Angel Island is on Fire

We have an island in the bay called Angel Island. No one lives here. Its more like a giant state park island. Sadly, it's on fire. It started last night at 9pm and is only 20% contained.

Gymnastics!

Yesterday, I did two parties at the gymnastics gym. It was really fun. The kids were cute and just so excited. As much as I do not normally gush over kids, I think when they are doing gymnastics, I like them more. I am going to be doing parties a few times per months, mostly on Sundays.

2 Crappy Things

2 Crappy things are happening

1. On Saturday morning, I realized that our right side mirror had been pulled off of the car. Either it was hit or someone ripped it off. Now, we have to find out how much it will cost to get it reattached. Not fun driving without it.

2. As of last night at 10pm, there is something wrong with our plumbing. Our bathroom sink filled up to the brim while I tried to brush my teeth. It wouldn't empty so I had to get a cup and fill a bucket with the water. I tried to plunge it and that just brought up all of this nasty dirt and pieces of whatever that looked like tree bark. We realized this AM that if you shower, dump that bucket down the shower, use the toilet, or the kitchen sink....the bathroom sink overflows. We are currently waiting for the maintenance people to come.

**Update on the sink: Plumber came. Removed a big glob of stuff. We're good to go***

Baking

Well it is baking season. From here until Christmas, I will just want to bake all sort of holiday goodies. So far, I made pumpkin bread, Halloween cookies, and Halloween cupcakes. This week, I want to make more pumpkin bread and monkey bread. I know monkey bread isn't 'Halloween' but its so easy to make and looks so good!

Anniversary!

Erik and I have been together for 5 years. I can't believe it. Yesterday, we went to see the 'Blue Angels' downtown. They were pretty cool. I don't know how they fly 4 planes together through buildings and not crash. They really do look like this:



Then, we went to our favorite sushi place, Domo. To finish the night, we went to this trendy bar near our house called, The Candy Bar. They serve cool desserts and drinks. We had smores and wine.

Did You Know....

Palin opposes abortion in all cases, including rape and incest, except when a mother's life is in danger, and said she believes Roe v. Wade should be overturned and the decision given to the states.

Womanizer

I really like Brit Brit's new song!

Working the Polls

I just signed up to work the polls on election day. I guess I have to wait to see if I get picked. But guess what, I get paid for it!

UPDATE: I didn't get picked for a poll worker. Well, actually they only need 'INspectors' and I dont want to do all of this serious training and be responsible for transporting votes.

Christmas Music & The Economy

I think i had a panic attack today about the economy. Three of us were talking about it while walking to get lunch and when I got back to the office, I was breathing funny. I said to my boss, I need to talk to you, I am freaking out. So we talked. He said we are fine. Our Client is not cutting budgets or programs. I feel better.

I still don't want to shop, eat out, or do anything. I want to horde my money and pay my bills. And send Evie to camp.

Anyway, we put on Christmas music so that we all feel happy. I know, its not allowed but this is a special circumstance!!

Major Breaking News

The Supreme Court of Connecticut has just ruled today, Friday, that same sex couples have the right to legally marry in the state.

http://www.courant.com/news/politics/hcu-gaymarriage-1010,0,7812756.story

Ozumo

Tonight, two of my co-workers and I took our new project manager out for sushi. We went to Ozumo and it was awesome. That place is amazing. They have garlic, soy edamame. Um, yes please! We had like 5 rolls and sashimi. So good.

Stock market crashing

The stock market was down 600 pts, now 700 pts. Is today the next Black Friday!?? Sooooooo scary!

Talking with Mouth Full

I HATE when people talk while their mouth is full. It's like they can't even get the words out b/c there is so much food in there, yet they don't stop. They have to get the words out RIGHT NOW. It's gross & RUDE.

Fleet Week

It is Fleet Week here & The Blue Angels are flying. We will have to check them out! Here is the calendar. We will probably be down at Fort Mason for the festivities on Saturday.

Gymnastics

I have a life long love of gymnastics. I did it when I was little, used to make my sister & friends play in the basement, begged for a beam and bars in my backyard, and competed in HS. I even took the test to become a gymnastics judge (uh, but failed b/c it was so hard). Anyway, My friend Stacey & I talked about opening a gym one day. Maybe it will be a reality. She has a new baby daughter and we already said we will make her an Olympian. ha.

Anyway, I would love to be a gymnastics coach. I recently looked on USA gymnastics site for any coach openings and found 2 gyms in the area. I sent my resume to one and they called! I am going to meet with them on Saturday. I think I might just start off doing birthday parties (which I've done in the past) but that's fine. Those were fun. I love lifting little fat kids over the vault and watching them run around to Disney music.

I have no idea who this is but I thought the picture was funny.

I'll let you know what happens on Saturday morning!

Pink Phone

I really want this pink blackberry. I hope ATT gets it so when I can upgrade in Feb, I can get it. How cute!

Win a Kate Spade Shopping Spree

I got this in my email this morning. Enter to win!

Good Money Tip

This was on Oprah.com

Felicity is a mom of three with a baby on the way. To keep better track of where her money goes, Felicity takes cash from the bank every Friday and divides the money into six envelopes labeled for allowance, gas, groceries, takeout and everyday use. "When it's gone, it's gone," she says.

Pumpkin Spiced Latte!!!

I am drinking my first Starbucks Pumpkin Spiced Latte of the season!!!

Garlic Slicer

Need this. You just put the garlic clove in there & it slices it for you!

The Economy - Simplified

Here is how Suze Orman breaks down the economic issues & how they affect YOU.

Highlights:

• Financial expert Suze Orman says current situation was caused by greed
  
• Switching to a cash economy means buying only what you can afford now
  
• "Stop living the financial lies that you have been living," Orman says

What happened to the Stock Market:
"When you have stocks, you have individual companies that want to make money. And [CEOs] want to make more money because the more money they make, the more their compensation is, the more their stock price goes up." These companies made money by selling investments like mortgages to people who couldn't afford them, Suze says.

People & Debt:
"A lot of you have built your personal financial foundation on deceit and lies. You bought a home that you couldn't afford ... You spent money like it was going out of style and it wasn't your money to spend, because why? They were borrowing it"

What to do:
"If you don't have the money to pay for something, can you just not buy it? Can you wait? Can we start looking at keeping our cars for 10 years rather than getting a new one every three?" - NO MORE CREDIT CARDS OR LOANS

If you're 10 to 20 years away from retirement, Suze says there's no reason to panic. "As long as you are invested in good quality mutual funds, diversified across the board, as this all goes down, you're buying more shares," she says. "The more shares you buy, eventually, when it turns around ... the more money you'll make."

Evie has....

Giardia. It is a parasite. The vet said she probably got it from contaminated water. Contaminated water is in the mud in the park. She eats the grass that is contaminated from the mud and bingo, she gets Giardia. She has to take a pill twice a day and I get the task of making her chicken & rice until this is cleared up.

Vet

Well, Evie and I are taking another trip to the Vet tomorrow. She has had lovely diarrhea off & on for the past week. She is fine, then she's not. We found out 2 culprits are 1)eating crap in the park/parking lot 2)these beef treats she has. She was fine on Sunday and this AM and then Erik said she wasn't fine this afternoon. Will let you know the outcome!

I need a 2nd job just to support the dog, I swear!

Halloween Sign

I saw this craft in a magazine & made it.

Jack Falstaff

We have some people in from our Dallas office so we went to a great lunch at, Jack Falstaff. This restaurant is owned by Plumpjack Winery. I had sole and it was SO good. I would go back just for the sole.

Systems

I realize if I do not have a system or process for everything in my life, I screw it up. For instance, we have a schedule in the morning and if we deviate, I am late for work. ('Late' is sort of a joke b/c we can get there anytime before 9). I have a routine at the grocery store. I scheduled a car wash once a week & put it on the calendar. I write down how often I have to get my hair cut. I have to have auto bill pay & auto savings. Everything has to be put in place & on a schedule, or my life is messed up!

The Beach

Evie had so much fun running and going in the water. Erik got in the water with her, too. Normally, I am a nervous wreck when we go to the beach because I am afraid she will run up to someone and jump on them. We went around 6pm though and it was pretty empty.

Nice Shades

We went down to Ocean Beach around 6pm, yesterday. It was sunny & Erik didn't have any shades so he put these random ones that were in the car on.

Evie in Pearls

Randomly, I put this on Evie. Isn't she funny. She looks scared like, get this off me.

Halloween Cookies

Cristin & I made Halloween cookies on Friday night.



Evie begging for cookies

New Pots & Pans

Well, I asked Erik for pots & pans for Christmas (exciting, I know). The pans we currently have are a mixture of a pan from Ikea and some other pans that I bought from a co-worker when he got married. Basically, the bottoms started to flake INTO the food, which is gross. So, we went to get new pots & pans today. I think this is a good deal - 10 pans for $100 and it is Cusinart.

Haircut

How much do you pay for a haircut? A 'cheaper' haircut in SF is $60. My normal stylist is away so I went to a new stylist for a haircut. It was $70. My friend just paid $80 for a haircut at her place. I mean $80!?

So, just wondering how much you all pay in your different cities!

Amazing Dip

My friend Bailey makes this AMAZING dip. It is a hot chicken and cheese dip. It is made with cheddar, cream cheese, chicken, and Red Hot sauce. I am trying to recreate it tonight!

I'm pretty sure...

...I need to see this movie. I saw the trailers on line months ago and it does look funny.





We went to a place called 'The Little Chihuahua' for dinner and I have to say 'Cheeeehuahua' because it makes it so much more funnier

Neighborhood

Today I took Evie for a little walk in the park and then took her through the neighborhood. She likes to walk through the neighborhood for all of the different smells. When she is on her gentle leader, she is a dream. She doesn't bother anyone, she walks next to me. Today, we walked past the Baptist church while a woman was singing. She was loud & belting it out. Evie stopped, ears perked and walked up to the church door. I think she would have liked to to in and see what was happening.

We also walked past the doggie store a block away. Whenever we walk past, she pulls me in because she knows they give her a treat. Today, we went in, she went right over to the counter & pulled her paw up to get a treat. Too funny.

I found a bee costume at Old Navy for $20. I think this will be her costume instead of attempting to make it!

How Rude!

WWSTD?

How rude.....and offensive to say this"

Referring to Obama’s relationship with William Ayers, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin accused Obama of associating “with terrorists who targeted their own country.”

It's not something to say lightly & shouldn't be said at all. She should get her facts straight.

In fact, the very newspaper story Governor Palin cited in hurling her shameless attack made clear that Senator Obama is not close to Bill Ayers, much less ‘pals,’ and that he has strongly condemned the despicable acts Ayers committed 40 years ago, when Obama was eight. What’s clear is that John McCain and Sarah Palin would rather spend their time tearing down Barack Obama than laying out a plan to build up our economy,” Sevugan added.

Foodie

Pet Peeve: People that call themselves 'Foodies' and think they are better than everyone else because they pay like $50 for an ounce of cheese and slave away over their stoves pretending they are on the Food Network.

Weekend

This week feels like it went by so fast. Tonight, my friend Cristin and I are going to have a 'fall dinner' and watch Hocus Pocus. We are making Halloween cookies, too.

This weekend, my friend Marc from college, will be in town. He is in LA for work and coming up to SF for a 49ers game with our other friend who lives in Palo Alto. We are going to check out this area, Cole Valley, that is near us. It is supposed to be a little street area with shops/restaurants.

ILK. I heard it might rain this weekend. We haven't seen rain in months. Since February, at least!

Anchor & Hope

It was my co-worker's birthday last week so we went out to a birthday lunch today. We went to this place called, Anchor & Hope. It felt like a rustic place. Cute. Specialized in seafood. I had the cod. It was good!

Hairspray

My favorite musical, Hairspray, is leaving Broadway. SAD. It is closing in January 2009.

Lying

Isn't it funny how you can tell when someone is lying, they talk too much. Oh and isn't it funny when they are smokers but don't want anyone to know and they say they don't smoke. Ridic.

Whip It

This morning, there was a Whippet in the park this morning. We were out early, around 7am and Evie and the Whippet were the only ones there. Whippets run, fast. I let her run. She couldn't catch the other dog. She was getting mad & started barking at the dog while running b/c she couldn't keep up. She tried cutting the dog off at the pass but that still didn't work. It was funny.

What SF doesn't have

I am finding that SF or the West in general does not have certain foods. Such as:

1. Ellio's Pizza
2. Boars Head lunch meat
3. Big jugs of powdered Lipton iced tea


Its weird and annoying!

Workout

Today, I am feeling like a fatso. I know I'm not fat but I could sure lose a few pounds. I have a gut and feel like my butt has a layer of fat on it. Nice, I know. I have a 24 hr Fitness membership but I hate going. I hate the gym. I want to swim and go to classes. I want to do a sprint Tri in the spring. I think the Y would be much better. I am going to go down and see if I can get a guest pass and try it out. It is more expensive but if I will actually go, then it is money well spent.

Famous

Evie's little Frenchie friend, Texas, see below - the blonde one, is almost famous. He is at a photoshoot today to be in the next Pottery Barn Kids catalog. How funny!

A taste of New England....

....in SF. Check out this new "crab shack" that just opened. A Little more expensive than a lobster roll stand in Maine.

Evie & The Frenchies

Luckily, the Frenchies owner had his iPhone out in the park the other morning. He got a picture of Evie with her friends Texas(blonde) and Ollie(black) tugging on a stick. They love to do this. Evie & Ollie will tug on a tennis ball, a 6" stick, anything. They all love each other.

Happy Birthday, Maria!

Look who is 73 today! The hills are still alive with the sound of music.

A new word i hate

....Finger Foods. ICK.

Add it to the list of:

• Moist
• Supple
• Finger Foods

What words do you hate!?

Hocus Pocus

Last night was very exciting. We had a yummy dinner of shrimp with leeks(even though I felt bad about eating the shrimp but they were from the US so maybe US fisherman are paid better). Anyway, around 930, we got the apple crisp ready, lit the candles, and put on HOCUS POCUS. Evie was a pain but I forced her to get on the couch & she immediately went to sleep.

In true Heather fashion, I saw maybe 20 mins of the movie and fell asleep. I saw up to the part where the witches came back. That's it! So, tonight, it will go on again and we'll see what happens.

I was very excited though. My co-worker asked me if I am going to be hyper all month & I said YES.