Ahhhhhhhh-lympics

The Olympics were everything I expected them to be an so much more!

Really. I mean that.

We decided (as suggested by the Olympic website) to park and take the train into Vancouver.

Let me just say I am so glad that I got to go to the Olympics in Canada. All of the volunteers were incredibly nice, friendly and helpful even if you didn't ask a question. We were walking around Vancouver and I said something along the lines of "We're going to this street, it's three or four blocks ahead." And a nice volunteer in a bright blue jacket that was waiting next to us at the red light to cross the street said, "Yes! You're right!"

I wasn't lost, nor was I even asking a question. But it was nice that he was there to reassure me that I was correct in my journey. Sometimes when you're traveling in a not too familiar place it's comforting to know you're doing it right.

Anyway, back to the Olympics. We rode the train for free. Originally we were worried that since we had our tickets through Will Call that we'd be asked by a conductor or something to see them while we were on the train since public transportation was supposed to be free for any ticket-holders.

As far as we could tell the entire public transportation system seemed to be on the honors system. It was crazy! Only in Canada, right? Anyone could ride for free since no one was checking for tickets but there were still people purchasing them at the station when we got there. Crazy Canadians, that would never work in NYC.

An RCMP at the station told us that the arena was a few blocks from the other train station and we could walk it or take a shuttle. It was starting to rain so we opted for the shuttle.

Let me just go on the record for saying that I love the whole design aesthetic and color choice for the Vancouver games. Really. The blues and greens were beautifully combined in multiple murals and enclosures as we arrived at the venue.

We got through security and immediately had some Molsons. They had added extra bathroom facilities to the arena so when we decided to make a pit stop we walked into the bathroom and were met with a tent. It was so interesting. The bathroom door was really a door to the outside of the arena and you entered this semi-permanent tent they had attached to the building full of port-o-potties. And these were classy port-o-potties, you could actually fit in them. I was impressed.

Cutest little Zamboni ever!

Then we got to our seats and watched the venue fill up slowly. The officials were selecting the rocks and the maintenance crew was watering and smoothing the ice. It was wildly entertaining to watch the little Zamboni go up and down the ice.

Then the event began and the crowd was intense. There were probably about 30 Swedish fans in the entire arena. All the rest were Canadians with a sprinkling of random countries like the US.

We were surrounded by Canadian curling fans. And let me tell you, the know their curling. The lady sitting behind Dan and Julianne spent a little time narrating what was going on so they got it. And the two gentlemen sitting behind Jason and I were discussing the entire match's strategy. They were all super nice.

I got cold, so I used the flag as a blanket.

Medal ceremony.

All in all. GREATEST TRIP EVER. Really. I had so much fun. The Canadians were so nice and accommodating and really just the perfect Olympic Hosts.

Plus I got to ring my cowbell like nobody's business!!!

DPF: MLP

Ummm...this quite possibly is the most amazing thing I've ever seen.

I know it's not technically a Dance Party Friday but I dare you not to laugh.



My favorite parts:

1. MLP1 goes nuts and starts breaking down the set.
2. MLP-Alpheba hops up on the little tiny incline for the last part of the song.
   
3. MLP-Glinda comes out of nowhere for her last line.

Today we're seeing Curling!!!! More posts to come when I get home :)

Vancouver, eh?

Got an early start and packed the car. Including Dan's American flag that flew over the Capitol so we could (as Dan put it) represent our country. Before we left Dan demanded that everyone take out their passports and wave them around so he could see them.

We had a little bit of a drama about the passports. Back in August when I visited Jason in VA and we booked our flights for this trip I told him that he needed to get a passport since it's mandatory for travel into Canada now.

I didn't really think anything of it until a month ago when Dan randomly reminded me that we need passports for our trip. So I called Jason and asked him if he had ever applied for one and of course since he's a Koala he hadn't. Basically he had to pay the extra money to get it in 2-4 weeks instead of 4-6 weeks and he had to run around and miss part of a day of work to do it. He's special, but I love him.

Anyway, I asked Dan to wave around his passport too, since he was demanding we did. Is nice, no?

It took us a little over an hour to get up to the border and we went straight through, making sure to switch the car's computer to kilometers so we weren't speeding through Canada.

The Peace Arch

We drove straight up to Vancouver and decided to park and wander around after we picked up the tickets. There were people everywhere. We wandered over to the mall because the Olympic Superstore was there and we wanted to do some shopping. After searching around a bit we finally found it but you had to go out of the mall to enter the area. They literally had the store blocked off with traffic barriers.

Dan: You know, this isn't the Berlin wall. We can just jump over it, it's not like they have machine guns or anything.
Canadian guy behind us: *laughs at Dan's choice words*
Me: Shut up Dan, we're representing our country. No international incidents, remember?

Our father's one rule for our trip was not to cause any international incidents that might bring shame to our family or our country.

After giving up on the line that was two blocks long just to get into the Superstore, we wandered up to Stanley Park. Dan missed the first turn into the parking lot for the totem poles and I'm kind of glad he did because we pulled off into another parking lot near the Olympic Rings.

It was pretty. And we made it over to the totem park a few minutes later. I knew from the last trip I'd taken to Vancouver with my parents that there was a little gift shop next to the totem poles and I was hoping they'd have some of the Olympic merchandise we were looking for without the lines we saw downtown.

There was absolutely no line, and spent a good hour picking out Olympic paraphernalia and gifts to bring home to people. The ladies there are super nice and incredibly helpful. I recommend doing any Vancouver-related shopping there. They have a beautiful collection of aboriginal art, I brought a print home for my parents to add to their collection.

Those red mittens were everywhere!

After our shopping spree we drove a little further north up to Capilano. I really wanted Jason to see the Capilano Suspension Bridge and Julibean hadn't been there yet either. We had a lot of fun wandering through the trees. And I think we all enjoyed ourselves immensely.

Enjoying the view from the bridge.

Classic.

The closest we got to a Mountie.

We spent the night in a hotel in Chilliwack which was about an hour east of Vancouver. It was the cheapest thing we could find for the night that didn't seem really sketchy. It was pretty nice.

Tomorrow:

• Gold Medalist Women's Curling!!!
  

More West Coast Shenanigans

Today was quite the full day. Jason and I went over to Bob's to look at a few couches and dining room sets. We liked one of the couches but they didn't have anything in the country kitchen kind of genre I want for a dining room set. (More on this later).

Then the three of us hopped on our JetBlue flight out to Seattle and we were greeted at the airport by Dan. I haven't seen Dan since Jaclyn's wedding since he couldn't come home for Christmas this year. I've missed Dan.

We killed some time at Ikea and Jason and I fought over tables. He's super picky...even more picky than I am about really odd things. (Again, more on this later).

Met Dan's friend Christina for Pho. We love Pho, if you haven't had it, what the hell are you waiting for? Just make sure you save me some bean sprouts!

Jason had a little spill at the condiment counter.

We hung out around the house and packed our bags for Canada. And now we're just enjoying catching up a little bit with Dan.

Tomorrow's agenda:

1. Drive to Vancouver to pick up tickets from Will Call Office.
2. Stanley Park!
3. Capilano Suspension Bridges.
   

Today's the Day!

Today we get on our flight out of JFK and head for Seattle. I'm super excited.

I get to see my brudder.

I get to ring my cowbell.

I get to go to the huge-ass Ikea.

AND I get to eat Pho.

Where can you go wrong with a day like that?

Kittie Cafe

Just had to share this with all of you.

Mostly Ashley, but seriously, it's hilarious anyway.

I especially love the Cat Menu.

Manjoyment Monday: Light of my Life

Twelve years ago I fell for someone.

I'm not quite sure what it was, but there was just that X-factor. Was it his huge smile? His quiet concentration? The damn soul patch on his chin? I'm not sure I'll ever know the answer.



I'm almost positive it has something to do with the fact he is an Olympian seeing as although I was excited he got to spend some time in the limelight away from speed skating when he was on Dancing with the Stars I just couldn't get into that as much as my face is glued to the television when he's skating. There's something ethereal about the way he moves. (Yeah I went there.)

He tied Bonnie Blair for the most Olympic Speed Skating Medals. He's secured his name in the record books and deep in the cockles of my heart.

Many have joined the bandwagon in loving this man but I among the silly Rock posters, clippings of that blue alien dude from the Walkman has landed ads, and photos torn out of Sports Illustrated of Mike Piazza, I had one sole photo on my wall of Apolo ages ago.

Ours is a long enduring love.

(I know, I'm a sick sad person.)

Krazy Koalas

Jason is fortunate enough to have a large incredibly loving family. His father Joe is the oldest of 6 children (all J-names) and all of the sibblings except one has anywhere from 2-3 children themselves. Suffice to say Jason has more than double the first cousins I do.

My family is huge on my mother's side, but they are all second cousins. I mean, I totally win in that department but we're talking 9 first cousins. And they are all pretty close and grew up together.

All of the cousins + one cousin's baby.

I am fortunate enough to have the Koalas as a surrogate family. I adore Jason's family and I can't wait to (eventually) be part of it.

They are all fun, exciting people who just enjoy life and the company of their friends and family. What more could you ask for?

Well they are also very supportive during hard times. I got to see this first hand this weekend when all the Koalas gathered together to pay their last respects to Grandpa Joe.

I'd only ever met Grandpa Joe a handful of times. By the time I regularly visited the family in New Hampshire he was no longer living with Jason's family and instead was in an assisted living home nearby. So I never spent a whole lot of time with the man but he seemed pleasant when I did interact with him. I had to respect a man who helped raise six children on a shoestring budget and served in the AirForce as well. Alls I can say is they don't make them like that anymore.

Jason drove up to me Friday morning and his cousin Matthew met us after a midterm and we all drove up to NH together. Made it there for part of the wake and spent some time catching up with the Syracuse Koalas that I met a few years ago.

The funeral mass the next morning was a traditional Polish Catholic mass. It was a little different from the Roman Catholic masses I'm used to but the church was beautiful.

Jason's mother was wondering about what the deal would be for the burial. Since Grandpa Joe spent so many years in the AirForce he was entitled to a colorguard and a salute. She had heard that at least two Airmen would be there, and if they were lucky maybe three. Well we were all surprised to see two Airmen to fold and pass along the flag AND a full colorguard with three riflemen.

The salute was touching. I think by this point we all know how I feel about the men and women who give their lives to protect our country.

After the burial we all went to a local diner's party hall and had a meal together. There were easily about 50-60 people (most of which were immediate family) who gathered together to have a meal in Grandpa Joe's honor.

Joe, John, Jeff, Jim, Janice & Jennifer Koala
Yeah, you heard me.

This is where things got fun. I use the term lightly because after all we were at a funeral but in my opinion funerals should be a celebration of the life the person had...not a sad affair.

All of us of similar age (college students/grads) sat down at a table together and immediately dubbed it the "fun table" and hit the bar. That is where Amanda introduced me to a Grateful Dead. Basically imagine a Long Island Iced Tea except instead of soda, there's a splash of Chambord. So essentially the only non-liquor part to the drink is the sweet&sour mix. They're fantastic.

When dessert came Joey was at the bar getting a drink so Doug decided that he would pay his son Shawn $5 if he could finish off Joey's ice cream before he got back. Again: this is why I love this family. The look on Joey's face when he got back to the table and his ice cream plate was empty was priceless. Luckily the waitress had witnessed the whole thing and was ready with another ice cream for Joey. But really, just good clean family fun!

Apparently it is Koala tradition to go around the room and introduce yourself when you don't know everyone. And this is why I love this family: we went around the room despite the fact 90% of it was immediate family - and everyone was introduced.

It all went something like this:
Jennifer: Hi I'm Jennifer.
Everyone: Hi Jennifer!
Jennifer: I'm six of six... [meaning she is the sixth child out of six] ...and I'm mom to so and so and wife to so and so.

This went on for a good 15 minutes. I shit you not. EVERYONE was introduced either by themselves or by a parent or sibling.

And what's a family party without a ridiculous story:
When we got around to Jason's mom she popped up and the following amazingness occurred.

Sue: Hi I'm Sue!
Everyone: Hi Sue!
Sue: I'm Joe's wife and mother to Joey, Amanda, Jason and our soon to be daughter-in-law Elise! ...

Amanda: [As an aside to Jason] Aw hell, Mom just called you out in front of everyone!
Jason: [To me] Surprise!
Me: Does your Mom know something we don't?

Throughout the rest of the meal people were coming up to us laughing asking if we were actually engaged or if it was just a joke. I personally thought it was hilarious. The whole weekend while everyone was catching up with Jason and found out he got his full time position the next question was, So when are you getting engaged then? I mean I guess it's common knowledge to everyone in his family that we didn't want to rush into anything and we wanted to wait until Jason was settled and we were both financially stable before we got engaged.

So add Jason's job with his mom's choice phrase and apparently as far as his family is concerned we're engaged now.

Sunday morning Jason's mom and I were talking and she felt so awful about what she had said and how she had embarrassed me. I just didn't want to call you his girlfriend because you're more than that, you're family. But I guess it came out wrong. I love her, she's wonderful and I don't embarrass easily in fact I honestly thought it was funny. In fact, the only thing I felt bad about was the fact that she felt so horrible about embarrassing me. Really, it's okay!

We had to head back home early on Sunday so Jason would have enough time to drive back down to Virginia so we missed the trip to the bowling alley. Grandpa Joe was a huge bowler so the family went to bowl for Grandpa which I thought was great.

When I kick it I don't want a funeral. I think funerals come so close after someone's passing that you don't have enough time to mourn and it's just all to final. I'd rather donate my organs, be cremated and have the people I love get together and have a party in celebration of my life. Then when enough time has passed and everyone is ready to actually say goodbye, go on a vacation to Key West, sprinkle my ashes on the beach and have a margarita. That's what I want, listen to me know believe me later.

Celebrate life!

The King of all Cakes

Whilst Julibean was in Baltimore this weekend she collected our friend Morgan from Philly on her way back home. I haven't seen Morgan for an extended period of time in a few months now so it's wonderful to have her staying with us for a few days.

I certainly miss all of my the PC Kids and everyone in the a cappella community that we had at school and Morgs is no exception. We've pretty much been friends ever since she joined the group freshman year and she's just such a unique and incredibly hilarious person and I love her dearly.

Last night when I got home to Morgan and Julibean we decided (unanimously) that since it was Fat Tuesday we were going to go out to dinner and gorge ourselves on delicious food. Morgan wanted to know if there was anywhere we could get a King Cake and neither me nor my sister had any idea what she was talking about.

Apparently King Cakes are a big tradition for Fat Tuesday especially in New Orleans. Well I've only been to Nawlins once and I was a bouncing baby so obviously I have no idea what this tradition entails.

Basically it's a simple round cake (sometimes filled with cheese or praline) and iced with granulated sugar in the Mardi Gras colors. There is usually a trinket baked into the cake (from what I've read usually a baby Jesus figurine) and whoever gets the piece with the sweet delectable baby Jesus brings the King Cake to the next party.

We never did find a King Cake yesterday but we did go to Outback and cheer polar bears over beer and deliciously calorie dense foods. Then we came home and ate some ice cream and watched the Olympics.

The King Cake looks delicious and I think it's a nice tradition. Julianne and I have decided we will offer King Cakes at our bakery when we eventually open it.

And Morgan will be the official cupcake froster. And will be required to wear flippers while doing so.

Wilton Cake Update

I was holding onto my cake that I decorated on Friday. This happened for a few reasons.

Long story short, Jason's grandfather is not doing so great. He's been in the hospital for quite some time now and they stopped force feeding him/giving him his meds on Tuesday. When I say that I mean last Tuesday. The man has held on for a week without nutrition or the pills that were supposedly keeping him alive. We expected to hear word on Wednesday and were prepared for Jason to drive up to my house, his three cousins in the city to take the train to my house and the five of us to drive up to New Hampshire to be with the rest of the family. Right now these plans are on hold as we wait. It's not the greatest of situations but unfortunately this is what happens sometimes.

I planned on bringing the cake with me for the family to eat in NH.

Instead, I brought it to work since I don't want it sitting in my fridge at home for another week.

It was delicious. It was pretty. And I totally forgot to take a photo of it.

This is what is left.

The cake itself was a homemade funfetti cake with fruit preserve filling and the trademark Wilton butter-cream frosting. Problem was nobody in the office wanted to cut into it since they all thought it was so pretty. I had to do the honors and took the tiniest sliver just to see how it tasted.

This week I'm making a chocolate cake with Nutella filling and a chocolate/butter-cream/Nutella frosting. I anticipate it ALSO being delicious.

Manjoyment Monday: Olympic Edition

This one is not only to celebrate the Olympics. But also because Casey is absolutely in love with this Monday's man.


I was instructed by Casey that if perchance I were to bump into Mr. White while I was in Vancouver that I should tell him she'd be more than willing to pop out a few of his babies.

Oh goodness.

I might require this.



Yeah, I know, you want one too.

Review: Opening Ceremony

I adored the Opening Ceremony.

Here are the things I can remember off the top of my head that were freak'n amazing.

1. The orca whales that "swam" across the floor of the stadium. It was beautiful.
2. The tribal dancers who literally stood in the middle of the stadium and danced for the entire length of the Parade of Nations. That is easily an hour or two of just standing around dancing while Olympians walk by.
3. Slam Poet Shane Koyczan's performance on who Canadians are as a people and as a nation was incredible. I love Slam Poetry and that spoken word sort of prose so this was flipping fantastic.
4. Measha Brueggergosman. What can I even say. I loved her hair. I loved her dress. I loved her voice as she sang the Olympic Anthem. I am not a fan of operatic voices in general but hers was just divine. Did I mention her hair? I wants it. (image borrowed from Opera Chic)
5. The interpretive dance and aerial work done to Joni Mitchell's Both Sides Now. I thought the aerial acrobatics were beautiful.
6. Just in general the quality of the multimedia. It is incredible what artists can create from conception to reality with the proper technology and ingenuity.
7. The screech style of violin and incredible dance routine celebrating the folk music and current trend of pub music in Vancouver.
8. The interpretation of Stanley park and then how they morphed it into the mountains. The commentators mentioned how many spectators wondered how Vancouver could even come close to what Beijing did for the Opening Ceremony two years ago. Vancouver answered with a personal more intimate ceremony. They didn't even attempt to come close to the drummers or the army of Chinese performers. They did what spoke to Canada and it spoke volumes about the Canadians to the rest of the world. In some ways I liked the Opening Ceremony in Vancouver better than the Opening Ceremony in Beijing because of the intimacy of the performances and the energy of those involved.
   
9. The respect they paid the fallen Georgian and the point they made to fly the flags at half mast.
10. But the most incredible part was definitely K.D. Lang's performance. Holy hell. First of all Hallelujah is quite possibly one of the most beautiful songs ever written. I've heard that Leonard Cohen is kind of sick of people singing it since it wasn't popular when he first wrote it but covers of it have become popular but I personally love it.
    
    The song is used in one of the most depressing montages on television that I have ever watched. The West Wing episode Posse Comitatus makes me cry every single time I watch it. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, what are you waiting for? Go out and rent West Wing!
    
    Anyway, back to the Olympics...Lang's performance was breathtaking. Words cannot describe the chills I felt when I heard her rendition of the song. I admire her music a lot but I don't often hear a lot from her. It.was.awe-inspiring.
    

I also wanted to add that last night was the first time I saw the footage from the luge accident. It was horrific. I can't even comprehend how it happened and my warm fuzzies go out to all Georgians and all lugers and all Olympians for their loss. It is tragic, but at least Nodar Kumaritashvili lived his dream and made it to the Olympics.

I couldn't believe that NBC aired the footage, but I admired the fact that they only did it once. All subsequent broadcasts didn't show the crash and as Bob Costas explained they would not air the footage again during the games because they did not want to focus on the tragedy.

Cue Brass Instrumental Music

BAAAAAAA BAAAAA BA DAA DAA DAA DAA BAA BUH BA DA BUH DA DUH DUH DAAA BUH DA DUH DUH DAAA (DA DUM DUM DUM.)

It's finally here. *squee*

The 2010 Olympic Winter Games begin TONIGHT.

I love the parade of nations and I cannot wait to watch what Vancouver has in store for the Opening Ceremony tonight. I mean the Bejing Opening Ceremony was intense and I can still remember how acrobatically cool the Sydney Ceremony was too. I can hardly contain myself, is it time to hunker down in front of NBC in my poang yet?

Really cool things:

The medals are incredible. I mean just look at them! They each have a close-up of a Raven Totem. I find this exciting for a few reasons. The Stanley Totem Park is a beautiful area in Vancouver. We stopped by last February when we were in Seattle visiting my brother and the place is just awe inspiring. I'm glad that they are pulling so much of the Olympic art from the natives.

Coincidentally when my parents took their 25th Wedding Anniversary trip to Alaska and Canada for three weeks, they returned with a beautiful carved Raven Totem necklace for me. Maybe I'll wear it the rest of the time the Olympic and Paraolympic games are underway to show my support. It's a little less in your face than my Quatchi pins are but in the spirit of support of the games and my country I'll don my Raven.

Seriously, how cool are these medals? I love the lines of the medal itself and apparently they are all made of reclaimed gold, silver and bronze from computer motherboards. How nifty is that?!

What I love most about the Vancouver Games is probably how focused they are on being more green and nurturing towards the environment. I mean even all of the mascots have a specific greener more environmentally-conscious mantra. I think this is a wonderful way to incorporate nature into the Olympic Games.

Every year I also look forward to what Ralph Lauren has to say about the Olympic Garb. This year is beautiful. Ralph Lauren always delivers a clean crisp look without going overboard on the stars and stripes.

I thoroughly enjoyed the hats and blazers from the 2008 Summer Olympics and these hats are equally fabulous.

I adore the sweaters and how they are reminiscent of antarctic explorer's sweaters - you know the kind Shackleton might have worn.

The Nike podium outfits/jackets are nice too, not too fluffy, but fitted enough to show off some Olympic bods.

Basically I'm ready! And I'm excited to get to Vancouver later this month!!!



All images borrowed from fastcompany.com.

Snowpocalypse 2010

Well it happened. We got snow.

Tuesday night I pretty much decided that even if my office were open on Wednesday I wasn't going to trek 22miles in the snow there and 22miles in the snow back. When I woke up (early) on Wednesday I turned on Channel 12 and looked out the window. It didn't look too bad, only about 2inches on the ground, streets looked okay.

One thing was I still don't have Lulu and her awesome AWD that loves the snow. In fact I have this silly Prius which I wouldn't trust on dry land, let alone on ice.

Reports said that it was fine now, it's just going to get really bad starting around noon. Okay, I thought, maybe I can get to work and leave early and be fine. So I started getting ready for work and it was then that my Dad came home.

He had already dug out my sister's 2000 Forester and attempted to go to work.

He stood in my door way. "I hit a pole." And then walked away.

That pretty much right there was why my father took my sister's car instead of his or my mother's new car. Because Julibean's car is slightly battered already. She got hit in a parking lot at school so has a lovely dent in the back wheel well, she got rear-ended by a nursing student on her way to class one day so the rear bumper is dented, and now the front bumper is dented to match!

He's fine, the seat belt grabbed him hard, suffice to say he didn't go back out and suggested I stay home too. So I went back to bed and gave up.

We had an incredibly productive day. Christmas is away (except for a few straggling Spode boxes) and Julibean and I even organized a full quarter of the attic so it's actually walkable and easy to find labeled boxes.

PLUS we now each have a little box of Christmas for ourselves. Bed Bath & Beyond sells these stack-able containers that are perfect for ornaments. So the two of us sat there going through all of our mother's ornaments and picking out our favorites and once we got the okay that mom was willing to part with them we packed them away.

I got Nana's awesomely hideous fat Santa ornament which I have always loved and my mom was willing to part with a lot more ornaments than I thought she would be.

Julibean and I also decided that starting next year we're going to start a new tradition and buy each other the ugliest ornament we can find. Our cousin Jaclyn and her roommate from college Jade do this and it is quite possibly the funniest tradition I've ever heard of. Jade totally won this year with this horrible cow ballerina that was missing a leg. So next year we will start our quest to find each other the ugliest most grotesque ornaments we can. And when we open our bakery we'll decorate the tree with them.

Actually made it to work today. Pedro made it through the night, which seriously surprised me. Right now he's standing right outside the back door trying to steal some heat off the glass. Poor poor Pedro.

Incredible

From Ashley, via the fantastic Graham Roumieu.
Eeeeee we leave two weeks from today!

Review: B is for Badly Placed Windows

Lulu is still in the shop. Oh joy!

She will be in the shop probably until the end of the week. Since Julibean started school today I couldn't continue to use her car to drive myself to work. Instead I got a rental.

It's a Prius.

It is the strangest car I have ever driven.

First of all you have to push a button (A BUTTON?!) to park the car. The shifter is not a shifter at all, it's actually a little knob on the dashboard that hops back to the rest position even if you're in Drive or Reverse.

Speaking of Reverse. It took me 5 minutes this morning just to get the car into gear. I had to turn it off (which is also done by a button) and turn it back on again to get it to shift into Reverse and get me out of the driveway.

Secondly, there are windows where there shouldn't be windows. I mean the Tank used to have little opera windows next to the side view mirrors that I loved to jinx open and get a good breeze directly against my face in the summer without all the noise of opening the window. But these opera windows don't open. They're past the mirrors, almost over the wheel well and it's just odd to have a window there. It's wildly distracting in fact. Please see the beautiful interior photo I snagged off the internets below with said offending window.

The hatch just pisses me off. I love hatchbacks, they're all I drive. I like to know EXACTLY where my trunk ends and having the rear windshield wiper is a godsend in the rain/snow/muck. However, the hatch on the Prius has a ridiculously steep incline to it, a very thick casing around it, oh and it's also segmented into two different windows. So basically despite the fact that it's a hatch, there is barely any actual window to see out. It's almost like I'm driving a sedan which I don't exactly enjoy.

Why should I be able to see clear out my back window Toyota? Why? When you can put a bar across the back window to make it look a little different, why would I need to actually see out the back?

The car also seems like a huge Cadi on the inside when in reality it's kind of small. It's odd. It really messes with my spacial reasoning while I'm inside. I feel like I'm sitting extremely high up, as if I'd hit my head on the ceiling but there's no way to lower the seat vertically, or at least no way that I can find.


There doesn't appear to be a trip odometer. I may have missed it, but I couldn't see it glancing down while driving and that's bothersome. I also despise digital readouts that are right in your face. If I want to know exactly how fast I'm going I'll glance down quickly at my speedometer, I don't need numbers flashing in my line of sight. So the bubble on the dash right near the windshield is annoying.

The windshield itself is huge. Or rather, driving this car is much like driving Casey's old Honda Civic. Basically I can't see the nose of the car, so it is literally like driving around a windshield and guessing how far out the front of the car goes...that's not my favorite.

One thing I do like: the readout on the mileage. I love knowing what kind of mileage I'm getting. It helps me get every last ounce of gas out of my tank before refilling and it also helps me determine how my car is feeling that day or if it needs maintenance. We are anal about recording how many gallons, what the price was, keeping track of mileage, major (and minor) maintenance and all that jazz. So this little computer on my dash is kind of interesting.

The one thing that threw me most: There is a B on the shifter. I mean obviously there isn't a P since you push a button to park so what's left? A D, yes I know what Drive is. N, ahhh neutral. R, reverse reverse! But B? What on earth could it stand for? Not anything like Backup, or Bullshit?

Apparently Ashley has a Prius, who knew? She has informed me that the B stands for downshift. Wow Toyota, where'd you come up with that letter? I mean I know that D is taken but you couldn't just write 1-2-3?

Oddest car ever.

Not a fan. Sorry Toyota. Just because it's a Hybrid doesn't mean everything has to be different about it. I'd rather have a Hybrid version of a standard car mmmkay? Thanks.

Ashley likes that it's different. She's dubbed it a Space Pod. I'm glad there are people who enjoy this Space Pod because the more hybrid cars out there the better, I'm all for a greener car. Just maybe one that's slightly more familiar.

Manjoyment Monday: Something for the Younger Ladies

Again, I'd hate to repeat myself. But if you haven't checked out the most recent Lifetime movie The Pregnancy Pact you should really do so. They definitely redefined the "sexy pregnant" look on these 15 year old girls.

Anyway, here's a Manjoyment Monday for the younger ladies. I'm too old for this guy but I do really enjoy his hair and he played one of the baby daddy's in The Pregnancy Pact.

Max Ehrich had one choice line that had us rewinding just to hear it again. When he finds out he got his girlfriend preggers he is infuriated and hates himself. He can't live with the guilt anymore of being so stupid.

"I should have pulled out every time!" He screamed to the heavens.

I laughed until I cried. Thank you Lifetime.


Photo borrowed from livingmedia.

Wilton Course 1

Friday was our first Class of Wilton's Cake Decorating Course 1. It was exciting even though all we did was get an introduction from our instructor and watch her assemble, frost and decorate a cake.

I can't wait to decorate cakes and learn how to make flowers and stuff. I mean any skills I pick up will definitely make any cake I decorate in the future much better than the last one I made.

I guess what I didn't realize about this class is that we have to bake cakes and bring them to class with us to decorate. I mean, obviously what else would we be doing? But the thought escaped me at first and when Julibean and I decided it would be a good idea to bake ALL of our cakes at once and put them in the freezer (as suggested by our instructor) and mix ALL of our frosting at once and put it into smaller containers to take to class with us...I didn't think it would be such a daunting task.

I was so wrong! So.very.wrong.

Julibean and I literally spent the entire length of the Super Bowl (plus a few hours ahead of and after) baking cakes and trying to mix frosting. When Wilton says stiff frosting, they mean stiff frosting. It almost burned out our stand up mixer, it was scary.

But we'll frosting and constructing a cake to bring to class next Friday. We're decorating the top with a rainbow of piped icing and learning how to make borders. I figured since it'll be a rainbow on the outside it should be one on the inside too and made funfetti cake. They didn't have any actual funfetti cake mix at the store so I made white cake and threw some sprinkles in to the mix.

Basically I'm just super excited to learn these new skills and everyone who I've mentioned this course to seems just as excited for me. Plus I told everyone in the office I'll be bringing in random cakes each Monday to work so they're excited about that too.

de-Christmasing

I may or may not have mentioned it, but Christmas sort of gets stuck in our house for an extended period of time. Not only has Christmas gotten stuck this year, it brought friends.

Somehow it's a holiday explosion in our house right now. There are bits of Halloween and Valentine's Day tossed in with the Christmas decorations. I wish I could explain to you how this happened, but alas, I really cannot. I mean there's always a possibility that my mother cleaned out her store of holiday decorations at school and brought them home and that's why they're around out of season but I can't even toss the blame on her for sure.

Since Superbowl Sunday looms we've got a lot of work ahead of us.

Much as Bridget Jones chose "Vodka. And Chaka Khan." Julibean and I will probably blast some Lady Gaga and drink some wine while de-Christmasing.

It might take the next week to get it all done though :/

Dance Party Friday: Pedro Style

In honor of our new company mascot, Pedro the Rooster, here's a few people dancing around kind of like chickens.

I torted you!

Hey, hey you. Check out my sister's new blog!

From Torts to Tortes!

Yeah, she's clever like that.

Cocks

Today when I got to work and pulled into our parking lot...there was a rooster in my spot.

I shit you not. A rooster.

And for those of you who are like Jason and always shout "pics or it didn't happen" well I'll prove it!

I think I'll call him Pedro.

A Stressful Calm

So I had a wonderful weekend with Jason in Virginia. I managed to get out of New York before the snow started falling in VA which was good. It snowed at least 3 inches though, possibly closer to half a foot.

In true NH style we went out in the snow regardless of the fact Virginians don't know how to plow. It's okay, the Hunter loves slush and Jason enjoys fishtailing on purpose. Ran some errands and bought Jason a DVD player for real cheap at BestBuy and hooked it up to the giant TV his friend grandfathered to him when he shipped out in November.

Before that literally the TV was just sitting in the middle of the room...it wasn't even a sad TV facing the corner like it had done something wrong...it was front and center screaming "I'M NOT BEING USED BUT I'M HERE AND I'M PROUD!" Not plugged into anything, just sitting there taking up space at an odd angle that really bothered me (one of my neurotic tendencies involves things being even (or sometimes completely odd)...I will go about straightening photo frames on walls and shifting papers so they are flush in a stack). So we hooked up the DVD player, moved the TV back into the corner and watched a few movies.

It was a nice low-key weekend and we did a whole lot of nothing and some good talking which is important in any relationship. Basically this whole long distance thing blows and we're going to be rectifying the situation as soon as penguinly possible. Jason is still waiting to hear if he got his full time position and if not my sister is trying to convince him to move to Baltimore and find a job in the MD so we can all live there like one big happy family.

Meanwhile I spent a good deal of my morning organizing our Olympic Adventure! I went through all of the confirmation emails and copied them into a neat little document and printed all that information out. Then I sifted through all the transportation around Vancouver and printed out maps for park and rides and bus/train lines. And in true Elise-like fashion I went into the maps and circled important points and labeled extra options and routes. Then I folded everything up nicely and put it into a brightly colored folder.

Most importantly I started our checklist on the inside of the folder, you know, things that are a must to remember to pack and bring along otherwise we're screwed.

• Passport
• Pants
• Student ID (for discounts at Capilano)
  
• Comfortable boots
• Light layers
• Flight confirmation
• Hotel confirmation
• Ticket confirmation

So far that's all I have. Yes, there are those of us who might forget to pack pants *cough cough* Jason *cough cough* if it's not on the list plus in my mind whenever I think "Passport" I recall the scene in Bridget Jones when they're taking her away for New Years and her friends are packing and one of them just says: "Passport Bridget, and pants!" "Passport, pants..." she repeats.

I thought that putting all of this information and organizing our travel plans would be stressful. And we still aren't 100% on where we'll be parking outside of the city but I feel a strange sense of calm now that all the information I could find is all in one neat place.

I'm so excited about this trip.
I'm so excited to see my brother!
And I'm so excited to ring my cowbell.

Manjoyment Monday: Yes Please

This weekend my friend Casey was in a car accident. She's okay a little bruised and battered but overall alright. My sister and I went to deliver her some Diet Dr. Pepper and lounged on the couch which she has set up shop permanently on for the next few days.

While sitting there and enjoying the ridiculousness that is Where the Heart Is and coming to the conclusion Casey was going to name her child Americus and mine would be Praline we were constantly being bombarded with commercials for the new Lifetime movie The Pregnancy Pact.

We decided that since Casey needed her rest we'd DVR it and come back to watch it with her later. Boy am I glad we did. It was wonderful. Lifetime certainly outdid themselves.

Plus David Clayton Rogers might very well be the one and only man that all three of us, Casey, Julibean and I all could agree was dead sexy. Usually our tastes differ greatly.


Well done on casting there Lifetime. Well done.



Photo borrowed from imdb.