Today is Jimmy’s birthday. I forget how old he is and he wouldn’t tell me all day, so I can’t announce it in my blog (and I’m sure he’s happy about that). Anyway, I want to wish Jimmy a wonderful weekend and a year filled with good things. He’s going to come visit in a few weeks and we will celebrate in style! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DARLING!
I got up on the first alarm this morning, instead of snoozing one or two times (or three). I had to get up early, because my ride had a 7:30am meeting, so she wanted to get to work by 7:15am. I was outside and waiting for her before 7:00am. I made sure I knew what I was going to wear and laid it all out the night before. I had my lunch ready, and left the computer on (I usually turn it off at night and turn it on again in the morning).
Choosing my outfit was easy, because one of the guys I work with (who sits very close to me in another cubicle) is turning 40 tomorrow and one of the girls sent around an email asking everyone to wear black today, in mourning of his 30s (wait until he turns 50 – or 60!).
It was really amusing to walk around all morning and see all the other employees on the floor wearing all black. I wore black Capri pants, a black top (with a pattern – sorry!) and a black sweater over that, so the only non-solid black was the pattern at the neck. There were at least 10 of us, and I don’t think he would have noticed but one of the girls said something to him. I was so mad (and so was everyone else). They had planned milk and cookies in a conference room at 2:45pm and it was then that he really would have seen the impact of everyone in the room wearing black!
Anyway, someone else put a sign up on his cube that read “40 – aged to perfection.” It was really cute. He got a few gifts (chocolates and other sweets) and I think he had a great day.
I divided my time today between sitting at my desk doing some small stuff for people in my group and working on the files in HR. I am trying to organize them now, because working on them yesterday I saw that they’re really messy and not well-organized. I did a lot today, but I’m still not finished and they already look SO much better and it will be much easier for them to access the information they need.
From 11:30am – 12:30pm I had my little decoupage class in the conference room. The two girls I had taught last time returned, and sat cutting the entire time. The third girl, who missed it last time, got the introduction to cutting and I showed her how to properly cut out pictures, and the best types of pictures to choose. She started cutting right away and I gave her the “decoupage spiel.” They all loved it and were very enthusiastic.
I talked about “decorative reincarnation” and how the idea behind my art was to reuse, reduce and recycle. I told them to start looking at things not as how they are, but as how they COULD be. Transforming something ugly into a work of art is very gratifying. I think it’s better than someone who sculpts or just paints on a canvas, because there’s a before and an after, which can be very dramatic. So, there’s a lot of drama in my work (big surprise!).
One of the girls is Chinese and was thrilled to learn that the art of cutting and gluing started with the Chinese way back in the 12th century! She showed us how to make little flowers out of paper (the way you cut snowflakes). She used some patterned paper I had brought in and they came out SO pretty. If you made lots of little flowers (or snowflakes) and decoupaged them, they would be lovely. We were all excited to find a new way to use paper in decoupage!
After the class, I ate my lunch (reading my book), then did more work on the files in HR, and then just killed time reading my book until it was time for the birthday party with milk and cookies. It was a lot of fun. The people in the department are a great group of young people. I think I’m one of the oldest (if not THE oldest). Most of them are in their 20s-30s!
I didn't have any milk or cookies, but I DID take two cookies for Eric. I asked the girl who brought them if I could do that, and she was very sweet. I told her that I've always brought Eric home food or sweets and he always appreciates it. She said she always makes her men her famous chicken-fried-steak. We all laughed and talked about the way to a man's heart -- it's very often through his stomach!
There’s a small group that loves all the reality shows like me. We went through AMERICAN IDOL and DANCING WITH THE STARS together, and now we’re all talking about SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE. One of the guys prints out pictures of his favorites every week and puts them in a frame by his desk. It’s a real conversation starter and he and I usually like the same talent!
My ride had a half day today, so Eric came to pick me up. Since I started at 7:30am, he came to get me at 4:30pm. We hit a lot of traffic going home (due, pretty much, to the U.S. Open) and got back to Clairemont a little after 5:00pm. First, we went to pick up my check, and then we went into PETCO right next store. I wanted to look at the birds. I’m thinking about getting a little bird. I’ve wanted one since my last bird died about 6 years ago, but I was always too busy in the shop. Now, even though I’m working full time, I AM home a lot and I’d love to have another little friend around.
We checked out the parakeets (so cute) and also looked at and tried to befriend all the cats they have up for adoption. I could have stood there all day, but Eric said he was afraid I’d have a reaction (and he’s right), so we left.
I wanted to go out to dinner, but Eric had just waxed the car before he picked me up, so he was a mess. He said he needed to get gas at COSTCO, too. Last time we looked, the gas was $4.49 at the local station and $4.29 at COSTCO. Now, the gas is up to $4.69 at the same station and we figured it would be $4.49 at COSTCO.
We decided we’d go home, Eric would shower and change and then we’d go get gas and then dinner. Unfortunately, while Eric was in the shower I fell asleep. When he tried to wake me, I told him I didn’t want to go. I was too tired. I totally POOPED OUT!
I kind of knew that this was my window of opportunity, because he already told me his basketball game is on tomorrow night at 6:00pm and he doesn’t like to miss it if he can avoid it. So, I may have blown it for the weekend.
I’m going to see SEX AND THE CITY on Sunday afternoon with my ride. I was so pleased when I mentioned that Eric didn’t want to see it and she said she’d go with me. We both live within 3 miles of the theatre, so it will be convenient, and we’re seeing a 5:30pm show, so we’ll still get home early on a Sunday night (which is important to both of us!). I’m very excited, because everyone who has seen it has said it’s really great!
I slept until 9:00pm tonight. Usually, that would be a disaster, but because tomorrow is Saturday (and we have no plans), I didn’t get upset when I woke up and looked at the clock. I guess Eric had the same idea, because usually he will wake me after an hour or an hour and a half, knowing that I have to get up early the next day. He just let me sleep! He has this idea that I can fall asleep that early and sleep through the night but I KNOW it would never happen. If I fell asleep at 6:00pm, and just kept sleeping, I would probably wake up around 2 or 3am – after 8-9 hours. There’s NO WAY I could sleep through to the morning, unless I ran a marathon that day (not likely!).
I woke up a few times but didn’t look at the clock. I kind of figured Eric would wake me, so I didn’t think it was that late. I was still tired when I got out of bed at 9:00pm, but I figure I’ll be able to fall back to sleep by 1-2, which is not unusual for me on a Friday or Saturday night!
Unfortunately, there’s not a lot of great stuff on TV on Fridays! So, I will watch some pre-recorded shows I haven’t had a chance to watch yet!
We have no plans for tomorrow, but I think I may go to the flea market. I’ve been there a few times and there’s a guy who sells birds. I read online that he’s been there for years and is very reliable. His birds are healthy, well-bred, and a bargain to boot!
I would also like to go to the CITY HEIGHTS FARMERS’ MARKET. They just opened for the first time last week and will now hold it every Saturday from 9am to 1pm. They have fresh, healthy fruits and vegetables at affordable prices grown by local farmers, hot food and artisan crafts handmade by community members, health screenings, cooking demonstrations, fun activities for families and kids and live entertainment.
CITY HEIGHTS is about 10 minutes from our house and I want to check out the neighborhood and the market itself. I want to see if I know any of the crafters and if it looks like a good place for me to sell. I know I’ll enjoy buying some fresh produce and I’d much rather buy it from them than at KEILS or even COSTCO. Support your local growers!