be because I don't have a place to host my own images. So I am stuck with a generic template. But it works, and it is free, so yay for that.

So I thought I would start off the new blog with some artwork. (which is really why I started the darn thing anyway!) So here is a pic of one of my current work in progresses. This is a charcoal sketch on canvas. (Thanks Douglas, for the leftover GoDaddy charcoal. I have put it to good use.) I have never used charcoal on canvas before was experimenting. It is quite tricky. The charcoal turns to dust almost immediately. And if you happen to touch it or blow on it, it wipes the canvas almost completely clean. This can work to your advantage if you make a mistake. But if you have something going for you that you like, then hold your breath for fear of blowing it all away!

All in all I think that it turned out well. I am committed to this sketch because I already sprayed it with fixative. =) I think that I would like to add some color to it. Probably blues. But I am not sure how that will work out. I haven’t decided what medium to use yet. I debated using acrylic because I think that it will be too opaque and cover it up. I thought about watercolor, but I am not sure how that will blend on such rough canvas. I also thought about maybe trying just oil pastels. Though I envision a more transparent look. * shrug * I will just have to get a blank canvas and experiment with some different stuff to see what would look best. It would be a shame if I ruined such a nice sketch with a poor choice of medium.

I guess we will see how it turns out. I'll keep ya posted. =P

Hyd's Shiny New Wheels (wewts!)

2007-02-25T11:11:00.000-07:00

Ta-Da!

(above: that is actually a picture of my car. my real car. I took it this morning and photoshoped it. Ain't she purdy!)

I have been carless for a few months now which is...not so much fun. And there is nothing to break out of that drag state than some shiny new wheels.

Yesterday Douglas and I went car shopping and spent 10 hours (ugh!) at the dealership. They didn't have the car that I wanted in stock so they had to go pick it up from another dealership. But I was able to get exactly what I wanted (minus the spoiler which is factory installed only at the moment) so it was worth the wait.

Enough talk...on with the pics!

2007 Nissan Versa SL - Magnetic Gray

Front View	Rear View
Open Hatchback

Intelligent Key "Fob"

Pop out Key

My Versa is equipped with a fancy pants key less entry system and key less ignition. All I have to do is have the intelligent key on my person and with a push of a button on my door handle, I can unlock and open my car. Also there is no need to put the key into the ignition to start the car. As long as I have the intelligent key somewhere around me, I can start the car. But just in case the batteries die on the intelligent key, there is also a pop out key that can be inserted into the ignition.

My fancy pants car is also tricked out with audio controls on the steering wheel. It has a CD player than can play MP3 cds and also a iPod in dash hookup. The stereo interface is a little weak, but that can be dealt with later, and everything is backlit orange, which is kinda weird, but better than red. I would prefer blue, but what can ya do. It also has bluetooth for your handsfree phone needs.

It has a 6-speed manual transmission so that I can drive and shift really fast. yays! I also upgraded the security package (because I got a smoking hawt deal on it) so it will make lots of noise at you and call the police if someone tries to steal it.

...So yeah, needless to say, I am a very happy girl! ^_^ And now I am off to go play! See you on the road!

Vrooom! Vrooom!

Booza-"flooza"-palooza

2006-11-24T03:00:00.005-07:00

So booza palooza turkey day weekend was great. It was the first time that I have ever been drunk for more than one night in a row. And not even sick! Go me! It is all about maintaining! Gotta have goals! Though Friday night was weak sauce with only 4 it was plenty made up for on Saturday, which was probably the most drunk I have ever been ever. Yays! But no more benders for awhile...too expensive...I am not a cheap date! ;)

Teh tally:

Wednesday
5 vodka redbulls
4 washington apple shots
1 mandarin orange sake shot (with lime)
2 cups framboise
1 amaretto apple shot

Thursday
3 Ace Pear Cider/Beer
6 washington apple shots
2 vodka red bulls
1 vodka cran cran
2 shots of apple pucker

Friday (weak sauce)
2 Sand in your Shorts
1 apple pucker shot
1 amaretto and coke

Saturday (making up)
7 vodka redbulls
5 apple pucker shots
2 washington apple shots
1 vodka cranberry
1 vodka and soda

Harely Feets

2006-11-13T20:40:00.000-07:00

These are my favorite shoes. This pic was taken with my very bad camera phone, but has a nice coloring to it.

Moments of MisMis

2006-05-13T18:17:00.002-07:00

I have been meaning to do this little "moments" thing every week. But as you can see my whopping total of 7 posts goes to show that I have been skipping more than a few times. So this is #1, a collection of the last week...or so.

Moments of Music:
Songs in my head this week:

"Beautiful" by James Blunt (because everytime I go to BuddhaDave.com I get this one in my head. Beautiful song. Sad, but beautiful.)
"Sugar We're Going Down" by Fall Out Boy
(because Sami had been humming it at least 3 out of the 5 days this week. =P )
"Ever the Same" by Rob Thomas (I am not really a fan of Rob Thomas, but this song stuck in my head all week and I didn't mind so much.

Radio Finds:
Ever since the days of the i-Pod BhikkhuDave is anti-radio. Fair enough, but being i-Pod less for so long, all I had was the radio. And I still find some good things on there that I would have missed out on if it wasn't for the radio. These are my latest faves. They are not so "new finds" anymore, but like I said, I am a little behind on the blogging.

"Calling You: by Blue October (I heard this one a while back but it is still nice to hear it again. Still a fan. Really cute.)
"Everything Changes" by Staind (I really don't care for much of anything that comes from this band. But I heard this song on the radio on Thursday and really liked the lyrics, so I looked it up and was surprised to find it was Staind. Now when I hear it, it sounds like them but I still like it.)
"Unwritten" by Natasha Bedingfield (I don't particularly love the sound of this song. It is not my favorite, but it is not horrible either. I do however really like the lyrics. They are very poetic and paint a pretty mental picture. I like it.)

Moments of Humor:
Hearing my boss use the term "shit storm" in a work related conversation, and #263.

Moments of Irony:
This happened to me today while I was sitting in the lobby of Nissan waiting for my truck to get serviced. I was looking through a book of art called "PostSecret" and had been contently reading by me onesies for over an hour when a gentleman that worked there sat down next to me and starting chatting. He asked what I was reading and if anyone of you are familiar with this book, it is not something that you would want to sit down and go through with a total stranger. It is a book of secrets, and some of them are far from pretty. But he had heard of the project and started flipping through the book, not more than a few pages of flipping and he comes to a double page spread proudly proclaming the "N word". He was African American. Though I don't think he gave a damn about it, I felt terribly awkward. Of all the pages.... "Why hello nice man in the checkered tie. Care to have a look at my racially offensive book of horrible, humorous, and dirty secrets fashioned together as a work of art?" Luckily, I was saved just in time as the man came to tell me that my truck was finished. Not the most comfortable of situations I have ever been in.

Moments of Memories:
A year ago today was the first time that I went to a strip club. And the first time that I ever got really smashed. These kinda things tend to go hand in hand I guess.

Moments of Perfect Thought:
I didn't get any perfect thoughts this week, but I do know a girl that was nice enough to share hers. Thanks.

Moments of Love:
Telling a cute boy to be nice and give me cuddles because I felt like crap and I needed them to make me feel better. And he did. And they worked.

Moments of Celebration:
Happy Mother's Day to all of the mommies. I love you Mom.

Coin Operated Boy

2006-04-23T09:38:00.000-07:00

This is one of my new favorites from a funky band that one of BuddhaDave's co-workers introduced us to. They are kinda weird but I love it. It has been in my head all week.

Here is a link to the video for those who would like to check it out. If you can get past the gothy imagery and white makeup, the music is really great.

Lyrics:

coin operated boy
-the dresden dolls

coin operated boy
sitting on the shelf he is just a toy
but i turn him on and he comes to life
automatic joy
that is why i want a coin operated boy

made of plastic and elastic
he is rugged and long-lasting
who could ever ever ask for more
love without complications galore
many shapes and weights to choose from
i will never leave my bedroom
i will never cry at night again
wrap my arms around him and pretend....

coin operated boy
all the other real ones that i destroy
cannot hold a candle to my new boy and i'll
never let him go and i'll never be alone
not with my coin operated boy......

this bridge was written to make you feel smittener
with my sad picture of girl getting bitterer
can you extract me from my plastic fantasy
i didnt think so but im still convinceable
will you persist even after i bet you
a billion dollars that i'll never love you
will you persist even after i kiss you
goodbye for the last time
will you keep on trying to prove it?
i'm dying to lose it...
i want it
i want you
i want a coin operated boy.

and if i had a star to wish on
for my life i cant imagine
any flesh and blood could be his match
i can even take him in the bath

coin operated boy
he may not be real experienced with girls
but i know he feels like a boy should feel
isnt that the point that is why i want a
coin operated boy
with his pretty coin operated voice
saying that he loves me that hes thinking of me
straight and to the point
that is why i want
a coin operated boy.

There is more to Wisdom then just Knowledge

2006-03-25T12:34:00.000-07:00

"Lots of people talk to animals," said Pooh.
"Maybe, but..."
"Not very many people listen, though," he said.
"That's the problem," he added.
- from "The Tao of Pooh"

Sometimes I can feel eyes upon me, and when I turn around, I find The Fluff watching me. When I look into his eyes, it feels like I am looking into the vast expanses of time, stretching on forever. It is as if all of the wisdom of all of the great teachers in all the world that have ever lived or will live, are contained behind those amber eyes.

Sometimes I feel like he is looking down upon me, (though I am much taller than him), as a teacher does student. Looking down upon me with a powerful wisdom and understanding of the nature of the universe that is so far beyond my grasp. Looking at me, as if he knows that I know this, which makes him all the more wise.
"Not very many people listen, though," that is indeed the problem.
So teach me, oh Wise One. Teach me the nature of the simplemind.
So teach me, oh Wise One. Teach me the nature of life.

Inspiration in a Cup

2006-02-21T21:43:00.000-07:00

"The sun, with all those planets revolving around it and dependent on it, can still ripen a bunch of grapes as if it had nothing else in the universe to do."
- Galileo Galilei

I discovered this quote on the bottom of my coffee cup from Wild Oats this morning. What a nice little surprise. I have always been fond of Galileo. For years and years growing up I wanted to be an astronomer. I even researched colleges for astronomy majors for awhile. It was one of the "three A's" that made of my main interests. Art, Architechture, and Astronmy. Well, at least I got into one of those fields. =)

(A side note: Wow, finally a second post! At this rate I will be lucky to turn out one a month. =P)

-MisMis =^.^=