Me? Royalty? Ha!!!

Okay, this looked like fun, so I decided to give it a go...
You Are Cinderella!

Dignified and hard working. With a gentle and soft-spoken manner you have something many people don't. Patience. Even through the moments of heartbreak you're still able to hold onto all of your hopes and dreams. Bide your time; your dream will come true.

Which Disney Princess are You?

Come on...you know you want to take it!

On the non-royal front, I've been sucked into The DaVinci code pretty deeply, so haven't been doing as much crochet. But, I did get to one row shy of finishing the main body of the Short 'N Sweet Bolero today. And I only had to rip out 2 rows! I'm a moron...I removed the crochet hook to try it on to see if I wanted to add another row for length - I did - and placed the H hook next to another one on my coffee table. Then, I ate my dinner, washed my hands, turned on ANTM, picked up a hook and started working on the bolero...then, 2 rows in, I noticed the small hook still sitting on the coffee table...and realized that I had worked the last 2 rows with an I hook instead. I almost left it, but was afraid it would end up all funkified just at the bottom, so ended up ripping out the last 2 rows and starting over with the right hook. Oy... Too bad too. I was really hoping to get started on the sleeves today. Oh well. Another day (hopefully tomorrow!)

photo journey

Ah...Northern California. Not a bad place to live. I know everyone is complaining about all the rain we've been getting (including me), but it really makes the landscape green and beautiful. Spring is probably the prettiest season here, when the hills are actually green and not dry brown/yello smoldering fire hazards.

Did I have a point? Oh yeah, I was all spring-happy on my way to my father's house in San Andreas and was thinking of all the great scenery I was passing. (And noticing how the forecasted rain was mysteriously absent!) So, I pulled out my camera on my way back home (don't tell Dad...not the safest move) and snapped some photos of my journey. The pictures are not the best, but in my defense, they were taken through the windows of a moving car.

Mooooo...there are lots of cows along the way from San Andreas to Benicia... And it being spring, lots of cute little calves too. I don't know if this is a dairy farm or these guys are up for the slaughter, but in my mind, they're the CA Happy Cows that make the CA cheese...



The sheep are cute too, and lots of little lambs running around (not that I was able to really capture them in this photo). I wonder what this sheep farm produces (again, I'm hoping it's not a meat plant, and prefer to think they are harvesting the wool to make us all some luscious yarns).



This building may not look too impressive...but if you look a little closer, you'll see that this little brick building is attached to a larger section and houses Chocoholics Divine Desserts. This is their factory (in Clements, CA on 88) where they actually produce the goodies. They give tours too! One day, I'm going to have to stop here and take one. And totally sample some divine goodies. I've seen their products in the stores, but I've never actually tasted any of them.

Can I live here?

Further down the road there are lots and lots of vineyards. Not too much growth on them yet, so they look like dark withered hands rising from the earth right now (I'm a bit of a freak, yes...and there's a reason I can't watch horror movies!). Now, I'm not much of a drinker (okay, I really don't drink at all), but I love the name of this line of wines which is on the yellow sign above. Gotta love it... 7 Deadly Zins. from Lodi Vineyards. Too clever (yeah, I'm easily impressed).

I also pass over a number of drawbridges. I thought this one looked neat from inside, so I snapped this and quickly stashed my camera away to maintain my position in my lane. I tried to center this so it wasn't on an angle...but it just wasn't working out, so I'm sorry about that.

I also pass a long expanse of windmills. Go alternative energy source, go!

And a few old school windmills too...(more charachter in these, but I don't think they'd brighten too many bulbs for too long).

I wasn't able to snap a shot of the Jelly Belly Factory as I passed it (it snuck up on me), but it's right before the Budweiser plant (above) on Highway 12. There's been a lot of growth in the area. My father took my brothers and me on a tour of Jelly Belly years ago, and it was pretty much in the middle of nowhere. Now, it's surrounded by stripmall... I guess I shouldn't be surprised. But, the tour was pretty fun, and I would totally recommend it - you also get free samples along the way.

As for Budweiser, I don't know if they do tours or not, but if so, I know a lot of people that would be interested. I'm trying to remember when they changed the sign, which used to be Anheiser-Busch, with the big eagle logo too.

Anyway, lots of rambling from me, as usual. Just think it's interesting how much you can pass in a 2hr/15min road trip across Northern CA.

Falling Apart

Okay, so I'm 30 and I'm already falling apart. I may have said this before, but I don't remember (first thing to go?). Today I had a dentist's appointment. I hadn't been in a year - and the last time I went was a disaster...I passed out. In the dentist's office!! From the Novocaine! (Well, according to the dentist, it was a different kind of anesthesia, that had epinephrine in it, and personally, I think it interacted with my anti-anxiety meds.) After that, the hack who I'd gone to actually thought I'd want to reschedule (I was getting a filling replaced). Like I'd want to risk going through THAT again! That first injection was the most painful I'd ever had in a dentist's office, and after passing out, spilling my Dixie cup of water in my lap and dropping & soaking the magazine I'd been holding and then recovering, I never got numb!! Don't get me wrong, I couldn't move anything on the right side of my face, but I could feel everything. Seriously, I was afraid the dentist had actually paralyzed me (he didn't, I can move my face again). I think I must have been spoiled before - and I'm one who'd never feared the dentist. Anyway, he shot me up with regular Novocaine and I numbed up immediately - no fainting - and he refilled the tooth. Moron. His reasoning for using the other anesthetic was that it is longer lasting. That's ridiculous - it's a 10 freakin' minute procedure!! Not to mention that he'd made me wait over an hour to even take me back to the exam area. And there was NO ONE else there! Anyway, I decided that I was never, under any circumstances, ever going back to that guy.

The next day at work I went to my benefits online system and changed my dentist with the insurance company to one that a friend/co-worker recommended. So, even after fixing the filling in that tooth, it was still sensitive to pressure, if I bit down on something just right (or wrong), but I put off making another appointment until last week, a year later, when it became hot/cold sensitive again, and started aching. I am a TERRIBLE procrastinator...

So, I really like the new dental office (feels like a real dental office, unlike the last place, which felt like an isolated cave of pain and dental destruction - did I mention how dark it was there? Old and outdated, and NO dental hygenists...that was weird to me. BTW, I only went there because I was in desperate pain and this was the dentist that the insurance company had assigned me to). Anyway, it's a good thing I like this new place, and actually feel like I can trust them (helps a ton that my friend goes there and also likes them), because it seems like I'll be spending plenty of time there in the next few months. The filling in the painful molar has expanded and is actually cracking my tooth in half (well, THAT would explain the pain!). I have an abscess above my right front tooth, which doesn't hurt at all...Apparently because the root of that tooth has died...Lovely, huh? And apparently I grind my teeth...Must be while I'm sleeping, since I certainly don't do it while I'm awake. Anyway, I need at least 3 more appointments to take care of this stuff. I need a crown & a half (Maryam says there's a reason she's called me a princess in the past...I deserve a crown! Is that an insult?), possibly a root canal there (which they won't know until they've prepped for the crown), very likely a root canal above my front tooth to treat and take care of the abscess (they're setting me up with an endodontist to check out that situation...Never seen one of those).

Sorry to unload all of that on you unwilling readers...(though if you've read this far, you're probably at least a tiny bit interested...) Anyway, I go in again next Tuesday for the crown prep. Now, who's going to tell my bank account about how lonely those little dollars that I leave in there will be?

And OH MY GOD - what a neurotic jerk Lenny turned out to be (on the Apprentice - quick change of subject...Um, I do that). I can't believe how he treated Charmaine during the task. She was bringing up good points, and he just basically kept telling her to shut up. And he was so defensive in the boardroom (which is to be expected, but he kept contradicting Trump and I'm surprised Caroline didn't slap him for being such a prick to her). Okay, I am way too into this show...

OMG (again)!! I just realized why Sean looks so familiar! He looks like a tanned version of Billy Zane. Anyone else see it?

Hearing voices

Let's take a little trip down memory lane…anyone ever watch the Nanny? I actually didn't, because I couldn’t stand Fran Drescher's voice or laugh (I'm shuddering just thinking about it). Well, fast forward a few years… I now work in the same office (thank God not the same department!) as the one and only male version of Fran Drescher…and apparently, he has a crush on me (or did), according to my co-workers. It's almost unbearable people! He works down the hall, but his boss's office is not too far from my cubicle, so I can hear the dreaded voice (like rusty nails on a chalkboard, makes me cringe, and my teeth itch - yes, itch!) when he's in there. And he has no people skills, buts into other people's conversations with unrelated crap, and is just a total irritant all the way around. This morning, he was in my boss's office FOR-EVER!! Rambling on about some project he's working on for her. I was waiting for my ears to actually start bleeding…total torture. I can't look up from my desk when he walks by, or he thinks it's okay to come over and start talking to me about nothing. And I'm too nice (obviously not TOO nice, according to what I've already written) to just tell him to go away. I'm cursed, I tell you!

In less irritating news, I've decided to jump into the new millenium, and have started reading The DaVinci Code. I decided that now that all the hype has died down a bit, it was okay for me to read it. (My own tiny rebellion against pop culture - if everyone's doing it, I don't want to…sometimes. And the more people that tell me to something, the less likely I am to do it. I'm so passive aggressive it's scary.) The book has been out for 3 years now, and I'm one of the few that hasn't read it, which is fine. When it was all hyped up, I didn't really pay any attention to what it was about or anything, but the other day in the store, I checked out the description on the back of the paperback and it really did look interesting. So I debated buying it, since it was only $6. And figured that if I'm ever going to read it, I should do it before the movie comes out, which will be pretty soon. But, I didn't buy it - I remembered that a co-worker had it and never really got that into it, so I decided to ask to borrow it instead. So, since she's so awesome (reading this Christyn?), she let me borrow it. In fact, I e-mailed her to ask about it, and before I could blink 2x, it was sitting on my desk. It's funny - the things we keep in our desk drawars! Anyway, I'm about 3 chapters in and I'm diggin' it so far. Though I'm not sure about casting Tom Hanks as Langdon. Bookish looks, maybe, but not the sultry deep voice they describe in the book. In fact, I know of a former co-worker (not my department - I WISH!) that had that kind of voice and would have been perfect (even just as a voice-over for another actor - oh my God, people, this guy's voice was amazing! Not that he ever talked to me, but I got to hear him speaking to others)

Anyway…I ramble on…as usual. And now, I'm remembering the sexy voice - it will be a happy day. :)

Random Thoughts

I just saw a commercial for Vault – Drinks like a soda, kicks like an energy drink…Didn’t they already do that 10 – 15 years ago? And it was called Jolt? All the sugar, and 2x the caffeine (or something like that). I guess all fads come back…

Personally, I don’t understand the whole energy drink craze. I’d rather drain a cup of tea (or coffee…back when I was still an addict). Or if I’m that tired, take a nap. But, maybe it’s because I don’t like overly sweet things – but I also don’t like that hyped up wired feeling either. I guess I’m weird…

Last night I made some good progress on the Short ‘N Sweet Bolero…but I realized around 9:30 that I’d started the prior row with one less dc than required. So, I’m going to rip out the last two rows, but after that, I’m close to being done with the body and will only have the sleeves left. Now, I should probably learn not to crochet while totally engrossed in TV. (I won’t learn – that’s the best time to do it!!)

And I need to work on making more of the little chicks. I’ve had requests at work, and I’d like to give one to my baby brother this weekend – he’s turning 2!! I can’t wait to see him. It’s been since Christmas. Poor kid will be blinded after I’m done with my camera. :)

And a-weigh we go...

Okay, I have come to a decision. I NEED to reach lifetime at Weight Watchers. Okay, so I've come to this decision more than a few times in the past… But, I'm re-dedicated now (again). Aside from the benefits of reaching a healthy weight for my height/age (diabetes in the family), I could really use the extra $11 a week I drop per meeting. That's approximately $572 a year…think of how much yarn that would buy? Or clothing… Or books… etc…

I've been a member of WW for about 4 years, on and off plan, but consistently weighing in. I know that if I stop going to weigh ins, I'll lose all of the accountability that it provides, and be back up to my starting weight in no time (152, on a barely 5'1" frame). I've been between 5-15 pounds from goal for a couple of years…it's frustrating, and sometimes I get tired of being on plan and stray. It's self-defeating, I know… but I know exactly what I'm doing wrong, so I can't blame the plan (which really does work if you follow it). I'm resistant to exercise…but I've been wearing a pedometer for a while, which keeps me a little more active. Now, I have only reached the recommended 10,000 steps a handful of times, but I am definitely getting more steps in than I used to. And now, since I've written this all down and published it to the web, I feel even more accountable…so wish me luck in my dieting endeavors!

On the crochet front, I worked up one of the Berroco chicks (Peeps!!) last night. It didn't turn out nearly as cute as the ones in the pattern photo. It was too big really... I had used a K hook, because it's such a bulky yarn. So, I tried again tonight with an I hook, and it came out much better (the smaller, blue eyed chick). And the yarn is luscious! I swear it is like crocheting a little cloud. SO soft! It's great! I want a sweater out of this stuff (just not sure I'm that ambitious yet!).

Spinning a Yarn

So today I met up with a friend to go to a Wedding Event at Michaels. It was supposed to have ideas for invitations, cakes, etc, but it was actually very disappointing... But, afterwards, I was able to run down to Fashion Knit in Walnut Creek to indulge in some yarn. Yay! I haven't been there in ages. I picked up some really pretty sock yarn (Lorna's Laces Shepard Sock in Mother Lode), the new Interweave Crochet issue, and some yellow Berroco Plush (to make these cute little chicks!! ). Ooh, and I also got a skein of Noro Silk Garden, color 71, which is the prettiest mix of purples, greys, greens, browns. I will probably make a simple scarf with this, since it's only 100 meters. But, I couldn't resist.

Anyway, that was the highlight of my weekend...I stopped putting off my laundry (it was getting pretty desperate) and did 6 loads yesterday. For once, I even folded it all. Of course, my back is killing me now...I'm so weak. :(