A look back at 2009; 2010 Resolutions

Before I greet 2010 with open arms, a review of this past year's resolutions and whether or not I actually accomplished anything in 2009 (I copied this list straight out of last year's post btw):

10. Keep a more open mind when it comes to movies, music and books.

I feel like I accomplished something here. If not with movies and books, most of you know my friends, David and I started a music club called Music Togetherness. We're about to enter week 17 (or week 2-1). See how open I'm becoming at http://musictogetherness.blogspot.com.

9. Budget money better and build savings back up.

Being that my savings right now is at an all time low, it doesn't look like I accomplished much in this area. Between moving to a new home with cheaper payments and getting a better job with better pay I really don't know where it all went, but at least I can honestly say I'm entering the upswing in this category. Paying off credit card debt is a good start to 2010, wouldn't you say? I did also start a checking/savings account for the house if that counts.

8. Get rid of unnecessary clutter at home and at work.

Well, we got a new house in 2009, so instead of getting rid of clutter, we spread it out. I am doing better with more space though I think. And my work desk is organized to the hilt.

7. Try your hand at improving cooking and entertaining skills.

We've hosted a number of parties this year, including Thomas's surprise 25th birthday and one helluva Halloween party. In addition, I got really good at making these kick butt breakfast burritos and I got a lot of new cooking equipment for Christmas so onward and upward.

6. Get lauranette.com up and running with a purpose.

Well, I got something up, but it's not what I wanted. Try again.

5. Update resume and professional contacts.

Accomplished! I got a new job in August :)

4. Get my associate's degree in Web design from LCCC.

Not quite, but I have a good excuse. I took a little hiatus while getting some time in as an LCCC employee, and after February, I can take my last 4 classes for free! Boo-yah.

3. Organize files on computer, get more space for file storage.

Check. Got a 1TB external hard drive for Christmas. Cleaning off C drive as we speak!

2. Feel better about myself, lose 25 pounds by 2010.

I found out I had asthma which was why I felt terrible when trying to run, so with a new inhaler I found out I actually like running. I ran a 2.5K in October, and although I slacked after that and overall gained more weight than I lost, at least I gained some self confidence in 09.

1. Eat better and exercise regularly. Get back into yoga.

I did well with this on and off for about 3 out of the 12 months. Overall, fail.

Now for my new list. What can we expect in 2010?

10. Read more books and check some of those off my Goodreads.com to-read shelf.

9. Redesign laurnanette.com with a purpose.

8. Learn to cook and eat new, healthy dishes to improve skills and diet.

7. Finish associate's degree in Web design; take classes in photography.

6. Buy a Canon Rebel Ti1 DSLR camera and become a better photographer.

5. Budget money, pay off credit cards and build up savings.

4. Have a yard sale to get rid of unnecessary clutter at the house (and earn a little extra money for 'Roo).

3. Commit to at least 5 days of exercise per week.

2. Train for and run at least one 5K race in 2010.

1. New you for Bonnaroo - Lose 30 pounds by Dec. 31 and be at least halfway there by Bonnaroo in June.

Google Voicemail is a hoot

The text translations are never quite right are they? Here are a couple I've received since switching from regular voicemail:

• A coworker, looking for a missing cell number - "And I page. I'm just trying to get a hold of parcel lock midnight. Thank you work on her cell number yesterday. If you could give me abuzz back"
• My dad, telling me James needed to reschedule an appointment - "Hey, This is regarding a problem gym after work friday there anyway when you can change that Thursday Hi Bill is because we're give me a call."
• Family video, telling me some games were late - "Hello from your friends and family video. I'm calling to remind you WE Hill items over due on your account, please do their 24 hour drop box for your convenience or renew your late items over the phone. Thank you for choosing family. They DL at your entertainment. Joy." (Actually, that one was pretty good....)
• Me, calling to locate my cell phone - "There is what you guys hello"
• My mom, telling me I was late for Thanksgiving dinner - "Hello. You gotta run off Alliance well."

And that is why, you don't leave a voicemail. Or you speak really clearly when you do.

The roughest weekend of Mini cat's life so far

Yesterday I took Hayley kitty, or Min-Min as I so often call her, to the vet for two shots, spaying and declawing. I thought this would help her kick the urge to climb into my Christmas tree and the timing seemed about right.

This morning I picked her up. She seemed to be in good spirits but Sadie Gray was, much to my dismay, VERY unhappy to see her back in the house. She hissed and spit and poor recovering Mini had no idea what to do. She still wanted to be with her big sister. I realize that's fairly normal and that they will have to get used to one another again, but I'm not in the mood to be patient.

I noticed Mini was licking herself way more than I remember Sadie did. I tried to stop her but you can't completely control kitties without watching them 24/7. After awhile, while she was licking her belly wound, I caught a glimpse of what looked like the incision coming open. There was a little bit of blood around the area, although no guts, but I freaked out.

I called David, who had his parents come over and take a look while he was at work. They too noticed it looked like a stitch was missing and by gently touching her wound we were able to definitively tell the wound was indeed open. We made the decision that it would be best to call the local animal hospital since our kitties' regular vet was closed for the weekend.

When we got her there she was still in good shape, and they let me know she still had a layer of internal stitches holding her insides in (thank GOD!) but that she had indeed chewed through the outside layer as we had feared. They put a number of staples in her belly to make sure that wound stays closed, gave us some antibiotic to give her to ward off any infection and told us to keep her in an Elizabethan collar for two weeks until the staples and stitches can come out.

She hated the collar of course. In true Mini cat fashion, it took her an hour or under that to get an arm through the collar, and then another 15 minutes to wriggle it down to her midsection where it wouldn't do any good. David and I fixed it so it's pretty tight, taking precaution that she can still breathe and eat and all that good stuff. Since then she's been sleeping and cowering on David and I whenever the other kitty comes near.

So she's not going to like it but for the good of the family, Sadie is going to be sleeping in the basement for the next several nights and staying down there when we aren't around to keep an eye on them - until she can learn to get along with the sick kitty. When we're home they can spend some time trying to get reacquainted.

That's the story.

Birthdays just aren't as exciting when you're older

First, thanks to everyone who wished me a happy birthday yesterday. Though not that different from usual, it was a pretty nice day.

I spent my entire day at work designing (which I think is totally fun) a booklet about L&C's Green Initiatives (which is a subject I actually am very interested in), then came home to roses (yellow, not for friendship but because they're my favorite color of roses), two kitties and a boyfriend that I love. We watched an episode of The Office we DVR'd from last week before meeting my family at Tony's in Downtown Alton for a steak dinner, which was delicious. After Tony's I convinced them to walk over to Bossanova (which has remodeled in the front and is gorgeous), where I asked Steve the bartender to make me a surprise that turned out to be a kind of tea with vodka (but not a Long Island) and was quite tasty. To David's surprise, since he was going to pick up the bill, that drink wasn't even on it - so score one for us (and yay for Steve the bartender). Afterward we headed to my parents' for cake that my dad forgot to use water in (bless his heart) and presents. I got some new storage for the bathroom, yay! David got me a video game that's pretty much an extension for my love of Farmville, which I need to play tonight, and is getting me some iPod accessories later this week, which will be nice. So it was pretty low key.

Most of my birthdays over the years have either been really bad or really good, so last year I decided to stop making a big deal about them.

Trying to squeeze something super special out of my birthdays before the big 25 had only really gone well twice - the time I turned 17 and Diane threw me a surprise party where several of my best guy friends danced around in her black bras, and my 22nd birthday bingo bash in Charleston for which my favorite roommate Erin whipped together all of my EIU people and plenty of Jello shots, and even got my favorite professor out to the Moose lodge for some O66 Clickety-click, Bottoms Up, will-never-forget fun.

My 21st birthday could have gone better - EIU was new and fresh and the only person I really knew all that well that was 21 drank too much and got sick by the time I even made it to Marty's, and my 24th (Rick Ankiel) left a permanent scar and numbness in my right knee from an unpadded ball pit at the City Museum in St. Louis.

So there was no pica pole this year, and no abundance of wine like there was last year, and much of my day was a pretty regular day at work. The good news is I'm in a much better place at 26 than I have been in the past.

I own a home that we fixed up nice, I have a live-in boyfriend and two cats who are my precious babies, I have a job that I actually love and that isn't bankrupting me, and things are otherwise going well. I only wish I'd have been able to make it to darts this week and I'm sad I'm going to have to miss volleyball this week. (At least I still get to play volleyball, as the LCCC faculty and staff take on student teams Thursday night).

Stumbled upon some Adam Lambert snippets today...

So the guy everyone thought had loads of talent and unique style about him is coming out with an album that sounds strikingly like girly pop, not the rock he was supposed to be all about - http://mjsbigblog.com/for-your-entertaiment-preview-snippets.htm

From the snippets, I can tell that the title track" For Your Entertainment" might be a hit with popular radio audiences, and I'm guessing that because of its similarities to the sounds of Lady Gaga and Miss Britney Spears - it reminds me a lot of "Toxic" and we all remember how popular that was. 

OK, yes, his voice is fabulous, but I don't think we're seeing full potential here, not by a long shot, and quite frankly I'm starting to wonder if he should have taken Queen up on that offer...

On the positive side, I really like the track "Sleepwalker," or what I've heard of it. As I read on (http://popwatch.ew.com/2009/11/11/adam-lambert-for-your-entertainment-song-snippets/), I'm not surprised that OneRepublic's Ryan Tedder had a hand in that one.

The album is not without its ballads - time to show off his pretty side - but for the most part, "For Your Entertainment" is very Backstreet Boys' "Millenium" for a newer age. I bring up that comparison only because I was stuck without an iPod in my rental car last week and was forced to listen to the one CD I grabbed or deal with talk shows in the morning. If you listen to the two side by side, there are similarities. Adam's voice is much better than the Boys' but the songwriting and peppy tunes have a lot in common and that's kind of disappointing. 

Not to say I won't listen to it and like it, but I still enjoy the BSB and NSYNC so what do I know? I will be surprised if my music-loving boyfriend finds any quality in this stuff (then again, we could have an "Umbrella" repeat on our hands, who knows).

2009 EIU Homecoming Weekend

As luck would have it, I came down with a rather nasty cold/sinus infection on Thursday that caused me to miss a day of work on Friday, and I feared I might have to miss this year's Homecoming. Determined to make it anyhow, I got my rest and doped myself up with cold medicines, B vitamins and plenty of fluids and made the trek to Charleston around 5 a.m. on Saturday.

I arrived at my one-time home around 8 a.m. and picked up my registration materials (including the ugliest T-shirt ever) at Old Main for the 10th Annual EIU Homecoming 2.5K race - my first race and a big reason I was so bent on making it. I ran the race with Mal and Stephen and kept pace about 3/4 of the first mile until Stephen started walking and I joined him. Mal shot ahead. She would go on to run the whole 1.5 mile stretch, but that wasn't even a goal of mine - I just wanted to do my best and cross the finish line. Not as many people were out watching as I had thought there would be, so that was nice, but I did pick up some inspiration from two kids on 7th Street giving high fives to passing runners. I ran most of 7th street, walked around the square, then ran/walked the last portion down 6th, finishing at 18:05. I could have done better had I not been sick and forgotten my inhaler, but I thought I did well for me at a 12:03 minute pace. For the rest of the day, the cold that had settled into my chest that morning made it hard for me to catch my breath in the chilly weather.

While visiting Lola and JR in the DEN newsroom, Mal (and baby Ian) and I scored two front row tickets to the afternoon football game v. Tennessee Tech (thanks to Sally), which Stephen was shooting for EIU. We stayed until it started to sleet, then took cover, and when we returned sat a row higher to watch Dallas Cowboys Quarterback Tony Romo have his number retired and receive a key to the city of Charleston.

I wondered how hard he had to try not to laugh at that, but was impressed that he came back and humored his little alma mater, backwards hat or no backwards hat. College girls screamed and a cheerleader blushed when he said "hi" to her as he passed. I heard rumors that he had rented out Stu's to party that night, and Mal and I wondered what all the displaced underage drinkers would do for kicks instead. Of course, I can't confirm that actually happened, but it's neat to think about - Tony Romo, at Stu's.

I heard Billy Panther tried to put his arm around him too, haha. Anyway, the rest of the game, Mal and I sat in the car and took walks with little Ian, who is incredibly charming, especially in his EIU gear, while we waited for Stephen.

After the game, our little group joined DEN newsies, teachers, advisors, alum and friends at Top of the Roc for Chili Bash. Erin, who came down with the flu, was not present but I did get to see my former roommate David, who unfortunately had to work for Top of the Roc that night and did not get to fraternize with us as much as we'd have liked. I visited with Marco and Colin, Colin's lady Claire, and a few others before driving back to good ole' A-town to continue my health recovery.

Halloween approaches...

... as does Homecoming and Fright Fest and a visit to Cincinnati - October is a busy month!

It's already been pretty eventful. Brian came out on Oct. 2 and we watched Final Destinations I, II and III as well as Halloween I, II, III and IV, and caught the second to last regular season Cards game on Saturday. We never made it to R Acres of Terror because of a flat tire, but it's always a good weekend when Brian comes in.

Last weekend the Cards lost their third game in the National League Division series, effectively ending their season, while I was with Amy and one of her friends at the Fox for "Phantom of the Opera." It was my first "Phantom" experience as well as my first at the Fox, and I'd love to go back. That place is incredibly beautiful. The show was good too, as was the Boathouse in Forest Park, where Amy took us to eat beforehand. Sunday, after little Brianne's 2nd birthday party, David and I got some shopping done and while he and his friends held a hardcore basketball league draft, I decorated the main floor of my house. There is still much to do...

Tonight and tomorrow night, I'm going for light runs on the treadmill in prep for this weekend. I'll go to bed early Friday, drive into Charleston around 8 a.m. Saturday and run in my very first race. It won't really be much of a race for me - just a self-motivation fun sort of thing. There are people walking the route, so hopefully I shouldn't come in last - but if I did for some reason, it wouldn't be a big deal because it's finishing the race that means I've accomplished more than everyone who isn't participating ;) Chili bash at Top of the Roc will follow a day of catching up with old friends, and that makes for a pretty nice weekend. Sunday, I can relax and maybe get some more decorating done.

The following weekend, we have plans to go to Fright Fest with Rachelowe, but our Oct. 31 party will be here before you know it. I hope we get a decent amount of people out, and I hope they have a lot of fun. The weekend after that, I think we're going to try and make it to Cincy to visit Thomas and Beth. (Regardless of that visit I hope they can make it to our party!)

In other news, David and I are now in a darts league in Jerseyville with my cousin Lisa and her boyfriend Kevin. Every other week we play at our home bar, Molloy's, and every other week we play elsewhere in Jville. We're not amazing, but after one night we are 8-5.

Additionally, I've been working on T-shirts for volleyball that are coming out nicely. I think I'll experiment with more designs when I get some more free time...

Things at work are going well, and I'm getting excited because we have a Web site planning meeting this week. It looks like my fun is about to begin ;)

And that's my life right now in a nutshell. :)