NYankeefan

There are good people out there!

2009-03-25T06:59:00.002-07:00

I've noticed that in these bad economic times there is more crime and more scammers ripping people off. For some reason in our county, the child abuse rate has gone up since this mess started and every day I hear or read about animals who have been dumped due to the economy. Nobody can argue that these are bad times.

However, these people are trying to make things a little bit better and I think that's great!

Jeeps!

2009-03-19T12:54:00.005-07:00

I have a Jeep Wrangler and I love it. Some would say I have an unhealthy love for my Jeep. I don't care. You could offer me this, and I wouldn't take it if it meant giving up my Jeep. I feel sorry for anyone who hit my Jeep. Just thinking about it makes my heart beat faster and my hands get clammy. Greg says this is why I can't have a concealed weapons license. He may be right.

But the point of this story is that I love my Jeep and I am a Jeep Snob, or rather, Jeep Purist. People who drive around in their Jeep Liberty with a tire cover that says "It's a Jeep thing; You wouldn't understand" make me laugh. Jeep Liberty, Patriots, Grand Cherokees and whatever silly thing they've come up with aren't real Jeeps. The only Jeep worth having is a Wrangler. Ok, I'll say the old Cherokees are a subset of real Jeeps.

So, when Jeep came out with the Unlimited, and that 4-door atrocity, well, I was just appalled. Many Jeep drivers give each other the wave, just like motorcycle riders. I'll wave if somebody waves to me, but I don't get all crazy with it. I WON'T, however, give the wave to anyone driving one of those Jeep monstrosities. I just won't.

Today I was at a light and a 4 door Jeep was going by and the man driving it gave me the wave. Not only was it a 4 door Jeep, it was also silver and had purple swirlies running down the side. SWIRLIES! All I could do was shake my head.

This is a real Jeep. Notice the lack of swirlies.

Quit trying to help!

2009-03-16T10:56:00.003-07:00

Ok, one quick bitch session and then I'll get back to happy pictures and stories.

I have been unemployed since January of last year. I went to school full time from January to August and then my GI Bill ran out. I do have 2 more classes to take till I can graduate, but I will wait until I can stand the thought of 2 math classes. Which might be never.

Anyway, I have enjoyed my time off. I was so grateful that I was able to spend the last year with Ricky before he died. I like knowing that I don't have to drive in the snow, or leave my house on a dry windy day and have to worry about trying to get back to my animals if there's a fire. I like knowing that I can take the animals to the vet immediately if required. I've enjoyed being able to cook from scratch, shop and plan for meals, keep my house clean(ish), and spend an afternoon reading a book. I love having the whole weekend off with Greg, and evenings are more relaxed because I am able to cook dinner before he even gets home from work.

But...I've been feeling a little restless or bored lately, so I started looking for a part time job. I haven't applied for everything available, just jobs that looked interesting (one was a receptionist at an equine hospital-I would have loved that!). Of course, everyone is looking for work right now, so unless I'm really 100% motivated to take anything, I know I'm not going to find a job. But it still makes me feel a little bad about myself that I can't even get an interview for a $9 an hour job answering phones.

So I'm thinking about doing some volunteer work, and since working with animals is my thing, I would like to work at one of the animal sanctuaries or rescue groups we have in town. But I am very worried that I will either be overcome with sadness or I will bring home every animal at the sanctuary. Neither one would be good for me. So I'm going slowly on this.

In the meantime, my sister and my mother want to help me. My sister was talking to one of her clients who knows a woman who needs help with her horses. She's an elderly woman whose husband has been in the hospital since December after suffering a massive stroke. She spends most of her day at the hospital, but has 8 horses at home that need caring for and she's trying to do both. So my sister and her client arranged it so that this woman and I could talk and maybe I could help her out.

Now to be fair this lady sounded overwhelmed and maybe she didn't really want one more thing to do, but was calling me as a favor to her friend. We spoke and she said she does need help, but she would call me later in the week to let me know what kind of help she needs and how much. Well, that conversation took place over two weeks ago. I'm guessing she's not calling back.

My mom has a little business dog sitting in her home and one of the things that makes her so popular with dog owners is that she only takes one dog at a time (unless the dogs are from the same family). She treats the dogs as her own, taking them with her anywhere she goes, etc. A client of hers wanted her to take care of her dog at the end of this month, but my mom already has another dog. So she called her back and said that she couldn't take her, but I could. We'd already discussed it and I said it would be ok as long as her dog got along with mine. Well, the lady never called.

I realize she may have another back up plan and the horse lady may have another plan in place, but it makes me feel bad that even if I'm GIVING my time away, nobody wants my help.

So, in the future I will tell my family with much love and gratitude to kindly butt the hell out!

Christian the Lion

2009-03-14T06:16:00.002-07:00

For some reason I can't embed videos, so check out Christian the Lion

Make sure you have tissues on hand.

Springtime means babies!

2009-03-13T09:55:00.003-07:00

I need one of these!

I feel like this puppy today!

2009-03-11T16:47:00.004-07:00

Cool Kid!

2009-03-10T16:38:00.002-07:00

Somebody raised this kid right.

Puppies!

2009-03-09T16:02:00.002-07:00

I couldn't find a happy news story today, so I'm posting the next best thing. I've had puppy fever lately, so here's a picture of these two cuties!

Another happy story!

2009-03-08T06:59:00.003-07:00

It's a bit sad, but overall it's a feel good story. I saw it on CBS News Sunday Morning.

It wouldn't let me embed the video, so here's the link.

Enough Doom and Gloom!

2009-03-07T16:40:00.002-07:00

One of my favorite bloggers said she has decided to "opt out of the recession". I like that. I think it's tough to avoid it, but I'm going to try to spend less of my life worrying about this thing I can't control.

Here's a happy story of a business owner doing a good thing.

Traveling

2009-03-06T16:36:00.004-07:00

I have the travel itch and I have it bad! I've always been sort of a restless person. I remember Christmas Day when I was 15 years old, sitting in my room in all my Christmas finery, thinking "I've got to get the hell out of here." I wanted to be somewhere exciting and different and that hasn't really changed.

I was lucky that I was able to travel so much while I was in the Air Force, but I still think I could have done more. When I was in Korea it was just one big party with short breaks for work. I went to Seoul a few times and my roommate and I went to Hong Kong and Bangkok for a week which was fantastic, but I regret not making it to Japan or seeing more of Korea.

I was supposed to be in England for three years and it was cut in half, due to a base closure. I went to London quite a bit as it was only an hour away by train. I had plans to go to Scotland and Ireland but time ran out, so I crammed in some day trips to Cambridge and Bath and that was it for England.

I hit the jackpot in Germany because my job required some traveling. I got to go to Norway, Sweden and Denmark (for work and my wedding!). I also went to Paris with my friends on a trip from hell. We took a USO tour bus which drove all night, dropped us off in Paris for the day and then drove back all night. A baby threw up on me right before we stepped off the bus in Paris, which is sort of a recurring theme during my travels. If I'm on a plane, train or bus and there's a small child nearby, you can be sure it will hurl on me. It's a curse.

We went to Amsterdam a couple of times and Greg and I went to Rome for the most wonderful week of my life.

So I've done a fair bit of traveling. But lately I just want more! My mom's niece (my cousin) lives in Spain and my mom and I were thinking about maybe visiting her someday. Greg and I are talking about going to the UK. So there is the possibility of travel in my future, but...it's so far from now.

But we're taking baby steps. We're applying for new passports, so should our lottery numbers hit, we'll be ready!

Who's in charge of posting on this blog?

2008-12-04T12:54:00.004-07:00

I don't know why I'm not better at blogging. It's not like I don't have time. I guess it's just that my life is so boring, I can't imagine anyone is interested in reading about it. I know I feel like going to sleep just living it.

I'm not in school anymore and, surprisingly, I miss it. I think I miss the structure school provided for me. I started research on my new book. Well, my first book. It's about women pilots during WWII. I just put 25 books on hold at the library. I'll pick those up when it stops snowing. If it ever stops snowing.

Greg and I are leaving for Vegas in 10 days. I'm starting to get excited about the trip. I'm also going to try to write an article about Vegas. Hopefully, I won't be having so much fun I forget to take notes.

For a nearly graduated journalism student, I haven't done much writing. I have a lot of ideas, but I'm sort of stuck when it comes to actually writing an article and trying to sell it.

Also, I don't like the holidays. There. I said it. I'm over it. I'd like to spend Thanksgiving through New Years somewhere else. Like Tahiti.

Playoffs already?

2008-10-01T17:11:00.003-07:00

That was the fastest season ever. It seems like just yesterday Greg and I were sitting down to the first Yankees game of the season. Which got postponed, actually. Anyway, it was a sucky season and all I can say is GO CUBS! or RAYS! or DODGERS! or ANGELS! Really anyone besides the two Sox.

Stuck in a Tree

2008-03-23T10:28:00.002-07:00

Thursday night I noticed a cat about 20 feet up a tree on the side of the house. I didn't recognize the cat. We tried to lure her down that night with no luck, but we figured she'd get down sometime during the night. The next morning she was still up there. Now, I know there are people who can have a cat stuck in their tree and be able to live their lives, but I am not that person. I spent hours on Friday trying to get that damned cat out of the tree. And if I wasn't trying to get her down, I was just checking on her. I didn't get anything done on Friday.

When Greg got home that evening we went out and tried some other things that only scared the cat into climbing up another 10 feet. So instead of being 20 feet up, she was 30 feet up. We quit messing around because we didn't want to chase her any further up. Greg did climb up a ladder and smeared some cat food on a low branch in the hopes she'd get hungry enough to climb down.

I was pretty upset that night, thinking this poor cat was going to spend another night in the tree, and it was supposed to snow. Yesterday morning when I got up, Greg told me she was gone. So, I guess she either fell out of the tree or climbed down. Of course, then I worried that she was hurt somewhere, blah blah blah. Seriously, I can make myself crazy with this stuff. She's probably ok.

So, happily, I don't have a cat in my tree anymore.

My dad told me he had a cat up in a tree for a week. I definitely couldn't take that. I'd have had to shimmy up the tree and drag that cat down myself.

Foo Fighters!!!

2008-02-23T14:37:00.002-07:00

A few months ago I checked the Foo Fighters concert schedule to see if they were going to play in or near Colorado. The nearest I could find was Glendale, Arizona. I was sad. But, they've added some venues and lucky for me, they are playing Red Rocks on July 14th. I ordered tickets on Thursday and now I have to wait, patiently, until July.

I always enjoyed going to concerts, but it's been about twelve years since I've been to one. As I've gotten older, the crowds and the cost sort of put me off. However, there are a few bands that I would love to see and the Foo Fighters top that list. Red Rocks is a very cool venue, too! I saw Morrissey there with my sister nearly 20 years ago. Oy, I'm getting old.

Greg and I went to Denver yesterday to celebrate my birthday (belatedly, but that's just how it worked out). Greg found a fantastic vegetarian restaurant, which could offered everything on the menu as a vegan option too. That's cool. Usually I can find one, or maybe two things to eat in a restaurant, so all vegan options is great. And overwhelming. It took me forever to decide. It did not take me long to decide on dessert, though. When Greg and I were waiting for a table, I saw a tray of delicious looking pastries. I told Greg that if those were vegan, that's what I was having. As it turned out, all the desserts were vegan, the pastries I saw were slices of tiramisu, and that's what I ordered. Oh, it was good. So, so good. Next month is our anniversary, and we're going back to Denver to see the Avs play. Guess where we're going for dinner? That's right.

We've actually got quite a bit going on this year. Hockey game next month. In May I'm going to drive down to New Mexico to visit my dad. He lives near Santa Fe, and I've never been down there, so I thought it might be fun to hang out with him for a weekend. July is the concert. We're going to go to some baseball games, of course. Since Joe Torre is managing the Dodgers now, we'll definitely go see them, either in May or September. And, of course, back to Vegas in December. I like to have a lot of stuff planned. I'm somebody who is happiest when I have something to look forward to.

It's been a while!

2008-02-17T18:45:00.002-07:00

Apparently the Rockies sweeping the Yankees was more than I could bear, and so I couldn't blog for seven months. I take the game VERY seriously!

Obviously the end of last season was great because the Yankees made it to the playoffs, and horrible, because they blew it and those verkockte Red Sox won the World Series. It took a while to get over that too, but guess what? Pitchers and catchers reported on the 15th, so baseball season is back! Also, Clemens is an idiot.

Other happenings in my life...I quit working and am now a full time student. I'm enjoying it. I'm taking a government class, literature, art history and public speaking. I thought I would like literature and hate public speaking, but it's the opposite. I really enjoy my public speaking class, not because I like giving speeches (I hate it!), but because the teacher is amazing. Why she's teaching at the community college level, I will never know. But I'm glad she is.

If I can work it right, I'll never work outside of home again. If I plan my time well (which is not easy for me), I can find time to write, and I'm going to try to write and sell some articles. I've always wanted to be a writer, and I think I need to give it a try before my GI bill runs out.

bad luck

2007-06-08T18:05:00.000-07:00

Every once in a while we will get into this cycle of bad luck, and I just have to wonder when it will end. Nothing tragic, just not fun. I think it started when one of the dogs needed dental surgery last month. Then last weekend, I noticed Sabrina the cat was limping quite badly, so I took her to the vet. Turns out she has arthritis in both shoulders and a chipped bone in the left one. The vet thinks it "might" heal on its own if we can keep her from jumping for a month or so. Have you ever tried to keep a cat from jumping? Impossible! So, if it doesn't heal on its own, she will need surgery. It's to be expected since all our animals are getting older, but it's painful on the checkbook.

To add insult to injury, my Jeep needs new tires. I don't know much about cars, but the mechanics said that the dealership (who I don't go to anymore) tried to counterbalance the tires with weights when I took it in because of a shimmy at high speeds. So the mechanic I took it to removed the weights, and said the shimmy would remain, but it "might" correct itself within about 1000 miles of driving. The original shimmy was annoying. The new shimmy feels much like a horse trying to buck me off. It is also loosening my dental fillings. The mechanic said the only thing I could do is replace the tires. Obviously I'd like to try to wait it out and let it correct itself, but...It's trying to buck me off!

Let's see, good news...Paris Hilton is back in jail! Is it me, or is anyone else irritated by the garbage that is considered "newsworthy" in this country? Unbelievable.

In actual good news...the Yankees are starting to look like they're supposed to. It has been a rough season, so far. But they are looking better. It will be interesting to see if Roger Clemens has anything to offer. It seems like the Yankees pick up pitchers based on what they've done in the past. Look at Randy Johnson. He was not at all impressive when he was with the Yankees, and he was plagued with back problems and age. I just hope they won't have the same experience with Clemens and his groin injury and his general oldness.

Only 13 days till we go see the Yankees play the Rockies!

Summer Vacation

2007-05-27T07:36:00.000-07:00

This is the first Sunday of vacation and I'm so happy. I've actually been done with school since the 15th, but last week my friend was here visiting from Baltimore, so I didn't get to do what I like to do on Sunday morning. I like to get up and watch CBS Sunday Morning. While watching, I like to check out what's going on in cyberspace. Then, at 8:30, I switch over to "I Love Lucy" for a mini marathon, until 10. That's when Greg and I usually make breakfast. (biscuits and veggie sausages--sometimes Greg will make home fries). Then, when it's not summer vacation, I have to get started on homework. But today...I don't! It's fantastic.

We are, however, going to Woodland Park today to have lunch with a guy Greg works with. Well, him and his wife. Now, I'm not really one to lunch with strangers, however, they bought a house with a 1200 square foot deck! That's as big as our house! At least the upstairs. So that's the reason I've agreed to eat a meal with people I don't know. I have GOT to see this deck. Also, it probably isn't a bad idea for Greg and I to make new friends, do new things, blah blah blah.

So, hopefully with a little more time on my hands, I'll be able to blog a bit more. I've got a list of things I want to do this summer, and blogging is one of them. I am also going to try to do more writing in general. I wrote a feature article for my magazine writing class and the teacher said that I should try to get it published, so I am going to research some magazines and see if I can get paid for writing.

BASEBALL!!!!

2007-04-01T10:28:00.000-07:00

Although baseball season officially starts today, it doesn't start for me until tomorrow at 11:05. That's when the Yankees play their home opener against Tampa Bay.

I've got the whole day planned. Greg and I have to pick out tile for our shower, so we're going to the tile place at 7:00 when they open. That's 7 a.m. Then, since I'll already be up, I'll go to the gym and walk on the treadmill and then take the 9:00 pilates class. (This is still a.m.-on my day off!!) So by 10:05, I'll be on my way home, I'll get cleaned up and be ready just in time to park my butt in front of the T.V.!!!

I'm so excited!

Snow sucks!

2007-01-14T16:26:00.000-07:00

Everyone is seriously sick of this snow. Especially Greg, I think. He's been stomping around, grumbling and pouting, all because of the snow. It is annoying ( the snow, not Greg...much). The drifts are so high that Pete just walks over the fence and wanders around the neighborhood. My neighbor has returned him twice; once after taking him for a walk! He always shows up at the front gate when he's ready to come in, but it's still annoying to have to keep looking out for him. And, of course, bundle up in this 3 degree weather to walk down to the gate and let him in.

It finally quit snowing today, but it looks like the fog is rolling in. According to weather.com it's supposed to snow again next Sunday.

O.K. Enough weather talk. Hopefully something interesting or exciting (and not weather-related) will happen before the next time I blog. I may have to wait to blog until after our Vegas trip. Cause that's the next exciting/interesting thing on the agenda.

More Snow??

2007-01-07T17:01:00.000-07:00

There's talk of more snow on Friday. Blizzard conditions. That would make it the fourth blizzard in 3 months, and four storms in four weeks. Last week's storm wasn't a blizzard; just a storm that dumped about 6 more inches of snow. I am seriously sick of this, but I keep telling myself that at least we won't have the fire danger in the summer.

I started my new job last Wednesday. I think it's going to work out really well. I've made more in tips alone than I had in the last year of owning my spa. I definitely made the right choice.

School starts in 2 weeks and I am not looking forward to it. The break between the fall and spring semesters is the longest one for me, so the rest of this year, I'll only get two weeks between semesters. Poor Greg only gets about three weeks between semesters. I would die! Just die!

Happy New Year!!!!

2006-12-31T20:15:00.000-07:00

Well, not quite yet, but in 3 hours and 45 minutes it will be.

Merry Christmas!

2006-12-25T07:55:00.000-07:00

Only 3 months till baseball season starts!

Can't...breathe...

2006-10-16T18:55:00.000-07:00

So, about a week ago I started having shortness of breath, and developed a little cough. It sort of came and went and I didn't worry about it too much. This morning I woke up at 4 and couldn't go back to sleep because of my lack of air. I did the smart thing and called the doctor. I had an appointment at 11:00 and I didn't leave there until 4:00. As it turns out, I have some goofy viral thing causing inflammation around my heart. There is a fancy name for it, but I can't remember. It's pulmonary something. But it got me out of algebra!!

Apparently, it's not a big deal, and it would have taken care of itself in a couple of weeks. However, the doctor had to rule out a few things, and she was especially worried about blood clots in my lungs. Yeah, I was worried too. So, I had to get x-rays, a blood test and a CT scan. Then she told me I couldn't go anywhere until she got the results back from the scan. Which took over an hour. It was kind of crazy. I don't get sick much, but when I do, watch out!!

My poor Pete is sick. I don't know what's wrong with him. He's lethargic and not eating. It looks like his joints are stiff. I made an appointment for him at the vet's, but it's not until 4 tomorrow afternoon.

Wow, I just read over this post. How boring!! Sorry.

Broken hearted

2006-10-09T17:51:00.000-07:00

My Yankees couldn't do it. I realized how much of a fan I was when I actually hid myself in the bathroom and cried. I cried over a game! Pathetic. But it's over, and Yankees fans have a little saying to get them through the tough times.

"What's in the past is in the past."

Hey, it's over. And it's in the past. And there's always next year. Etc. etc.

How about those Mets. I think I have to go with the New York team.

I'm here again!

2006-10-05T18:38:00.000-07:00

I SHOULD be working on my article, but I just can't do it. I have to write an article about the new reading center on campus. I was working on it earlier, but it's very boring and sounds like a press release. Which I guess it is, sort of. I hate reporting. So now I officially hate algebra and reporting and I don't love art appreciation. This is a very bad semester.

Speaking of hating algebra...we "learned" how to do synthetic division. SYNTHETIC!! I can barely do the real division and now she wants me to learn synthetic division. She looks sweet and nice but she is sneaky! Synthetic division. I think she made it up.

So, instead of writing my article that is due tomorrow, I am blogging and waiting for Grey's Anatomy to start and stressing out about algebra.

What if I didn't go to school today?

2006-10-04T06:02:00.000-07:00

Would it kill me? What if I just skipped my first class? It's useless anyway. I'm not learning anything. I could go in at 1:00 for algebra (not that it'll actually help whether I'm there or not!), and take care of things that need to be taken care of around the house. Laundry, dishes, etc.

Who am I kidding? Of course I'll go to school. I'm a responsible adult. Which is a shame.

At least I have baseball to look forward to tonight. Yankees beat the Tigers 8-4. It was a good game. I love October!

I hate x's and y's

2006-09-27T18:50:00.000-07:00

I'm not very good at this blogging thing, am I? That's because my life is not very exciting. I guess nobody has a super exciting life every day, but I think mine may be especially uneventful. Mondays and Wednesdays are school. Tuesdays and Thursdays are work. Friday morning is school and then sometimes work in the afternoon. Weekends are work and homework. Seriously, that is my life.

X's and Y's refers to algebra. I'm not good at it. I'm failing it. It stinks!!! I have to pass this class, though. Because it's supposed to be my last math class. But that's only if my advisor is right, which she may not be, because she often isn't. Anyway, it's not like I don't put the work into it. I just have some sort of mental block. I'm going to have to blame my dad for that one. See, my dad is a mathematician. He does really complicated problems for fun. So, when I was a kid, he tried to help me with math homework, but he couldn't understand why I didn't get it, when obviously it was so easy. So there was yelling and then there were tears and that's why I'm failing college algebra. Trust me. It's true.

My Yankees won the AL East. I'm very excited for the playoffs, but they make me nervous, too. I get all verklemmt. It's very stressful.

I've been thinking about getting a cat for Sabrina. For those of you who don't know Sabrina, she's our cat. And she's so lonely since all our other cats died. And she's driving me CRAZY because she just follows me around the house meowing at me. All day long. So I'm thinking, if we get another house cat she'll have some company and quiet down. But this could backfire on me. She could teach the new cat to follow me around and yell at me. It's a slippery slope.

Well, that's my monthly post. Hope you enjoyed it.

I'm sad...and exhausted and ecstatic!

2006-08-21T18:50:00.000-07:00

I'm sad because I had to leave New York City. I'm exhausted because of NYC. I still haven't recovered. I'm ecstatic because the New York Yankees swept the Red Sox. Ecstatic!!! The last two times they did that, they won the World Series.

New York was fantastic. Going to the Yankees games was amazing. Walking into that stadium brought tears to my eyes. Thank you, Greg. It was a lifelong dream. Ok, I've only been a fan for about 3 years, but still, thank you. I'm pretty sure I can die happy now. Ok, no, not yet. After the Yankees win the World Series, I'll be able to die happy. No, I'd really like to travel to Australia. THEN, I'll be able to die happy. Oh. I need to stop. I'm babbling because I'm so tired. School started today and I'm drained.

Greg and I walked until my feet bled. Ok, blistered. We ate at great vegan restaurants. It's so cool to be able to go into a restaurant and order anything off the menu. I parked Greg on a bench at Sephora's and went shopping! They have Sephora in Denver now, but it's not the same (for those of you unaware of what Sephoras is, it's a cosmetics emporium-one of my favorite places!) We took a cruise around Manhattan at night. Well, it was half the island. It was beautiful. We went to Cafe Lalo (cafe where Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks meet up in "You've got Mail.") We walked through the Columbia University campus. It's beautiful. Way better than the Pikes Peak Community College Campus, which is mostly parking lot.

If I hadn't missed the dogs and cats so much it would have been a lot harder to leave.

Getting there!

2006-08-08T17:02:00.000-07:00

Three days from now we'll be in NYC!!!!!!! I'm so EXCITED!!

School's out!

2006-08-06T05:59:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was my last class. My last final went well, and I didn't even have to take the final for geography, because somehow I managed to get an A without it. Presentations all went well, too. I really hate public speaking, so doing three of them was difficult. I thought I would get less nervous with each presentation, but I was equally nervous for each one.

So next Friday we leave for New York! I'm so excited. I have most of the weekend planned, already. Friday we arrive late afternoon, so after we check in and drop off our stuff, we're heading over to the Museum of Modern Art to see "Starry Night", by Van Gough. It's my favorite. The museum is open late that night, so we'll spend some time there and then go to dinner at either Candle Cafe or Candle 79, which are both wonderful vegan restaurants on the Upper East Side.

Saturday! The Yankees game starts at 1:20, so we'll probably look for breakfast somewhere and head out to the Bronx. I'd like to go to Monument Park and maybe get there in time for batting practice. If not Saturday, then definitely Sunday. That night we're going to go to Little Italy (Cafe Napoli) for dinner.

Sunday, more baseball. I don't know where we'll eat yet, but I have a list of vegetarian/vegan restaurants two pages long, so we definitely won't starve. Greg wants to go to the new Hard Rock Cafe. He's such a tourist! But secretly, I like it too.

We're going to a night game on Monday, but for the rest of the week we will be visiting museums (the Met, Museum of Natural History, Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, and the Guggenheim if we have time and don't have "museum head" by then.)

We're going to get up early one morning and walk across the Brooklyn Bridge. We're going to take a ferry around Manhattan. I'd like to go to the top of the Empire State Building at night. I've been up there during the day, but it was pretty hazy.

There is so much more I want to do, but we're only there for a week. We could spend a month there and not see and do everything. I love New York, but it's not a relaxing vacation! So, Greg and I will come back from New York more exhausted than we are now, but it will totally be worth it.

End of the Semester pressure

2006-07-20T18:52:00.000-07:00

Ten weeks goes by pretty quickly. I'm down to my last two, and am in my usual end of the semester panic. I SWORE to myself I wouldn't wait until the last minute to do the three presentations that are due. SWORE!! But, here I am, two nights before two of the presentations are due. Panicking. I shouldn't be surprised. I am nothing if not a procrastinator.

In other news...there isn't any. We had some loose horses out the other night. That was exciting. They got home safely, but I drive by their house once in a while to make sure they are properly secured.

The horses did give me an opening to discuss our "storage" problem with my dad. We've lived in this house over 5 years, and we've owned the house going on 3, and yet, my father still has two barns full of junk. Three huge crates full of some sort of kiosks he bought several years ago. Apparently, these were going to make him rich. They did not, and now I'm stuck with them. He's got two VW hatchbacks sitting by the back barn, that he wants to haul back down to New Mexico and refurbish. (do people refurbish cars?) Either way, I don't see it happening any time soon. Anyway, I told him that he needs to clear his stuff out, cause I want those barns clear in case we have anymore runaway horses. The chances are slim, but it's worth a shot.

Not sleeping

2006-07-02T13:10:00.000-07:00

It's 3:15 on Monday morning. I've been awake since 1:30 and I am not even close to being tired. This happens occasionally. I don't know why. Sometimes Greg is snoring, but I can ususally pinch or kick him (gently, of course) and he'll settle down. Sometimes I'll hear an animal outside and won't be able to go back to sleep for an hour or so.

When I was stationed in England I went 6 months without getting more than 2 or 3 hours of sleep a night. I was like a zombie. Then, all of a sudden, I could sleep again. I think it happens when I have a lot on my mind. By the way, there's nothing on t.v. at this time of the day, except paid programming. Why do we even pay for satellite?

I have to be in class in about 5 hours. It should be interesting. I would skip it, but we have a test next week, and I don't want to miss anything. We also have a pretty complicated looking lab today, and I'd rather do it in class, than try to figure it out myself. I wish I'd been this dedicated to education when I got out of high school. Then I could be done with it all, and I could sleep in tomorrow.

My timing sucks!

2006-06-23T18:11:00.000-07:00

Here are pictures of my favorite cat of all time. He was a polydactyl. Extra toes. That is why he got the original name of "Toes".

So, first of all, it turns out I hate blogging. It makes me realize how boring my life really is.

Second of all, my timing really does suck! Greg and I are arriving in NYC in on August 11th. A couple of years ago I saw a news segment about an off-Broadway show that looked really good. I found out that it's now on Broadway (it's called Bridge and Tunnel) but it's ending on August 6th. So, that's disappointment #1. Then, I was listening to the radio and the Foo Fighters "Learning to Fly" came on. I love the Foo Fighters. They were in Denver last Fall, but we couldn't get tickets. So, just for fun, I decided to check out the Foo concert tour. They will be in NYC on August 19th. We leave the 18th.

We can't change our dates because that week is seriously the only week we can both get off between semesters. I finish the Summer semester on August 5th and start up again the 21st.

Speaking of school, I'm taking geography and astronomy. I am enjoying both classes. My geography teacher is a more dynamic instructor, but I love my astronomy teacher. He reminds me of Tim Conway. He's adorable.

We almost had a new member of the family. My neighbor went to visit a friend, whose cat had a litter of kittens. Rachel sort of fell in love with one of the kittens, and decided I needed her, as we've had 4 cats die since last August. I think she just wanted an excuse to bring her home. I was very close to taking her, but I snapped out of it just in time. I loved my cats, but now that we're down to just one house cat (and the 3 dogs, of course), my life is a little more serene and peaceful. I'm working on less responsibility in my life, not more. I think Rachel was relieved that she got to keep the kitten.

Sunday Morning

2006-05-07T06:17:00.000-07:00

So now that I don't have to use this blog as research and I can feel confident that my English teacher isn't reading my innermost thoughts, I plan on actually writing more. Real stuff and real feelings. Well, maybe not. But I will discuss veganism, the Yankees, my dogs and cats, and whatever other nonsense that comes to mind.

I figure that I'll be in school for at least the next two years, so this may be my only creative writing outlet.

Saturday night!

2006-03-25T21:42:00.000-07:00

Still worrying about vegan poetry. There once was a vegan from nantucket...

Hi Greg

2006-03-22T19:50:00.000-07:00

Hope you're enjoying yourself in the land of my enemies!

P.S. You're lucky you won't be here; I have to write a poem about my research topic. There will be crying!

I've narrowed it down

2006-02-05T10:57:00.000-07:00

My thesis is: Veganism is better for health, the environment and the economy.

http://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/pubs/estimates.htm

If it's Sunday I must be working on English

2006-01-29T14:43:00.000-07:00

Some more research is necessary for my paper. Still not completely sure which direction I want to take it in.

http://www.sierraclub.org/factoryfarms/factsheets/factoryfarms.asp

seems like a good source of information. I'll keep looking!

P.S. Gregory, get back to work!

Changing my topic

2006-01-23T14:33:00.000-07:00

I think I'm going to change my topic to vegetarianism or veganism. It' s something I know a lot about and I already have lots of resources to turn to. I was getting frustrated with the other topics because I couldn't find any scholarly sources. I haven't figured out which angle I want to use, but I think something about health, the environment and veganism.

http://www.globalissues.org/TradeRelated/Consumption/Beef.asp
http://www.earthsave.org/environment/foodchoices.htm

2006-01-17T20:11:00.000-07:00

Urban sprawl or zero population growth??? That is the question. I found some cited references on urban sprawl, but very few on zpg. I don't actually know anything about urban sprawl, but I know I don't like it. Especially where I live.

English class

2006-01-15T14:57:00.000-07:00

I'm starting my second semester of college tomorrow, and in looking over my online English class, discovered that I have to start a research blog. Here it is. I've never blogged before, so this could be fun.