Spring!

Well spring has definitely arrived. Actually it was more like summer today in the 80's. It's been so nice to see all the magnolia trees, tulips and daffodils finally in bloom. And robins. I saw about 15 of them on my walk this evening. After working like crazy this week, it was nice to be able to get outside to play.

Less nice was the giant hornet on my bathroom skylight when I got home. It was huge and not very happy. I tried to coax it into a plastic container for release outside but it was not having it. So not wanting to get stung, or worse the cats getting stung, I determined to get the bug spray. Well, turns out I don't have any bug spray. I had Lysol. So I figured enough of that would do the hornet in.

Now I can't find where the hornet went. It's either dead and somewhere on the floor or really, really angry and smelling outdoor fresh waiting for my bare foot.

Nice To Meet You

I am not the most huggy person by nature. I grew up in a family that didn't really hug and kiss too much. This all changed when my Dad got remarried the second time and I found myself in a supremely "hug and kiss" family. It took awhile to get used to.

I really need to feel a connection with someone in order to want to hug them. So the people I do hug should feel honored :-)

It is never my first reaction with meeting a new person to haul off and hug. I am a hand shaker. It presented itself this weekend when I met up with a new friend. He went in for a hug and I stuck my hand out for a handshake. It was slightly awkward for a few seconds but did not put a damper on a lovely walk on a very warm spring day.

Women Helping Women

raison d’être

I've always loved that phrase and when I saw a beer with that name, I had to pick it up for the party last night. It was a busy day with getting ready, but we had a great time. It was good for a lot of laughs, and fortunately no tears, as we said good bye and good luck to my friend who is departing for the other coast this week.

The fact that she is leaving finally sank in today as I left her place for the last time, with her plants who are coming to live at my house.

This has been a crazy month. Tremendous highs and lows with everything else in between. It started with tears and is ending that way as well though the tears this time are not so much about grief but bittersweet ones. I am so happy that my friend is taking this great step in her life but sad it's going to be on the West Coast.

I am beyond tired right now. I got home from the party way too late and oddly wide awake for the hour it was. I am mentally and physically worn out from so much, including the nasty after hours email I got from my new boss. I'm still working that one out.

So I welcome April. I am happy to be having a moment to catch my breath, get a much needed haircut, do my taxes and put the finishing touches on my new apartment.

Get Out Your Easter Bonnet

Ok, so there was no bonnet involved on my end but I did witness quite a few during my weekend in New York. It was quite the onslaught of pastel colors on 5th Avenue this morning and many hats with small, stuffed animal bunnies mounted to the front. It looked like an odd cartoon taxidermist advertisement. I continued my color assault on my poor eyes by spending the bulk of the day at the MOMA.

Of course I was not in town just for the parade. I was catching up with the girls for lunch and my new NY friend for dinner. The girls had some issues and could not head into town so I was left with an afternoon all to myself. It was really nice and I got back to the hotel to relax, read and take a quick nap since I was still recovering from my nasty cold during the week.

Dinner was another fantastic time. The company was incredible as was the food. It was great and I am still giggling about our waiter's unbridled enthusiasm about mustard seed zabaglione. And the cheese course with an almost toasted marshmallow runny cheese and a make-you-swoon double creme cheese. Oh and additional swooning for the wine. Holy cow. I apparently have been a very good girl to get to enjoy a meal like that!

So while I did not spend Easter with my MA family, I stopped in on my "adoptive" White Plains Italian family to say hello. It was a great visit and one that I walked away from with my heart feeling really good.

It was such a tremendously good weekend, I didn't mind the traffic on the way home.

A Little Cheer

Well, it's been a tough week, but I've appreciated all those who have been of help and understanding. I came home from work this week and got a great cheer up. Who can be sad when they get a bunny cupcake?!?

Goodbye My Special Guy

It is a sad day today as I find myself writing this difficult post. My handsome, special guy, Nikita died yesterday. He was the best dog and I am so heartbroken. I could not bear posting his picture here so I borrowed my friend's special condolence email he sent to me last night. It's the new dog in his family and it actually made me smile on a day with so many tears.

So with that, I have a few words about my amazing dog ^..^

I will miss that big, white head with ears down and sleepy eyes greeting me at the top of the stairs when I get home from work. His tail wagging a mile a minute and stepping on cats, he would tell me all about his day.

I will miss walking him around my neighborhood, feeling so very proud of all the "he's so handsome" and "he's so beautiful" comments I would get.

I will miss feeling so safe and protected knowing that as long as he was around, nothing would harm me. I will miss him putting himself in front of me and issuing a bwoof warning any strangers to keep their distance from his mom.

I will miss his spirit, intelligence, persistence and sense of humor which was often evidenced by that gleam in his eye as he would toss his slobbery, squeaky soccer ball at one of the sleeping cats.

I will miss his determination and stubbornness that didn't wane even as his body was getting old.

I will miss him pitching his toys at me to play with him.

I will miss watching him belly flop into my dad's pool or hanging out in his kiddie pool, happy to be cooled off on a hot day.

I will miss telling him "I'm going to get you" and watching him take off for me to chase him.

I will miss watching him unwrap presents during the holidays. Both his presents and anyone else who isn't paying attention.

I will miss his ability to hear an ice cream sandwich wrapper being unwrapped from a mile away. And his ability to get to the source of that noise in 2 seconds flat.

I will miss him sleeping next to me at night, hogging the bed and kicking me when he had his puppy dreams of chasing squirrels or whatever else.

I will miss him waking me up in the morning by putting his head on my pillow and kissing my face.

I will miss him standing guard on the bath mat every time I take a shower.

I will miss teasing him about his nemesis, squirrels, with every word that begins with a "sq" sound.

I will miss him licking my face when I cry and then bringing me one of his toys to try to cheer me up.

I will miss telling him "get the kitties" and watching his face light up. The cats will probably not miss that.

I will miss watching him being so gentle nuzzling Jack out of the way to make room for himself on his bed.

I miss being able to think about my dog without tears running down my face. I am so very sad it seems a million years away that I will not.

Goodbye my handsome boy. Thank you for everything.

Lesbian School of Dance

It's been so busy with work and life that I haven't had a second to relax. Friday night brought a very happy, informal house warming party that was a blast. It was such a great night for pizza and beer and hilarious conversation. And 25 pairs of giant cat eyes from the creepiest wallpaper I have ever seen.

This winter has been fantastic and I have certainly gotten my fill of snow. It snowed out on Friday late and it was just beautiful to drive home in. It was still snowing the next morning but it was those giant, wet flakes.

The weekend was good and I got a lot accomplished. My kitchen is finally fully unpacked and organized the way I want. Sunday night brought sad news. It's always so difficult when my pets get sick. They can't tell you what's wrong and it's so sad.

The Planets Align

Well, actually it was a lunar eclipse so only the sun and moon aligned with the earth in the middle. It was an amazing sight to see through the skylight as it's a chilly night out there.

It did seem an aligning day as I got an email from someone I had been hoping to hear from. Work is also going smoothly and I sat in on a training today to get to learn some of our products. I think the effects of my finally getting my butt back to yoga are carrying me through the week. I'm feeling much more calm, focused and relaxed than I have been.

Happy Valentine's Day

Yes it's that time of year again. Valentine's Day.
Or what it was to me - Thursday.

My friend sent me the best e-card (well two cards actually) that summed up my thoughts of this day totally. I am not one for forced affection. I'd rather know I'm loved on a random day that one the day that the greeting card companies say.

For the Soul

I am not one of those people who will wait in line for hours for a ticket to a sporting event or a concert. On Friday I became one of those people. The Museum of Fine Arts was offering free tickets if you got online and through at 10 am. So at 9:58 I clicked and started to wait. Obviously the server was swamped and it took an agonizing 24 minutes until SUCCESS. What got me all giddy was that the MFA was showing the documentary The Gates about the creation of the amazing exhibit in Central Park in 2005. Not only were we seeing the movie but the artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude were there and we were 3 rows away from them!

It was wonderful and made me relive the amazement of the exhibit all over again. It was seredipidious and last minute trip to NY for an exhibit at the Met and lo and behold there was this amazing exhibit in park. The luminous orange gates snaking their way through the park against the monochromatic February landscape was amazing. I am so very glad I was able to witness it then and again on Friday with my friend.

Super Tuesday

Well here we are at the end of Super Tuesday. As I've mentioned before, I have a love of voting. It reminds me of my grandmother when I used to go with my Mom and visit her working at the polls. I like to think she'd be thrilled to see a woman on the ballot. I headed to my polling place after work and was happy to see how many people were there.

I have been thinking a lot about who to vote for. I weighed a lot of factors and was undecided for a lot longer than I usually am. I mean, I am a registered Democrat so it wasn't like I was suddenly going to go Republican or anything. I made my decision and I am glad I finally had an election I was truly excited about.

I will say that a part of what influenced my decision was what I will call the Oprah affect. I think Oprah's a great person with her giving away cars and opening schools in Africa. But I don't think she should be telling the country who to vote for. And it got quite annoying with her and John Kerry and Ted Kennedy. Enough. I'll make up my own mind thank you.

Beautiful Day

Since Mother Nature has been so kind as to actually give us a winter this year, it only seemed right to get out on Saturday and play in the snow. So that's what we did. The ladies went Cross-Country skiing. It was cold on Saturday but we certainly were moving enough to work up a good sweat. We had a break in a heated yurt and got going after we started to chill down. The return to the lodge was blissfully mostly downhill!

We stopped at a great brewpub on the way home where an inexpensive oatmeal stout and piping bowl of chili warmed us back up for the ride home. It was a great day! I can't wait to do it again.

Moving Sucks. And So Do Clowns.

Ok so the big move was this weekend and I can't find a blessed thing. It took me an hour and a half to find Saran Wrap this weekend. Anyway, with all that going on plus it being my second week of the new job, my brain is fried. Hopefully this weekend with provide me with some much needed relaxation.

In my wanderings on the internet I came across this Don't Send in the Clowns. Turns out kids don't like clowns. As a person who was afraid of clowns long before It scared the bejeezus out of me, I could have told you that. The best quote from the article, "We found that clowns are universally disliked by children. Some found them quite frightening and unknowable." Hmm, a big brightly colored made up person running around like a maniac making balloon animals. How could that be scary to a child? Heck, as far as I am concerned clowns are universally disliked. Yet my own mother had clown knickknacks when I was a kid. And I once did date a man who was a clown. He showed up at my door in full makeup. He's very lucky I don't own a gun.

Verizon FIOS Customer Service Sucks

Ok, so I start my new job this week and it's been so busy. I finally get a second on Friday during lunch to call Verizon to schedule my FIOS service to be moved to my new apartment. No problem. They had a service appointment available for the 13th and they were shutting off my existing service on the 14th, just in case. I should have been concerned but once again I assumed people were competent and doing their jobs. Wrong.

I get home Friday night and instead of packing, I spend an hour troubleshooting why I can't access the internet. It finally dawns on me that Verizon shut off my service already.

Phone call #1 - So I wade through the god awful prompts and finally get an agent. Oops, they shut my service 10 days early. Hey, we're really sorry about that but we need to place another order to get your service back. I speak to a very helpful (heavy sarcasm) agent named Lynne who tells me that she will personally walk this order through and my service will be restored in an hour. Ok. You guessed it, no service.

Phone call #2 - Another rep. Another set of apologies. Apparently my order is "held up" somewhere and this rep offers to once again walk this order through. I mention the name of the rep I spoke with last night and am told "She's a very good agent". Well I'm sure she is, except for the fact that she lied to me! So now I am told that my service will be back in 4-6 hours. Once again, no dice.

Phone call #3 - So now, a full 24 hours after the original promise of my service being restored I am still without. And the worst part is that they completely inactivated my email account when they shut off my service. So no email since Friday at noon. Great. This agent, who gets bristly when I have the apparent nerve to be angry, says his supervisor told him to expedite this order and my service should be back within 24 hours. I am not feeling warm and fuzzy about this but I keep trying throughout today.

Phone call #4 - If this is how they treat an expedited problem I hate to think how long it takes them to handle a typical order. I am still on hold and I've noticed that during my many minutes on hold that their hold music annoyingly skips. While waiting on hold, I used my time productively and filled out a complaint with the BBB.

So my educated guess is that the rep made a typo and cancelled my service on the 4th instead of the 14th and as a result, I have been fighting with Verizon all weekend. Not really my idea of a productive use of my time. Thanks a lot Verizon. It's called Customer Service. You might want to look into getting some.

We Are Not a Cab

So here were are in the first full day of 2008. It was a quiet day after a late night and the snow seemed to have kept everyone in. It was funny to see that all of us decided to walk our dogs at the same later hour this morning! I guess we all slept in today.

It was a great holiday season for me. This year wrapped up with dinner and going out with friends. It was sad to say goodbye to two who moved out of town today. So it was fun but a bit sad. We went to a very interesting club that was unclear on it's own theme for the night. Aliens or Aerialists what's the difference? We stopped at out favorite watering hole for a last drink but sadly they were closed for a private party. While we drove home (huge thanks to the friend who drove) people kept trying to hail us. It was hysterical! I did feel bad for people as it's impossible to get a cab in Boston on a normal night. If my friend wants to consider a second career as a gypsy cab driver she'd clean up!

I'm not generally a New Year's resolution person. While I stood outside with the dog in the wee hours of the morning, I pondered a few. With so much change happening for me in the next two weeks, I have my plate full.

Resignation

It was such a relief to finally get a new job! I have been ready to leave my job from hell for months and I finally can. Once I had the offer in hand, I gave my notice the next day. It was better than I could have expected! I have been dreaming for months about being able to walk into work and say "I quit" and that moment was finally here. It felt so good! I have not been able to wipe the smile off my face. One of my co-workers told me I was absolutely beaming! I am indeed. It's such a relief that I feel 1000 times better to be leaving the stress and dysfunction of my group.

In preparing to quit, I realized that in I haven't done it in awhile. I was laid off from my last two jobs which made resigning rather redundant. I have been transitioning and purging all this week. It's amazing what you accumulate over four years in the same job. The hardest part is definitely leaving the people I have come to know. I sent out my "Farewell" email with my contact information and the responses I have gotten back are so kind and sweet and touching I am trying not to cry when I read them. I wish that my company could have gotten it's act together and I could have transferred to something else. But they treated me so badly that I am glad to be having a clean break. I can't wait to start my new job!

Snow Day

Today was a great day. Actually this has been a great week for a few reasons I'm not ready to post here yet. I went into work for the morning but as the snow totals kept creeping up, I headed home. It was a very fast storm as it took about ten minutes from the first flake to fall for the roads to start to get covered. It was snowing so hard at points that the poor dog was completely snow covered standing in the yard.

We just got back in from brushing off the car and taking a walk around the block. I love everything about snow, but that quiet hush that falls over everything is really something. People were just starting to dig out and pull their kids on their sleds in the road.

Chock Full of Holiday Spirit

It was off to NYC this past weekend to see the sights and wrap up the birthday celebration of my friend. We left on Saturday morning and arrived in Grand Central just in time to see a stream of Santas. One after another they flowed into the station. No one had any idea why. After we got home we found out it was a Santa Bar crawl. I think I am not alone in amazing at how many people have Santa outfits!
Out hotel was conveniently located so we dropped the bags and headed out for lunch.
Barbecue of course! We hit the MOMA and wandered into an exhibit of Latin American art that was nothing like either of us had expected. She's an artist and I love going to museums with arty people. They have such a different perspective on things it's fun to watch.

Heading back to the hotel, we took 5th Avenue to try to get out first glimpse of the tree. The throng of people was impenetrable so we took a shortcut via Banana Republic and viola, there it was. It's a pretty tree this year.

Dinner was in SoHo and we had a great meal. Post dinner was a fun trip to a good smelling store and walk through the village. We hit Rockefeller Center late and the crowd had thinned a bit. Seeing all the lights, the tree, the people, the Saks window and snowflake display put me right in the heart-swelling holiday spirit good will towards men kind of mood. Until my toes were run over by another baby stroller.

We were two tired girls as we sank into bed that night and were up bright and early to hunt down a breakfast place. We wandered around SoHo again and I showed off my favorite store and solved a vexing camisole mystery. It was such a fun trip!

When Life Hands You a Five Pack

That was my life Friday night when I stopped at Trader Joe's to get some pre-party supplies. I got to the register and the clerk and I both realized at the same time my 6-pack of beer was a bottle short. I have no clue where it went, but got a 6-pack with all 6-instead. I was worried this might be a harbinger of how the party was going to go. I did not need to worry.

My Mom arrived and offered up some tremendously needed help, along with a wreath for my door. She and I both foodied out at the new grocery store in my town. It was so bitterly cold on Saturday it was a perfect night to light up the fire place. When my friends arrived, they greatly appreciated the heat!

After cooking and cleaning all day, it was nice to catch up with everyone. It was a great chance for everyone to come together and get to know each other. Plus, I think the birthday girl had fun. The food was great, if I do say so myself. The spiced nuts with sugared bacon were a hit (thanks NY Times Food Section). The baked brie was so good I will make that all the time now. My favorite red lentil dip went over well. For the main course it was lemon and herb risotto with chicken piccata. And the peanut butter cupcakes with chocolate frosting hit the spot. It was such a fun evening I can't wait to do it again. Once I get rid of these dishpan hands that is!