Category Archives: Holiday

White Devil…. White Devil….

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Updates!  Updates!  Updates!!  As much as I would love to go downtown to see all the pretty lights and what not, we haven’t gone that way since the city is getting the last touches on the Super Bowl arrangements.  Also, I hate finding parking downtown and have not been in the mood.  The weather has been nice and not too cold, so I don’t know why we are so lazy.  Since we will be out and about most of next weekend, I figured this weekend would be a perfect time to clean the house from top to bottom. 

-So what’s been going on?  This weekend kind of turned into the Asian Variety Hour.  With our new diet/exercise plan, Matt and I have done really well with both money and calories.  On Friday, we went to the Outback (God, I love that place) and then grabbed my comic book stash since it is next door.  Lately everyone has talked about Christmas baking which we do not do in my house.  Instead we make Lumpia aka egg rolls.  So I decided I was going to make some egg rolls, which meant we had to go to the Asia Mart.

-So yeah, I took Matt to the Asia Mart in Castleton for his first time visit.  I knew exactly where the lumpia wrappers were, so I didn’t think we would be in there very long.  When we walked in I thought Matt was going to gag by the fish smell.  As my friend Santiago said, “When the stench hits the whities…”  hahaha I miss that broad!  So we go to the frozen aisle.  Matt saw the weird aquarium/fish stand and starting shaking his head.  “You know those people just stick their hands in and grab the fish and eat them whole… bones and everything!”  I grabbed the lumpia and went in line.  So we are just standing in line as you would expect when this SENILE old Asian lady just PLOWS into Matt and shoves him out of her way!!!  Unreal!  Matt turns and was like, “I’m sorry, excuse me” since he is a bit of a bulky dude, but that senile old lady was just walking in circles muttering “White Devil… White Devil….” under her breath and scheming.  Seriously???  I called my mom to tell her of our adventure and she had not so nice things about the people who run the Asia Mart.  Apparently she feels as if she is treated differently too.  Lord.  It was pretty funny!

-On Sunday I made my version of my mother’s recipe.  Unfortunately, I told my mom I was making Lumpia so she came over in a frenzy and started fixing my recipe.  **sigh**.  “Your Lumpia isn’t going to be as good as mine!”  Well, no kidding.  I’ve only made Lumpia about 3 times- the last time being Matt’s 24th birthday in 2004.  After I served the egg rolls at work (at 9:30 AM no less, haha) she even called to see what people said.  If there were an egg roll police, she would be the chairwoman!

- I finished Batman: Arkham City and of course loved it.  Matt and I got every single riddle, which was insane!  I loved the game… so much fun!  I’m glad they had a Catwoman part.  Speaking of Batman, I also saw the new “Dark Knight Rises” trailer and had mixed emotions about it.  Anne Hathaway is poorly cast as Catwoman.  Marion Cottilard is a WONDERFUL choice for Talia.  Anne Hathaway is just not sexy or cool for that matter.  Where was Megan Fox?  Mila Kunis?  Those ladies have sex down to a science.  Just look at them.  I think Christopher Nolan always casts stupid women characters though.  Look at the past two movies, sucky women.  Oh well, we will see how it is over the summer.  The Avengers is going to be better, let’s be real here.  I’ve got Assassin’s Creed: Revelations waiting to be played.  I started it but Ezio looks so old in it.  Meh. 

- Everyone is pregnant.  EVERYONE.  Yesterday I found out my cousin’s wife is expecting #2!  Then we’ve got my two besties in preggo land and then everyone else.  Don’t drink the water, people!!!  It seems like everyone will start hatching in February.  It is still weird to me that people are actually having kids.  Well, I still have the college-accidental pregnancy-mentality.  If I would get pregnant, I would think I would react in that way.  Oh the babies.  I’m excited to see Jess tomorrow for our fun gift exchange and see her bad preggo self! 

- I turn 30 in 2 weeks.  Shit.

- I love Ham Cubes trivia.  Every two weeks, a group of us meet up at RAM for some awesome fun and drinks.  I’m kind of obsessed with this appetizer called the “Armadillo Eggs” which I have no idea what they are or what is in them, but so tasty.  We got 3rd place last night after losing the bonus.  Stupid Linkin Park question!!!  I hate Linkin Park!!  I have been clutch for the nerdy questions involving Ancient Rome, boy bands, and celebrity knowledge.  My favorite part of trivia is when I know an answer and Tim doesn’t know it.  For example: “What Harry Potter actor/actress went to school at Brown University?”  The answer: Emma Watson.  How much to bet?  I said bet the highest amount we could.  Tim:  “Are you POSITIVE?”  Yes, I am POSITIVE.  He went up and came back and I was like, “Oh crap, I think it was that ginger kid…. crap!” and I thought his face was going to explode.  Oh Tim is my favorite!!!  I am sad he won’t be doing a New Year’s Eve party this year.  BOO.  As for NYE, I think we are going to Travis and Kara’s house.  WOO! 

- Whiskey is so smart, and I forget that sometimes.  He knows so many words like the obvious “sit” (which he doesn’t listen to); “ball”, “walk,” “Brody,” “car,” and so forth.  However we can add bi-lingual words that he understands.  So we have this neighbor (Monkey Truck) who either has a cat or at least takes care of a cat.  It is a stupid cat that likes to run on our roof and be cat-ish.  This cat has a death wish since it likes to sit on our front porch or sit in our backyard.  Well, I call it “el gato” since I am weird.  The other day I was holding Whiskey and looking out the window and I said, “Look, el gato!” as it walked across the street to come sit on our porch.  The weird thing was Whiskey looked at me and cocked his head and was like, “I want to kill el gato!”  So now anytime I say “el gato” Whiskey runs to the closest window to look out and find the cat.  It has been a fun game.  After reading that one dog book “The Art of Racing in the Rain,” I now sometimes leave the windows open so Whiskey can look out when I’m at work.  Sometimes I find him in our guest room just stalking the neighborhood doings.  I tell you, if that dog could talk, I wonder what secrets he would tell.  Haha, that randomly just made me remember Nikki and my code in college, “Don’t press enter, Phoenix!”  hahaha, I miss that crazy dog!!!

So yeah, that’s what has happened.  Not too much.  I’m excited for my California trip in January.  Matt and I have been plotting our travel points for next year.  I think I get to pick one and he’ll pick one.  We will see!  I probably won’t be blogging much in the next 2 weeks since I’ll be out and about, but Happy Holidays to all my readers!

How to Make A Cheetara Costume from Thundercats

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HALLOWEEN!  As an adult, I’ve gotta say Halloween is my favorite holiday.  Sure it is usually freezing outside, but everyone is always out to have a good time!  I am very fortunate that Pearson has a Halloween costume contest every year with fun prizes.  I guess I have an inner freak and like to wear strange clothing and make-up. It is also true that the most important thing I took from my bona-fide Purdue University education was a basic Breakfast Club 101 rule: Commit to your costume.  You heard me!  Even though it may be cold, rainy, whatever- you gotta go all out and make a statement.  (For those that do not know, Breakfast Club is a much-loved tradition at Purdue University where people go out to the campus bars during home football games at 6am in full costume and get drunk.  It is as magical as it sounds.  And yes, I would devote a lot of my student loan and work money to said Breakfast Club costumes).  So what would be the hot costume of 2011?  I know a lot of people are into pirates, vampires, and weird zombie looking things, but I had to make a statement!  I had to be someone who radiated GIRL POWER and other fierce attributes to womankind.  Also, I needed to be someone who was wearing clothes since I am not at my ideal weight right now, and I don’t need to show of my boobs anyway since I am almost 30.

Anyway, last year I thought I would do well in my Lady GaGa in Meat suit costume, but I only got an Honorable Mention!  I knew I had to go a little more crazy this year to win the top prize of $100!  (There were 3 prizes: $100, $50, and $25 for the top prizes while Honorable Mentions didn’t get anything this year).  So with that, I was on a quest to create a great Halloween costume for fun and to possibly win a prize.  Matt and I also decided to throw a Halloween party, so I definitely needed a top-tier costume to impress our guests.  (I’ll post about the epic party later.)  So with that, I had to become inspired and then create something.  Our work contest is a bit of a mixed bag as well.  There are usually 4 judges, and they are not always the most hip when it comes to obscure comic book characters or cartoons.  Also, presentation is VERY important since SCHTICK gets you far.  Last year, the top prize went to a guy who made a homemade Ghostbusters costume.  Ironically, there were 3 people as Ghostbusters who entered.  Why did he win?  He had a lazer applique that shot out silly string with a ghost on his back.  That guy is also very serious about Halloween, and I always say something to him every year on the elevator.  My goal?  To beat him!  Haha.

Over the summer, I was cleaning up my comic book room which houses all of my X-men statues, figurines, comics, and old chest filled with stuff.  I found this AMAZING Cheetara paint-by-numbers picture which was also framed inside.  As a kid, I loved cartoons especially She-Ra, Jem from Jem & The Holograms, and Cheetara.  When I was young, I did go trick-or-treating as Jem and She-ra, so I figured, it was a sign I needed to be Cheetara! I also put the picture up in my room for inspiration.  Doesn’t she look amazing?  I will not lie, I was kind of at a loss about what I could find and buy for myself.  Cheetara wears BRIGHT ORANGE, so where the heck do you find orange tights?  Luckily, the internet is an amazing place!  I found this awesome website, which helped A LOT.  I’ve gotta shout out to Jessica’s site since it was easy to navigate.  I did make some changes to colors and stuff though.

Keep in mind I am 5’7″ and about 175 lbs right now.  It seems that all costumes can be dependent on size and availability.

COSTUME ESSENTIALS:

- Long Sleeve Leotard.  Ok, I am a bigger girl (yay, stupid Prednisone) so I also had to come to grips that I would be wearing a SKIN-TIGHT orange costume in public.  Since I am half-Asian, I am half-yellow, so I knew right away I would look super bright.  I highly, HIGHLY recommend the website http://www.welovecolors.com since they are friendly and helpful.  I ordered my leotards in August and it took a few weeks for shipment.  I even live chatted with someone to make sure things were in order.  I bought the light orange long sleeve unitard for $56.  I had to take the right sleeve off which was no problem.  The other website said to put this in gold, but I thought that I would be too yellow.

- Tank Leotard.  I purchased this in orange for $22.  This is pretty self-explanatory.  Put the two parts together.

- Thundercats Logo.  I got this off eBay at a good price.  I will say this though, I bought the iron-on logo, and when I put the costume on for the party, the logo fell off  (and yes, I had someone with MUCH MORE experience with patches iron it on.  That was disappointing, but super glue to the rescue!)  Patch = $3.99

- Orange Boots.  I was afraid this would be impossible, but I got REALLY lucky.  I wear a size 10 shoe, and I didn’t want to look like a Go-Go Cheetara since most of the time when you google “orange boots” you get more Austin Power inspired go-go wear.  Thank you, eBay!  I found these Ugg knock-off for about $25 with shipping.  They are faux-suede.  Also, if you try to run like Cheetara while wearing them while pole vaulting with the stick while drunk, you might have terrible results.  Trust me.  Haha.

- The wig.  Now, I had a bit of a problem with the wig.  I bought a custom wig from my go-to wig girl on etsy.  I wanted a bright yellow wig with orange streaks for $65.  When I got the wig, it was TOO orange.  It was ELECTRIC.  I don’t blame the wig shop since it was a custom order.  My skin was just not liking the bright-ness.  So instead, I went to the Halloween store and bought the “Sharon” wig for $10.  I got a black permanent marker and drew the spots all over the wig. (So if anyone wants a bright yellow wig with orange streaks, I’m your girl)

- 2 White Bangles.  This was easy.  I found two exact bangles at the mall at Claire’s for $2.  Nice!

- Gauntlet.  I suck with felt.  I really do, but this was easy even though imperfect.  I went to Jo-Ann’s Fabrics and bought some felt in gold, orange, and yellow.  I cut the felt in pieces and got out my hot-glue gun.  The yellow pieces had adhesive on the bottom, so that was ideal for the tops of the boots.  Each piece of felt was a quarter so I spent about $4 dollars on felt.  Nice!

- Cheetara’s staff.  This was probably the hardest thing to buy.  Why?  I had to go to Home Depot, which is like a maze within a maze within a maze!  I finally found a broom handle ($6) and bright yellow spray paint ($3).

MAKE-UP:

 In order to finish the look, I had to wear some serious make-up.  I already have the Urban Decay Book of Shadows IV kit, so I used Blue Bus.  I also got the Blue shade from the Ulta collection, which was about $4.

- First I put light powder around my entire face, neck, and right arm since it would be exposed.

- Second, I put my hair in braids and put on my wig cap to keep my hair out of my face.

- I put on some black eye liner around my eye.  (Maybelline sells an AWESOME 24 hour dramatic eye liner called Eye Studio Lasting Drama Gel EyeLiner, which I got for $8.)  Next, I applied eye shadow Primer Potion (in the same Urban Decay kit) so my eye shadow would stay on.  Time to apply the Blue Bus color!

- I bought Halloween Cream Based Orange Make-up from the local store for $5.  Starting at the temple, mark the color around the eye brow, eye, and cheek while making the arch.  THIS IS EASIER IF SOMEONE DOES IT FOR YOU.  I did it by myself, and I was a little crooked.  (Picture to left is when my husband helped with my make-up).

 

-As for the lips, I would have preferred wearing my bright red lipstick, but it looked horrible on me with all the orange and yellow.  Instead I wore my usual shade of Lady GaGa’s VIVA Glam Gaga 1 from MAC.

So here is the finished product!

As for the costume contest, I placed 3rd!  I lost to Jack Sparrow (The Ghostbuster from last year) and Jean-Claude Van Damme (He is wearing fake muscles, which you can’t really see in this picture).  Yes, Jean-Claude beat me.  The guy was hilarious and wore a muscle suit while throwing autographed pictures of himself to everyone.  Half of the contest is SCHTICK as I said, and I just ran around in tights swinging around a stick… haha.  Oh well, our Halloween party was EPIC, and everyone loved my costume!

Enjoy the tutorial and remember, THUNDERCATS…..ho!!!

Home of the Brave!

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Oh July 4th, how I love you!  I’ve gotta say I’ve had a pretty amazing week.  Man, I haven’t had a real update in a while.  I’ve been running around all crazy!  Ok so here goes!  Friday was awesome.  I had a half day, and I met up with Mina for some girl bonding and shopping!  She just got back from another jaunt to Asia.  We had a yummy lunch at Maggiano’s where she attempted the zuccatto cake.  It was enormous.  I nicknamed Mina “Bottomless pit” since she can really eat forever (I wonder if she is down with Kobiyashi the hot dog guy?) but the cake stopped her.  I was pretty shocked!  After that, we headed to the Fashion Mall for some shopping!  I have been on the look out for a new dress for Tim’s wedding.  I ended up splurging and buying some awesome new sunglasses to go with my awesome new contact lenses.  I can’t express how awesome it is to wear contacts every day again.  We had an awesome time.  I am so excited for Chicago this weekend!

We ended our girl outing by going to my hair dresser and Mina watched me get my hair done.  My hair dresser cracks me up.  As my dye job was drying, I showed her the amazing-ness of AnimalsBeingDicks website.  This is so great on so many levels.  Unfortunately, Hope showed my two gray hairs.  Really?  I am still convinced they were blondies.  I can’t be getting gray hair!  Ick!!  Oh well.  All in a day’s work.  After that, Matt and I went to Barley Island in Noblesville.  I’ve gotta say, it was really good.  The Ale Emporium might get some competition since it is a microbrew about 5 minutes away.  I ran into an old high school buddy as well there.  It was kind of funny since she didn’t recognize me with blonde hair.  I still forget that I didn’t have blonde hair back then.  On Saturday, we went shopping for some work out clothes.  Matt and I have worked out every day and making a conscious effort at getting healthy.  It has been good and bad, but that’s how it goes.  I found an awesome dress for Tim’s wedding too.  I know that this year is the year of “Peach + Purple,” so I will have to see if I can pull this dress off.  Even if I look like a clown in it, it was only $30 with an original price tag of $140, so of course I love it to bits!  On Sunday we woke up super early with no plans.  We decided on going to The Indianapolis Zoo for some animal-viewing.  I was shocked that the zoo was so cheap!  I am sure they lowered the entrance fee.  Plus it was hot like Africa so all the animals were out and about.  The new cheetahs were breathtakingly beautiful.  The lions were super lame as usual.  Matt got some great videos.

As I have said many times before, I love the 4th of July.  We have a new tradition, and that involves my family coming over for some good food and then lighting a lot of fireworks.  Charlie is obsessed with fireworks.  Since my dad is on summer break right now, I guess he has been all caught up in the Casey Anthony trial.  I haven’t followed it whatsoever, but he told me that she would most likely get acquitted and found not guilty.  (Apparently he was right, and all of America is in throes tonight!)

I always try to make new food to spice things up in my parents’ boring food lives.  I made the new watermelon + blueberry fruit salad that I am obsessed with.  I also used my lavender for lavender butter & lavender banana walnut bread.  You may be thinking- lavender, really?  Well during my first trip to Seattle, we ate at the Space Needle, and they served lavender butter.  I absolutely loved it and still dream of it.  I’ll never forget Nikki taking a swipe and exclaiming, “this tastes like soap!”  Whatever, I love it!  I also love lavender cupcakes, so I must be in the minority somehow.  So I bought some lavender online.  Matt had his doubts, but he was obsessed with the bread.  He ate the whole loaf pretty much.  I gotta say, I’ve got mad skills.

Lavender Banana Walnut Bread

7/4/11 – It’s a good day to be a Knotts!  My mom looks pretty chipper considering she was in San Francisco in the morning.

Charlie & Brody

Watermelon Sorbet

**So yeah, the 4th was awesome.  We had some great fireworks and nobody fell into the rose-bush this year!  I love the field behind our house since it is perfect for creating small fires.  In other news, all of my debt will be paid off next week.  I can’t wait for that paycheck!  Then boom – good-bye credit cards.  I am so thrilled.  Also, I bought Britney Spears tickets this morning.  Albin and I will be all over that concert.  She is going to the show in Miami with her mom.  I am a bit disappointed in our tickets though.  I got them right when the tickets went on sale, and I got strange tickets on the lower level left side.  Two hours later, they were selling tickets on the main floor for the same price as what I paid.  I am convinced that Ticketmaster hates me.  It seems like the website has to do something wacky to me every year for a concert.

So that is the news in my world.  I’ll probably have a ridiculous post tomorrow.  I can’t believe Mina sometimes. :)

**Shamrock Shake St. Patty’s Day 2011**

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Party #3, and let me say— I think Matt and I are now pros at throwing a great party!  Emily insisted that we need to throw a party every quarter, so her wish is thy command!  When I was a kid (pre-Charlie) my parents used to throw a St. Patrick’s Day party every year and invite all of my Dad’s teacher friends.  Ahhh the memories of being locked in my room playing with my dog while listening to the raucous party in the other room.  So I knew that the weekend would celebrate not only St Patrick’s Day a bit early but also the fact it was the 1 year anniversary of us buying our house (woo!  1 down and 29 years to go!  We probably own the front door by now!)  Emily is pretty much the party planner behind the scenes since she knows what everyone likes and is extremely helpful.  I always serve the same things- the Filipino aisle including pancit and egg rolls, and then I always get fruit, veggies, and chips.  I have made meatballs twice before, and I’ll be real, I’m not great at meatballs.  So Emily suggested I try pigs-in-a-blanket.  I thought this would be a great idea.  I also ordered a cake from Classic Cakes in Carmel, which was FABULOUS!  It was white cake (dyed green) with raspberry innards.  Mmmmm!!

On Friday, I went to Meijer after work to get the groceries.  Now, I know I am a fanatic when it comes to hot dogs, but I have never bought cocktail weenies.  Actually, I can honestly say my parents had NEVER made pigs-in-a-blankets before.  (This is a bit shocking, I know).  I didn’t know where to go to find those ‘lil weenies.  So yeah, I went to the canned meat aisle and bought some Vienna sausages.  I mean, they are small, and weiners, and ummm yeah.  I called Emily and Tim and left a message for both.  Thankfully, Tim eventually called me back to tell me I was an idiot, and instructed me on finding the weenies.  What would I do without him?  I had already planned to have a “Mini-Charlie Sheen” theme since he has lost his damn mind lately.  I found some awesome cards on Tiny Prints that have Sheen as a leprechaun who is surrounded by his two Goddesses in the form of a sheep.  I served grasshoppers since they are green and googled my new favorite drink: Tiger’s Blood!  This was a huge hit with the women.  Cranberry + Raspberry flavored vodka = heaven!  I looked for shirts with Charlie’s head on them, but alas, I was unable to find any.

On Saturday, we had amazing weather in Indy!  It was very windy, but we didn’t have to wear a coat!  I wanted to put out the deck furniture, but it probably would have blown away.  The one awesome thing about our parties is that some people make it even if they live far away.  My favorite house guests are Gino and his girlfriend, Jen, who live in Ft. Wayne.  I still find it hilarious that I met Gino at my first job and he was frat brothers at IU with Matt.  He is by far one of the funniest people I have ever met anyway, so I am always excited to hang out with them.  His girlfriend is a peach!  I wish they lived closer to us so we could see them more often.  They are throwing a party in July, and I hope we can make it.

Of course Eric was planning on getting plowed too.  He just had his birthday last week, so he already called the guest bedroom.  I knew I wanted to include our Kinect since lots of people had never played it.  What is gold?  That’s right – drinking, dancing like idiots, and Whiskey dressed like a leprechaun.  (And he was a huge hit per usual!)  I was excited both Albin and Rowsey could make the party.  Unfortunately, Rowsey didn’t show up until about 3 hours into the party, and Albin and Jordie had already left.  I had told Eric that Rowsey was coming, and she was the only single girl there.  You never know when people will hit it off.  He’s a goofball, and she likes goofballs, so it could have worked.  WRONG.  Eric got slammed, and when he went up to talk to her, he kind of yelled in her face, “YOU ARE 3 FUCKING HOURS LATE!” and he took her phone out of her hand.  I was like, hmmm… smooth.  About 15 minutes later, he did end up vomiting green.  The whole vomit scenario was pretty funny since Matt took care of him and we just heard Matt ask bizarre questions like, “Eric, you’re my friend, right?  Then why would you want to fuck up my house and puke in my sink?”  Then 2 seconds later I just heard him scream, “GET ON YOUR KNEES!”  Matt was either making him his prison bitch or Eric was vomiting while standing straight up.  Ahhh… to be 24 and a rookie.

I almost forgot- my mom called me around 11:45 to check on the party.  I told her things were going well.  “Ok, well I am coming over.”  Ummm?  I hung up the phone and was walking down the stairs, and she just walked into the house!  So she had called me while standing on my front porch.  My mom is so bizarre.  She always likes to check on the guests to make sure nobody is about to die of alcohol poisoning or drive home drunk.  Of course, Eric is drunk and sees her and starts running up to her and saying, “Let me give you a lap dance!”  Yeah, ummm mortifying for everyone.  My mom just started yelling jibberish probably in Tagalog, and Eric just replied, “You don’t know me… you don’t know me.”  (Sidenote, she totally called on Sunday and said “You tell Eric I do know his name, and I like him when he is sober.”  Shame by Redempta, Buuuurrrrnnn!)

The Kinect was a gigantic hit.  I had little party bags for the best boy and girl dancer.  We had a fun dance off, and Jen A. won the girls round (and won a “Kiss Me, I’m Irish!” shirt, Lucky underwear, Wuthering Heights as a book on tape, Thin Mints, and 2 cans of Vienna Sausages.)  For some reason, most of the girls didn’t want to compete.  The boys on the other hand were completely different.  They ALL wanted to compete.

Now I love Dr. Tim very much.  He is my bestest friend in the entire world.  Ok, get it?  I love him…. BUT the boy is a terrible dancer.  I can remember watching him drop Bethany at the Cactus many years ago while dancing.  He is good at the picking up part, but dancing… it is quite humorous!  Well, the Kinect is a machine and not sentient, so of course, Tim would win the prize.  God, I love him.  He cracks me up.  I love this video!

Memorable Quotes of the Weekend:

Me:  ”I heard The Adjustment Bureau was good, but the person who saw it described it as a reverse Adam & Eve story… what the fuck is that supposed to mean?”

Gino:  ”The world is destroyed and two people are left and they force feed a snake an apple!”

**

“Sure Eric is cute, but how about that one?”

“Umm…. I think he is 18.  Like a freshman in college.  And he’s the DD.  Jesus.”

**

“Tell that girl to go fuck a dead horse!”

“MOTHER! WHA…??”

**

“PHIL! PHIL! PHIL!” *chanting to get Phil in on the dancing.

**Seconds later** “Umm, Phil is doing what we call the “Phil Snap!”

**

“I dance like I’m black, watch!”

“I’m brown and watch me fuck!”

**

“Let’s take pictures of our penises on her camera!  That will teach her to leave it here!”

“You have the only brown penis.  She will know who it was who started it!”

Again, another successful party.  Hopefully for the quarterly Gualdoni party this summer we can convince PARTY MARTY to return!!  This would be EPIC!  And now I leave you with a picture of me stealing Rowsey’s tiara of awesome!  Can’t wait for the next party!!  See more pictures and videos here!

Welcome to 29

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Happy New Year to all of my friends and family that keep up with my blog!  2011 is here and has so far made a name for itself in only 10 short days.  New Year’s Eve usually consists of a party with Tim and Molly or Jeff & Dana, but things went a bit differently this year.  The temperatures outside were a delicious 60 degrees, so we barbecued ribeye steaks, drank pink champagne, and watched loads of television.  We finished Spartacus: Blood and Sand, which was actually bittersweet.  I have wanted to watch that show since its inception, but I had heard that Lucy Lawless (my teenage heroine) is pretty much naked and getting the business in every episode.  I can’t see that without being extremely uncomfortable.  I will say it matches the feeling of watching your older, respectable sister having sex.  No No No No.

After that, we watched Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve (which was super sad as always!) and just went to bed.  My birthday was funny.  My mom bought me an ice cream cake for some crazy reason.  I do like ice cream and I like cake, but I like the entities separate.  She also bought me a super hero t-shirt for sleeping with DC comic characters on it.  Umm?  Mom?  I’m a MARVEL girl and have been since I was 11.  Oh well, she tried.  She also got me a lot of dish towels.  After she left, Matt said, “Man, you get lousy gifts from your parents.”  Ha, don’t I know it.  I know people who get epic presents and I always got practical presents.  I learned early it is not about presents but practicality or creativity.  Matt then took me to Maggiano’s, which is the place we went after we got married at the courthouse.  Sangiovese wasn’t open yet, so we had an enormous birthday lunch.

Things I accomplished in 2010

- For the first time ever, I exceeded my goal to read at least 25 books.  I finished 39 books.  I’d say that is quite a feat considering people hardly read anymore.

- I travelled a LOT!  In one year I visited Seattle, Chicago (twice!), Boston, and Carbondale, IL.  I really like getting out there and seeing new places and hope to do the same this year!

- We bought my dream house, which has been so great.  I can’t believe we’ve almost lived here for a solid year.  At this time last year, we were getting our finances in order to make the move.  I can’t imagine not being right here!

- I paid off 2 credit cards!  Only about 5 to go!

Now The Bad Things of 2010

- After my wedding in 11/09, I pretty much stopped working out.  I ate whatever I wanted and did whatever I wanted.  I work in a laid-back office, which is awesome, but the clothes aren’t the tight ones I would wear before.  There is a difference on fitness when you know you can wear jeans and a sweat shirt every day.  This is bad.

- I have pretty much stopped shooting the shit with people.  Sure, I am very outgoing and have loads of friends, but I come from the stock of having only a few great friends in your pocket who you treat like a sister.  After the debacle of my wedding, I gave up on people I really don’t like anymore.  Is that bad?  I’ve been saying it for years, “Shit or Get Off The Pot.”  Well, I’m off the pot now and no longer give a fuck I suppose.  We’re older.  I’m older and crankier.  I’m becoming my father.  Sue me.  He doesn’t have any friends and is perfectly happy.  Words to Live by I guess.

New Year’s Resolutions?  Sure!  They have been the same for the past 7 years.  Except for #4.  I got that one completely out of my system.  Thank God.

I did buy myself a copy of “Tracy Anderson’s 30-Day Method: The Weight Loss Kick Start That Makes Perfection Possible.”  I’m a celebrity magazine junkie (ok just People) and have heard of Tracy Anderson before as being the trainer behind Gwyneth Paltrow’s willowy frame and Madonna’s strong arms.  When I bought the book, I couldn’t stop staring at the cover since she looked SO DAMN FAMILIAR.  I even said that to Matt.  ”She looks so familiar to me for some reason.”  I got home and started reading right away.  Then BOOM Chapter 2.  Apparently, Tracy Anderson is from NOBLESVILLE!  Right away, I jumped onto Google to check her out.  A few years ago, there was hubbub of her training center that just mysteriously closed and swindled a lot of people out of thousands of dollars.  (I’m talking like Peyton’s wife, the Indiana first lady, and Nancy George who is the owner of my favorite knitting store from Indy 500 money).

After I read that, I called the one true Noblesville historian who knows all, my Dad.

Me:  ”Did you know who she was?”

Dad:  ”Yup she knows me.  She’s an idiot.”

After reading how she swindled people and went to jail, I had to believe that.  I love how my Dad said, “She knows me” as if that is truly the important part of the conversation.  So this means I am 2-steps away from Shakira, Gwyneth, Madonna, and J. Lo.  That is awesome.

In another bizarre note, my cousin, Shad, dated her younger sister for many years in high school.  It is a small world I tell you.  Oh, and her workout is FIERCE and painful.  I did it 2 hours ago and I still feel sore.  It is going to be a tough 30 days.  Scottsdale update soon!

Vamoose Sonuvabitch!

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Gobble Gobble Gobble.  I am a MAJOR turkey weight right now.  It was so worth it though!  I had a very relaxing and wonderful weekend!  The break started off right with Assassins Creed: Brotherhood reaching my house just in time!  I love that game, and I was curious to see how it would shape up after the bizarro ending of Assassin’s Creed 2.  So far, I love it!  I’m not very far yet.

Thanksgiving is all about family traditions, good friends, and food.  Since our marriage, I have prepared the big dinner by myself.  Last year Tim and Molly came over and this year it was just Gualdoni and me.  It was very easy, and nothing went wrong, which is a feat in itself.  On Friday, I went Black Friday shopping with Emily.  We didn’t do anything drastic, and we encountered no real lines either.  We hit up T.J. Maxx (and I am SOOO buying a new comforter there soon!), Best Buy for boy gifts, and Knit Stop so she could pick the yarn for her hat.  She also MADE me go to the dreaded Babies ‘R Us.  Seriously, that place just scares the bejesus out of me.  There was CRAZY music playing (not Christmas themed!) that you would hear in a suspense movie.  I looked at the cribs and other miscellaneous baby things just to gauge how expensive the stuff is since none of my friends have reproduced yet.  Let’s just say I’ve got awhile to save for a bambino.  They’re not CHEAP! 

Later that night, Emily came over and so did Tim.  We all watched the movie, “The Maiden Heist,” which wasn’t the best or worst movie I have ever seen.  We then decided to play drunk Rock Band with my wigs on.  Who knew Tim was so lovely looking?  The beard and the Gwen Stefani-inspired wig will definitely improve his looks.  Tim cracks me up!  I can’t wait for next weekend where we will go to Mills and Tina’s Ugly Christmas Sweater party.  I’m sure Redempta has some gems. 

On Saturday, we were originally planning on going to the Oaken Bucket football game to visit the Wolperts, but that fell through.  Instead, we went up to Fort Wayne to visit Gualdoni’s family.  His aunt was in town from Cleveland.  She is a hoot.  We did the usual of lunch and hanging out.  We also went furniture shopping with Gualdoni’s parents.  Most of the night, we watched Whiskey play with Erin’s new puppy, Tater Tot.  Yes, she named her dog Tater Tot.  The dog actually responds as well.  It is quite humorous.  Whiskey didn’t like her at the beginning but then warmed up towards the end. 

Sunday was supposed to be low-key but then morphed into insanity.  We went to Fry’s Electronics to finish up on shopping.  Yes, we go there all the time, and yes, I still manage to lose Gualdoni within the wall-to-wall technical gizmos and gadgets.  After 30 minutes of being separated as I was clutching an arm full of stuff, I saw Gualdoni right where he was supposed to scream.  I screamed, “WHERE THE FUCK HAVE YOU BEEN?” and a man NOT Gualdoni turned around and stared at me scared.  Put it this way, Week#3 is here, and I needed to leave that moment.  A security guard was walking towards me and I bolted.  Great, they think I escaped the insane asylum. 

After that, we went to my old workplace of Godby Home Furnishings to look at new furniture.  We are in desperate need of new couches in our basement.  What we have are hand-me downs and not acceptable.  We ended up getting a lovely sectional on sale.  I’m excited for it. 

So yeah, spent a lot of money, so a lot of people, and scared 1 too many. 

I managed to snag a copy of the new Rihanna and Jay-Z’s Greatest Hits for myself.  I also had to Urban Dictionary what H.O.V.A. stands for.  I have been wondering that for years but have always been unable to find out.  I was hoping it stood for something really cool.  Guess not.

“I am fire and life incarnate! Now and forever — I am Phoenix!”

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Yes, yes, yes!  Halloween is almost here, and I am super excited!  I don’t have any party plans as of yet, but this will be the first year we’ll have Trick-or-Treaters come by the house.  Last weekend, I went to Party City to look for favors for Gualdoni’s 30th birthday bash.  They always have wall-to-wall decorations and costumes right before Halloween (plus they are super close to my house and nowadays that is half the battle).  I am always looking for fun costumes to wear while cleaning the house or freaking out the neighbors. I found a PERFECT costume for me, which was the Lady GaGa Poker Face costume.  I could wear my solar shields, and BOOM… perfect!  Unfortunately, it was out of stock, so I couldn’t buy it.  The wig was fantastic though, and I may just go back and buy that bad boy.  I have been dieting hardcore, so I feel better than I probably look.  Essentially, this is just a glorified swim suit.  I wonder if I could wear it to the pool?  Heck, I wonder if I could wear it while walking the dog.

Costumed freaks make me happy, I suppose.  My favorite thing about Purdue was Breakfast Club, and I can recall getting my tuition check and buying my B-Club costumes first thing.  Sure, some people would go to Goodwill and make things work, but not me.   I wanted to make an entrance.  I felt that if I stood out, I would get better service and all of campus would talk about me.  One B-Club I wore an Asian hat, an asymmetrical Bacardi-O shirt, and a cape.  The only good thing resulting in this travesty of a costume was an asymmetrical sunburn and fun pictures with the Hamburglar. (Damn, I was skinny.  Depression diet, I miss you.)

My best costume is actually the most frightening.  I went as my teenage hero, Xena: Warrior Princess.  Sure, I looked feminine and awesome at the beginning of B-Club, but I turned quite mannish and hideous as the morning went on.  Breanne went as Trinity from The Matrix, and Nikki borrowed my Bacardi-O shirt and went as a Bacardi-O girl.  It didn’t help that on that very same Breakfast Club outing, some dude decided to wear the same exact costume as me.  People kept coming up to me thinking I was him.  Sure, its funny for the first 5 minutes.  As the morning continued, I just wanted to curl up and die.  Eventually, I threw away my precious Xena costume.  So sad.  I still don’t get how that guy fit into the dress part.  It was so itchy.  Today I have been looking for the best deals on the Lady GaGa costume when I saw….IT!  It was as if my childhood/ teenage/ adult wishes and fantasies finally came true!  That’s right!  Marvel FINALLY released a Jean Grey/ Phoenix costume!!!  Sure, it’s a combination of Jean’s Marvel Girl get-up with the iconic Phoenix spandex one-piece, but it is beautiful.  Gold boots, phoenix emblem, gold gloves… SQUEE!!!!!!  Now I am on the look-out for a beautiful red wig.  Granted, I have nowhere to wear this amazing costume, so I guess I better start asking around for a Halloween party.  Hell, I might just wear this EVERY DAY FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE.

Seriously, I love Marvel.  More and more every day.

Now time to go eat a planet.  Ciao!

AMERICA!

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ahhh Americana!  I absolutely love July 4th, and I’ll even say it is most definitely my favorite holiday!  Hell, it seems like FOREVER since I’ve had a real substantial update on things going on.  Right now, Gualdoni is working 2nd shift (which is from 2pm-11pm) and then he has an hour drive commute back home.  Technically, I don’t see him unless I stay up to talk to him for a few golden moments.  It isn’t so bad since I have had a lot of things going on at home and with friends.  First of all, my parents got a new puppy on Father’s Day.  We got him from the paper, and he is a Miniature Australian Shepherd.  Charlie’s 1st real dog, and the dog adores him.  His name is Brody, and he is very lovable.  He doesn’t sleep in Charlie’s bed but will instead sleep in the bathroom above the vent.  Crazy little guy.
On top of that, I have been spending a lot of time with my old friend, Emily.  She is going through a divorce, so every Tuesday each week, I cook her a nice homemade dinner.  I should say “attempt” since I fucked up tacos last week, (which I know I will never, EVER live down.  Jesus, even inept Breanne can make tacos.  I am ashamed).  It has been nice having someone else to have fun with.  Other than that, I have been a real homebody (just like I like to be) and bring Whiskey to my parents or have Brody come over here to run in our backyard.  Whiskey likes Brody for the most part, but he is a big bully.
Totally unrelated, but I have become majorly obsessed once again with X-men statues.  I blame my comic book guy, Pete, for getting me re-hooked on these small Marvel figurines made from lead.  They come from England, and they are nice display pieces.  They remind me of the old X-men board game I used to have as a child.  I’ll never forget painting all of the figures.  (This was back when I was obsessed with becoming a toy maker… ummm I can’t paint within lines to begin with so this was a short-term obsession.)  I did get a STEAL for 2 X-men statue busts of Jean Grey and Wolverine for under $25.  I am a little sad I had to sell my previous 2 favorite Phoenix statues, but I remember how badly I needed the money.  Maybe I’ll buy them again soon without the stigma of “statue-buying-lust.”
As for the 4th, Gualdoni and I went to Tim & Molly’s house on the 3rd for a fun night filled with games, drinking, and great food!  I don’t know what it is about Tim’s house, but I ALWAYS fall asleep there.  I must be really comfortable or something, ha.  On the actual 4th, we didn’t have any plans, so we invited my parents over.  I made my famous potato salad, and Gualdoni grilled.  My parents love his food, especially Charlie.  Brody and Whiskey played around in the backyard too.  When it got dark, we did Charlie’s amateur fireworks and were delighted when people at our neighboring pool started doing the BIG illegal fireworks.  Then, our other neighbors did other huge fireworks in the lot behind our house.  We never have to go see fireworks ever again.  It was wonderful.  The only bad part?  While we were lighting our “finale,” Gualdoni stumbled backwards and landed in our crazy rosebush.  He was eviscerated by many a thorn.  I couldn’t help him since the fireworks were going off right next to his face.  Eek!  He was ok thank goodness!

As for the rest of the summer, I am going to Tom Petty this weekend, and I hope I get to see Christian.  I haven’t seen him in years.  He was always one of my best friends in college.  We went through a lot together back then.  He always had my back.  As for NEXT WEEK, we’ve got LADY GAGA which will be FUCKING EPIC.  I have my outfit ready, and now I just need to break in my shoes.  I got a cheap hotel deal on Hotwire.com, so I am super ready to be GAGAed!  I also hope to see Nikki some point next week while she is here.  I won’t hold my breath though since she is now an Aunt.  Oh well, I would love to get her on the phone regardless.
After that, I’ve got Chicago the last week in July and Boston the second week of August.  This summer has been the best in a very long time.
My Lady Gaga costume from Just Dance
Song of the Moment:  V.V. Brown – Shark In The Water