:+: A N N A J O H N ' S D I A R Y :+:

february 21 (deeeluxe edition)

today was a good day.  since i almost always work sundays, i relax on a random day during the week.  right after waking up, i tested out my caramel syrup (the same gunk starbucks drizzles on frappuccinos et al) in plain old coffee (holiday blend, still) with cream (result: good).  then i randomly decided to clean the tub, probably b/c i was wired (result: sparkly). after that, i took a deep breath and gazed at the pile o' crap which was threatening to take over my wee little living room (loot for my sister's care package) and decided to pack it up, for once and all. 

i think i had procrastinated in part b/c i couldn't find the right box lying about (i always have small-medium sized boxes; that's what my toys come in) in which to fit everything well. waiting to send her stuff meant i bought her MORE stuff, some in response to her frantic requests (murruku, grandma's kaduku manga pickle/achar, which she goes through at the rate of one every three weeks), some just b/c i walked by something daily (lacoste is next to my work) which reminded me of her.  other random bits and bobs which were packed in the box a SMALL PIECE OF FURNITURE came in include:

1. extra spicy mixture from kerala (two brands, in case she hates one)
2. an ann taylor "special occasion" catalog filled with a few dresses i think will be perfect for ultra-dressy greek holy week
3. the adorable x-acto knife which retracts in to an egg-shaped, magnetic purple case (i can't live w/o mine, i figure she might feel the same vay)
4. one very pretty sterling silver toe ring with a blue topaz, since she shows off her pedicure YEAR-ROUND in that 70 degree weather
5. ...and one very special "project" i've been working on which involves something i heard she needed, with little surprises hidden in every compartment. ;)

admit your envy.  it's okay.  i'd want fatty care packages, too.  oh, wait...i already get them...from my seeester.  :)

:+:

after spending THIRTY DOLLARS to mail all that rather heavy shit to veen, i bought postcard postage, b/c someone extraordinary gave me some very unique postcards which i shyly wish to use.  then i went to staples and looked longingly at scanners.  i've needed one for a while.  there are so many things (usually stuff i see in the umpteen magazines i subscribe to monthly) i'd blog about on SM, if only i could scan them, things which helpfully aren't online.  oy. 

i've wanted to go to AC Moore for a few days, which ain't surprising b/c they bombard us with their ads via snail mail.  i've made dozens of mental notes over the past few months, things like, "buy brown ribbon to make sash for that dress" or "purchase more earring "nuts" w/discs", since they are the only earring backs i can wear without twitching, and i go through a value pack of 50 every few years.  i also wanted to "repair" my beloved jackie-esque pearl necklace, which was marred slightly when someone rifling through my bags at the airport helpfully spilled something horrid when they didn't replace the cap on something.

february 19

jo, meet no.  personally, i think "tense" was worse than "nervous" on the johari page, but masochist is entitled to their own take on adjectives.  i had known about the darker side of this exercise and thought i'd take my time asking people to fill it out, since so many had so kindly already done the "lighter" version for me...but masochist's comment inspired me to move on at an accelerated pace, since i'm a huge believer in justice and balance.  et, voila.  to diss and describe me negatively, go here.  but my inner skeptic is already wrinkling her nose, since i don't know who wants to attach their name or handle to unhappy thoughts.

:+:

going to trader joe's when slightly hungry = piss poor idea. 

purchased:  ruby port, lactaid, greek yogurt, "mingling" olives, chole, whole wheat tortila chips, fat-free spicy bean dip, whole grain mini-bagels, macintosh apples, goat cheese, a coastal cabernet and one excellent olive-studded baguette.  i had the last three for dinner, after munching on some of the mingling olives during my new fave reality show, "#1 single".  oh lord, do make me as adorable as lisa loeb when i'm 40, thanks.  also, please help her find someone who will sweat her suitably, since i'd hate it if she ended up with some douche.

:+:

my first staff meeting was held today, for what is now the semi-new job.  it's still new in that i'm not out of my probationary period yet, which means i'm not eligible for bonus (among other hot perks), but it's not-so-new in that it's been two months.  we did a "communications" exercise where we each discovered where we fit along four different styles.  i was massively amused that each was nicknamed  like so:  green tennis shoe, red sandal, brown penny loafer and black stiletto.  guess which one i was?  not chatty, sincere or organized...no, i'm the DIRECT communicatrix.  manolo nods his approval, i'm sure.

best thing about meeting?  the chocolate chocolate chip cream cheese muffins that one of our staffers baked.  hot damn is she good.  it's like having a brimful on the right coast. ;)

:+:

my mom is visiting my little sister and i'm somewhat blue, now that it's dawned on me that the last time the three of us were together, it was november of 2004, i.e. my cousin susan's wedding in nyc. we see each other as a family every other year. i see my sister once a year, if i'm lucky, my mother 2-3 times.  :(  no wonder people don't move so far from home...when your family lives in three different states, each in separate time zones, none of which are easily reached by car, logistics get hairy.  even if i were in southern california, (ptttth! perish the thought!) i'd be closer to them...sigh sigh sigh.  :(  i'll stop being melancholy soon, promise.

February 15

Random:  I’ve suddenly started doing crossword puzzles, daily.  This is anomalous for me—the last time I spent this much time agonizing over clues to that six letter space known as “5 across”, I was ignoring a professor.

I blame the cute little “Page-A-Day” desk calendar I bought, which has a different L.A. Times crossword on every day’s page.  Finishing an entire puzzle makes me want to throw down my kitty-chan pencil and scream, “suck it, BITCHES!”.  But I’m at work so I don’t.  Usually.

One unexpected fringe benefit of my lovely little desk calendar was the little code it came with, which I entered in their website.  This got me to a magical page where I got to choose from 12,000 different choices ranging from “Dogs” to “Exotic Cars” with “Vocabulary” and “Women’s Wisdom” in between…being the raging alky that I am, I chose “Fine Wines” and now I get the exact page someone else rips off their paper calendar delivered to my inbox (well, really my bloglines) daily.  I’m learning so much about Rieslings!  I prattle on about this b/c I might just have an extra code lying about…if one of you is a Page-A-Day groupie, holla.

:+:

I got off work 45 minutes early but that bonus time was somewhat pointless, b/c DC’s unfabulous congestion meant that it took almost thirty minutes just to get near the orange line.  Much gnashing of teeth occurred as I morosely asked myself for the 40,000,000th time, "Why don't I just go home if I want $2,000/mo rents and THIS much shitty traffic?"  Yes, strumpets, we're in THAT place again.

:+:

In grad school, I took fascinating classes which dissected leadership, personality, gender and self.  During the past five years since leaving GW, I haven’t done nearly as much with my degree as I’d like to, but thanks to my girl Chai, I got to reminisce a bit last night.  She directed her readers to an interesting site where we were welcome to choose half-a-dozen adjectives which describe her, so that a comparison could be made between her self-perception and reality.  It was nice to ponder what I think of my friend and as I waded through my 100+ subs on Bloglines, I saw that little Nik had done the same exercise.  I dutifully chose six adjectives for her as well before calling it a night.

If you want to do me (and really, who doesn’t ;) you may adjective me here.  Afterwards, it will let you create your own page, b/c you will obviously want to.

Wow, that was way more successful than my attempt at that last bloggy meme, the "four" thing everyone and their appliances did, which TypePad uncharacteristically ate, just as I was punctuating the last sentence.  GnashGnashGnash.

february 12

the thing about snow is, one can't wear cute shoes to work or church. (in this context, cute = dressy)

the other thing about snow is, if it's here, that means it is very cold.  this is fantastic b/c i can finally wear the most gorgeous cashmere scarf ever knit.  it's the perfect shade of lilac, the perfect length, the perfect style.  in short, one of the best gifts i've ever been given.  :) 

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i'm still tweaking this new template; my erstwhile playlist feature is back ("my inner DJ is spinning..."), although i'm annoyed by how close each song is to the next.  scroll down, it's part of the sidebar again,  since one very special reader missed it.  :)

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liking:  the lingering smell of BaBW white tea and ginger foaming hand soap
listening:  to cat power's latest, frank black
watching:  degrassi tng on the N
reading: DCist
eating:  vesuvio potatoes, well-done, from maggiano's take-out window
drinking:  low-fat milk :)

joy and pain...

i just had a bowl of life cereal for breakfast-- for some unknown reason, i've been craving it for weeks, after not having had it in over twenty years.

yup, it tastes as good as i hoped it would. ;)

:+:

to the snow, whom i normally adore:  FUCK YOU.  thanks for killing my meetup, biznatch.

february 9

a few meager thoughts before i pass out:

- tonight's ER was AMAZING.

- suddenly, it is so cold...my head hurts the moment i leave a building.  ow.

- this is actually okay b/c i got a gorgeous birthday gift i can finally use.  :D

- in the heart-breaking battle between sleep and blogging, the latter triumphed tonight: there IS a 55Friday on SM, bitches!

- i'm going to be hating life in a few hours...so tired AND i have an early morning.  le sigh.

- the cinnamon dolce latte at starbucks is not unfortunate.

- GMail's chat function owns all your bases.  so. very. hot. 

- i learned a surprisingly entertaining game that involves taking turns naming famous people in rapid succession: "christy turlington" "tom brokaw" "barbara streisand" "sally struthers" 'oh, now in the opposite direction!'

um, yeah.  if that made no sense, i'm not surprised.  i'll explain it some other time when i'm conscious.  that's a sign for me to GO.

like doctors need help getting any ;)

C-----ology: I saw your planned blog meetup... You're going drinking with a bunch of intelligent, creative minded women?  Can I come along?

politicaldesi [away]: getting shleepy...

C-----ology: (the male version of that) You're going drinking with a bunch of women? Can I come along?

C-----ology:   (the male Physician version of that)  drinking? Can I come along? :-)