Scientists Love Pyrex Too!

...And I am not referring to my love for Pyrex or my current occupation.

Today, when I was doing some testing in the lab, I looked at my beakers and they were all Pyrex! I exhaled with a smile of satisfaction. I knew there was a reason why I looked so good in that sterile white lab coat, and rocked those blue Laytex gloves so well...Scientists love Pyrex too!

THANK YOU FOR THE WONDERFUL GIFTS!

F-A-M-I-L-Y

As I have grown older I have realized how important my family is to me. Now, when I come home, I spend all of my time with my family, and I still feel like it's not enough. I love and laugh every second that I am with them that before I know it, my time is up...tomorrow morning my time is up. I wish so badly that the Seattle airport suddenly closes and I am stuck in Texas for a couple of more days...or even a few hours...I will take what I can get.

For those of you who don't know, my whole extended family is in Texas, all of it, every bit of it, so when I come home, it's like a family reunion and I love it. I always, without fail, seem to have adventure after adventure with them.

Examples:

1) I sneaked Mr. Beyonce to Texas. My parents gladly took him in as part of the family, and let me just tell you, the dogs love him. I took him Christmas shopping, and my mom created poses for the pony...Imri, you would be so proud.
2) While doing aforementioned Christmas shopping, a large, tall man almost fell on me. Yes, he fell almost directly on top of me. My mom laughed, and explained it was because he could not see me. She always finds a way to remind me of my height.
3) While trying to find a gift for my stepsister, we approach the hair curler stand to browse. While deciding on a gift for her, the salesman took my hair and curled it. My face cringed and my mom laughed, and the salesman was left confused. Later, when we returned to by her gift, he remembered us because of my hatred to have my hair touched. We laughed...
4) Receiving the most beautiful painting from my brother. Seriously, amazingly talented. I wish I could have half the talents he has.
5) Talking current events and politics with my dad. It's a favorite past time, and it gives me motivation to constantly keep up with the news.
6) Bowling with my dad. I try to down play my competitiveness, but when I play a game with my dad and my brother it just comes out. We all come by honestly in our family. It will be the lowest scoring bowling game, but probably the highest competitive game you will ever see.
7) Christmas Eve at my Aunt's. Ever since I was little, my German side of the family has always gotten together for this holiday. I've always looked forward to it and I still do. We all dress up in Sunday dress, and celebrate this holiday with one another. When I was younger, my cousins and I would sing Christmas carols to entertain the adults. Now, we sit at the adult table, and we try and get my cousins' sons to say cute, quirky phrases that won't get us into too much children.
7b) As an addendum to the previously mentioned Christmas Eve, I need to add that I love cuddling with my cousins' children. They are the closest I have to nephews. In fact, I feel as though they are such. I just felt this needed its own bullet.
8) Christmas day at my mom's. We open presents...take a family photo with all of our gifts...then chow down on pancakes and bacon.
9) Christmas day at my Gran's. This list is endless of things I love. Seeing all of my family, especially my Gran and Grandpa. Seeing Tooter, their dog, and exploring my grandpa's pigeon barns. I do this every year, and every time its like I have never seen them before. I love it. I love eating all of her delicious cooking to the point that we all pass out, and before my Gran knows it, she was 30 people passed out throughout her house. I love eating the homemade chocolate chip pecan cookies. I LOVE playing Mexican train dominoes. If you want to see me get super competitive then play this game with me. This game is known to cause some people to drop some swear words. I especially love getting teased by my grandpa that I cheat...I don't...at least not any more...
10) I love going on walks with my mom. Looking at all the animals in her neighborhood, and teasing a longhorn that almost took me out.
11) I LOVE parties with my family. Last night we celebrated my Aunt Joy's 54th birthday. Her friends threw her a surprise party. We all danced and sang along with the band. Sometimes singing with our eyes closed. I love my cousin Perry. I love all the trouble we used cause when we were kids. I love how we have become adults together and now getting ready for new chapters in our lives. I love awkward situations, where people ask if I am my dad's girlfriend...and I have to tell them that I am actually his daughter...but dancing with my grandparents and my aunts with my eyes closed was probably the best part. I know now where I get my moves from.
12) I love that my dad loves to BBQ. Yesterday he smoked some ribs for us, and they were phenomenal.
13) I love that I get to see my Oma today, and that she made me some home streudal for me to take back to Seattle with me.

I LOVE MY FAMILY. We laugh, we cry, but most importantly we have an unconditional love for one another. I am learning how to love through them. Thank you family. You are too good to me.

Texas2Step -- Extended Cut

Seattle freaks out when it snows. This is both good and bad:

Good: Snow days from work (aka, working from home, but working in PJ's is a dream come true).
Bad: Flying home (aka, driving in a city where there are limited snow plows and people have never driven in snow before, flights being delayed, etc.).

The result:

9 hours of traveling and 1 giant zit later...


I tried to take a second to hide the bugger on my face, but it was just too big to hide...oh well...


But in the end the zit is worth it: 66 degree weather when I landed, 70 degrees tomorrow...man I love Texas.

The Magician

Ever since the big market crash in September, a lot of people have been asking, "How does all this money just disappear?" Well, if you would like to learn how to make larges sums of money disappear, just ask him.

He made $50 billion disappear. He must be a magician, with A LOT of apprentices.

Christmas Miracles in Pictures

Sometimes they really should make movies....here is what you missed...

Fancy reception room...

I mean...who could deny these boys sportin' these amazing threads??

Uh-MAZE-ing!

John...just hittin up da' bar like it ain't no thing...

Yes, Yes, Yes.

My favorite entrance photo.

Wendy always makes me look good. Thank you!

The Belle of the Ball.

Four years have gone by way too fast.

Dinner party shenanigans...

Love this...

Dear Mom,

If it's Wednesday...I hope you are reading this...I hope you like it.

Love you and see you tomorrow.

xoxo
erin.leigh

Miracle on 6th Ave

This year's ugly Christmas sweater party was planned to be held at my house. I have been very excited about the holiday season this year. I think this may be because I am no longer in retail, so the holiday season doesn't mean grumpy customers, but a time to enjoy one another's company. Yesterday, I started slaving away in the kitchen creating cheese balls, chocolate covered pretzels, homemade eggnog and cider. It has been quite a delight, but early yesterday afternoon I received a phone call from a friend and he gave me a Christmas miracle. His work Christmas party was canceled, but they had already paid for room and dinner, so instead of letting it go to waste, the gave it to me....TO ME!!! Free of charge!

We had it at the downtown Sheraton Hotel:


We began in a reception room were hors d'oeuvres were served, and there was a bartender to refil us on all of our root beer. Following the reception room, we entered into a dining room:



Here, waitors gave us the choice of steak, salmon and vegetarian cuisine (rumor has it they ran about $50/plate). Afterwards, we had dessert and hot cocoa. Do not fret, the standards of this party were not compromised. There were about 50-60 young single adults wandering this fancy hotel in our ugly christmas sweaters, with white elephant gifts in hand.

Did I mention we were on the third floor, with a view and it was snowing? It really was a Christmas miracle....

...Pictures documenting this magical night are soon to come!

8/7 CST

This Thursday, I will be boarding a plane to Texas. Often times, "I think to myself what on earth took me to Seattle?" To keep this short: When I move back to Texas (emphasis on the "when"), I will never move again. So, I thought I would get a few last adventures out of me before I move back.

I have had a few posts in the past about how great Texas is, and today is going to be another one. I remember when I was a kid and TV shows were advertised they were listed as "8/7 Central" or "4/3 Central," you get the idea. I remember wondering how other people survived, because everything was broadcasted as central standard time. Still, even in Seattle it is broadcasted as such.

Anyways, I laughed to myself today, as I remembered my young, Texas elitist thoughts, and I thought I would share it. Another reason why Texas is great. It's minor, but even the details count.

$18.36

That's how much it cost me to fill up my tank today with Mid-Grade. Can you believe it? When I first pulled up, I took note of the competing adjacent Shell station, with the one across the street being .05 more per gallon for regular gas. I thought about how ridiculous the difference in price was for the same gas, but people would pay no attention, because they are both strategically "conveniently" placed for its consumers. Then when I arrived to my station, I realized that they were out of regular. I sighed...and then begrudgingly began to fill up my tank with mid-grade. It didn't even cost more than $20 for my 10-gallon tank.

This idea should make me happy, but instead it made me uneasy, and distrust the oil industry even more. This is another for sure way to get consumers to get all comfy with their fuel consuming car again, so that when the new admin enters to create new regulations for such gas guzzlers people will be in an uproar. Well guess what...I WILL NOT BE A PAWN IN THAT GAME....but in the mean time my struggling, recession-victim bank account will love the pennies I save with gas right now.

Now, please lower the cost of diesel so my food can be cheaper please? Wendy's is raising the price of their dollar menu...to...GASP...$1.29. That's enough for me to not eat there (Not that I really do anymore, but I forgot my lunch today and $1 buys me more there than at the grocery store...another sore topic I will discuss another day).

The moral of the story: Gas has gone down, and .29 makes a big difference.

Why the dead should never do duets with the living...

The result of such an action is this:

When I found this, it suddenly became a sad, sad day for me. If you know me personally, you now that I have a deep love for Elvis, and I have been listening to his Christmas album nonstop. When I found out there was a Christmas duets CD out, I excitedly looked up the album's track list, which ended up including duets like this:

BOO!!! I am sure Elvis is rolling over in his grave. I am losing sleep at night over this. CHRISTMAS IS RUINED!!! It did not work for Natalie and her father, so it most assuredly is not going to work for you. Sorry.
Dear Santa,
Please make over rated, sold out country artists stop using the dead to help them get further in life, which ultimately results in a terrible album. Thank you in advance!

XOXO,
Erin.Leigh

"25% less fat than pure, natural cheese..."

I heard that in a commercial last night for Kraft's new 2% cheese. There are so many things wrong in that one simple statement. The main problem being that it is suggesting that we as a society prefer less fat, than things that are natural. Awesome. I mean, Kraft doesn't really naturally imply natural or healthy, but should we really concern ourselves with having chemically altered food in order to lose weight?

I believe that we are all aware that in recent years I have acquired my childhood taste for milk, but not just any milk...whole milk. Please, don't gasp, I know that it's a faux pas. But, please, here me out. Whole milk, in all of its fatty glory, is a complete food, which means that if its reduced to a 1% or Skim milk, and the fat is removed, then our bodies will not be able to digest the protein and absorb the calcium from this yummy drink. Plus, another study showed that women who drank Whole milk lost 15%-30% more weight over time than women who drank others.

I know, this is an odd soap box to get on, but I have been passionate about our food and where we get it from...and this ad I saw last night was a perfect example of where our society is headed.

In other news...

This man passed away:

Though his loss is one that I will miss, he is such a perfect example of a life well lead. He lived a long life, in which he strived to serve those around him. I hope that one day, when it is my time, I will be as ready as he was.

And I'm Off!...

I may or may not listen to Journey's "Don't Stop Believin"



during the entire duriation of riding this:


I know that it's not midnight, and I HATE cheap perfume, but I love rolling those dice and I am always looking down the boulevard.

Oh, and happy Thanksgiving! I am most grateful for my family...SEE YOU ALL SOON!!! xoxo

They Still Have the Right Stuff

This past weekend, I had the pleasure, nay honor, to attend the New Kids On the Block reunion concert. I have decided that it was fate that I attended, because my discounted tickets I found on Craigslist placed me closer to Jonathan Knight than I have ever imagined. I mean check out how they have maintained their stud status over the years:



Yes, I screamed frantically, jumped up and down (sometimes with my eyes closed), sang at the top of my lungs (also with my eyes closed), danced and stretched out my arms as fas as I could reach in hopes that one of those "Kids" would stop to touch my hand. I am also convinced that Danny pointed at me during "Face Time" and said "Oh Yeah," as I danced without any inhibitions within in eye sight of the stage.

After only speaking and writing HTML over the past few days, the time has finally arrived for me to take the train down to Portland. Here I come turkey!!!

It all came true!

Well...kind of, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

I saw this:


And this...


And played this...


And met him...

I loved every second of it too.

What happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas...

I hope that this is not the case for me. While in Vegas, I hope to see:

I hope to play some of this:


And MOST IMPORTANTLY, I hope this happens again:

one2step

As I have begun to type this post, I just realized how old my hands are. Mind you, this is an odd portion of your body to analyze, but I do think that my hands are about 10 years older than the rest of my body. In particular, my left hand is much older than my right, which is interesting because I am right-handed. Maybe this comes from my years in retail, in which I carried most of the weight from the clothing on my left arm and hand. Pesky hangers.

I have completely reverted back to food. This evening I indulged in some pork with pomegranate goodness to accompany it. I am still mainly craving only fresh veggies though, so I am excited to pick up my box tomorrow. I am also looking forward to my red grapes that will be in the box as well. They are always so tasty.

When all is said and done, I have Vegas this weekend and only 4 assignments left in my English class. 2 tomorrow. 2 Friday night. Why am I just so darn cool?

Day 10

So, yesterday I blogged about how this cleanse coming to an end, was actually bittersweet...well...that was yesterday. Today I walked around the grocery store buying veggies for my soup and I kept thinking about all the different things that I was going to be able start eating soon and I got soo giddy.

Bring it on.

PS...I am taking the fast track out of this...Lemonade and OJ in the morning some broth in the mid afternoon and maybe some rice tomorrow night. I hope this soup is good or I am in big trouble...I have enough of it to feed a small country...

Day 9

It's a bittersweet thought process. I am excited to eat food soon, but I am getting sadder for this process to end. I am sick of the lemonade, but it has become my constant companion, my scapegoat, my partner in crime, my confidant. Soon I will be saying goodbye to it. Needless to say, Day 9 was a cinch, and went by all to fast.

Day 10=Last Day
Day 11=Lemonade & OJ
Day 12=Lemonade, OJ, Soup, &....drum roll please...BROWN RICE!
Day 13=Lemonade, OJ, Soup, Brown Rice, Rye Crackers, & Fresh Fruits and Veggies
Day 14=Whatever the Hell I want! (pardon my swear, but I feel like it was appropriate and celebratory)

Since starting this, I have begun to stock pile a lot of food from events that I have been to and freezing it for future use. I guess you can have your cake and eat it too!...not literally though...there is no frozen cake...I promise.

I would like to jump the gun and thank you all for supporting me...saving me left overs and checking in on me...I like these friends...A LOT.

Day 8

Just got a little harder. I made cupcakes this morning, and I was doing fine. I did not have one single craving for the sugar, but later on this afternoon I found myself surrounded by apples and artichoke dip that I found easy to resist in the moment, but now that I am home I just want to stuff my face with it. Okay, that was an exaggeration, but my lemonade is starting to not do it for me any more, and suddenly Tuesday seems so far away. Don't worry guys, I am going to make it. I have to. It would be terrible to get this far and then fail. Plus, my sinuses are terrible right now, so I wouldn't be able to taste anything anyways...or at least I keep telling myself that. Hopefully I am better by Tuesday, so I can taste the orange juice...

Day 7

I did it! I made it a whole week!!! Now is when the going gets tough...I was talking to someone last night and they made an excellent point: Most prison breaks happen close to when the prisoner is released. Well, this criminal is waiting her term out. 3 days left!!!

PS...I hate my sinuses more than seafood and feet put together....now that is saying something.

Day 6

Here I am...more than halfway done. I honestly never thought I would even make it this long, but its quite easy. If I start to get hungry...I drink some lemonade and BAM! I am full. It's as close to a magic trick that I will ever get., but I am pretty content with it, because it is keeping me full.

My sinuses are starting to drain...I know this is what all of you really wanted to read...but its just part of the process. This cleanse does everything, including clearing your skin, overcoming any addictions (I haven't craved a Diet Coke once), as well as get rid of any allergies or sinus problems you may have. It basically clears out your entire body and puts it back to square one so you can start fresh.

Also, I am in hot pursuit of finishing my English class, so I might be MIA for the next month and a half!

Lastly, I am headed to Vegas in a little over a week and I can't wait to see Elvis, the Cirque/Beatles Love show, and most importantly my AmberLee!!!

Day 5: A Day of Hope

I am on Day 5! Half way there! I'm feeling pretty dang good today. I swear, I have turned into Pavlov's dog, because when I woke up to drink the salt water this morning, my body was already getting ready to dispose of everything inside of it. It was kind of nice, and I drank the entire bottle of water without drooling on myself...classy I know.

I feel energized and ready to go for the day!

In other news...How about those elections? When Obama reaced 283 and McCain conceded I got goosebumps. The right man was elected into office, and I truly believe that he will bring the change and hope to Americans that we need. It was such a beautiful historic moment between my goosebumps, my neighbors's party standing and cheering with gleeful tears, my downstairs neighbors dancing in the street with firecrackers and throughout the night cars would honk down the street in excitement.

Currently, Prop. 8 is at 56% saying yes to the ban. Thank you for all those who voted yes on this issue, you truly undestand the sanctity of the family. I listened in on a forum that was held at BYU just last week and it was really interesting. I have never heard the argument for the family put so eloquently and thoughtfully. The professor from Princeton put into words, what I was thinking in such an articulate manner. If you would like to listen, you can do so here.

I am back to having my own room again, and it is weird...like something or someone is missing...and suddenly it has doubled in size...which is cool too.

Overall: Cleanse is good. Future of our country is bright and in good hands. Life is good.

Days 3 & 4

Day 3: I am not going to lie, was pretty hard for me. I ended up catching a cold, which I still am suffering from today, and all I could think about all day was pizza and Mexican food. I know, I know, pretty odd mixture of food, but hey, I was on my 72nd hour without food. Needless to say, I took a very much needed bath with some Epsom salt ( a coworker of mine recommended it, because it helps release the toxins you are holding on your skin).

Day 4: To be honest, I woke up this morning and hated the idea of drinking the salt water. So I slept for 30 more minutes, and then a wonderful text message from Clarissa woke me up, so I decided it was a sign to stick to my will power. For the past two days, I have been able to drink the whole liter of water, which is nice. I will spare you the not so cute details.

The lemonade has coated my tongue so the taste isn’t so bad anymore, and my energy level has been pretty decent. I think the only hard part is that at work, I would often think about what I would eat for lunch…but I can’t think about that anymore, which I suppose would be a good thing.

In other news…

I VOTED. If you have talked to me at all lately, then you know how I have not been able to stop talking about this. Last week I read through the voters’ pamphlet to look at the different nominees and propositions for me, and made a list of my yay’s & nay’s. Particularly after reading the propositions and initiatives on the ballot, I began to realize how important this election is to me, personally. I am 23, so I have voted before, but I voted as absentee for a state I never returned to. This is the first time, I was voting for items that would affect my tax money, my house and maybe even my career.

It was empowering to be able to personalize my vote, and for those of you, who don’t think your vote matters and you opt not to vote, then shame on you. We are so lucky to live in a country where we get a right to say what we would like and what should and shouldn’t be allowed. There are so many important issues at hand this election, not only in the state of Washington, but throughout the country.

We, as a collective people, will make landmark decisions this election. We have two executive office hopefuls that will defy any barriers that were set just over 30 years ago. This is an election about our economy and the war that we are entangled in due to dishonesty of the current administration. Most importantly, in some states, this is an election about the family and the sanctity of such.

It’s when we decide to give up, and not vote, that we allow the big guys to win and stay on their agenda. I don’t care what state you live in, or who you are voting for, just go and do it. Take the time to read who you are voting for…it doesn’t take long. Most voting polls offer pamphlets with short blurbs about the various candidates, and vote for the person that is right for you.

When I filled in my presidential nominee bubble…I almost shed a tear. This election holds such importance for us and should not be taken lightly. This is a chance for our country to change and head for a brighter future. Please don’t be stagnant, and go to the polls!

And to be honest…I fear what may happen after this election. The time of change will have arrived, and it’s going to be a long bumpy road, but hopefully worthwhile. I feel that with my candidate, it will be definitely worthwhile.

Days 1 & 2

So, yesterday morning I woke up to drink my salt water...thinking I needed to use 2 TABLESPOONS of salt, instead I needed only 2 TEASPOONS. Whoops. Because I am not an avid salt user...in fact you will rarely see me add it to anything...I had a hard time going back to sleep, because I was afraid of having a heart attack due to the large salt intake. Yes, I do realize how ridiculous I sound, but it was a real, legitimate fear.

Over all, so far so good. No accidents...no pun intended...and over all my energy level has been really really good.

To make the lemonade more convenient I have put them all in little water bottles and I take them out of the fridge or throw them in my new google bag for easy travel.

2 days down...8 more to go!!!

D is for Detox, It's Good Enough for Me...

Let's hope that is the case, and that I have the will power to last the ten days!

Tonight I am starting my detox...I am solid-free and a lemonade concoction lover. Per Hans' request, I am blogging everyday of this journey. He is hoping for something embarrassing...like a failure to make it to the bathroom in time...and I can assure, though it may not be to that extreme, there will be something embarrassing that occurs. Let's be honest guys, it's me we are talking about here. It pretty much guaranteed.

So in the meantime, if you see me over the next ten days, please feel free to cheer me on. Maybe make a sign or two exclaiming your pride in my detox. I promise I won't bite, and hopefully I can make it these ten days....

In the mean time, here is a commemorative moment: My first herbal laxative tea to kick off the marathon (Since I won't be consuming any solids, I am going to need something to get the toxins out of me):


In the mean time, one of my favorite things about driving to work, is seeing all the FedEx trucks driving out of the business park on their way to deliver, and then when I leave I just line after line of DHL trucks returning for the day. I always feel like I am in a movie when I see them...but I have been stumped in remembering what scene that movie from...maybe Home Alone? Anyone?

C is for Cookie...

I know...I know...I should wait to post these until after Halloween and have it be a surprise for everyone...but I am just so excited. I have finally successfully sewn my own costume...MOM, you should be proud. See any resemblance?

Since when did birth certificates trump Social Security Cards?

Oh well...I guess it doesn't matter because I found my birth certificate.

My spell check has been way off lately, and sometimes I wonder if it is trying to check for another language.

I have wonderful friends here. I have a roommate right now. He's pretty great and even took on the insurmountable task of organizing my CD collection.

I saw the movie W. tonight. Superb. One of the better movies I have seen in a while.

I'm leaving for Canada in 5 hours...I am headed to Victoria for the weekend. Hopefully they let me back into this country...but to be honest, I think I would be okay being stuck there. After all, their dollar gets me a lot further. More detailed entries to come. Promise. Love always. Me.

the clouds are out like a dream machine

staying true to form, i left town for a couple of days on a road trip. first to portland and then the coast. all i packed was a toothbrush and i made friends in all towns i stopped in. it was greatly needed, though i wish i was feeling better.

currently, i am procrastinating on all the real things that i need to accomplish. old habits die hard i suppose.

tomorrow: doctor, car registration, unpack.
friday: unpack, doctor.
saturday: write letters. my new roommate arrives.

moon boots and sweats

this is what i was wearing today. in my defense, i am sick. i went downtown to get my license, trying to be productive with my day off. who knew what adventures would occur while i was wearing this attire:

1) i made two new friends at the DMV. i decided that if you look at me skeptically while i am wearing moon boots...then you obviously are just begging for me to talk to you.
2) while i was at the DMV nicole and i decided it would be smart for a last minute trip to portland and to see sigur ros...which means i walked all over downtown seattle to meet a man to buy tickets from.
3) i made a quick stop for cash from bartell drugs. i got hit on numerous homeless men. hot.
4) while waiting to cross the street, the most handsome man stands next to me. the whole time i was regretting my attire. i look over and we make eye contact...and i self-conciously smile. he looks me up and down...making note of the sweats and moon boots...and he says its raining...and i say yup...i wasn't planning on running around in it or in what i was wearing. he says i look nice. yeah right...but thanks handsome man. i wish i hadn't gone inside that building just then...
5) i meet the guy to buy tickets from...and we both laugh at how ridiculous i look.

needless to say...seattle is starting to become more like home...im starting to find myself in those really ridiculous situations again...like taking pictures of people's butts.

My Family may Disown Me for This...

But I can't stand Palin. I will spare you the details.

In other news, I am back in the real world and bogged down at work.

"Shootin' Deers & Drinkin' Beers! That's the Way I Roll!"

Thank you sir, for wearing that shirt today.  There are so many things wrong in that saying that it makes me jump for joy with excitement, and yet again, proud to be a Texan.

Today was started off with the Fleet Foxes.  I saw them back at Capitol Hill Block Party, and they were still very impressive.  Then it was off to Jose Gonzalez. AMAZING. Then to CSS. They were a lot of fun and exactly what I expected.

After CSS, my brother and I got down to our roots and attended Robert Early Keen, followed by Erykah Badu.  Then we caught a bit of MGMT.  

The highlight of the day was John Fogerty.  He stole my heart.  He covered all of the classic CCR and then some.  I could have watched him for the rest of the night.

Iron and Wine followed John, and I have to say I think that they were one of my big disappointments.  There was a whole band on stage and it sounded like easy-jazz.  The last song was played only on an acoustic and almost made up for the rest of the set....but I remember just being ready for him to be done...and also wishing the lines for the toilet were faster.

To close the evening, Beck performed.  BECK.  So good.  I had told my brother that I had hoped that he was just going to play his hits for the whole set, and my wishes were granted!!! Thank you Beck, for putting on a fantastic show.

On another note, I find it quite ironic that WaMu (R.I.P.) is a major sponsor of this event.  Or should I saw JP Morgan is? They have a stage, a photo booth and a lot of freebies.  Had Alanis Morrisette written the song "Ironic" in 2008, I am sure this would have made the cut for song lyrics.  

Tomorrow is swim day before the festival.  I can't wait.

"Life is too Short to Live in Dallas."

That was a sign I read on a fence post while walking to the bus stop after my first day at ACL.  It hung on one of the trendiest mobile home parks I have ever seen.  It made me really want to plant myself in some real estate right there. It may have been all the neon lights that people had on their "porches" and that they were outside BBQ'ing and offering free water to us pedestrians.Now, time to turn back time...and I don't mean the hit 80's song, which by the way would be ideal for karaoke.

If you are wondering if I slept through my flight yesterday, it was a close call.  The only reason why I woke up is because my cab called to let me know he was in front of my house. So needless to say, I did the typical "Erin traveling" move and ran out the door, bought toothpaste at the airport and got ready for the day inside the bathroom.  

I LOVE TEXAS.  Seriously, as soon as I arrived, I began to wonder why I didn't move back here to begin with.  There is something that is so appealing about a drought, dead grass and 92 degree weather at the end of September that I just absolutely love.  Last night I had my mom and stepdad take us to Chuy's, and to top off the family dinner we ran into the infamous Leslie.  Below you will find his press photo from when he ran for mayor back in 2002, and he put up a good fight in the race:

This is an example of one more reason why I love Texas, and more importantly, Austin, TX.  

Another reason why I love Texas:

Drink Koozies.  Seriously, I forgot how many people use those around here. I have been so used to people teasing others who use them, and mocking at how outdated they are, but the koozie industry is thriving in Texas. It makes me want to go home and unabashedly unpack my koozie and buy some souvenir koozies, because they are everywhere around here and they are selling like hot tamales!

So now to the good stuff: AUSTIN CITY LIMITS MUSIC FESTIVAL.

Day 1: 

I thought I would start off the day right with Asleep at the Wheel.  They are a Texas Country Swing band that I grew up listening to.  This was what we danced to at the family reunions, weddings, etc.  They have been around for more than 30 years, and have 9 Grammies, so they mean business.  To open up the festival, they started with "Miles & Miles of Texas." The whole crowd was singing along, including me.  They had a cymbal on their drum set in the state of Texas.  AWESOME. And don't fret, the lead singer was wearing a sleeveless Harley-Davidson shirt tucked into his pants... Those Texans sure now how to do it right...always having their shirts tucked in. I loved that there were people of all ages and all stereotypes singing along: indie kids, high-end society and rednecks, all singing in unison to the "Cotton-Eye Joe." It brought a tear to my eye.

Then it was off to Yeasayer.  I am always impressed by them.  Then we walked by Vampire Weekend, but I was quickly reminded of how listening to one song was the same as listening to them all.  Then we watched and slept through the Delta Spirit. 

Later in the afternoon I got to see Mates of State.  I was super excited for this show, because the last time I saw them was more than 8 years ago, when they opened for The Anniversary. Yes, THAT long.  They didn't let me down, and I got to belt out all of the lyrics with them.  We then headed over to Hot Chip.  They look and sound exactly the way you expect them to.  It was great.

I have to say that one of the biggest highlights of this festival was getting to see David Byrne.  

He was AMAZING live.  It was like watching a live version of one of his music videos or of all the musical sequences of "True Stories," or maybe even his thought process.  A piece of my heart died when his performance was over. 

Don't worry, I still have two more days left and a trip to my favorite childhood hot spot: Barton Springs before I leave.

Here I Come!

Yes, I recognize the fact that I should be asleep, but the excitement has just gotten to me. Okay little brother, see you in a few...hours that is!!! YES!

Best weekend ever, here I come!

P.S. Don't even pretend that you are even slightly shocked about Clay Aiken's news...what a waste of space on my Google News page.

3 1/2 days and counting...

plus my BROTHER
plus my family
plus my BROTHER
plus my hometown
plus my BROTHER
plus BBQ
plus my BROTHER
plus Taco Cabana
plus my BROTHER
plus the sun and warm weather
plus my BROTHER

YES.

also, imri and i hosted a fancy dinner tonight...and it was F.A.N.C.Y. and delicious if you don't mind me tooting my own horn. Also, I tried a restaurant near my house last night called Tilth. I was in heaven. I learned tonight that fancy cooking is exhausting...2 days of prep. Good night.

Post-It Blogging

As stated in a previous blog, I wish I had live blogging, but the reality is that I don't. Instead I have jotted down on post-it notes things that I would like to blog about. The point was to ensure that I would not forget about all the things I needed to blog about....unfortunately I don't have the other half down...making sure to not lose the post-its. I am sure that I will find them as soon as I finish this post. That's how it always works. Right?

Wednesday night was karaoke night. I LOVE KARAOKE. I have been wanting to expand my horizons with karaoke. I wanted to reach beyond my usual, A-Ha's "Take on Me," The Cardigans' "Love Fool" and The Human League's "Don't You Want Me." With this in mind, I decided to prepare, a new medley, "The First Night," by Monica. I printed off the lyrics at work, and practiced in my car and at home to ensure that I had it just right. When I finally arrived at the bar, I anxiously turned to the M's and found every other song by Monica, except the one. Needless to say I was VERY, VERY disappointed. I was left at a loss. I didn't know what song to do. Finally after about 30 minutes of browsing the 5 in. binder, I selected "Spider Webs," by No Doubt. It was no Monica, but I rocked out. And yes, my eyes were closed.

Karaoke, overall, ended up being a real winner, for multiple reasons. First of all, there was homegirl, Terry, who had way too much to drink and hugged Meridith and myself because she thought she knew us. She said that we didn't recognize her, because of she no longer had her long punk rock hair. Simply put, we had never met her. It worked to Meridith's advantage that Terry assumed she knew us, because Meridith found herself in one of the most frightening Karaoke situations: singing a song that you have forgotten the tune to. Luckily, Terry was there to help homegirl out. The two stole the show by singing Whitney Houston to one another. Arms wrapped around one another, you would have thought they would have known each other for years.

I would have not wanted to follow their act, but one brave soul was up to the challenge. He put up a good fight too. Picture this: Older Asian man, Bill Cosby sweater, black leather fanny pack, doing "Falling in Love with You," by Elvis Presley out of tune and off key. It was straight from a movie. It was honestly, a dream come true, kind of karaoke night, minus my song, but the rest of the events made up for it.

Most of you do not know, I live across the street from a high school. It's a temporary high school that kids attend as they are waiting for the school to be renovated. School is about to start out here, so there have been more kids out here lately, which has made me put on my safety sensors (whatever those may be), and as I was driving to work yesterday I had my faith restored in the public school system and their teachers. My mom was a teacher, and wonderful one at that, but she came home with stories of other teachers that made me fear for my future kids' education. But, yesterday, I saw a teacher walk around the block to have his student cool down and talk, I remembered that some people really do become teachers because they care for kids, and not for great holidays.

That's all I can remember from my post-it note though. I think its for the better because this post is starting to get a little too verbose.

Exuberent.

Today I woke up on the other side of my bed, happy. It was a great feeling. I can't really say that I wake up excited for the work day all that often. If you know me at all, then you are completely aware of the fact that I am far from a morning person. The mean teller at the DMV could not even bring me down off of this high. Maybe its the weather? Maybe its the vitamins? Maybe its the countdown to Texas? All I know is that I love today. Thank you Mika.

Things that make me smile:

1) The beginning and the end of freeways.
2) Old men's jackets and hats.
3) A song simultaneously coming on at the perfect moment.
4) Funny conversations
5) The Post Office tiling (think bald eagle)
6) People waiting in line at the DMV
7) Thinking you are lost and winding up in the right place
8) Unpilfered trail mix
9) Phone calls from old friends, telling me they are moving to Seattle.
10) New friends.

The rest of DC was a blast. I made a lot of new friends in my Baltimore hostel. Coming back to Seattle was kind of a drag, but it worked out. Life has been full of its challenges these last couple of weeks, but it is getting better. I wish I could live blog like Austin, so I could post all the funny things I see.

Later.

Freedom Fries and Freedom Toast

Last night I went out with a few bloaks from the hostel. I was informed of a law that congress passed in 2003 and wasted my tax money on and that the rest of the world was mocking our nation for: Freedom Fries. In order to honor the fearless leaders of my nation, I intend to throw a freedom party with Freedom sparkling water, Freedom toast and, of course, freedom fries. Mark the date ladies and gents!

Additionally I, an American, am a minority in my nation's capitol. There. I said it. There are more international tourists here than those from our own country. It kind of astonished me at first, but now I am glad. Its been quite refreshing.

Today was spent nerdily attending EVERY Smithsonian Museum available for viewing. And yes, I did spend about 2 hours bewildered over our Bill of Rights and Constitution at the Archives today. I loved every second of it too. I made a new friend from Austria today as we tried to cross a major freeway today while getting lost in reaching the Jefferson Memorial. I had the opportunity to actually expand on some of Jefferson's beliefs with him and help him in understanding his writings.

I saw politics and politicians in their true colors today. What D.C. experience would be complete without seeing an older gent, shorter, overweight and blading, escorting a very young, if not close to underage, Asian girl who was scantily clad? Mine is now complete. Thank you politics for making those Lifetime movies that make wifes doubt their husbands come to life.

Overall it has been an impressive city, but I think most of all, I have enjoyed meeting the people around here. I am starting to get a bit exhausted though, seeing all the sites. Trying to understand people. Getting yelled at by guards. Seriously. One big dream sequence. This trip has been a blast, plus so much more! One day left and still so much to do and see...

The only place where there are 3 Firsts.

Seriously. We walked by 3 streets consecutively today, and all were named "First." Needless to say I got to go to my first Grayhound Station today, my friend is bussing to New York tomorrow and needed a ticket.

In the mean time I have seen the Mecca of all George Washington paintings as well as became the biggest nerd at the National Portrait Gallery. I also got to queue up my flight knowledge at the National Air and Space Museum. Arlington Cemetary was beatiful, but I never want to be burried there. I found out that you cannot even take pictures of the outside of the Pentagon.

Lastly I leave you with these last words of wisdom from our nation's capitol: You think with all this money they take out of my pay checks they could at least have green grass when I visit. Seriously though, all the grass is dead around here. I hate walking on it because I just hear a crunching sound beneath my feet. Needless to say, I would like everyone to write their Senators and ask them nicely to please water the grass out here.

Oh, and maybe turn the water fountains back on. They keep taunting me with all these water fountains around here, and none of them work. I have decided that they have conspired with the vendors out here. They have raised their lease, but in turn have provided them with more customers because they turned all of their drinking fountains off. Thanks George W.

Ereedom. Er, Uh...I mean Freedom.

While at the Lincoln Memorial today, I was reading one of his speeches that are engraved in the walls, and there was a typo made: Freedom was accidentally spelt Ereedom. Now, its not like this mistake has been overlooked. There was an apparent filled in part for the bottom leg of the "e." Classic. All I have to say is that I would never want to be the guy that messed that one up, but I would love to meet him.

I made sure to start this trip right, by sleeping through my flight Saturday morning. I woke up at 6 am for my 6:05 am flight. Woops. I ran out of the house in a hurry, barely even dressed, while talking to the Delta guy on the phone, frantically reciting my credit card number so I could make it on the 7 am flight. Needless to say, I did make it. Though, because I took too long trying to put in my contacts and brushing my teeth in the airport bathroom I STILL had to run to my gate to make my flight.

Utah was wonderful. It was nice to see everyone. It also helped me feel at ease with moving on. It just felt that like the timing was right. The airplane ride from Utah to Washington D.C. made me feel like I was in a movie. Anytime I hear the fasten safety belt sign, it reminds me of "Say Anything."

To put everyone's mind at ease, I made it to my hostel just fine. A quick jump on the metro was all I needed. I even found a travel companion for my first two days within minutes upon my arrival. I think I may have scared him with my knowledge and love for US Governement.

I got goosebumps of excitement as we approached the Lincoln Memorial. I knew all the answers to the trivia questions our tour guide had for us at the capitol. I was in heaven in the Supreme Court building and asked for a picture with the John Marshall statue. I also gave him "Governement 101 according to Erin," which also included my lecture on how important the Supreme Court is as well as my childhood dreams of becoming a Spreme Court justice. Alas, at the end of the day all this excitement has only ensued in exhaustion.

tomorrow will be another day filled with landmarks and IMAX films. He has never heard nor seen an IMAX films, and if you know me at all, you know that this is a huge crime. I plan on opening his eyes to a whole new world...of IMAX.



Dear world,

I am in Nerd Heaven. See you in the twilight zone.

XOXO,
Erin

Doing the shuffle.

As usual, I have been listen to my music on shuffle. It never ceases to amaze me the times when a song that comes on that fits the moment perfectly. Its like iTunes is in tune with what is going on in my soul or it wants to make me feel better by playing a classic for me. In a way iTunes has become my pet, my "man's best friend." Though I think a dog would be nice, but for the time being, living without the pet hair is nice too.

This week of work has been one of the hardest for me. Not because it has had overwhelming projects, but because I am off all next week to take off on my travels. This has left me antsy to get started on everything. Its like the last week of school, and you can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

I did it. I splurged. I got myself a pair of Pastry shoes. Hopefully I can pull them off....cross your fingers folks. Today is typical Seattle weather. Thank you rain. You came just in time to be happy I am taking a break for a bit.

Coming Attractions

I have a week off at the end of this month. As of yesterday, I am going to be flying across the country to pay homage to:


I honestly can't wait. The nerdy side of me is already creating a neverending list of all the museums that I plan on squeezing in.

In the mean time I plan on filling up on annual shareholders meetings and japanese food. Yum.

P.S. I definitely just finished watching the hit Korean soap opera, "Full House," and I think that I got a little too into it. The theme songs will not leave my head...

I also highly recommend the film: "King of Kong: Fist Full of Quarters." Probably one of the best documentaries I have ever seen. Enjoy! Love, Erin.

Cowabonga dude.

For the first time, I have had the simple pleasure to surf the internet. I get to go to all of my frequented bookmarked sites that I am weeks behind on. I am finally caught up.

In the meantime...time to pull a Billy Joel and move out.

Lessons Learned.

I am still learning.

Taking Critical Mass to an All-New Level

First off, since coming here, I have found myself having a harder time with committing to those around me. It's not that I don't want to do those activities, but I feel like I need to feel like I have gotten a little bit further on the job hunt.

Monday, I participated in the Institute's triward activity at Gasworks Park and rolled my bowling ball down the hill. Kay did such a great job, though I did not even finish as a finalist. Oh, well, so goes life.

Tuesday, was Tuesday. I can not remember too much about that day, but I am sure it was wonderful.

Wednesday, I had my all important interview. It ended up being 2 1/2 hours! It was worth it though. I learned a lot about fuel cells. We shall see though. I really would like a job. I am tempted to go work at the video store down the street until further notice.

Later on that evening, I cooked a meal for my roommate and then we went to Karaoke. And boy, did we karaoke!!! I love it. I am finding myself constantly creating playlists in my head of potential karaoke songs...

Thursday, Imri and I took the ferry to Bainbridge and got ice cream. Yum! That evening there was a mad hatter party at my house for the previous roommates bon voyage. It was just fine. Just fine.

Friday, I went and attended critical mass with Wendy, Mikey, Hans and Ryan. It was a blast! I wiki'd "critical mass" and caught up on all the terms regarding the ride. During the ride, I took advantage of this knowledge and "corked" a cab, for the other riders. I felt so official so a part of the ride, though the cab came very close to hitting me! Yikes! But don't worry, my fellow riders took care of me. My favorite part of the ride was just riding throughout downtown and taking over the streets. Blocking everyone from the drives and walks. Its like we, as bikers, owned the world for a moment in time.

Later on that evening we went to a surprise birthday party for Matt and then we to club Havana, and danced the night away. Needless to say my legs are very sore today... :)

Today, I indulged in some cupcakes from Trophy Cupcakes, which were superb. I need to figure out their recipes and then duplicate it. I am going bike riding and swimming in Green Lake. I have my swimsuit on and I am ready r-r-r-roooolllllll!!!!

Paper Hat Fox Trot

This last week has been a week of chance meetings. I ran into an old friend from Provo and then tonight I got see my grandparents. Seeing Gran and Grandpa has probably made my week if not my month. Also, today Imri, Hans and Megan made us a fiesta, and in order to celebrate this fiesta we made paper hats modeled after this woman:

Wendy, Nicole and I decided to take some fiesta shots with our hats on:




All and all: A perfect Sunday.

She has arrrrrrrived.

i'm here. i am a seattlite. i had my goodbye party. i accidentally blistered the hot dogs. my texas family would be embarrassed by me if they were there. international cinema rocked my garage.

Chelsea and Matt surprised me with my dream bag from my bowling alley that I had been bowling at for about 3 years or so and they also made me a giant edible cupcake! Yum!


with only 3 days left in town, i filled it all with ang. she is back from her mission and it had been almost 2 years since we had seen one another! i am sad that we did not have more time with one another, but i know out friendship is here to stay.



now, i just need to find a job. one that i want that is. i always have the option to stick with old navy, but i would prefer it to not be an option. if you know of anything, PLEASE let me know. i will be forever indebted to you!

xoxox

"The Final Countdown" as performed by Europe

It is now T-minus 7 days until I will be pulling out of Salt Lake City in an over sized U-haul and making an ever fateful voyage to Seattle. Since I have an over abundance of time on my hands, I have been trying to work in a number of things I wanted to do before leaving the state:
1) Saying goodbye to Provo. Or one could call it saying goodbye to my college days. There was a gallery stroll so I was able to say so long to a lot of people. Some people weren't so sad about my leaving town:


Then afterwards, per Justin's request, we went to Red Robin. I ordered a Bruschetta sandwich, but they weren't serving tomatoes due to the salmonella but the server failed to tell me. Thanks server. Anyways, the company was still good!



2) Lagoon. This place is child's play when compared to Six Flags, but nonetheless, it was still something that needed to be done for saying goodbye. They have a childish version of the River Rapids, and I got soaked!


3) Kanye West and N.E.R.D. AMAZING!!!! So, this isn't a Utah exclusive event, but who could resist such musical geniuses. The only bad thing was that there was a no cameras allowed rule. L.A.M.E. So my only proof is my ticket stub, my souvenier shirts and this picture right before the magic:


4) I may be going on the Fun Bus to Wendover...that is a big maybe. As much as I love BINGO on buses and all-you-can-eat buffets, my sleep has overruled all lately.

5) My "See You Later, Alligator!" party this Friday. I am having a BBQ/Dance Party in my 2-car garage. I thought I would put it to some use before I leave and I will be having a couple of bands there too. All is invited!