Happy Little Trees

I'm housesitting right now. Every house has some unique feature. This home has a Gazelle.

I used it in during commercials the other night and I really think...it did absolutely nothing. I've got more of a workout from an escalator. On the other hand, it is kind of fun for about five minutes. And if you have a ponytail like Tony Little, it will sway back and forth while you use the Gazelle.

Why is today going so slow? I feel like I've been driving around Big Ben about 200 times.

Usually, I have constant phone calls and e-mails at work. And work is piled to my forehead. Today, I think I've gotten six e-mails. And zero calls. No personal text messages or anything. Have I become a communication junkie? I've check Lori's blog five times and she hasn't updated it. I'm chewing on a straw right now for entertainment. It's really scary how much work I don't have on my desk anymore.

In a strange turn of events, I got to go home last weekend. It was glorious. My older sister, Traci, turned 40 and I got to be there. We were all in our 30s and now, she's broken the record. It's really weird that I can still remember what she looked like when she was probably only 13. And now she's 40.

Traci taught me how to read, how to brush Barbies hair without pulling it out, how to color in the lines (and then apply the same technique to driving--stay between the lines), how to make reading the word a priority, how to laugh at yourself (and others sometimes--only because we sympathize), and now, how to eat organically.

1. Starbucks would give you free drinks for reading books like an adult Book-IT! program.
2. All credit card APRs would be 0%. And stay that way.
3. My company would give me a cost of living raise everytime the cost of gas went up.
4. They would also furnish me an Apple laptop and a Motorola Q.
5. Tax deductions would be given for buying designer clothing. Save those receipts!
6. Models would be back on magazine covers instead of actors.
7. I could take a shower and get my clothes on in the morning on a conveyor-type thing like George Jetson.
8. A car being little wouldn't necessarily mean it was unsafe. The mini is so cute and the rabbit is back!
9. The drive home to see my family wouldn't be so long. Bring on the Ruby Red slippers!
10. I could have my own cable access show like Wayne's World. Excellent.
DREAM BIG!

My friend, Robin, just got engaged. (Not the foof-head--the one in N.C.--foof-head is still a swinging single for now) Anyway, her then, boyfriend, now fiance, took her up to Mt. Pisgah, and where he had a little picnic-y thing set up. But then they went to see the sunset on the Blue Ridge Parkway, and that's where the magic happened.

She looks so stinkin' happy I love it. This girl is amazing. I met her at precious Camp Hollymont years ago, and we affectionately call her Nibor because of the time she painted her name on her forehead using a mirror. Oh! And if she gets married in Asheville I have another excuse to visit again!! Congratulations Nibor and Nasoj (I mean Jason)!

I'm making three posts today. This is the first one.

49 people were killed yesterday in a plane crash in Lexington. My boss asked me about it today, and I had no idea what she was talking about. Because I live far away in the country of Texas, and my precious Granny was the only one in the family to watch the news. It's really sad. And it makes me sad. God, the great comforter, be with their families.

On MSNBC, there's a video clip of a couple that was on their way to a honeymoon. It's always so bizarre the way media pounces on things. In a way, it helped me to have more understanding of the situation, and in another way, it's just weird. Less than 24 hours after a tragedy, and you're interviewing friends probing them for answers to share their grief.

News=Weird. "Tell me about how much you miss your friend."--"Now let's get back to our segment on TomKat's baby's stolen umbilical cord being auctioned on Ebay. How much would you pay?" (not a real segment--invented for example's sake only)