This is a test blog post. This is only a test.

However, you may be interested to hear that this is a test from my new
iPhone!

     You’ll probably laugh at me, but The Sims 3 made me cry last night.  I’m sure it had something to do with my female hormone fluctuations, but regardless, it was rather upsetting to see my “sim me” age well before her time.  She had made it to the end of her athletic career, but was four skill points short of her lifetime goal (Golden Tongue, Golden Fingers: 8/10 guitar and 8/10 charisma).  Granted, she can change her lifetime wish and quite possibly fulfill it, but it seems too depressing.  Who wants to watch a rock star granny?

     I took a video of her getting engaged (although she didn’t get married or have kids) and of her final “birthday.”  Since she wasn’t looking forward to aging, I opted to not throw her a party.  Instead, she was playing guitar in the park for tips when she went from pretty to muumuu.

     It made me reflect on my life and wonder how many things I want to do but will ultimately never accomplish.  I’m going to be 27 soon, and at the rate I’m going, I don’t see my life as anything special.  There are things in my life that I enjoy that I have put on hold.  For one, I’d really love to be in a band again, but I feel like I don’t have time.  I’ve always wanted to have an MBA, but I don’t like the expensive and difficult process of going back to school.  I thought I’d be married by now, since a lot of my friends are married and/or pregnant, but I don’t feel ready for that.  How old will I be before I have kids, if I even get to have kids?  I feel like my time is slipping by and I’m not doing enough with it.

     While that all is depressing, I do have to give myself credit for one thing.  Despite feeling like there was no hope, I did weigh in only 1 pound higher than my initial goal weight this morning.  Since December, I’ve lost over 20 pounds.  The changes I’ve made in my life feel more permanent than anything else.  I enjoy working out (to a certain extent, at least) with my workout videos and rollerblading.  I get a sense of accomplishment from tracking my calories, and I don’t feel like I have to eat as much as I once did.  It hasn’t been an easy road by any means, but I did set out for it and do it.  I don’t have any plans to discontinue my current activities or habits, so who knows.  Maybe I’ll get into even better shape than I was in high school.

     On the more good news front, I may finally be able to pick up my Eclipse today after work.  The mechanic has had it for a full month now.  Granted, he’s fixing a massive list of problems.  Since I got cold feet on buying a new Nissan Altima Coupe (I didn’t want to say goodbye to my current car), I got all of the problems I could think of fixed.

• Engine mounts
  the initial reason for bringing it in
• Water pump leak
  caused by the engine mounts wearing down
• Fuel door pop
  would release but not pop the door open so I had to wedge something in the release and go around to pry open the door
• Driver’s side windshield fluid sprayer
  one of the two nozzles sprayed directly onto the hood
• Air conditioning
  compressor needed replacing
• Power locks relay x2
  power locks would not unlock the door but would turn on/off the alarm; the first time he replaced it, it failed within a few days; mechanic thinks because it was getting wet, so he’s moving it
• Moonroof seal
  my car would pee on me when it rained because the seal had been distorted
• Driver’s side door handle
  mechanic broke it off

Needless to say, it won’t be cheap, but with a little luck, my car will run almost like new for quite a while after this.

Feeling: So very, very old
Listening to: Aerosmith – Cryin’

Windows Live

     So I saw all the silly commercials for Windows Live, but I thought, “Why would I want to use some Microsoft program for that when I’ve already got Google (picasa, gmail, blogger, etc.)?”  Well, the answer was clear: 25 GB of space per account.

     Google’s Picasa software is very easy to use and intelligent.  But 1 GB of space already has me wary about uploading any more photos.  Despite not even using 1 GB (of a total of 7 GB) of my email space, it’s encouraging me to pay for more web space hosting.  I’m not a fan of that.

     The other thing I’m liking about Windows Live is it makes it very easy to switch between “linked” accounts.  It’s pretty obvious that I have two Gmail accounts.  One is for friends (real people) and one is for companies (not real people).  Excellent spam filter or not, I still care about an email from any real person a lot more than an email telling me there’s a sale at some department store.

     So, here I am trying out the blogging software, which claims it can upload to blogger.  I don’t know if I’ll stick with it, but I’ll be sticking with the “Skydrive” (what they call your 25 GB) for photos so long as I can figure out a way to feed it into my photos page on kabby.net.

Shed

      My family is in the final stages of getting a shed-well, a barn-put in our backyard.  It’s a much more arduous process than it should be, thanks to permits and digging restrictions in addition to the normal foundation requirements.  Yesterday, we spent most of the morning and some of the afternoon shoveling 5,000 pounds of limestone into a dirt square in the backyard and trying to level it.  Yesterday evening and this morning, my back reminded me that I’m not a kid anymore.

Bunnies

View Full Album

     To those of you who haven’t heard yet, Jonathan now has 2 lively young bunnies.  Despite their naughty behavior, he has no plans to eat them.  I visited and took way too many photos of them, which you can see in the album linked above.  For what it’s worth, I’m impressed with the album linking feature in the Windows Live Writer.

Rollerblading

     Yes, it’s true, I’ve tried to take up rollerblading again.  I’ve gone with Renee a few times, and I had a lot of fun, despite having issues stopping.  I decided my 15 year old skates needed a bit of a tune up, so I bought some new bearings.  WOW, did that make a difference.  They were like completely different skates.  They actually felt a lot like my ice skates, which I’m comfortable with. 

     Best of all, changing the bearings made it a ton easier to stop, oddly enough.  You’d think with new bearings, the skates would just be faster and harder to control, but that’s not the case.  The skates are faster, sure, but they’re also not unpredictable like they used to be.  The problem I had with braking the normal way was I couldn’t keep my balance very well.  That was because braking means balancing on one foot, which is hard to do when the skate is rolling at an unpredictable pace (bad bearings cause your wheels to lock up).  That was the best $40 (had to buy a $12 tool, too) I have spent in a long time.

Feeling: Sore
Listening To: Pink – Mean

     Driscoll Catholic, my high school, is closing at the end of this year. I’m shocked and very saddened, as if I could get any sadder at this point. The people, the building, the memories; all of it feels so much further away now. I remember the auditorium, where I felt so at home. The prop room backstage where I signed my name on the wall in marker, where so many others had signed before me, some of whom have already left this world. I remember the hallways, and how I felt like I knew every little corner of every room. I remember the ugly carpets and the putrid-smelling vacuum cleaners. I can’t imagine never being able to go back to see how it has changed.
     I want to remember forever, but I know I won’t. I want to think that this doesn’t change anything, but I can’t escape the feeling that it will.
     …And yet this is just one of the many things that is causing me grief lately. Combine that with the cutbacks at All Tile. Throw in some dashed hopes of having a dog. Mix well. Top with a general feeling of misdirection in life. This is not exactly the cake I was looking for.

Feeling: Depressed
Listening to: Kelly Clarkson – Irvine

     I’m really excited about Halloween this year. I’m going to be dressing as Dr. Cameron from the TV show House. I’ve already produced her name tag, pictured at right, which is based on the glimpse of her name badge in some promotional photos. Her fan site, JMorrisonFan was immensely helpful in finding pictures to base my costume off of and to make the badge art.

     You’ll notice that I modified the badge slightly from the one in the promotional photos. First off, I changed the picture. The one in her real ID is what you’d expect an ID photo to look like – UGLY and barely recognizable. Since this is one of the most identifying parts of my costume, I chose a picture of her that people will recognize from the show. I chose not to use a photo of myself in costume because (a) I don’t have the rest of the costume yet and (b) that will make the costume quite a bit harder to identify. I also changed the text a little bit to add her first name. “Dr. Cameron” makes the name badge appear more fake. How many people have a name tag with no first name? I also added an “M.D.” at the top before “Immunology” so I could remove the “Dr.” from the name entirely.

     To make the actual tag, I printed the image on my printer and bought some big, glossy GBC SelfSeal Laminating pouches that worked extremely well. Between that and my trusty personal paper trimmer, the rest was cake. After laminating, which was as easy as applying a sticker, I just trimmed the edges and used scissors to round the corners. I made the slit in the top using the paper trimmer and shoved the name tag clip through that. I had an extra one of those lying around from miscellaneous trade shows.

     Last but not least today, I purchased a $20 twill lab coat off of amazon.com. I had no idea lab coats could be so inexpensive. I should wear it more often!

     Next on the agenda is to make a pill bottle label for “Dr. House,” i.e., Jonathan. I’m thinking it should be somewhat traditional, but the word Vicodin should stand out a little more, since that’s a key to identifying his costume as well.

Feeling: Excited, Happily Busy
Listening to: Kelly Clarkson’s Cover of Aerosmith – Cryin’

     My parents bought a 2007 Toyota Sienna LE tonight. I was there… and it took two and a half hours. The warranty room was by far the most high-pressure sales situation I’ve been in lately. It was insane. I’m glad that’s over with, at least.

     You heard right. The panda bears have been permanently removed from my bedroom, as has been the atrocious disintegrating red carpet. The redecoration process has been a very long and arduous task, but I received a lot of help from Jonathan, my parents, and even the folks at All Tile. If you’re curious, we used Benjamin Moore paint on the walls (color: Evening Sky) and ShawMark Anything Goes! Smooth & Silky carpet (color: Mirror). Underneath the carpet is a rubber underlayment from Sponge Cushion called Full House. The trim and ceiling paints were left over from other interior paint jobs in our house.

     There’s still some work left to be done, but none of the remaining tasks are much more than weekday night projects (as opposed to removing wallpaper, painting, getting carpet installed and whatnot). I’d like to replace the closet doors with mirrored doors, replace the main door and replace the window treatments. After all this, there should be absolutely no remnants of my former room, heh.

Feeling: Exhausted, just from writing about all we did.
Listening to: Dixie Chicks – Cold Day in July

     Jonathan helped tremendously with the cleaning, redecorating and redesigning my room. The pictures (in slideshow at right) say a lot. Together, we cleaned out & removed the entertainment center, cleaned out under my bed, moved the existing bookshelf (took help from Dad and a 2-wheel dolly as well), added in another shelving unit, cleaned out my closet, moved my bed, installed a wall-mounted nightstand/shelf, rearranged my desk, and did a lot of vacuuming. I bought a new duvet cover and a matching throw pillow, which I think added a lot to the room as well.
     I still have quite a few plans for my room. My new Westinghouse 32″ LCD Flat Panel HD TV (SK-32H240S) (pictured at left) is coming in on Friday, and we’ll be wall mounting it above my bookshelf. We’ll also be painting (Benjamin Moore in Blue Heron), laying new carpet (ShawMark Smooth & Silky in Mirror), replacing my dresser with one from my grandma’s old guest room, replacing my closet doors with mirror doors, and getting new window treatments. At least, that’s the plan. I’m so busy over the next few weeks, I’m not sure when it’s all going to happen.
     The past 3 weekends, Jonathan and I have seen each other. He came out here this past weekend (when we worked on my room and went to La Strada and Maggiano’s). The weekend before that (Memorial Day weekend), I went to his place and then we drove up to Philiadelphia for his friends’ wedding (at which I took over 200 photos). The weekend before that, he came to visit me and we just hung out.
     This coming weekend, Renee, Michelle and I are going to northern Wisconsin to a house that Renee and her dad have been building. It doesn’t have hot water yet (frown), but at least it does have running water, electricity and plumbing. It should be a relaxing getaway weekend… that is, if my allergies magically disappear.

Feeling: Extremely full from having eaten two amazing dinners this weekend.
Listening to: the Meow Mix commercial (yes, it’s on my iPod) hehe

     Jonathan will be coming to visit again on Easter weekend. 14 Days, 4 Hours, 47 Minutes according to my countdown Google gadget. We’ve got a lot of plans made so far, so I may as well relay some of them. He’s flying in Friday afternoon, getting in just when I get off of work. Since All Tile is so close to O’Hare, I can pick him up right from work and take him to his hotel. We’re planning on picking up Steak ‘n Shake for dinner, since he’s never had it before. Saturday, we’re going to wake up relatively early and head downtown. We’ll tour the city, since he’s never been there, and then head over to Blue Man Group for the 4pm show. Afterwards, we’ll pick up Lou Malnati’s and have a pizza and Arbor Mist night with Renee, and then head over to karaoke with Michelle & Jake at the Neighborhood Inn. So, as you can see, our Saturday is pretty booked. Sunday, we’ll be going to my family’s Easter party, which looks to be dinner at some sort of restaurant, but we have no idea what time. I took off from work on Monday, and we have plans to go to Claim Jumper for lunch/late dinner before his flight leaves. Also, Lexi and Scott will be in town that weekend, so we might try to see them.
     Karaoke should be fun again. Last time he came to visit, we went with Michelle, Nicole and Renee. I sang my song (“All that Jazz” from Chicago, a real crowd pleaser), and Jonathan did a very spirited rendition of “Baby Got Back” (a very good crowd pleaser… so good in fact, he had a few guys come hit on him afterwards). The place was pretty crowded, so we didn’t get many more songs in. I went up with Michelle, Nicole and Renee to sing a song, but I don’t think we stayed much longer than that.
     For whatever reason, Jonathan wanted to buy me stuff. He bought me three Karaoke Revolution games, an idea he came up with on his own. It’s funny, because I’d had two Karaoke Revolution games on my Amazon Wish List for something like two years and had recently taken them off of the list, assuming I’d never get them because they were out of print (at least the versions I was looking at). He got me the Country version and the American Idol version (complete with two microphones) when he saw me a few weeks ago, and he has ordered the Party version, which I’ll probably get the next time I see him. Renee really likes playing these games, which is great, because the two player modes are a lot of fun – particularly the “Sing Off,” where you both sing a song at the same time and try to out sing the other person. You can adjust for different skill levels, too: Easy, Medium, Hard or Expert.
     I’ll be going to Maryland April 20 through the 22nd. I’ll be going to O’Hare straight from work and coming home late on Sunday. So far, we’ve got plans to have dinner with his friends on Saturday night. After this visit, we’ll likely go to the wonderful Hamilton House Bed and Breakfast. I went there in probably late summer 2003, and the rooms are just as beautiful as the pictures let on. I’ve wanted to go back for a while, but it is on the expensive side.

Feeling: Very, Very Glad it’s Friday
Listening to: My iPod at Work! Woo! The Ataris – San Dimas High School Football Sucks

     One thing I forgot to mention in my major update post is kickboxing. I’ve been going to kickboxing twice a week since July 27, 2006. It’s not sparring or anything crazy, but it is taught at a karate school by a third degree black belt, JR Hutson and occasionally his wife, RC Hutson (pictured at right). It’s a very upbeat class, and JR in particular is very motivational. We do a lot of punching and kicking, but there’s also a cardiovascular component and even some basic strength and core training.
     I started going to kickboxing because Renee wanted me to come. Renee started kickboxing because JR owns the restaurant she works for, Pilot Pete’s, and he recommended it to her. Now, Michelle comes as well. The classes are at National Karate in South Elgin (yes, there are closer National Karate schools that teach kickboxing, but the instructors aren’t as good) on Tuesday & Thursday nights. There’s also a Saturday morning class if you’re insane enough to want to punch things at 8am.

Feeling: Sore from yesterday’s kickboxing :-/
Listening to: Carrie Underwood (yes, again) – Starts with Goodbye