rawk-it-dawg

i bought these new shoes on saturday. i'd admired them in various plaid-it-tudes, but none suited my fancy. so i got the plain-ee-jane-ee ones, and I can rest assured that I will wear them to work and no one will comment on how "unusual" or "bright" or "colorful" my shoes are. 'cause, y'know, they would.


so I'm wearing them today. like right now. as I type this. and though I am pleased to know that no one is going to comment on the craziness of them, I'm pretty damn sure that at some point these puppies are going to make someone laugh at me. 'cause I'm certain that there will be a day when I fall and bust my ass while wearing these kicks.

because they have Practically. Zero. Traction. and their coefficient of friction? alarmingly close to zero. damn scalars.

oh and, joke for you as emailed to me by dear jeremy, "why does a chicken coop have two doors?"

...

"because if it had four doors it would be a chicken sedan!"

to be. to do. do-be-do-be-do.

yesterday I was congratulated for accomplishing something on my list of things to do in life. at first it felt silly, because I really feel like what I actually did is add something else to my kinda long (and self-inflicted) list of things to do. what I did was volunteer to be an assistant leader for the girl scout troop that meets at my church (and really you should be proud of me, I think, 'cause they asked if I'd be the leader-leader, and I said no!).

and after I said, "I'm not sure if it's really a 'congrats' type of moment," he said, "yes it is. you said it's something you've wanted to do, and now you're gonna do it." he has good perspective, I think. it probably helps that he's cute. :)

so I started thinking about the things I want to do. and how I want to make a list. and I'm gonna. I know some things that go on it: be a mother, learn how to quilt, fly in a hot air balloon, go to europe, take a vacay with my various bfs, dance across a stream (you can blame funny face for that one), visit all 50 states and make a coffee table book, be kind to others, etc. and be a girl scout leader. and be really involved in my church. and secretly I want to be a big important officer in kd some day too, but don't tell anybody, it'll be our secret, k?

anyway, I've also thought about some things that I don't want to do anymore. and I don't think I'm comfortable making a list of them, really. except for one. I don't want to ever let anybody I love think that I don't love them. I don't ever want to chance it. A long time ago I think maybe someone didn't know I loved him, and it pains me to think about that possibility.

okay, enough waxing profound.

so, saturday evening I enjoyed some sushi and drinks with Kim, Marla and Lara. VERY fun. And precisely what I needed. cute, no? seriously, sometimes what you need is a sister.

then something hard but good happened. and I am thankful. and tired. but mostly thankful.

and at church, after speaking in front of the congregation and getting nervous (what the hell? I don't ever get nervous about speaking in front of people...maybe it's 'cause I was winging it?) I got coaxed into going to the potluck and then volunteered to be the assistant leader. I am seriously so! excited! about! this! (and, cuteness, this ADORABLE little girl told me how cute my ring is--you can see it in the picture up there--how faboo to have someone who oozes cuteness tell you she likes what you're wearing. so what if she was six. i don't care. i wish I were half as cute as her!)

and then? then I became the "photographer" for the kaydee alums and a member of the nominating committee. And that, my dearies, is the extent of my official responsibilities. and though it pains me a little to let it go, since I've been so invested in it for the past three years, I also know that this is a really good thing, and I should move onto something different. and I totally have my work cut out for me.

also? kinda proud of myself for only being an elected officer in ONE organization. sure, I'm on two softball teams, in the church choir, just volunteered to be an asst. leader and am triangle panhell pres, but still. this is good for me. and more importantly, I do these things because I enjoy them.

finally, susan and I watched The Notebook, and ate this, which is yum, actually. that movie is so good but soooooo sad. I cried. I was told it was okay to do more crying this weekend though, 'cause it's a different type of cry. And it was. S and I had a little heart to heart afterwards. Good stuff, peeps. gee-double-oh-dee.

bully for you.

yeah, that's all I got. bully for you. bully for effing you.

this is not a good saturday. I guess it's productive or whatever, but it makes me think of this day, and I have now learned that tears + car windows open = dry face, too. yip-to-the-ee.

however, I must say, how appropriate. I get a quote of the day, you see. Today's? "If there is no struggle there is no progress"~Frederick Douglass. and today's word of the day? quagmire. sure is all lining up alarmingly well.

but going for happier...

1. I love my sisters. see, Kim and Kara and me? rock-to-the-tastic.
2. I love my sisters. I'm finishing blogging as I wait for Kim and Lara to pick me up, and we're going out with Marla too. yay, kaydees.
3. I love my sisters.
4. Sterling rules. And makes me giggle. And helps me pick out clothes. And wants to be a part of my daily (if trivial) life. And I like that.

please, oh please, excuse my for being in a mood. it's well deserved, I assure you. it's my blog and I can be moody if I want to. and I am. passive aggressive? not so much. just saying what's on my mind. it's not like you didn't know anyway.

carrie is a little hurt, and a lot glad to know, and a little angry, and a lot thankful for being a kaydee. that's all I got right now. I'll roll with it. you should, too. it's good for the mind, the body and the soul. trust me. I have it on good authority.

oh, and? I should learn more from the refreshments...
it's just you and me baby no one else we can trust we'll say nothin to no one no-how or we'll bust never crack a smile or flinch or cry for nobody uh-uh

time to go out with the lady-kins. I heart them, I do, I do.

xoxo.
-rie

would it really be so terrible if...

I had school spirit? For my high/middle school? still? e-a-g-l-e-s, e-h-s! and I want this...

I bought myself flowers? and had 'em delivered? since you can only get them in late april/early may and they're GORGEOUS and my pictures last year didn't turn out that awesome...

I got angry every time I saw someone not recycle? I mean, in 2003, in the US there was like approximately 4.5 pounds of waste generated per person per day, up from 2.7 pounds per person per day in 1960. This is bad news, peeps. Walk that soda can to the recycle bin! Metal is almost inifinitely recycleable. If you're tossing plastic bottles I'm not gonna be as mad at ya, but seriously!!!


I thought about the spin doctors when I read this today? I mean, and superman. And was intrigued due to my nerdiness?

I cannot think of where I heard the phrase "alas, alack" and it's making me crazy 'cause the only reference I can find is about a story of a fish that talks in a frying pan and I'm pretty certain that as a youngin' I would have found that quite upsetting and so I'm certain it's from somewhere else and it's making me think in run-on-sentences?

I crashed last night and still wanted more sleep after my nine and a half hours?

my left quad still hurts, now moreso because I played softball again last night, and I fully intend to continue playing on it?

I fixed myself box mac'n'cheese for dinner (hello, annies!) because I am a lazy bum and don't want to make more effort than that tonight? that's the stinkiest part of being a singleton, you know. it's annoying to cook for just one.

I don't feel like primping before my date tonight? Or cleaning my apartment? Or doing anything other than buying gobi and hazel food, seeing if walmart has the loverly ranunculuses that are in bloom and changing out of my clothes that smell vaguely like hydrochloric acid? I mean, I'm gonna do both, but would it really be so terrible if I didn't feel like doing either?

that's what I thought.
goodie goodie gum drops.

and if you don't like it, this is what I've got to say (courtesy of nataliedee.com)

lapsus linguae?

a slip of the tongue.

so, I started searching for tongue quotes, and I found this. it's kinda cool if you're a word-nerd like me! and I decided to stick with what I already knew, the good ol' trusty latin, and latin moments.

anyhoo, went to the dentist yesterday to get two crowny-crown-crowns. they are adjacent to one another and so they just made one big one, which is WEIRD. it'll be separate when they do the permanent ones though. anyhoo, while there the told me that I have a very strong tongue.

[insert witty comment here.]

yeah.

I had a hard time finding a picture of a tongue that didn't make me go "people don't want to look at my blog and see that," so I give you this:


I heart Einstein. And number theory. And 3-aliquot trees. And the number 42.
(though I must say I hate calculus. and heat transfer. and mean people.)

also, learned a new word yesterday, courtesy of my friend/co-worker/teammate Andrea--abattoir. beer + food + porch + nice weather = good times, peeps. 'cept we just might have been having the nerdiest conversation in the bar--we talked about above-mentioned 3-aliquot tree, and perfect, amicable and sociable numbers. man oh man. hello, linear alegbra.

and while looking up 42, I found this in wikipedia...
"It was later pointed out by readers that 6 × 9 = 42 if the calculations are performed in base 13, not base 10. Douglas Adams later averred that he was not aware of this at the time, and repeatedly dismisses this as an irrelevant concoction, saying that 'nobody writes jokes in base 13 [...] I may be a pretty sad person, but I don't make jokes in base 13.' "

made me giggle. and then makes me ashamed since I am a nerd who found that hilarious. apparently, also, forty-two is a dominoes game. think I'm gonna have to learn, yup yup. and I love it that google is all about the 42 as well. see?

okay, maybe this post had the wrong title. maybe it should have been 42. or maybe it should have been your friend carrie is a geek who talks a lot. but in any case, in the words of the great Hudson, "it is what it is."

[s]he's going the distance...

~cake

hi there.
flash of brilliance, much?

So, I'm going to be in Tulsa June 22-July 1, y'see. I am IMMENSELY sad that I won't be seeing the fireworks there, but that really can't be helped.

anyhoo. I know what I'm doing Friday, June 22nd, and on Friday and Saturday the 29th and 30th. The rest of the time? Up for grabs.

And know what little thinker Carrie here is going to do? Seriously, are you ready?

Remember one of my life goals? Taking pictures in all 50 states? Hows abouts I knock out Kansas, Missouri and Arkansas while I'm there? I need to look into it a little more, but if I spent the day driving up to the edge of Kansas, Missouri and Arkansas, I could, in theory, visit all three. Y'know, Coffeyville, Joplin and Bentonville? Hmmmmmm...

a little crazy? perhaps.
but also? kinda brilliant, methinks.

oh and, anybody know a good quad stretch? I know the one where you basically bring your heel to your butt, but it ain't cuttin' the mustard. I seem to have owied my left quad during softball yesterday. which, by the way, we lost MISERABLY.

almost perfect. almost.

the only things missing from my weekend, for the most part, were things/people in other states. y'know, like renee, jessica, my family, mazzio's pizza, my wittle, itsy and grandlittle, my ocd, my t-town and s&s buddies, etc...but other than that? could have really asked for a better balance of weekend goodness...

let's list, shall we?

~widespread panic (which was eventful and fun, and I've now lost my stuffing-mini-bottles-in-my-bra virginity)
~one dollar grilled cheese sandwiches at the shake-down post show.
~sushi. mmmmmmmm sushi. and half sweet/half unsweet tea.
~softball (well, technically batting cages)
~shopping for cute baby things
~seeing all of my duke/durham friends
~yummy fruit, pretty flowers, deelish cake, seeing audrey's fam (and being reminded how much fun laura is! plus scott and I had fun talking about ChE...)
~compliments on my cute ross-dress-for-less skirt and plain-jane-ballet flats, which I DID wear on my date (thanks avm, att and kjw. and sjg too.)
~good times chit-chatting with the ladies. and eating skittles. and making cigar/ball jokes. :)
~beer pong which I didn't actually play, unfortch
~dancing. with a guy who can dance. WAY better than I can.
~a new place to look for cute clothes (maxstudio.com)
~jewelry making with some of my sisters and friends
~ryan messing with the baby bjorn and seeing the amazing quilt katie made for sam!
~tin roof icecream eating
~watching sex and the city with mary alise
~getting a free hip-hop cd at the car wash. no, really. 'course within the first three songs he likens himself to christ (because he's his dad's only son, too, clearly there's a connection) and tells us his name rhymes with bumble bee. but still, it was free.
~getting free super glue from my neighbor who just wants to take care of somebody. He has a daughter who is two years younger than I am, and he has been on medical leave for the past four months or so...he also offered me change for the car wash, it was nice of him.
~and being reminded of The Shirt Tales at dinner with Mary Alise and Matt. And Thundercats. And Gummy Bears. And learning that I might just be a yankee. Even though really, I'm not.

good times, people good times.

the only bad parts...

~some of the WSP "events"
~realizing that my batting problem isn't fixable--this one is good and bad. I socked the hell out of the pitches when they I selected medium speed baseball on accident, so it's an issue with the timing that's making me hit poorly. bummer, huh?
~the five minutes I spent alone downtown at 2am on Saturday because somebody walked off and left me. incase you didn't know, I'm a sarcastic person. get used to it. :)
~all of my tin roof getting eaten. I wanted to take some home, dangit! It's okay, though--there's no point in crying over frozen milk! The real bummer, though, is that it isn't an available flavor this month, see? [pout]
~getting a sunburn while cleaning out my car
~and being called a Yankee. I’ll have to blog about my logic for why I’m NOT later. ha!

and here are some cute pics from the shower!

you best not be tryin' to break my crayons

this is a faboo phrase. it shall be incorporated into the carriecabulary soon. :)

weekend bloggage and pix coming...

keeping time and putting my money where my mouth is.

yesterday I was trying to decide if I wanted to change my myspace profile. everyone go look at it, don't worry, I'll wait.

...

[twiddles thumbs]

...

now that you're back. I was thinking about the part that sais "if I invest my time in something, then I mean it." And I started thinking about what, exactly it is that I'm 1)spending my time on and 2)spending my money on. And what it should say to me.

Clearly, it means a lot to me that I am a Greek. That's why I'm so involved, it's why I talk it up, it's why I take on leadership roles. I LOVE it. And I love it even more after talking to my mommie yesterday. For those of you who don't know, she's not a Greek, but my granddaddy is a Sig Ep, my granny and my aunt are KayDees and my other aunt is a TriDelt, as is my cousin far removed. There are LOTS of Greeks in my family. And yesterday my mom was telling me how proud of me she was for joining a house, how she can tell the impact it has had on my life, how wonderful she thinks it is. It makes me smile. But I digress.

The other priorities for me, time-wise, are friends and church. And maybe sports, but not as much. And I like that.

And as far as money goes, taking away things like rent and car payments from the equation, you're really jsut left with art stuff, entertainment and my dadgum teeth.

I'm not even sure why I'm blogging about this, except it looks like, figuratively and literally, I'm putting my money where my mouth is, and it makes me feel good to know it.

tonight, it's widespread with betsy. tomorrow, oh my goodness lots and lots of things. and sunday beading and blue bell. mmmmmmmmmm.

happy friday and THANK GOODNESS.

me: "eh, whatev." sjg: "did you just say 'whatev?' " me: "yep." sjg: "you are such a sorority girl." me: "thanks!"

So, yeah. LOTS of Greeky stuff yesterday. And Geeky.

We inducted the seniors into the alumnae association, and dude, a few of 'em got all teary! And we actually ran out of roses! This was certainly the warmest reception I've received while doing this--I think we're going to get a lot of new members! There were about 25 seniors there, but we only got a pic with a few of them.

And then? Went to the Triangle Alumnae Panhellenic meeting--and was informed I am now President. There's a LOT of work to be done there. I am sooo up for the challenge. Luckily, I didn't have to pay for my wine AND I got some flowers. And a shit-ton of papers. The woman printed out every single damn email she'd sent since 2001. What?!?

Did y'all watch LOST? Huh? Kate isn't making sense, and why would Desmond go all liver-saver-ee? And did Penny send that chick? Or is she on the island too? Their picture was in that copy of catch-22. (good book, read it if you haven't) Hmm hmm hmmm. Four eps before the season finale--can you wait? And please tell me you caught the picture of the old woman in the corner of the monk's desk. The british chick from the jewelry store? And did you know that there's a whole LOST section on wikipedia? here's last night's episode.

Oh, and the geeky--I really like this song my friend Kelly sent on my mix cd--it's called Science is Golden. It's my myspace song. :) Appropriate, no?

kisses.

geeky and greeky.

um, so.
on a happier note.

1. I am really friggin sore. From playing softball. On Monday night. Y'see, they had me at catcher, which is a-o-k, but it sure means my legs are sooooooore. I hear that bananas help with soreness, is that true?
2. I want a barre. Yes, b-a-r-re. See number one. For stretching my legs. Currently I've been using the tops of the lab benches in a barre-type fashion, doing my one-legged plies. Hello, Ms. Larkin. Thank you for teaching me how to stretch. and piroutte. and do headstands.
3. At first I was disappointed about being catcher. But now I'm super pleased. At this rate I am sure going to have some incredible leggage going on by the end of the season. yowza! or hubba hubba, take your pick!
4. I bought shoes yesterday. The most un-exciting, plain jane black ballet flats imaginable. To go with my cute toile shirt. You will see it, I'm sure. I cannot believe these shoes. They are cute but so PLAIN. I like 'em though. no bow or nothin'.
5. I also want to buy some new crocs. Their ballet flats, specifically. They are sooooo comfy.
6. Oh yeah, about that softball thing? It was our first game and we CREAMED them. 19-7. yours truly got a hit every time AND an RBI and scored a run. Pity that my best hit was also a fly ball, and it was caught. But still, yay PGUMC softball. Also, gotta say? I was kicking ass and taking names AND I made friends with the ump, which is always a good move. :)
7. that whole greek part? Yeah, today I'm preeeeety sure I'm going to be elected Triangle Alumnae Panhellenic (TAP) President. :) Perhaps when I ran for President of Panhellenic like five years ago I was just a little ahead of my time?
8. Super-dee-duper congrats go out to my dears Mary Alise and Michael WHO ARE ENGAGED! 'Bama here I come. Next summer, though, next summer. I can't wait to see the rock in person!
9. Tonight I am going to the BX KD house at UNC to do senior inductions and then to the TAP wine tasting. I also had to decide between choir practice, a PGUMC softball game and a work softball practice. I can't ever recall having FIVE things to do on one night ever before. Even in college!

also, I can't believe I've never called myself geeky and greeky ever before. I mean, seriously!

happy hump day. happy happy humpity hump.

oh dear.

my poor granddaddy is in the hospital again. his legs have been collapsing/crumpling, and his blood pressure was sky-friggin'-high. I love him so much, and it makes me very sad to know he's having to live like this. he was in the marines, if you didn't know, and I know he's always been a tinkerer, so this way of living is probably killing his mind as much as it is his body.

it makes me think of the tire swing he hung on the big tree in front of their house on 31st street, and all the tools in his "workshop" in the basement, and what a big deal it was when I was allowed to go in there. and all the things he installed or fixed himself. and his most excellent muah-ha-ha laugh he used to use to scare anna and me when we were supposed to be sleeping in our beds, but were whispering to each other instead. it makes me miss him. he's pretty much the best man I've ever gotten to know, and I don't know what I can do to help him, other than pray.

they're trying to get his blood pressure to a normal level, and to figure out how to proceed. I believe he's going to have to stay in a nursing home from now on, which I'm afraid will wear down what spirit he has left. it just makes me so sad. sorry to be a downer of a blogger today.

on a happier note there are new pictures on my blog. like this one.

and why not? it worked in blazing saddles!

~achoo
from robin hood men in tights

well, this sure explains a lot.

also? achoo! it has been a sniffly weekend. I woke up on Sunday with a horrid sinus headache (stupid rain) and then sniffled my way through the afternoon. I kept sneezing in church! And last night, while on the phone, I heard the telltale sniffling on the other end of the line. while at the wedding, at Kim's last night, everywhere, sniffle sniffly sniff.

but yeah, T-town is the ruler of all things allergies, it seems. Figures. My mom so needs to move.

Oh, and last night was a wonderful way to end the weekend--deeelish food and excellent company at Kim's. I cannot believe it--I ate THREE helpings! Plus, girl time is always fun. :) and after some phone time I went to sleep all snuggled with the cats. which really just makes me wish I were still in bed! I REALLY didn't want to get up today!

also, I've been craving this, recently. I blame my mother, for sure.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we play softball tonight. It's been coooooold here but I really want to play! So far we're still on, but who knows how that will turn out. and does anyone have any gloves? my hands are FREEZING in my cube-o-doom.

"we might give them heart attacks!"~olivia "brings a new meaning to the word heartbreaker!"~carrie

yeah, so, at the wedding last night those sentences transpired. y'know, 'cause the dj guy came up to olivia and me to try to convince us to do the swing dance lessons at the beginning since we were "good looking ladies." actually? it was pretty fun. and the VERY old men that we danced with were pretty cool, too.

here's me, olivia and frances with the lovely bride and then the three of us at our table. special thanks to the photographer, chip. the wedding was all high society and pretty pretty pretty.

and the bride and groom at their dance...

and olivia and my fork toast. that cake was deeeeelish!

but before that...

I got a WONDERFUL surprise from my friend Nick. mmmmm mmmmmm mmmmmmm! and yes, I will share. here is the loveliness in my freezer. We joked about how he's going to be my icecream dealer and help me get my bluebell fix. [wanna come over, audrey?]

and here's the KDs volunteering for the setup at picture this for PCA-NC. Last year was more fun, but at least I still spent the evening dressed up and drinking!

and lookie here--the pictures I gave for the auction. cute, no? and aren't those paintings behind it FAB? wow.

oh, and on friday night? a date. :D
to sum it up: no darts were played at the dive bar (which was SCARY), I met another identical twin and discussed the hierarchy of the twin elite (identical, then fraternal of same gender, then fraternal of different genders. go with it.) and heard about how this 28 year old guy had cheated on his girlfriend with a 45 year old woman and how he worked with her husband (yikes), and susan saw us eating our pizza outdoors at the mellow mushroom. 'twas funny. and fun. and I liked it.

I have to say though, the most fun part of the weekend so far was DEFINITELY right after the wedding. Olivia and I were seriously cutting a rug at the wedding--and dancing with each other, people prolly thought we were super drunk!--and then went out downtown while all gussied up. We met Matt (the science teacher) and his friends out, and had a faboo time. It's been quite a while since I've danced so much--good times, people, good times. everybody needs an olivia. Oh, and? Some day I'm going to pay her to come and design my yard for me. Y'know, in like 2012 or whenever I actually own a house, but still.

time to go have fun with the ladies now!

the needle test and comh for friday the 13th

hi again.

two things.
1. have y'all heard of the needle test? it came up in conversation yesterday. I just so happened to have a needle and thread at work (hey, I'm a girl scout, I'm prepared, leave me be) and I did it. allegedly I will have three children, a boy, a girl and a boy. We shall see.
2. these are pretty flowers that are growing outside my front door. thanks, katie! they just started blooming!

"and this is carrie...our social magnet."

~kim lauer

last night was so so so much fun. despite my terrible retelling of the little red ball joke. at least I got to tell the one about elephants painting their toenails red.

by the time I arrived all of my friends were already there--except no one knew each other. terry and tom were at one table, kara, sean and their friend eric at another, and kim and kara at yet another table. and susan hadn't arrived yet. so we had to gather the masses. y'know, to me, the social magnet. :)


and, in the true passive sentence form a good time was had by all.

also, I tried to find a picture of "social," just to see what that would be, but no dice. I'm pretty sure I'd be a pink magnet though, not a blue one. don't you think?

yesterday I admitted something to a friend of mine that really made me think. he needs home recuperation time. though I enjoy me some naps/relaxing/tv watching, I de-stress by going out with my friends. I'm pretty sure that's why I'm always doing just that. That's how I recharge. Makes sense, methinks.

I tried to show you today's c-o-m-h, but my scanner and camera wizard thingie is being weird. maybe I'll add on later.

i can't help but admit it...

this just in: I must be an engineer.

The following thoughts just went through my head while trying to work through these mass balances:
1. this would be easier if I did it on paper first.
2. crap, where's my paper?
3. I'll go get some engineering paper from the supply closet.
4. I can't find the key. This sucks. Now I have to use regular paper.


what?!?
I have now achieved a new level of nerdy patheticness.

I now return you to your slide-rule sporting, calculator-using, pocket-protector wearing, bespectacled programming. yeesh.

save a horse, ride a cowboy!

uh, yeehaw?

man oh man oh man. I have that song stuck in my head because I read it on a dadgum shirt. I was looking at cute printed tees, okay? So sue me. I REALLY want to get the one that says "I'm too pretty to do math." Except if you didn't know me? You might not find that shirt so funny.

but these made me giggle!

so, last night? my friend nick deserves some props. at least my setup is working now. apparently I need a power filter thingie or new cords or something. when it comes to electronics I am SUCH a girl.

I mean, even my phone hates me. I used up eleven minutes yesterday trying to get back to someone when my call got dropped repeatedly. What?!! I'm glad it was nights and weekend, but seriously! At least it's a going to be a leeetle warmer today. At least.

thank goodness it is thursday, and I have fun plans for tonight, and that I'm going to collect on the pint-age owed to me by Tom. because of his lack of bulls. :)

oh and, I need a book suggestion. I bet you've all heard about Kurt Vonnegut passing away. Well it makes me want to read another one of his books. I've read Player Piano, Cat's Cradle and Slaughterhouse-Five. What's another one that you enjoy?

i need a man.

so, this is one of those times I wish I were technologically inclined. y'see, I have this fancy-schmance tv, right? and this awesomely cute little sound system. it was a treat to self earlier this year. and it was all good 'cept if I played a DVD there was this hum on the speakers. so I thought I would use my rocktastic engineering troubleshooting know-how to whip this bad boy into shape. um, yeah...guess I forgot how much technology and I don't get along.

oh, if I play by the rules we can manage okay. I mean, I can operate a computer or a toaster or whatever. But if I want to do something like, say, burn a data dvd or use a command prompt or put in a bagel instead of bread, suddenly all things with microchips or plug-ins or wires turn against me. It all started with a curling iron that burned my forehead...and it's been downhill from there.

yesterday evening after work I went to the batting cages with two of my teammates, Andrew and Nick. We had fun, hit some balls and talked good-natured junk to one another. I even managed to hit the ball back through the hole where the pitch comes out--which was our goal for the evening and earned me a beer! We had dinner together and I introduced them to the yummyness that is Uno's chicken fajita pizza.

then Nick took me to pick up his thanks-for-taking-pictures-of-my-dad's-awesome-car gift to me--(ps, this is last week's comh, okay?) this lovely coffee mug. Two of the things I enjoy most are the color pink and blue bell icecream. :) Now if only I could have some blue bell icecream...road trip anyone?

anyhoo. Like you didn't already know this, I love all things colorful, and this looks GLORIOUS with the rest of my mugs. Also? I'm so pleased Audrey introduced me to the concept of eating icecream out of coffee mugs--'cause that's so what I'm going to do! and I've gotta say, I find great humor in putting my Trinity UMC and PGUMC mugs beside my MoSex mug (that one's the black one behind the trinity one). I think it's blissfully silly...

so, back to the television ridiculousness. I have a mere THREE things with plugs that I have to contend with--the cable box, the TV and my sound system. It shouldn't be that complicated, right? but it is, it is. after batting, after dinner, after the coffee mug and after talking to Susan I wanted to watch an episode of the gilmore girls and go to bed. This was my brilliant plan. Instead I wrestled with the damn cords for AN HOUR before getting so annoyed that I just placed everything on the ground and went upstairs to bed. Yes, I went to bed angry--but the anger was directed at an inanimate object, so I think I'm okay, right? quite honestly, and I'm soooo not ashamed to admit it, this is one of those times that I could really use a man--they all seem to be able to just magically make the electronic things work. And since I've admitted that to Paul, my fellow ChE and coworker, I figger I can admit it to y'all too.

to sum up:

I've got a TV that will only give me cable picture or sound. not both.

I have eleventeen cables haphazardly thrown/placed in my living room.

and, to quote Ringo, "I've got blisters on my fingers!"

so much for that whole painting and playing the geetar idea, eh?

i love your funny face your sunny, funny face. for you're a cutie with more than beautie. you've got a lot of per-son-a-li-ty.

So, a brief update. Incase you didn't already know, I’ve been dating a 6^th grade Science teacher and soccer coach/player named Matt. He’s the one took me bowling and gave me the stop-killing-the-pins pointer, and I only beat him when he played left-handed. (though I was disappointed he didn’t switch at the end and say “I am not left-handed!” in true Princess Bride style. But at least when I pointed it out to him he began spouting PB quotes with vim and vigor.) and anyhoo.

Last night we watched this:

Funny Face. Have you seen it?

Tres cute. And, well, funny. Plus it’s a musical with Fred Astaire and Audrey Hepburn, and what more could you ask for? I mean, Fred dances with an umbrella—which is marvelous! The costumes are pretty dang cool, too. And I seriously want someone to go out into the middle of a beautiful landscape with me, while I'm wearing a pretty poofy dress, and dance with me—especially across a little river. It’s a good movie. You should see it.

I heart musicals. I think I’m on a kick. Next is Annie Get Your Gun. And My Fair Lady. And Rent. Any other musical recommendations?

and for good measure, a list:
~my teeth are really pissing me off. I have to pay so much for 'em, dangit. I heard this advertisement on wknc about feedthepig.org, and how last year was the first time since just before the great depression that americans spent more than they earned. at first I felt bad about this, but then I though about how I'm spending $1100+ on my teeth just this month alone.
~I think I've changed my mind about my career path again, at least a little. I've decided it's dumb to move to Florida until I know that I have been accepted into law school. If I moved there before getting in, and then didn't get in, that wouldn't be worth my time, money or energy. So instead? Masters at State. And then we'll see. I know I keep changing my mind, but guess what? Better to change my mind a billion times than go down the wrong path. And if you're annoyed or whatever 1) you don't have to read this and 2) if this were about a guy to marry instead of school, you'd completely understand.
~i think my former acquaintance is involved in a pyramid scheme. not sure, but I'm supposed to call him back and he sounded all salesman-ee on the message. weirdness. he's a fellow TU alum.
~i want to paint some more. maybe I'll do it tonight.


mmmm. enough of carrie's random thoughts. please suggest musicals. :)

oh, and--question of the day?

on a scale of one to ten, how weird is it that I own pipe cleaners?

just checking...

bunnies, bowling and beer, oh my!

well, this might have been one of the most fun weekends I've had in a while. I mean, don't get me wrong, I try to have fun every weekend. but this one just might take the cake!

to begin with, the good friday tattoo. no, strike that, tattoos. after some half-price sushi and a trip to 9th street (where they didn't have time for me) we drove through some ghetto parts of durham to get to a different tattoo parlor--tattoo asylum. A very nice man, Jonas, did the tattooing, and I went ahead and got both. Pictures of them both are in the blog before this one.

here am I right after getting the tattoo--and look at the alice in wonderland tattoo on that magazine.

then? to the ale house!!! my, how I missed Michael. I need a good pick-on-Carrie session every now and then. so, here's the cuteness from the Ale House.

after getting home waaaaay too late and then getting up at 9am and taking a blissfully long nap, my guests arrived--a small group, but a super fun group to be sure! we had dee-lish food (thanks for bringing the ham, mary alise!), dyed eggs and hunted. and those eggs we hunted? yeah, they were a drinking game. Michael hid 'em all--including the "golden egg" (which was really silver since it was covered in aluminum foil, but whatever), and then referred to us as his bunnies--Bunny K, Bunny M and Bunny C.

Guess what he called himself? Yep, Hef. We drew the line at bowling in lingerie! And apparently we were quite amusing at the bowling alley--but I'm pretty sure that's 'cause of our bets. Mostly color-blind Michael and I made a bet about whether the green and teal dyes were labelled correctly--it was his idea, and he won. So when he got his first strike, I had to do this:

Yeah, go out on the lane, get down on my knees, and tell him he's the greatest person I've ever known. But later, when I won a game, Michael had to kiss my feet! In the icky bowling shoes!!!

yowzers.

Sunday was wonderful too. I made it to the sunrise service, had breakfast at church and then sang in the 830 and 1100 services. And Sunday school (which I hardly ever go to) was great, too! We performed rather poorly the first service, but the 1100 went very very well.

Here's a picture of the cross in front of my church--we placed flowers, a sign of life, onto it, a symbol of death. It was just beautiful.

And then I had lunch at the Sullivan's house. There were nineteen of us in all--including a bunch of eight year olds, and I spent most of my day hanging out with Challie, who is fourteen. I am so glad to know the Sullivans--they're great people. I sat with them for the Sunrise service, had breakfast with them and Lucinda and I are "choir buddies," so we spend a lot of time singing next to each other! Very very fun. Here's some pretty green stuff I saw on my way to their house! Oh, and I took some easter lily pics too, but haven't gone through 'em yet!

Last, but not least, I walked to the grocery store last night. And on my way home I was singing "was it a morning like this"--and I had NO IDEA that I had an audience. It was dark, and a lady was walking on the sidewalk across the street. It was great though--when she was about to her house she told me that she was really enjoying my singing and that I had a beautiful voice. Kinda made my day. :)

Now? I'm tired. I think I need a weekend to recover from my weekend!