Random - Vol. 8.4

I have a few things on my mind today-

First: Why are so many things in America called French, like French Vanilla, French Silk Pie, French Toast, French Kiss, etc.?
In France, what do they call what we call French Toast? Maybe it’s pancakes to them.
What do they call an open mouth tongue kiss? An American kiss...?
What’s wrong with American Vanilla? Is there a Mexican Silk Pie?

It’s kind of like the whole Canadian Bacon thing... what do the fine folks in Canada call what we know as Canadian bacon? For that matter, what do they call bacon? (loopy, can you help me out on this one?)

Second thing on my mind: The Shocker, who invented it? And really... if someone told you that they invented it; would you believe them?

Third: Spring; the season. It should be upon us, but it’s not. I’m not going to bitch too much here, BUT... I’ve been seeing my favorite signs of spring lately: the motorcycles, the old classic cars, the birds, etc. but I’m not seeing spring itself! This past weekend was wonderful weather, but how much are we supposed to take? It’s been snowing here all morning here... tomorrow is April! Ugh... I just really need it to be done.

Fourth and final: April Fools Day- know of any good pranks? We’ve got something cooked up here at the office for one of my co-workers; I can’t wait! Just wondering if people still get into this day and if so, what it is that you do! Spill...

Random - Vol. 8.3

So as you may or may not know by now, I am totally in love with my niece. CHECK OUT HER PICTURES

So I have a cute short story from Easter- I pretty much kiss her as often as possible; I was holding her (because I do that as often as possible too) and went to give her a kiss on the cheek and she leaned her head into me and wanted to cuddle!! So we are just standing in the middle of the room and my adorable niece has her head resting on my face! Almost made me cry!! It was the sweetest thing ever and really made me believe that she loves her auntie tons.

Things like that are going to make it hard for me to leave this state…

So I’ve also posted a video of her crawling, because she is doing that now. So sweet! She pulls herself up on everything and always wants to stand up, so she’ll be walking in no time at all. She can even stand on her own for quite some time… I was walking at 8 months so if she wants to grow up to be like her auntie, she better get a move on.

I love taking pictures of her, she is a great subject. Even when she is cranky she still looks so beautiful!

OMG- I’m bragging way too much. I’ll stop now. Sorry.

Let’s see… ok, here is something:

I was reading a blog the other day, Ann’s blog, she was asking for funny stories from when you were a baby. I couldn’t remember any and still can’t. It got me thinking though… what is my earliest memory? I remember one time when I was about 5 and I was eating a PB&J, all of the sudden I just didn’t like it anymore! I didn’t have another for YEARS!! I don’t know what happened to make me try one again, but I love them now.

I also remember one time getting ready to play kickball in the street (which I’d love to get a group together and play sometime!!), the ball was in the bushes, so I went to grab it and it had a slug on it! It was so gross. That was at the first house we lived in, so I’m pretty sure I was 5 or younger when that happened.

I look at pictures from when I was a kid and try to remember those things and re-live those times, but I always come up short.

What is your earliest memory and how old were you?

Isn’t it funny how we can’t remember what we did last Thursday, but we can remember things like a slug on a ball from age 5?!

It’s interesting to me how we grow up and our tastes change and our way of thinking changes. I grew up in a home where dinner was either meat and potatoes or dinner out.

My mom has always been a very picky eater, and when I was a kid I was very much the same way. Now, I’m 26 and I love food more than anything (and it’s beginning to show!!).

I was making an artichoke dip for Easter and my mom, always in my face, comes over and says "what are those?" so I hand her an artichoke and say "here, try it, it’s an artichoke". She automatically gets this disgusting look on her faces and hesitantly asks "what does it taste like?" I basically tell her to just ’shut-up and try it, it won’t kill you!’. So she very slowly puts it in her mouth and makes the ugliest face I’ve ever seen a person make!! Like she is about to die having put this thing in her mouth, she gives it her best open mouth chew and rushes to the sink for a drink of water.

I give her credit though, she actually tried something! She’ll be 50 this year and she has never tried a pickle or an olive and still eats salad with no dressing. I am so glad I’ve ventured out of my comfort zone and tried new foods. It’s amazing the things out there that I could have missed!

As much as I’d love to go back to the days where you have no worries, I rather enjoy learning about life and having new experiences. Granted some of those ’life lessons’ suck, it is fun to think back and realize how you’ve changed.

Good news! It’s been a year now since I’ve had even a puff of a cigarette!! I’ve been a non-smoker, by my definition, since November 2004… but I’d have one every now and again when I’d have a beer or something. I considered myself a non-smoker the whole time though; maybe ’social smoker’ is a better name for it. Anyhow- it’s been a full year now, since I’ve had even a drag, and I’ve had many beers in that year! I’d say I’m official now

That’s pretty much all I have to say today.

Diamonds are to girls as dog is to man

Attempt 2…

I tried to write this blog last night; I needed to look something up, so I hit the 'new tab' button… or so I thought. I pushed 'home' and went to my homepage. In a panic, I hit the 'back' and my entire blog was G-O-N-E, gone.

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So- this blog serves 2 purposes. First, it is a place for me to sort out my thoughts about my diamonds. Second, it's a common ground for people to stay informed- I've been talking about my diamonds to several people for weeks now, and here I can update everyone without having to type the story a million times (or so I hope).

I'll first start by recapping what is going on, for those who haven't been told and for those who forgot (cause I know you care).

It was mid-December, my mom comes to me and says "you're birthday is coming up, do you want to wear my earrings for it?" So, sure, why not? I say "Yep!" Pretty little things they are; roughly 1cttw., (1 carat total weight, which is approx. a half carat each) round, perfectly cleaned and shiny studs. So I wear them for a few weeks… then after the holidays, I find myself starting to become attached so I ask her if she wants them back, she said "nah, keep them for awhile longer, I'm in no hurry to have them back." Fine by me.

Then, one random day out of the blue, she comes to me and says "ok, I want them back now." I could have cried.

So now… I must own my own.

I've been browsing the web to get a rough estimate of how much I'm looking to spend and just see what my overall options are.

Diamonds are not cheap; they are so darn pretty though!

I finally make the decision to go look at some in person and learn more about them. I see a commercial for The Jewelry Exchange and they are advertising $399.99 for 1 cttw. diamond studs. That is cheap, and appears to be a great deal- we will see. I haven't been there yet, but online they list those studs as being SI1-I1 clarity and color H-J (more on what that means later). I hope to make it there sometime this weekend to see what they have to offer. I'll keep you posted.

As I continue to think more and more about these diamonds that I don't own- I remember that I have a loose diamond, kind of. A few years back when I was working at the mall, I found a diamond earring in the store, and I kept it (don't tell!!). I took it to my friend the jeweler, and he told me it was surely real… so I hung onto it all these years.

Here are my thoughts: with that diamond I figure I can take it in and have someone find a matching diamond and set them both in a setting of my choice OR I can take it in and trade up for a pair OR whatever else the stores tell me they can do.

Let me tell a bit about my pretty little friend: it's a round cut, I've been told it's roughly .50 carat, VS1-SI1 clarity (very slightly included-slightly included), G-H color (near colorless). Overall, for a found diamond, that is a pretty good find!

1. So I take it to the first place, ask them how much to get another diamond and to have them both set; $2100.00!! OMG, and the settings were only $150 of the cost!

NEXT…

2. This place can't order in another diamond, but can give me $439 for mine that I can use towards a purchase at their store. Not a bad deal, but let's keep asking around.

3. Next place tells me that can't do jack for me- assholes.

4. This store tells me they can order in a diamond for roughly $800 and set the pair for an additional $200, so $1000 total for a round pair of 1 cttw. diamond studs, about average. The lady that helped me was a bitch though, so I won't be giving her my business.

5. Upstairs in the mall I walk into this store and this guy looks familiar to me, so I ask him if he works downstairs at the other jewelry store (option 2). I remembered him from this past Christmas when I went into buy my mom and sister-in-law a necklace, he kept doing Borat impressions, so his face stuck with me. Anyhow- "Yes, I work at both stores, we're owned by the same company" he says. So, figuring that he will probably tell me the same as his other store, I figure it's worth a shot anyhow... maybe flirt him up a bit and see what I can get done! His jeweler tells me they can give me $500 for my diamond to apply towards a purchase at their store. Very Nice! He also told me he might be able to help me a little with the price when I am ready to buy

Here is my want: Ideally, I want a pair of Princess Cut Diamond studs, roughly 1 cttw., my diamond is round- I would certainly take a pair of round studs, but if I have a choice, I'm going Princess (which is square). I can get a pair of Princess Cut .75 cttw. for $1099.00 from both places that offer me the money to apply towards a purchase. That means I'd be paying about $600 for my earrings… not a bad deal, imo, especially with the check I am expecting from our loverly president who wants to boost the economy.

So I still have The Jewelry Exchange to check out, maybe they can do something for me… if not, I have some serious decisions to make. Should I really be spending money on earrings I don't need when I have thoughts of moving out of state?! I could always make my diamond into a pendant necklace…

So much to think about!

I'll keep you posted on what I find out from The Jewelry Exchange, and what, if anything, I end up doing.

I'm certainly taking donations though… you can paypal me, all funds will be applied to my beautiful diamond studs, and I promise to send you pictures of them once I have them!!

Peace Out.

(I haven't re-read this, so I apologize if it's confusing or doesn't make sense.)

Life... my how we change as the years pass

I went to see my niece today. That little girl can brighten my day, anytime. I'm so thankful for her.

As the days pass in my life I grow to be more and more unhappy. It's pretty much a bunch of little things that keep adding up... and they seem bigger and bigger with time.
I think a lot of it centers around growing up and going through so many changes in my life.. it's just hard to adjust. I don't know.

My mother drives me nuts... and it's not just the mother/daughter relationship that bothers me. It's the fact that she never listens, she complains about things that she has the ability to change but is too lazy to change them, and things of that sort. I have the best situation in living with her, but is it really worth my happiness to remain in this situation? I want my own kitchen, I want my own things, I want to have a life that is mine and I can come and go as I please without having to feel like I need to tell her where I am. The problem... I don't have an interest in living with any of my friends. I also can't afford to live alone, places are so damn expensive and while I could potentially afford it, I would have to change my lifestyle dramatically, and I'm just not sure that I am ready for that.

I have a friend who lives out of state- she has offered to let me stay with her until I get on my feet on the ground. That is such an amazing offer, and I feel so lucky and blessed to have someone like that in my life. There is such a strong desire I have to just jump on the offer and deal with the aftermath later, but I am trying to use my head and actually think about it before I do anything.
The one thing that keeps weighing on my is my niece. I love that little girl to death, and the thought of moving away from her makes me so sad. I cried myself to sleep the other night over it. The flip side of that is I can't live my life for her. I can't let friends or family stop me from getting out of this state and doing new things; especially being so unhappy in this dumb ass state.

I feel very bored in my life, right now. I get like this sometimes, and it usually passes... I hope this does as well.

The other part of my life that sucks... and I am going to remain brief on this topic... but my current relationship status. I am in love with a guy, someone I am not with. I have feelings for some other guys... some really fucking great guys, but I feel it's so unfair of me to try and pursue something with them when my heart isn't in it right now. I want to move on and move forward, but I really don't know how. I know that relationships are a part of life and you live and learn, but learning is hard.

anyhow- I'm sure there is more going on in my little head... but I needed to get that much out for now.

On an entirely different note:
I went to this nightclub last night (The Rock in Maplewood)- and for the past year or maybe less the entire state of MN has been non-smoking. Well, last week there was this thing on the news that there was a loophole in the smoking ban, and that it allows smoking indoors if it is for "the arts", as in plays and such. So I guess The Rock has made changes to accommodate to this loophole. They were selling buttons for $1 to smokers that said "ACT NOW" and pretty much meant that you were part of the 'show' and could smoke. The bartenders were people 'acting' as bartenders, the bouncers... actors, the music... an act. I think you get the point, and as people attending the show, we are bystanders in the 'show', therefore, we can smoke.
It made my night last night absolutely miserable! so many people were smoking- my frickin lungs hurt so bad when I woke up this morning. It had everyone upset last night... all the non-smokers anyhow.
I'm pretty sure Kristi is going to be writing a blog about it and posting some things she collected last night... http://www.sweetsauer.com/kristis_bliggitty_blog/2008/03/smoking-ban-a-f.html

That was another thing I needed to get off my chest...

This blog probably sucks for most of you to read, and I am not looking for a pity party on my behalf... I just needed to vent a little bit.
Thanks for reading, and sorry for being so negative- sometimes life is that way.