c.

Take this, Rocky...

2012-02-06T08:31:00.001-08:00

TWO posts in 2012!

So I'm a hypocrite, what of it?

2012-01-08T10:48:00.000-08:00

Is it completely irrational that I get upset when I visit all of the blogs I stalk and none of them have new posts for me when I haven't posted since December 8th? Maybe. Do I care? Eh, not really.

Seeing as this is my first post of 2012, Happy New Year, friends.

cheers,
c.

Simple Joy

2011-12-08T09:26:00.001-08:00

You know what I love? Words that you can type with only one hand. I know, I know, that sounds simple and mundane, but it makes me happy when I come across them. Words like "stresses," which normally would be a word I would hate due to it's meaning and general existence in my life. But typing it, typing it is pure joy. Only my left hand has to work. My right hand just hangs out and sips a dirty martini while my left hand basks in the accomplishment of doing something all on her own. It may only last for 5 seconds, but it's 5 seconds of heaven, people.

I wish I could relay more one handed typing words to you at this point because it would flesh out my point as well as make me appear to remember things that make me happy, but alas, my early onset Alzheimer's has flared up once again. If you happen to come across some of these glorious words, do send them my way. I always need a 30 second one-handed typing break to bring a little joy to my day.

Wishing you a simple joy for your Thursday.

Cheers,
c.

Come Fly With Me

2011-10-15T18:20:00.000-07:00

In 12 hours I will be on a flight bound for sunny Mexico (providing it doesn't rain. Mike "Sungaard" Headrick has determined that rain will most certainly be a part of our trip and is quite concerned. I on the other hand, couldn't be less concerned. As far as I know, they serve margaritas rain or shine).

I am beyond jazzed for this vacation. Work has been extrordinarily stressful lately (perhaps because I've been preparing for a week off? Who's to say?), so I am in need of an all-you-can-eat-and-drink week of fun in the sun - leave my mind behind, you might say. Mike, in optimistic anticipation, has taken to naming our traveling team (comprised of my sister, her husband and two of us) Team Sandtoxication. Here's hoping we live up to our name. Hope all of you, my internet friends, have a fantastic week. I would like to say I'll miss you this week, but no one likes a liar.

Cheers,
c.

The exotic lady

2011-10-07T09:03:00.000-07:00

That's right, I'm on day 4 of my new perfume and it is STILL making me feel like a brand new woman. I call life changing, suck it, Mike. (Jum, I don't know how my hair smells, but I did wash it today, just for you).

Happy Friday friends.

Daily Thought

2011-10-04T12:43:00.000-07:00

I love buying a new perfume. It makes me feel like I am a whole new, slightly more interesting and exotic lady the first day I wear it. Yes, this is a tall order for a fragrance, but the purveyors of et de toilettes always seem to come through. Of course tomorrow I'll be all used to my new sent and go back to feeling like my normal, rudimentary, somewhat mundane self, but today I will revel in my amped up alter-ego. Hope you found a simple joy today as well.

cheers,
c.

Things that produce joy

2011-10-03T19:20:00.000-07:00

1. The Avett Brothers live. Joy is maybe not strong enough. Euphoria? Nirvana? Bliss? Despite the necessity of viewing the show from the base of a stairwell due to my height ineptitude, it was one of the most incredible evenings of my life. Fabtastic.

2. Autumn is upon us. My favorite season for a variety of reasons including, pumpkin patches with great friends, hot apple cider and the best weather of the year.

3. New TV! New Girl! Good Wife! Parks and Recreation! Revenge! The Office! Dancing...WITH THE STARS! Man, I love tv. Should I pretend I'm more interesting and that I only read books? Nah... I'm currently watching my first episode of the Playboy Club, I'm somewhat interested 5 minutes in. Colbie Calliat is singing in her best Doris Day wig. She fits in well in the 60s.

4. Photography. My gal pal Jan lent me one of her fancy lenses for my camera. I'm enjoying tinkering and learning new things.

5. In T-13 days, Mike, Cour, Drew and I will be in sunny Mexico! Arriba!

6. These words I learned from my new obsession, pinterest: "Whenever I get sad I stop being sad and start being awesome." Barney Stinson would approve.

cheers,
c.

An homage to Blossom:

2011-09-20T10:19:00.001-07:00

WOAH, blogger is letting me blog again. For a good 5 days it would not load a new post window. And now I have nothing to write. Blast.

Oh, Mike finished his Ironman. Go Mike! And now I should work...

Iron WHO?

2011-09-08T19:03:00.001-07:00

Yep, it's that time of year again. Wherein my darling husband decides to exercise for the better part of a 24-hour period. Yep, you guessed it, it's Ironman weekend! A time for family and friends to gather, take pictures, play Frisbee, yell and scream at random strangers, make signs, chant chants (Iron who? Iron MIKE!), and for that select few crazies, become Ironmen. Good luck to all the lads and ladies out there this weekend brave and stupid enough to take on the 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike and 26.2 mile run. I equally salute and pity you.

And to tide you over until my next blog (which, facing facts, may not occur in the next decade), here are some images from exactly 2 years ago this weekend:

The Contender

The cutest fan

The Finish

Good luck, IronMike. You are my favorite Ironman ever and I am proud of you! (Sappy, but true).

Challenge:

2011-08-14T19:23:00.001-07:00

Find me someone or something cuter than my niece. I dare you.

Because I know you were wondering...

2011-07-25T15:05:00.001-07:00

The Airborne Toxic Event is my new second-favorite band. They just released their second album (and just is a relative term, I don't know when they released it, this year sometime, maybe. Why do I write about music ever? I don't follow it closely enough to have an opinion, but, it is my blog and I'll do as I please.)

If you've not heard them, here's an introduction that is not necessarily indicative of their music as a whole, but is a video that I really like. What can I say, any video that involves playing crystal water glasses, handsome men dancing and a most adorable lead singer is something I can get behind.

Yeah, I still have a VHS player...

2011-07-11T17:03:00.000-07:00

In the latest edition of 'c. is behind the times,' I have just started watching the Sopranos. My reasons for my tardiness are three fold:

1. I am cheap and refuse to pay for HBO.

2. Despite many glowing reviews, I have never felt compelled to invest my precious netflix limited discs on hour-long series.

3. It has taken this long for one of our friends with the entire collection to find out we've never seen them, be repulsed and deliver them to our door.

I have always wondered why Jamie Lynn Siegler was famous outside of playing Turtle's girl on Entourage and I'm about to find out. Review to follow.

Who acts like a jungle cat and turns 30 today???

2011-06-24T06:36:00.000-07:00

This guy!

Happy birthday to my hilarious and handsome husband. I like being married to you. A lot.

Weekend plan: Don't Die

2011-06-17T05:22:00.001-07:00

First (and hopefully last) marathon ever this weekend. We depart later this morning for beautiful Duluth, MN and the 35th running of Grandma's marathon. I am in no way ready for this race. My last substantial run was 6 weeks ago before my right leg decided it hated me and all exercise. At any rate, I have some irrational need to run a marathon and I'd prefer not to train for one again and thus, bring on the pain and agony. Old plan for the marathon: Enjoy the race, run the majority, try to run it in a reasonable time. New plan for the marathon: Don't die.

If you remember, think a happy thought for me on Saturday morning.

Cheers!

Life in photos.

2011-06-11T09:15:00.000-07:00

A host of activity has happened since my last post, and in lieu of a large, rambling list, here is a review in the form of some of my favorite photos.

Boston: Our kind of town. Here Mike is demonstrating the dangers of large lobster claw revenge if you enjoy your lobster roll too much.

Skates and Alfonso got married! A celebration of love and commitment, one night only! What a fantastic time. Particularly because I got to see these hooligans:

As well as these pretty ladies:

We visited Rock and Jonas where we quickly discovered that Rock has a penchant for maternity modeling:

And rooted for the Tigers in one of my Dad's last games as head coach. They won and secured the conference title against our arch-rival, Minnewaska. Way to go, Coach! (Side note: I have a ton TON of smiling photos of my dad from that day, but I love this one the most. You see, L.C. is a mild-mannered, happy, running-for-mayor kind of fellow, but from time to time while coaching, he may get a little fired up. Here's him giving the Waska coach the business. Awesome.)

We attended our first game at Target Field, and even though the Twins blew a 5-run lead, at least we got on the Kiss Cam (cross that one off the life-list) and I got to see Mike bust out his fashion-forward rally hat look:

And that, my friends, is all I have patience for at this time. You see, google blogger's photo uploader is the bane of my existence. Why oh WHY, google blogger, do you insist on placing every photo at the top of the post despite my perfect curser placement where the photo ought to be? Am I doing something wrong? Help me out here, kids. Hope you all are well and enjoying the start of summer.

Cheers!

Good Morning, World

2011-04-15T05:03:00.001-07:00

Sunrise this morning on Jackson Street after a nice run. Nothing like starting the day on a good note. Happy Friday, friends.

cheers,
c.

Sigh...

2011-03-10T20:14:00.001-08:00

I just spent the better part of an hour writing a blog post. Then firefox freaked out when I tried to add a photo and I realized I hadn't saved in a half hour. I have no energy to recreate 1/2 of that post, so...sigh. Perhaps someday, friends.

Until then. Here's a song I like, listen to it if you feel so inclined (this is in no way directed towards those music connoisseurs, j.lay and kos. In fact, please don't listen to it.)

Cheers.

family

2011-03-10T19:21:00.001-08:00

Allow me, if you will, to be a tad indulgent. Not exactly 'fun, break from work' reading, if you will, so skip at your leisure. A hem.

At the tail end of January, I received an early morning phone call from my mother. I have not come to expect good news when my mom chooses to phone before the 8 o'clock hour and this was no exception. It turns out that, at the very fortunate age of 27, I had lost my first grandparent. My dad's father, Grandpa Gerald, passed away peacefully in his sleep at the age of 85. His was a life well lived, full of good food, laughter, hard work, love of family and lots of baseball. It's an incredible thing to reflect on the life of someone who played such a strong roll in forming your identity and shaping the way you think about the world. I have been incredibly blessed to be the granddaughter of Gerald Rambow.

The services were equally wonderful and difficult. I am always grateful for the opportunity to spend time with my extended relatives as the occurrences seem to get fewer and fewer the more years we spend away from Minnesota. The amount of support we received was overwhelming and yet not unexpected in the same rite (small town living certainly has its advantages despite the trouble of having to drive 45 minutes to the nearest Target).

The most difficult part, of course was watching my father deal with the passing of his. My dad displayed his normal chipper 'running-for-mayor' demeanor. Throughout most of the memories he shared at the funeral, he kept his composure and a smile on his face. But in the quiet moments, the moments we allowed ourselves to remember the man who could remind you that you had to get your bunt down with a twinkle in his eye and who was buried in the suit he purchased for your wedding, those were the moments I was reminded of the precious gift of life.

I was lucky to be born the granddaughter of a man who won't be remembered in many record books. He didn't make millions of dollars, play professional sports, win the Nobel Prize or even run for mayor. Instead, he raised a family with my grandmother, ran a grocery store and then a county park. Focused on making memories and supporting his grandchildren and always treating others the right way. He was a man of character in a world that lacked it and I will miss him always.

This past weekend Mike and I traveled to see my sister's family in South Dakota. My baby niece, Lyla is now almost 10 pounds, up from 1# 6 oz. at birth. We just found out she can slowly be weened off her feeding tube and oxygen. She is a darling girl, full of smiles, and wouldn't you know it, a twinkle in her eye. My grandpa Gerald was only 2# at birth and had to be kept alive by placing old Montgomery Ward catalogs in the oven and switching them halfway through the night. Ours is a resilient and incredibly fortunate family. And I am grateful.

3.9.11

2011-03-09T19:44:00.001-08:00

A day of days, you might say.

Life is good, my friends.

When I woke up this morning, you were on my mind...

2011-01-25T18:24:00.000-08:00

Here is a short list of things I am currently excited about (in no particular order) as a way to ease back into blogging:

1. knitting.

2. Colorado Bulldogs.

3. Seeing the Avett Brothers live this weekend in South Bend.

4. Seeing the 'Touchdown Jesus' and other assundry Notre Dame related sites before said A.B. concert.

5. Training for and subsequently running Grandma's Marathon in Duluth in June (also falls under the category of things I am dreading/terrified of, but nonetheless, excited).

6. Kate and J.Lay's nuptials. I now have my bridesmaid dress. It is pretty, though it must be said: there may be some cleavage happening.

7. Our trip to Bozeman in 2 weeks to see the St. Aubyns and ski with K and J.Lay.

8. Potential shift which may result in me actually liking my job. Keep your fingers crossed for this one, everybody.

9. The birth of Jacob Keith Weidenbach to our dear friends H and Sam. He is cute and snuggly.

10. The David Wax Museum (thanks b.schne). If your question is, "Would you like to play the donkey jaw?" then my answer is "Yes."

10 ought to do it don't you think? You think we need one more? Okay we'll get one more.

11. The Oceans movies only get better with time. (Except for 12, 12 was marginal at best. I mean, I still own it, and I'll still watch it, but 11 and 13 are superior.)

Cheers, friends. Hope you are all enjoying the beautiful wintertime.

2010-12-25T09:44:00.000-08:00

merry christmas everyone! i will have you know, i have moved up in the technological world this christmas (are you shocked and awed?) as i am writing this from my brand new kindle while enjoying a cup of coffee from mike's brand new keruig coffee maker. life is good here at headrick manor. hope you all are having a very happy christmas indeed!

Life Lessons

2010-12-04T06:02:00.000-08:00

Do not drink so much at your friend's home that you can no longer pilot a vehicle on a night before a large snowfall. It will cause you to be abruptly awoken at 6:30 a.m. with a phone call from your husband telling you that you must find a way over to your friend's house to move your car before the plow comes and it is towed. You, in your dellierum from being abruptly awoken, will believe these shananigans, call the Kendall Cab service, and be escorted to your friend's house by a cabbie named Robert, who loves to smoke and hates to be called sir. Upon arrival, you will realize that the Kendall Cab service charges by estimate in place of the more formal metering system, and that your cab ride from Oswego to the outskirts of Montgomery will run you $10. You will then begin the process of unearthing your mini from the snowbank it has become, and attempt to drive your sorry self home. However, you will be stuck in a snow bank and be forced to break in to your friend's garage (you happen to know the key code) to find a shovel to dig yourself out.

Happy Saturday, everybody.

Gobble Gobble?

2010-11-25T14:25:00.000-08:00

We flew into North Dakota this year for Thanksgiving which usually means three things: 1. Our return flight will be canceled (check!) 2. My tolerance will be elevated from a 5 day bender (check!) and 3. My father-in-law will indirectly call me a communist (check!).

As we were supposed to fly out this morning, no plans were made for the traditional turkey/stuffing/green beans almandine Thanksgiving dinner. In lieu, we will be dining on reminant crab legs and my signature dish, enchilladas. I think if they Pilgrims and Native Americans had it to do over, they problably would have chosen that flavor combination too.

Happy Holidays everybody.

Cheers!

So I'm bad at blogging...

2010-11-04T14:36:00.001-07:00

What of it? The month of October had no blogs from me, whoops! The last couple of months have probably been the most stressful of my life, but I'd rather not discuss that. Instead let's talk about things that don't really matter.

1. The flatbread at Subway is terrible. I'm struggling getting through my turkey 'sub.' This makes me very sad. I have wanted to try the flatbread for a long time, but have always loved the regular bread at Subway so much, and therefore was unwilling to go out on a limb. Turns out staying close to the trunk was the way to go! Never again. Whole wheat, you will be mine once more.

2. It has been brought to my attention recently (and for many years from my friend H) that pigtails are not acceptable past a certain age. According to some, I've passed that age a decade or more ago. Yet, as you all know, I am a fan of adult woman pigtails. Now that my hair is past shoulder length, I have not enjoyed the pigtails as much as I do when my hair is on the shorter side, yet have not banished them as a rule. So my question for you is this: Can I still wear pigtails at 27 and why or why not? (H, I'm confident on where you stand on this, but go ahead and weigh in anyway, I'll enjoy your witty reply I'm sure).

3. I love Ryan Bingham. While out in California this past weekend, Dustin 'Balls' Steigauf was kind enough to share his entire collection with me and I have been enthralled. You may remember him for writing the Oscar-winning theme song to the superb movie "Crazy Heart." If you enjoyed that little ditty, you might also consider listening to this off the Mescalito soundtrack.

4. The wineries in Temecula, California are beyond wonderful. I want to live in one. Just set me up a tent in the vineyard and I would be a happy lass. (On a side note, the suggested spellings for Temecula include peculate, molecular, testicular and temerity, the 4th of which I am unfamiliar).

5. I just finished my flatbread sandwich and am thankful I purchased a diet coke with which to eradicate the aftertaste. Sorry to bring it up again, it just really is that awful.

Okay, have to go to work now. I look forward to your thoughts on adult pigtails or any other thoughts you would like to share with me.

cheers!

30 Days Hath September...

2010-09-29T12:48:00.000-07:00

September was B-U-S-Y friendos. Here is a super fast recap of the joy and wonderment of the month that was...

Weekend One 9.3-9.6: Rock and Jonas hitch their wagons together! So much love, so much laughter, so many speeches given by me (two, but let's face it, I probably shouldn't have given any...give me a mic and I will talk into it). At any rate, they seem pretty happy and I'm saying it out loud, I think those crazy kids are going to make it.

Jonas and Rachel Capistrant
9.5.10

Weekend Two 9.11-9.12: We traversed north to volunteer for the Ironman in Wisconsin. Let me tell you, 4 hours of handing out water to Ironmen and Ironladies will tire a girl out. Good thing I didn't have to wait in a ridiculously long line the next day for 3 hours for Mike to sign up for 2011 - oh wait. So come one, come all to Ironman Wisconsin 2011 and watch Mike exercise for 14 hours. There is a tee shirt in it for you that may or may not be cow printed.

Midweek 9.15: Kate, Alfonso, Brad and Vanessa (Chicago folk) and Kos and I enjoyed a good old Sox beatdown at the hands of the Minnesota Twin Cities Sluggers. To say Brad and Vanessa enjoyed it might be overstepping...but the rest of us sure did. To give credit, Brad and Vanessa prepared one delicious tailgate for us including one of the best tasting and largest burgers I've ever eaten: (photo uploader has stopped working, imagine a beautiful picture of three ladies and three delicious looking hamburgers). Also imagine an awesome photo of Alfonso's Twins hat overlooking the field with fireworks exploding in the background.

Weekend Three 9.18-9.19: Our Chicago friends Adam and Christina got married on the shores of Lake Michigan. So much love, so much laughter, so much Mike hiding in bushes (imagine a photo of Mike looking like a jungle cat in some tall green reeds). Saying this out loud too, I think these crazy kids will be very happy for life. Imagine a photo of a very tall groom in a dapper tux and a gorgeous brunette in a striking wedding gown on the shores of Lake Michigan. (This uploader being down is really extending the text portion of this post).

Weekend Four 9.25-9.26: QUAD CITIES HALF MARATHON! We win, we win! Best half marathon ever (of my two). The first, though run with my pretty pretty friend Karley, was dreadfully hot and I thought I was going to die for much of it. The second was run in perfect conditions along the Mississippi River and I felt fantastic for the whole thing. We finished in 2:05:59 - a personal best (of two) for me and a gain of about 8 minutes for Mike, who much to his chagrin, chose to be his wife's wingman (and, to be fair, was not in full Ironman training). Who wants to run Quad Cities next year? Raise your hand.

So after a full, happy and truth-be-known, expensive September, if your question is, "Do you have to transfer money from savings to pay your mortgage this month?" then my answer is, "Yes." ;(

hi

2010-09-23T10:27:00.000-07:00

No time or energy to write a real post, but wanted to say Happy Thursday to all of you. I may or may not have some significant changes after tomorrow, and if so, I will share with you this weekend. Ooooh the suspense!

What do you like more, Christmas or Wedding Season?

2010-09-03T06:42:00.001-07:00

I have to be honest, I'm really really jazzed for this weekend. Not maybe so much for the 8 hour solo drive across IL,WI, and Minnesota, but for the part where I get to spend the whole weekend with my most dear friend Rachel Lee Mattson and most definately for the part where I will stand up and witness the uniting of said Rachel Lee to Jonas Andrew Capistrant, a fine, strapping nordic man.

To be fair, I always love a wedding. I love the getting ready, the ceremony, the reading of Paul's first letter to the people of Corinth, the ample amount of people willing to pose for my pictures, the dancing and general feeling of joy from the collective wedding guests. However, weddings are even more special and enjoyable when one of the two folks entering marital bliss happens to be a friend who has occupied 'sister status' and I simply can not wait to celebrate with my very tall, very pretty, friend Rachel Lee Mattson III.

Lyla Leone Millard

2010-08-24T17:31:00.000-07:00

Last Friday I snoozed my alarm more times than I ought and groggily took a shower. I went into my room to change and noticed my mom was calling. It's on the rare that she calls so early in the morning, so immediately my scooby doo ears raised and I answered very quickly. I then sat on my bed, crying, with Sven on my lap, Boris rubbing against my legs and Mike holding my hand while my mom told me that my new baby niece was going to have to be delivered 9 weeks early. Apparently the baby wasn't getting enough nutrients in utero as was expected for a baby at 31 weeks. The doctors said she was 5 cm smaller than typical growth. Courtney, my sister, was checked into the hospital Thursday night, they had given her a shot to help develop the baby's lungs. The doctors were hoping that the baby would stay stable enough to wait 48 hours for the steroid to be fully effective. My folks were on the way to Sioux City and I was immediately making plans to get on the road myself.

Three hours later I'd taken care of a few last minute things at work, Mike had gotten out of work for the weekend and we were on the road traveling across the rolling corn fields of Iowa. We arrived around 7:30 p.m. and went straight to the hospital. At this point, everyone was optimistic. The doctors had a plan and the baby's heart rate was stable. Courtney was pretty uncomfortable, forced to stay in bed with a heart rate monitor strapped too tightly around her stomach in order to locate her tiny baby's heart rate. We were all stressed, but happy to be together. Courtney's c-section was scheduled for 10:00 a.m., Sunday morning.

Saturday morning, after a sleepless night that included a restless Lucia crawling into bed with us around 3 a.m., we were off again to spend the day keeping Cour and Drew company at the hospital. Between chess on the computer, white-board hangman and forced happy conversation, we passed the time. Everyone was nervous for the day and delivery that lay ahead, but we were all trying to stay strong for each other. We were so blessed by the outpouring of support from all corners of our collective life. Courtney, as usual, impressed me with her natural ability to stay collected and positive despite the stressful circumstances. We said goodnight and took Lucia back to the farm and had one more sleepless night.

Sunday morning, we headed back to the hospital. Waiting around for the baby to be born is not a feeling I want to experience again anytime soon. The boys had fallen into a deep computer chess addiction by this point, which was a welcome distraction for all of them. We had 'Father of the Bride' on in the waiting room to offer moments of repreive, but mostly we were tense to finally find out that both of our girls were doing well. Thankfully, that's exactly what happened.

The delivery went exactly as planned and Lyla let out a few delightful cries right as she was born. They immediately put in a breathing tube as a precaution and rushed her up to the NICU. The better part of an hour later and we were able to talk to an adequately-medicated Courtney, who was looking wonderful and feeling relieved for the best-case-senario birth of her 1 pound 6 ounce beautiful baby girl. Cour and Drew named her Lyla, after my father, Lyle. They chose Leone for her middle name, which has a long legacy on the Rambow side. It began with my grandma Donna Dee's mother, Leone who died when Grandma Donna Dee was just 16, was passed down to my aunt Ronna Leone, then to me, then to Ronna's grandaughter Sophie Leone (who was one of Mike's and my flower girls) and now to precious Lyla Leone. At the risk of sounding incredibly cheesy, it is my sincere hope that the strength of the women in our family through the years will be passed onto Lyla and help her in the great struggle that lies ahead.

Today Lyla is 2 days old. She is doing incredibly well despite the circumstances. They have already removed her breathing tube and she is breathing on her own with the assistance of a nasal tube which allows her to breath natural air, but makes it easier for her to inhale. She has been upgraded from her IV to small normal feedings. Her lung and digestive functions are operating normally and she is very active, kicking and squirming. We could truly not be more thankful for how extrodinary Lyla is and how well things have been going thus far. Lyla will require the care of the incredible hospital staff for at least another six weeks. If things continue the way they have been going, we are very optimistic she will grow up to be a very healthy, bouncy little girl ready to jump in the lake in no time at all.

Thank you to everyone who has said a kind word or offered up a prayer for my darling niece. It is a very humbling feeling to have so many people in our lives who support and care for us.

xoxo c.

A remark made as a result of mediation.

2010-07-22T08:11:00.000-07:00

So it's been over a month since my last post. I just reread it and it is almost comical how optimistic I was about that weekend, not knowing that my good friend Breanna would pass away just hours after I posted it.

She was 28, weeks shy of her 29th birthday when I was to see her at the Luther Crest reunion. She was beautiful, whip smart and had an amazing laugh. She was a gifted writer and teacher. She had an uncanny ability to put life's annoyances into perspective. She had an appetite to learn and a thirst for creative cocktails. She had a beautiful voice and loved to share it. She was a person surrounded in light. She and Chris had been married for 3 years and had a beautiful 15 month old daughter named Karley. The doctors still don't know what happened. Earlier in the day she had returned from a trip to New York with her students, and then, without cause or notice, she slipped away.

It goes without saying that something like that really makes you sit back and reflect on the fleeting nature of life and how a gal is living hers. I've been trying to not be passive. I've been trying to appreciate. I've been making trips to Minnesota I ordinarily wouldn't take. I've been burning the candle at both ends, staying up too late, waking up too early, running too many miles with no rest. I've been trying to let little things go that ordinarily would have fired me up. I have tried to pay close attention to how I treat the ones I love. I've been trying to pray more, curse less and give more hugs. I've been trying to count my blessings more and air my grievances less. I have not always been successful. I have had one of the worst work weeks in the history of my life. I have contemplated making changes to better my circumstances, yet have actually done nothing. I have hated myself for it and cursed myself for allowing negativity in. I have struggled to understand life and how in a flash it ends.

I suppose these are all part of the grieving process and I suppose I have felt these things before and I suppose I will feel them again. Isn't it interesting how we age and grow and feel we accumulate a firm grasp on life, yet no matter how much wisdom we think we have, we actually know nothing? (Full disclosure, that is not an original thought, I want to say Aristotle?). And in my plagiarism, I find truth. On that note, I will leave you with more brilliant words I could never write:

I just want my life to true
just want my heart to be true
just want my words to be true
want my soul to feel brand new

Love to you all. I am blessed to know you. Sorry about the deep thoughts, not my usual fodder, I know, but I am pretty incapable of anything else right now. If I do not know you - wow, there are people I don't know who read this? Amazing. And welcome.

It's just tequila and the beach, that's why it's salty when we kiss...

2010-06-18T07:08:00.000-07:00

Happy Friday all! I am in the mood to not be at work. This weekend is going to be fantastic and here's why:

1. It's Prairie Fest in Oswego! Last night I was able to sit on my back patio, sipping a Jameson and Ginger, (aka Jimmy, Jinger, Redheadedstepchild, Blarney Stone) and listen to a pretty decent cover band over a lovely campfire. A+

2. Keith Urban/Dixie Chicks/Eagles at Soldier Field on Saturday night! Extra bonus that H is coming after a refreshing Hawaiian Vacation and Lacey and her fam are coming down from Minnie. I could not be more excited! A++

3. Prairie Fest 5k Sunday morning! I hope to run it in under 28 min - setting really high goals, I know. B+

4. Mike is running the Warrior Dash in Joliet Sunday afternoon wherein he will climb walls, roll in the mud and jump over fire! Fantastic! A+

5. Alfonso introduced me to a sweet radio station some time ago and I have been jamming to this song. I decided it's my official weekend anthem. A

Hope you all have a fab weekend!

cheers!

Guess what?

2010-06-09T21:11:00.000-07:00

The Blackhawks won the STANLEY CUP! Celebration ensues!

Fill it up again!

2010-06-03T08:19:00.001-07:00

I am pretty bored at work right now. It's summer and it's slow and my boss is out of the office.

After exhausting facebook, creating a new budget and stalking all of my usual blogs, I have compiled a list of songs I will never be sick of hearing.

In effect, these are my 'desert island' songs that could be played on repeat to more enjoyment each time. This is in now way a comprehensive list - just what I could think of this morning whilst listening to Cities 97.

I invite you to add or subtract to my list as you see fit. Here they are, in no particular order (except the first song is there for a reason - probably my favorite song of all time):

1. Into the Mystic - Van Morrison
2. In My Life - The Beatles
3. Nightswimming - REM
4. Plush - Acoustic - Stone Temple Pilots
5. You Were Mine - Dixie Chicks
6. Sitting on the Dock of the Bay - Otis Redding
7. Murder in the City - Avett Brothers
8. Fire and Ice - Garth Brooks (apparently Garth does not enjoy to have his songs on youtube, so you can choose to watch the lost video or not, let's face it, Kos will watch).
9. The Way You Make Me Feel - Michael Jackson
10. Change is Gonna Come - Gavin Degraw version
11. This Year's Love - David Gray

Coin it!

2010-05-24T13:34:00.000-07:00

So, here's your chance to be creative! Sometime over the winter at a fantastic Irish Pub, Heather, Katie, Alfonso and I were introduced to the wonders of Jameson combined with Ginger Ale and a twist of lime.

It seems the phenomenon is spreading, because last night, our buddy Ryan was talking about how it is his favorite new drink.

However, 'Jameson and Ginger' just doesn't seem like a worthy enough name for this tasty libation.

Your challenge, if you choose to accept it, is to come up with the most creative and/or best name for this cocktail. The winner (chosen by me) gets a bottle of Jameson to be delivered the next time the winner comes to my house.

GO!

This is why I hate rain...

2010-05-07T06:31:00.000-07:00

Here's the thing about being a pug-dog owner: Pugs are awesome and will be your best friend.

They are very lovable and sweet and cuddly and goofy looking and fun to watch run about and take on walks.

They will tilt their head from side to side when you ask them questions and run to greet you when you arrive home from work.

They will snore and snore loudly when they are taking a nap with you on the couch, and for the most part, this is very adorable.

They will even be adorable when they wake up in the middle of the night with their whimpers because they are afraid of the thunderstorm going on around them. However, when you try to calm their sad little shaking body down by cuddling them in YOUR bed whilst trying to fall back asleep at 2:00 in the a.m., their snoring becomes considerably less adorable. Missing the hours of sleep between 2:00 and 6:30 in the a.m. becomes an issue when you must arrive at work at 8:00 in the a.m.

This is when coffee, not your pug-dog, becomes your best friend.

"Ha! I have kept you awake with my 'adorable' snoring and intermittent shaking and now you have to go to work and I have to take an all-day nap on the couch! Good thing I'm so damn cute and sweet that you will never stay mad at me and instead you will feed me carrots and other assorted delicious foods when you get home! I have bested you again!"

If I had a penny for everything I love, I would have many pennies...

2010-04-27T16:53:00.000-07:00

In an effort to spread happiness through positivity, here is a list of things I really love right now:

1. Harmony illustrated by the following two bands:

Lady Antebellum, particularly this song.

and

direct from my Schne-provided Avett Brothers Collection this diddy.

2. This fellow here:

As well as the rest of the team, Target field, pretty much anything Twins baseball related.

3. The Dairy Hut in Oswego is up and running! I enjoyed my first vanilla chocolate dipped cone the other night and it was GLORIOUS!

4. It's finally warm enough for me to wear these shoes:

I quite like the blue color - perhaps I need to purchase another pair...

5. Gin, tonic and green olives.

and finally...

6. THIS is happening:

Are you happier now? No? Well, I gave it a go anyway...

Wouldn't kick him out of my bed...

2010-04-22T14:07:00.001-07:00

Now for a new installment on the blog called, "I wouldn't kick him out of my bed."

The first installment will be dedicated to the late, great Paul Newman.

Facing facts, I know, he has passed away. I know, he is 60 some years my senior. I don't care. I'd follow those blue eyes anywhere. I quite enjoyed him in Cool Hand Luke, loved his banter in Slapshot, and fell in love in The Sting. Paul was unlike any other.

However, let's be clear, the Paul Newman in my bed is not 80 years old. Rather he looks like this:

You're welcome.

Now, your turn. Who's an older fellow or lass of your choosing? (Mike, Jennifer Aniston isn't old enough to qualify, pick someone else).

2010-04-19T16:24:00.001-07:00

I'm pretty sure I have early onset Alzheimer's. Today I woke up begrudgingly and got ready for work and arrive in-or-around 8. Around 9, my boss e-mailed me, "What are you doing here?"

OOOOOOh yeah, I switched a shift because my mother-in-law is coming to town on Thursday and I wanted to be able to go with to pick her up from the airport. Blast!

Seriously, get your kicks with me now, because in 10 years I won't remember who you are. Sorry in advance.

2010-04-08T11:17:00.000-07:00

I imagine it's time for me to make my obligatory one-post-a-month for April. Big props for anyone who actually reads it in April, as I know checking my blog on any kind of a regular basis must be a frustrating ordeal. Today is abnormally slow at work. My boss is out for the afternoon and I didn't start until 12 - so I have no assignments from her, which I rely on to keep me busy before I start supervising student workers in the evening. I am generally in a sour mood today - not really sure why, but here are some potential reasons:

It's only 40* today - boo, bring back the 70s!
I am out of coffee
I decided today that any cuteness I once had is officially gone. I need a tan now so I can start to feel a little bit better about my appearance
Coldplay is playing on cities 97 right now. ish.

And now to break my funk I will list things I have to be happy about:

Kos is coming out to the burbs this weekend - IF his sore throat clears up. If that does not happen, you can go ahead and mentally move this bullet up into the first set
We will hang with Kate and Alfonso at their new casa and enjoy the delicious cuisine of the Jalapeno Grill - HELLO tachos nachos!
The Twins are in town and Mike and I are attending the Sunday game
Schne recently sent me the entire Avett Brother's collection and I have been enjoying it immensely - thanks again, b.s.!
I discovered a really tasty new Riesling last night that is not too sweet!

There, I have one more happy than sour, so I can be done. Enjoy the rest of your April (or May, as the case may be).

c.

suit up

2010-03-03T14:25:00.001-08:00

In a manner of speaking. My friend Erin alerted me to these today and I thought you all might enjoy purchasing one or more of these shirts. I haven't looked around the site much, but I'm sure there are more to be had. Here are the two I found to be worth a dime.

http://tanga.com/photos/424949/large
http://tanga.com/products/prestige-worldwide-boats-hoes-t-shirt--3

enjoy.

smokey robinson

2010-02-24T13:37:00.001-08:00

Today marks the first day of "lose weight - 2010 edition." Mike and I are on a plan (that he made and is enforcing) to lose 5 pounds a month for the next 6 months while concurrently training for a half marathon. He made me weight myself in front of him and then proceeded to write said weight down in a chart and hang it on the fridge. As you can tell, I'm super jazzed about it. I am hoping that writing this lofty goal aka saying it out loud, will make it come true.

So, cut to 8:47 a.m. and I'm sweating it out on the treadmill. Enter giant blond lady wearing an equally giant white sweatsuit. She starts her walk and as she goes faster, her "I just smoked a whole pack of cigarettes" smell hits me smack in the face with brute force. I had to fight the urge to vomit all over her giant white sweatsuit. There is no worse smell when trying to excersize than smoke. I would rather she be ripping ass the whole time.

Now, don't get me wrong, I fully support anyone's right to smoke. But the smokers I know somehow manage not to smell terrible. Isn't there a conscious effort amongst smokers to freshen up before they walk into a packed work out facility and begin to sweat? Don't you like, keep a bottle of Febreeze in your car or something for emergencies such as these? Help me out, Marlboro lovers - what are the secrets to not smelling like smoke so that I might share them with smoky cloud lady at the gym tomorrow (see how I'm pretending I'm going to work out two days in a row? nice, huh.)

You've had two pair of gloves this whole time?

2010-02-03T17:08:00.000-08:00

YEP! We're off to the Rockies tomorrow!!!! I am so excited that I'm not even mad about my 3:15 wake up call to get to the airport in time.

We are skiing Breckenridge this year and I can wait to see how many spills Mike takes in the first 5 minutes. Last year it was 8. Here's hoping it's a little better this year!

Meggy, Balls, Diddy, James, Al, Sarah, Kate, Jason - see your arses in CO!

cheers!

don't tell me secrets...

2010-01-21T18:18:00.000-08:00

because it's hard for me to keep them. i will keep them, but i won't be happy about it. you know who you are. i hope the plan is still in tact for the end of the secret. then i will not have to think about not telling it anymore!

thanks,
Chelsey

okay, fine.

2010-01-14T17:00:00.000-08:00

One more blog, you buggerfaces.

I just saw this picture and it made me happy and not because I particularly care about Fergie or the fact that she has a crazy bufont hairdo while on a JOG. Check out Josh Duhamel's hat! Way to stay true to your roots, Minot!

bon voyage

2010-01-10T20:25:00.000-08:00

I think...this is my last blog.

Blogteam, disassemble!

To the 3 of you who read this, Da Svidaniya.

worth reading, I think.

2009-12-01T17:43:00.000-08:00

Sunday I returned from a most enjoyable visit to Minnesota. I had gone up for the week to help my sister and brother-in-law ready their house to be sold. The previous week, my sister casually asked if we would be willing to house their husky, but loveable cat, Boris (aka The Russian Spy Cat), while they transitioned. Mike and I agreed, and from that ill-fated decision, the following events occurred:

Saturday

7 p.m. – Over dinner on the eve of my departure, my sister informs me that Boris often has bouts of kitty IBS in the car. A fact she negated to mention when asking me to be a foster parent. Tears of laughter ensued as she recounted past disaster tales. I temporarily considered leaving him in Mankato thus ensuring a poo-free ride home. Let this be a lesson to you – always go with your first instinct.

11:58 p.m. – I go to sleep, praying for dear life that God will not allow Boris to diarrhea in my car.

Sunday

8:30 a.m. – I inform my sister that I will, indeed, be taking Boris with me. We devise a master plan to place newspaper on the bottom of his cat-kennel in case of the dreaded poo explosion.

9:02 a.m. – I have my car jammed full of Black Friday purchases and Boris in tow and I depart Mankato.

9:45 a.m. – I marvel at how calm and content Boris is in the car and remind myself that Courtney has a tendency to be overly dramatic. I turn the radio up for that sweet sound and ease on down the road.

10:02 a.m. – I enter the freeway at Owatanna and notice some strange noises are coming from Boris. I look to find my prayers have been answered, there is no poo party – instead, Boris has had a vomit explosion that smelled to high heaven. I roll my windows down and enjoy the brisk 38 degree Minnesota air while frantically looking for a suitable gas station, wherein I will be able to clean up Boris’ cage AND get a delicious cup of coffee.

10:27 a.m. – Said gas station presents itself in Kasson, MN. I pull off, only to wait in line for a spot at a pump. Apparently the Kwik Trip in Kasson is a mecca on a Sunday morn. I take Boris out of the car, still in his cage and carefully open the door to the cage. He has sat in the puke a little bit, and I carefully place him on the floor of my front seat so as not to get vomit on my white fleece. I go to shut the door when…

10:28 a.m. – Boris SPRINTS from the floor of the car and streaks across the gas station. He is no spry kitten and to see his 20 + pounds moving like a gazelle in the Serengeti is a site to behold. However, instead of enjoying the majesty, my flight reflex kicks in and I run, screaming and flailing my arms across the gas station after Boris, leaving my car door wide open with no regard for my purse and many Black Friday purchases.

10:29 a.m. – Boris rounds the corner of the gas station out of site. I run after him screaming, “Boris, BORIS!” Many gas station patrons inquire if he is my cat and join me in the hunt. I round the corner to find a number of cars, a view of a marsh and the dreaded overpass, but no Boris.

10:30-10:32 a.m. – I wildly look for Boris, screaming his name, heading into the grass, looking under cars. A feeling of dread seeps in that I have lost my sister’s cat and the tears well up in my eyes.

10:33 a.m. – I spot Boris under a car and my heart falls out of my throat, back into my chest. I get down on my hands and knees and try to coax him from underneath the car. He is meowing loudly in a tom-cat sort of way, and will not budge.

10:35 a.m. – He finally peaks his head out of the car and I quickly snatch him up. I then carry him back to car as he – Pinky the Cat style – tries to escape.

10:37 a.m. – I return to my car, where one of the helpful gas station patrons is waiting, holding Boris’ kennel for me. I regretfully inform him that I cannot put Boris back in his cage because it is filled with vomit. He drops the cage like it was made of liquid hot magma.

10:38 a.m. – I ask the fellow if he wouldn’t mind shutting the door for me quickly as I put Boris on the floor of my backseat. He wouldn’t mind – and we successfully trap Boris.

10:42 – 10:38 a.m. – I cleaned up the cage with haste and patted myself on the back for the brilliant newspaper idea. I then very carefully opened my door and held on to Boris. He clung to the floor mat and my atlas with the Jaws of Life. Boris and I are in a full on struggle, I am nearly falling over with laughter at the ridiculousness of the situation and Boris’ super-kitty strength. I finally pry him from the floor, only to reengage the pinky the cat situation while trying to wrestle him into the cage. Tears stream from my eyes and meows bellow from Boris’ lips as we fight the age old battle of good v spy kitty.

10:39 a.m. – Another helpful patron holds the kennel for me and finally, Boris is safe and puke-free. I profusely thank the lady and go in to buy the most wonderful cup of coffee in the world.

3:48 a.m. – We arrive home with no further incident. Boris greets his new brother, Sven, and gets acclimated to his new (temporary) home. I collapse on my coach and silently plot to give Sven some Colon-Blow the first time we visit the Millard’s new residence. (insert evil plan laugh here).

The End.

...

2009-11-20T07:20:00.000-08:00

Musings on a Friday morning:

I am dangerously low on coffee right now - good thing I have nothing to do at work and will have nothing to do for the remainder of the day.
One of my very favorite songs is playing right now - What's been going on by Amos Lee. I have it at a decently high decibel, so I just closed the door to the cave.
I am so SO sick of Twilight. I do not read the books, I have not seen the movies and I do not think Robert Pattinson is attractive. Is this craze over yet? This is worse than when a new Harry Potter movie comes out.
Mike and I are having an extended test drive of the Cube today. I am hoping it convinces him that this is, indeed, the car for us and I won't have to test drive a bunch of grandma cars to appease him. He actually said the word 'Buick' to me and meant it!
I am headed up to Minn this Sunday and will spend the week helping my sister and brother-in-law get their house ready to be sold. I'm excited to spend some time in the motherland, though Rock said she had to scrape her windshield today, and I am not so excited for that. Turns out I've acclimated to the slightly warmer temperatures IL has to offer and have subsequently turned into a pansy.
We had a "Friendship Thanksgiving" hosted by Jon and Janet this week and it was fantastic! I can't wait for Jon to prepare many more turkeys, because as he put it, "turkeys are dirt cheap."
If you do not already, you should be watching MadMen. It is fantastic. I have watched it out of sequential order and I still enjoy it. It is amazing (for better and for worse) how far we've come in the last 50 years. I suppose 50 years is a significant amount of time, and yet, seems not so long ago considering the way women were treated. Joan, the head secretary, said this when training one of the new secretaries, "And here is your typewriter. The men who designed it made it so easy, even a woman can use it." Sitting in my own office, typing this on my own computer, it is not lost on me the sacrifices and accomplishments of generations of women.

and now that all the men reading this have rolled their eyes a couple times, I will end my thoughts and bid you all a Happy Thanksgiving.

cheers!

keep the change, you filthy animal

2009-11-04T17:00:00.000-08:00

Tonight, I had to fire my first student worker. In my tenure at AU, 37 work days, this student had 9 last minute absences including 3 no shows/no notice. Keep in mind, this student only works 3 days a week, so in my tenure here, he amassed 23 total possible work days, giving him an absence percentage of 39%.

One would wonder why I waited this long to fire him. I wonder this myself, but stating the obvious, I'm a softie and I fall for the sob story...until today. Last night after he called and left me a message for his 8th absence, I called him back (and of course he didn't answer) and left him a message asking him to come into my office today so we could talk (read: so I could fire him). The kid did not show up TO BE FIRED. So I thought, well, I'll wait until he comes into work tonight at 6 and then fire him...but HE DID NOT SHOW UP. So I was forced to fire him over the phone/view facebook message (because the e-mail address he gave me is unreliable - see, I fall for the sob story).

I was nervous about firing this kid all day, but now that it's done, I feel totally unsatisfied that I didn't get to fire him to his face.

Damn kids.

Letter I wish would be read...

2009-10-19T11:39:00.001-07:00

Dear Dannon,

Please reconsider making your "Seasonal Delights" yogurts a limited time offering. The watermelon and cantaloupe flavors are too delicious to only be offered in the summertime. Perhaps you could consider renaming them to "Delightful in all Seasons" and thus, they could be on your permanent flavor list. Just something to think about and then implement.

Sincerely,
Chelsey "yogurt lover" Headrick

Dear Minnesota Twins,

You are and will always be my favorite baseball team. I don't mind that much that you haven't won a World Series since 91 - but man, remember how fantastic that was? Perhaps you could put it on your list to win the World Series next year. Think about it, it would be a great way to christen Target Field AND your fans would be super excited. Win - Win. Also, if you could ask Joe Mauer to call me, that would be great.

"And we'll see you tomorrow night,"
Chelsey "I heart Joe" Headrick

p.s. Did any of you cry after your last game in the Metrodome? Yeah, me neither.

Dear Mike,

Can we please get a Mini Cooper? I will never ask for anything again. The Sola is bumming me out. I'm sure Jason will buy it from us, he likes to have a collection of cars. Don't you want to make your wife happy? Think about it.

love you,
Chels

and that's the way the cookie crumbles...

2009-10-02T06:14:00.000-07:00

Hi All,

Thank you for all your well wishes. However, it was recently brought to my attention that I have no chance of winning even if I attain the letter 'B.' Apparently, the fine print stipulates that you must keep the letters in order to be eligible to win. I, foolishly, simply entered my codes on the computer and threw my pieces away. Thus, no car for me.

10, I'm glad we both share a love of the office and I would still encourage you to eat at subway as it is delish.

Happy Friday, everyone!

Today's Post is brought to you by the letter B

2009-09-25T09:44:00.000-07:00

Hello all. In case you haven't checked my facebook status lately, or you are not facebook friends with me, I will tell you of my quest. Subway is currently featuring "Scrabble" wherein you collect letters and try to spell things to win great prizes. I am one small letter B away from wining a 2009 Toyota Prius!!! (Full Disclosure, I'm sure they made like 2 letter B's and they have already been tossed by some guys who work construction in Idaho, but I hold out hope.) I'm thinking that the more I send out positive vibes to the Universe (read: facebook, blog, and casual conversation), the better shot I have of receiving a new car via the letter B. Maybe if I just use B words all day that will help too...In closing, if you happen to glean the letter B off your subway cup in the next couple weeks, would you pass the code my way? Thanks.

Bears, Beets, Battlestar Galactica.

Ch-ch-ch-changes

2009-09-17T14:22:00.000-07:00

...for the Headricks in 2 big ways:

#1. I have a job. Yep, a real one. Not just one where I deliver wine sometimes and pour wine for drunkards. I am now in my 3rd day working for Aurora University, which some of you may remember as the college that gave me a degree. I am a "Communications Specialist" and am slowly figuring out what that means. So far, I haven't done much but meet with people I'll be working with. Tonight I meet my student workers, so hold on for what is sure to be some Freshman drama tales. In summation: "woo hoo."

#2. Mike is an Ironman! Last weekend he completed his plight and it was in a word, fantastic. His folks, my family, Rock and Jonas, Karkar and her sister Jilly all came in from the west and H, Janet, Maddie, Jamie and Jay all came up from the Chicagoland area. We had a quite a crew which worked out nicely. We were able to spread the course and give Mike lots of support. It was a little overwhelming for me at certain points what with the wrangling of the Iron Mike Fan Club and the ever present nerves I felt. I was much more nervous for Mike then he was for himself. Anytime I saw an ambulance or saw a biker eat it hard, my stomach always dropped.

He came through with flying colors, completing the 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike and 26.2 mile run in 14 hours 34 min and 43 seconds. At the end, there is a big crowd on each side and the music is pumping and the MC declares, Mike Headrick, Oswego, IL YOU ARE AN IRONMAN and it is very inspiring. I may or may not have teared up a little. Mike chose not to sign up for next year's race and everyday since he has been kicking himself. So for all of you who would like to see him do this crazy race again, which I highly recommend, let me know and I'll give you the info for the 2011 race. Until then, look for us at the Lawrence and Michigan half ironman competitions.

i'm not in kansas anymore...

2009-09-09T08:47:00.000-07:00

but i was and it was fantastic! i now present to you an ode, in pictures: just kidding. the image uploader will not work, so i will just talk about my favorite things about kansas.

1. mi familia. delish. plus they give you free glasses that say "never just one margarita" if you put them in your purse.

2. ready, set, go to bed. a fine pillowcase with a fine man sleeping on it.

3. before kansas, I was living in a world of darkness, but jim and kos said, "right, let's get some light in here" and I fell in love with "it's always sunny in philly." ooooOOOOOhhhhooohhhh.

4. tailgating. it was a blasty blast. plus, i fit right in with my jayhawk teeshirt, thanks Al!

5. Finn. This is where the pictures really would have come in handy because this kid is cute. I mean really cute. I'll try again. nope, still broken. blast. you'll have to take my word for it, OR check out Skye's blog.

6. The fine watering holes in the greater Lawrence area. My favorite, the Red Lyon, but only because they had strongbow in the cans. I also enjoyed Louise's west for the fine patio set up. Though, who could forget Willie's (aka Raffy's) that comes complete with jukebox and smelly ladies who don't want their picture taken? next trip: shark attacks.

for more on the fun, check out Jim's blog where there should be a recap coming sometime within the next two weeks. ahhhh just kidding jim. (bergman, if you read this, which i don't think you do, lay off, just jokes.)

and now i must mentally prepare for my big kid's job, which starts next tuesday. i'll miss you, drinking coffee and slacking off...

i suppose i should blog in august...

2009-08-23T18:00:00.000-07:00

so i will, briefly.

august has flown. here are some things that have occupied our time.

1. Minnesota

Minnesota was fantastic, as per usual. We spent 9 wonderful days with family, loons and Lake Minnewaska. Highlights: Mike (painfully) learned to slolam ski. Lucia loved (finally) spending time with her aunt and uncle. Jonas (Rock's new flame) came for a Rambow family meet and greet and was humerous and fun. We spent time with Mike's family, including his Grandma Ellen who is miraculously turning 90 despite looking like a spry 71 year old. We attended my Grandma Dee's 80th birthday and spent some quality time with my extended Rambow family. We relaxed on the lake and fantasized about owning a lake home.

2. Softball

The Mill Race Cyclery Softball team was a ragtag bunch who can count drinking beer as their finest accomplishment. It is painful, but always entertaining for this coach's kid to watch these air traffic controllers try to play ball. Thankfully the season is over. Mike only owes 38 dollars in error fees to the final party.

3. Running/Ironman countdown

I have improved my running once again. I am not quite to the level of fitness I was a few years ago, but I am on my way. Mike is in the final stages of his Ironman training and is getting very excited/nervous. To be fair, I am probably more nervous than he is. As of today, we are 21 days away from Mike becoming an Ironman. Positive thoughts sent into the universe would be much apprieciated!

In closing, listen to this song. It is sure to brighten your day: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eoaTl7IcFs8&feature=related

oh and speaking of things to brighten your day:

top ten things i love right now (in no particular order)

2009-07-14T16:28:00.000-07:00

The following is a list of things I am really loving right now. I find it's fun to make these kinds of lists as a sort of mini-time capsule of this time in my life. Perhaps you will find it fun too.

I love:

The Capuccino Icers at the Village Grind. They are perfect for a hot summer's day and a walk with...
Sven. Who wouldn't love this little puppy? He is cuddly and does the funniest little butt scoot when he gets excited (note: this is not the same thing as a dog scooting it's butt across the floor, which is gross, this is more a tucked in butt run and it is grande.)
enjoying a ice cold beverage in my UND tumbler on our new patio furniture.
the sound of Mike playing Pac Man in the background. I love it when he eats the ghosts. (aside: why was the companion game called Ms. Pac Man? Why not Pac Lady?)
Danger Cocktails. Mike and I discovered these during our Wine Tasting tour of Michigan. They are a delicious blend of Michigan Cranberry Wine and Michigan Vodka. When the boys played with their wizzard sticks on the 4th of July, we ladies classed it up with the Danger Cocktails.
Burn Notice. Lyle C. has been trying to get me to watch it for 2 years. I have finally listened to him and am happier for it. It is much like the Bourne Identity movies, only with pithy dialogue.
Between 2 Ferns. Google it.
Minnesota Twins Baseball (this is not new, but still worth noting, I think).
Talking to Lucia on the phone. She really loves to sing songs and say hi to Muncle Mikey.
The Proposal starring Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock. a. I love both of these actors and b. it was much better than I was anticipating, which is always a welcome surprise. It is a good date movie, but still a rom com, so boys, take a woman as a cover (wink).

we don't need no water.

2009-07-13T20:15:00.001-07:00

I love campfires. Maybe it's a Minnesota thing, or a camp thing, or a Rambow thing, but there is something spiritual to me about campfires. Tonight Takashi, Aya and Mia were over after an evening of driving range and Tap House to have a campfire and it was so peaceful and relaxing. I love going to bed with my hair smelling like campfire smoke, is this strange? Be it so or be it not, I don't care because I love it. I will sleep well tonight, to be sure. Kum-by-ya.

p.s.

2009-07-10T13:48:00.001-07:00

Dear Katie,

In my next life, I'm going to be organized. I will be punctual and follow through on things I said I would follow through on. If I say that I will deliver your birthday gift to Mandy when I see her in Grand Forks for Nate's wedding, I will actually do it. I will not forget it in my suitcase and find it nearly three months later and then pack it up to mail it. When someone moves, I will make sure to get their new address right away so that I do not have to wait for someone to answer my facebook status in order to send them a package. I am deeply sorry for being such an unreliable gift deliverer.

Your Friend (at least I hope you still consider me your friend),
Chelsey

p.s. I would really like you to move to Oswego and be my neighbor. Just remember how much fun we had over 4th of July weekend. I know you are thinking it had a lot to do with Jim, Alex and Kos being around, but it didn't. It all had to do with how much time we spent together. That could be every day. This has possibly crossed over the creepy line, but I don't care. Especially since you don't even read my blog. If you lived by me, you wouln't have to. I would just walk over to your house and tell you.

p.p.s. I totally get why you want to move to St. Charles.

rock and roll

2009-06-28T12:35:00.000-07:00

thoughts and musings:

i hate clover. hate. clover. hate. i spent the better part of 2 hours pulling it and then trying to suffocate it with mulch. fingers crossed i will not have to do this again. ah the perils of being a homeowner.

t-4 days until our visitors from kansas arrive. anticipation and excitement are high.

my car broke down today. i'm not sure what happened, but there is an abundance of fluid on my garage floor where my car was before it moved 2.8 feet and then died, so i'm guessing it has something to do with that. ah the perils of owning an old automobile.

i love wimbolden. it is on my life list to attend. i will wear white and a big hat.

mike turned 28 on Wednesday and we had a bar-b-que wherein we made WAY too much food. Subsequently, Mike and I have been eating leftover hamburgers and hotdogs all week. Nothing sounds less delish to me than a hamburger at this point. The birthday boy enjoyed quite a number of miller lites on wednesday and felt very sleepy. I photographed accordingly:

Happy Birthday, love.

I recently returned from a Minnesota trip which included 2 weddings, 9 puppies, 3 trips to the cabin, a much needed hair coloring, lucia's birthday, a trip to camp, and hanging out with my best bud, rocky. She enjoys to take photos of herself on my camera, so I feel that others should feel the joy of viewing.

you're welcome.

fin.

Why Not? Well...

2009-05-17T10:50:00.000-07:00

Last "weekend" (meaning Mike's weekend, meaning Tuesday and Wednesday) Mike and I journed to his homeland. We hadn't been in Minot since Mike's little brother's graduation, so roughly a year. For the most part, I like visiting my in-laws. There is always a ton of delish food, usually prepared on a grill or in a rib smoker (yum) and an endless amount of alcoholic beverages served throughout the day. In fact, I usually refer to an upcoming trip to Minot as a 3 day bender (actual number of days variable to number of days of trip).

In fact, this trip was staring out swimmingly. Mike's extended family drove up from Bismarck on Tuesday night just to join us at the Bar-b-que and Mike's questionable cousin actually shaved off his mullet and didn't stare at my chest, so aces. We were having a great time, chating and drinking and watching Mike's little cousin (Mullet's son) pee his pants twice in front of everyone. Smooth sailing, right up until someone (read: my father-in-law) decides to start talking about politics. Now, perhaps it should be said that my in-laws are turbo I-heart-Rush-and-my-gun Republicans. In the past, I may or may not have gotten into some ill-advised 'discussions' about politics before I understood that discussion and dissention of Headrick opinion are not allowed. So I guess what I am trying to say that everyone knows that I am a turbo bleeding-heart-not-just-voted-for-Barack-but-contributed-to-his-campaign Liberal and subsequently they all kind of don't like me. In the interest of keeping the peace, and let's face it at my husband's insistance, I have taken the policy of keeping my mouth shut during political discussions and/or changing the subject and/or flat out leaving the room when I can't take it anymore (this is where that whole 3 day bender thing comes in handy). Suffice to say, this goes against my upbringing and general nature, but really is best for all involved. And let's face it, indirectly being called a "Communist" five or six times is pretty mild compared to what's been said to me in the past, so the weekend was pretty successful on this point as well.

Highlights include: My mother-in-law and I getting pedicures, Erica, Anthony, Brayden and Easton showing up, the gravy at Speedway and this little gem, a fine version of the National Anthem/O Canada:

Lowlights include: aforementioned political bashing, the kid who wouldn't stop screaming the entire flight from Minot to Mpls, and the possiblity of either mike or I throwing up on the flight from Mpls to Minot. I won't say who did or did not throw up, but it was me.

In conclusion, I am just over-joyed thinking about our 7 day Bender in November. Lord knows I'll need the booze. Anyone want to come join the fun? Tara, get ready.

run, run rudolph

2009-05-07T14:58:00.000-07:00

So I've taken up running again. Not because I like it, but because I have to do it to retain any suitable level of fitness. I have mixed feelings about the running. When I get good at it, and let's be honest, I'm using the term "good" pretty fast and loose here, I almost like it. I get a kind of euphoria when I'm done and a great feeling of accomplishment when, say, I've finished running 13.1 miles without passing out. When I am bad at it, as I am now, I hate running with the fire of a thousand suns. The irony of Mike's incredible level of running fitness comparatively to my uber poor level of running fitness is not lost on me. At one point Mike could not run a full mile without stopping to walk while I was buzzing by him with gusto. Therein lies the most frustrating thing about running, if you don't continue to run, it's like you never did.

That being said, last night, after a grocery trip to Target, Mike decided we needed to go to out on a run before it got too dark. I decided we needed to eat dinner first, both to quench my hunger and as a secret ploy to not have to run. After some tasty turkey sandwiches and some crispy raw veggies, we were off. 3 min into the run it started to rain, but only slightly. The further we got from home, the harder it started raining until it went from a drizzle to a pour. Mike, who it should be said is a little off mentally since he started his training, is loving the rain, talking about if he could ever run a hundred miles in one day and having a great time. I on the other hand, am barely breathing, burping up broccoli and fighting nausea. We finally make it home and I am mostly soaking wet, which is to say that because of "the shelf" only the top of Barack's head is wet, and completely exhausted. I am feeling a small amount of personal accomplishment, but no euphoria. But on a positive note, a hot shower has never felt so good.

Stupid Mike

Future Jim

2009-05-06T11:51:00.001-07:00

I forgot to mention that at Mike's half marathon I saw future Jim. If in fact future Jim takes up bicyling and enjoys the touch of spandex to his skin.

You're welcome.

The Plight of an Iron Man

2009-05-05T14:12:00.000-07:00

As many of you know, Mike is training for the uber-insane Iron Man triathlon. He has subsequently signed up for many smaller races as part of his training. The last week was bookended by two substantial races. The first was accompanied by a super fast trip to Mo-town for the 25th Annual (2nd Tri) Tinman Triathlon. Some may remember this as the same tri Mike and I trained for last year which got snowed out. We departed on Friday at 1:23 P.M. and arrived in Morris a short 8 hours and 15 minutes later. Mike woke up early and headed for the pool. My family all showed up for the festivities. Here's the breakdown of the race: 1100 yard swim, 19 mile bike, 6.2 mile run. Mike finished the swim in 18 min. Here he is biking: 1 hour 10 min.

Here he is at the finish. Took him 53 min to run the 10k, nothing to sneeze at if you ask me.
I don't have any photos of the swim. Someone forgot to bring her camera to that part. In total it took him 2 hours and 23 min. Way to go Mikey!

Last Sunday Mike ran his first half marathon. He has been living in my shadow for the past year and a half and had to do one of his own. I may or may not have been taunting him that I have run farther than him. I consider taunting to be one of the pillars of a good marriage. Needless to say I reminded him that if he didn't beat my time of 2 hours 12 min. he would never hear the end of it. Here he is at the start of his half.

This race took place in a city park that was an old farmstead and had these really sweet barns. I have a somewhat unhealthy obsession with photographing barns, but I won't bore you with all of my barn photos, just this one with a runner in it. He ended up finishing in 1 hour 56 min. which of course, obliterated my time. See, taunting works :)

In conclusion, I haven't done anything blog worthy in the past week, unless you count pouring wine at a festival blog worthy. Therefore, I live vicariously through my husband. His Iron Man plight is indeed inspiring. I hope many of you can make it to cheer him on September 13th in Madison, WI for Iron Man Moo!

Trainwreck Sue

2009-04-21T15:02:00.000-07:00

So one day Mike comes home and mentions that we are invited to a going away party for one of his fellow controllers. Naturally, I am excited at the opportunity to get out of my house and immediately agree to attend. He then told me it is at a French cooking school downtown Chicago. Now, agree or disagree, that's a strange place to have a going away party, but I was intrigued and we decided to attend.

We made arrangements to ride the train downtown with another couple and a psuedo couple who both single and work at the center. Mike and Ryan (single psuedo couple member) decide to get a couple giant soporos for the ride down. Other member of the psuedo couple, "Trainwreck Sue" (real name protected for obvious reasons to follow), also brings a mixed drink on the train.

Here's some background on Trainwreck Sue. I have only hung out with her a handful of times, but everytime I see her she is a. fall-down-drunk and b. with a different guy. That is until she had a baby. Now every time I see her she is just fall-down-drunk. She had a DUI and therefore always tries to pawn rides off people. She is very loud, very argumentative and very annoying. Needless to say I was jazzed that she was along for this evening. Ok back to the train.

So Trainwreck Sue proceeds to get drunk in about 30 seconds. She is screaming a story at us the whole train ride downtown. She is also very upset with Mike, Ryan and I for not coming to pick her up. It should be stated that she didn't call for a ride until 20 minutes before we left the house, and we don't live next door if you get my meaning.

Two very headache inducing train rides later, we arrive in the French Food School neighborhood, about 45 min. early. Natch, we head to a bar to tie one on before cooking time. At this point, Trainwreck Sue, who is also from MN, decides to have a discussion with me on why the Timberwolves suck so much. And by "discussion" I mean lecture and by "with me" I mean I was present being yelled at.

Fast forward to the cooking class. We meet up with the rest of the couples and start cooking. People are having fun, catching up, paying attention learning to cook and taking some pictures. Trainwreck Sue thinks it would be a great idea to hold up some rather large butcher knives to people's throats for some awesome pictures. Of course the people with knives being held to their throats by a drunken crazy are less enthused.

Despite her loud and intrusive outbursts, the rest of the cooking goes fairly smoothly, that is until one of the sous chefs clanks on a pan and alerts the entire group (who included about 10 random strangers) that she caught someone smoking in the stairwell and there is absolutely no smoking in the Frenchy Food School. Did I mention Trainwreck Sue likes to smoke?

So we sit down to eat and the Brie tort with leeks and bacon is to die. I could have done with out the salmon stuffed pastry dish but that is neither here nor there. Someone starts talking about a previous dinner party that took place about 2.7 years earlier right after Mike and I were married. Trainwreck Sue looks at me and starts yelling, "I remember that you were SO pretty and SO thin THEN." Over and over. Awesome.

So it's time to go home and everyone who has separte transportation gives us the "good luck" face. We decide to take a cab to our second train rather than wait out in the cold for the first train. The cabbie has to pull over twice because Trainwreck decides to light up in the cab after repeated warnings from everyone in the cab. We get to our train home and approximately 10 min in T. Sue is transported to another car because she is yelling at a boy across the train that she will "fucking choke him" because he was smiling and laughing. The "train police" tells us that if she comes back to sit with us she will get kicked off the train. If we try to sit with her, we will get kicked off the train. No problem there, we tell ol'train cop. The entire car watches and reacts as she falls flat on her face exiting the car to her "jail car."

10 min. later she's back in our car and we are all pleading with her to go back to where she was. She sits on the lower level and starts chatting it up with some creepy stranger who, against all odds, is trying to get in her pants. Miraculously, she does not exit the train with him and we make it back to our stop.

You may think, man crazy night, glad it's over, but you'd be wrong. We are saying our goodbyes and Sue starts stumbling to her car. She is so drunk at this point she can barely keep her eyes open. We convince her to ride home with us and come pick her car up with the morning. The whole car ride she is prattling on about how no one would come pick her up and what horrible people we are blah blah. Then, halfway to her house she says, "Oh, we've got to go pick up my son." REALLY? I protested because I obviously don't have a car seat in my car, she she says, "It's no problem, when I take a cab I just hold him in the back seat." Awesome.

Turns out it is only two blocks from the sitters to her house. We get to her house and I am amazed that she can even walk while holding her baby. I am panged with terrible guilt for even leaving her alone with her kid at this point, but what do you do? She is so pissed at us for not picking her up she is screaming at us and then just stumbles into her house. Sweet, see you again never.

Until...I get a message the next morning that she left her purse in my car with her keys and phone in it. Reading between the lines, I figure out that I am supposed to bring it back to her. Not wanting to risk another back seat baby ride, I convince my friend, Jon, to come with me to drive her car to her house. When we arrive she's all smiles. No recollection on what a huge douche she was the night before. I say a quick "you're welcome" and get the hell out of there. On the way home, Jon looks at me and says, "You Nordic people are weird."

Annnnd Scene.

a ha ha

2009-04-01T11:59:00.000-07:00

Thoughts of the day:

1. I miss Minnesota. This past weekend was spent in Minneapola-ha-ha with some dear old friends and my family. We had drinks, laughs, sang songs and watched the Minnesota high school dance and it was fantastic. On the non-fantastic side, my Grandma Doris had a health scare in the form of a blood clot near her heart. They have since dissolved the clot, but the doctor said if she wouldn't have gone into the hospital, she would have died. Needless to say, that was not fun to hear and caused us all to have a little aneurysm ourselves. This whole episode reminded me all the more of how hard it is to live far away, yet made me very grateful that I was around my family when it happened.

2. In less depressing news: I got a new account today! This was by far my easiest sale yet. The wine guy, Paul, contacted me. I brought him in a shiz ton of wine which he did not even taste. Then he purchased five cases. ACES!

3. I love sloppy joes. Mike made them last night out of a recipe from the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook (aka Mike's cooking bible) and they were indeed tasty. Bet you wish you had a husband like mine, eh?

4. Sven is learning to be better behaved. Happiness ensues! Mike insisted that we needed to get him a choke chain to help him learn to heel. I was against this, having lost a dog in a choke chain related incident as a child, but inevitably relented. Now mark your calenders, but Mike was right and I was wrong. He is learning and rarely chokes himself, so bravo, Mikey!

5. My bracket for the NCAA tournament is effectively fucked. I thought Gonzaga could do it. Mostly because I like to say their name. Amazing logic defeats me again :)

aaaaaaaaaand that's all she wrote. Happy, Jim?
cheers!

Birthday Achoo's

2009-02-16T09:09:00.000-08:00

I am still sick. I was sick on my birthday and sick all weekend and I am over it. Sven loved it because he was able to sleep by my side for days on end. Three highlights:

1. Ms. Sara Zidon was in town and the sisters and Jason and I had dinner on Thursday night. I love baked potatos. Alex, how jealous are you right now? Two Zidons in one weekend.

2. UNO SPIN!

3. With Heather's help, I found some tall black boots (f*&$ing boots, if you will) that actually fit over my cows.

now I will continue to work on being cured so that I can write a more interesting post.

xoxo c.

the freakin weekend

2009-02-09T09:27:00.001-08:00

Here's what happened over the weekend:

Friday:

Katie, Jason and I went to buy "supplies" (read: liquor and beers) for the big joint birthday party on Saturday. A mass amount was purchased and we were exhausted from all our exuberant frolicking and decided to decompress with dinner at my new favorite restaurant: Quigley (Down Under) Irish pub. It was everything you want in a restaurant: good atmosphere, great food, cider on tap and waitresses dressed in plaid skirts (I like my wait staff suited up). I will return to this eatery soon, perhaps on Thursday...

Saturday:

The day of the big party. I cleaned for the majority of the day and was quite pleased with my progress. I decided not to super wash my floors because of the heavy foot traffic, and as it turned out, great decision. The tonic waters loved to explode when opened and there was more than one spilled drink. Highlights as remembered include: the return of Jason's awesome Pico as well as a smorgasbord of frozen foods and strawberry shortcake, a late night oldies sing and dance off, watching in amazement as Jason polished off a bottle of Tanqueray largely on his own accord, Katie and my utter failure in our attempt to recreate the Blue Moose's legendary spinach dip -- we blame faulty instruction, and the first time in who knows how long that I stayed up til 4 a.m. A good time was had indeed.

Sunday:

Couch day 10,000. So sleepy. Subway, cleaning, cuddling with Sven, who also made it to 4 a.m. Saturday night. Grammy's. Bed. Boring.

And now for the Birthday Girls!

2009-02-05T15:36:00.000-08:00

I am going to try to blog again...problem being, I don't have much to say. However, I am going to challenge myself to blog 3 times a week from now on and see how long it takes for anyone to recognize that I have started up again. First person to comment gets a prize!

So things I have been thinking today:

1.I wish I were a better housekeeper. I did a lot of dusting today and thought, WOW, I should really do this on a regular basis so the dust doesn't come off looking like Little Debbie swirl cakes.

2. Why can't Sven use the toilet? It's cold outside and he is very particular in finding a place to relieve himself.

3. I love Portillos hamburgers and I want one RIGHT NOW. But, I am on an "eat more fruits and veggies and less red meat and bad for you things" diet, so I will resist with all of my will power and will strength.

4. I am not a very good sales person. Too bad 99% of jobs (including mine) are sales related.

5. I wish Cash Cab would come to Chicago and on a day where I ventured downtown and got into a taxi. I love Ben Bailey and quiz shows.

I think that's good for today.

cheers!

All Hallows Eve

2008-11-03T08:59:00.000-08:00

This being our first Halloween in a neighborhood, I was VERY excited to hand out candy to trick-or-treaters and subsequently bought a giant Halloween themed bowl and massive amounts of candy to fill it. This also being the first year I've had a puppy, I was very excited to dress him up and show him off. You can imagine his excitement. So in preparation for the many trick-or-treaters I was expecting, I chased Sven around and finally wrestled his bee costume on him and settled in with a glass of vino and waited. and waited...and waited. I got 5 trick-or-treaters. Needless to say I was displeased, so I proceeded to have multiple glasses of wine and was half in the bag when my friend, Michelle, came over to get dressed up to go out.

My costume was not very inventive. I was unwilling to spend money on a costume as we had no concrete plans and I am cheap, so I squeezed myself into an old pair of overalls from high school and went as a farmer/gardener. I have no pictures, sorry to disappoint. Michelle and I met up with Alex and Jamie and went over to Payton's Roundhouse for a monster bash. Turned out it was a metal band dressed up as skeletons who were not very good. We exited at 11. Pretty weak for Halloween night, but by that point I was feeling fine. In fact, I was nursing my drink at the bar so much that Jamie's friend went and brought me a sippy cup to illustrate my incompetence.

I was saved from hangover by late night taco bell. Thus marking my first Halloween where I got tanked and didn't throw up or have a hangover. I was pleased ten thousand.

In other news, I can't WAIT for the election to be over. I've got my voting shoes on and I'm ready to hit the polls (and be done with political ads). I'm nervous, but excited and hoping to be downtown Chicago celebrating our new president.

i'll get you for this...

as of late.

2008-10-18T17:27:00.000-07:00

After a long absence from blogging, I thought I would give a quick recap from my last few weeks as some thins have happened.

a. I enjoyed a trip to the Riviera Maya in Mexico for Sam and Heather's wedding. A good time was had by all, but let's face it, who can't have a great time with beautiful views, great food, fine friends and endless drinks? I also found a new hangover cure as a happy accident on the trip that I will share with you now: sparkling water and guacamole. Mexico is officially the only place I find it acceptable to eat chips and guac in the morning, but boy can I not wait to go back and enjoy that delicacy again.

The newlyweds.

b. I am employed. Celebration ensues. I am now working as a sales representative for August Hill Winery located approximately one hour west of Oswego. Basically I will be trying to convince liquor stores and restaurants in this area to carry the Illinois wine. Perks of the job include new wine tools and extra wine leftover from tastings. It has paid off in spades so far. I am, of course, willing to share with those who enjoy to come to Chicago to visit.

c. Disappointment ensues when the Cubs failed to make it past the first round of the playoffs. Consequently, Jim feels it unnecessary to visit with the prospect of baseball fun is negated. Hope is alive for Alex's visit at the end of November and with promises that a new trip will be planned.

d. Mike preps for a trip to Las Vegas. I was not invited due to my recent international travels. Here's hoping he wins more than he loses.

and that's all she wrote.

my patience, jim, is waning.

2008-09-17T09:00:00.000-07:00

waiting, just waiting, sweetheart. you're like a little girl. get out of the car and i'm going to drop you like third period french.

recap please?

Who says 27 is too old to get ridiculous and vomit?

2008-08-21T07:44:00.000-07:00

I thought I would invite a guest columnist, namely my husband, to spice up the blog a bit. It should be noted that he is unaware of his guest columnist status, and rather just sent the following as a personal e-mail to me. However, I thought it was funny and that you all would enjoy it.

I'll set the scene a bit, not that it really needs it. Tuesday night we went to an ATC party to warm the new home of one of Mike's coworkers. There was a keg, jello shots and flippy cup. Need I say more? Here is the aftermath, in Mike's own words entitled "A New Begining":

Morning summary: I woke up at 5 and puked. Ate some crackers drank water and bedded down again for the long cold winter in hangover village.

1040: I wake up for the day and stand only to find I have the coordination of Bambi his first few seconds out of the placenta.

1120: Sven and I cuddle up to failure to launch, only Sven doesn't cuddle or recognize that his chubby friend needs to not move or have a small lapdog bouncing on his tummy.

1135: The deepest part of winter is over in hangover village with one snowstorm occuring over the comode. Then Sven gets the best idea he's ever had in his entire life (short as it may be). He says "let's go to subway" and I said "Woowoo woowoo Arf" So we did, and he waited politely in the truck. Now I'm halfway through my spicy and he's done with his meatball sub. And we both feel great!

The end.

do these shoes make me look fat?

2008-08-20T05:24:00.000-07:00

So this morning I arrived early to work. After my usual checking of the e-mails and facebook, etc. I went to use the restroom. As I was washing my hands, a woman came in with a plastic bag and started pulling out shoes. She tried on four different pairs. As I left, I decided to tell her which shoe I liked best and she laughed and said, "I really need a full length mirror at home, I bring clothes to work everyday." WHAT? You bring a bag of clothes to work EVERY DAY because you can't go out and buy yourself a $20 mirror to hang inside a closet? So it got me thinking about a new random question: Is there anything you go to extrodinary lenghts to do even though an easy answer could remedy the situation?

sidebar: I hope that someone reads this. I know I haven't blogged in awhile. I'm sorry.

For Rita:

2008-07-01T13:33:00.000-07:00

I have not blogged in well over a month. I am now finished with college, moved into my house, completely moved out of our apartment (which you would think would happen all at once, but not so much for the headricks) and the proud owner of a pug puppy named sven. Here is a photo of our house and our puppy for rita, who requested one some time ago. more house photos will be up as soon as the rooms are organized enough to show off :)

tonight, tonight...

2008-05-21T19:20:00.000-07:00

I am surprised, yet pleased that David Cook won the idol crown. I predicted that Archuletta would take it b/c he's more "idol," but that d.c. would sell more records and be more famous in the end. In fact, this may be a detriment to d.c. who will now have to sing the business that idol gives him rather than taking off in his own direction. worked for Carrie Underwood, I guess. We'll see.

In other news: I have one day of college left. I have barely studied for my test tomorrow, but I don't care that much. c's get degrees, yes?

also: mike is off drunkenly playing softball. mayhaps say a prayer that he doesn't take one off the noggin.

the haps

2008-05-16T20:05:00.000-07:00

so here's what it is: after a little over 2 years of training, mike is now a certified professional controller~! celebration ensues. of course, this now means that he will most likely have more regular midnight shifts, like the one he has this evening, and i will be scared and all alone in my bed tonight. i am a light sleeper as it is, i don't need to worry about every creak and rumble that i hear. i am having a tequila/pink lemonade and watching pretty woman to calm my anxiety.

the other transactions include 4 more days of college for me and 13 days until closing on our house. predictably, Mike is getting really sentimental about leaving the apartment. we had a walkabout the grounds today and he got all nostalgic about what he'll miss about the place. sweet really. here's hoping he'll get jazzed about the new house and not cry every day about bristol station.

additionally, my dad had his 300th win as a high school baseball coach. i guess all those years of living across the street from the ballpark have really paid off. way to go, coach.

and that's the news for now. stay tuned for the great job hunt, 08.

for your enjoyment

2008-05-06T20:05:00.000-07:00

the aftermath: check the wall in the photo of H and I.

because we won't get our deposit back anyway...

2008-05-05T18:19:00.001-07:00

coming up on two years ago, mike and i received some rather unconventional wedding gifts from our dear friends jim, paul and deuce. at the time i laughed and enjoyed the drawing of how to properly use them, but still wondered when in fact we would actually make use of our new super soakers. normally mike just shoots me from the spare bathroom as i'm sitting on the chair and a half and i get mildly upset, but last friday night, their true purpose was revealed.

it started out as a typical enchilada party starring the usual suspects, ham and the newlyweds. we were having a fabulous time, eating too much and enjoying our respective beers, shots o maker's mark, pre-mixed smirnoff cosmos (which i highly recommend as it were) and a lovely champagne toast. then, somewhere after the screening of the new film sensation "news" starring Mike Headrick, there erupted a small confrontation between mike and takash where in i believe h suggested mike "get the super soaker." well it doesn't even take one beer for mike to hop to that one, so you can imagine his zest after about 5 and subsequent bouts with the whiskey bottle. and thus began the indoor water fight of 2008.

takashi hurried to grab the other soaker, sam, caught in the cross-fire grabbed a patio chair and backed takashi into the bathroom wherein he fell into the tub. Aya, mercifully hid all the electronics and newly acquired Japanese artifacts that shant want to be "soaked" and h and i retreated to my bedroom where we preceded to dig into our new supply of Swissotel amenities, located the shower caps and promptly put them on. Somewhere in there, Sam joined us and donned his own shower cap. we then searched for a combat weapon and could only come up with mike's netti pot which we took turns opening the door to the brigade of ss's and tossed at whomever may be close by. the only casualty being aya, whom h unwittingly doused. in the end, everyone and everything was covered in water and there were some sore mid regions from all the belly laughs.

so consider this a sincere, important blog tribute to the best wedding gift ever. we may have to break in the new house in a similar manner before we repaint. all are invited to join.

domo arigato

2008-04-24T17:02:00.001-07:00

and so we are back from our journey to the east. Japan was fantastic, 13 hours in an airplane are not. Here are the pros and cons of the trip:

pro: our view from the swissotel nankai, we were on the 30th floor and were not disappointed. in fact, we were not disappointed with the swissotel at all. it had fine amenities, which i decided to collect daily, if you'd like a shower cap, you know where to find me. additionally, the hotel was located on top of a train station, which allowed for easy travel. which leads me to my next pro...

pro: successfully navigating the train system. we had help from some friendly Japanese folk, thankfully.

con: jet lag. boo for being tired at 6 Osaka time (round 4 a.m. chicago time)

pro: the system overload of information coming at you from every angle when walking around the city. There are more signs and lights and indiscernible Japanese characters than you can shake a stick at. The novelty did not wear off quickly...

con: however, on the last day of the trip i was wishing i could at least START to remember some of the characters. It's not like being in Mexico when you can at least recognize the words...but anyway.

Pro: Takashi and Aya's wedding! The ceremony was held in a lovely church in the middle of a forest with windows galore, there was also some nice hiking around the grounds. it was swanky. In fact, I had never eaten most of the food, but was as brave as I could be. Jim, you would have had a hard time in Japan.

Pro: The Japanese tradition of "second party" and "third party" following the wedding. I never quite knew where we were, but was always enjoying myself. Mike quite enjoyed the "mini kegs" that were put on each table at "third party," so much so in fact, he did not feel so great for our first leg of the Kyoto trip.

Pro: Kyoto. Shrines and Temples and Castles, Oh My! We ate at a 300 year old restaurant that served up glorified chicken noodle soup, but it was fantastic. We saw the most intricate gardens and temples and shrines and castles and i took more pictures than you would ever want to see. Here's a photo of the Nijojo Castle. This castle had wooden floors that would squeak because the emperor was a bit paranoid about assassination attempts. apparently he ruled with an iron fist...

The second trip we took to Kyoto we saw a bit more, mostly because we had Takash's friends Ken and Veronica with us. Ken was on a mission, we hiked through the city like we'd never hiked before. It ended up being fantastic because we hit all of his destinations and still had time to sneak in some shopping.

Pro: we caught the end of cherry blossom season. Takash said we missed the most impressive time, but I still thought it was fantastic and photographed it accordingly. I would show you a photo, but google blogger does not want me to upload anything further...

Pro: the demeanor of the Japanese folk as a whole. there society is so much more "we" centered rather than "me" centered as it is here. Though there are people everywhere, it seems that people are much more harmonious than Chicago folk. I miss that a lot about Japan. They don't just tell you where to go, they take you where you need to go.

Con: the plane ride home. We had a couple who were not sitting together who liked to stand up in the aisle and talk during the films. Com'on kids, the short people are trying to watch Bee Movie!

There is more to say about this trip, but my thumb is sore from cutting it earlier, so I will switch to questions answered upon request.

We're off to Morris to compete in our triathlon this weekend. It's supposed to snow. rock on.

news

2008-04-05T20:30:00.000-07:00

We bought Oswego house! We close at the end of May. Woo hoo.

Congrats to Jim on a fine Jayhawk win. I thought your boys were going to piss it away, but they came through. Kudos.

in other news the state of Illinois is now trying to charge me for missed tolls from a year ago. this would be fine and dandy if in fact i had missed the tolls, but my ipass was securely in my vehicle at all times, so i feel we may have somewhat of a legal battle on our hands...or to be less dramatic i will make a phone call with the intention of chewing some ass and then remember i am a non-confrontational Norwegian and punk out. bugger.

Off to Japan on Tuesday!

survey says? fill it up again...

2008-03-27T18:37:00.001-07:00

oh yes, random question time:

what is your new favorite drink?

mine is absolute pears and tonic. magic.

mrrrrrr

2008-03-27T18:29:00.000-07:00

so here it is folks: i have bitten off more than i can chew. between the house hunt and the month of papers/projects/film to be made and the triathalon and the trip to Japan, i'm going a bit nuts. i can't wait to head up to MSP this weekend and relax with my family before the inevitable shit storm. boo to my life. :(

house hunters part two...

2008-03-20T17:16:00.000-07:00

scratch the second link. Use this one instead: http://chicagoidx.internest.com/Property/6109922-1114-Marseillaise-Pl-Aurora-IL-60506.aspx

thanks!

house hunters...

2008-03-20T16:55:00.000-07:00

Opinions: which house do you like more?

http://chicagoidx.internest.com/Property/6109428-107-E-Jackson-St-Oswego-IL-60543.aspx

or

http://www.illinoisproperty.com/remaxil/?p=findahome.asp&page=&selected=qck&results=true&ptd=7

the second one you have to do a little investigation...it's the house on Marseilles (sp) and is listed for 208000.

feedback please. Mike and i are in a deadlock. I will not tell you who is pulling for what house so as not to sway you.

and now a word from our guest columnist, rocky mattson

2008-03-16T11:15:00.001-07:00

Title: Sales 101

Scene: Hollywood Blvd.

Enter: ROCK and CHEY

CHEY: Ooh, check out these pants. They'd look super duper on you.

ROCK: Gee, CHEY, thanks. I think I'll try on this fancy blazer too.

[ROCK and CHEY enter dressing room and try on clothes. They decide that ROCK should purchase the $10 pants, but not the $35 blazer].

[ROCK approaches cash register].

ROCK: Can I use my credit card?

STUPID ASS MAN at the cash register (SAM): You can get the pants for $10 if you pay cash.

ROCK: I only have a credit card.

SAM: If you use your credit card, it makes the purchase official. That means I have to charge you $3 more.

[RAM approaches cash register and exchanges shifty eyes with ROCK].

ROCK: Fine. Charge me $13 for the pants.

SAM: I'm sorry, I can not do that. You must buy the blazer too.

ROCK: I don't want the blazer.

SAM: Then I'll give it to you for $30.

ROCK: No. I don't want the blazer.

SAM: $27 plus the $13 for the pants.

ROCK: I don't want the blazer.

SAM: Yes.

ROCK: No. This is stupid. I don't want the blazer. I only want the pants.

SAM: Fine. Don't buy anything. Bye.

And that's how to make a sale.

I'm just a no class beat down fool...

2008-03-14T14:59:00.000-07:00

for my final spring break i decided to actually go on a vacation that didn't involve minneapolis. it just so happened that my tall buddy, rocky, lives in L.A., so we all know what that means, FREE LODGING. that's right. i'm cheap. so I embarked on a chilly saturday morning for the city of angels.

my first southwest flight was fantastic. I had a short leg to Kansas City where I spent my hour chatting with a 59 year old insurance man about the ways of the world. The exit row we were seated in gave me unneeded leg room, but made me happy nonetheless.

I then landed in KC where I was disenchanted due a second trip through security for the day at the hands of a poorly designed KC airport. However, my second leg of my trip had me seated to a young medschool hopeful, aptly named Mike, who kept me company and didn't make too much fun when I took 50 pictures of the rockies and grand canyon. When I exited the plane the flight attendant leaned over and said, "at least you had something nice to look at for the flight." touche, three-che, NICK LACHEY!

I arrived in L.A. early and was greeted by aforementioned tall redhead and preceded to take a million pictures. The first night in town Rock's roommate Sarah and her gf Ling cooked us the best fajita burritos of my life. Coupled with wine and good conversation, it was a topnotch night. Added fun included seeing my good friend Tressa from high school for the first time since my wedding.

The next day Tressa, Rock and I headed out to breakfast at a fine establishment called "Nick's Diner." Nicks offers a stunning selection of breakfast, lunch and dinner selections. Particularly impressive is the willingness to substitute. For example, if you ordered the Waffle, Egg, Meat and Hashbrown combo that I did, you can have your choice of whipped cream, ice cream, strawberries, bluberries and three choices of syrup on your waffle, the egg anyway you want it, bacon, sausage patties or sausage links, all also available in soybean versions OR turkey versions. Amazing. They had a Wall of "Famous" folk. The only person I recognized was Helen Hunt. Most looked like this girl. ---------------------------->

The rest of the day Rock and I spent time at Venice Beach watching the rollerskating dancers, the street entertainers, the crashing waves and, most notably, the fourteen-year-olds who were taking sexy-time photos of themselves. a hem:
We made appropriately loud fun of them, I think.

We then had a delicious dinner at the Library Alehouse. I had the best tacos of my life not to mention more than one hard cider. The thing about Venice Beach and Santa Monica Beach is that they have cool shops and/or fun flavor restaurants all about them. I miss the flavor.

The following day Rock took off work so we could enjoy the splendor/trashiness of the Walk of Fame, aka where all the sidewalk stars are. I was more than somewhat disappointed at the poor upkeep of the sidewalk stars, particularly Frank Sinatra. We decided to bypass the woman who pulled her child's arm so hard that she fell on the street and head into a very interesting store. Part of the store had designer clothing and the other part was slightly questionable and cheap. The store owner walked around with an unlit cigarette in his mouth. Rock decided to buy a pair of jeans, at the bargain price of $10. The store owner (still with cigarette) told her if she were willing to pay cash he would not charge tax. She told him that she had no cash and preceded to hand him her credit card. He then told her that he would not accept her card because it would cost him $2 to run the card and the jeans were only $10. After a bit of a squabble, we left the store sans jeans. Creeeeepy.

After our trashy experience, we headed to Rodeo Dr. I would like to note that prior to leaving the house, I was not aware we would go to the site of the Mighty Ducks fashion show and chose to wear a little league Dodgers uniform I picked up at Good Will. Suffice to say no store clerk would even look at us, let alone offer to help. I felt like Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman. Every ounce of me had to fight the urge to buy a big hat and a polka dot dress and head back in and say, "You work on commission, right? Big mistake, BIG MISTAKE." However, the price of said outfit would have been a "big mistake" for little-miss-future-homeowner me.

We drove through Bel Air and along highway 1 and thus began my quest to get the perfect sunset picture. Here is an example. Mostly, though, I just took pictures of this same scene and cars driving across it.

Other highlights of the trip include: the waiter, with perfect Italian accent, at the Italian restaurant we ate at who approached us when we were reading the menu outside the restaurant with the line, "Laaaaaadies, come inside, great food, great selection, great wine, waiter with a smile." The food service worker at In and Out burger who reprimanded me for taking a picture inside said In and Out burger. Apparently the In and Out burger workers cannot be distracted by aimless tourist photographers. I lied and said I deleted the photo, but here it is.

Highlights continued: Rock's very friendly and fun roommates, watching the dress rehearsal of Rock's performance of the Vagina Monologues, and the giant plate of nachos I got at LAX before my flight home.

I found L.A. to be very interesting. A place where an omlette comes with avocados, tomatoes and sour cream. An odd mix of glamor/superficiality and those rebelling against said attitude. There is more money than can be comprehended, but also more graffitti and rebellion than I've ever encountered. People seemed to be more worried about the environment, yet L.A. is the most smog ridden city in the states. These paradoxes made it a great place to visit, though, unlike Rock, I can't see myself living there forever. Here's hoping she'll choose Chicago instead ;0)

Jim, does this suffice?

what a wonderful world.

2008-02-27T14:48:00.000-08:00

i happened upon this today and it made my life. i could die tomorrow. without wanting to ruin the best part of the video (in my opinion) i will just say, it raised me up. enjoy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUnqjmdSoOM

next question: who would you "revenge f&*#"?

survey says?

2008-02-23T16:47:00.000-08:00

I'm thinking about starting a new random question segment to my blog. The first question is:

If you could full on punch anyone in the face with no consequences, who would it be?

"quarter life crisis"

2008-02-15T15:40:00.000-08:00

This week I turned the magical age of 25 and was greeted with many remarks such as, "You're halfway to 50" (thanks karkar), that i am "middle age" (by my dad, who apparently had a slip of the tongue) and of course, that I am having my "quarter life crisis." In honor, I decided to try life as a deep brunette. General consensus is folks like it, but prefer the blonde. Thoughts?

oh little brother...

2008-02-09T18:17:00.001-08:00

ah to be young.

thoughts on my brother letting 18 year old college chicks write "Sexy Chance" on his chest?

Not the shining moment for the Rambow clan in my opinion.

fina-fuckin-ly

2008-02-06T20:07:00.001-08:00

...Ricky gets kicked off Project Runway. His looks always suck and he cries at EVERY thing. He is almost always in the bottom two and he weeps. He won last week (inexplicably) and he weeps. He wears ugly mesh cop hats and he weeps. Dosvidanya, crybaby.

Cheers!

It's the freaking weekend (in review)

2008-02-06T18:13:00.000-08:00

A fine weekend indeed. We have been bombarded with snow/rain/slush/shit but it's all good because it's almost my birthday! (shopping days left: 5)

Friday: snow day! I did not do much, but it was grande. I think Mike and I watched Raiders of the Lost Ark and had a couple cocktails.

Saturday: blast, work. but THEN: mike's supervisor WD's retirement party at a bar in St. Charles. I was nominated D.D. two weeks ago so that Mike and Takash could get ridiculous, but it was all dandy, h and I had a grande time taking in the plethora of shots taken by all the atc boys and girls. The night was capped off by a delicious visit to the Steak and Shake. never a bad idea.

Sunday: we ventured down the street to paul's for a superbowl fiesta. the drinks were flowing like wine and we had bww's, delicious guacamole and other assorted Mexican dips and fantastic sweet treats. not to mention one of the best superbowl GAMES i have seen in a long time. i was disappointed with the commercials. the best of the worst was the dalmatian who trained the Clydesdale for next years budwesier team. a gold star day.

and now i'm two tests and one paper in for the week with a snow day today. is it may yet?

badda bing!

2008-02-01T07:44:00.000-08:00

This morning I awoke to my phone ringing at 7:30 am. Normally this would annoy me a little bit, but TODAY it was my husband calling to say my class/test i didn't study for is CANCELED! snow day, bitch.

hope all your fridays started as good as mine.

and, h, you're right, what job can I get at a school?

you would've thought by now, that i've learned something...

2008-01-31T17:05:00.000-08:00

Oh the weather outside is blustery
and the studying inside isn't happening
and since i've no place to go
i'll write a blog, watch friends, drink diet coke.

now that is supposed to be to the tune of "let it snow" but i'm not so hot with the rhyming and/or symbolism.

my terrible procrastination continues. i have a test tomorrow. i have not studied. i have not read. i'm almost 25 and wondering when i'm going to get more on the ball...eh. i'll tell you what i've been thinking about lately:

my boy, barack is doing well. I'm hopeful he'll get the nod from the dems. i do wish he'd quit e-mailing me and asking me to donate more money. serves me right i guess. I wouldn't be upset if Hillary got the nod, but I feel that Barack could do more with bringing the country together. In light of the huge disaster which is our President, I am very confident that there is no way a republican can with this time around. sorry nate, if in fact you read this, which i don't think you do...

The Twins have disappointed me with this off season trades. I certainly wish we could have gotten a better deal for Santana. Here's hoping the Twins farm leagues can cultivate those fellas into productive players. I know Jim will call me naive or a wishful thinker or what did you call us Twins fans, Jimmy? oh that's right, that we lack common sense, but I wish the nature of professional sports would change and there would be more loyalty to teams, like the twins, who do not have the kind of funds that the yankees or sox organizations have. chalk it up to my idealist nature and my purist, sportsmanship oriented father.

In other news, Mike's truck got some major rehab this week. Apparently if you own a truck for over ten years and basically only change its oil and perform rudimentary maintenance, you're due to replace clutches and slave cylinders and the like from time to time. Mike has assured me that he wants to drive this truck "forever" so I feel pretty good about sinking some cash into the green beast.

And now I must study for tomorrow's test.

cheers!

p.s. just a helpful reminder: there are only 11 shopping days left until my birthday.

this magic moment

2008-01-27T19:14:00.000-08:00

We finally received our new camera in the mail, so get ready to see some more pictures on this blog! case in point. ---------------------------------------->

The last week has been a frigid one in the Chicago land area. The Solara is now more aptly named the salt-mobile.

My weekend was dull, work and more work. It did not compare to the fun of last weekend when Al came to visit and we had a Wii-festival at Ham's. It had been a long time since I had burned the candle til 4 am.

and that is all...i really just wanted to mess about with my new Sony H-3 which I predict will be a fantastic moment capturer. if in fact capturer is a word. spell check says no, but i'm using it anyway. deal. and cheers!

blah blah

2008-01-19T18:48:00.000-08:00

Things on my mind lately:

Illinoi-ans cannot drive during inclement weather. they either drive so fast they are dangerous or so slow they deserve an AARP card. Frustrating indeed.
my last semester of school is demanding. i do not enjoy it. vodka helps.
i hate david's bridal. this is not a new development. it's just that there are so many new brides after christmas i want to get hit by a mack truck so as i don't have to go in on saturdays.
why would anyone want to go on that new reality series where they hook you up to a lie detector and ask you incriminating questions while the incriminating people stare at you? do you want to ruin your life?
deuce and andrea are having a hadley and anthony and erica are having an unnamed. this is very exciting. however, i am still glad i am not preggers. this will not change.
i am missing old friends. please come to visit.

fin. cheers!

alcohol inspired thoughts...

2008-01-07T19:56:00.000-08:00

being the wife of a republican-raised husband is difficult. especially so when you are a "bleeding heart liberal" and proud of it. 5 pear cidars/6 miller lights into the evening, mike and i had an ill-advised political discussion. though we were respectful of each other's position, it's amazing how we are all a product of how we were raised. i feel more like "little londa" every day. hysterical considering we've spent a majority of the last decade and a half teasing my mom about being "little ray" (aka my opinionated grandfather who i love/tolerate). regardless, i love being married and consider it a blessing and a priveledge/overridden with entitlement guilt that we get to spend our time drinking and discussing views on life rather than wondering how we are going to make it through the following day without proper health care/clean drinking water. that'll do. especially when no one can see my new blogs because a glitch has caused them to appear below a previously posted christmas blog. blessings and awareness of your blessings to you!

cheers!
c.

outside the snow is falling and friends are calling woo hooo

2007-12-26T16:35:00.000-08:00

after a swell seven day trek to minnesota, we are home. we woke up early this morning in order to make it through the snowy motherland in time for mike to talk with some airplanes. here are some highlights and lowlights of the trip:

+ seeing our santa lucia...she has developed so much personality in the three months since we've seen her!

+ our triumphant return to Morris after nearly a year's absence

+ sledding, albeit on an icy hill rather than a fluffy wonderland

+ seeing rocky, karkar, 3 of 5 parents and 3 of 5 grandparents

+ eating delicious meals and Christmas treats

- eating too much of the delicious meals and Christmas treats

+ the addition of a sheep dog and 2 new miniature horses to the live nativity on Christmas Eve

+ Lefse!

- the strawberry rhubarb wine my mom received from a customer. i did not have high expectations and was still surprised by my inability to imbibe it.

+ a new cut and color courtesy of londa kay

on a separate note, has anyone seen the infomercial for mighty putty? i want it! my birthday is coming up in february if anyone is stumped on a gift for me...

cheers!

check baby 123

2007-12-26T11:43:00.003-08:00

i'm just checking to see if this blog will post in the new year. my new years eve post strangely posted in December below an older blog. that's all.

check baby 123

2007-12-26T11:43:00.002-08:00

i'm just checking to see if this blog will post in the new year. my new years eve post strangely posted in December below an older blog. that's all.

happy new year indeed

2007-12-26T11:43:00.001-08:00

2007 was rung in with me in pajamas, sitting in my living room with my mikel and my folks, and though this is a very enjoyable way to spend one's time, 2008's festivities kicked 2007's ass.

We were invited by a one, Andrew Christenson and a one, Nolan Pannek to rock in the new year atop a Chicago condominium. I traded in my pajamas for my Christmas dress and a pair of heels. Mike wore his "Turtle Racing Champion" shirt under a nice striped pullover (no it's a cardigan, but thanks for noticing). The night's activities included beer pong, delicious appetizers, drinks galore and (drum roll) Karaoke! Needless to say, I'm a bit hoarse today. Unfortunately, there was no Neil Diamond featured, yet it was still a fantastic time. The promised fireworks to be viewed from the rooftop at the new year were diminished due to snowfall. However, the snow was beautiful and added an extra something to the night, and the skyline was still beautiful sans fireworks.

Post party was spent at a hole in the wall dinner a block west of Andy and Nolan's where the specialty is a "slinger." One receives a certificate for completing this beast of a meal. Mike attempted and left with no certificate in hand. It is comprised of a large mound of hash browns, covered with two sausage patties, two eggs, sunny side up and coated in chili. yum. Fun at the diner increased when two chicks and a dude entered in their skivvies to give the cooks a beer and scamper out.

The night came to a close with a slumber party in the living room with a huge great dane named Ernie, the pup of Annie and Tyler ________ who also attended school in GF. He was nothing short of awesome.

New Years Day was spent in the perfect way, Mike and I watching football and chowing down on 40 cent wings from BWWs. The weekend was a huge success right up until my adoring husband said to me, "you know, before we were married, I never knew where the term "bitch slap" came from." It's gonna be a happy 2008 at the Headrick household.

Laughter and Love to you and yours in the New Year...
Cheers!

o christmas tree

2007-12-14T13:22:00.000-08:00

My finals are complete and I feel like a million hershey kisses (which, let's face it must feel pretty fantastic being that they are so delicious and perfectly packaged)! At one point in my life I carried a small bag of hershey's kisses around with me in my purse. I then left them as part of the server's tip when dining out. I figured if i were a waitress "working hard for the money" I would enjoy a chocolate treat. I have no proof if a server actually ever enjoyed the kiss, only the sweet memory in my heart that I gave her/him the option.

I have been enjoying a lot of the vince guaraldi trio in preparation for Christmas. Mike and I finally got our tree up and I'm feeling festive. I ordered our Christmas cards this afternoon and am contemplating whether or not the headricks were note worthy enough in the past year to merit a "Christmas letter." If you would like to receive said Christmas card/potential letter, please send me your address. I am looking forward to wrapping presents and spending a week in Minnesota with family, friends and little lulu.

cheers!