The Alamo

Here are some pics from my trip to The Alamo:

It is a small little place, quite photogenic as you can see!

My first banana cream pie...

This Thanksgiving, I made the banana cream pie. Now granted, the crust was not homemade (that will probably never happen since I'm not much of a pie person myself...and anyway, why make it from scratch when you can buy a pre-made crust at the store?!), but I made the filling, and I was very happy with the outcome...the filling was smooth and tasty, and the pie looked good too:


I enjoyed every bite:

and so did Lizzy:

Who knows what I might try to make next...any requests??

Have you ever...

Maybe you'll learn something about me here...I've bolded the ones I have done!!

Started your own blog (more than one!)
Slept under the stars
Played in a band (I'm fully counting the elementary school orchestra!)
Visited Hawaii
Watched a meteor shower
Given more than you can afford to charity
Been to Disneyland
Climbed a mountain (part of one!) :)
Held a praying mantis
Sang a solo (5th grade...had a solo in our rendition of "We Are the World")
Bungee jumped
Visited Paris (oh...that's not referring to visiting the hotel/casino here in Vegas?!)
Watched a lightning storm at sea
Adopted a child (I've adopted several as surrogate nieces and nephews!)
Had food poisoning (pretty sure...and from a random veggie/melted cheese plate)
Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
Grown your own vegetables
Seen the Mona Lisa in France
Slept on an overnight train
Had a pillow fight
Hitch hiked
Taken a sick day when you’re not ill (when I was in high school my mom excused me one day so I could go stalk Marky-Mark!)
Built a snow fort
Held a lamb
Gone skinny dipping
Run a Marathon
Ridden in a gondola in Venice
Watched a sunrise or sunset
Been on a cruise
Seen Niagara Falls in person
Visited the birthplace of your ancestors (sort of...depends on the definition we're using of "ancestors")
Seen an Amish community
Taught yourself a new language
Had enough money to be truly satisfied (I agree with Jori...does that EVER happen??)
Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
Gone rock climbing (it was at a Rec. Center in Arvada, CO, but still!)
Seen Michelangelo’s David
Sung Karaoke
Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
Visited Africa
Walked on a beach by moonlight
Been transported in an ambulance (when I was a baby...my dad likes to tell the story on my b-day!) :)
Had your portrait painted
Gone deep sea fishing
Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
Kissed in the rain
Played in the mud (I don't have a specific memory, but I'm pretty sure we all did this!)
Gone to a drive-in theater
Been in a movie (well, it was only the goofy Universal Studios screen test thing, but it was on a video cassette, so it must count!)
Visited the Great Wall of China
Started a business
Taken a martial arts class
Visited Russia
Served at a soup kitchen
Sold Girl Scout Cookies (no, but I've eaten my fair share of them!)
Gone whale watching
Got flowers for no reason (beautiful roses from an unfortunate college boyfriend!)
Donated blood, platelets or plasma
Gone sky diving
Bounced a check
Flown in a helicopter
Seen the Lincoln Memorial in person
Pieced a quilt
Stood in Times Square
Toured the Everglades
Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
Broken a bone (several at one time by jumping off the roof of my house when I was 10-ish. It was my brother's fault...he offered me 85 cents to do it!)
Seen the Grand Canyon in person
Published a book (not yet, but I will!)
Visited the Vatican
Bought a brand new car (need to do that again soon!)
Walked in Jerusalem
Had your picture in the newspaper
Read the entire Bible
Visited the White House
Killed and prepared an animal for eating (uh...do I live on a farm???)
Had chickenpox
Saved someone’s life
Sat on a jury
Met someone famous (I LIVED with someone famous for a few months!)
Joined a book club
Lost a loved one
Had a baby
Seen the Alamo in person (a month ago I wouldn't have been able to bold this one!)
Swam in the Great Salt Lake
Been involved in a law suit
Owned a cell phone (uh...do we really need to ask that question in 2008?)
Been stung by a bee (a wasp!) :P

NKOTB...the aftermath!

Here it is...finally...the long-awaited post-NKOTB concert blog! I went through the many, many pictures that I took, and pulled out a handful of favorites to share. If you'd like to see more pictures and some videos, let me know, and I'll be happy to show you! Now hang on, and get ready for the NKOTB ride...

All "bluffed up" and ready to go!

Foofy in her newly acquired NKOTB shirt (yes, we're in a bathroom stall!)

The "Kids," doing their thing!

Wah-wah-wee-wah! Someone's been working out! (Jordan, showing off his assets!)

What NKOTB would look like in Heaven!

Joey is still my favorite!

The verdict...can you tell from our faces how we liked the show?!

The show was a lot of fun! I'm not sure how much longer these middle-age men can carry on the "boy band" thing, but they sure rocked the house in Broomfield, CO on November 14, 2008!

Davy Crockett

Okay, okay...I know I have some people who are antsy for a follow-up NKOTB post, and I promise that I will take care of that while I'm in Denver for Thanksgiving. But, in an effort to not let my blog stagnate for too long, here's a little quicky post.

I just got to Denver after a 5 day trip to San Antonio, Texas for the National Council of Teachers of English convention. I didn't get to see much of San Antonio, but I did make it out to The Alamo. It was interesting...I'm pretty sure I didn't know that Davy Crockett died at The Alamo...shows how much American History I learned in school! Anyway, the coolest thing I learned at The Alamo had to do with Mr. Crockett and his move to Texas. He was a U.S. Congressman, and around the time of his eventual defeat in his final run for Congress, he said "...you may all go to hell, and I will go to Texas." I wish I would have had that quote in my pocket BEFORE I left for Texas...I'm sure I could have made good use of it! Thank you Davy...for a great quote, AND for introducing that fabulous coonskin cap into our lives!

Tomorrow I will:

1. Go to the gym...treadmill for an hour, abs/arms/buns/legs to follow.

2. Tidy, dust, clean the mirrors, and vacuum my room...my aunt Janet is coming for Thanksgiving, and will be borrowing my room!

3. Clean my bathroom to get it ready for company (see #2)...cleaning my bathroom is probably one of my least favorite jobs in the world, but until I win the lottery and can afford a maid, it's a necessary evil.

4. Bake a Texas Sheet Cake...my boss/friend Jen's b-day is on Wednesday, and the girl wants a sheet cake! I'm on it!

5. Do laundry...I must wash the clothes I dirtied on trip #1 in preparation for trips #2 and #3!

6. Start packing...who else thinks it's going to be interesting to pack for a 10 day trip, especially since I'll be going from the San Antonio climate to the Denver climate?

7. Work on making a budget for myself...sounds fun, doesn't it?!

8. Go to the church and work on stuff that needs to get done there...I'm leaving the single's ward soon, and I have some housekeeping to do to get things caught up for my replacement.

9. Go to bed at a decent time so I'm not tired on Wednesday!

Tonight...tonight...

Tonight is the big night...the night that has been anticipated since the summer when the tickets were purchased and the plans were made. Tonight my sister Lizzy and I are going to see New Kids on the Block (aka NKOTB)! I have seen them before, when they looked like this:

Oh, how I loved them...plastering my room with their posters, and making a scrapbook page of what my babies with Joe McIntyre would look like! *sigh*

Now we're all older, the New Kids on the Block not-so-much fitting their name anymore. These days they look like this:

A little older, some of them missing a little bit of hair...but from what I hear, these guys can still rock the house! Tomorrow Lizzy and I will be a little tired from staying up past our bedtime, and our ears might be ringing a little bit from loud music and loud fans, but we'll have some pictures to share, some stories to tell, and a new t-shirt to wear!

Until next time, keep Hangin' Tough!

Lori/Amy adventure # ??

Last Saturday I had my friend Lori Wong (yes, THE Lori Wong, the photographer) take pictures of me. We headed out to Lake Las Vegas for another one of our Lori/Amy adventures. Here are a couple of the pictures she took...to see more of ME, and to see her other photo work, visit her blog. Tell her I sent you! :)

Thanks to Lori for a fun photo shoot and a generally good times night! On to the next Lori/Amy adventure...who knows what that might be?!

16 Things That It Took Me 50 Years To Learn

Generally once or twice a week I have to close the library, which means that I work from 11:00 am to 8:00 pm. My friend/co-worker Martin works until 10:00 pm, so on the nights that I close, we usually go to dinner together. Last night we went to Jimmy John's...I had never been there before, although Martin had. But this is all really beside the point of this post! Although, before I get to the TRUE point, let me say that I cannot recommend Jimmy John's with any kind of enthusiasm. My vegetarian sandwich was pretty lame...Jori and I used to make some ROCKIN' veggie sandwiches in college, and our version would have put Jimmy to shame! But I digress...now I'll get to the real point:

There was a poster on the wall next to our table that had this list from Dave Barry, titled something like, "16 Things That It Took Me 50 Years To Learn" (there are discrepencies in the title on the internet, and as some of you know, I have a TERRIBLE memory, so I couldn't tell you what the title on the poster was). Dave Barry is a funny guy, and this list is DEFINITELY worth sharing. Although, I have to say that I whole-heartedly disagree with #11...those of you who know me well won't be surprised!

1. Never, under any circumstances, take a sleeping pill and a laxative on the same night.

2. If you had to identify, in one word, the reason why the human race has not achieved, and never will achieve, its full potential, that word would be “meetings.”

3. There is a very fine line between “hobby” and “mental illness.”

4. People who want to share their religious views with you almost never want you to share yours with them.

5. You should not confuse your career with your life.

6. Nobody cares if you can’t dance well. Just get up and dance.

7. Never lick a steak knife.

8. The most destructive force in the universe is gossip.

9. You will never find anybody who can give you a clear and compelling reason why we observe daylight savings time.

10. You should never say anything to a woman that even remotely suggests that you think she’s pregnant unless you can see an actual baby emerging from her at that moment.

11. There comes a time when you should stop expecting other people to make a big deal about your birthday. That time is age eleven.

12. The one thing that unites all human beings, regardless of age, gender, religion, economic status or ethnic background, is that, deep down inside, we ALL believe that we are above average drivers.

13. A person, who is nice to you, but rude to a waiter, is not a nice person (This is very important. Pay attention. It never fails.).

14. Your friends love you anyway.

15. Never be afraid to try something new. Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark. A large group of professionals built the Titanic.

16. Thought for the day: Men are like fine wine. They start out as grapes, and it’s up to the women to stomp the crap out of them until they turn into something acceptable to have dinner with.

Danger, Will Robinson!

I love Twinkies! Their yummy, moist yellow cake and creamy filling is a tasty treat! I don't eat them that often...primarily just when I'm on road trips. But I just went to the little Sidewalk Cafe that is next-door to the building I work in on campus, and they are now selling Twinkies! This cannot be good for stressful/cranky/long/boring days when I need a little comfort food to get me through. Next thing you know, they're going to start selling Luv-It Frozen Custard (Lemon, of course!).

Wordle coolness

This is a cool, cool website: http://www.wordle.net/. On this site you use your own text to create a wordle (I don't know actually know if "wordle" is meant to be used as a noun, but *shrug* oh well!). It analyzes your text and makes words bigger/smaller based on how frequently they show up, and then creates a visual word cloud out of the text. For example, here is a wordle created by using the text from my blog:

Hmmm...apparently I talk about "time" a lot?!

Just in case you have some extra time on your hands today...go play with wordle! :)

A zero kind of morning

What does it say about my day when I'm already drinking one of these at 8:48 am?:

CHEERS!

Did you??

Halloween past

There were a couple of Halloweens while I've worked at the University that we had the kids from the University preschool come in for a Halloween visit. They came dressed in their costumes and got some candy (of course), and we also had Halloween storytime (of course). We didn't have those little visitors last year, and they won't be coming this year either. So in honor of the Halloweens past when we had cute little visitors, I'm posting a picture of me (can you tell who I'm supposed to be?? Spit spot...toppins for you if you can figure it out!) with my poodle-y little friend Jensyn, who also happens to be my boss/friend Jen's daughter, AND my little adventure buddy! Have a Happy Halloween, everyone!! (Jensyn...I think you owe me some of your Halloween candy for putting a picture of you on my blog!)

Four random facts about me...

This was supposed to be 7 random facts, but I'm changing it to 4...who's going to stop me?! :)

1) I listen to NPR Podcasts while I work out..."Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me" and "This American Life" are my favorites. Isn't it interesting that I prefer listening to nerdy NPR programming while I lift weights, do ab work, etc. as opposed to listening to some jammin'/rockin' music?! Perhaps the talking takes my mind off of what I'm doing?! Who knows...I'm sure someone would be happy to analyze the situation for me!

2) I sleep with a body pillow. If I don't have it with me on a trip, I have to improvise and use extra regular-size pillows to create a faux body pillow.

3) Last September, I met John Mayer in a hotel lobby in Denver at about 3:00 am. I don't have any pictures or an autograph to prove it, just the testimony of my partner in crime, Lori Wong. Although we don't have pictures of John, we do have pictures of our teeny-tiny, yet pricey hotel room! If you ask nicely, we'll show you!

4) I have a pretty big collection of name tags. I have been to quite a few conferences, and I have most of the name tags I have gotten at these events hanging on a bulletin board in my room. I guess that just confirms the nerdiness that you were beginning to suspect after reading my first fact!

Sick day

I really want to get sick. I know that sounds crazy, but it's true. I want to get sick so that I can stay home from work for a whole day (maybe even two) and feel absolutely okay about not doing anything productive...no paying bills, no running errands, no cleaning, no going to the gym, etc. But here's the thing...I have rules about getting sick/my sick day that must be met. Here are the rules:

1) I'll be sick enough to stay home, but not SO sick that I'm completely miserable...I must be able to still enjoy sick day activities such as reading, watching T.V., eating "sick" foods, etc.

2) The sickness should not last more than a couple of days, and should be sufficiently "gone" enough when I return to work that I'm not walking around for days/weeks with the tail end of an illness lingering in my life.

3) I must be sick on a day that works for me. For example, I don't want to be sick on a weekend, because, really, being sick on a day that I'm already off of work and then being well enough to go back to work on Monday would TOTALLY defeat the purpose! Also, I don't want to be sick at a time when I'm going out of town or have some sort of fun plans (for obvious reasons)! So really, the best time for me to be sick would be on a regular old, run-of-the-mill work day.

Three little rules to be followed...I don't think that's too much to ask! So if anyone has any spare sick-but-not-too-sick germs sitting around, please be a pal and SHARE!

What time is it??

It's time for HSM3! This Saturday I'm having an HSM3 Big Time Fun Girl's Night Out with my friend, Alyssa. She is my co-worker's cute daughter, and also my buddy! We've had a couple of other adventures together, but I'm guessing this is going to be an extra special adventure, complete with dinner, THE movie, and most likely dessert! Big Time Fun...guaranteed!

Before

Remember when Tom Cruise was young and hot, and not crazy?? Maybe in honor of Tom's younger, hotter, less nuts-o days we should all make a pact to watch "Top Gun" over again...those were the days!


P.S. After I saw this movie, I totally wanted to become a Navy Fighter Pilot...I'm sure that the attractiveness level of the men in the movie had NOTHING to do with that! ;)

Oh what a night

Tomorrow night is my birthday outing with the CML Sisterhood, which includes "sisters" both past and present. We are going to the Montana Meat Company for dinner, and then we're going to see "The Secret Life of Bees."

A steak dinner and a movie ticket: Around $40.00

Friends who will take you out for a juicy steak and a chick flick: Priceless

Say it ain't so!

Say good-bye to those delicious frosted circus animal cookies, my friends! The company that made them (yep...past tense!) abruptly closed their doors and filed for bankruptcy. I didn't eat these cookies that often, but sure enjoyed them when I did! I encourage everyone to go out and stock up if you're a fan of these tasty treats...soon their frosted yumminess will be gone from your grocery store shelves. So-long, my pink and white pals with your sprinkled goodness...you will be missed!

This one's for you!

This post is dedicated to my brother, Keith, who texted me on Sunday to say, "I'm officially a John Mayer fan after looking at your blog." I haven't talked to Keith to find out exactly what it was that converted him to Mayer fandom, but I'm guessing it must have had something to do with the video I posted on my birthday blog of John doing an accoustic version of a song called "In Your Atmosphere." That song is one of two favorites from the accoustic part of that particular show, which took place in L.A. last December. I had the pleasure of attending this show with my friend Amanda, and I have to say this was my favorite Mayer show of all time...and I have 7 others to compare it to! :) I loved it so much because it was ALL Mayer...it was like he was the opening act, the main act, and the closing act...and what's not to like about that?! Anyway, below is the video of my other favorite song from the accoustic part of the show...an excellent cover of "Free Fallin'" by Tom Petty:


And just because it was truly a classic and favorite Mayer moment, I'm also including video from the show I went to with Stephanie this past July. Axl Rose has got NOTHING on John! Start watching at about :45 to miss the birthday song and go right into GNR:

Joy in the journey

Last week was the 178th Semiannual General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. One of the talks that was given by President Thomas S. Monson particularly had an impact on me. He talked about finding joy in the journey of our lives. This is something that I need to work on in my own life, and I have been trying to apply this principle this past week. It really has made a difference in my overall attitude. I know that my life isn't "perfect," and I can certainly identify things that I wish were different, but you know what?! Generally speaking, my life is very, very good! I am very blessed, and I need to spend more time being grateful for all of the good things about my life, and not dwell on things that aren't quite the way I would like them to be! Here are some quotes from the talk...great words from a great man:

"This is our one and only chance at mortal life—here and now. The longer we live, the greater is our realization that it is brief. Opportunities come, and then they are gone. I believe that among the greatest lessons we are to learn in this short sojourn upon the earth are lessons that help us distinguish between what is important and what is not. I plead with you not to let those most important things pass you by as you plan for that illusive and non-existent future when you will have time to do all that you want to do. Instead, find joy in the journey—now."

"Stresses in our lives come regardless of our circumstances. We must deal with them the best we can. But we should not let them get in the way of what is most important—and what is most important almost always involves the people around us. Often we assume that they must know how much we love them. But we should never assume; we should let them know. Wrote William Shakespeare, “They do not love that do not show their love.” We will never regret the kind words spoken or the affection shown. Rather, our regrets will come if such things are omitted from our relationships with those who mean the most to us."

"Send that note to the friend you’ve been neglecting; give your child a hug; give your parents a hug; say “I love you” more; always express your thanks. Never let a problem to be solved become more important than a person to be loved."

"Let us relish life as we live it, find joy in the journey, and share our love with friends and family. One day each of us will run out of tomorrows."

"Our realization of what is most important in life goes hand in hand with gratitude for our blessings."

"Despite the changes which come into our lives and with gratitude in our hearts, may we fill our days—as much as we can—with those things which matter most. May we cherish those we hold dear and express our love to them in word and in deed."

Here's a link to the talk if you'd like to read the whole thing: http://www.lds.org/conference/talk/display/0,5232,23-1-947-26,00.html

A survey from Jori...

Apparently I've been "tagged"...not exactly sure what that means (it's some sort of blogosphere term), but I'll do the survey anyway! :)

7 things I can do:
1. Remember children's book titles/authors like no one's business (which is truly amazing, considering the fact that my memory is generally TERRIBLE!)
2. Do a wicked-awesome read-aloud/storytime
3. Identify most John Mayer songs in 3 notes :)

4. Get along with kids
5. Eat sushi with chopsticks
6. Write a witty text message
7. Run in flip-flops!

7 things I cannot do:
1. Remember anything but children's book titles/authors
2. Get myself to stop texting while driving
3. Enjoy "Twilight"...I've tried twice

4. Dance!
5. Get to work on time :)
6. Live in cold weather (I'm a certified desert rat!)
7. Think of another thing to put here!

7 Favorite Foods:
1. Ice cream
2. French fries
3. Popcorn

4. Good nachos
5. "I Love Salmon" rolls from Yama Sushi
6. Candy
7. Chips and Salsa

(It's short because I took out some of the categories...such a cheater!) :)

Indulgence...

I'm sleeping in tomorrow! I should be getting up early and going to the gym, but I'm going to allow myself the luxurious treat of waking up "late," which will probably still be too early for a Saturday. Should I feel guilty about not going to the gym?? Maybe...especially considering the way I've been eating lately. But I'm not going to allow the guilt to ruin the treat of sleeping in...I'm just going to enjoy sleeping in, and get back to the gym on Monday!

Oh Jori....

This is my friend Jori with her fantastic family. Jori and I have been friends for a LONG time...about 13 years...since we were magically assigned to the same apartment in college. I love Jori...A LOT! I think she knows that, but this posting will guarantee that she's well-aware of my admiration. 'Cause we're not the kind of friends who see each other and rush in for a giant, squealing, middle school hug. I guess you would say we are past that...more in the completely comfortable, compatible phase the means we don't have to hug/squeal to know how much we adore each other...it's just understood.

I love Jori for a lot of reasons...let me just share a few of those reasons with you:
1) She knows about my stupid past boyfriends/crushes, and loves me anyway!
2) She knows about my stupid past mistakes, and loves me anyway.
3) I could show up at her house completely unannounced, and she would welcome me in, to stay for however long I wanted.
4) She thinks I'm funny!
5) She would give me the shirt off her back and the last penny in her bank account if I really needed it.
6) She can win prizes on the radio like no one's business!
7) She has made me a part of her family...her kids may have been surprised at some point to find out that I'm not ACTUALLY related to them.
8) She threw me the BEST surprise birthday party I've ever had!

That's just a short list of the reasons that I love Jori! I hope that you all have one of these life-long, no questions asked friends...it is a blessing, for sure!

My birthday play list...

For your listening pleasure, here are 2 of the songs that rocked my first drive to work as a 34 year-old!


(My sister, Lizzy, is taking me to see NKOTB for my birthday!)


(John Mayer accoustic...dreamy! And I was at this show!)

It was a good music morning, and a good morning in general! Hope the rest of my 34th year lives up to the hype!

Why?

Why do dogs chase their tails? Seriously! Last night I watched as Kayla, the pug that I'm dog-sitting, enthusiastically went after her tail. It was really as if she didn't register the fact that her tail is part of her body...like it was independently bugging her. What an interesting and quite entertaining phenomenon...perhaps that is exactly why dogs were "programmed" to chase their own tails...for our entertainment! (P.S...the picture above is not actually a picture of Kayla, just a close facsimile!) :)

Got relaxation?

It seems appropriate to blog about my free time since it is really the reason that I'm here again. I've been done with my class and my grading for over a week, but I've kept pretty busy since then. It doesn't seem like I've had a lot of plain, old-fashioned, do nothing down time. So tonight I found myself with that kind of time, and also some nervous energy. The combination was...well...interesting, and pretty productive! I picked up a prescription, folded some laundry, tidied my room, tidied the kitchen, cleaned my toilet, put soap in the hand soap dispensers, took the recycles out to the garage, etc. Then I sat down with my computer. I don't think that I'm very good at surfing the web...maybe it's that I don't know where to look for good/interesting content, but I just end up going to all of my usual haunts, maybe checking out some places I don't go very often, and then I'm done. If none of my blog buddies have posted anything new, if I don't have new/interesting e-mail, etc. then there's not much to spend time on! Anyway, I just think that I need to almost take a class or read a book on relaxation and/or meditation. I don't seem to be very good at being still and quiet. I like noise around me (except when I sleep...then I wear earplugs to keep the noise out!), and I think that maybe there's a sort of guilt that comes with doing nothing...that nagging feeling that you should be doing SOMETHING instead...washing your car, paying a bill, cleaning the bathroom, writing a birthday card, feeding the homeless, etc. Hopefully I can find some balance in my life...that I can be really focused and productive when I need to be, and then allow myself to really relax and enjoy the free time that comes along! We'll see.....

Maybe I'm really ready now...maybe!

So, obviously I gave the blog thing a try more than 2 months ago, and never kept up with it (obviously!). But I think that I'm ready to give it another shot...to really commit myself to blogging on a regular basis and keeping this thing current. It would certainly help if I had the accountability of people knowing about/reading my blog to keep me motivated, but give me just a little bit of time to put some more posts on here...a little time to build this baby up before I reveal it to the world! I already have something to blog about...I'm going to post it in another entry of its very own! Wow...that'll take me up to 3!! :)

The Maiden Post

This feels kind of monumental...putting the very first post on my personal blog! I decided to make a blog because I like looking at other peoples' blogs to see what they're up to, so I figured that it would be a good way to keep people posted on what is going on in my little Las Vegas, library world. Even though I don't feel like my life is very interesting, I'll try not to bore you too much! Happy Reading!