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Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!! I hope you all have a fun-filled, food-filled, amazingly awesome day :) Now go cook & eat so you can rest up for all that Black Friday shopping!

Oompa loompa doompety doo...

Image found here

So, I have a page a day calendar at work. Each day, I entertain myself with the listed trivia question, post it on my door for all the interested passersby to gaze at in wonderment...or bypass completely and then, the next day, pass the question on to C so she can get her belated trivia fix.

Apparently, the one I just gave her proceeded to shatter some childhood illusions when it informed her that Willy Wonka was, in fact, never a real-life zany eccentric carefully molding delicious chocolaty treats with his wizened chocolateier hands and the help of various Oompa Loompas (they were hopefully already aware that the Oompa Loompas weren't real), but rather simply a delightful character from the mind of Roald Dahl, and subsequently the mascot for the Nestle Willy Wonka brand candies.

I, and pretty much everyone else in the office already knew this, but it was a crushing blow to them indeed :( When I say that C and P were devastated - I mean they were completely distraught over it for a couple of hours. From 9:30 to 11:30, they expressed their shock with a rather heated conversation that included such phrases as:

"But, if he's not real, then why is there Willy Wonka Chocolate? Who makes that chocolate?!";

"[Why would anyone not believe he was real] when there is such incontrovertible proof..."; and

"This is like finding out that there's no Santa Clause when you're a kid."

It was a crazy morning :)

Anyway, my man and I are taking some engagement pictures on Saturday. I wasn't nervous until last night when I realized that we're coming up on the year countdown. I can't believe that time is flying by as fast as it is. It seems like it was just Valentine's Day, and yet Thanksgiving is right around the corner! Where is the year going?

Well, back to work, and more Wonka-centric conversation :)

Hope you are all having a great Tuesday!

Happy Friday (and early Halloween)!

Happy Friday everyone! Well, I have today off (hurray, compressed work week), and thank goodness, because this work week has been too long. I almost sent this e-mail in response to a recent meeting request:

"Hello C,

I will be attending the 11am session. I am tremendously excited and simply could not wait to share that enthusiasm with the world. P caught my enthusiasm bug and decided, after several minutes of expressing herself through the timeless art of rhythm gymnastics (ribbon twirling category), to attend the 11am session as well.

Thank you,
R"

Many of my co-workers don't share my brand of humor though, so I decided against it.

Anywho, I was supposed to go to the HitRecord Fall Formal last night with my friend K, but the event was cancelled due to a very sad and unfortunate reason. I completely understand the cancellation, and hope they decide to try and reschedule the event down the line. I mean Joseph Gordon-Levitt + awesome entertainment + (did I already mention) Joseph Gordon-Levitt = how can anyone not have fun. K and I had our outfits all picked out. Fall formal calls for full-on formal wear, right? - long red, low backed evening gown for me, cocktail length l'il black dress with sequins for her. My man was laughing about how much trouble we were going to get into as we can get pretty silly/crazy when we go out. Oh well, maybe next time.

I managed to capture two new trains of thought the other day. I've been seeing them for weeks, but I would have either forgotten my camera or the bus would simply be too crowded for picture taking. Could you please move so I can snap this quick photo? doesn't play too well on public transportation during rush hour.

1)

2)

A bit of Friday random: I also came across a great video from ideastap.com with Jeff Goldblum (my absolute favorite actor) providing advice to budding actors. Oh Jeff, you are such a ball of amazingly animated and quirky talent and I heart you :)

Happy early Halloween everyone. Hope everyone enjoys any parties they go to. Don't eat too much candy :)

Have a great weekend everyone!

NY Comic Con was great - once again :)

My man and I attended NYCC over the weekend. It was his B-Day gift to me, and we had a blast. We met a few people, bought a few things (i.e. spent way to much on Doctor Who merchandise), and had three exhausting days of fun. It was great!

The Weekender Pass

I spy, with my little eye...a zombie.

The Masters Of None guys were great, and held an interesting photo scavenger hunt. We didn't win, but we did have fun. Check of the Masters of None podcast here if you're interested.

Some of the X-men crew were joined by Kick-Ass

So that's what happens to a party when Magneto comes through

The "line" to meet/get an autograph from Adrien Brody

My man and I were officially the end of the line - we got a sign and everything :)

I love this pic :)

Heeeeyyy Brody!

It really is amazing what Nathan Sawaya can make out of Legos

James Marsters looking wonderful :)

Lou Ferrigno :)

Impromptu mirror image contest? :)

As I said, it was a great weekend :) So how are you all doing?

Hope everyone is having a stress-free (as stress-free as possible) and productive day!

Where did the weekend go?

My man and I went to a Yankee game (v. Tampa Bay) on Thursday. It was an early b-day present for him (from me) so we could cheer on his favorite team. It was my first time at Yankee Stadium, and my 2nd baseball game ever (1st was a Mets game). We got there during the third inning, and watched the Yanks get trounced. They lost so badly - and apparently just kept losing for the next two games.

The game was fun anyway, and my sweets and I had a blast. We had really good seats (batter's eye seating) and made some game-time friends with other Yankee fans as we cheered, boo'd and watched the stadium empty out starting around the 7th inning :)

I cannot believe that the weekend is almost over. I took Friday off, and yet the weekend still flew by. I hope you all had (are having) a great, fun, relaxing one :)

I'm running on empty, and about to crash.

I am running on 3 hours sleep. I'm so tired, I couldn't even eat all my lunch (I just ran out of steam to lift fork to mouth midway through). My desk looks like a paper-wars crime scene. I have to work late, and I'm living in fear of the return of the stress related eye twitch.

Just as I'm about to vent to P, I get called out to pick up a package.

For me?

Someone sent me flowers! Accompanying this lovely bouquet was a lovely note thanking me for all my help throughout a (much too) long process.

Vent session postponed until tomorrow :)

I hope all of you had great days :) Have an amazing night everyone!

Man, this keyboard's dusty = I missed you guys :)

I hadn't even realized how long it's been since I posted - too long. Well, it's summer so work has been going crazy. I can't wait for the holiday season at the end of the year when things go on hiatus and I can relax a bit again.

Not much besides work and school has been going on in my life lately, though my man and I have been trying to make significant headway with our wedding planning. We aren't getting married until late next year, but why run the risk of succumbing to we-started-planning-too-late-and-are-now-freaking-out stress. Some things, like picking the venue were easy (well easier), while others, like the guest list(s), not so much. Seriously, how is it possible 1) that a person can know so many people and have so much family, and 2) that those people feel they can readily invite themselves to a wedding even if they are like a 5th cousin twice removed? People just love a party; especially when free food's involved :)

Anyway, my co-worker P and I are trying to start a small event planning business. It's still in the early stages and so, when we say that My Fair Wedding's David Tutera was having a seminar about getting started in the event planning business, we were excited to attend (using incredibly discounted tickets a la Goldstar, of course).


The even was a few blocks away from my office so we got there a bit early. It was a good thing though since the space filled up quickly.

I had my notebook and pen ready to jot down any helpful hints and anecdotes. I think the only event planning business related message that I took away from the night was 'Never undersell your confidence or expertise!' (good life lesson in cliché form) before the night turned into one big dish/gab session. It wasn't what I paid for, but it was still fun.

David told us about how he got started and what it's like working on his new show, but most of the night was taken up with Q & A. He answered everything that was asked, no matter how broad the topic, and even told us the truth about what really went down between him and Joan Rivers on The Apprentice. I would try to repeat it here, but honestly that portion of the night went in one ear and out the other as I lost complete interest in that show after the Omarosa days. It was an interesting enough event and David was very nice and (definitely) patient. Now if only he could do my wedding for me :)

So, how have you all been doing? I hope this Hump Day is treating you well - have a good one!

P.S. Has anyone seen The Expendables? If so, what did you think of it? I've heard that it is a completely over the top throwback to 80's action movies, and my man and I are excited to check it out (eventually). With promotion like this, how could anyone not be :)

I took a vacation and came back to a mountain (of paperwork)

Hey everyone...I missed ya :)

Sorry I've been away for a bit, first consumed by work, then on a much needed (albeit too short) vacation with the fam, then again with work. I'm back at work now, and am so happy that I was able to take the week's vacation with my family as my colleague and I were pretty much told that we were going to be so busy this summer that we shouldn't plan to take any time off for the next two or so months. It is going to be a long, hard summer.

Enough of that though. How are all of you doing? My family and I were lucky enough to rent a house in the Poconos for a week. I took a bunch of pics and enjoyed a lot of fresh air. It was a simply wonderful week, and a perfect family trip.

A fun park where we enjoyed mini golf, a driving range, batting cages, laser tag, the arcade, and (the best attraction) go kart racing!

The amazing backyard of the house where we saw an unbelievable amount of deer.

Some wild turkeys

The week was just so wonderful that, yes, it was that much harder to get back into the work groove. I'm still trying actually :)

Hope everyone has a wonderful week!

See Paperwork Sit...

That's all it does. More and more of it keeps finding it's way into my office, and it just sits there. No matter how much work gets done, the piles still grow. I would send out a rescue flare, but imagine the fire hazard.

My boss actually had the gall to come into my office last Tuesday, look me square in the eye after glancing (with disdain I might add) at the literal piles of files and paperwork on my desk, filing cabinets, and floor, and say 'I am re-assigning these files to you. One has a 6/1 deadline, and another doesn't start until July...but it needs to be done by this Monday. The last one will be a problem and the guy will need some hand-holding through the process (to be read TIME CONSUMING) but I gave it to you since I knew you could do it.' She failed to mention the three other projects whose files where hidden in the middle and also have early June deadlines. I'm all for being a team player, but come on!

I would have said thanks for the confidence, but they are always giving me the problem files. Always. Did she immediately put all the paperwork towers that I've got going on out of her head? There is no possible way that I can stay on top of everything as it is, and then she drops the rest of the bad news bomb - the woman whose work is being re-assigned might be out for an additional 2 or more weeks. She already told me that she'd be back in 2 weeks to re-assign some more projects to me. Oh happy day.

Oh...and it gets even better :)

The next day, I was called into a meeting in which I was informed that yet another project was being re-assigned to me...with a deadline of last Friday. I quickly reminded the bosses that I would be out of the office on Friday, to which they responded that the deadline for me would be Thursday. One day to get everything done, on top of everything else that I already have going on. I could feel my blood pressure start continue to rise, but I just put on a poker face, said "No problem", and headed back down to my office. What else could I say? Much as I wanted to say "Well [bosses], much like the Inn at Jesus' birth, I'm all full up. So thanks, but no thanks!", I felt my actual response was more workplace appropriate.

The lady we were filling in for actually surprised everyone and showed up today, so I just gave her all her files back. We'll see if she works the full week. I have my fingers crossed :)

All that made me so frustrated with work last Wednesday, that I sent this e-mail to the mail room supervisor (who also periodically fixes our copiers when they act up) regarding the copier breaking down just when I needed it:

'Hello,
The copier is jammed. Again. Sorry in advance.
It, of course, chose to start behaving like an insolent little child at exactly 6:40pm, leaving that wonderful surprise for everyone to walk in to in the morning.
Thanks'

I hope he had a laugh, or a least a chuckle, when he read it.

My man also came to the City to have lunch with me last week - it was the highlight of my workweek :) On the way to the restaurant we see this...

Morbid, but true.

This week has to be better. I just have to take deep breaths and keep looking forward to the long weekend. Anyone have any Memorial Day weekend plans? I will be attending Sis 1's college graduation!!! Wow, time really flies :) I am so excited for, and proud of, her!

Now, back to work. Have a great day everyone!

Happy Mommy's Day :)

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms (the soon-to-be moms, the new moms, those that have been moms for years, the moms to their pets, the misc. relatives that act like/are thought of as moms, etc.) out there :) I hope you all has a simply wonderful day!

My mom and I went on a lovely Mother's Day cruise. My sisters are still in school, so today it was just me and my mom :) Sis 1 and Sis 2 were definitely missed, but it was great spending some alone time with my mom. My dad followed us over to the dock, and waited with us until the boat departed. I'm a huge homebody, so getting the opportunity to spend time with them like that was wonderful.

So, my mom and I got our boarding passes...



and boarded once the boat finally pulled up - 10 minutes late. It was so windy that it took them three tries to actually dock well enough to let us on.


Mom and I were a party of two, at table two :) We had a great table (we snagged the window seats) and had wonderful table guests.

The food was pretty good - especially the pasta dishes - and the views were wonderful.

My mom doesn't get into the City much, so it was nice to see the sights with her - especially all the bridges and Lady Liberty.

On another note, there was an accident on my route to the train station. It actually happened over a week ago, but they still haven't cleaned up or moved the damaged van.

The damage is so drastic that one has to wonder how it could happen. Thank God no one was hurt. An MTA worker said that a truck accidentally backed into it, at full speed, and threw it back into the building.

However, I find it interesting to imagine that either 1) this is the result of a Hulk smash, or 2) that darn Edward Cullen had to save Bella again.

Have a wonderful rest of the night everyone. How is it possible that Monday is almost here again?

It's Earth Day and everyone's flashing E signs.

Well, I haven't actually seen anyone flashing the E sign in real life, but everyone's doing it on the EDAY website :)

Image found here

It's Earth Day :)

I thought that there would be a fair at Grand Central Station today, but it's not until tomorrow. I'll probably walk over to it during lunch to enjoy the live music, and pick up pick up any freebies - if there are any.

And Happy Administrative Professional's Day (a little belated)

to all the Admin Pros out there!

Image found here

I addition to the solo gift I bought for my assistant, P and I bought each of the assistants in our department a Mojito cupcake from Butch Bakery.

The Mojito cupcake topped with an edible chocolate disc

The cupcakes were alcohol infused so they were a bit hit. The site describes the Mojito cupcake as a "rum-soaked lime cake with mint white-chocolate ganache". Mmm! P and I ordered 4 of those and 2 Beer Run cupcakes (yummy chocolate beer cake with beer infused buttercream topped with a pretzel) so we could each have one. I really liked it, but P wasn't impressed.

Obviously since they have alcohol in them, we put printed disclaimers on the bags letting the assistants know that they were to be enjoyed after work. My assistant ate hers at lunch anyway - and just happened to exclaim "It tastes just like a Mojito!" as the boss walked by - but at least it didn't make her tipsy :)

I also gave each assistant a little high-five trophy.

A high five award :)

I made labels for them that said 'Happy Administrative Professional's Day 2010'. Just a little something that they can keep on their desks to be reminded that they, and all their hard work, are appreciated.

I can't believe it's almost the end of April. My middle sister will be graduating from college in just over a month! Anyone else have any graduations coming up (your own or one you are attending as a guest)?

Have a wonderful Thursday everyone!

I wonder if (5:30pm) Friday knows how much I love it.

5:30pm on Friday likes to play hard to get with me. It takes forever to get here (and this week has been especially long), but it is one of the absolute best feelings when it finally shows up. I just have to get through about 3.5 more hours (thank you lunch hour) and then I can finally breathe and relax a bit.

Has it just been me this week, or have any of you also had the workweek from hell?

The weather was so lovely earlier this week, and now it's all overcast again. But even though it's going to rain, it's Friday so the smile's still on my face.

A few pics from earlier this week...

Adorable :)

 

Spring is in the air

With Spring comes lovely Spring flowers... and movies! So, is anyone else planning on seeing Kick-Ass this weekend? :)

Happy Friday everyone!