but, then again, maybe...

Ick! It rained ALL day today. And it was warmish. Not exactly Christmas week weather! Actually saw "guy friend" today. He came in with one of his girlfriends. I thought it was pretty obvious that I was ignoring him. Apparently he took exception to this and leaned across the counter and grabbed my arm. I said something like "hey that hurts!" and went back to ignoring him. He finally left. His Christmas card is still in my bag. That was right before I left work and I was pretty mad when I walked out and madder still to discover that he had parked right next to me. Was gonna come right home and post, but had to drop off an application for another part-time (?) job and get my hockey pay check, etc., so I didn't post until now. So I'm still kinda mad because my arm still hurts, but not mad like I was.... I have no plans for New Year's Eve. I want to do something really FUN but can't find anybody to do anything with, so we'll see... Probab...

So I went on a date on Monday night. This guy could be my twin as far as hockey & coffee go. He likes his booze a little too much to be my identical twin. He turned 21 on Monday and wanted me to meet him out. I'm so not a bar person, but this little place across the corner from the arena is clean and fairly bright and since it was after the game, I knew just about everyone in there. I went straight from the mall and didn't bother going into the game cuz it was just about over. I had a sandwich while I was waiting and when he finally showed up, he got a drink and ordered his wings to go. We chatted hockey for a while and called one of our friends who was supposed to show up and didn't. By this time, it was getting late and I had to work early, so we left. As we were walking out, he was like "Oh, the guys are just getting on the bus. I need an autograph from NP. Do you want to walk over there with me?" I shrugged and followed him over. It's not that far, b...

There's been a lot of press about saying or not saying "Merry Christmas." As a non-celebrator (is that a word?!) who deals with the general public this is my theory. Basically, if someone says "Merry Christmas", I return the greeting. If the next person doesn't say anything, I say "Enjoy your holidays!" Either is acceptable and I'm not sure why it's suddenly such a big deal this year. That said, I think I've wished more people a "Merry Christmas" this year than I ever have in my life! I keep asking movie star what he's getting me for Christmas and instead of answering, he asks what I want. But I don't want anything, so I shrug and say "surprise me." I think I'd take just a phone call... My secret santa got me a Cheer Bear and a mistletoe candle - the first to cheer me up, the second to help attract cute boys. It definitely made my day! :) Update on the guy friend...he called me the other night...

...wanted to be yelled at by Red? Check out this Kewlbox game I just found. http://www.kewlbox.com/games/online/game/play.cfm?gameId=71 Yeah, random I know, but there's also a link to Santa's Balls (they are ornaments!) with an elf with an attitude problem. Scary where I come up with these things! ..... So, guy friend who is looking for a girlfriend informs me that I'm not on his list of women, I'm just a friend he likes to flirt with. I am okay with this. What I'm not okay with is that he's been asking and asking when I'm taking him to a hockey game. I told him I was free this Saturday, did he want to go? And he's "thinking about it". This does not help my plans. Movie star asked why I never give him my number, so on Wednesday, I did. He has yet to call. He probably lost it. Apparently he has scads of girlfriends, which is "common" amongst movie stars. Ah well, he's always a bright spot in my day. :) I've had it w...

I should add that a studded leather hobo bag is not really my thing. I like my bags with the tiniest bit of stitching (like the new one from Wilson's I got last night!) or small silver detail. Just wanted to clarify that! :)

What Your Red Outfit Means You're bold and risk taking when it comes to style.You are proud of who you are. It doesn't matter what others think.A complete flirt, men are drawn to your confidence. Designer match: Betsey Johnson Signature accessory: A studded leather hobo bag What Does Your Favorite Outfit Say About You?

So this is about 2 weeks overdue and I have a ton of stuff to say. However... My mood is calm so I'm not sure how this will turn out. Update on the guy friend. 2 weeks ago, he came in to see me at the mall store and wanted to know when I was going to take him to a hockey game. I wanted to know if dinner was included and would it be a "real" date? He made some lewd comment and the situation was wierd. Then Thanksgiving and I haven't talked to him since. Until today. I think I mentioned that he's attractive? Well, he's also a flirt and I respond to that and flirt back. And hate myself for doing that! He said he might come see me tonight. We'll see. There are supposed to be hockey players in the store signing autographs tonight. (ACK! What to wear?!) lol Thanksgiving was quiet. I worked 7 - 3:30. Went home and went to bed, so no turkey with the family. Retail is HUGE on Black Friday in my little town, so the coffee shops must be open early ...

A friend/co-worker is convinced that I should go after this guy friend of mine because he's really searching for a girlfriend - like it's an all-consuming activity for him. The details are that he's attractive and sweet and we have similar personalities, but that's where it ends. He's not a believer and I am and that's a HUGE difference for me. So tonight he came into my store at the mall, not once, but twice! Said co-worker thinks this is HUGE. I have no idea if I'm supposed to be reading something into it or not. ACK! Phew! That's off my chest. This weekend was B's surprise birthday party. It wasn't just a surprise for her - I wasn't exactly sure what was going on! But A & I drove to PA on Saturday morning and got to B & C's house in time to head out to lunch. We spent all afternoon at a friends house, raced back to B & C's house to change and go out for dinner. The restaurant was very plosh! The 6 of us got ...

You Are a Carnation You are down to earth and grounded. You tend to be more traditional than trendy.Your confidence gets you through anything.People trust you and are very loyal to you. What flower are you?

It's just that I haven't made time to blog. Sadly. What's been going on... My niece turned 3. She was a princess. She was beautiful. But I can't believe she's 3 already! She'll be a big sister in March. Wonder how that will go?! My AHL team is not doing very well. Their NHL parent club is doing FANTASTIC! The Jr. B team by the same name is doing almost as fantastic. Our booster club had a meet the players party. The team captain was at our table. We were the loudest table in the place. Helps when you've known the guy for a couple of years... The guys were great - all very friendly and none of them took off immediately after introductions. (Read B.M. at the awards banquet last year!) Work is great. I only work 39 hours each week. But I've been having my weekends off, so I can't complain. It's rough on my back, tho! B turns 30 next week. C is planning a party. I don't know how much of the weekend is a surprise so I can't say anything yet. A...

Your French Name is: Bernadette Marchand What's" Your French Name?

Movie star came in again today. He got a hair cut. He is H.O.T. ;) Tomorrow night, my gorgeous physical therapist is asking his equally gorgeous girlfriend to marry him. He showed me the ring. I'm jealous. sigh. Wait... I'm not jealous that he's asking her to marry him. I just would love a ring like the one she's getting. She better say yes! :)

Last night, Luke said, "I don't trust anyone who doesn't drink coffee." I tend to agree.

Your Hair Should Be Orange Expressive, deep, and one of a kind.You pull off "weird" well - hardly anyone notices. What's YOUR Funky Inner Hair Color?

My knees are achy My back is achy also I am old at WHAT?!

26 A - Age of first kiss: um...can't remember B - Band you are listening to right now: Antigone Rising C - First crush: Mike Jordre, 6th grade D - Dad's name: David E - Easiest person to talk to: myself F - Favorite ice cream: soft vanilla on a cone G - Gummy worms or gummy bears: gummy bears H - Hometown: upstate NY I - Instruments: took piano lessons back in the day, would like to take more J - Junior high school: African Road ... which is no longer a "junior high" K - Kids: do my sister's count?! L - Longest car ride ever: family vacation when we drove through Sudbury, ON on our way to Michigan M - Mom's name: Priscilla N - Nicknames: Rach, Rachey O - One wish: To always have God's blessings on my life P - Phobias: heights, but it's getting better Q - Quote: "Do what you like and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." Dr. Seuss R - Reason to smile: it's Indian Summer and it'...

I love Jr. hockey. These kids love to play . This year's team is young but talented. They are 5-3-2-2 after tonight's 6-3 win. Yay. Way better than a certain professional team who is 0-6 on the season.

Latest cute boy (I always keep a string of them...) came into my place of employment today. We actually had a conversation. He told me he's a movie star. I'd believe it based on his looks, but he's really a nutritionist. sigh.

My high school football team won tonight 34-16. It was sectional semifinals. So that was huge. I love watching football outside. However, it was COLD ! And the hot chocolate wasn't hot for very long. :( But they won, and that was fun! My funny for this week was a bumper sticker on a truck I followed for several miles this afternoon. "Driver carries no cash. He's married." I laughed & laughed! I've been working with KMC & KC & KS & L this week. We are crazy. We scare the boys! :D I'm missing a paycheck from my hockey job. Supposedly it got put in the mail? We'll see if it comes tomorrow... I pretend I've forgotten about the cute boy from the Gap, but I haven't really. Saw the cute boy from my wireless carrier getting dinner at the grocery store today. That was nice! :) Um, I think that's about it. Boring life. sigh.

This was taken from the train. The mist lifted briefly. Oh, and that's the back of some building.

So, a couple of months ago, Heather emailed me and said, "I'm going to a conference in Addison, IL. Why don't you come and meet me there?" At that point in time, the DC trip with A, B & C was still in the works, so I totally disregarded her email. Apparently, I didn't totally disregard it, because when the DC thing fell through, I thought of her email. Started researching, but it looked like it wouldn't work out. Then I checked southwest.com. My closest Southwest airport is 2 1/2 hours away, but for the ticket price, it was well worth the drive. Unfortunately, at that price, I had to fly out at 6:45 AM. Oh, and that put me into Chicago's Midway Airport at 8 AM. Tim picked me up. I practically had to beg him to stop for coffee. He doesn't touch the stuff. (I'm still in shock!!) We ended up at BTP where he gave me the grand tour before Jayce put me to work. I stuffed envelopes, labeled envelopes, shipped envelopes, and finally, labeled some Spani...

Lots of stuff has been going on. Work's been super busy. I took a trip to Chicago. I have a cold. And I need to go to physical therapy in about 3 minutes. So really I should be changing my clothes, but am sitting here. duh. Guess I'll have to post this later.

Listening to Depeche Mode Violater today. My friend Vic calls them "Depressed" Mode. It totally fits my mood. It has been rainy all week and I've opened every day. It got really old really fast. So I'm tired and kinda grumpy and not a whole lot of fun to be around. And I need my doctor to call me back and he hasn't. Grrr...

No more posts about the cute boy at the Gap. Sorry, P.

I had Dunkin Donuts coffee twice this week. Intentionally. And I liked it!!!

Started with a Target-crawl on Friday afternoon. All I really needed was a memory card for my new digital camera. Got a 512 MB so I wouldn't run out of space. Not any time soon, anyways... Took it to the hockey game to play with. Experimented with colors, zooms, etc. It was fun. I even hung out with people I don't usually even see at hockey games. And yes, the cute boys were there! Saturday, I worked 8:45-4:45. And, of course, it was gorgeous out! After going home to change, I headed out to see Chris Rice. Show was at 7, doors were supposedly at 6. Well, I was there long before then, and the doors did not open at 6! Whatever. As you will remember, I had gotten the last 2 "artist's circle" tickets, knowing that they were general admission within that section. I'm in line stressing out because it looked like everybody around me had a.c. tickets. Finally the doors opened. I head for the front of the gym. As it happened, there were open seats in the second row, ju...

I'm nobody's wife and I'm nobody's baby I like it that way, but then again...maybe. I'm nobody's valentine and I'm nobody's pearl, When you get it right down, well, I always seem to find some girl...singing There are monters there are angels, There's a peacefulness and a rage inside us all There is sugar and there is salt There is ice and there is fire, in every single heart There are monsters. There are angels. I'm nobody's promise and I'm nobody's chore and I ain't got nobody that I feel I gotta live for ...nobody to live for I'm nobody's work and I'm nobody's company And every time I turn around I always seem to find just me....singing There are monters there are angels, There's a peacefulness and a rage inside us all There is sugar and there is salt There is ice and there is fire, in every single heart There are monsters. There are angels. Voice of the Beehive "Monsters and Angels" (1991)

I can't believe I'm all excited about paying $3.00 for a gallon of gas. But then, when you've been paying as much as we have been, I guess any break is nice.

Hockey started back up on Friday. It was fun to see a NHL game in our little arena. Even better was seeing all the people I hadn't seen since we dropped out of the playoff race WAY too early. The concourse was crowded with people catching up on their summers and the latest trade gossip. The players who weren't playing were somewhere in the crowd, signing autographs, waiting their turn to play the next night. Such is the preseason. Amongst those walking around was the cute friend of the cute boy that works at my wireless company. Every time he saw me, he said "hey!" I couldn't figure out why he was being so friendly all of the sudden, unless he knew that I'd reconnected with his friend? Not that I was complaining. It just amused the people I was talking to that I would say hey and stare blankly, with jaw on the floor, and say, "WHO IS HE?!" Went to work on Monday. Talking with KMC, who is an absolute sweetheart, telling her about said cute b...

I am SO very excited about the NHL exhibition tonight in my AHL town! Too bad I sit WAY up at the top and therefore won't have a chance to get very close to any of the players. Rumour has it that there will be some very BIG names there tonight... I'm currently bidding on a digital camera on eBay. When I started, it was less expensive than the one I'd been checking out in Target yesterday. See, the display went on my Canon. I can view pictures I've taken before 9/11, but everything since has shown up as a black square. It's sad really. I took it to our only camera repair shop and they said they could send it out for $150 and maybe Canon could do something about it. But, because there's a chink out of the battery casing - meaning I deliberately dropped it and want them to fix it! - they can't guarantee that anything will be able to be done. Therefore, I'm shopping for a new one. Circuit City & Target yesterday, eBay today - we'll see what happens o...

I have to say that I got a bit upset in Sunday School when a 40-something father of 8 said that Sarah was in the RIGHT place by being in the tent while Abraham was out in the field. And that's where young women should be - taking care of the house instead of out having careers. He even used the verse in Ephesians where Paul says "I would that the young women marry, bear children, guide the household." He didn't bother to mention that he doesn't know any young women who have willingly given up having a husband/family for a "career". And it made me so mad because I know that I and several other of my single friends would love to get married. Some of them even want to have families. But we aren't married because no guys have asked us. So in the meantime, we are working and trying to figure out what we're doing with our lives. That doesn't mean we have chosen careers over marriage! Okay, I'm done. Yesterday, I thought I could fit in physical ...

Last hockey season, I discovered a really cute boy at a game. Kept walking past him on the concourse, ran into him at a Jr. game, etc. Finally, last game of the season/playoffs (can't remember), we were introduced by a mutual acquaintance who was introducing everyone to everyone else. (that was interesting) Hadn't thought about this guy in months. Thought I might have seen him walking through the mall the other day, but pretty much shrugged that off ... until I walked into my wireless provider's mall store and saw him behind the counter!!! After not getting a good answer for my txt question, we segued into hockey & Canada. nice. :) My other story of the week is that I got the last 2 "artist's circle" tickets for Chris Rice! YAY! :) P.S. My mom just informed me that she's never heard the word "segue". ACK! Where has she been? This is like my favorite word. I seriously use it ALL the time. Apparently, I've never used it on her!

Today, I drove 1 hour, met with my new Avon lady for 45 minutes, and drove 1 hour back. I am a brand-new Avon rep.! I'll get back to that. On my drive to and from, I saw the following things: - a sign advertising golf balls 10 cents. Coming up to it, you didn't know how much they cost because the price was blocked by a snowmobile. Then you had to turn really quick if you needed those golf balls! - Christmas lights on several houses. Apparently it's just easier to leave them up? - saddlebags on a sport bike. Yes, it looked really silly! - 2 trucks carrying hay bales (you know why I listed that one!) - gas for $3.17! I paid $3.19 in town last night. If only I'd waited... - a white-speckled black chicken pecking the ground by the side of the road - red gingerbread on a white house - a road named Elmer Smith - a Ford dealership in seemingly the middle of nowhere (no offence to the neighbors!) - a round barn (neat!) - a garage that boasted "deer damage specialis...

Nice time with A, B & C this weekend - I think we even got some fall travel plans finalized! :) Ok, I guess they just got started, but at least we have a date. I think. Mom was commenting on how nice it was to see the 4 of us together. It happens very rarely, so if we can all get away together, that will be FAB! Worked 6 hours, had 1 off, then worked 4. That last 4 was spent chatting, reading a magazine, and watching the guy at The Gap fold the same jeans for 4 hours. It kept us amused. (Did I mention that he's cute?!) Right at the end of the night, we had to move all the merchandise away from the middle wall because it is coming down tomorrow. Hooray! That means we'll have our own side of the store and be ready for Christmas. ACK! That's crazy! I can't believe I'm working hockey merchandise in September. That said, training camp opens this week. Yay. Every year I say I'm not going to get involved and then, well, it just sort of happens! And th...

Ok, I admit it. I'm a sucker for pop culture. I cried when Brad & Jennifer split up. I read the occasional UsWeekly or InTouch when I'm working at the mall. Recently there was a picture of Seal and Heidi Klum in an article was about what to wear for your wedding when you are pregnant. It praised them for breaking the taboo of a shotgun wedding. That bothered me, but I finished reading the magazine anyway. That night in my devotions, I read this verse: "That which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God." Luke 16:15. I was like WOW! People read celebrity magazines and look up to these people and in many cases, what they are reported as doing is so wrong in God's sight. Later I read this verse from Proverbs 8:35. "For whoso findeth me (wisdom), findeth life, and shall obtain favour of the Lord." I was struck by how much better it is to have favour of the Lord than to be highly esteemed among men!

I was sitting in Starbucks this morning discussing domestic travel with Aaron. We agreed that there's a lot of the country we don't know much about and won't likely get to any time soon. The weather map in the NY Times is what got us started. Random, I know, but that's how a lot of my conversations have been recently! I was saying I'd like to go to the Dakotas just to see them. He laughed at me. He laughed even harder when I told him I like to drive to other states just to say I'd been there, even if I didn't actually see or do anything in them. That's just how I am!