GiST, 7/365

Posted on February 23, 2009 by Nora

(For Sunday, Feb 22)

1. Waking before Irish to hit-up the gym and enjoying a leisurely 45 minutes of cardio.

2. Making brunch for the Irish.

3. Wandering around a comic bookstore, aimlessly, but enjoying the scent of comic books, bright colors and fantasy worlds.

4. Hitting up a new laundromat with Irish since they offered “free dry,” adding yet another experience to our list of adventures.

5. Coming in second place on the Oscar ballots we cast. Ignoring calories and talking feverishly about celebrities, dresses and trends. (My opinion of the Oscars in two seconds: Loved Natalie Portman’s dress. Sophia Loren is still amazing. Robert DeNiro= awesome. Where was Jack Nicholson? Can’t believe Jennifer Aniston had to stand in front of Brangelina. Love SJP but her boobs should not have been popping out of her dress. Beyonce should have sang. Felt bad when Mamma Mia girl fell down stairs. Heath Ledger’s family is awesome. I cried during the whole thing. Robert Pattinson= please release Twilight for sale now so I can watch it. Thrilled for Slumdog Millionaire, Sean Penn and Kate Winslet.)

GiST 6/365

Posted on February 22, 2009 by Nora

For Saturday, February 21st

1. Exploring a house turned into a used bookstore with Irish. We both walked out with four books having supported a local entrepreneur and community.

2. Checking out the Circuit City going out of business sales. Northen Exposure Season 1 & 2 were still on the rack, so I snagged them.

3. Making dinner for myself, Irish and two other couples Italian style. Wine, conversation and hugs were shared all around.

4. Talking about the possibility of buying a house with Irish, some day.

5. Making the awesome Chocolate Brownie with Cookies recipe for the Oscar party infusing my house with the delicious smell of baked goods, a smell which made me want to chug milk without even eating them.

His New Nickname

Posted on February 22, 2009 by Nora

Alright, so I came up with four, boring, unoriginal nicknames for you to vote on to be my boyfriend’s new nickname. While T.D. won by a landslide, Kyla was quick to point out (and thankfully so!) that it sounds a lot like T.B. and I don’t want my boyfriend to be associated with tuberculosis. Not cool. Not to mention I quickly decided my original suggestions were boring.

And so Kyla suggested I call him Irish. And then Darling seconded that idea. (A close runner-up was Saint Lou, as suggested by Nilsa at NewSoMi. Maybe I could make his complete blog nickname Irish Saint Lou.)

I ran it past the boyfriend, he likes it since he’s obsessed with Ireland, his heritage and etc, and so his new nickname is Irish. I also figured if I nicknamed him T.D. that would wind up meaning something else in blogland that I am not familiar with… so Irish it is.

I hope this will be a seamless transition… for me and for my readers.

GiST 5/365

Posted on February 21, 2009 by Nora

(These are Friday’s GiST’s. I think I’m going to be posting the previous day’s GiST the day after… just because it’s easier.)

1. Enjoying a bagel and reduced fat cream cheese for breakfast.

2. A 30 minute nap after work.

3. Finding a really awesome, non-greasy but supreme taste pizza at the restaurant the soon-to-have-a-new-name boyfriend and I went to.

4. Having a great time on our double date with one of the soon-to-have-a-new-name-boyfriend’s coworkers (M) and M’s fiance (K).

5. M, a musician at heart, asked the live band playing at the bar if he could play a song for K. They said yes and so M played.

6. Watching K watch M. She was so excited she ran up to the stage and they embraced after M was done performing.

7. Enjoying the buzz as the result of consuming four beers and laughing the whole way home with the soon-to-have-a-new-name boyfriend.

GiST a day late: 4/365

Posted on February 20, 2009 by Nora

1. Cadbury Mini Eggs.

2. Creating & making dinner for the soon-to-have-a-new-name-boyfriend, his sister and her friend.

3. Allowing myself to enjoy two glasses of wine while cooking.

4. Super snuggles with the soon-to-have-a-new-name-boyfriend.

5. Facing my wisdom teeth extraction consultation with strength.

Attraction, Allergies, Actors, and more…

Posted on February 20, 2009 by Nora

I had Liz ask me a series of questions, just for fun. I’ve been interviewed before but I figured she’d take it to a whole new level, and that she did with the First Question!

1) What physical feature do you love most about TDH? (this is sure to make him blush!)

His butt. Yes, that’s right, I said it. He’s got a great Irish Butt. To steal the line from Sex & The City, it looks two scoops of butter pecan ice cream. He also has a great smile which I love.

2) You’re allergic to a lot of foods, but which food do you miss the most?

Bananas. Besides eating them plain I used to put peanut butter on them, add them to my Frosted Flakes and eat them as a post workout snack. I smelled one just the other day and started to crave it. I admit I sometimes wonder if I could eat just one… but then I realize I’d then have to stab myself with an Epi-Pen and that doesn’t sound appealing to me.

3) What’s your favorite quote from a movie?

Oh, my. I think I have to say from Dan in Real Life, “Love is not a feeling, it’s an ability.” I think love is an emotion, a feeling but it’s also something that one has to be capable of. Some people can’t love, or can’t love in the passionate, life partner kind of way. I’ve met several of those men who aren’t capable of loving anyone but themselves. And I’m fortunate to know several men who can love (my father, brother, TDH, my Uncle).

And I’m allowing myself one more, “When you forgive, you love,” from Into the Wild. Speaking as a woman who has gone through several painful break-ups, it’s true. Until you forgive them and yourself for the hurt, pain and any wrongdoings, you aren’t going to be able to love truly and completely.

(Can you guys tell I’m a hopeless romantic at heart? )

4) You wake up and TDH has made you the perfect breakfast in bed. What is it?

The idea is delightful. I don’t think I’ve ever had breakfast in bed before! Sourdough toast with butter and grape jelly. Scrambled eggs with lots of cheese. Turkey bacon. Shredded hashbrowns. A glass of water, OJ and even a Diet Dr. Pepper. (I like soda with my scrambled eggs, no idea why.) All served on a nice tray with my gym card under the plate so I’ll get my butt up and out of bed after I’m done.

5) You’re on a new reality show called Celebrity Island. It’s you and three of your favorite celebs stranded together on an island for a month. Which celebs do you choose?

Kate Winslet. As a person I find her positively delightful. She’s always smiling, so far as I know hasn’t said a bad word about anyone else in public, and seems like she’d be a great friend. As an actress I think she has incredibly dimension and as we all know she’s come a long way.

John Corbett. Ever since I saw him in Northern Exposure, I’ve been a fan. I figure he probably has some useful lost-on-an-island skills, his height would be beneficial and I have a feeling he has some great stories, or at the very least is a great story teller.

Diane Keaton. I want to hear all about her life and her adventures. I’m sure she has many of them. I wonder if she’d wear a turtleneck on a desert island?

TDH Tidbits, Volume Four

Posted on February 19, 2009 by Nora

It has recently come to my attention that TDH means The Dear Husband in blogland. This is something I was unaware of… so I have decided that TDH must have a new name a) because he is not my dear husband b) to eliminate confusion and c) becuase now that I know what it stands for I want him to have a new nickname.

So, I leave it up to you! My Readers. I’ve never done a poll before, so we’ll see how it goes. I’ve allowed other answers to be input, so feel free to write one-in. I’ll reveal his new nickname on Sunday!

[polldaddy poll=1385279]

GiST 3/365

Posted on February 18, 2009 by Nora

1. Hearing news that Dave Matthews Band may be coming to StL after all.

2. Pounding out 3.5 miles at the gym in less than 30 minutes and having the strength to push myself a little hard with weights, planks and crazy exercises I learned last summer.

3. My company was bestowed a regional award by our biggest partner (Microsoft) today and I had a hand in the reason we won.

4. Coming home to find out Jack hasn’t yet destroyed Frogger V.

5. Receiving an invite from ManMate’s girlfriend to their couples baby shower.

6. Finding a great recipe to make for Sunday, courtesy of Gigi and discussing the ballots/prizes/random quizzes for the Oscar party with Darling.

Overheard…

Posted on February 18, 2009 by Nora

… at Chevy’s last Friday when our bills were completely screwed up and our waitress did a less than stellar job:

“I’m not a retard, I promise. I just don’t know what I’m doing. The Red Bull I drank before work has me totally whacked. I know how to fix this… I think.”

Not a single one of us complained to her or the management, nor did we call her a “retard,” a word I never use.

*******************

… at Dierberg’s last Wednesday when TDH and I were picking up some food essentials to cut down on our dining out costs:

Cashier: “Do you know where Bob went?”
Bag Boy: ” He went that-a-way. I never get to say that… ‘he went that-a-way.’ I feel like I’m in a movie. I take every advantage I can to use the phrase ‘he went that-a-way.’ I feel so cool when I get to say it, especially when I can point my finger in the appropriate direction.”
Cashier: silence.

I must admit I had to stifle a laugh because no one was really listening to the poor BagBoy who couldn’t have been more than 16.

***********************

…. at the office. One of the students on break, in the front hallway.

“They told me I owed them $20 bucks so I told them to go to hell, to cancel my account and that they wouldn’t be getting any of my (serious expletive, serious expletive) ever again. So when can your company hook me up with internet?”

Something tells me that’s not a great way to start a new account/relationship with any sort of vendor.

Also overheard at the office…

“I ate some bad peanuts so now I have salmonella poisoning meaning I have to run to the bathroom to deal with the runs every hour. I hope that’s not a problem.”

Oh, wow.

*********************

Have you overheard anything unusual/funny/odd/random lately?

GiST 2/365

Posted on February 17, 2009 by Nora

1. Having so much work to do at the office that when I looked down at the clock it was after 12:30.

2. Taking Jack to the pet store and watching him pick out his new dog toys. (Literally. I put several options on the pet store floor and he sniffs, nuzzles and eventually chooses the one he wants to be his. Tonight’s pick? Frogger. Again. It’s Frogger the V, I believe.)

3. TDH helped me put in the special car backseat cover which prevents it from becoming super messy due to Jack’s dog hair and muddy paws.

4. Purchasing and installing new windshield wipers (again, courtesy of TDH)

5. Making a pact with TDH this evening to never let ourselves become overweight. (Discussion prompted based upon The Biggest Loser which we watched during our dinner of delicious leftovers.) We each set goal weights and goal pant sizes that we wish to maintain.

6. Planning the yearly Oscar party with Darling. Am now marinating on which dessert I should bake and take to share.