I have a confession to make. I am an emotional eater. Surprise, huh?
So I'm going through a big transition period at my job - nothing bad, just a lot of confusion and waiting for things to happen. As someone with unconfirmed OCD, this is not always an easy position for me to be in. I like control and order. I like my color coded file folders, my clean desk at the end of the day, and the feeling of accomplishment when marking something off of my to-do list.
So today, I have an afternoon of meetings scheduled to do some planning for this transition period. Lots to do, lots to think about...... I feel the stress monkey on my back. (Not to be confused with the Accelerated Tax monkey.) I return to school and I see that the Girl Scout cookies have been delivered. They are sitting on my desk - bright colorful boxes with pictures of happy girls. I know I'm happy when I eat the cookies!! I mean, I was a Girl Scout back in the day (of course, they were only $1.25 a box back then!) and I should support the Scouts, right?
Tagalongs. Samoas. Thin Mints - two boxes!
I finish up my work and am ready to go home. I'm tired (I always seem tired lately - I think that's my body telling me I need Spring Break - which is 12 school days away!!). I'm hungry - I didn't really get to eat lunch before my meetings began today.
I'm still not really sure how it happened..... driving out of the parking lot, I almost lost control of the car busting into the box of Tagalongs. I eat two cookies, no big deal. I sneak a third one. I think how good they taste while I eat the 4th and 5th one. I stop, looking at the box in horror - I've just eaten one whole row of cookies!!
I call my Weight Watchers buddy Melissa to have her help me put up the box of cookies and talk some sense into me. She doesn't answer!! I eat two cookies to soothe the fact she doesn't answer. What kind of friend doesn't pick up the phone to talk you down from the ledge?
I stop at Sonic to get a Diet Coke because I've had no caffeine today and I've got a monster headache. While I'm waiting, I eat two more cookies - then because the one left in the row looks sad, I go ahead and eat it to finish the second row.
As I head home, my friend Elisa calls and as I'm talking to her, I guess I ate more cookies - I honestly don't remember. I pull in my spot, hang up the phone, and look down. The box is empty. I have eaten 15 cookies in 30 minutes. What the heck??!?!?!
This was 3 hours ago. Since then, I've had the box of cookies sitting on the kitchen counter - each time I think I'm hungry, I see the box and I walk out of the kitchen, head hung down in shame. The box symbolizes a shame spiral at the fact that I ate all of them in the same time I could have watched "The King of Queens." To make myself feel better, I ate a paltry salad for dinner. Lettuce and salad spray.... yummy!! :/
I added up the Weight Watchers points for my little "slip" today. 32 points!! That means I should be able to eat my next meal Friday - dinner on Friday that is!!
Anybody want some Girl Scout cookies? I've got three boxes for sale!!
Alright, so as I'm surfing the net one night this week when I couldn't fall asleep - imagine my surprise when I realized that Oprah was again giving tickets away!! There were originally 9 days in March that she was shooting - now there are only 5 left!
So I call Sigh Sister Betty and we formulate our game plan.... cell phones have Oprah on speed dial, special codes to text each other IF we get lucky, our list of fellow Oprah-goers all set.
Cross your fingers, say a prayer, do a happy dance, whatever....
Have you received your W-2 forms? I love tax season - but not this year - I owe $600 because of consulting work and self-employment taxes.
This You-Tube was sent to me by my friend Cathy who is from Shreveport. I love it - it makes me laugh!! So if you are needing your taxes done, here's a place that can get "the tax monkey off your back!"
Side note: I've got to go to Shreveport in June for the Cathy's wedding - I will be finding Accelerated Tax and getting my picture in front of the log cabin building.
I think that one of the greatest TV shows of all times is Maude. I happened upon this show one night about 8 years ago while watching TV Land (I was only 2 when this show first aired!!) and I became addicted.
Maude was a spinoff of "All in the Family" (she was Edith's cousin) - we learned this at our aforementioned trivia night! Good Times was a spinoff of Maude. I mean, these quality Norman Lear programs are all connected in such an incestious web!! Think, there would be no Jimmie Walker "Dyno-mite!!" or "Ch-ello?" without Maude.....
I don't which I like more.... the theme song - particularly the montage of Maude sashaying around her house with her annoyed, dramatic, and droll looks while sporting the most fabulous 70's apparel - I mean those vests......
...... or the fact that this was an amazing cast - a true cornucopia of 70's talent. 1. Bea Arthur - there was life before Golden Girls..... what cracks me up is she is supposed to be in her 40's - she looks so much older!! (I hope I look younger when I'm in my 40's) 2. Conrad Bain - Mr. Drummond began as a dapper dressing, golf player, next-door neighbor/doctor 3. Rue McClanahan - Before Blanche, there was Vivian - the congenial naive neighbor - who knew she'd become a senior citizen sex kitten later on? 4. Esther Rolle - Maude was the birthplace of Florida Evans, who later was in "Good Times" - her husband, James Evans (John Amos) also makes an appearance or two...... 5. Adrianne Barbeau - Playboy centerfold, Hef's old girlfriend, and Maude's daughter (though it is hard to believe that masculine tall Maude could give birth to such a sexpot!)
This show dealt with some serious topics: abortion, alcoholism, infidelity, polyester pant suits with coordinating vests and scarves, and of course, Maude's trademark line: "God'll getcha for that!"
Anyone need any ideas for my birthday? Season 1 of Maude is out on DVD now!!
I love Oprah! There is just no other way about it! I've watched her show for as long as I can remember. I remember when she pulled the wagon of fat out on the stage, I remember some of her crazy hair dos..... I love her!! I subscribe to her magazine and have for a long time, I read every book she either recommends or every book she has chosen for book club. I Tivo her show, surf her website... I once even tried to get a job as an online host on her AOL area.
So you can see that it's been a dream for me to make the pilgrimmage to Chicago to be in the audience of her show. I don't even care what the topic is (but of course, I'd love to see "Oprah's Favorite Things!!") - I just think it would be awesome to be there. I've even put it on my own personal bucket list.
My friend Danyielle and I have talked about Oprah tickets for as long as we've known each other. So a couple of weeks ago, I'm surfing the site and I see that on Friday, February 15, you can call in and try to get tickets for the March show tapings. I about die!! I call up D and tell her that we've got to go! Of course, my fellow Sigh Sister Betty is also game for this adventure. One of the aides at my school even offered me airline tickets if I got show tickets. I'm ready!! I'm going to go see Oprah - I can't wait!!!
Yeah, right.
So the window opens at 10 AM and I've already got the phone number loaded as a speed dial on my cell phone. I'm ready. We have a break during our meeting and I start calling - busy signal or the operator telling me all circuits are busy. I dial for almost 20 minutes non-stop. I keep calling, every chance I get and I get the same results. All day long, I duck out of meetings, hide in my office, even call from the bathroom and never get anything but a busy signal or the operator destroying my dreams with busy circuits.
At 4 PM, when the window closed, I accepted my fate. I really wanted to cry, but maybe there is a reason why March isn't my month for Oprah. Maybe there is no more Nate shows, or no giveaways, or my honey Matthew McConaughey isn't going to be on. I'm crushed.
But you better believe that I'll try again next time. And Oprah, if you happen to read my little blog.... could you help a sister out and toss a few tickets my way? I'd be forever grateful.
Okay, so I am a person of many talents! One of them is organizing and coordinating stuff. I love to travel and my Aunt Betty also enjoys travelling as well. We've been to Hot Springs three times together and have had the best times. We like to call ourselves "The Sigh Sisters" because we both have a large repetoire of sighs that we use in a variety of situations. We'll catch the other one sighing and both dissolve into giggles. You know how you can travel with someone and you like to do the same things and dislike the same things? How it's always easy to have fun? That's how we roll!! :)
We decided that we wanted to go see Washington DC for Spring Break - I've never been and Betty went many moons ago. Well, I get very excited about potential travel and the next thing I know I'm finding deals on flights, booking the hotel, and finding what tours and other adventures are available in DC. I'm not sure how it happened, but I started calling myself "Marthalocity." So we have this great trip planned for DC (nice hotel in Dupont Circle, great Monuments by Moonlight tour, tickets to a play at the Kennedy Center) and we are excited. Betty's sister Patty wanted to come along, so we made her apply to be a Sigh Sister and now she is a Probie!!
It's all rather silly, but so much fun!! So imagine my surprise when I get an e-mail from my aunt with this picture attached..... I love it!! Marthalocity's very own gnome!!
I wonder where the gnome will end up next time I see it..... and will I see it in DC? More to come, I'm sure......
Okay, so I've just returned home from Trivia Night to support the library in the town where I work. It's a lot of fun, there are teams of 8 people..... we play 8 rounds with 8 questions per round on a variety of topics....
And we were awful!!
We made 36 points out of a possible 64... and we did better than last year, but still.... this is nothing to write home about!! There was a team that had one of our students on it and they beat us by 10+ points!
However, in our defense, I do think the questions were generationally biased.... too much junk about the 1950's - the older teams definitely outscored us - heck, they were actually around for some of this stuff!
I guess it doesn't matter, we gave money to benefit the local library and I really had fun with the team.... it's not whether you win or lose, it's how you play the game, right?
Next year, I'm playing to win!! Only 364 more days - gotta start training now!!
It's my favorite month of the year - especially since I'm single!! As I'm reading the paper today, there is an article telling me all the great things about being alone and not having to deal with Valentine's Day. It even offers great advice, such as don't send yourself flowers, because you'll look like a loser.... duh, really?????
Even when I've been with someone, Valentine's Day was not a favorite holiday. It puts too much emphasis on perfect romantic love and you know what? Love isn't like that all the time!!
So what will I do with this Valentine's Day? Well, I'll work all day, hit the gym, come home, order in some take-out, and find solace in watching shows about people whose lives are much different (thank goodness!) than mine, like Celebrity Apprentice and Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew. I mean, my life is better than being a drug-addicted porn star like Mary Carey or a born-again Christian like Stephen Baldwin?? Right??
I guess some people are addicted to love - I'm addicted to reality TV!
This is my latest "Marthalocity" gnome - it's a bobblehead!! I love it!!
