Armageddon

I made it in to the office today. The roads actually weren't too bad since I only have major highways to travel when I take the long way to work. But when I got here, this is what my office looks like. (Sidenote... this is the second time in a year that a tree has fallen on my office. Is God trying to tell me something?)





I'm really grateful to live in a new subdivision with no trees! And I'm really, really grateful that I've not been without power in the past three days.

I hope you're all safe and warm and have power. Because, without power, you couldn't read the Drivel!

Never say never

I totally stole this pic from my pal Lindsay's Facebook page, but I thought it was cool and a good representation of just how much ice we have in Benton county. Besides, I have no trees in my neighborhood and goodness knows I'm not going to walk far enough to find a tree in this weather.

When I started this job, I was told that the university never, ever closes for weather. Guess what? We were closed today. For the first time in over 10 years.

Yeah, it's really icy.

Lindsay, Stephen and Alex are headed to my house since they have no power. Thankfully I've managed to keep electricity, heat, and cable, and my Internet's only been down for about three hours. I've been lucky.

25 Things...

Several people have tagged me on Facebook to do this list, but I thought I'd post it here instead.

25 Random Things You May or May Not Know about Me

1. I love to play "Rock Band" with my nephews and can score a perfect 100% singing "Wanted Dead or Alive." I'm that good.
2. I am obsessed with celebrities and talk about their lives like I know them personally. I subscribe to both "People" and "Us Weekly" so that I can keep up with how many kids Brangelina have this week.
3. I once ate an entire box of Krispy Kreme donuts in two days. By myself.
4. When I look in the mirror after a shower and see the hail damage on my thighs, it makes me want to throw up.
5. I would have married 5 or so of my ex-boyfriends if they would've asked. Thankfully God protects the stupid from themselves.
6. When I got my first portable cell phone, I talked to my mom and my niece every day after work. I really, really miss talking to both of them.
7. My musical taste is so varied that I have everything from Miley Cyrus to Ozzy Osborne to George Jones on my iPod.
8. I love to read. I own hundreds of books and re-read books all the time. Not the classics... romance novels.
9. I watch way too much TV. I own two DVRs and have 29 shows on my series record list.
10. I cannot get a pedicure or go to the doctor without first shaving my legs.
11. I drove the getaway car in college for what could be legally construed as criminal mischief.
12. There are 5,172 songs in my iTunes library.
13. I used to have a crush on my friend the lawyer, but I'm kinda over it. And I realize he wasn't that good of a friend.
14. I never thought I'd be 36 and unmarried, but it's not as bad as I thought it would be.
15. If I had my life to live over again, I would have chosen a career as a sideline reporter for the NFL.
16. I need to buy new pants because mine are too big and that makes me really, really happy.
17. They posted and mailed my diploma before I rewrote my master's thesis, so I never fixed it or put a copy in the library.
18. I drink way too much Diet Coke... 8-12 cans a day most days.
19. I can watch football non-stop for days on end, but I don't like baseball at all. Or pro basketball.
20. I don't like Oprah. Or any of the books she recommends.
21. I have never owned a car for more than four years with the exception of my last vehicle, the TrailBlazer that I had for 5.5 years. (which is why)
22. There have only been six months in the past 20 years that I, or my parents, didn't have a car payment on my vehicle.
23. My three dream dinner guests, living or dead, are George Bush (#41), Tom Brady, and the Apostle Paul.
24. I am a very good cook, working my way to great.
25. I own every episode of "Friends" on DVD and I kick butt on the trivia game.

I'm not tagging any of you, but feel free to post your list on your blog... or on mine.

Stay warm, peeps!

Happy (belated) birthday, bro!

My aunt Kathy called today, disappointed that there wasn't an embarrassing pic of my brother on my blog to commemorate his birthday yesterday. I didn't forget, I was just distracted by the ice storm. But here you go.



And just for good measure, one of Kathy and Brad together.



Happy birthday, bro! A day late, but I love you!

Vanilla ice

For once, the weather guys were right on. There's ice. Lots and lots of ice. Every blade of grass in my yard is beautifully covered in ice. Thankfully I still have electricity, cable, and internet, so all is well. I've been home all day, but my VPN was working, so I've been working. The server went down about 30 minutes ago, so I guess work is done for awhile.

Ice, snow, milk and bread

Do you ever wonder if there's some sort of conspiracy between the weather guys and the grocery stores? Evidently sales tax receipts are down for the month, so presto... let's predict an ice storm... Wal-Mart will be packed! Ka-ching. 10% of milk and bread for everyone in the county!

As I lazily logged onto weather.com this evening and checked out the forecast, I realized my empty cupboards were good for my diet, but not-so-good for a hypothetical iced-in situation. So I braved WM with all the other crazies, most of whom were buying sugar-laced snacks and not bread. I bought both. And stuff to make both tomato basil soup and stew.

So now I'm prepared for the three flakes of snow we'll probably get. I'm not expecting any weather but bitter, bitter cold. I'm so ready for spring!

Happy birthday, Alisa!

Just wanted a wish a super happy birthday to one of my oldest and dearest friends. Hope you had a great one!

And congrats to the new Miss America, Katie Stam (yeah, I called it this afternoon, just ask DeWood). Miss Arkansas made the top 12 and looked gorgeous! All those skinny bodies makes me want to walk more miles on the treadmill.

Fillings... whoa, whoa, whoa

After my brief hiatus in bed with a sinus infection (which I won't detail... you're welcome), I went back to the office today. For about an hour.

I had the first of my many trips to the dentist this year to the tune of two and a half hours and 284 bucks. (Yes, I have dental insurance... that was my 20%). Granted, my jaw still hurts from all the tugging and prodding and holding open, but my teeth do look better. My new white fillings are fab, and I can't wait to get my new porcelain crown. One section done... three to go! I'm really happy with my new dentist, but his assistant his about as gentle as a Nazi prison guard.

And since I'm wearing a temporary crown for the next couple of weeks, I'm supposed to avoid food that's sticky and crunchy. Yeah, that'll happen.

This afternoon I made my maiden voyage to Mama Fu's for a lunch meeting. The food was tasty (think Pei Wei), but my shrimp noodles were so spicy that I drank 12 diet cokes. Seriously. I was waiting for the waitress to ask me if she could just run the line from the soda fountain right into my mouth. I had to stop and go to the bathroom between Bentonville and Rogers. And trust me, non-NWA'ers, that's not very far.

That's all. My life is ridiculously dull, but some of you complain when I don't tell you what's going on. Nada.

But, it is a very special day because it's my pal Susan's birthday. Happy birthday! Come back from Texas.

Will work for fillings

I was at the office until about an hour ago, but before you feel sorry for me, I have to admit that I was out for four hours today, two hours at the dentist and two more having my hair cut and colored. Yes, I am a diva.

When I was a kid, I used to take Oreos to bed with me and eat them throughout the night. No wonder my thighs are big and I had so many cavities! What were my parents thinking?!? And, because I grew up so many, many years ago, my fillings are silver. And ugly. So I've been planning for years to replace my silver fillings with white ones. Hence the dentist appointment.

Turns out I need three crowns plus six new fillings, and that doesn't even count the silver in my bottom teeth. This Friday I'll begin the first of three rounds of novacaine. First installment? 400 bucks. Yowza.

The good news is that, in the past four months, I've lost 20 pounds. Yay me! My pants are falling off and I need to buy some new ones. Perhaps I'll see if the Boy Scouts need the old ones to use for tents.

Monday, Monday

Granted, Mondays are never fun, but I've made them worse by committing to do a weekly report first thing each Monday morning... one that involves activity reports and manual tracking of phone calls, appointments, and emails by tick marks... one that is, believe it or not, even more mundane than it sounds.

So each Monday morning I'm subjected to staring at my computer for hours, making tick marks on a sheet of paper and hoping no one distracts me and I lose my place. Yeah, it's hard enough to wake up on the first day of the week without that in front of you.

This morning I set my alarm for 5:30 to get up and run. Two snoozes and 100 minutes later, I realize it's light in my bedroom and I've overslept. Hoping to jump start my morning, I turn on GMA and try to catch up with the national news. 20 minutes on the Presidential dog? REALLY? I lost $15K out of my retirement account in 12 months and we're discussing what kind of dog the President is adopting? IT"S THE ECONOMY, people. I mean, I love fashion as much as the next gal, but I don't care who's dressing the FIrst Lady tomorrow. Let's discuss the slim possibility that Social Security will still exist when I'm ready to retire.

Seriously, I bought a house I can afford and did not get an adjustable rate mortgage. I bought the Camry with the cloth seats and no sun roof. I spent four years paying off credit cards. Where's my bailout? Why didn't I buy Monolos and a Lexus and ask the government for some help? If Presidential Robin Hood plans to take from the middle class and give to the poor, this chick ain't gonna be happy, I don't care how big Michelle's pearls are.

Bad, bad mood. But at least I only yelled at one person today (and, in my defense, he yelled first). I also gave my pal Lindsay a list of people "who make me tired." Blah. Must. get. sleep.

Weekend update

At least one person has been waiting for me to post (thank you, Debbie), but I've been out of town since Wednesday, staying in hotels and with family, eating out and in my car, and driving. And driving some more. I filled up my car three days in a row.

Last week I momentarily considered renting out my extra room as a bed and breakfast. Granted, a Diet Coke is considered breakfast in my world, but still... I paid 120 bucks for a hotel room on Wednesday night in NLR that was less than luxurious. My guest bed is more comfortable than a hotel's. My towels less scratchy. I could totally slam some doors in the middle of the night and turn the TV up loudly, so I think it could work.

On Thursday night I checked into the other end of the spectrum... the Hilton at Branson Landing. Thankfully it's off-season and I got a great room rate, but it was one of the nicest rooms I've seen in quite a while. Too bad I was there a mere 10 hours. Upon arrival, the desk clerk asked me if I wanted self-parking for $8 or valet for $12. HELLO... it's 9 degrees outside and I'm a pretty, pretty princess, so what do you think I chose?!? I think the valet was in keeping with the comfortable bed, flat screen TV and fabulous tub. The couple yelling next door? Not so great.

After a productive meeting and lunch at Macaroni Grill (yum!), I attended the big Hartford vs. Hackett game Friday night, and it was painful. Let's just say the mercy rule was enforced during the fourth quarter. Good for Taylor, bad for my alma mater.

I was so tired that I slept until 10 a.m. on Saturday, then Taylor and I went to see Chance play basketball in the afternoon. Chance had 20 points (AKA 75% of the team total) and got the offensive award for the day. He really, really wants the ball... so much so that he follows his teammates around while they dribble and yells for them to throw it to him. If he could pass it to himself, he would.

Brad and I went out to dinner last night, then I drove back to Siloam. Today I've just been doing laundry, taking naps, and catching up on my DVR. Thankfully there's no travel this week, and it will be great to get back to my routine. I haven't been on the treadmill since Wednesday and I can feel my rear end getting bigger.

An officer and a cheeseball

My pal Susan tagged me in her blog to post a pic, so here you go. I was supposed to open up a photo file and upload the fourth pic in there, and this was it. So here's a pic of me and Andy Baldwin at Pearl Harbor. He was pretty.

Perspective

It's amazing how time can give us a little perspective. Last week I was stressed out and unhappy at work, and this week I'm back in love. Yeah, it still makes me tired sometimes, but after touring a factory floor last week, I realize that my job rocks. Even when I have seven meetings in one day. But at least I don't have to staple something eight hours a day, five days a week, 50 weeks a year. Year after year after year. Bring on the meetings!

And the travel. Tomorrow I'm off to Little Rock for a couple of days, then back in Rogers for an event Thursday night, after which I'll be driving to Branson for a Friday morning meeting. And staying at the Hilton at Branson Landing.

So now I'm packing and catching up on the DVR. And feeling grateful.

Where's the Ben Gay?

I am an old, old woman. Jen and I agreed to run a 5K together in Texas in April, so I've started training. I'm sure Jen has been running 20 miles a day while doing surgery and making a gourmet meal, but it's killing me. And I'm only doing about a mile a day. At less than 4 mph. At this rate, I should finish the 3 miles in about 12 hours.

The bad news is that, other than the joint pain, I can't stop eating. I ran out of Weight Watcher points about two hours ago, and I'm still munching on whatever I can find. Luckily my house is absent of anything really bad for me, and it hurts to get out of bed, so a trip to the kitchen is out of the question.

This weekend was pretty restful, although I did go to dinner with Amanda and Kelly and to see "Bride Wars" on Friday night. Great movie! Sunday was Mason's birthday, so I met the fam in Rogers on Saturday for pizza and gifts, then we went to the Razorback game. Obviously I'm bad luck. I haven't been to a game in over a decade and the first one I walk into they lose big time.

So I guess I'll just lie here in bed and ache.

The thin line between love and irate

Someone once told me that the opposite of love isn't hate; it's indifference. I think that's probably true. Because when you hate someone, they hold power over you.

Hate means you care enough to think about them by wishing them ill. Indifference means you don't care at all.

Let's face it... when you run into an ex, short of having him tell you how skinny you've become and how wrong he was to let you go, the second best scenario involves him still being hurt and mad. Because the third alternative is that he doesn't remember dating you at all or, even worse, acknowledges how very little you meant to him.

Today I saw/talked to LB for the first time in three weeks, the longest we've gone since meeting. I've dreaded today for almost the whole three weeks. Would I be sad? Still mad?

Turns out I'm kinda over it. I know it sounds hard to believe but somehow, without the benefit of my love-colored glasses, I realized that he's not so great.

So I was nice. Even friendly. But when he asked if I'd be joining them tonight per usual, I said dispassionately, "Nah. I have plans later." And the petty, vicious gal in me took great pleasure in it.

Perhaps I'm not indifferent, but at least he thinks I am. Touche.

Wacky Wednesday

Ugh. Bad, bad day. I so need a sugar daddy.

Belly up

Those of you who know my cousin, Lonnie, need to check this out. I can't stop laughing...

All those zeros

Meet Lori... Higher education professional. Food connoisseur. Diet coke addict. And, as of today, home owner. Or at least I will be on March 1, 2039. When I'm 66.

After two months of paperwork and pain, I signed 427 pieces of paper today and obligated myself to a mortgage on a home with zero curb appeal. But at least I'm not wasting my money on rent anymore, right? And when the housing market in NWA rebounds, I'll make some serious dough.

Speaking of, I know I love my new hometown (or at least my new home county), but my property taxes are $112 a month?!? Really?!! Perhaps I should have stuck to renting.

Mortgages, car insurance, mammograms and fiber... sometimes it sucks to be a grown up.

You give me fever

It's been a weird day. Yesterday I thought maybe I was getting a fever blister. This morning I woke up with FOUR of 'em and my upper lip turned inside out. It is not cute. Needless to say, I stayed away from the public today.

This afternoon I finally took down the Christmas decorations and now my house looks empty and sad. At least it was warm (really, really warm) in the attic.

The good news of the day? I've logged six miles on the treadmill. I may look like a leper, but at least I'm burning calories!

Back to work

After 10 days of vacation, I have to go back to work tomorrow. Sad times.

Double the fun

Since Hope's birthday was Tuesday and Dad's is today, we celebrated both of them today with a joint party at my house. We had standard New Year's fare: pinto beans, fried potatoes, cornbread, dumplings and mac and cheese... yes, we ate from the beige food group. I guess the food was okay; Taylor ate three helpings of dumplings, so it was worth the sweat and tears to make them.

Here are some pics from today.













Chance tried to run on my treadmill in socks and jeans at 8 mph and fell off. His pride hurt worse than his elbow.

Happy birthday, Dad!

Happy birthday to my dad. I won't say how old he is, but it rhymes with mixty tree.

(Oh, and happy birthday to my uncle Lary, too.)