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L sometimes tells me that I blow things out of proportion or that I get bent out of shape way more about something than I should. Sometimes he’s right (but not all the time 
. Anyway, I heard them mention a story on Good Morning America today that really made me laugh.
And it involves PETA. You know, the crazy People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. The ones who take it to the next level and protest all kinds of stores and events. Even Lowe’s Home Imporvement (I don’t remember why they did, so don’t ask, I just know they did). Or throwing red paint on people who are wearing fur coats.
I understand that these people are trying to protect animals and fight for their rights (‘to parrtttyyyy’ — sorry, couldn’t help myself), but let’s be real here.
You guys all know – and if you don’t, I’m telling you now – that I am a huge animal lover. Hugh. If I could rescue every dog or cat I found, I would. If I could stop painful animal testing, I would. If I could stop people from beating their pets, starving them or just mistreating them in general, I would.
But these extremists are out of control.
Apparently, President Obama swatted at a fly during an interview on CNBC yesterday and supposedly killed it. Now, PETA is mad and is saying that the President should have been a better example. Instead of swatting the fly, he should have brushed it. In order to help him, PETA has sent the President a humane fly catcher.
Seriously.
Don’t you have something better to do with your time? It’s a fly.
But I supposed I should see two sides of the coin and think that someone could say to me, “it’s just a dog.”
Anyway. Those are my thoughts. However, I have no problem with killing flies.
Also, today is my Friday – tomorrow we’re headed to the beach for FOUR DAYS!!! And the weather is still (knock on wood, again) supposed to be perfect. I am so. freakin. excited.
At first I thought it was a dream. “This can’t be happening, I thought to myself. “They seriously did not just say that.”
I turned on the news when I woke up, as I always do. And the first thing I heard the anchor say: “And now we bring you breaking news from [moderately large city in area]. The police & fire departments along with the bomb squad are on scene investigating a suspicious device found along the railroad tracks.”
You’ve got to be f-ing kidding me. Name of moderatley large city in area=my client. You know, the one that I am covering on my own for the first time ever bc the main account manager is on maternity leave. And when did she go on maternity leave? Yesterday.
Day 1 and I get a freakin bomb scare.
The news anchor went on to explain what the device looked like and mention which of the many streets that were closed as a precaution. I immediately checked my blackberry and cell phone to make sure I didn’t sleep through any calls or anything.
I didn’t. Thank goodness that although we provide the city with PIO (public information officer) services, that the police department is really good about handling it on their own.
I was kept abreast of the information throughout the morning until they finally determined that it was fake. But still. Day 1 and that’s what I hear when I wake up. Oy. Freakin. Vey.
*****
In other work related news, I just got a call from a man from Kenya who works for a coffee company and are trying to get into the US market. He got my name from a press release he saw that was put out for one of my former clients. He tells me they have very good coffee. And macadamia nuts. He will save my contact information and bring me back some macadamia nut cookies (bc I told him that’s the only time I’ve ever had macadamia nuts) from his next trip to Kenya.
Ooookkk.
*****
We had out monthly Support Team meeting at the fire department last night. I’m kind of pissed, in a very 5 year old way, because the woman who is the chairperson totally stole my idea and passed it off as her own.
I like this lady, I really do. In fact, her and her husband came to the steeplechase with us. She is very nice, but personally I think she has her hand in too many pots at that fire station and likes to take over. Last night she starts the meeting by saying she had an idea and wanted to know what everyone thought. We try to have a family dinner once a quarter. It’s usually potluck, but it always ends up being the same people bringing food and the same people coming that don’t bring food. Also, we tend to sometimes run out.
Her (my) suggestion was to host a dinner where we bring and prepare everything and charge members to eat. Moderately priced, $3-4/person. YOu know a big spaghetti dinner or something of that nature.
I know this seems petty and trivial to be annoyed by this, but really… I’m trying to get more involved and these people always preach about getting people involved, etc. Yet once again, this was V’s idea (even though it was really mine). Need I remind her that we spoke about this more than once. Oh, and it’s in the 7 page rebranding document that I created for the Support Team.
Speaking of that… at the the first meeting we had where they tried to get this group going again, she asked everyone to email her ideas of what they wanted this group to do and she would put them together and we’d talk about it as a group at the next meeting. That’s where my 7 page document came in. And since then. Nothing has been said. I’m getting ready to write her an email saying we need to revisit some of this stuff.
*****
Tomorrow afternoon L and I are heading to his parent’s house and going to his sister’s graduation Sunday morning. Apparently about 35 people are going (whoa!).
Initially I was going to wear the same dress I wore to the steeplechase, but then I wanted something new even though I didn’t really have the money to spend. But I didn’t really see anythign I liked that I could afford. Then I saw Ashley D’s post about dresses she was looking at for her graduation. And umm, yeah. The first one she bought was EXACTLY what I was looking for! And it wasn’t too expensive either. I was unsure what size to order, especially given the brand, but when I got it in the mail, it fit perfectly.
Actually, I loved it so much, I didn’t want to take it off. Between the pretty color, nice cut, perfect fit and the awesome new heels I had on, I almost wore it to the store (seriously, I love my new shoes. I don’t wear heels as much as I used to and I just feel so much prettier when I do. Especially bc they are so cute and sexy – and I don’t use the term sexy very often).
I’ve mentioned before that I kind of obsessively plan what I’m going to wear for events and it gets kind of stressful when it involves being around his family because I feel like they judge me and I’m afraid that what I have won’t be right for the occasion (you have no idea what I was like when I was trying to pack for our trip to Vegas with them last year).
But. This time I was very happy with my choice. And confident.
Then L calls me the other day and says he talked to his mom about this weekend. After the graduation, everyone is coming back to their house for a cookout. Ok, cool. She does not want him to wear flip flops at the house. She says they are too beachy and casual. Umm, ok. But it’s a cookout at their house. And besides, he has Rainbows - they’re not the most casual flip flop out there. In fact, I think they’re pretty nice. Also, I’m pretty sure that his Rainbows cost more than the heels I’m planning to wear. But whatever. No biggie, this doesn’t affect me.
Yesterday he talked to his sister briefly (a rare occurance). She told him (I’m not sure if he asked or if she volunteered this information) that she is wearing purple – I’m assuming a dress – to the graduation and then pink something to the cookout.
Panicking, I asked, “pink what? pink WHAT?!?!?!!“ He didn’t know. He didn’t have good service and couldn’t hear what she said.
Do I need another outfit, I asked. Now I’m beginning to stress. What else would I wear besides this dress if his mom doesn’t even want him to wear flip flops????? He had no idea. I asked him a while back and then earlier in the week to find out about the events and get an idea of what I needed to wear. And now I’m stuck. I don’t have anything else. The only thing I can think of is taht I have a navy blue casual sundress from old navy. It’s cute, but i would def wear with flip flops or cute sandals. Cute sandals that I think would fall into the flip flop category for his mom.
He called his mom last night to ask, but she didn’t answer her phone. He said he would call her first thing this am, but I haven’t heard anything yet.
Now, I’m stessing. But, I mean, maybe I’ll just wear the pink dress all day anyway. And bring the blue one. Oy vey. I hate this.
Dear Mother Nature, Please make up your mind.
I’m having trouble dealing with this weather we’ve been having lately. In November, we were setting record lows. The icy air cut through your pants as the wind threw you across the parking lot. It reminded me of the walk I had from Grand Central to my office building in NYC. Except now, my walk is only 10 feet, not 10 blocks. Why was it so awful still?
In December, it wasn’t so bad. The usual somewhat mild weather the Carolinas expect. Cold at night and slightly chilly during the day.
And January, January started off alright. It’s always the worst month (in my opinion). The coldest. But it wasn’t so bad. And then the chill warmed up to near 60s.
But soon after, the meteorologists are hyping up this deep freeze we were experiencing. Deep freeze? I thought to myself. It’s in the 40s.
Then last weekend happened and it started to get cold. Really, really cold. Ok, not really, really cold for say New England. But really, really cold for NC. It was only in the 30s during the day. And then, oh, what’s that? Yes, we got anywhere from 1 – 5 inches of snow on Tuesday.
Snow. One to five inches. We hardly get anything. Roads were frozen. Highs were barely 32. And lows were in the teens.
Ok. It really feels like winter now. That’s fine.
Until they start forecasting a warm up for tomorrow. What kind of warmup, you ask?
Tomorrow’s high is supposed to be 60.
Serioulsy, how do you go from 32 to 60 in a matter of three days?
I can’t keep up.
I’m glad that I never switched out my seasonal clothes in the closet. It’s a mush of summer, winter, fall and spring. But hey. Now I can say I planned it. I couldn’t put them away because you never know what season it’s going to feel like tomorrow. Yes. That’s what I’m going with. I planned it. It wasn’t left that way out of sheer laziness. No siree Bob.
But really, Mother Nature. Pick winter weather or pick fallish weather. And space it out by more than 3 days.
But please make sure it is pretty on my birthday next month. Because it is always pretty on my birthday. And this year it’s a three day weekend for me!
So the plane crashing into the Hudson is a little scary. At least it seems like no one has been reported dead yet.
Also? It was flying from LaGuardia to Charlotte. You know, exactly my route. On an airline I frequently fly.
I must admit, I do feel loved though. Three people have already contacted me to make sure I wasn’t on the plane.
A snipit of our phone conversation last night:
L: What? Was today a slow blogging day or something? You had to talk about Christmas tree lights?
Me: No, I just continue to be astonished that you didn’t think that leaving them on while we’re not home was a big deal.
L: It’s not.
Me: Read the comment on that post, someone else agrees with me.
—————————-
I had Good Morning America on in the background while I was getting ready this morning. I heard a preview for an upcoming segment: how to keep your Christmas tree and home safe during the holidays. I ran into the bedroom so I could see the TV.
Could this be true? What perfect timing!
As they continued to preview the segment, there it was, a Christmas tree burning up inside someone’s home.
The story wouldn’t be on until after I left – but you can bet your life savings that I immediately went to the living room, turned on the tv and DVR’d the rest of the show.
So L, when you get home tonight, it will be waiting for you. Then Chris Cuomo can say it for me: See! I told you!
Be a kind person and go to the Animal Rescue Site (a partner of Petfinder.com) and click on the purple button that says “Click Here To Give.” For each click, their sponsors donate pet food for abused and neglected animals based on the number of clicks it gets. It costs absolutely nothing for you to do it.
In other news, I’m still not back, but maybe tonight. We’ll see. Tomorrow morning L and I are going to a pancake breakfast at the volunteer FD, then heading up to his parent’s house for the rest of the weekend. We’ll hopefully get together with some of his friends for a few drinks and Sunday is the Thanksgiving dinner with his dad’s side of the family. The BTs will be coming with us again. Cross your fingers that they’re good.
L got this text message last night from a friend and I laughed outloud:
“The Statue of Liberty is coming down. Aunt Jemima is going up and she’s holding a chicken leg.”
I was reluctant to post this because I didn’t want to offend anyone and I despise talking about politics. But then I thought, hell, it’s my blog, I can write want I want. Don’t take it personally. And it has nothing to do with who I did or didn’t vote for. I just thought it was funny.
Moving on…
I never planned to participate in the early voting. It’s still kind of a foreign concept to me. It is, afterall, Election Day, not Election A-Few-Weeks. I was planning to go first thing in the morning or possibly leave work a little early to beat the after-work crowds.
But then L decided to go Saturday morning. And I decided to go too. I figured it would be better that way. I wouldn’t have to worry about feeling guilty about leaving work early, especially when I have so much to do. And when I got there at 8:45 Saturday morning, after I had gone to bed at 3:30 the night before that morning, it didn’t seem so bad. I was out in less than an hour and happy with the decision to go early.
But now? Now everyone is wearing their “I Voted” stickers around the office. Damnit. I should have taken mine off of my jacket from the other day. And today is the true Election Day. I’m all about the experience with some things. Ok, with many things. And I kind of wish that I was there today, casting my ballot.
But alas. I still voted. I still did my part. Even if I’m not absolutely thrilled with either of the candidates.
I’ve been really busy at work this week, hence my lack of posting, but I’m not really sure why. I feel like I haven’t gotten anything huge taken care of, yet, it’s been busy, busy, busy. I have found time, however, to take care of some personal things. Per the usual. For instance, I have purchased the gift I’m giving L for our 2 year anniversary. Which is in February. I like to plan ahead. And what is even more exciting is that I had this idea several months ago, but I didn’t think I was going to make it work. And now I have. It’s WAY more money than I was planning to spend, and way more than last year’s gift which wasn’t cheap either – but I think it’s really worth it and that he’ll really love it, so to me, that’s what matters – not the price tag. I would tell you what it is, but even if I warn him not to read this post, he’ll tell me he’s not sure he’ll be able to stay away and then I’ll have to set it to private and then what’s the point? Check back on February 16, the day after our anniversary.
So, I already posted today, and normally I don’t post twice in one day, but I’ve had these little bullets I wanted to share, but I also had already started the draft of the last post so I decided to just make two.
- Last night I made sugar cookies. I was going to bring some to work and send some to work with L. My mom always makes these amazing cookies and decorates them so nice for holidays, parties, etc. So I decided to try. They came out pretty good, except I rolled the dough a little too thin so they are crunchier than my mom’s. But they’re not burnt, so that’s a plus. Sprinkles and stuff are expensive, so they look kind of plain. We made (well, I made the dough and cut out, L put in the oven and helped ice) pumpkins and ghosts. But I didn’t have any of the “whitener” to put into the recipe for glaze my mom gave me which is naturally a tan color bc it has vanilla in it – so we had orange ghosts too. But damnit, I left mine on the counter when I left this morning. I could really go for one too, I need a snack!
- L and I went pumpkin picking and were going to carve it (until it started to rot for no apparent reason 
) and I got some mums to put on the front steps, but other than that, i haven’t been too into Halloween this year. I don’t know why. I’ve never been one of those people that is SUPER excited for it every year (as an adult that is, I totally was one of those kids though), but I usually dress up and go out or something. But this year? Eh, I just don’t care. LM is going downtown to a bar and dressing up. But I just don’t know if I feel like paying the $15 to get in, plus the really expensive drinks. I might just stay home and give out candy. Is that lame? Especially since it’s a Friday?
-Speaking of giving out candy… I’m almost afraid to be there alone when I do tonight (L is working). Like I’m afraid someone is going to come to the door as the Trick or Treaters begin to taper off and rob me or something. I have issues being at home by myself at night normally though. I’m such a baby sometimes. I think tonight is fueled by the fact that a few months ago, there was a string of robberies not all that far from where we live where the intruders would knock on your door. But I guess I can just turn the light out when the kids are getting less and less. Plus, the dogs always bark, so that at least sounds good – even if they are wagging their tails.
-I had dinner with CR the other night. It had been awhile since I had seen her – actually, since we went to the beach in the beginning of August. We sat and talked for like 3 hours. It was great. I know that she will always be one of my very best friends that I can talk to about anything, even if we don’t get to see each other all that often.
-On the way home from dinner, I needed to get gas. My gas light actually went on when I was pulling out of the parking lot and I was about 30 minutes from home. I figured I would stop when I got off my exit and just get enough to get me to work the next day (since there’s a gas station by my office that is generally less expensive than every where else). But as I’m getting closer, I realize I should get off a different exit that will send me through SC where gas is always cheaper. Gas around here is about 2.65 or so (for regular). I was hoping I could get it for like 2.50 or so in SC. As I pull up to the first gas station, I squinted at the board with the prices. That can’t be true! Oh yes. I saw two “2″s in a row! $2.21 a gallon to be exact. I filled up my very empty car for less than $25!! Ok, so it was $24.96, but still, that’s less than $25! I was so excited I called L and even my mom. Ha, I’m such a dork. I’m crossing my fingers it doesn’t start going back up after the election like many people are predicting.
-Speaking of the election, I don’t really get this whole early voting thing. I mean, if you for some reason can’t get to the polls on election day, isn’t that what an absentee ballot is for? Lines around here have been over an hour and a half long. I was going to stick it out and just go Tuesday (because I like the experience of going on election day), but then I found out that NC doesn’t have the little booth you go into and push down the lever likein CT. I think I only voted like that once or twice when we got to use them to vote for student council in high school. The last election, I was in college so voted as an absentee. But going into the booth and pulling the thing to close the curtain was always my favorite thing to do when I was little and would go with my mom. Tomorrow is the last day for early voting here, and I think I’m going to go a few minutes before they open and hope that not too much of a line has formed yet. Although, if I wait till Tuesday, maybe I could leave work early. Tempting.
-I still hate my job. But there hasn’t been too much new drama. And I don’t really feel like getting into the other drama I mentioned previously because I don’t want to deal with it anymore. It came down to me ignoring emails and never responding because I think it’s all bs.
- Tomorrow, L and I are going to the NC Transportation Museum for him to claim his birthday gift. I got him the Tracks of an Engineer program. It’s a 45 minute training session and then he gets to drive an antique locomotive around the museum’s grounds for an hour. He is really excited about it and I am so, so very glad. He told me it’s a childhood dream come true, and that just makes me melt. I’m really looking forward to it!
I think that’s about it. Hope everyone has a fun and safe Halloween and a great weekend!
I was perusing our major daily newspaper online this morning when I saw the headline, “Did you hear? Clt sends a bunch of txts”, so I read on.
The article relays the statistics that can make Charlotte one of the “textiest” cities in the Southeast (their words, not mine. Also, textiest? Come on now, I think we’re trying a bit hard!) in April alone, Verizon Wireless customers in Charlotte sent and received 103 million text messages.
That’s a lot of text messages – in 30 days! But I guess I’m not really surprised. Often times, it is one of my preferred ways of getting in touch with people.
In college, it was Instant Messenger. Trying to figure what dining hall you want to meet you friends at? IM them. What they’re wearing to the bar that night? IM them. That you’re going to miss class and hope you can borrow their notes? IM them. When all you needed was a quick answer, it was way easier than calling.
And even when it wasn’t a quick answer. Catching up with a high school friend at another college? IM was the way to go. It allowed you to multi-task in my opinion.
After I graduated college, my IM-ing days soon dwindled and now I couldn’t tell you the last time I had signed on. Probably like a year and a half or two years ago by now.
Now “txting” has taken its place – even though I definitely used it in college, I’m pretty sure I use it a lot more now.
A friend of mine in the Marines was coming to visit me for a few days while he was on leave. We planned the entire trip via txt. He got all the info from me that he needed to fill out paperwork and we coordinated his flights too.
It’s great when you’re at work too. Just saying hi to L. Making plans with the girls for later. It’s so convenient.
At the same time, you sometimes lose the personal connection if all you do is txt and never speak with the people.
This was random, I know, but the article was interesting to me.
Happy Txting! 
L loves his job. He truly loves it. I tell him all the time that I wish I loved my job and had the passion for what I do, like he does. L is a firefighter. A job that takes heart, perseverance, courage and endurance. I have more facts and information about the fire department and firefighting floating around in my head that I’ve learned over the past year than I ever thought I would know.
He’s wanted to be a firefighter is whole life. He grew up around it and started as young as he was able to. And he’s damn good at what he does too. When we first started dating I asked him what he would want to do if he wasn’t a firefighter. He told me he had no idea. This is all he ever wanted.
Early Friday morning, there was a terrible fire at a cabinet company not far from where we live. It turned into five alarms. By lunchtime, word had spread that two firefighters had been killed. It wasn’t in the city that L works for, but when it turned into five alarms, his company, along with a few others in his area were summoned to the scene.
L had a vacation day. The job his company was assigned to do there was not threatened by the circumstances. But at any day. On any call. They could be.
Today, they funerals for both firefighters are taking place. As I write this, I am listening to the live video/audio from the local news.
As I hear the friends and family members speak of these two guys, I am literally holding back tears. It’s so hard to hear because you know those two guys could have been any of them.
L loves his job. But it scares me to death. Every day he goes to work I tell him I love him and to be careful. It’s not much, but I do it.
One FF that died was only 19. He had planned to go to the mountains with his friends that day until he realized he had to work. They made plans to reschedule for the day after. But that won’t happen now. You always pray there will be a day after.
The second FF was older, married and had two young children. They moved here from New York. Their extended family has been making plans to come visit their new home in NC. The first time they are visiting is for his funeral.
This is the second LODD (line of duty death) funeral he has attended since he met me. The first was over the summer for the tragic fire in Charleston, S.C.
Every day these guys (and gals) put their lives on the line. It is an honorable profession, and one that I think is sometimes (not always) taken for granted. Last year, the United States lost more than 120 firefighters. This year, they are on track for a similar number. I’m pretty new to this “family,” yet I pray for the safety of each one of them every day.
My prayers and thoughts go out to the friends, family and brothers of the Salisbury Fire Department.
