4th Annual 29th Birthday Celebration!

I know my birthday isn't until Tuesday, but I had planned my celebrating early this year. (Did I mention that I don't like surprises? I was also born without a lot of patience...or either it is slipping away with each passing year.) Since my brother's birthday was the 20th, we decided to get together for a family thing and do lunch on Saturday. Thank goodness for Red, Hot and Blue. It's one of the few places that everyone in my picky-eating family likes. And for the real fun, a great local band played in Arlington on Saturday night. Well, the stinkin' snow storm ruined all my party plans! Or maybe it just gave me an excuse to be lazy and sit at home? Either way, the 4th Annual 29th Birthday Celebration has been postponed.

On a fun snow note - Jazz (my puppy) and I had a great time playing in the snow this weekend. She absolutlely loves it. As soon as she gets outside, she immediately sticks her nose in the snow and starts eating. It's like a food frenzy because she's also got to pee pretty bad so she can't stand still. Once she's relieved herself, then comes her imitation of the local deer. She starts prancing and boucing around like walking isn't an option in snow - only jumping through it. And then she just wants to play. So she's on the hunt for a stick to play fetch with....but of course, she's greedy (not sure who she gets that from?). So she comes back to me hauling a huge ass tree limb from the woods behind our house. Which is cute because it's much bigger than she is but there's no way that I could throw it. So I try to ignore her but she's much too persistent for that (again, where does she get that from I wonder?). As I'm walking away, she comes up behind me dragging this monstrosity and knocks me in the back of the legs - almost bringing me down! Yeah, it's funny and I laugh and tell her to drop it and we continue on...or so I think. She kept trying to knock me down - clothes lining my legs with her 'stick'. She's a funny bitch.

Although my weekend birthday plans didn't go well, the previous week wasn't too bad. On Thursday, not only did I have the day off from work - because a pompous, self-serving blowhard from Texas feels the need to spend money from the DC Homeland Security budget for a parade, numerous luncheons and dinners, countless balls and to provide security during his boring speech full of values and ideas that he'll never live up to - I got to have a few laughs watching Mr. Dave Attell do his comedy thang at the Improv with a few friends. I was really impressed with the guy that opened for him. I think his name is Sean something, but he was hilarious. The most pleasant surprise of the night, however was the restaurant where we ate before the show. It's a cuban restaurant called Yucca and it was delicious. For the DCers, it's in midtown and is definitely a great place for a nice mid-priced meal. I also had Monday off, so working 3 days last week was great!

Well, it's the start of another cold week in DC. No more snow in the forecast though - thank goodness. It took some folks 3-4 hours to get home on Wednesday....silly DC drivers - ha ha! Oh, I read an article today about how this is the Most Depressing Day of the Year....check it out if you're bored....or depressed.

Also, on a sad note, my great uncle Sonny died this past week after a long battle with lung cancer. Stay tuned for my Tribute To Uncle Sonny.

Martin Luther King, Jr. - What a guy!

You've got to love a man who fights for equality through peaceful protests and in turn gets you a free day off from work! Nevermind that he cheated on his wife and wasn't as christian or reverend-like as many would have you believe. Most 'heroes' aren't worthy of the height of the pedestals that we place them upon.

So, what's new in my world you ask? Well, not too much. DB and I finalized plans for a Valentine's Day vacation to the Turks and Caicos islands in the caribbean. We'll be heading to Provo for 5 days of basking in the sun and sucking down fruity drinks. Now THAT'S a vacation!! Needless to say, I have a limited amount of time to get rid of my holiday over-indulgences and get into bikini shape. But thanks to my wonderful boyfriend - who didn't make me wait until my birthday - I now have extra motivation for the gym with my new iPOD mini. YEAH! It's cute - and you all know how I like things that are cute. This is just another step towards getting in touch with my inner nerd.

I was also lucky enough this week to visit with a few friends that I haven't seen in a while. Saturday night I went out to eat with Jannie, Guillermo and Miss Frannie. Wow - I can't believe that Miss Frannie is 2 already! She's getting big and is quite adept at working that cute face to get what she wants. She is definitely her mother's daughter. Of course, as happened the last time I saw her, Frannie fell to the floor and bumped her head. I'm getting the feeling that I may be a danger for her to be around. On Sunday, I was able to do lunch with Leigh. That was really nice as well. We had so much to catch up on that we ended up staying at the restaurant until after dark. Oh, for you DCers, the Thunder Grill at Union Station has good margaritas and key lime pie - but that's about it. You'll get much better food for the money at B. Smith's.

Other than your basic family stuff, this is all that has happened this past week. I'm looking forward to having Thursday off from work for the Inauguration. I honestly can't believe that my office is closing since we aren't in DC, but I ain't complainin'!! I'll honor this just as I honored MLK Jr. day - by sleeping late and 'having a dream'.

Week 2

The most exciting things that happened last week involve eating out. I think I've finally started putting on my winter weight, which shows my impeccable timing as the weather has been rather warm lately. The 5th was my sister-in-law's birthday - poor girl. I really feel bad for people who have birthdays close to Christmas....you know they get shafted on the gifts. So I went out of my way to make sure that DB and I got her something nice. After looking at many British import and gift websites (yep, she's from the other side of the pond) I decided that what she really could use is a little pampering. So I headed down to an excellent day spa in Old Town and got her a gift certificate for a full body massage. The spa is so nice and smells absolutely yummy. And I'm sure that, subconsciously, I'm hoping that she'll want someone to go with her (and I'm hoping that someone is me!!). I've only been there once when DB sent me for a Valentine's Day gift and it was wonderful!! He did really good that year. I think the selling point for me was when he said that this is the day spa where all the trophy wives go. Oh, how I aspire to be a trophy wife. Of course, when I told him of this aspiration, he was quick to dismiss it and dash all of my hopes. But I digress...

So in celebration of the birth of the woman that was swindled into marrying my brother - we went out to eat at a great little seafood restaurant in Cobb Island, MD. For those of you who don't know where this is - and I was one of you until this past Saturday - it's way, way, way down in southern MD - about a 1.5 hour drive from our house. Yeah, DB was thrilled about that drive. Luckily the food was really good and he was in a good mood. The kids did really well at the restaurant too. They both drew pictures - and I must say Kyle's was much better than Alexis', but she is only 1. DB and I had a poetry contest while there and the winner is still in dispute. FYI - we were not allowed to see the other's poem until we were finished - notice the similar themes. You decide the winner:

DB's Poem:

I sit here with a gun upon my head
(I can't remember this line but it went something like this - blah, blah, blah, shoot it)
But why make a mess on the wall
Just because Jenny pooted

My Poem:

I once knew a man named DaveBrown
Who thought he was as funny as a clown
But the only laughs that he got
Were while he was busy on the pot
Until he ate all the beans in town

We both think we're incredibly funny - luckily we share an immature sense of humor. Ok, here's to hoping this week is filled with adventure or you'll probably have to read more crappy poetry about flatulence.

Day 1

It's the first day of a new blog and what to say? No need in giving a long schpeel about 'who I am' since you all probably know way too much about me anyway. My new year's resolution is to try to keep up with this blog as a journal so that all of you can see how exciting it is to get old like me - ha ha!

Well, it's 2005. A new year - wonder what will change ... how about some silly predictions? I predict that I'll gain a foot of height but fail miserably at my dream of being a supermodel (damn sun damage) .... in an ironic turn of events, Jake will lose half his body weight and become a kitty centerfold .... DaveBrown will throw caution to the wind once he wins the lottery and quits his job to fulfill his dream of full time house boy .... a giant earthquake on the San Andreas will finally release California into the pacific, exciting the rest of the US .... Pfizer will introduce a new patch for alcoholics called Buzz Kill (it'll get rid of your tremors, but not the monkeys and the deluxe version will have a tracking chip for spouses/parents/employers) .... Scientists will discover the remains of Atlantis, only to be disappointed by the log rides and water slides .... The Earths' atmosphere will continue to warm from the greenhouse affect - but climatologists determine that the affects won't be great enough to deter the blue-hair winter migration to Florida for 5000 years .... and finally all my single girlfriends will find fabulous men but will run for the hills when they are the ones faced with commitment pressure.

Well, it's my first day back at work for the new year - I guess I should do something.