phyncke

Hello to all who are still reading LJ. I am trying to figure out of the LOTR challenge is happening for the end of the summer — the Sultry in September thing. It is getting on in the summer so it is too late for Ardor in August. Does anyone know what is happening with that? I am really in the mood to write something and would love a good prompt to do. So let me know if you know anything. I have been looking forward to this.

In other news — I had a nice time in Vegas. I go there to relax and do the resort thing and eat good food. So that is pretty much what I did there. I don't gamble or anything crazy like that. I don't really even drink much. I had my one margarita at the Mirage Hotel Bar and really enjoyed that. I literally have one drink a year. LOL. We had BBQ and Thai Food and then cooked some food in the room. Due to problems with our suite, I was able to negotiate a serious discount with the hotel and we saved some money there. So that was all good. I love saving money. Minor inconveniences at hotels can turn into major savings on your bill. Keep track of that stuff and ask for money off at check out. It will pay off.

Anyhoo. Work is going well and that is just a thing. I am a little bored with it but we have a new VP and I really like her a lot. She does good things for the world and has a nice way about her. I am looking forward to seeing the changes that she will make for our division. She has good mojo.

I am watching this debate and find myself getting really annoyed at the state of American politics. I can't help but feel that the Democrats could really blow it in the next election. Not sure where this feeling is coming from but it is just a feeling. I don't like Biden...I am tired of the Bernie bro's texting me and I have no idea how they got my number...I do like Warren and feel like she has solid plans and is smart enough to do the job. I don't know about the rest of them.

Anyhoo. That is about all I have right now and this got much longer than I thought it would.

Made a new banner and icon for my Spring layout. I have been really into these mandala graphics I found on pinterest so I made this one. I love the colors and find them soothing and refreshing. Loads of fun. So click in and check it out if you want.

Things are good with me today. I am having a good day so far. I motivated and took a walk up to the hills in Berkeley - it is about a 40 - 60 minute walk and then I rewarded myself with pancakes and turkey bacon. Yum. Had some real maple syrup with my pancakes. Love that. Love me some real maple syrup. I am trying to further motivate to clean my apartment here but that is not going so well. This post is my procrastination 101 on that. Clean? No, think I will write a blog post. LOL.

Work went well this Spring. My events were successful but I am not all that excited about my job. I do the same events every year and sort of dial it in. I need to revamp my resume and cover letter and get on the job market and see if there is anything out there that would be more fun and interesting. I could coast but that is no fun and I would love more money. Anyhoo. I will work on that. I have a friend at work who can do some graphical redesign on my resume. So will have that done and see how I do. Plan 1.

I have some travel coming up - well vacation plans. <lj user=khylea> is coming in for a Bay Area vacation the end of May. We will do fun stuff around here. There is a lot to do here so that will be fun. Then the end of June - I am going to New Hampshire to visit my family - parents, niece and sis-in-law. Then in July I do the Vegas thing - with the gals. So that will all be fun. Gotta have some fun. I ran through all my pts on SW so my free travel is all done now. Oh well - it was good while it lasted.

I am now a Lifetime member of Weight Watchers. I no longer have to pay but I still go to meetings. I am still tracking my food on the app and still really doing the program for now. I am going to keep with it for now. I don't feel ready to relax just yet. I want to see how this maintenance is and make sure I don't slip. I really worked too hard to get this weight off to let it come back on because I did not watch it. I have the feeling I might always have to watch it. It is a slippery slope. From what I see on the FB WW communities - it is really easy to gain the weight back. Harder to lose and easy to gain it back so I am really not wanting to go there again. I like how I am now and want to stay this way for good. So that is that - vigilance.

Oh hey - I am listening to James Comey's book - A Higher Loyalty - it is about a whole lot more than Donald Trump. Comey has had a really interesting career and his perspective is very interesting. I recommend this just for that. I have not even gotten to the Trump stuff and found this totally worth it for info on the case work he did alone. Of course Trump has to call Comey a "slime ball". Well - James Comey is not a slime ball - he is really intelligent, diligent and interesting - just about the antithesis of DJT. I still don't agree with Comey's moves on Hillary Clinton but hope to understand more about why he did that.

Anyway - that is what I am up to. Today it is a beautiful Spring day in the Bay Area - sunny and warm and the flowers are out. I potted up some zinnia's last weekend and hope those bloom nicely through the summer. Hope all is well with you in your part of the world.
Cheers.

Summer is here - we have made it past Memorial Day and it is on. I guess I have not updated since then so here is what I did for that weekend. We (J*** and I) - went down to Santa Cruz for that weekend, well the Sunday and Monday part of it and hung around. It was totally crowded as that is a big weekend for a beach town and there was traffic everywhere. We stayed at one of the hotels just off the beach and hung out with N*** and D***. Had good food and enjoyed the ambiance of the vacation town. It took a while to get everywhere but that was not too bad.

Work is coming along. My projects are coming together so that is good. I am getting everything scheduled with some vendors and so that works out. People were unresponsive for a while but now I have heard from everyone and able to put together the timeline. All good.

I have some trips coming up this summer - so that is exciting - I am doing the following -

June - Los Angeles - To visit my brother and his wife
July - Las Vegas - vacation with the girls
August - Manchester, NH - family visit and visit with childhood friend

So that will be eventful. Other things I want to do - I would like to start a regular exercise program and control my sugar intake a little better. I have a bit of a habit. So I would like to get better on those two things. Small changes would be good.

I went to the produce mart today and they had Rainier cherries. I was so excited about that - those are my favorite. Good price too. I carefully chose the ones I wanted. :P Got some asparagus and tomorrow I will have a nice dinner - got a good steak at the butcher .

I want to go through my clothes today and weed out some things to put on consignment. I have lots of things I don't wear. So that will be good. I went to the consignment store yesterday and they said they could use some plus sized things so I thought my clothes would work there.

So this is a bit of a ramble. That is about all I have. I will sign off for now. Hope all is well with you in your part of the world.

Cheers.


www.laurahonest.com

Here I am. I have worked myself into exhaustion and sickness. I am resting this weekend to try and get ready for next week which is going to be a bear of a week with trainings and events prep. It is craziness. That is what they pay me for. We are getting a 3 percent raise - oh boy - this month and it is retro to July so that is a little something. I don't think that even covers the cost of living.

Next month I am going to Seattle to visit khylea. We will do fun activities like go to a hockey game - go to the beach and use the group ons that we have purchased at bargain prices. I am really looking forward to it and will need the time off.

Thanksgiving is coming right around the whatever there too. I will be here in town and celebrating with friends here. My friend R*** is coming in from Vegas and then J*** will be here. We will watch movies and have a good time. The kid will be home from UCSC. So that will be all fun.

I am just posting in to say hello to everyone and let you know I have been reading along in the blog-o-sphere. Hope everyone is well there in your part of the world.

Cheers to you.






by laurahonest on livejournal.com

Oy vey. I am turning 50 this week and I don't feel old but forces conspire to make me feel old. The AARP is sending me membership letters and such. I am feeling great but if I keep getting these mailings - I will be old before my time. It is ridiculous. Offers for term life insurance and other ridiculousness. How do I get off these mailing lists?!

I am doing well. I am going to Los Angeles this week to see my family. My parents will be in town and I will get my annual visit with them done so that I don't have to travel during the holidays and my brother has won and award at UCLA so we are celebrating that. Along with my 50th birthday. Wootles. It is such a milestone. I am doing fine with it really. Half a century. Wowie Maui.

Happy birthday to me!


by brutal

I am off to NH tomorrow. I took vacation to go help my parents move from their apartment to a much better house. This is a house that will be better suited to their elder years and afford them safety. I am really happy that they are moving and the point of my going is to help them go through their stuff before they pack etc. Fun fun fun. I told my mom that my only recompense is that I want a lobster dinner, lol. That will suit me just fine. Heh.

I have just caught up on LJ and read back. My thoughts on Robin Williams death are complex. I have followed him since his early stand up days - before Mork and Mindy - I had his comedy vinyl and had it totally memorized. - Reality, what a concept. He was a brilliant man and the details of his death are very sad. I prefer to remember him for the joy and talent that he brought to all of us.

Work is going well. I have a new boss - the verdict is out on her but I am helping her get acclimated. My co-workers are not very happy about her but I am being open minded and giving her the info she needs to get up to speed. I would want people to help me if I was in a new position.

Anyhoo. I am flying into Boston tomorrow and then driving up to NH with my sister in law. I will be scarce for a while.

Be well.

Hey hey there - I have not posted in a while. Not much going on with me really - work is happening and kind of boring. I am looking at another job that is more in line with my training. I am going to apply for that next week. Make no mention of that on FB, please. Keep it secret and for LJ/DW only. They have me doing a whole bunch of crap at my current job - kind of a kitchen sink thing - so I would like more of a focused event planner thing really. I think I can get it. This whole transition shift is not making me happy.

I am going to Los Angeles tomorrow - I fly in the morning. Tomorrow night we are going to the Hollywood Bowl and seeing something and the fireworks. I have never been to that before so that should be fun. My brothers will be there, their wives and my niece. So all sorts of fun. Saturday afternoon we are doing a paintball war. This has me both excited and worried. I have definitely never done this before and it is long - goes on for 5 hours. I am a little worried because one of my brothers has some hard core military experience so he will be really good at this. He will likely pick us all off and win the game. Anyway. Could be fun or could be a disaster. I am getting all this gear. I just hope the place is air conditioned. LA is way hotter than the Bay Area.

Saturday morning I am seeing <lj user=aglarien1> for brunch. We are going to our usual place near my hotel. Fun will be had. Yays!



by debi_i_am on livejournal

Off to NH tomorrow. I don't think I will be on the computer much. Trying to rest my shoulder from an injury. Be goooood!


by laurahonest on livejournal.com

I am off to Los Angeles to visit with my brothers (2), their wives, my niece and her friend. I leave tomorrow night. I will be seeing aglarien1 on Saturday - woot. Fun will be had.

LA Skyline

by lotrangel17>