Figure Flaws

Whenever I get down on myself, I have to remember… it could always be worse!  I could have a poorly drawn head!!

New “Funnies” for a New Year

This year I didn’t get any calendars for holiday gifts so I hit the little calendar kiosk at the mall to pick a couple up.  I picked up a “Wine Lovers” calendar thinking it would be a good “daily” that might actually teach me a few things about my latest passion.  On my way to the register, I stumbled upon a Revilo daily calendar and had to pick it up.  In the past, I’ve picked up several greeting cards that have the art/humor of Revilo and have enjoyed them tremendously so I figured his little daily calendar would be something great to give me a daily smile, giggle, or laugh out loud moment. 

After finding the following “daily funny”, I decided I would share the ones that I tended to enjoy more.  I found this one funny for two reasons.  One reason is because I have actually seen a cat (my Dagget on several occasions) try to fit into a box that is several sizes too small for him.  Each time, I would ask, “Just HOW can that be comfortable?” and would receive a look simply stating, “What? Do you really think this box is too small for me?  I did fit into it, did I not?”  The second reason is because there are times when I feel like I am a cat trying to pull off stuffing myself into a box that is much too small for me!

Shoe Snob

I admit it.  I’m a shoe snob.  I have a very hard time paying $20 for a pair of shoes, but will usually pay $100 without thinking twice.  Why?  Several reasons.  The first being, I like nice shoes.  The second being that I am drawn to nice shoes… kind of like a magnet to a refrigerator.  Okay, but seriously, I am on my feet A LOT on any given day.  I like to be comfortable while I am on my feet.  Therefore, I am willing to spend money to be comfortable. 

I had a hard time with this at first.  At first, I did not want to spend $100 on a pair of shoes.  I thought it was a waste of money and would have preferred to spend the money at Lowe’s for something more “useful”.  But, I sucked it up and splurged one year as a birthday present to myself.  I have to admit, it was one of the best gifts I have ever given myself. 

Since then, I have been able to reason my shoe preference to myself in a fairly practical manner.  At least, it seems practical to me.  You see, I figure if I buy a pair of $20 no-name brand shoes, I usually end up wearing them 3 – 5 times before I decide I detest them and the way they make my feet feel.  They sit in my closet for about a year and finally make their way to Goodwill.  However, when I wear my Nine West, Kenneth Cole, Clarks, etc. “snob” shoes, my feet feel pretty darn good after a full day of wear.  I get home, kick them off, and don’t hesitate to put them back on again when it’s time to go out.  I wear them often throughout the year and end up keeping them (and continuing to wear them) for several years.  So, the practical mathemetic side of me determines as follows:

One pair of shoes at $20 worn a maximum of 5 times is around $4 per shoe wearing experience.
One pair of shoes at $100 worn often throughout the year for several years, is much LESS than $4 per shoe wearing experience. 

Basically, I can reason that in the long run, I SAVE myself money by spending more upfront.  However, aside from my convenient mathematical logic, I have found another reason as to why I am a shoe snob and why I buy and ENJOY my nice, snobby shoes.  You see, I bought a pair of cheap shoes that were very cute and seemed to be comfortable when I tried them on.  I spent approximately 8 hours in the shoes one day and when I removed them, found that my big toenails were EXTREMELY sensitive.  In fact, my toenails got increasingly sensitive over the next week and only 2 weeks after the shoe-wearing experience did I FINALLY start seeing relief.  During this time, I could only wear open-toed shoes (sandals, flip-flops, etc.) as anything that touched my toes hurt A LOT.  Now, 2 months later, I finally took off the 3 layers of toenail polish that had accumulated on my toenails and my jaw hit the floor!  My toenails , 2 months later, that were still mildly sensitive were pretty crazy to look at.  Don’t believe me?  See for yourself!

Needless to say, I now have another reason as to why I splurge on nice shoes.  And, I will NEVER feel guilty again for being a shoe snob.

Home – It really is where the heart is!

Growing up as a military child, “home” has been a variety of places.  People would ask me where I was from and I never really knew quite how to answer.  I would always have to ask, “Do you mean, where do I live now?  Where was I born?  Or where have I lived the longest?”  I was born in Chicago and technically, I have only lived in the Chicago area for 6 of my almost 34 years.  I’ve also lived in the Philippines, Bermuda, and several places in Maryland.  Technically, most of my life has been spent in Maryland.  But, having been back to Chicago twice now over the past 2 weeks, I have to admit that there is nowhere else that feels quite as much like home. 

When I get off the plane in Chicago, I feel like I’m home.  There’s a feeling that comes over me that just makes me feel like I’m back where I belong.  I like the fact that I see other people sporting Bears attire.  I like the way that people refer to Coke, Pepsi, etc as “pop”.  I like the fact that I easily revert back to calling it “pop” and that saying “soda” again when I get back to Maryland seems weird.  I like the hot dogs, the pizza, even the cold wintry weather.  But most of all, I like the people.  I like the fact that the people are “real”.  I like the fact that they have values and are genuinely warm and friendly.  I like knowing that when I talk to them, what I see/hear is what I get. 

After almost 34 years, I’ve realized that I am truly a midwest girl at heart.  I know where my home is.  My home is where my heart is – sweet home Chicago.  And someday, I hope to be back – for good!

My New Desk “Art”

It’s always nice to have something to make me laugh – especially when I’m at work!  While I was shopping in Naperville, IL before my Grandmother’s birthday party, I found a card that made me bust out laughing and I knew I just had to buy it and hang it up at my desk. 

 

I don’t ever think I’ll be able to read a Chinese food menu again with a straight face!

Thought of the Day

I’ve heard that it’s not healthy to live in denial.  However, da Nile might not be quite as bad.  You should really consider relocating.

Close Enough to a Hybrid!

So today, being the total dork that I am, I decided I needed to finish calculating my gas mileage.  You see, I have a nice little red book that I keep in my car to record my gas mileage, oil changes, tune-ups, tire rotations, etc.  The book was a gift from Jen after I bought my car.  I’ve been horribly delinquent in calculating the mpg per each fill-up so I decided that today would be the day that I would get caught up on my calculations.  After completing the calculations, I started wondering (in my own dorky way) what my average gas mileage has been since I’ve had my car.  So, since I felt like procrastinating on the important stuff that I had to get accomplished today, I proceeded to average the gas mileage I had recorded in my little red book.  From 04 OCT 2003 to 08 JUN 2008, I have put approximately 75k miles on my car and my average gas mileage has been 34.79mpg!  Go, go little Civic!!  J

Does marriage still have meaning? Or is it just another convenience…

Being as I am getting married in the very near future, I like to think that there is still something special about a marriage.  After reading the following postings by several men

(http://www.nomarriage.com/why_foreign_women_are_better.html) and the response one woman posted

(http://www.nomarriage.com/comments.shtml), I had to both laugh and yet also be equally disturbed.  It really got me thinking about marriage and our society in general.  It seems as though our society has become so incredibly focused on convenience that the whole “convenience” factor is now also carrying over to our relationships.  I’m sure the whole “marriage of convenience” concept has been around for a long time.  After all, there are times (especially years ago) when a man/woman loses their spouse and has a need to marry someone to help assist in bringing up the children, paying the household bills, and also to simply provide them companionship so that they are not lonely.  I cannot fault someone for that need.  However, in a world where the number of things we can hold sacred seems to be decreasing dramatically, I would like to hope that there are still marriages that are based on more than simply convenience.  The more I listen to people talk, the more I am made aware of how many people remain in their current relationship because it is more convenient to stay than it is to leave.  They seem to be content with settling on something that is conveniently acceptable rather than continuing to search for something that makes them truly happy.  It’s easy to fall into a routine and to be comfortable in a situation regardless of whether or not we are as happy as we would ultimately like to be.  It’s not so easy to leave that comfortably convenient situation and go searching for true happiness.  Yet isn’t that what most of us want – to be truly happy?  Have we as a society really reached a point where we are giving up on happiness and settling for contentment?  If so, I find it incredibly sad.  I still believe that marriage can be a true and meaningful union.  I believe that you can find someone who truly makes you happy.  I believe that you can find someone who you want to be with and cannot see yourself being without.  I believe that you can find someone who respects you and whom you can respect in turn.  I believe that you can find someone who will remain faithful to you and who wants to be by your side regardless of whether the times are good or bad.  If I did not believe these things, I could not get married again.  I refuse to settle for being content and will only settle for being happy.  I just wish I didn’t feel like such a minority…

OMG – I’ve been tagged!

So I was tagged by Jen about two weeks ago and had no clue that it had happened because I haven’t gotten onto my blog in what… over 2 months?!?!  Bad Amy!!  Anyway, it seems that what I have to do is list 6 random things about myself, tag six more people in my post, publish the post, and let those I’ve tagged know I’ve tagged them.   And, if I don’t participate, I’m going to get a nasty zit right in the middle of myforehead.  I am hoping that this punishment occurs only if I do not list the 6 things and NOT if I don’t send it out to 6 people as I don’t know 6 people I could tag who haven’t already been tagged!!  So, here’s hoping that I don’t end up looking like my ex-husband did when he had that huge zit that was about the size of a small pepperoni slice in the center of his forehead!!

1) I hate being sick.  It sucks to sit and watch everything go on around you and not have the energy to be able to participate and enjoy yourself like you normally would.  Whenever I am not feeling well, I try to remind myself of the people who have cancer, Parkinson’s, MS, etc and have to deal with that feeling on a daily basis for the rest of their lives.  I couldn’t imagine the frustration they must feel. 

2) Last weekend I learned that within the world of modern day fashion, my boobs are obscene.  I went to try on some polo shirts, short-sleeved button up blouses, and sleeveless button up blouses in hopes that I could expand my wardrobe a little for work and the upcoming conference I was attending.  Alas, it did not work.  Anything that fit me did not fit my obscene boobs.  I left the store feeling like a freak girl who had gotten implants two sizes too big.  This is why I hate shopping for clothes for myself.

3) I love the onions off the fajita plate at Monterey.  I could totally eat an onion fajita.

4) 4 is my favorite number.

5) I have 3 and a half months until my wedding and I’m less stressed now than I was before.  I’m not sure why that is, but I’m glad it’s that way. 

6) Sometimes I miss moving around and living in new places.

Well, that’s six… hopefully I won’t have a pepperoni zit show up on my forehead!! 

I am a Snapdragon

I am a Snapdragon What Flower Are You?