Sasha Likes Ice Cream

Picture of the Day for 5/31/2010. I attended a Memorial Day BBQ at my sister Paula's house. My niece Chantal brought her new Black Labrador, Sasha, that she rescued from a shelter. Both Joey (Paula's Beagle) and Sasha were given some ice cream as a treat. I wish I could have captured the image of Sasha with ice cream all over her face. It was pretty cute. Unfortunately, my iPhone camera is not swift on the uptake. I sometimes wonder if it is pondering deep philosophical thoughts before it finally realizes it has been requested to take a picture.

Tonight was Joey and Sasha's first introduction to each other. It went well, except that Joey was showing an unseemly interest in Sasha's behind. She put up with it for a little while, but finally snapped at Joey. Don't blame her.

Beef Stroganoff

Picture of the Day for 5/30/2010. I cooked my first meal ever since I moved into my parents' house last August. I don't count all the soup I made back in March for my office's soup cook-off contest since that fell under the category of "culinary experimentation." It is appropriate that I made my mother's beef stroganoff recipe since that's what she used to fix for me quite frequently when I came over for Sunday dinner. It's amazing that a dinner entrée can make you weepy, but that's exactly what happened tonight. I'm perfectly able to cook this dish myself, but I miss my mother making a fuss over me.

Life Through a Viewfinder Isn't Satisfying

Picture of the Day for 5/29/2010. I took my dad on his weekly drive past Willow Creek Country Club today. The mountains were stunning with the contrast of the snow-capped peaks against the bright green of the foothills. Unfortunately, this picture doesn't do the actual view justice. That's something I find frustrating about photography- it's so hard to capture the images you actually see. I guess I really do need to sign up for a photography class like I've been wanting to do for years. I probably need to invest in a high-end camera as well.

The Prince of Persia is Hot

Picture of the Day for 5/28/2010. I went with my nieces Corinne and Renee to see "Prince of Persia" tonight. My expectations were so low (since I despised the last "swords and sandals"-type movie I saw which was the recent remake of "The Clash of the Titans") that I was merely hoping not to hate the film. I didn't hate the movie! In fact, I kind of liked it. Jake Gyllenhaal, the titular prince of Persia, is in no way Persian, but he was awfully pretty to gaze upon for two hours.

So You Think You Can Dance

Picture of the Day for 5/27/2010. I'm sure you wish I had exhausted this topic, but I'm continuing my riveting "television I'm watching" series of blog entries for one more day at least. Tonight was the season premiere of "So You Think You Can Dance" - one of my favorite summer shows.

American Idol

Picture of the Day for 5/26/2010. My blogging entries this week are taking on a "television I'm watching" theme. A deeply fascinating topic for my readers I'm sure. I spent the evening watching the American Idol season finale. I was very sad Crystal Bowersox didn't win. :-(

Sorry I'm not writing more. I had to go back to work after watching the finale and I'm still here at 12:30 a.m. I'm tuckered out.

Multi-Tasking

Picture of the Day for 5/25/2010. This photo illustrates multi-tasking at its finest. I took my laptop and settled into the break-room at work so I could finish up some projects while watching the final results show for "Dancing with the Stars." I had to see who won! Sadly, my niece Renee's "googley bear" Evan Lysacek came in 2nd. Highly respectable, but not the crushing defeat over his competition that I was hoping for. Oh well.

"Dancing with the Stars" Season Finale

Picture of the Day for 5/24/2010. My niece Renee hosted a "Dancing with the Stars" season finale party tonight at my sister Robynne's house. Renee's favorite contestant (i.e., the love of her life), Evan Lysacek, made it into the finals. The following is an excerpt from her invitation summoning us to the party:

In retrospect, it wasn't so much a season of TV as it was an epic coming of age story. In just nine episodes and a dozen dances, our sweet baby Evan grew from an endearingly shy little googley bear into a hot, macho ball of burning confidence. In short, he became a man. A MAN!

Brilliant! That still makes me laugh.

So, who is the only person not pictured in the photo above? Why, that would be the hostess herself, Renee. On any given day, she hates being photographed, but tonight was especially rough on her. Evan received the lowest scores on the freestyle dance which pretty much means all hope is lost. Renee did NOT take it well. I took pity on her and didn't even attempt to include Renee in the picture.

I did manage to get a great shot of my nieces Corinne and Lisa.

Lost Season Finale

Picture of the Day for 5/23/2010. I watched the series finale of Lost tonight. As you can see, I watched it in the presence of what has to be the most dated light fixture on the planet. But that's a whole other story...

Anyhoo, I was OK until the very last scene where the dog Vincent settled down next to Jack. Tears started flowing copiously. Sorry if that sounds too cryptic, but I don't want to give away the ending to anyone who hasn't seen the finale yet.

Reptiles Love me

Picture of the Day for 5/22/2010. I purchased a new snake ring today. Did you notice that I said "new" as opposed to "a"? That's because I already have several snake rings in my possession. Before you get all creeped out, you should be aware that snakes symbolize eternity and good fortune. Queen Victoria actually chose an intertwined serpent design for her engagement ring. So, there.

My weird fondness for snake rings was explained a few years ago by a chance encounter with a psychic (long story). She asked if I liked reptiles. I said that while I had several snake rings and I wasn't afraid of reptiles, I wasn't particularly attracted to them. She responded that despite my indifference, reptiles LIKED me. Eek. I guess that means if I lived in Harry Potter's world and attended Hogwarts, I would have been immediately placed in Slytherin. No noble Gryffindor for me. That's OK. I probably wouldn't have been willing to give up my serpent jewelry for Gryffindor anyway.

Stoneground Restaurant

Picture of the Day for 5/21/2010. This is where you'll find me practically EVERY Friday evening- at the Stoneground restaurant in downtown SLC with my friend Karl. We're in a bit of a rut, to put it mildly. Oh, occasionally we'll branch out and try another restaurant, but it never ends well. We always come running back to Stoneground.

Not only are we in a bit of a rut when it comes to where we dine, but we are also in a rut when it comes to what we order. We both request the Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo with no chicken, but extra alfredo sauce instead. Karl orders his salad with balsamic dressing on the side and I order mine with blue cheese. Yum. We heard recently from our favorite waitress, Rosie, that we're referred to as the Alfredos. Hey, at least they know and like us there.

Boots or Sandals? It Depends...

Picture of the Day for 5/20/2010. Sorry I didn't get around to posting yesterday's picture until now. I had a bit of a relapse last night and spent most of the evening on the couch. I did rouse myself at 11:55 p.m. to take a picture, but I didn't have it in me for anything beyond that. One of the side-effects of my illness has been the complete lack of energy or motivation to shave my legs. To be fair, I really shouldn't blame the illness on that. On the best of days, I lack any energy or motivation for this task. I kept thinking last night that if I didn't shave my legs, I'd be forced to wear boots to work today and I'm soooo over winter boots. Turns out another side-effect of being ill is not caring what people think. I threw caution to the wind and wore the sandals today- hairy legs and all. No one noticed.

I Love Jack Reacher

Picture of the Day for 5/19/2010. The latest "Jack Reacher" novel by Lee Child arrived in the mail today! Yay! I adore these novels. The character, Jack Reacher, is an ex-military cop who mustered out of the army after 13 years and now wanders across the country, traveling wherever his whims take him. Reacher is without any family and he eschews all possessions. Now, he might seem a little odd, but he is one manly (6'5", 220 pounds, ice-blue eyes) bad-ass guy. In a fight, you definitely want him on your side. If you've never read a Jack Reacher novel, go out and get his first book, "The Killing Floor," immediately!

Some Improvement

Picture of the Day for 5/18/2010. Over the past several days, I've been starving. Problem is, every time I swallow, it feels like a thousand flaming pins are puncturing my throat. Every day I've had to decide if the pain was worth it in order to consume any food or beverage. Up until today, it hasn't been and I've been living on the bare minimum to get by. Hunger finally won out this evening and I decided to venture out of my house for the first time in 36 hours to grab a cheeseburger and fries from McDonald's. Every bite was painful, but at least I'm no longer ravenous.

For those of you tired of reading about my illness, I don't blame you. I'll try to move on to another topic tomorrow. I have decided that no matter what, I'm returning to work tomorrow. It became clear when I received a panicked call at home this afternoon from the San Francisco office that my absence is causing a certain amount of distress among my colleagues. If I'm going to feel miserable, I might as well feel miserable at work. At least it might keep me distracted.

Prescription Drugs

Picture of the Day for 5/17/2010. Since I woke up today feeling no better than I did last Friday when I became so ill, I decided drastic measures were called for- to actually seek medical attention. If you knew just how much I HATE going to the doctor, you'd realize this was a major step for me to take. In fact, I was so desperate to see a doctor, I was less than honorable in my machinations to be the first one treated at the urgent care center a few blocks away from my home. When I arrived at the facility 15 minutes before it opened this morning, I noticed that there was already another person waiting in their car. Not to be outdone by this guy who was legitimately in line before me, I got out of my car and stood in front of the entrance so I could be the first person through the door. Once inside, I wouldn't let a little old lady with a sprained wrist go in front of me. I'm so going to hell for that. Hey- at least I didn't tackle her. When the front desk clerk called the little old lady first, I reminded the clerk that I had been first in line. It's because I was desperate. I wanted prescription drugs. Immediately. The doctor who examined me was pretty sweet. She "tsk"ed when she saw my throat and said "poor thing." My sentiments exactly. It turns out I don't have strep throat like I thought so who knows if the antibiotics the doctor prescribed will work. I'm crossing my fingers.

Survival Food

Picture of the Day for 5/16/2010. I'm still sick! I pretty much haven't moved from my spot on the couch since last Friday night. Here is the food/drink I've been surviving on over the weekend. The plus side is I've finally broken through a weight plateau I've been struggling with since last November. The minus side is I can think of better ways of accomplishing this goal. Other things on the minus side include the fact I haven't brushed my hair for two days and I'm pretty sure my breath could knock over a horse. I'm painting a pretty picture aren't I?

Feeling Dreadful

Picture of the Day for 5/15/2010. If you're paying close attention to my blog (and why wouldn't you?; it's a fascinating read), you've noted I posted today's entry a few minutes after the previous one for 5/14/2010. That's because I'm trying to get today's blog entry out of the way. It's not because I'm tired of writing. Just the opposite- I derive a great deal of enjoyment maintaining a daily blog. It's because I'm sick! So very, very ill. I feel dreadful. I've got a sore throat, ear aches, fever, and chills. I'm feeling pretty sorry for myself right now. I'm Zicaming myself in the hope I can get over this sooner rather than later. I'm also giving my body "positive affirmation" pep talks. The talks go something like this- "Hey, body, you don't want to be sick. You're too busy to be ill. You'll recover extraordinarily soon." Yeah, I'm a little weird..

Lilacs

Picture of the Day for 5/14/2010. I've been taking a "picture of the day" for a few years now. It occurred to me recently that I don't take as many "outdoor" pictures (i.e., flowers, mountains, clouds, etc.) as I used to. I was driving home tonight and this lilac bush at a neighbor's house caught my eye. I love lilacs. My parents used to have a couple of lilac bushes in their yard when I was growing up. They may still be there, but I refuse to investigate since the overgrown yard is pretty scary. I haven't really ventured out there since I've moved back into my parents' house last August and won't until I hire someone to do some serious pruning.

Intern Snacks

Picture of the Day for 5/13/2010. Every year at my office, we hire a few interns (business students from BYU) to help out during our busy season which runs May through August. One of this year's interns keeps a variety of snacks available for anyone who wants them on top of his cabinet. As he sits right outside my office, I have far too ready access to a bowl of trail mix that always seems to be magically filled to the brim. I swear this is a nefarious plot on his part to make me dependent on trail mix. Mission accomplished- I have now become a trail mix junkie. I'm not sure I could make it through work without it each day. Apparently, snacking is a way of life for this intern. As you can see from this picture, he keeps an ENTIRE drawer filled with fruit snacks. This amused me to no end when I saw this. This intern has no idea I've made this discovery (a fellow intern ratted him out) or that his snacking habits are being profiled on this blog.

Coast to Coast AM

Picture of the Day for 5/12/2010. A couple of years ago, I started working insane hours. It became routine to work well after midnight each day. During that time, I discovered a late night radio show called Coast to Coast A.M. The host, George Noory, interviews a variety of guests that range from UFO experts to government conspiracy theorists. Love it, love, love it. It's just my cup of odd tea. I want to make it perfectly CLEAR that I don't believe what I hear on the show (except, maybe, occasionally). I love listening to the discussions and the show definitely helps keep you awake. I try to tune in whenever I get a chance. Work is heating up so I'll have plenty of opportunities to listen over the next couple of months. There are a lot of late nights in store for me.

Funny Work E-mail

I received what has to be one of my all-time favorite e-mails from a health plan today. I was asking the plan some questions regarding their strategy concerning health care reform and here's the response I received:

"I will be following up with our Actress on this subject for you."

My health plan contact quickly wrote back and said spell-check was responsible for this error and he meant to say "actuaries." I told him I was rather disappointed since I liked the idea of their in-house actress dispensing advice.

Connected 24/7

Picture of the Day for 5/11/2010. I finally caved. I just got a Blackberry so I can be connected to my work e-mail 24/7. Sigh.

Monsieur Marcel

Picture of the Day for 5/10/2010. After my work meeting this afternoon, the client and I went out to dinner at a very charming outdoor French bistro called Monsieur Marcel. It's located in the Farmers Market section of The Grove shopping center in Los Angeles, CA. I think one should be able to eat at a charming French bistro every day. That's not really possible in Salt Lake City since we're a little thin in the "charming French bistro" department. I guess I could actually like, you know, cook French food. Gasp. I received Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking for Christmas so I should give it a try.

The Paley Center for Media

Picture of the Day for 5/9/2010. I had the whole day to myself and headed straight to Beverly Hills where I spent several hours at The Paley Center for Media. The center's media collection "contains nearly 150,000 television and radio programs and advertisements." You can search the database and request to see/hear any of the programs on file. I watched several ABC news specials from the 1970s and 1980s about the space shuttle program. I was in space geek heaven.

Excellence in Aviation

Pictures of the Day for 5/8/2010. I attended the Flight Test Historical Foundation's (FTHF) 2010 Excellence in Aviation Awards in Los Angeles, CA. The event honored four pilots: General Robert Cardenas, Bob Hoover, Clay Lacy, and David Tallichet. I recommend "googling" these guys- they are all very impressive men and aviators.

Below is a picture of me with Bob Gilliland (the first person to pilot the SR-71 Blackbird), my friend Al, and Bob Cardenas. I've met Bob Gilliland before at a previous event hosted by the FTHF last October. He's a bit of a flirt. ;-)


The picture below never fails to make me laugh. Al sabotaged my photo of Bob Gilliland and Bob Cardenas.


A banquet was held before the awards ceremony. I adore sitting down at a table with complete strangers since you never know who you will encounter and what interesting things can transpire. Tonight's banquet did not disappoint. I was seated next to a gentleman who can only be described as very "unique." I knew I was in trouble when he indicated (in response to my inquiry about his profession) that he was an "edutainer." He was telling me that given the fact he's a space nut and a big proponent of being happy, his personal motto is "all systems phenomenal!" This is the precise moment I started making mental notes to ensure I remembered his comments since they were all gems.

Groovy Museum

Pictures of the Day for 5/7/2010. A friend and I stumbed across the Flight Path Learning Center and Museum adjacent to the LAX airport. Below is a picture of a DC-3 plane on exhibit. The plane was manufactured in the 1940s and eventually sold to the Union Oil Company in the 1960s who refitted it as a corporate plane. As you can see, the interior is VERY groovy.

Below is a picture of what I believe is the ugliest lamp in existence. I delight in its ugliness. If you can top this one, I'd like to see it.

Best Asian Food Ever

Picture of the Day for 5/6/2010. Flew into Los Angeles today for a few days of vacation and then a client meeting on Monday. A work colleague, Ana (pictured above), and I went out to dinner at Rock Sugar Pan Asian Kitchen. Words don't even do justice to how sublime the food was. It was "eyes rolling in the back of your head" good. I'm still thinking about our meal. I've got to find a way to get back there as soon as possible.

Girls Who Wear Glasses

Picture of the Day for 5/5/2010. This is a photo of me with my niece Rachel. She's home from Washington D.C. for about 5 minutes in between completing an internship with the Surgeon General's office and starting a new job at George Washington University. Our eye glasses appear to be rather prominent in this picture. I'm choosing to think this makes us look very brainy. Rachel indicated that I should devote this blog entry to 15 reasons why she is my favorite niece. I'm not sure I could limit it to JUST 15 reasons so why even try? ;-)

I'm Ready to Entertain

Picture of the Day for 5/4/2010. Believe it or not, I'm actually capable of purchasing something besides new shoes. I just bought new plates- two sets of service for six. This means I'm capable of entertaining up to a maximum of 12 people. If a 13th person showed up, they would be sooo out of luck. I'd have to escort them right out the door. Of course, the whole point is moot right at the moment. My house is still not in a socially acceptable condition for guests so it will be awhile yet before I contemplate hosting a dinner party. But when I do, I'll be prepared with lovely new china.

Odd Elevator Behavior

Picture of the Day for 5/3/2010. This is a photo of me in my office building elevator. As you can see from the picture, there is a mirror on the ceiling. Every single time I step into the elevator, I'm compelled to look up at the mirror. I don't think I suffer from a severe case of narcissism so I'm not sure why I haven't been able to break the habit. Please note that I only do this if I'm alone. I am able to control myself if I'm not the sole occupant.

Belly Blaster

Picture of the Day for 5/2/2010. My parents did a genetic whammy on me. Both of them were prone to gaining weight in their mid-sections and I inherited that trait in spades. Consequently, I carry most of my weight in my tummy. It makes clothes shopping a real treat. I'd be a couple of sizes smaller if I didn't have to accommodate my expansive belly. I've been losing weight over the past year, but my belly shows absolutely no sign of giving up the fight. Instead of actually doing exercises that target that area, I'm on the search for a quick fix to this problem. I'm a sucker for the cheap women's magazines displayed by the grocery store check-out counters. You know the ones- they make outrageous claims that you can lose 100 pounds by next week! A recent headline caught my eye, "Belly-Fat Blaster: The extract that melts 3 inches each week." Turns out the extract is chlorophyll. You take 1/2 teaspoon in 8 ounces of water in the morning and the evening. I decided to give it a try. I'll let you know if I've lost 3 inches of belly fat by next week. I have high hopes.

Shoe Update for Chantal

This blog entry is directed to my niece Chantal since my excessive shoe purchases annoy her the most. I say that if you aren't annoying people with your blog, you're not doing it right. Chantal- I'd like to point out that I bought five pairs of shoes this weekend. Just to repeat, that would be F-I-V-E. Just thought you should know.

Assignment for My Blog Readers

Picture of the Day for 5/1/2010. Since my blog entries have been rather book-centric this week, I decided to continue the theme for one more day. Here's the backstory behind this picture. About a month ago, my friend Al asked me to search thrift and used book stores for a 1990 first edition/hard copy of "Sannibel Flats" by Randy Wayne White. (In case you're wondering, it's a mystery novel featuring a character called Doc Ford. I highly recommend the whole Doc Ford series by the way.) My search has yielded nothing for Al, but I've come across several books that I've ended up buying (as pictured in the photo above). If I keep this up, I'm going to add several hundred books to what is already an extensive personal library.

My most exciting discoveries have been a couple of space-related books. The first is about the Mercury 13, a group of women who participated in a privately-funded experiment to undergo the same physical tests given to the first group of male astronauts selected by NASA (the Mercury 7). All 13 women passed the same tests as the men; however, they were not invited to participate in NASA's astronaut program. Russia sent the first woman into space in 1963, but it was another 20 years before the first American woman would go into space. (Don't you just love this mini history lesson?)

I'm even more excited about the second space-related book I found- a first edition copy of "We Seven" written in 1962 by the Mercury 7. Of those seven astronauts, only two are still alive- John Glenn and Scott Carpenter. I'm planning on sending the book to John Glenn for his signature. Since Scott Carpenter still attends astronaut autograph shows, I'll snag his signature at the next event I attend.

So, here's the assignment I was referring to in the title of this blog entry. If you encounter any of the following books in your travels, please purchase them immediately and I'll reimburse you:

1- Hard copy only of "Sannibel Flats" by Randy Wayne White

2- Any space or astronaut-related books

3- I'm throwing in this one for my niece Renee. Anything by the author M. M. Kaye