Cube with a View

Here is the view of Downtown Dallas from my cube on the 5th floor of 2100 Ross Ave a.k.a 2121 San Jacinto and may soon be 2100 Cesar Chavez.

Picture one is the Cathedral Quadalupe. I walk by it twice a day, and sadly enough, I do not know the name of it until today.

Picture two is Chase Tower. My friend, Wendy works there.
Picture three is a planetarium. Not really. I don't know what it is.

It's on same side as the Chase Tower. Maybe Wendy knows.

The Birds

Remember the Alfred Hitchcock film? It always freaks me out when I see flocks and flocks of birds congregating in one area. These punk birds were swarming on the corner of Hwy 80 and FM 460 (the exit to my community). This picture doesn't really depict all the birds that were there. This was the best picture I could get from my cellphone in my car. It was really creepy. I had my windows open, and they did their swoop right over my car. Thank goodness they didn't leave any "droppings".

Workouts from the Past

My workouts have evolved through time. In junior high, I was awful in gym class. I could never do the arm hang, and it was so embarrassing. I think it's because I was a little "top heavy" for 14 years old, if you get my drift. In high school, I remember playing softball. That was fun. I was always good for a base hit. Never a super star. In my one year at Texas Tech, I walked everywhere, and I did take an aerobics class. It was at 7am MWF - and it was to Cyndi Lauper - She Bop. Boy, does that bring back memories. Once Ryan, my son was born, it was time for workout videos once he went to bed. I even had leotards and tights to go with it. Jane Fonda was the a big one, and then my favorite of all time was Jody Watley. See the "you tube" link below -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqL-Z8c9qQ0

Dell Commercials

Have you seen the new Dell commercials? They have laptops in a variety of pretty colors. There is a pink one, to match the girl with the cute pink scooter. Guess what??? That could be my mystery pink power ranger aka scooter girl - if her hair was only longer. My point - if you have invisioned that much pink from my previous blog - you were right to do so.

Sadly, no more sightings of my favorite pink power ranger. I am sure she is alot safer now that she appears to be staying off HWY 80.

Tuna Does Vegas

This is a play I want to see.

http://www.austin360.com/arts/content/arts/stories/xl/2007/10/1018xlcover.html

This play will be at the Bass Performance Hall - Tuesday, Oct 21st - Sunday, Oct 26th.

Mamma Mia

Finally got to see it. Went with the girls from work to the Studio Movie Grill. It was great fun especially since we could eat and drink there! This was definitely a movie that required a little alcohol to go with it. The movie was a little cheesy as to be expected, but lots of fun. I hadn't read any of the reviews, but someone did mention that Pierce Brosnan's singing was pretty bad. I am glad I was forewarned.. poor guy... Meryl was great. You can tell she had tons of fun making that movie. Plus, she looked awesome!

An added bonus was that I was able to get a free pass. I bought some Ponds cold cream, not for the free ticket, but because it makes your skin "glow".. and there was a little sticker on it regarding "Mamma Mia". I went to the website, and I got a free pass. It was great. More money for beer. I will say this, the food isn't worth the calories. I tasted the potato skins - not good; the steak quesadillas - not good ; and the mini burgers - not good. The chicken nachos are good but only because they are soaked in queso. I think I ate about 600 calories in food.. thank goodness I only ate about 500 earlier in the day, so I had about 1000 to spare.

Chicago - Day 1

Travel to the windy city was pretty uneventful. Note to those who haven't traveled American Airlines since they implemented the $15.00 check bag cost - you'd think they'd only take cash at curbside, but actually, they do not - only credit cards - no cash. Threw me off my game. I had a $20 dollar bill - ready to pay to check my bag and tip the dude. But no worries.. of course, they can make change for a $20 to get a $2 tip!

Arrived in Chicago (OakBrook) early Thursday morning. Checked into the Renaissance Hotel that also shares the parking lot with the Oak Brook Center Mall. So, I decided to go look for a place to eat lunch and a nail place before hooking up with Yvette and the wedding party. There were not many healthy food choices (Maggianos, Cheesecake Factory, Sbarro's, Corner Bakery, etc). I ended up at a thai restaurant. I was glad it wasn't very crowded since I was by myself. Of course, the hostess gave me the little hand signal for 1. I thought, "I'm sophisticated and grown up. I can eat by myself. Just look busy. Dang - no new messages on my treo. Where's my pen? I can write very important notes in my very cute notebook." Anyway, ordered some pad thai dish. They didn't bring me chopsticks, and I was too nervous to ask. It just didn't feel right to eat this dish with the big flat noodles with a fork. I just wanted to hurry and get out of there. I needed to find a nail salon that didn't cost $100 for a mani/pedi. So, I leave - say goodbye to the hostesses - again showing that I'm sophisticated and can eat by myself. I am not a loser. Walk around the mall, and yay, found a nail place. I'm in the middle of the pedicure when I started thinking of how much money I've spent so far. I couldn't remember what I had spent for lunch. Maybe it was because in my sophistication and glory, I FORGOT TO GET MY CHECK!!! I DID NOT PAY MY BILL!!! The horror I felt. Here I am in the middle of a pedicure with the manicure still to be done. I asked the nail girl (after I "confessed" what I had done) if they had a listing of shops and restaurants so that I could call. Of course not. I almost hyperventilated when one of the security guys on a segway (see link below for a reference) came into the nail salon. I was sure I was captured on security cameras, and that I was definitely headed to Mall Jail. I just wanted to finish my mani/pedi, I promise I will got back and pay!!! Shew... he wasn't after me. (Yay! I had a vision of an episode of Seinfeld when Jerry got busted for peeing in the parking garage.)

Happy Ending - I made it back to the restaurant (see link below for restaurant name/description). I went to the hostesses and explained the situation. They remembered me. They called the waitress, and she was extremely happy to see me because she was going to have to pay for my lunch. It was $12.00. I felt terrible. The hostesses were saying that she had lost faith in humanity. Again, I felt so bad, but I am glad that I remembered.. because that would have been awful to make a young girl pay for my lunch because I was all insecure about eating by myself.

http://www.oakbrookcenter.com/html/AttractionDetail.asp?aid=2078

http://www.segway.com/police-government/index.php

Scooter Girl Update

Scooter Girl aka Pink Power Ranger... has disappeared. I had seen her about 4-5 times but not after the last blog. That tells me that someone (hopefully not johnny law) convinced her that it was unsafe to ride her scooter on the interstate. So, we'll say goodbye to her knowing that she is now safe.

Simply Wines

Believe it or not, I am a wine snob. I can spot a "newbie" right away. All wine drinkers start out "hating" red wine.. and drinking white zin. C'mon, remember the day?? We were all there. Then it gravitates to "Kendall Jackson". That's the wine everyone buys thinking it's the "in" wine. Kendall Jackson is not a good wine, people. Quit pretending that you like it. It's ok, no one really does.

I appreciate a good expensive wine, but my budget doesn't always allow it. So, I am always trying out inexpensive wines under $10. I love finding something inexpensive that tastes good and even great.

My favorite places to buy wine - World Market, Whole Foods, Central Market, Costco, Centenniel, San Martino, Tom Thumb, Kroger

I'm going to throw a wine out there for people to just "try", and I want welcome your comments. Before you get all "snobby" on me, just try it. It's called "Oak Leaf " Chardonney. It is only $2.97 at Walmart. Now, if you don't like Chardonney's already, well then it's not really fair. You have to like dry white wines in order to appreciate this one. Actually, the Pinot Grigio and the Merlot are good as well.

Another cheap wine is from the Barefoot winery. I like all the flavors. Pinot Grigio, Chardonney and Merlot. A regular bottle ranges from $5-7 dollars. They have the big liter bottles that range from $10 - 13 dollars. Pinot is usually the cheapest. This brand is carried at most liquor and grocery stores. They even have a champagne that I think is very good.

Whole Foods has a 365 Chardonney and Merlot in a liter bottle that is under $10. They are good. I think the last time I was there, they were only 8.99. It's not bad.

I recently bought a good red Argentina wine - Pascual Toso at Costco for 8.99. It is really good, and I would serve to guest.

Tom Thumb has a wine that comes in the liter bottle - I think the name is Oak Creek. It's only $6 or 7 dollars, but it is a good wine. I have bought the Chardonney and the Merlot.

So, this is my take on inexpensive wines. I have tried many. I do not like Gallo, Sutter Home, Beringer, St Genevieve, Vendage, etc. This is just a sampling from the different stores I've visited. I hope you try them, and if you do, please provide me your feedback. I would love to have a wine tasting and pair my inexpensive wines against some pricey wines, and see how they fare.

Nashville Star

I don't think many (if any) of my friends have been watching this show, but I have been a "closet" watcher from the beginning. There were so many talented people. I voted for Gabe Garcia and Melissa Lambert from the beginning. Gabe, because he has that authentic "George Strait" sound that is so country and sexy.. and Melissa because her voice is just that good, and I feared she wouldn't make it because she was overweight. Throughout the season, I believe she lost at least 70 lbs. There were some sexy, hot girls that she was in competition with, and this just proves to me that people are interested in a good voice. I'm hadn't been so sure after watching "American Idol" the last couple of years. I agreed with the latest winner, David Cook - but not a big Taylor Hicks or Jordan Sparks fan. Anyway, tonight was the season finale, and I'm so excited that Melissa won. I truly was surprised, and cried a little tear. She is very good, and a great example that when you are good at what you do, size doesn't really matter.

Friday Night, Steak Night

Apparently, this has been a tradition with Dad and Bev for many, many years. I had not heard of it until my brother, Steve came in town about 4 1/2 years ago. I've always lived in Plano, and Dad and Bev have lived in Kaufman for about 14 years now. Steak night was their tradition. I am excited that since I've moved to Forney (to spend more time with family) that Friday Night Steak Night has become part of my tradition too. Everyone at work knows about it. Especially when I had to go from the 10oz filet to a 5 oz. It's not been easy, and lately, I've gone back to the 10oz. Dad got me portabella mushrooms last Friday night. We marinated them in balsamic vinegar, red wine vinegar, and worchestershire sauce. They were delicious. Not sure I can give up steak every Friday night, but it's good to know it's a great alternative.