a life without advil

because of an upcoming medical test, i am getting to spend a week completely free of acetaminophen!

it has been oh so lovely. the advil in my purse has gone untouched since last wednesday, and the headaches are just super! i highly recommend going all natural and embracing the migraines...you'll never go back again. i, on the other hand, will go back immediately, embracing the medical marvel that is advil.

listen up...

tonight i saw a commercial for a sound amplifier called "listen up"

among the suggested uses were watching television, listening to wildlife, hearing your children from a distance, and listening to sporting events, lectures, church sermons, etc.

...and my all-time favorite uses for the product (as per the commercial):
- eavesdropping* on a neighbor's conversations
- listening in on the gossip* at the gym

you can purchase one for $14.95 at http://www.getlistenup.com/

*these words are never used in the commercial, only blatantly implied

smart cars and smart decisions

on my way to penn tech tonight i passed a smart car. it's a good thing she's super smart, cuz nobody is gonna take her out for her looks. dang that little brainiac is ugly!

_____________________________________________________

I made a big decision a little while ago.
I don't remember what it was, which prob'ly goes to show
That many times a simple choice can prove to be essential
Even though it often might appear inconsequential.
~ The Indispensible Calvin and Hobbes

although that is often how my decisions are made, tonight i made a smart decision, and i know it. towards the end of each semester, we adjunct professors put in a request form for what classes/times we would like to teach the following semester. i declined to teach this coming fall. it was a hard but wise choice to make. for once i am going to try taking care of myself...now i just need to make sure i don't fill the time i just freed up with other responsibilities!

the other smart decision i made was going to bed at 7:30 last night - ever since getting back from florida i have been dragging...so this week i dedicate "early to bed, late to rise" week. the latter is normal, but the first part is oh so nice!

piece of sun...glasses

i also have a slight addiction to sunglasses, and very much enjoy the slim-line version that walmart sells for $5. the lens come in pink, gray, and clear, and i have purchased all 3...multiple times over actually, thanks to the shoddy manufacturing.

today i found my gray pair in two pieces...this is the 5th pair that have broken in the past two years. maybe i should just buy a pair of $25 sunglasses with a similar look that will stand the test of time...

florida vacation: the traveler makes ready for the journey

a few things to note as precursors to my story:
1) i have an addiction to capris
2) last year i bought quite a few new pairs to add to my wardrobe

saturday (3 days before the big trip):
3) i went shopping
4) i didn't buy a single pair of capris or shorts (i was so proud) :)

sunday (the very next day):
5) i started to pack
6) i tried on clothing that i would be taking with me (girls do that)

the story:
as i tried on pair after pair of capris and shorts, i realized that packing was not going to be as easy as originally anticipated. why? because over the past year, i've lost enough weight to drop 2 pant sizes. i finally settled on capris that were too big (luckily my hips keep them from falling off) and a pair of shorts that i bought in high school (too small back then, which make them only slightly big on me now).

the problem:
i spent a lot of money last year on clothes, and i'll have to spend more this year :(

silver lining:
great excuse to go shopping. and obviously the whole 2 pant sizes thing.

a tennis ball and *69

jess and i were driving up jpm tonight and all of a sudden, a tennis ball bounced just to the right of the road. it had to come from somewhere...but no one was around. weird!

tonight i had my first experience using *69...it actually works! and you can totally use it for other reasons than spying on someone. like tonight, someone called about some supplies that i had to check with dad on, and i needed to call this person back but didn't want to walk out to the office to find their number...so i thought, *69. and there you have it...

at the sound of the tone, the time will be...

2:15 on the dot.

that's what time pandemonium strikes the office. everyone will be diligently working and then BAM! chairs are turned and the “nerd herd”, as the curriculum team is sometimes called, starts to get chatty. :) the past two weeks, topics have included “The Six-Million Dollar Man” and “Bionic Woman” trivia (don’t forget Maximillion, the dog), the enormous rubbermaid bathroom closets and what possible reason there could be for them, possible solutions to the daylight savings issues some of us have, favorite music videos from the past (music is always up there on the list), whether or not men without shirts should be termed “topless”, keith's newest randomness of the day, the difference between pastries and candy(our resident "candyman" gave up candy and ice cream for lent) - this guy's nose and ear for candy, cake, and other delectable items is astonishing! …there are, of course, far more (both interesting and mundane) but i can't remember them for the life of me.

yesterday someone commented around 2:20, while the chatter was at its peak, that this is a daily afternoon occurrence that picks up at 2:15 and lasts about 15 minutes...i wasn't sure how accurate that was until today...it's true! 2:15 on the dot...how it happens at the same exact time each day, i'm not sure, but happen it does.

car service, VIP style

today while i was at work, someone from my dealership came and picked up my car for an oil change and left me a loaner. then, a few hours later, they brought it back, fully serviced. that might not be such a big deal if my dealership wasn't about 45 minutes away from my job...the best oil change ever!

only one aspect of the whole deal was slightly scary. the guy who picked up my car was about 80 yrs old, a mix between the little old man who plays chess against himself in the pixar short film and joepa. i might be imagining it, but i'm pretty sure he had the thick glasses, or at least it would have made sense if he had, because when he parked the quest, i heard the grind of bumper against curb. then, when he returned my car, he inched into the spot so as not to repeat his previous mistake,...and he just kept inching! i thought i'd have to wave him down to stop him. thankfully, the only think awry with my car was the mirrors and seat positioning...

all in all, fantastic experience!

as a side note...will i never learn that when my car goes to the garage, the auto lights are turned off? apparently not. of the many years i've driven a car that has that feature, i have always had moments like this evening when i'm driving down the road in darkness, wondering why my lights aren't on...

bells will be ringing...

literally.

my parents installed new doorbells a while back so that each of the 3 doors would have its own separate chime. what they didn't know was that the bells were possessed.

yes, we have demonic doorbells. at random occasions during the day and night (even sometimes in the wee hours of the morning) the bells will chime. i used to check all 3 doors (i still don't know which bell is for which door), but no one was ever there, so i've since given up. you'd think it'd be freaky to hear a doorbell at 1am, but it is just one more nonthreatening sound to add to the list of creaks and rattles that characterize this old house.

every once in a while, when a doorbell chimes in the evening hours, i will still check to see if anyone is there, but usually i don't bother. so if you come to visit, either walk in or ring twice. as the ghosts only ever ring once, i might just answer if i hear two chimes in a row. :)

and when it pours...

...it really pours

apparently i was a day early on my blog title yesterday, because today is the yuckiest, rainiest day ever! it hasn't stopped once since around 8:30 this morning, and i left my jacket in the car. fun!

when it rains...

...it pours

on my way home from work i was enjoying the beauty of the 56+ degree day (sunroof open) when i saw a flock of birds flying in an ever-changing pattern, so majestic as if each formation was intricately planned in advance. i watched in awe as the flock moved gracefully above until i heard a distinct pat-pat-pat. a small noise that brought forth great anxiety...where did the droppings fall? thankfully, not inside the car as i feared.

3 separate birds s--- on my newly cleaned car (did i mention that i stopped at the car wash directly after work?)

apparently women aren't the only ones who go to the bathroom in groups :)