A juicing hiatus is OVER.

The craziest thing happened yesterday.....I  had to exchange my juicer for a shiny new one (my old one broke....somehow as tough as it was, it couldn't hold it together long enough to be on the stove while the stove top was on.....womp womp, melted plastic smells like armpits).

 I was starting to get the shakes thinking of life without beet or kale juice so I needed a new one.  On our way, I got a call from my best friend asking for advice on buying her first juicer.  Craziness.  So I then preceded to wax on about juicing for an hour because that is really an interesting topic to listen to.




yesssssssssssssssssssss

 Luke was getting scruffier than usual and I knew it was time for my favorite thing.  I am a professional dog stylist if anyone is in need of that service for their scruffy pup.  He loves it too.  He just lays there while I snip away.  I get a crazed sparkle in my eye when it's time to snip.

At spin last night, the teacher played the strangest mix of music.  We started with Chris Brown (barf), transitioned to One Direction, a lil' Taylor Swift, the Beatles, back to 1D, back to The Beatles, throw in some Black Eyed Peas, and some stuff mixed in that I didn't know and you've got yourself stew goin' (not an actual stew....just pumped for AD!!).  It was actually kind of fun.  Pop music unlike Disney tunes are totally my jam.  I used to like the Biebs and I hate to jump on the hater train but wearing sunglasses inside REALLY bothers me.  He seems to do it a lot.  I can deal with overall attitude...I mean come on, the kid is a multi millionaire at 19, I'd probably be a punk too, but wearing sunglasses inside?  Deal breaker.

So heartbreaking to watch the news about the tornadoes in Oklahoma City.  We've been so fortunate in Tampa to not experience that kind of devastation in my lifetime as the people there are going through this morning.  Losing your children would be unreal.  Pray with me for those families waiting for news of their loved ones, that they are safe, that they are rescued, and that they will heal.

Did anyone see the woman who was being interviewed outside of her home expressing her loss when there was a slight whimpering sound coming from the rubble behind her and it was her dog trapped?  He was saved on air.  It was so sweet. 

Also the feed of parents waiting to hear updates from the recovery teams and seeing their kids running to them was so precious.  Life is so fragile.

Too much bronzer is not a costume. And I look more like belly dancer.

A totally weird and totally awesome weekend all rolled into one.  Friday night we had an "Office Party" where we all waited to see the final episode and watched it together.  I haven't seen the last two seasons so some surprises were ruined for me when I go back and watch but it was so great.  A great ending indeed.  We had people sign up for food inspired by a character...we brought curry ala Kelly Kippur.  Also enjoyed was some Fettuccine Alfredo (Michael Scott's favorite pre-run carbo loading indulgence) and some Beer Cheese dip (alcohol laden dip inspired by Meredith).  Matt and I dressed up....I put on a lot of bronzer and was looking more Jersey than Kippur.  No one else dressed up.  Yay?

Friday night celebrated my first beer in a month!  Samuel Adams has never tasted so incredible.

I had to get up so early on Saturday to get to middle of nowhere Tampa in time to register shooters for the FCA fundraiser.  I was pretty unsure of the whole thing, and I am definitely not a gun person AT ALL.  There were guns everywhere and I am pretty sure I looked down the barrel of one too many that day.  Gun safety people!  But even though I was scared numerous times of becoming a shooting statistic, I had a lot of fun.  The shooters were really nice and I ended up being a trapper for the day which I learned meant pushing buttons on cues to make the clay things fly into the air. 

The fundraiser honored my bosses' son, Daniel Witt, a police officer who lost his battle with cancer last month.  So many people came out whose lives were touched by his struggles and victories in life and in death.  He left behind a wife and two kids, please keep the Witt family in your prayers as they navigate life without their son, husband, and father.  Life can be unbearable sometimes. 

This was a gun safety instruction class for first time shooters.  I wish they had been paying more attention.

And I found the hog sleeping beside one of our trucks.  Where am I?

My station for the day.  Very serene except for the guns going off for 3 hours.

I am not a napper.  I never nap and am very anxious sleeping during the day but I got home from the range and slept until 5pm.  So great.  Then I had dinner, watched a movie, and went back to bed at 9pm.  I feel very rested.  But it made for a strange day.

Matt agreed to come with me to yoga in the park last night and I'm not sure if he loved it as much as I do but I was so glad he came.  He also took me to Sweet Tomatoes for dinner and it was the best date ever.  Two of my favorite things in the world.

As we were leaving we saw the greatest thing.  About a hundred people wearing only underwear and a white button down shirt arriving at the park just as we were leaving.  It was amazing.  Apparently Pabst sponsored a group ride from Ybor called the "Risky Business" ride.  You had to wear underwear, socks, Ray-Bans, and white shirts to participate.  So glad we got to see all of those bare legs.  So funny.

On my walk with my pup this morning, we saw the most beautiful sunrise over one of the churches in my hood.  Thank you Jesus for such a beautiful sky this morning.

Today starts a week that I hope flies by.  It is my Dad's and one of my best friend's birthdays this weekend and we are all going to the river to party it up.  I get way to excited about communal living.

Disney music is just not my jam.

Just a ho-hum Thursday moving along and whammy.  My boss brings me the most beautifully fragrant gardenia on this beautiful Earth.  Aromatherapy, indeed. 

Some updates with FCA:
Tomorrow there is a clay shoot to raise funds for the ministry and to honor Daniel Witt.  If you want to participate, you can find more info here: 1st Annual Daniel Witt Memorial Sporting Clay Shoot.

I need to head out and pick up a sweet camo outfit so I don't stand out.

Also a new club will be starting at The Academy of Holy Names next year, which is exciting.  If you know any girls that attend, let them know!

I turned down spin with Liz last night because Matt was flying home and I thought it appropriate to have time to shower before picking him up.  So I attended an earlier class at the Y and I really should have gone with Liz.  It was a really strange class.

-All Disney music.  Seriously.
-The music was turned down really low.  Granted, I didn't want to have Disney tunes blaring but loud music is one of my favorite parts of a spin class. 
-2 and half minute seated climb with heavy resistance.  There are few things I hate more than a seated climb.  And 2 and half minutes is Everest. 
-This seat.  Oh, no.  That seat.

That should be illegal.

While I will never attend the 5:30 class at the Y again, there was some good.

-I got to fit in a shower (at home, there is a culture at my Y where all women walk around naked in the locker room, is it like that at your Y? I hated dressing out in gym class, public nudity makes me very uncomfortable)

-The instructor took us through a pyramid workout...2 minute climb (one min. in the saddle, one minutes out), rest for 1 minute, 3 minute climb (1.5 minutes in the saddle, 1.5 minutes out), rest, 4 minutes climb, rest, and then the 5 minute climb.....and then back down.  Most spin classes I take are all about the element of not knowing or expecting the next set of training so you never get bored.  I found that I liked this workout and pushed myself more knowing I had a rest coming up.  We finished the class with seated sprints with heavy resistance (the most horrible workout) for thirty seconds followed by 30 seconds of rest for 4 minutes total.  Even though I hate seated climbs/sprints, it was probably good for me.

-The instructor, though had horrible taste in music, was really nice.  She noticed I hadn't brought water in and volunteered to go get me some.  This did lead me to explain in front of the whole class my inability to not pee while I'm working out if I drink water which was kind of awkward but it was nice that she cared.

Hard working people deserve the best car there is

Yesterday I had a FCA staff meeting (update coming soon, lots of exciting things happening!) and my phone was on the conference table while we were meeting.  I have a small group of friends/family all in one group text message and they got on some interesting tangent and my phone buzzed the entire meeting.  I get two notifications for every text so I got 48 text notifications during my meeting.  I'm sure my co workers were very impressed with how popular I am.  Little did they know my friends were discussing the politically incorrect lyrics to "Jesus Loves the Little Children".  Thanks guys. 

I was inspired by Matt's ability to take apart machines and fix them and I fixed our office's laminator machine yesterday.  Someone (maybe it was me) put some plastic through it without the cover.  Oh, the smell.  But, oh, the victory when I fixed it by taking it apart and putting it back together.  I did not feel the same way when I got home to discover (after I'd dumped in the remains of Matt's Famous Coleslaw) that our garbage disposal had said sayonara.  That cabbage is going to be smelling fresh tomorrow. 

PS....this is why I can't have nice things.

Good thing my parents are psychic and bought us a new one for our anniversary (so romantic!).  I can't wait until Matt gets home and can fix it since he's so good at these things now.

As I was catching up on my nightly news right before going to bed (can't stop won't stop)....I couldn't get to sleep because I was audibly laughing so hard at this headline.  Yup, he sure looks cheerful.  Please laugh for me too and tell me you thought it was funny.  I was giggling in my sleep.

And I am so happy for my aunt.  She got a new car.  She drives her cars until there isn't much left to drive and she is tired of running them around Tampa ala Fred Flinstone.  In my life, she has owned two cars, a Volvo station wagon that stopped counting miles after 1,000,000 and the speedometer didn't work anymore and a Toyota Corolla that needed expensive repairs.  Two cars.  (My mom has had 7 cars in my lifetime and is currently on the hunt for a new one.)  And she didn't just get a new car. 

She got the only car.  The best car.  My dream car.  Say hello to her new Prius. 

I'm not jealous at all that she gets to spend $1 a month on gasoline, and everywhere you drive, flowers bloom before your very eyes, and the skies turn blue, and the sun shines, and every time you pull out of your driveway, the GPS sets course for the beach.  

Judging by how I treat my kitchen appliances (I can't even go into my juicer's problems, oui, I can't talk about it yet, too soon).  I definitely need a new Prius.  I didn't just spill my salad dressing on my passenger seat this weekend or anything either and make everyone that rides with me sit on a towel.  I am ready to take good care of stuff Matt.