napa time

i finally downloaded my pictures from napa. i usually left it to the other photographers in the group. so marcel didnt have to snap 7 cameras every time. (where i got those other pics from in my previous post). but I found a few on my camera. surprise!

billy goat
tina llama
robert mondovi winery - my favorite
(maybe its because this was the winery i didnt share a tasting)

good times
(another one for you rach)

organized with a capital O

i did it. in one night. i ventured to lowe's to their closet section. after debating. long and hard over the fancy. expensive. contraptions. that looked very complicated. and out of my budget. i walked out with a couple shoe cubbies. another shelving shoe thing. a few hooks. and a couple fabric boxes with lids for storage. i went home. and was so determined to get this done. i only ate my dinner in rounds. a bite here and there. for energy to power up. i had to assemble the new cubbies and shelves. took almost everything out. and then back in. only this time. neat. clean. and organized. i should have done a before image. because the affect of my pictures might not be as impressive. but some of you have seen the madness that was the closet prior. since that night i have also put away all my clothes. and rearranged the hangup items to be color coordinated. and by type of clothing. now lets hope i can keep it this way.

emails from dad

i cant tell you where he is. or what he is doing. but i can give you a good chuckle.

one
Our accommodations isn't exactly a hotel. More like a one story dorm. the toilet and showers building is two hundred yards across the sand from our building. Makes for interesting trips in the middle of the night. Well that's enough complaining for one night so I am off to rest awhile. Love, Dad

two
My night walks are indeed interesting. I have seen Khaki colored praying mantis, other night people, lizards, and plenty of sand. Just like the first scene out of the first STAR WARS movie, where Luke lives. ... Love, Dad

three
Last night I saw one of the sand people. you know the little hooded creatures who scavage the desert landscape looking for R2D2 and C3PO. Whooooosh. I played ping pong last night in a tent. After an hour of intense playing I was ready to relax and sleep. We are expecting a significant dust storm today. 30 Mph hot winds, temperature of 117 degrees. Whooosch. Whine, Whine, Whine. That's about it for now from planet Grooght. Love, Dad

reality sinks in

after celebrating memorial day. with zola chewing my arm. snapping at me to play. grabbing my laundry to play chase. holding her muddy, pig marrow bone while she chewed it. and then giving me 100 kisses. watching one of mother's favorite shows. clean your house. on style network. i have been inspired. we watched a marathon yesterday. including the messiest house in america. it was so bad. i can not believe it. i certainy can not believe people live like that. makes my little apartment look like nothing. but i realize i am a pack rat. and i am in one of my moods. where i want to clean. i want to organize. and that is what i will do this evening. i am headed to wally-world to get the tools i need. that are going to help my closet. i will only keep what i wear. and throw out things that have no place. the items that only cause clutter. wish me luck. i hope to have pictures to share of my success story!

haven or heaven

napa trip. my body may be back in missouri. but my head has been in the clouds since my return midweek. the house that we rented for the weekend was named napa haven. with even embroidered robes. for every one. we wore the robes every chance we had. they were apart of the uniform at the haven. or heaven. the rest of the uniform was not determined.

it really was kind of a drag though. toting around to the many wineries. by marcel. our limo driver. then being forced to drink. delicious wines. side by side with my best friends. taking pictures at every stop. and enjoying the fine tunes from the soundtrack of the weekend. all while celebrating when lemonade will be going to the chapel.

little did i know. that napa is quiet the country local. why i didnt think of this. who knows. maybe its more like. i never had to think about it before. and it makes sense now. with roosters crowing at all hours. we were surrounded by cocks. (sorry a little bachlorette humor). we spotted a billy goat on top of a mountain of hay. and then a lot of llamas. they were mean. but this might have been after we yelled 'tina' 'tina eat your food' 'eat the casserole'.

other adventures besides drinking my body weight in wine. grilling on a charcoal grill. i built my pyramid and waited patiently. i did have to call father to make sure i had done it correctly. then i lost track of time. burnt one side of the chicken. but we cut it up and no one knew the better. it turned out to be a perfect dinner. i also climbed the orange tree in lemonades backyard. per stacy's orders. to pick oranges for fresh squeezed juice. took finley to the vet to have her puppy pad wrapped. auntie jamie to the rescue. i also enjoyed tooting around san fran like a local. taking ladies to the airport. grocery shopping. lunching. i did it all. they might find me at their door step soon. with a one way ticket. just sayin'. i could get used to the california lifestyle.

just me

got a forward today. and my month matches me almost perfectly. or i will only admit some. i am taking my chances with bad luck for 5 years. i love reading my horoscope every morning. so this was an added bonus.

gemini - the chatterbox. smart and witty. outgoing, very chatty. lively, energetic. adaptable but needs to express them selves. argumentative and outspoken. like change. versatile. busy, sometimes nervous and tense. gossips. may seem superficial and inconsistent. beautiful physically and mentally. 5 years of bad luck if you do not forward.

tonight is the first kickball game. no thanks to any of my readers. i selected bootylicious. because, i dont think the other team is ready for this jelly.

then i leave on a jet plane. for a marvelous weekend in napa. celebrating friends. lemonades upcoming nuptials. and of course drinking a lot of wine. bon voyage.

running to embarrassment

this past weekend. i drug myself out of bed. at 6:45. earlier than i get up even for work. to run a 5K for the company. a city wide - corporate challenge. i hadnt been running as much. so i knew my time would be slower. it was also a windy morning. a little chilly. and i forgot to take my zyrtec that morning. the run was in a park. great. plus it very hilly. with a long gradual one at the end. i finished. that was the point. and not too slow. but i felt like i was going to hurl on the last of it. i had no energy to even attempt a sprint at the end. nothing. i was done.

monday morning. chatted it up with the fellow runners. no one had any idea of their time. because the race clock was broken. we shared stories of the hills. and our running experience. then the email came out at the end of the day. with everything just listed out. to the entire company. i was mortified. i still am. and even more pissed at the person who sent it out. atleast she had some typos. made me smile.

This past Saturday was the Corporate Challenge 5k event and it turns out we have some runners in the group!

Male took 11 overall out of 168 competitors in his age group and placed FIRST in his bracket for our division with a time of, bringing back 10pts to MMG. His time was 19:52. Congrats Male!

Female took 46th overall out of 146 competitors in her age group and placed SECOND in her bracket for our division, bringing back 8 points to MMG. Her time was 31:04. Contract Female!

Me also rocked the house and came in 100 out of 170 competitors in her age group, and 13th in her bracket for our division, (she had some crazy fast runners in her group!). ME's time was (i am not listing my time, but it was faster than the other female).

when duty calls

after calling in weekly for jury duty. every friday evening. well i forgot this last week. and remembered after mother scolded me like i was fifteen again. as if i had forgot to type a book report. even using my middle name. i remembered to call on monday morning. when i woke up. debating if i could hit snooze again. which depends on hair style. and outfit. i also remembered i needed to send my rent check. to the favorite land lady. the judster.

so i called on monday morning. and there it was. a new message. i was told i needed to report tuesday morning. luckily not monday. i'd be screwed. (i later found out, that the lady in charge can tell if you havent called in. and is nice enough to call you if needed). i went to work. told them the news. and then received a notice that work takes out the money from your check that you receive for serving jury duty. i told hr that was rude.

tuesday morning. i grab a coffee on the way. i had to get up an hour early. i needed a jolt. made it to the jury room on time. watched the morning show for an hour. fifteen minutes of a welcome to jury duty video. getting me pumped to make it to the end. there were twenty of us. that would be narrowed down to fourteen that make it into the jury box. and eight would be selected to serve the case. i dont know if it was the challenge to 'win'. to make it through the selection process. not that it proved anything. but i was crossing my fingers to make it until the end. i was determined. and actually excited.

we go to the actual court room. my name is called up for the fourteen to the jury box. some people leave because they cant serve this week. replacements come. then questions start. others are telling stories. revealing things about themselves. that i think - makes them a prime target to be released. it was the final round of questions. this series of questions were not about the case. more personal questions to get to know the jurors. i was the last to speak. the first thing out of my mouth was that i lived in another state. not the one where i am registered to vote. the judge stopped me right there. and began asking more about my residency. he then called the counsel to his side. turned on white noise for our jury box. and made us all stand and turn around. i know i turned lobster red. i was nervous. what had i done! i was then called to the judge's box. they asked more questions. and i was released. i could not serve since i live in another state.

i was so close. i know i would have made it. and served as a great juror. but no. they told me to keep calling in until the end of the month. so there is still a chance.

i spent the rest of my morning. attempting to switch over all my personal identification and car tags to the new state. after a cluster fuck of a system. (pardon my french). going from one building to another. receiving list after list. and encountering a woman who could have joined the circus for her mustache. i am going to remain a nomad. and keep everything. just the way it is. because as i told the judge. it is just easier.

such is life

walking into my apartment building the other night. i stopped in my tracks. to observe nature. a sad snail. found his buddy. smashed. squished. shell and all. innards seeping onto the sidewalk. and covered with a colony of rolly pollies. (are they really called rolly pollies? and do they travel in colonies? i guessed.) i am assuming the rp's were feasting. little did i know they did such things. i always thought they were sweet. and innocent. so back to sad sammy the snail. i couldnt figure out what exactly he was thinking. but i imagine he was crying small little snail tears. but not the salty kind. saying kind. parting words. for his dead little buddy. he stayed with him all night. maybe he was more than a buddy. maybe it was samatha. just thought it was cute. and sad...