Toxic Audio

Ring a bell? Yeah, me either- until tonight. Toxic Audio is a new show at the Luxor that unfortunately you'll probably really have to pay attention to realize that it's even here. The only reason that I had heard about it was because we have some friends who work at the Luxor who have been bugging us to go and see it. Finally, we took them up on their offer and boy am I glad that we did! The show was phenomenal! It is an acappella quintet, but these aren't your high school Madrigal singers. In a nut shell, the premise is showcasing all of the amazing things that you can do with the human voice and the art of amplification. Yes, I said art. The sound man is just as much a part of the group as the singers from controlling dynamics to reverb and vocal loops. They did amazing renditions of popular songs that if you closed your eyes and listened you would have a hard time telling that there was absolutely no instrumentation. I was so impressed with the talent, skill and creativity of the group. The soprano was awesome at scat and the alto could belt almost effortlessly. Don't even get me started on the tenor who puts most women to shame! They did a great number honoring their sound man which was very original and appropriate. There wasn't a weak-link in the group at all, and I'm usually very critical! There are lots of shows on the Strip and as locals we usually miss them all, but if you are a serious singer/musician do whatever you can to go see this show. Shows like this can't survive without word of mouth and a few butts in the seats. Do your part to let hotel owners know that we'd rather see real talent and ability than silicone jigglers slutting up the stage in bras and g-strings (although, that does have a place of it's own.). For more info check out www.toxicaudio.com and call the Luxor for tickets. (No, I did not get a third job in promotion.)

Greetings From my Brand New IBM ThinkPad

Ok, so I've had it almost a week, but with all the festivities it's been crazy around here! So, you've probably figured out what Don gave me for my birthday. He said that I proved to him that I'm actually becoming more computer literate, so I needed a better machine. Awww. I had wondered how long he would be able to make it without using his friends and family priviledges! Six months isn't too bad. Wow, six months... it seems like forever and a blink of the eye all at once. I can't wait to get all of my stuff up and running. He actually transferred all my files and pictures from our PC before he even gave it to me. That was thinking! I'm set up to burn CDs, make slide shows, watch DVDs and all sorts of other groovy stuff. Andy, eat your heart out! lol. It is a really great computer for which I am very appreciative. Jason would be proud, because one of my first thoughts was how to write it off on our taxes since I use it at church. We'll see... That was my big gift this year among lots of other great stuff. Thanks to everyone for everything.

I finally got my coveted calzone Thursday night during my family b-day dinner. OMG was it to die for! The cheese just melts in your mouth. Anthony's present was his presence, so I'll have to remember that one come March 1, 2006 when he makes us go to Hush Puppy (Don's favorite!).

Katie returned to Flagstaff on Saturday, but we made it to Bonnie Springs on Friday when she probably should have been packing. I have not been there for twenty years, and it will probably be twenty more before I get that burr up my butt again. Don't get me wrong, it's a great value for family fun ($7.00 for a car load of people during the week.), but maybe they should charge a little more so that they can paint the buildings and repair some of the walkways. That would be a great service project for the Boy Scouts or some other youth organization (Are you listening, Laura?) I swear that it hasn't changed a bit since the first grade. Although, I don't remember the pictures of naked women in the saloon or the petting zoo being quite so sad. It was pretty much a ghost town, but I've heard that they get really big crowds during the weekend. I guess that's when everyone works, because I think we only saw three or four people working throughout the entire place. If you've never been, you should go just for the experience, but wait until October. It was sooooo hot! All I wanted to do when I got home was go swimming, so I did.

Lisa and I went to the craft festival at Cashman Field on Saturday. That was nice. I spent money; she helped carry my stuff. Thanks for taking me out there! It doesn't have anything on the Blueberry Festival, though. Are they going to have triple the fireworks this year? I guess Amy would have let us know if something special were going on. We should go back some time family people.

Saturday night Don and I decided to check out the piano bar at Harrahs. I think we both thought that it was better than New York/New York's. Probably because it was free! The players were ok. There were blonde twins playing part of the time and they had everything keyed so low that even altos would have a hard time! It was nice to see girl players, because they played more "girl" songs. My big complaint about piano bars is that they only seem to play sing along songs for men. Let's just get out the Elton John and Billy Joel anthologies and start a piano bar of our own. So, I was relieved when the girls played Walk Like an Egyptian along with Joy to the World. We got a late start, so other than dinner that's all I can talk about.

Sunday morning brought a great breakfast spread at Laura and Doreen's where we learned that Don and Dameon share an adolescent bond through calligraphy. Whoda thunk it? Actually, Dameon wrote a very nice card for me. I'm really glad that he's part of our family. We came home and watched Phantom of the Opera which Don gave me but hadn't seen yet. I wasn't sure if he would like it or not, but he did. Can't wait until it comes to the Venetian, although I can't imagine what they'll cut out to keep it 90 minutes. I saw the play in Salt Lake while I was in high school and prefer it to the movie, but it's a good substitute for now. We ended the evening with Gary's yummy burritos that took an hour and a half to cook, because we only had the oven on 225! Don and Antonio entertained us with adoring looks at a phallic squash as we waited. I wonder if Debbie has eaten it yet? All in all it was a great birthday- a little more mellow than I had hoped, but nice all the same.

Yes, as a matter of fact, it is all about me!

Today that is... It's my big 26th birthday!!!! Yippee!!!! So long 25! I was born around 9:00am, so it's official: a new year has begun. I share my birthday with Billy Ray Cyrus (Woo hoo!), Regis Philbin and Sean Connery. At least, those are the ones I can remember. I'm technically a Virgo, but I'm really on the Leo/Virgo cusp which gives me the best of both worlds! Useless Fact: My dad's birthday and mine bookend WWII in Europe; his is June 6th which is D-Day and mine is the liberation of Paris. So, maybe my birthday is a holiday in France. That would be cool.

Tonight is dinner with the fam, but of course the festival has only begun. There's plenty of fun to fill the weekend ahead. I can't wait! Happy Birthday to me! :)

A Lesson in Spontaneity

Don and I are planners. I think we probably always have been. In general, we're pretty busy, but we're used to living life by our calendar. Not too big a deal. Over a year ago, some of our friends wanted to introduce us to the concept of spontaneous gatherings. In short, let's not "plan" to get together anymore let's just let it happen organically. So, if we find ourselves free on a Friday night we'll just call up so-and-so and see if they can hang-out, go-out, whatever. Don and I were game. It sounded ok, in theory. As long as we could still have quality time with our friends we were fine. I've already extablished that Don and I are planners, so just calling people out-of-the-blue doesn't come naturally to us. Honestly, I don't think it comes naturally to many people, because I think that we've been called about as often as we've called people! lol. Over the past two weekends, I think that I have observed that there are differences in spontaneity. Same day spontaneity doesn't work, but your chances of success increase if you make the call the day before (is that really spontaneous then? oh, well.). It didn't matter who we called (we tried friends and family); if we invited someone to do something that day we were unanimously rejected. But, if the idea came up the day before then we had a plan. Weird. Are people really busy, or do they need 12 - 24 hours to prepare to go somewhere or visit? And, is asking someone to do something the day before spontaneous enough? You wouldn't think that socializing would be so hard! My goodness! This spontaneous thing is just as much a pain in the butt as planning to get together weeks in advance. The only difference I see is that I'm not as upset if people bail on a spur of the moment invitation than I am when we specifically make a plan and people don't show. So, the jury's still out on this whole spontaneity thing. At least we're trying. But, I'm not giving up the calendar just yet!

So Famous

Last night I went to the Durango Lodge to celebrate the emancipation of Kathy, one who has gained freedom from the bank. Lucky girl. My own attempt hit a little snag, but it's not over yet. Always looking for the most bang for my buck, I ordered a Long Island and it definitely lived up to the value. OMG, it was strong! We sat on the couches in the corner for a long time drinking, eating (they actually brought food out to us right there. That's service!) and talking but really complaining about how crappy things have gotten at the bank. It ended up being small world night for all of us: Kathy ran into a girl that she had met at a birthday party two weeks ago, Barb ran into a creepy neighbor that she thinks might be a little too fond of his daughters and I ran into someone I graduated from high school with. If I was going to meet up with anyone at the Durango Lodge I was sure it would be Winston. He has been known to haunt that establishment from time to time. The guy I actually ran into was one of the bartenders (he says that he's a manager, but you never know what to believe.) and also happens to be the person that I share my Most Likely to Become Famous distinction with. It was strangely gratifying to see him tending bar, because for all these years I assumed that he had gone out to LA or New York to actively persue his acting career and at our reunion would actually live up to the title. Unlike me. I was the music girl; he was the theatre guy. Fast forward a few years, he says he no longer acts. Supposedly, he's been on the DJ scene. Other than all these DJs who end up being my myspace friends, I have absolutely no clue about our local nightlife personalities. He also says that now he's a musician trying to do some accoustic stuff. I would have pegged him as more of a heavy metal or alternative rock kind of guy, but people change I guess. He didn't even recognize me at first, which was also gratifying. I'm assuming that I have come a ways since my high school uniform of baggy T-shirts and jeans. I also love to let people know that I am happily married while so many people I went to school with are still floundering both personally and professionally. The dorky girl that no one wanted to ask out made good! It's funny how when you see people from high school it just takes you back to feeling just like you did the last time you saw them. Now I know that when we go to our reunion we will be equally disappointing, which is great! Although, maybe we're still a little famous just in smaller arenas than we thought we would be. He has his night crowd; I have my church crowd. Does it still count?

It must have been Clark High School reunion day in general, because I also ended up getting a friend request on myspace from a girl that I was in Madrigals with. She is my first high school related "friend" if you can believe it. I check out our school page from time to time, but I never see many people that I know or actually care about what they are up to. There have been a few who surprised me with their sexual orientation, but that's to be expected. Only a few girls were "out" when we were in school, so these others are just catching up.

Back to the Durango Lodge and my Long Island Iced Tea... Has anyone tried that new Chaser drug? It's supposed to help combat the wonderful hangover symptoms most of us know and love. I was just wondering if it works or is it just a waste of money? Well, that's it for me on a Saturday morning. Can't wait to see what the rest of the weekend holds.

Stuck Between Hawaii and Italy

Yeah, here I am at stuck at the end of a crappy week in fabulous Las Vegas while I have friends soaking up the fun in Hawaii and Italy. Sigh. Life just doesn't seem fair sometimes. In all honesty, both couples deserve a romantic get-away; I just wish that I could join them! Well... on second thought, I just want a romantic get-away of my own. Right about now I would be overjoyed to be anywhere but here. I don't even care about location for the moment- just get me the hell out of Dodge! We thought about going to San Diego this weekend, but we couldn't get a room at the hotel we like to stay at. Oh, well. We could have stayed at my uncle's place I suppose. Too late now.

It has honestly been one of those weeks that just generally sucks. Work disappointments, insurance company issues, bodily discomforts, pool heater issues (Yes, still. The guy is finally trying to fix it right now.), Jr High kids... The one thing that I dreaded this week (Mission Days) wasn't really that bad. The kids were remarkably well behaved, and it was very easy. I do enjoy my job. I think I would enjoy it a lot more if I didn't have to deal with the other staff members who have nothing to do with my stuff. I hate personality issues and politics. Everyone seems to think that they have authority over areas that really don't concern them, and that is very irritating. Maybe next week I'll try to tell someone how to answer the phone, because that's a big part of my job description, or I'll take advantage of my personal relationships with other staff members to get what I want. Anyway... It would be nice if I could just do my job independant of all of that, but it seems to just go with the territory.

Why in the world do we pay money to insurance companies when their sole purpose is to figure out creative ways not to pay for services and prescriptions? They create so many hoops that you have to jump through that I'm surprised that anything is covered! I guess that just goes with the territory too. (I won't bore you with the actual story. It's really not that interesting.)

Maybe since this week was less than stellar, next week will be great! It will be busy for sure. Between Jr High team meetings and my festival birthday I won't lack for activity. I'm looking forward to it. Until then I'll just envy those enjoying MaiTais and good pasta and wine. Sigh.

Girl After my own Heart

Early this morning (those pesky time zones!) I learned that I have a kindred spirit thousands of miles across the country. I was so proud to learn that I have indeed had an impact on little Lacey's life. She is the newest member of the divided plate club! Today her pesky peach juice contaminated her meat which caused her great angst and prevented her from finishing her breakfast. Ah, I know this feeling well! Foods can't touch; gross! I'm sure that Lisa is really excited to be so lucky. lol. I may be slightly responsible, since I did give Lacey a divided plate to use when she ate at our house. I guess once you've experienced the divided plate you just can't go back! Food separatism isn't really that big of a deal; you just have to be careful when placing food on the plate and buffets are pretty much a nightmare. Other than that, it isn't too debilitating. For Lisa's sake, hopefully Lacey doesn't inherit my picky food preferences too. Although, I do really well without all kinds of foods in my life. A lot of it is a texture thing. Some foods just don't feel right in my mouth. It's just not a compatible meeting of substance and tounge. Not to mention, some foods just taste nasty. Think of how huge I'd be if I wasn't picky! (Reference my post on cheese if you need proof on that one.) But, I am NOT the pickiest eater I know; I'm just the pickiest eater that most other people know about. I won't "out" you, but you know who you are! lol!

Welcome to the club, Lacey! I can't wait until you come back and we find out how much more like me you are! God help Lisa and Dave! Ha! Ha!

Red Hat Invasion

Driving past the Claim Jumper today my eyes were drawn to a patch of color waiting outside the door. At first glance, it had to be some team with matching uniforms breaking for lunch. I soon realized that I was wrong. It was just a gaggle of red hat ladies. Who would have thought that one stupid saying would become such a craze? Something like, "When I am an old woman I will wear purple and a big [ugly] red hat" blah, blah, blah... I first saw red hat crap in one of the throngs of catalogs that graces my mailbox every week. I didn't get it. Was this supposed to mean something to me? Must be a Midwest thing. Sure enough, when we went to Indiana I saw that this red hat thing was for real and the Blueberry Festival was the place to get your red hat crap. So, I returned home convinced that the red hat ladies were just a hokey midwestern thing. Good, they could keep it! It just seemed so dumb. Then, I started seeing bits of red hat paraphenalia around my bank in Sun City. "Well, maybe it's an old person thing, and it will stay contained in Sun City like golf carts and wearing socks with sandals." Unfortunately, I also noticed that red hat crap was accounting for more space in my catalogs than before. The next thing I know, the Vegas chapter of the Red Hats are out in Pahrump at a brothel posing for pictures that actually made it into the Sunday newspaper. I was apalled; how uncool could these women make things? Now, they've even ruined the brothels! Then sleeper cells start showing up at restaurants disturbing an otherwise enjoyable dining experience with their garrish purple moo-moos and huge, bright red hats. I thought that the South was the only place you could still get away with wearing these monstroseties! Where would one buy an awful red hat if so inclined? Alas, they are taking over the accessory section of department stores. You think I'm joking? Next time you go to the Mall pay attention. You too could own a hideously impractical red hat for only $39.99+ tax! They are multiplying, too. When we went to the Ranch to see Once Upon a Mattress it was Red Hat night and between them and all the other old people in general we were definitely a minority. They support the Arts but don't have enough manners to take off their awful hats that obstruct the view of short people behind them. How rude!

Don't get me wrong, I think that it's great that old ladies are getting together and being social. But why can't it be more classy? I guess that's the point. Personally, I would much rather be a Ya-Ya. They may have been pretty screwed up, but they knew how to have a good time and dressed well while doing it. Ya-Ya!

Oh, Accutane

As some of you may have heard, the FDA is tightening restrictions on the acne drug Accutane with the threat of pulling the drug off the market if they aren't effective. Those of you blessed with perfect skin are probably wondering "What's the big deal?". Accutane is a very nasty and scary drug in that it results in severe birth defects and mental retardation for children of women who become pregnant while taking it. I have been on Accutane three times in my life. I have suffered from severe cystic acne since I was eleven years old. After trying every other treatment available at the time, Accutane was the last resort, and it was definitely treated as such by my doctor and my parents. Sure enough, it was my wonder-drug, but at a very young age I was exposed to talks on birth defects and two forms of contraception, monthly blood tests and all the wonderful other physical symptoms treatment brought along. I actually did not have to use birth control until the third time I was treated. My doctor trusted me and my parents and only required that I sign a statement that I would not engage in sexual intercourse while taking the drug and if I did find myself pregnant I would terminate it. Being a really good Catholic girl, I had a very difficult time with the last part but rationalized it away by knowing that as a good Catholic girl I was not going to have sex any time soon!

In our lookist society, you wouldn't think that Accutane pregnancies would be a problem, because your physical ailment does a pretty good job of keeping the opposite sex away. I did notice that each time I took Accutane it seemed to become more popular; at first, I was the only person anyone knew who had taken it. My doctor actually described it as experimental the first time around. However, during my last (hopefully!) treatment I noticed that there were more restrictions. I had to be registered as a user and it was no longer sufficient to sign a sex waiver, so I had to take birth control as well. Now, the FDA is requiring that all users and prescribing physicians register usage and women must use two forms of birth control and the pharmacist will actually keep them in compliance.

It seems that the FDA is very concerned about the number of pregnancies that still occur regardless of the numerous warnings and prevention systems in place. Each pill is popped out of a little section with a picture of a pregnant woman x-ed through for goodness sake! I was scared to death of even thinking about pregnancy while I was on Accutane. Birth defects are not something to mess with. I'm sorry, but there is no amount of being horny that is so strong that it will override the very real fear of almost certain birth defects. How stupid are some of these people, and why are doctors prescribing this kind of drug to people who don't respect its dangers? For a few years now, I have felt that Accutane is much to widely prescribed. It should only be used as a last resort. I know what it's like to take every drug and use every cream and have nothing work. That's when Accutane should be prescribed. I know that I will have dermatological problems for the rest of my life, and, yeah, it sucks, but I am not sure that I would be willing to go the Accutane route again. Yes, it was my miracle when it didn't seem like there would ever be one, but at this time in my life it is just too much of a risk that I am too responsible to take. I hope that doctors and patients start to look at this drug that way too, so that with a more sparing usage it is still available for the twelve year old girl who'd like to look in a mirror and be able to face the cruel world of her peers without being made to feel like an ugly troll anymore. If you are on Accutane now, please do your part and act responsibly so it can remain available for people who will need it in the future.

Gee, for a second I thought I was popular...

I had just finished my lunch and decided to check out the old blog and just about fell off the couch. My most recent post had 17 comments! 17! Did people really have that much of an opinion about the demise of Wet 'n' Wild? No way. At first, I was flattered when it seemed that a lot of new people had visited and were interested in my blog. It didn't take long (with a little help from my friends) to see that I had been spammed. Grrrr. I have since deleted all the spam comments and changed my comment setting so that I don't receive comments from unregistered users anymore. I am so upset that I had to do that, because I really don't mind anonymous comments. I want people to say what they feel and if anonymity gives them the balls to do it, well, great. Also, not all of my readers are Bloggers. Unfortunately, those of you without Blogger accounts will have to create one now if you wish to comment on my blog. Sorry. The good news is that you can have an account without having an actual blog. So, Mike and Katie and other MySpace people, go to the Blogger home page and get an account. To my registered Blogger friends: if you don't want to get a whole mess of spam comments, you might want to change your settings as well. I thought that my blog was a safe place from all that crap, but I guess I was wrong.

A note to all you Spammers: GET THE HELL AWAY FROM MY BLOG!!!!!! I don't want a new mortgage, traffic tips, a larger penis, health tips, new music or lesbian porn! So, BACK OFF!!!! If I require any of the aforementioned services, trust me, I'll find you. Otherwise, I will organize boycotts of your websites and services and show you that there is such a thing as bad publicity. Thank you for reading, now @*&# OFF!

Something Missing

This post is inspired by two drives over the past four days in which I had to cross the Strip at Sahara and was confronted by the end of an era: No more Wet 'n' Wild.

Yes, I miss Wet 'n' Wild. Some of you are groaning, I know. Who wouldn't miss the best place to see obscenely hairy and overweight European men stuffed into too tight Speedos? Or enjoy the warmth of the Lazy River? There are many theories as to why the water was warmer in the Lazy River than any other attraction. Even so, it was definitely the best way to navigate the park on a blisteringly hot day, especially since kool deck must not have been invented when the park was built. Ah, who needed kool deck when you could run and jump from puddle to puddle courtesy of sprinklers aimed at the concrete? Quit complaining, they were only second degree burns! During late elementary school and Jr. High, it seemed like all of my friends had a season pass. OMG, they were lucky! Of course, my brother and I were the dorks who had to go to the Boys and Girls Club or participate in a cultural tour of every museum in town. Did you know that we have a really crappy doll museum on the Strip? At least we did. Shoot, after seeing that place I should have started charging admission for tours of my closet 'o crap! Anyway, I digress. The wave pool was probably the best test of a young child's swimming skills and a great place to kick and hit people for no reason. I was usually on the receiving end. How many times were you afraid that you'd hit the concrete when you bounced off the Bubble Up because the pool it was in was so narrow? I loved that ride. Did the guns in the Kiddie Pool blimp ever work? I was always too scared to ride Der Stuka- nothing's changed. I never got to go on any of the new rides, because my adult self (and my husband's adult self) was far too conscious of communicable diseases to go anywhere near that cess pool of Jr. High hormones and soggy hot dog buns. All the same, I do kinda' regret not going to Wet 'n' Wild last year when I knew that it would be closing at the end of the Summer. I took best friends there. My parents had company picnics there. I owe my knowledge of second degree sunburns and oversized T-shirts to Wet 'n' Wild. Now, as I cross the Strip at Sahara I just see a big sign touting Ivana Trump's new high-rise condominium tower. I miss the familiar sight of Der Stuka from the road that reminded me that Las Vegas Blvd could be a fun place for kids while their parents gambled away their inheritence across the street. Honestly, I never thought there would be a day when I didn't see Wet 'n' Wild sitting there between a few hotels, and it makes me sad. But, in this town of constant re-invention it shouldn't surprise me that it's gone. Like so many other Vegas icons, Wet 'n' Wild will just have to live forever in our hearts and minds. sniff. sniff.

Binge and Purge

This post has nothing to do with bulemia. Sorry to disappoint. I have been so hungry lately! I have been in such a binge mode. The only saving grace is that I'm lazy and cheap: too lazy to actually cook something and too cheap to go out and buy fast food. Do you ever go through times when you just can't get enough of a particular food? For some people it's bread or cereal. For me it's cheese. I absolutely love cheese. I crave it. I need it. I swear, last night I gorged myself on cheese. I couldn't stop. It was good cheese, too. I spoiled my dinner (which was also very good) by eating too much cheese as appetizer. I'm not usually this crazy over cheese, but I do enjoy the way that it complements and completes most dishes. Everything's better with cheese, right? I should write to the dairy comission and request to be the cheese spokesperson. I love nachos, quesadillas, stuffed shells, ravioli, grilled cheese sandwiches, cheese and crackers, etc., etc. I feel cheated when they scrimp on the cheese when I visit Taco Bell. They have no problem loading up the lettuce, but what I want is the cheese! The place that I have observed as very cheese generous (and lard generous too, unfortunately) is Robertos. Oh, I love Robertos rolled tacos smothered in cheese. Yum! Yum! I have not been there in sooooo long. My mouth is also craving the best calzone in the whole world at Montesanos. OMG, the riccotta just melts in your mouth! It's absolutley divine. I think we're going to go there for one of my birthday dinners. I can't wait.

With the way I'm talking, I should be as big as a house! I do like cheese a lot, but I eat other things. I was just looking through my recipes today trying to get some ideas for good WW friendly meals. It's just so hard to cook for two people, especially when we're not so good about eating left-overs. Don will eat them, but sometimes forgets they are there, and I am super picky about what I'll eat once it's been refrigerated. I want to cook. It's just not always practicle. Sometimes, I want to adopt a few people just for dinner so I can make enchiladas and chili and stuffed shells. Don has created this really wonderful grilled veggie recipe. It's yummy in a light and refreshing way. I think I'd like Asian food better if they used cheese. They could slip a little bit into some eggrolls or the wonton soup. Would that be some kind of Asian fusion food? Hmmm... I could be on to something.

So other than a recent obsession with cheese, what else is going on? I made some progress in my hair obsession today. I stopped fussing with it short of perfection. I left it at good enough. I was proud of myself.

I thought that Dobby wasn't going to be a chewer, but yesterday he found a corner base board that he fancied. Now, the scene of the crime is covered with bitter apple cream. Hopefully, he'll learn his lesson quickly. It's not as if he doesn't have any chew toys!

I haven't been updating a whole lot, because I haven't felt like putting forth the energy to develop a complete thought. Sure, I have a lot of topics swirling around in my head. I just haven't been able to discipline myself enough to make them into a slightly intelligent post. How sad is that?! I'll get back to it one of these days. For now I'll just go on and on about insignificant things like cheese. Hope ya' don't mind too much.

Pizza Hut Uprising

Last night, I decided that nothing sounded better for dinner than good ol' Pizza Hut. Of course, this idea didn't come to me until I was on my way home, so I decided to stop on the way and just wait for the pizza. I was pretty hungry, so I asked the kid behind the counter if a personal pan pizza would take the same amount of time as a medium. He said, "yes", so I went ahead with a medium pepperoni. He told me there would be a 15-20 minute wait. I wasn't crazy about it, but I was prepared. There were three of us who ordered around the same time, and we all sat and waited and waited and waited. The guy across from me finally looked at his watch, so I put my Seventeen magazine (Jr. High research) away and checked my cell phone for the time. Sure enough, it had been over 20 minutes. So, I stood up to see what the hold up was as if my standing was really going to speed up the highly motivated pizza handlers in the back. They were just looking at the pizzas like they didn't have a clue what to do with them! Meanwhile, the guy across from me is getting increasingly agitated, because he was trying to make it home in time to see an 8:00 show on TV. That wasn't going to happen! So, we struck up a conversation about how ridiculous it was that these people didn't even seem to care that we were all waiting long after the time our pizzas were promised. I was about to ask them to give us some bread sticks, because I was really hungry! Finally, after 35 minutes, they called my name, and I was ready. Ever so sweetly, I said, "Hi, I was told that my pizza would be ready in 15-20 minutes, and I have been sitting here for 35. I really think that I should be compensated for having to wait so much longer than I was told. You should think about revising your wait estimate, because had I known the wait was this long I would have just gone somewhere else." The poor manager kid looked up at me very flustered and said, "Well, what do you mean by compensation?" To which I replied, "Something like complimentary breadsticks or a two liter of soda." He said, "Fine. Take a soda." So, I did. I grabbed a Pepsi on my way out. As I was getting into my car I noticed the guy who had been sitting across from me leaving with a complimentary Pepsi as well. He smiled and said, "Good job!" So, I was a rabble rouser at the local Pizza Hut and actually got something for it. I don't think that Pepsico is going to be too hurt by a few free two liters of soda walking out the door.

Hey, Lisa! It's Your Birthday...Today!

Happy No. 23!!! Shoot, I was a married old lady at 23- oh, you are too. :) I hope the fam treats you like royalty. Eat an extra slice of cake for me. Of course, I have a card, but it's sitting on the coffee table just waiting to be signed. I know you understand. We miss celebrating with you. Enjoy playing Captain Zoom all day long! Love ya', Des

Hey. Ladies... Remember This?

Isn't that a blast from the past?! The lady in the middle is Sue, Tony's girlfriend prior to Siri. That's Taree in the lower left. Oh, we were hot. lol.

Reflections From a Week or so

When it rains it pours, unless it's monsoon season in Las Vegas. Then it's just threatens.

Napoleon Dynamite is a goofy movie, but has shed light on some people's behavior.

Celebrating your birthday three weeks early is a little anti-climactic even for me. And just because you're the birthday girl, don't expect anyone to remember to get you a fork or a drink.

Flavored Wheat Thins are addicting especially Sun Dried Tomato and Basil. Yum. :p

I like hummus. Not hagis- hummus.

Just because a plant is brown that doesn't mean that it's dead.

Repairmen seem to have a tendency to take pieces of your house that need fixing and never come back.

I don't care much for misters (the water kind); they get you too wet. Plus, humidity sucks.

There is no good time of the day or night to drive around town.

Outlet Malls make me feel dirty (not in a good way).

There are penguins at the Flamingo.

Sunday nights during the summer are surprisingly happening on the Strip.

Duh! If you join the National Guard, it is assumed that you will be sent to Iraq. At least that's how my cousin reacted when I talked with her (Yes, I did call. Didn't have much to say, but I did call.). "Well, I joined the Guard a few years ago, Dimwit."

The world still revolves around a few people.

Dogs and cats eat and puke grass (the legal kind).

I don't need to put my name on my door to feel important.

Virgin drinks cost just as much as real ones. What a crime! If you're going to pay that much at least get the good stuff!

Make follow-up appointments with your doctors when they tell you to. I could have been going to shots every two weeks since January if I had made an appointment when I was supposed to.

"Face time" is stupid.

The Morning News makes me mad.

Mark and Mercedes piss me off almost daily. But, Jack 100.5FM is pretty cool.

HBO puts the Harry Potter movies into increased rotation when there is some kind of Harry Potter event in the world.

Why do people keep bugging me to go back and be a teacher? There's a reason why we're 500 short...

Here's something I really don't understand: Why do so many people not include their zip code when asked to write down their address? Do they think I want to visit their house instead of send them a letter? Have they ever had to look up zip codes in the phone book? It's a pain in the @&*.

I'm looking forward to our catechist meeting tomorrow. Probably the only one.

I'm also looking forward to getting my husband back from the Second City. Now, I'll just have to fight with IBM. I hear the Mexican Riviera calling...