I need to get out more...

A half a year in weddings

Tis the season! There has been so much activity involving engagements and weddings, it's been a little more than nuts. I am more than thrilled for all involved parties that share this with me, but I didn't know so much could happen to so many people in the course of 5 months.

Starting from the beginning of the year. January was a fairly quite month, but it's been the only one. In the beginning of February my friend Phil on the west coast got engaged. Their wedding will take place next year sometime. March, two of my friends got engaged. First it was Kara and Matt. They have staked May 18th, 2008 as their date. Then John jumped in with his engagement. They are getting married August 4th of this year. There were a few other "oh did you hear so-and-so are getting married", but not people I really am that connected to. To wrap March up we went toa bachelor party in DC for Alex. Well, Rob attended, but I went to DC for company for the ride there and back and to see some people as well.

Then, in April we back in DC for the actual wedding. Rob was a groomsmen for this wedding. It was a beautiful ceremony done by their pastor who really knew both of them. Afterwards it was off to Top of the Town. It's a very cool spot located in Arlington that allows a spectacular view of the city. Mr. and Mrs. Alex and Bonnie Enders.

In May, my friend Andrea got married. Since she is first really good friend of mine to get married, I think this event meant more to me than all others this year. I was honored that she asked me to take part in her wedding as her maid of honor. I managed to pull together a really nice toast and had an absolute blast. This wedding was held in Needham, MA right outside of Boston, so we were able to stay with Rob's brother and also see my other friend Adam while we were there. Mr. and Mrs. Tyler and Andrea White.

And lastly, but not least, we attended Bruce and Colleen's wedding last month month. This was another trip to Northern VA. This one was different from the other two in that it did not take place in a church, but rather an outdoor garden. It wasn't too hot out for it and the rain held off so it turned out beautifully. Also, the reception was at the same place so we basically just had to walk to another building, very convenient. Rob was a fill in best man for this wedding since the real best man was still in Iraq. He did a wonderful job with his toast and we had a lot of fun. Mr. and Mrs. Bruce and Colleen Showalter.

Stupidest Guarantee

I was listening to the radio this past weekend and I heard an advertisement for a tuxedo rental place somewhere in Atlanta. One of the people that work at the radio station was spouting out all the good things about this place and why you should go. One of them was about their service guarantee. If when you went in to pick up your tux and it didn't fit, you next tux rental was free. This seems stupid to me. If you had crappy service the first time around, what is the incentive to go back? Also, how many times could you possibly be renting a tux from your place of choice? Doesn't the groom (what most people rent for I would assume) decide where to get them? I am not a guy, but if I were I would never rent from this place. It sounded shady all the way around. For that matter, I don't believe I could ever be a radio announcer/DJ person if I had to peddle crap like that. They do it for just about everything these days, dog food, lasik surgery, jewelry stores, etc. Anything to make a buck.

Ode to My Kitties

I thought it was time to do a featured article on my fuzz balls. This is their birthday month and I thought I would be appropriate. For those who don't know, I have two cats. I refer to them as my fuzzies, kitties, and as boy cat and girl cat. When I first got them I wanted them I wanted them to have cleaver names because they are brother and sister and look very much alike. The friends I got them from wanted me to call them Hansel and Gretel. Yeah, I don't think so. You need to do the name yelling test. If your pet gets lost, you need to call it. If you feel silly yelling it, it's not the name for you pet. If you get stuck, this helpful website may be for you. I should have checked it out when I got these two. As it is, I decided to call my boy cat Sparky after a friends nickname, and my girl cat Dory after the fish in Finding Nemo. That being said, because they are cats, names are much a formality because they choose when to pay attention to you anyway.

My kitties are 3 years old this month. I don't know their actual birthday because I adopted them from a friends family and didn't get the exact date. I got them in the end of August right after they had been weened so that's roughly 6-8 weeks. I just pick a day during the month and go buy them a new toy, give them some treats, and say Happy Birthday. I am sure this thoroughly confuses them because they have no idea what a birthday is.

Sparky

Now through the past 3 years they have had 9 homes, temporary and otherwise. Plus the random night at Scott's place and Rob's place. We bonded during the drive from NY to VA when they were tiny and then again from VA to GA when they were big. The drive when they were tiny was much better. Dory meowed for about 3-4 hours of the 10 hour trip to GA.

Dory

The guys I used to work with would also give me a hard time about my kitties. If you will notice how big they are in that first photo. I was moving a lot when I first got them and I wanted to make sure I knew where they were. Well, conveniently, the pet store sells collars with bells on them. I was told this was cruel and unusual, and so, for my birthday they purchased a bell for me to wear on my lanyard. Fair enough, but my kitties got bigger and they no longer needed collars, although I should mention this train of thought was promoted by their teasing. I was also told I should buy my kitties, roller skates for 32 wheels of speed! Scott just thought it would be funny to watch them. Oie... boys....

They have also destroyed their fair share of things. I used to put them in the bathroom at night when they were kittens because they didn't know night time = mommy's sleep time and would try to play with me all night eating my hair and what not. While they were in there, they ate a toothbrush, clawed at the towels and chewed on stuff. They have broken my favorite snow globe, shredded my furniture, continue to eat my plants, and have chewed through a phone charger. I have had many wounds from their claws and I sure more will follow.

Even after all that, they have the best company I could ask for. Yes they are still obnoxious and in fact tried to help me type this entry, one in the lap and one on the top on the keyboard in front of the monitor, but they are cute which gets them out of a lot of trouble. Not only that, but they are so well behaved with people I can tell people it's ok to pet them and no, they won't bite. As far as my cats are concerned more people in the house means more hands that can pet them. Although Mike P. keeps hoping my cats will take on the leading roles for Attack Cats. I think he finally got a preview last night while they were playing. Maybe someday he will get his wish, until then, they are going to sleep a lot and be the typical house cat.

Because I care

I hate it when people forward bogus warnings, and I have even done it myself a couple times unintentionally... but this one is real, and it's important. So please send this warning to everyone on your e-mail list.

If someone comes to your front door saying they are checking for ticks due to the warm weather and asks you to take your clothes off and dance around with your arms up, DO NOT DO IT!! THIS IS A SCAM!! They only want to see you naked.

I wish I'd gotten this yesterday. I feel so stupid.

Can You Hear Me Now?

Cell phones. Some would argue, the best technology that has ever been invented. I call it a necessary evil. I am one of a growing number of people who do not have a land line. I can't see the point in having one because most of my friends are like me in that they have cell phones only and they are in wacky area codes.

So I set out to purchase a cell phone this weekend. My current phone is starting to fall apart, literally. I think I have done pretty well since it looks like I bought my phone back in spring 2004. Three years and it's still working. I haven't had any problems with it and if I could I would buy this exact same phone again. But that's not how it works.

I tried to buy a phone last summer, but I was thwarted by the online buying process and Verizon's stupidity that I just gave up and let it go for another year. I have gone to look at phones a couple of times since then and have no been successful in that either. The sales person will start yapping at me which is where they go wrong. For some reason they do not understand the universal polite way to say leave me alone, "I'm just looking." That should turn them off, but in reality they try harder. I have walked away from two different sales people on two different occasions because they didn't get it and they pissed me off. I don't want to hear about all the things you think are cool. I want to play with the phones in silence and ask questions when I get them. Most sales people are trying to sell every other feature other than the ability to call someone which is the only one I care about.

I was reading reviews on cells phones yesterday with their ratings, pros, cons, etc. I thought it was odd in a funny sad way that a con for a phone now can be - "it takes fuzzy pictures". ??? It's a phone not a camera!!! But there are a number of reviews that are based around how well it takes pictures, movies, plays music, and everything else you wouldn't use a cell phone for. Can I just get a phone that makes phone calls? My features I would like include an alarm, a calculator, and speaker phone but it won't make or break the deal.

Today, I purchased the phone. It was easier than I thought it was going to be, however, the first store we went to was closed. Nice try, I pressed on. I got to my store in the Circuit City and just walked right up and said I want that phone. I am sure the Verizon rep felt this was the easiest sale in history. I picked out the phone charger and he rang it all up, I signed, paid, and got my phone. How neat it is! It makes constellations for me on my "front banner" aka - the outside of the phone screen. I can also choose from a whopping 10 ring tones thanks to the invention of buying ring tones online. Anything to make money. I can also apparently download music and listen to that as well. Why did I even invest in an IPOD? But amazingly enough, it makes and receives phone calls! Who would have thought?

So far, I am 100% impressed with this new fangled technology. The most impressive feature it has is that it also allowed me to capture a movie of Mike P. running around the dinner table and flicking me off the whole way. To purchase this video for whatever purpose you see fit, please contact me. Yes technology is wonderful.

Soda vs. Pop

In my web surfing today I found an interesting website that put the carbonated beverage naming convention in a pretty color chart. It's called Generic Names of Soft Drinks by County.

As you can tell it's pretty concentrated in some areas and in others, I am surprised the next war of northern aggression hasn't broken out. It could get pretty heated while I was in college, which if you will notice Rochester, NY is located on the border of the blue and the yellow.

This was my argument, you call it a soda fountain and you get soda out of it, therefore it's soda. My logic is completely flawless. See how that works? Pretty nifty if you ask me. So what do you call it?