Karen's Place

Mental Fatigue

2008-07-23T22:37:11Z

I just spent two full days in Team Development. My brain she is fried. Can't think. Words not stringing together. Cat. Bongo. Phone booth. Traffic cones. U-turns. Bang. Hat. Soda. Markers. Yap. Eye roll. Eat. Sleep. Yes.

The World Series

2008-07-18T03:41:29Z

...of Kickball baby!

Yes. My CHAMPIONSHIP Kickball team from the Fall of 2007 has been invited to the eleventh annual WAKA Founders Cup World Kickball Championship Tournament in Las Vegas. Because we are just that bad ass.

And yet we are also lame asses for we are not going. Mostly because that team was half full of flakes. Too bad too. It would have been an awesome time! Of course, now I know exactly how those people at the Oscars feel - to be nominated and not win. It's exciting to simply know that I am ELIGIBLE to go. I don't need to win. I already have.

Actually we already did. I've seen the trophy. It's really pretty. Our name is on it. Spelled wrong, but it's on it baby. I digress.

So, I just wanted to accept my nomination to go to Vegas, but honestly I'll have to pass this year.

Let's Pretend It's a Picture Book

2008-07-15T04:38:06Z

From this weekend. I'm still tired. Photos for you. Hooray.

Jonelle, Me and Stacy

Paul, Adam and Jeff

Yes, he was IN another wedding. Jeff, Jake and Nick

Gayle and Jeff

Rob You Were There at the B'latt

Boys in Tuxes pulling tarp.

We clean up good.

Me and Jake.

Jake and Jeff.

It was a lovely ceremony. We rode Ollie the Trolley all over town. The reception was tons of fun. Jeff even danced. We're both still paying for that though. The balls of my feet are STILL killing me. I have never been asked so many times in my life when it was "my turn" to get married. The food was great, the music was great, the people were great. It was a fast weekend, but it was fun! Thanks for throwing a great party, Jake and Gayle!

Hooray for Jake and Gayle

2008-07-13T04:35:41Z

Congrats to two very lovely people. Thanks for a great weekend. May all your weekends be that fun.

Best moment - Friday Afternoon Edition

2008-07-11T21:29:31Z

Here is a nominee for best moment of the year thus far. Feel free to vote in the comments.

Jeff, his nephew and I are in the car arguing about this year's Heisman hopefuls and college football in general. And when I say argue, I mean mostly stalemates as we will never agree on anything college football related. So, we're arguing about Heisman hopefuls. We're ALL in agreement that Sam Bradford has probably the best chance. Assuming he doesn't bust his collarbone, do drugs or get caught "selling but not selling" cars. Then Jeff's nephew mentions another quarterback and it takes me a minute to figure out who the hell he was talking about. Like I was drawing the biggest blank EVER. No idea who this guy is which is not much of a stretch considering there are 108 starting quarterbacks in D-1 alone. But this guy is one of those names that you SHOULD know. But I so didn't. I had nothing.

The quarterback that is completely unmemorable?

Colt McCoy.

And the Stories

2008-07-10T02:51:28Z

How lame am I? All I can give you is mini stories right now because I'm between packing and getting stuff done for tomorrow. Yes. That's lame even for me.

Fireworks
Chris, Jeff and I each bought a sample pack of fireworks to play with on Friday night. That was a good two hours of fun and explosive excitement. My favorite were these cone shaped things that I'm sure had a clever name. They made white sparks like a fountain. It was pretty awesome. Speaking of the naming of fireworks. What is with these names. We had one called "peach tea" that was neither peach nor tea. We had one that was called "butterflies" that looked remarkably like the one marked "June bug." Roman candles were not from Rome nor were they very useful as candles. Black cats don't actually look like cats nor are they unlucky like black cats. Well, I guess if they went off in your hand or your pocket then it would be unlucky.

Burns
I burned my finger. On a popper. Not even a real firework. Yes. I am just that awesome.

Cards
Let me just say that Chris's dad is a card shark. We played this game called "Aw shit" which has a real name too, but that wasn't nearly as amusing. I've played it with Chris and his folks years ago when Kerry and I used to road trip to see him. It was a lot of fun. We played it both Friday and Saturday nights and after each game, Tony would look over at me with this "you wanna play another don'tcha" face. How can I say no to that?

The Gulf
Jeff had never seen the Gulf of Mexico before Saturday. I know! Tragic isn't it. So, the three of us when down to Galveston to partake in his baptism by sludge. (That's why the water's brown.) I was surprised by the number of people who were at the beach doing beachy things. I was also amused at the boys planning exactly how they were going to annoy the local bird population. The plan involved super soakers and BB guns. But Jeff did put his toes in the water and then proceed to channel his inner WWE wrestlers. Orton and Batista have both now been to the beach. Come on. It's exactly what you would do.

Space Center Houston
This was one of those touristy things my folks did with me when I was a kid. It was an opportunity to go see all the rockets and learn about space and stuff. When I was that little, I wanted to be an astronaut. It was a great place. Sigh. However. And it makes me sad to say this, but it was kind of a cluster eff. They had a "traveling exhibition" at the center which turned out to be a McDonald's play place and a wooden maze for little kids. Neither of which talk about space. Neither of which encourage kids to want to grow up to be astronauts. So, for what started out as a pretty neat place to visit, quickly turned into a three ring circus with unsupervised children behaving like wild animals while their parents chatted on their cellphones or ignored them completely. So, a place I enjoyed when I was younger, has been completely destroyed by commercialism. There was no way to get those kids interested in anything about the space program.

Even their "Tram Tour" was awful. Something that could have been absolutely awesome was FILLED with rude parents and obnoxious children. We took the tram to go see Mission Control. They usher us into a room where an old Flight Director told us all about Mission Control and the history of NASA and the three ships that have exploded and what that means to the program. It was kind of a deep moment. Behind me this two year old, Hispanic girl was clearly not paying attention. She didn't want to sit in her mom's lap. They didn't give her her own chair. She walked up and down in front of the four or five seats taken up by her family which meant she was clinging to their knees as she squeezed by. She kicked the back of MY chair which my head was about at her knee's height. So, after putting up with this for most of our time there, I finally turned around to look at the kid in the hopes that "oh my god a stranger is staring at me I'm going to crawl back in mommy's arms" would happen. The kid started to cower and the mother said TO ME! "You must not have children."

YOU MUST NOT HAVE CHILDREN.

Are you kidding? Not one appology. Not an "I'm sorry my brat is taking away from this stop on the tour." Not an "oh my I didn't see that my horrible child was kicking the back of a stranger's seat." Nothing. Instead I got "You must not have children." I said nothing because I was stunned that there wasn't an apology attached with that bitchy comment. But I really wanted to say, "No, bitch. I don't have kids. However, that does not entitle me to have to put up with your spawns of Satan."

I would love to say that it was the only incident that happened at Space Center Houston, but it wasn't. There were a lot of shall we say, not-so-much-Americans visiting and while their customs may be appropriate in their country, they were not in ours. They were rude, pushy and annoying. They would leave a crowded theater and stop just outside the doorway and make a call. With hundreds of people trying to walk out behind them. They acted like they were the most important people in the place and took no regard to ANYONE else.

I'm going to stop now or the bitching will just get worse. Needless to say it was unpleasant. I was disappointed in it. I'm that person who will write a letter to the people at Space Center Houston and let them know how awful it was. And that makes me sad because it used to be a place I thought was pretty awesome.

Conclusion
Aside from that rather large thorn, the rest of the weekend was quite lovely. Fortunately, we were all in agreement that Space Center Houston was a disappointment and uncomfortable. So when we got back to Chris's Saturday night, we played more "Aw Shit" and took it out on our neighbors which was probably better than torching that family's SUV.

It was awesome to see Chris, blow up fireworks, see the Gulf and spend the weekend not in Dallas. This weekend, we're going to O! for Jake's wedding. That should be an interesting trip. Hopefully, we won't run into bastard children this time.

What a weekend

2008-07-08T04:15:18Z

Happy Independence Day. I know it's really the 7th, but we just got back from a weekend visiting Chris in Houston. I'm a little tired. Fortunately, I had today off. Gotta love those Flex Days. So, I have stories. I swear, but we both know you just want a photo montage. But man, do I have stories and photos! (because I finally off loaded all my camera.)

So, until I have more than 20 minutes to give you fun updates, this will have to do. Enjoy the photos. And all the fun and adventures can be checked out here.

I hung out with my boys:

We blew stuff up:

Of course it was always safety first:

It was a lot of fun:

Saturday we went to NASA:

Which ohmigod do I have a story for you about that visit. Stupid...god.

We learned a lot:

And had some fun:

Then Chris took us to Galveston. Because the kid from O! had never seen the Gulf. I know tragic isn't it? So, I made him put his feet in the murky, brown water. This should win me girlfriend of the year.

It was a fun, fun weekend. I'm now tired. Of course, I had today off, so I went shopping, did laundry and took a nap. It was a tough day I tell you. And tomorrow, I have an off site training. So, I won't even be at work then. You're sad. I can tell. I'm sorry. But we'll catch up soon. I promise. Because stories! And fun! And Chris! It's been so long since I've seen Chris. But for now, pictures. Check out the set at my flickr.

Open Letter

2008-07-01T22:26:55Z

Dear Karen,

Look, lady. I know I'm a fuel efficient car, but seriously. You have to get gas at some point. I cannot run forever on fumes. I mean you would think I could since I’m one of the amazing new coupes. However, truth is I can’t. This is why I have an idiot light on the dash. It's to remind you to put fill my tank.

Gas is kind of a required thing like returning a library book or showing up to the movies on time. If you do it wrong even once, you will face the consequences. I'm kind of the same way. I know you're excited that you're not filling up that behemoth of an SUV every three days, but I too run on gas. Remember? You did not get my hippy hybrid cousin. You picked me. I run on gas. If you don’t give me gas, I’m going to hold your afternoon or morning or weekend hostage.

So, take this as a warning, girly. Get your happy ass to a gas station today. Forget it. I'll take you this afternoon. God. I have to do everything myself.

Love,
Vic

Movies All the Time

2008-07-01T02:37:09Z

There was a time in my life that I longed to be a film critic. I would LOVE to be paid while I watch and talk about movies. LOVE it. And I've studied movies in college, so I'm an educated movie know-it-all. I think that is what annoys Jeff when I suggest movies. He just wants to watch the latest popcorn movie full of poop and fart jokes. I want to see something amazing. He wants to be entertained. I want to be entertained and amazed, shocked, angered, tearful, elated, touched. I want to feel something while I experience a good plot.

That's a long way from poop and fart jokes.

Probably my favorite genre of film is the kid's movie. I'm drawn to anything animated. I love things tied to "young adult fiction." I enjoy coming of age stories and stories based on high school kids. I also really like science fiction and fantasy. I need robots, wizards, magic, talking animals and whimsy. All the time. I like the chance that whatever is happening in the movie can never ever happen in real life. (Harry Potter, Frodo, Batman, Wolverine, Luke Skywalker, Mike Wazowski - I'm looking at you guys.)

I think that is part of the reason I pick the movies I do. This weekend I saw two flicks in the theater and one off of Netflix. I saw WALL-E, Wanted and Jumper. I was 3 for 3. Each of these movies was good in its own way.

WALL-E - The latest Pixar flick does not fail to deliver. Wall-E was incredibly charismatic even if he didn't speak much. This film probably has the fewest number of spoken words in the entire Pixar catalog. Before the film came out, people compared this to Short Circuit. Well, let me just say that Johnny 5 ain't got nothing on Wall-E. While the movie was a bit heavy on The Message that Disney is often famous for, it was still entertaining enough to overlook the obvious "go green or we're all gonna die" theme. Here is a great review of the film.

Wanted - I like movies where Angelina Jolie is an assassin. What can I say. Sometimes the shoot-em-up movies are enough of a pop-corn movie that I am drawn to the theater. I love the fact that you can train to be an assassin. There were some days while I was unemployed that I thought about that as a career. An assassin not Angelina Jolie. Mostly because I don't think that position is open at this point. But of course, how do you pursue a career in licensed assassin? Also, who is on this licensing board? Is it like a driving test? Do you have to go on a Job with an instructor to make sure you follow all the protocols and successfully whack your mark? So since there isn't exactly a career builder site for assassins, it was hard to pursue that as a career. Oh right the movie. I have invited James McAvoy to sit in my Hott Tub. And the movie was good too.

Jumper - Oh hooray. The cheese ball movie of the spring has finally made it to DVD. In this movie they feature a kid who can teleport. You know that question, "If you could have any super power what would it be?" Mine would be teleporation. That way I could travel the world without having to endure those long ass flights. I had my doubts about this movie because I broke up with Hayden Christensen after Life as a House. Did you see that awful movie? God. What happened to Kevin Kline? Seriously. So, fortunately the movie makers did not advertise that Hayden was in this movie. It was LONG after the movie was in and out of the theaters that I heard rumors that he was in the film much less that he was starring in the film. But even he didn't screw this up too bad. He didn't whine any which was nice (as he was prone to do as Darth).

So, there are your bite-sized reviews for this Monday. Richard Roper, Leonard Maltin - if you're reading this. I would love to help you out. I'm sure you're overwhelmed with all the good, bad and awful movies you have to watch and review. I would be more than happy to help out. I can start immediately. Besides The Dark Knight comes out in three weeks. I'm ready!

Katsup

2008-06-24T22:05:03Z

So, who watched the WWE Draft last night? Just me? Seriously? No one is watching wrestling? Haven’t I proclaimed my wrestling love enough here that you felt compelled to tune in? Well, you didn’t miss much if I do say so. There were big shake ups in their rosters for each show. And McMahon tried to blow himself up again. The more things change the more they stay the same.

Speaking of staying the same - I have become a horrible writer. And I’ve noticed it breaks down into one of three things:
1. I have awesome things that I want to write and tell you about, but I don’t get off my ass and do it.
2. I have awesome things to write about, but I’m at work and they finally found something to keep me busy.
3. Nothing interesting is happening in my life and I think you would be board hearing about my belly button lint. Hell, I’d be bored writing about my belly button lint.

And so, you get a stale web page with a picture of me and Vic for like a week. God has it been a week already? Vic turned a week old on Saturday. We had a party. You were invited, but you didn’t RSVP. Vic cried as only little cars can.

So, how about a quick recap of what you’ve missed – or haven’t missed as the case may be.

Thursday – STOMP
Amy and I got a mini plan for the Dallas Summer Musicals. Three shows in the early summer for a reasonable price. So far, we’ve seen CATS and STOMP. (Well, Amy didn’t see CATS as she was in France, but we had tickets to CATS. I took Robin in her place.) So, Thursday we saw STOMP. This is my fourth time to see the STOMP show. It is still REALLY good. I love the innovation of the show. I think it is really neat how they can make melodies using brooms, sinks, trashcan lids and lighters. If it comes to your town, you should really go see it. It’s pretty awesome.

Friday – Get Smart
I was pleasantly surprised. The movie was really funny. Steve Carrell was a perfect choice for Maxwell Smart. I did get a little creeped out when he was macking down with 99, but I love Ann Hathaway so much, I let it go. Also, there are two big name WWE stars in the movie. Betcha didn’t know that! First, from the trailer The Rock. He is a remarkably good actor. He was funny and engaging and endearing. Second, was The Great Khali. Khali is 7 foot 3 and weighs as much as a Mack truck. The man is ENORMOUS! There are elephants in India who clearly fear him. And he plays the ultimate thug. The strong square jaw and heavy brow is very intimidating.
After the film, Kris and I stood in the parking lot for three hours catching up. THREE hours. With no beer. All of a sudden I looked around and there were no cars left and it was 1 in the morning. It must have been a good conversation.

Saturday – Bummin’
Jeff had gone back to O! for a bachelor party, so I got to have a bachelor weekend. And what did I do with my bachelor weekend? Laundry. I’m such the rebel! Ok, that’s not entirely true. I did do a lot of fun things while I was Jeffless. I went and got a whole bunch of fresh fruit and made smoothies. Yum.

Sunday – At the folks
Sunday morning I went to church with the ‘rents. This was the week that the youth choir got back from choir tour where they take a musical production and perform it around the country. It’s kind of like a mission trip only with less building of houses and more performing. They did Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat. The even did it while wearing tiedye. It was an awesome show.
That afternoon, mom and I went shopping. I feel like I have not been shopping in 100 years. Fortunately for me JCPenney was having a sale. So, we jetted over there and checked it out. I’m even wearing a new skirt today. It looks fabulous. Trust me on this.

Tonight – Kickball
Kickball starts again tonight. It should be fun. I have a new team, so that might take some getting used to, but I think it will be good times. A gal from my office is going to play this season too, so I’ll have someone to carpool with! I know, can’t you sense the excitement? However, they haven't released the schedule yet, so I really only know that I play tonight. Awesome.

And you are now caught up. Please pass along hellos from Vic to your automobile of choice. And go see Get Smart.

Vic in Full Color

2008-06-18T04:14:02Z

He looks hotter in person doesn't he? The dealer took this picture. In a few weeks, I'll get a calendar with this as the picture. I can have Vic up year round! Won't that be awesome? I should give it to my mom. I'm sure she'd love it. (Hi, mom!) Anyways, it's not a bad picture. Vic looks awesome. I'm wearing OU flip flops. It was a beautiful day. What more could I have asked for?

Ah, me and Vic are going to have a great summer together!

Raw

2008-06-17T19:51:55Z

Just wanted to let everyone know that no, I did not win Vince's money last night.

Meet Vic

2008-06-16T01:41:12Z

I would like to introduce you to Vic. Vic is my brand new 2008 Honda Civic. (Get it? Vic? As in ci-VIC? No? Just me? Whatever. Jeff named him.) This is what I spent most of my weekend doing. Shopping, test driving, whining about the color.

They asked me what color I wanted. Clearly, I wanted red. I was told that I would be two weeks before I could get the car I wanted in red. So, they asked me what my second choice was. I answered that my second choice would also be red. Dude. I know what I want. I even said to Lou (my car sales guy) that I don't settle on boyfriends, why would I settle on my car?

So, guess how surprised I was when two hours after I left, Lou called me back to tell me that they had my car. TWO HOURS. Um. That's a lot faster than two weeks. Yes, please. I will take it. (Awesome!)

Here's Vic. Or at least the factory photo of Vic. His MySp@ce picture will be done sometime next week, I'm sure.

Funniest moment of my first day of car shopping. So, my mom went with me on this escapade - mostly because I can't make a decision that costs thousands of dollars without her. And no, I have no idea why that is I think it's a sickness. I'm hoping there's a cream for it. Anyhow, so my mom and I went to the dealer, walked around, asked questions, test drove cars and chatted with Lou for just over an hour. Lou in true sales guy fashion wanted me to make a decision right then.

Since this is different than buying a pack of gum or a new pair of shoes, I wanted to think it over a bit. So, I told Lou that mom and I were going to go grab lunch and talk, mull, think it over. He looked at me, said, "Ok, well while you're out, would you mind brining me back a burger. I don't think I'll have time to grab something for lunch." He reached into his wallet and handed me $10. I stopped and looked at him knowing that I couldn't say no. So, I looked at mom and (in front of him) said, "He just guaranteed that we'd come back this afternoon." I found that tactic brilliant and innocent and I was impressed. And it made me laugh.

Lou is good people. He got me a great deal. He treated me really well. And at the end of the weekend the EXACT car I wanted is now sitting outside my apartment. (And it's even red.) I'm super excited about the whole ordeal. And I'm super excited about having a new car. Me and Vic are going to be the best of friends!

Oh Puke

2008-06-09T22:24:23Z

I just found out that our kickball shirts for this season will be burnt orange. As a Sooner alum, this will never do.

The Race

2008-06-08T21:33:24Z

So, Saturday my folks and I did the Race. We got up early put on our team shirts and headed out.

Before the Race we were in good spirits. Sure it's only a 5K, but for people who don't normally walk three miles, that's a long way. (I know. I'm such a puss, but cut me some slack. I have a doctor's note.)

(click 'em to big 'em!)
We each raced in honor of someone who has been touched by breast cancer. My friend Lisa from the OU Club was diagnosed just over a month ago. My folks and another couple from their church all raced for their friend Teresa who ost her second battle with the disease recently. We all wore signs on our back to honor those women.

My folks and I did the whole 5 K in:

Needless to say, we're pretty proud of ourselves. Also, needless to say my legs were a touch sore. But we're totally excited to have done the whole thing in under and hour. Go us!