MY 2005
1) WAS 2005 A GOOD YEAR FOR YOU?
Sure, why not?

2) WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE MOMENT OF THE YEAR?
Seeing Paris and Nicky Hilton and Kimberly Stewart at N9NE at The Palms in Las Vegas.

3) WHAT WAS YOUR LEAST FAVORITE MOMENT OF THE YEAR?
When Grandma had a stroke. (She's OK now!)

4) WHERE WERE YOU WHEN 2005 BEGAN?
My house.

5) WHO WERE YOU WITH?
Igor, my family, friends and my brother's friends.

6) WHERE WILL YOU BE WHEN 2005 ENDS?
It's looking like Shelton and then Stamford, at least for the midnight part. First time EVER I won't be at my house at the stroke of midnight -- yes, hell has offically frozen over.

7) WHO WILL YOU BE WITH WHEN 2005 ENDS?
Igor and probably some of his family.

8) DID YOU KEEP YOUR NEW YEARS RESOLUTION OF 2005?
Since I can't remember what they were, I guess not.

9) DO YOU HAVE A NEW YEARS RESOLUTION FOR 2006?
I'm sure I'll dream up something preposterous.

10) DID YOU FALL IN LOVE IN 2005?
Maybe a little bit more, sure!

11) IF YES, WITH WHO?
Igor.

12) DID THEY KNOW?
Definitely.

13) ARE YOU STILL IN LOVE WITH THEM?
Definitely.

14) DO YOU REGRET IT?
No way.

15) DID YOU BREAK UP WITH ANYONE IN 2005?
No.

16) DID YOU MAKE NEW FRIENDS IN 2005?
Probably.

17) WHO ARE YOUR FAVORITE NEW FRIENDS?
I guess some VW kids!

18) WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE MONTH OF 2005?
December has been pretty fun so far.

19) DID YOU TRAVEL OUTSIDE THE U.S. IN 2005?
Yes, to La Republica Dominicana.

20) HOW MANY DIFFERENT STATES DID YOU TRAVEL TO IN 2005?
New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Florida, Nevada, Massachusetts?

21) DID YOU LOSE ANYBODY CLOSE TO YOU IN 2005?
I hope not.

22) DID YOU MISS ANYBODY IN 2005?
I miss all my West Coast friends! And my brother in Europe.

23) WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE MOVIE OF 2005?
"Charlie and the Chocolate Factory." Or "Herbie"!

24) WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE SONG OF 2005?
Maybe Foo Fighters' "Best of You."

25) WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE RECORD OF 2005?
Don't know if I even bought an album in '05. I like songs off Lindsay, Ashlee and Britney from this year. (Keep on laughing.)

26) HOW MANY CONCERTS DID YOU SEE IN 2005?
One? Two?

27) DID YOU HAVE A FAVORITE CONCERT IN 2005?
Motorhead!

28) DID YOU DRINK A LOT OF ALCOHOL IN 2005?
Actually, probably less than in '04. My consumption has drastically dropped since I've been with Igor.

29) DID YOU DO A LOT OF DRUGS IN 2005?
No.

30) HOW MANY PEOPLE DID YOU SLEEP WITH IN 2005?
One.

31) DID YOU DO ANYTHING YOU ARE ASHAMED OF IN 2005?
Oh probably.

32) WHAT WAS THE BIGGEST LIE YOU TOLD IN 2005?
I don't lie.

33) WHAT WAS THE WORST LIE SOMEONE TOLD YOU IN 2005?....
Who knows, probably something from that evil returning drama back in July.

34) DID YOU TREAT SOMEBODY BADLY IN 2005?
I never try to treat people badly, but I can get snotty and it's not nice.

35) DID SOMEBODY TREAT YOU BADLY IN 2005?
Kind of. Or at least I think I was cheated.

36) HOW MUCH MONEY DID YOU SPEND IN 2005?
I refuse to even think about that question.

37) WHAT WAS YOUR PROUDEST MOMENT OF 2005?
Seeing four of my good girlfriends get married.

38) WHAT WAS YOUR MOST EMBARASSING MOMENT OF 2005?
Haha -- maybe Amy and I doing the reading at Bunny and Matt's wedding? I started to cry a little and wanted to run off the altar!

39) IF YOU COULD GO BACK IN TIME TO ANY MOMENT OF 2005 AND CHANGE SOMETHING, WHAT WOULD IT BE?
Overall, I'd spend less money.

40) WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR 2006?
Organize my life and money a little better. Watch Igor graduate from school and then take him to Europe in the summer -- yay! Oh, and I'm totally going to be on the US Bobsleigh Team in Torino 2006 next month. Just you wait and see.

Snow on Thanksgiving -- who woulda guessed?! Thank goodness we put the snow tires on the R32 this week. Got to have a little fun with the AWD this morning on way to pick up Thanksgiving pies. As much as I complain about the snow and I wish it was still August weather, I must admit when I woke up this morning to about 4-5 inches of snow, I was pretty excited, especially to go out driving in it!





Anyway, today I am thankful for my Igor, family, friends, puppy and the R32. And of course I'm thankful for ridiculous things like Paris Hilton, TiVo, leopard print, days off from work, Vegas, Korean nail salons, Pinot Noir, cranberry sauce, Apple computers, reality TV, Tonya Harding, Metro North Railroad, Chapstick, NASCAR, Splenda and my digital camera that fits in an Altoids box.
Happy Thanksgiving!

Check out my photos from the taping of the "Martha" talk show. It's a good thing.

Horray for Thanksgiving coming up! A special, secret, surprise visitor is coming to town for the holiday, and only I know about it! I can't wait for his arrival -- everyone will be so excited to see him. (That was a hint.)

I'm also excited to help my mom cook for Thanksgiving. I've never made a turkey, but it's probably about time I learn. I already made Fennel Orange Cranberry Sauce (minus the fennel, and plus some lemon) tonight. I'm impressed -- it's deliciously sweet and tart and the perfect shade of magenta. I also plan on making Rachael Ray's Apple and Onion Stuffin' Muffins -- which I think will be a nice alternative to boring stuffing. Everyone at the table gets his/her own Stuffin' Muffin -- isn't that cute?

Oh, and in preparation of the holiday, little Ruffles got his hair done today by Amy's Jeff's sister-in-law, who owns Muddy Paws. She came to our house in her grooming van to do Ruffles' hair. I think he liked it! And I like not sending him to the groomer for 8 hours, which always made me nervous because I'm convinced they drugged him there. So horray for mobile doggie grooming!

And it's officially time for the sun to be in Sagittarius, which is always a good thing. It means Thanksgiving time, and then birthday time (Philly!) and then Christmas and New Year's. It's my favorite time of year. Well, except for that getting dark at 4:30 p.m. part.

And Bunny and the Fireman are getting hitched this weekend! I can't believe it. Our little Bunny is growing up so fast! Amy and I are doing a reading at the ceremony, and if I don't cry, it'll be a miracle. Wish us luck. And horray for Bunny and Matt!

Gosh! I've been so bad at posting lately. I think it's because I've been wasting all my Internet time at myspace.
So we had Bunny's Bachelorette Party where we had strippers that we paid with pizza and squeals of delight. If I had a dollar for every time I hollered, "Take your shirt off!," well, I'd be on my way to a real strip club with a wad of $1s.
And my mom, Amy and I went to see a taping of "Martha." Let's just say prison must have been a Good Thing, because Ms. Stewart looked fabulous in person. Daniel Radcliffe, aka Harry Potter, was the guest. He's quite little and cute, but far pastier looking in person. And Martha had on Howie, last week's fired candidate from her "Apprentice" reality show, and he lost on a QVC-themed task, so everyone in the "Martha" audience got a $50 gift card to QVC! How perfect is that?! I already ordered myself a Dennis Basso faux chinchilla shrug to wear to Bunny's wedding next weekend. (I still can't believe Bunny's getting married NEXT WEEKEND!)
Anyway, I'm home sick. So it must be time for me to take some Robitussin and watch the TiVo now.

So on the way to Shelton Friday night, I was driving my car and Igor was driving behind me. When we got to the end of Route 25 in Trumbull where the highway ends and we take a right onto Route 111 towards Monroe, we were approaching the traffic light, which was a green arrow to turn right, so we turned right, going about 30 mph or so. Meanwhile, a red Jetta (all ghettoed up and stickered out) going in the other direction made an illegal U-turn in the middle of the road, cutting me off so bad that I came *this close* to smashing into him, which probably would have demolished the right side of his car, nevermind the girl in his passenger seat. I laid on the horn and sped up behind him, but got caught in traffic. I called Igor, and he said he was going to go after him, but he got caught behind traffic, too. I figured we'd lost him, but alas, we spotted him turning into the Dunkin' Donuts parking lot, so I followed him in, and Igor swung around the other way. By the time the teen realized we cornered him, he was already backing into a parking spot and saw me staring him down (from inside my car). Igor parked his car right in front of the kid's, and jumped out of the car, rolled his sleeves up and charged over to the kid, who was sitting in his car still, starting to look scared (OK, I was even scared now). Igor knocked on the boy's window and was like, "Roll down your window!" (Not so tough anymore with your crooked baseball cap and stickered up Jetta with a fart can muffler -- blasphemy -- are we now?) The kid cracked the window and Igor yelled at him something along the lines of: "What the F do you think you're doing? She almost T-boned you back there the way you cut her off. What are you doing?!" The kid was like, "Yeah, I heard her beep at me." And Igor screamed some more obscenities at the boy and walked away. I drove off and some guys approached Igor as he was getting back in his car and he told them the punk almost hit me and then Igor got in his car and burned rubber out of there. I heard the stunned kids from the parking lot looking over at us as we drove away. No one even followed us, I was shocked.
I've never seen Igor get so mad he rolled up his sleeves and got in someone's face like that, but I guess that means don't mess with the precious girlfriend and her precious Volkswagen.
Knight in shining armor, er, fleece sweatshirt and VW hat was in full effect.
That's hot.

Now I'm really one of the cool kids: I got a myspace page!

I'm a Karmann Ghia...





Which VW Are You?

by Auto Glass Across America

Happy Birthday, Bunny!

Miracle of all miracles -- my Blogger works at work! Horray!
I just wanted to say that I hope you all enjoy my ridiculous drunk entries as much as I do. (Drunk entry, as in the one below.) Do you even know how long it took me to type that without spelling everything incorrectly? At least 10 minutes. Gosh.
Horray for Friday! Now if only I had a raft to float home in. The rain really makes me wish I lived in Vegas where it's warm and sunny right now, I'm sure.

No. 179 of Why I love my Igor:

It's Thursday night and I'm a little tipsy after being out with the workies for a few hours of drinks.
So we return to his house and I'm starving! So I look in the fridge and find enough Russian delicacies to make myself a treat: a sandwich on whole wheat bread with sliced Gouda cheese, spreadable Mother Goose liverwurst, random salami and mayo. And a yummy dill pickle on the side. And Nacho Cheese Preztel Combos on the other side (from college).
Yum.
Yeah, it doesn't get any better than this.
:)

We went to the Antique Tractor Show in White Hills over the weekend. It was good, farmer fun. The longer I live in White Hills, the more endearing it grows. Don't get me wrong, I love the city, but I'm a country girl at heart. White Hills isn't as woodsy as it once was, but we did have that bear sighting on my street a few years ago. (I'm not joking.) So yeah, Willie and I geared up in our boots and he in his flannel shirt and I in my NASCAR sweatshirt (appropriate wear) and drove over to the dairy farm in the Jeep for the show that boasts "if it hauls dirt, it'll be there." And it was fun, I'll admit it!

Here's the whole album is here.

But here's some photos from the show:

Oh man, I still can't use my Blogger at work, so posting has been tough lately! I don't think I should call IT to ask them what's wrong, because that might look bad.
Anyway, last weekend we went to Philadelphia and to Dover, Del., for the NASCAR race. What a fun weekend!
I love Philly more and more each time I go. It's a fun city. People are cool, not stuck up at all. Food and drinks are pretty cheap, but maybe I'm used to New York City prices. Igor and I went to this fabulous place for dinner -- The Continental -- where we indulged in wonderful lobster mashed potatoes, an array of Asian appetizers, and many beers, martinis (including one called the Buzz Aldrin which is made with TANG and peach vodka) and glasses of wine, all for about $80, with tip. What a bargain! And of course, we also hit up Jim's Steaks for some real deal Philly cheesesteaks and Yeungling beer. We waited 45 minutes in line outside the place, but as always, it was well worth it. We also walked around South Street (Igor got a nice haircut for $15!) and the Old City. Our hotel was in Society Hill, which is right by the Delaware River, so we even spent dusk on the boardwalk, which was really pretty. We were only in Philly for about 16 hours, which wasn't nearly enough time to enjoy the City of Brotherly Love. I can't wait to go back!
So on Sunday we drove down to Delaware for the race. To start the day off right, we indulged in some more fattening goodness during breakfast at Bob Evans. Igor had never been to the Southern-style family restaurant chain. I think he was thinking I was taking him to an IHOP-type place, but he was pleasantly surprised at the copious amounts of sausage, gravy and grits on the menu -- yum! Anyway, we finally got to Dover about 45 minutes before the start of the race. The parking lot at the track closed at 9 a.m. that morning and the town was crawling with RVs. We realized we were late when we found $25 parking in a Lowe's lot and the attendant joked that we needed "emergency parking" fast. (Hey, I thought $25 parking that's a five minute walk from the track, which is holding 150,000 spectators, was a bargain!)
The NASCAR race experience was even more fun and fantastic than I ever expected. The people-watching was top-notch at the MBNA RacePoints 400. I've never seen so many beer cozies full of Budweiser products in my life. (We were obviously the newbies since we didn't have a cooler full of beer, nor a seat cusion, nor race headphones.) Before the race we walked around outside the track for a few minutes, checking out the driver merchandise trucks and displays. Once we walked in, we promptly got giant, 24-ounce Bud Light cans for a measly $6 each. Walking into the stadium for the first time was a holy experience for me. (Don't laugh!) Dover's "Monster Mile" track was so much bigger and more colorful than I imagined. I felt a rush just taking it all in for the first time. We found our seats up in the main grandstand. We had to squeeze into the middle of a row of bleachers (told you we were late!), but the race fans were all so nice and accomodating, saying hello as we walked to our spots. The seats were tight, and it was hot out. Considering the circumstances, the fans were just very respectful to each other. A prayer was said before the race -- first time I've seen that at a sporting event. Then four F-16 fighter jets flew over, which was pretty intense. Hearing "Gentlemen, start your engines!" for the first time was another holy experience. But boy, once those racecars started up and really began zooming around the track at 155-plus mph, that's when the fun started. Watching a race on TV doesn't do it justice. In person, it's just all so much louder, faster and more incredible. We sat across from pit row, so watching the cars in the pits was pretty cool. Man they're fast! Overall, there weren't too many wrecks and not much drama, unlike the previous week's race. Nonetheless, it was an amazing experience and I'm hooked -- I'll definitely go to another NASCAR race. (I think Igor even liked it more than he expected.) But as for the 5 1/2 hours worth of traffic on the way home, that's another story!
Here is the album of Philly and Dover.

And here are some photos from the race and from Philly (the bottom two):

Gosh! I haven't posted in such a long time. That's mostly because my work computer does funky things when I go to the Blogger Web site, so I am, of course, convinced Big Brother is spying on me and trying to get me fired (or at least prevent me from getting that new job) for spending work time on Big Trouble.
Anyway, plenty has happened and I have proof! Enjoy photos of:
The White Wedding, Last Night Stammie,
the adorable Bichon Bash and Bunny's bridal shower.
See, I told you I've been busy!
So summer is officially over, season-wise, by this time tomorrow. That makes me sad, but the fall will be busy and good, I hope. This weekend we're going to the MBNA RacePoints 400 NASCAR race in Dover, Del., and I am VERY excited. It's my first NASCAR race and I'm counting the days (four) until I finally get to hear, in person: "Gentlemen, start your engines!" Wooohooo! And on the way down we're spending the night in Philadelphia, one of my favorite cities. I'm already practicing my cheesesteak order: "Whiz wit." (That means Cheez Whiz with onions, please!)
Yum!

Tonight is what I like to call "Last Night Stammie," or as Buns says, "Stammie, This is your Life."
It's the last evening in the Bunny/Megan/Deb apartment on Morgan Street. All the girls are growing up and leaving the little abode, which makes me sad.
Ah, so many good, drunk memories.
Bunny says: "Happy Hour at Apt. 2J starts at 5:30 p.m. (We have to drink because otherwise I have to pack the bottles.)"
Uhoh, it's only Tuesday! Ah, what's one more post-Stammie hangover?
Power Hour, anyone?
Melissa, Jason and Brendon will be there, at least in spirit:

Thank you to the dear Singing Luba for this. I love these little quizzes. They are so silly and trashtastic and good.

1. When you look at yourself in the mirror, what’s the first thing you look at?
My pores -- they must be clean!

2. How much cash do you have on you right now?
I'd say $20. And it's gotta last me a while, darn it.

3. What’s a word that rhymes with "TEST"?
Quest.

4. Favorite plant?
I love my new cactus plant. It's in a little dish with blue fish tank rocks and it has three, blue glass fishies stuck in the dirt. Actually, it's three cacti, and David helped me name them Bo, Luke and Daisy.

5. Who is the 4th person on your missed call list on your cell phone?
Igor.

6. What is your main ring tone on your phone?
Just a normal ring. And it's usually on vibrate. I really hate the cutesy rings.

7. What shirt are you wearing?
Green tank top with orange writing and '70s muscle car graphic that says "Badazz Derby."

8. Do you "label" yourself?
I'm F'n metal.

9. Name brand of your shoes currently wearing?
I'm barefoot. But the last shoes I wore were my dorky brown comfortable sandals from Kohl's.

10. Do you prefer a bright or dark room?
I guess bright, as long as it doesn't interfere with the TV.

11. What did you have for breakfast?
Scrambled eggs with fresh tomatoes, a wheat English muffin with blueberry jam and orange/mango/peach juice.

13. Since question 12 is weirdly missing, make some shit up.
As much as I love reality TV, I really don't like this "Rock Star: INXS" show. I thought rock stars were fun and exciting. These people are boooorrring.

14. What were you doing at midnight last night?
Watching "Be Cool" at my house with Igor, and doing a puzzle. (Whatever, that's more exciting than those "Rock Star" dorks.)

15. What did your last text message you received on your cell phone say?
"We only brought the motorcycle." From Amy_Bone.

16. Do you ever click on "Pop Ups" or Banners?
Not only do I click 'em, I lick 'em.

17. What’s an expression that you say a lot?
"Whatever, just crash it."

18. Who told you they loved you last?
I think my mommy!

19. Last furry thing you touched?
Igor.

20. How many hours a week do you work?
Supposed to be 37.5. Sometimes more, usually a little less!

21. How many rolls of film do you need to get developed?
None, but I have so many digital photos I want to get copies of, especially our trip to the Dominican Republic.

22. Favorite age you have been so far?
19 was good, but 27 has been better!

23. Your worst enemy?
Citibank and American Express.

24. What is your current desk top picture?
At home: Me, Amy and our driving instructor and the VW Touaregs in Wolfsburg, Germany.
At work: A Play Station 2/Gran Tourismo 4 graphic of a red VW R32 on Fremont Street in Las Vegas.
Right now on Igor's laptop: A beautiful photo of beach chairs looking out into the Caribbean Sea and catamarans from Saona Island off the Dominican Republic. Ahhhhh.

25. What was the last thing you said to someone?
Probably something along the lines of, "Igor, wake up and hang out with me!"

26. If you had to choose between a million bucks or to be able to go back in time and fix all your mistakes which would you choose?
I'd take the cash money, honey.

Go look at my photos from Fort Lauderdale and Miami. I'd like to go back to the beach now!

Go drink beer with Allie and Jim. They Will Travel For Beer. So drink up.

I'd like to bid a kind farewell to Modern Elvis, Evy's old blog. But don't despair, Friday Happy Hour is here! Well, figuratively speaking, at least.

p.s. We will be in sunny Florida in less than 24 hours from now! Bring on the beach!

Here are some photos of Mac and Ruffles (and Igor). Mac is Ruffles' new mini schnauzer baby cousin. He's 12 weeks old, and he's a really good puppy. Ruffles even liked him! There's an album of these cuties, just click on the "My photo album" above left. Enjoy!

Yay! Spontaneous actions are good. I just bought tickets to go to Florida with Amy this weekend to hang out with Richie. Horray for not really thinking, but just entering credit card numbers and buying plane tickets! Horray for Fort Lauderdale! I've never been there. But most importantly, who's going to be in South Beach this weekend? We are!
Bring on the mojitos, papicitos!

Congratulations to Jen and Dave, the latest happy newlyweds!









Here are photos from Friday night's wedding.

Last night six of us went to The Melting Pot for dinner. I wish I could calculate how many calories were consumed during our four-course meal of cheese fondue, unnecessary salad, meat fondue and chocolate fondue. And lots of wine. We were eating for literally 3 1/2 hours. And I can honestly say that I consumed at least one day's worth of food in those 3 1/2 hours. It's 2:30 p.m. the day after, and I'm still full. I drank a coffee this morning and it made me feel ill. Igor is already eating again. I'm not sure how that's possible. I hope that after 24 hours maybe I can eat again. Not that I'm knocking The Melting Pot or anything, because dinner was super fun and very delicious. But I think we all agree that next time, just the cheese fondue and chocolate fondue courses will be satisfying.

Here are photos from the cheese-filled night:
Fondue.
And here's a little taste of an oily vat of fondue goodness:

Waterfest was wet! And that's not a good thing. Plenty of cool VWs and Audis, but also plenty of punks and small floods. Check out my photos here.

OK, let's discuss this sign that I see in the morning on my way to work over near the dairy farm:




Now I'm not try to poke fun, I genuinely feel bad about the little chickens, but boy does that scream, "You know you're a redneck when..." or what? I was so scared when I slowed down to take the photo that maybe some shotgun-toting hick was going to come out and shoot out my tires because he'd think I ran over his chickens.

That sign reminds me of when I lived in the Dominican Republic in college. And in the morning my Dominican "mom," Doris, drove me to the concho stop. (A concho is like a public car, but an old, early '80s Datsun with a rusted out floor with literally seven people -- plus or minus a few chickens -- packed into it.) One morning as we drove through the dirty, windy, city streets, she was undoutably yelling at my rowdy little Dominican "siblings," Albert and Angelica, and wasn't watching where she was driving (not that Dominicans are known for their safe driving skills or anything) and she ran over a chicken crossing the road.
Thump.
Me: Gasp!
Doris: "Aye Dios miiiiiio! I saaar-ey!"
Boy, that shut those brat kids up. And Doris kept driving.

Waterfest is this weekend.
YEAH!
This is as good as Christmas. Maybe better.
VROOM VROOM!

So, I usually try to keep Big Trouble light and fun, but I just can't keep my mind off the terror attacks in London today. When my dad woke me up around 6:30 this morning, the first thing he said to me was, "Kara, turn on your TV and put on CNN. There were terrorist attacks in London overnight." The first, and well, the only thing I could think about was my dear friend Alexa who lives in London. When I saw that the Tube and a bus were bombed, I hoped that Alexa wasn't on any of them, and remembered how fond she is of riding her bike to work. That gave me great hope until I could get to work and e-mail her to see if she's OK. Sure enough, she is safe, and yes, she bicycled to work. Here's her blog, take a look at what she has to say about it:
http://www.alexandriathegreat.blog-city.com//
I tried to watch the world news, but once they started talking about how easy it would be to bomb the commuter railroads in the United States, I decided not to watch and get all worked up. (I take the train several times a week to work now.) Sure, it probably would be easy to put a bomb on the train, but I won't live in fear of the terrorists, the Metro-North Railroad, the Subway or New York City, for that matter. And I'm sure London will bounce back, just as New York City has. Life moves on, Orange Alert and all.
My heart goes out to the people of London. But most importantly, I thank God that Alexa is OK. (And oh, Alexa, if you're reading this, can I crash on your floor say, oh, maybe the summer of 2012?!)

Pictures of Megan and Dave's beautiful wedding are here!

Last July 4th weekend I was all about overdosing on fireworks. I loooove fireworks. I saw 4 1/2 shows last year. Although this year's weren't as exciting as last year's, they were varied and nice:
• We let off lame Connecticut, non-airborne, fountain fireworks in the driveway Sunday. Nothing spectacular, but fun because I got to light the fuses and play with sparklers.
• The neighbors down the street let off big illegal fireworks from the road on Sunday night. The show lasted a good half hour and was impressive, considering we only had to walk a couple hundred yards to the corner for the show. (We're not like those funny people up the street who showed up on their golf cart.) No traffic fireworks show = good fireworks show.
• We saw the usual fireworks from Monroe out the big window in the living room and Stammie fireworks from Igor's living room. Again, not having to get off the couch for fireworks is good.
• And of course, last night we saw Macy's fireworks from New York, viewed on the TV from the couch. While not as exciting as last year when we watched them while standing on a barrier hanging over the FDR Drive, I must say I was much more comfortable this year. And the same goes for Igor because he was passed out on the couch next to me.
• And I promised myself I'll get to a Friday night Bluefish game this summer sometime to see more fireworks before the end of summer. So that counts, too.

Oh my. Happy hour is so dangerous. I forgot. It makes Friday morning so horrendous. My insides are shaking. I must have took Excedrin last night? Not like I remember. How'd I get that broken nail? Why do I feel like I'm getting sick? Oh, I smoked five cigs last night, that's right! I do remember that I forgot my Chapstick in the car, and I was so toasted I didn't really care that I didn't have it. (Now that's toasted.) I hope I don't smell like the bar. And I hope I didn't run into anyone that I forgot I ran into. Especially a work person. Happy hour is so dangerous. I should probably check my Outgoing Calls on my cell phone just in case.

It's offically the week from Hell. No need to get into specifics, but man, are the heavens working against me? I'm usually a pretty positive person, but enough already!
I'm ready to return to La Republica Dominicana now. But since I can't, I'll have to pretend like I'm there by looking at my vacation pictures.

We're back, all tanned and rested, from la Republica Dominicana, but I'm still working on Dominican time, that's why I'm posting so late. I'll have pictures from the trip up soon, I promise.

Counting the hours 'til the Dominican Republic.
39 more hours. Punta Cana, here we come!

We didn't even get to see the new "Star Wars III — Revenge of the Sith" this weekend, because of course it was sold out literally seven hours ahead of time. But that's OK, because we wanted to see "Kicking and Screaming" anyway. But I still got my picture taken with Darth Vader and a Storm Trooper! He was a very nice Darth Vader, but I tried not to look at him too much, because that mask is scary. And I've always been afraid of Storm Troopers, and even though this one was trying to shoot me, he was still shorter than me, so I wasn't too frightened.

Brit and K-Fed's new disaster was so horrendous, even I, the queen of trashy reality TV, didn't like it. And I love Mrs. Federline. Or maybe I should say loved. Don't get me wrong, her hits will still find a home on my iPod Shuffle, but this "Chaotic" crap is a nightmare. Just go read my column tomorrow and witness the Britney bashing. I didn't want to do it, but Ms. Cheetos leaves me no choice.

OK, things were going good for a while on the aquatic front, but something fishy is going on...

STRIPES, APPROXIMATELY TWO MONTHS, DIES IN HIS STAMFORD HOME
Stripes in the goldfish, a Stamford resident, died last week at his Springdale home. He was approximately two months old.
Stripes died in the bedroom fish tank with O.J. by his side.
The exact cause of death is unknown. The family could not be reached for comment.
Stripes was medium-sized, and white with dark orange stripes. He was a super happy, swimmy fish, who liked to eat and play with his buddy, O.J. He was purchased at the Fish Bowl store in Springdale.
Stripes is survived by bedroom tank mate O.J., and Fatty of the living room fish tank.
In lieu of flowers, I'd like to know what the hell is going on with the all the fish deaths in Igor's house because this is getting ridiculous.

CASPER, APPROXIMATELY FIVE MONTHS, DIES IN HIS STAMFORD HOME
Casper "Sharky" the golfish, a Stamford resident, died last week at his Springdale home. He was approximately five months old.
Casper died in the living room fish tank with Fatty by his side.
The exact cause of death is unknown, however the family speculates it's because his caretakers went on vacation to Mexico. While Casper was lovingly cared for during the week his owners were away, he perished mere hours before they were due to arrive home the afternoon of May 7. In the past, fish have died while the owners were away.
Casper was known as the tank master. He suffered a brief illness (whitening of the fins) in March around the time of tank mate Tele's death.
Casper was a skittish fish, and was known to swim around the tank in a sharklike-fashion, hence the nickname "Sharky." He was large, and white with orange spots and an orange brainy growth. He was purchased at the Fish Bowl store in Springdale.
Casper is survived by living room tank mate Fatty, and bedroom goldfish Stripes and O.J.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that all pet owners leave their pets in good hands when they go on vacation.

BIG thanks to Laura for informing me that this blessed site is back. (I know, I'm a terrible person for calling it "blessed." But it's just so good.)

Angela, Nicky Hilton, (some Hilton friend), and Kara at the Chick by Nicky Hilton appearance at Dillard's at the Fashion Show Mall, Las Vegas, April 15.

Back from Vegas.
Met Nicky Hilton and saw Paris Hilton and her new "Simple Life" costar, Kimberly Stewart.
Need I say more?
I'll post the picture of Angela, Nicky and I asap.
Fabulouuuuuuuuuus!

Happy birthday, Ruffles!
Today my puppy is 16 years old. This afternoon I'm taking him to the DMV to take his driver's license test. I'm thinking I'll buy him a white, Porsche 911 Cabriolet -- the white to match his fur, the Cabriolet convertible because he enjoys sticking his head out the window. After that we will go home and have birthday cake.
Here he is at home on my bed, watching tv with the remote control:




p.s. The Vegas countdown is now in hours. Yes! 53 hours 'til takeoff!

Why I don't like PCs:

Because I write nice, long posts and they get deleted before I can post them.

That doesn't happen on my Mac!

I wanted to post this:

You are Summer Wheatley and you hate cake.

Which Napoleon Dynamite character are you?
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Nine days 'til Vegas. We're in single digits now. That's hot.
Jen and I are going to go for Hot Desert Stone Massages. That's hot. The desert is hot. The stones are hot. We're hot. That's all so hot Paris Hilton might want in.
That's hot.

I had three free CDs coming from the music club I joined when I was like 9 years old to get free Tiffany tapes. So I figured why not use them to uncover some lost nostalgia. I bought:
L.L. Cool J's "Mama Said Knock You Out," Run D.M.C's "Raising Hell" and Public Enemy's "Apocalypse '91... The Enemy Strikes Black."
I've have a particular fondness for the Public Enemy CD at the moment -- maybe it's because Flavor Flav is a reality TV star now? I don't know. But I really don't understand how or why I was so enamored with this music when I was a kid. I mean, how did I get away with listening to "Raising Hell" when I was 9 and like in the 3rd grade of Catholic school? And the L.L. Cool J CD has way more hidden sexual meaning than I ever understood in the 8th grade. But the Public Enemy disc... man! How did I, at age 13, living in whitey Connecticut suburbia get into black power rap? I remember I even had a poster of that CD cover in my bedroom.
Maybe I didn't join the music club to buy Tiffany and New Kids on the Block CDs afterall.
Fight the power!

p.s. We'll be on the plane to Vegas in two weeks from right now!

Big Teufel issues this morning. OK, well not that big, but big enough that I was stranded. No, not because of the snow. I've been having this little brake light switch issue off and on for a while now. I've talked to Volkswagen at least twice about getting it fixed, but they claim there's no problem. Well, when I look outside at my car parked in the driveway and the brake lights are on, there's a problem. Nevermind that I've had to change one of the lights twice already. I made an appointment for Tuesday, hoping Teufel would behave until then, but this morning when I walked out to the car, the brake lights were on and the battery was dead. What a pain! Igor rescued me, but now I have to deal with jumping the battery and taking the car to the dealer and getting it fixed before the holiday weekend. And it's not like this is my fault!
Silly VWs and their silly issues. I think my Teufel is a little messed up in the head (read: he has computer problems), but it's only fitting since he's mine.
Spring is coming (when the inches of slush melt). Maybe it's time for that Porsche. (Just kidding, I swear.)

OK, it's been spring for a little over three days now, but it's about to snow again. Come on! Just when the snow is almost melted out of my parking spot, it's going to be filled up with 3 to 8 more inches thanks to another Nor'easter. It's almost April. Easter is this weekend. I have a nice spring jacket hiding in the closet. The spring tires are itchin' to get on the Teufel, who needs to be washed.
Enough!

Vegas in three weeks, four hours and 12 minutes.

Why last week and this past weekend was good:
• We saw Motorhead in concert. And it really was louder and harder than anything else.
• We bought a Play Station 2 and Gran Turismo 4. Yay, let's motor!
• We also bought a dart board. I'm going to be a champ.
• It's officially spring! Yes, it's still freezing cold outside, but there's hope. And the snow is almost melted.
• It's March Madness time. All college basketball, all the time. Go UConn! Oh, wait, the men's team already lost. Go lady Huskies!

Vegas in 23 days. Let's go now!

TELE, APPROXIMATELY THREE MONTHS, DIES IN HIS STAMFORD HOME
Tele the goldfish, a Stamford resident, died last week at his Springdale home. He was approximately three months old.
Tele died in the living room fish tank with Casper and Fatty by his side.
The exact cause of death is unknown; however, the family speculates foul play and quite possibly murder.
Tele had been hanging out in one corner of the fish tank for a few days, acting strange. But his family speculates he may have owed some past gambling debts to apparent tank master, Casper (aka "Sharky"). Casper suffered a brief illness (whitening of the fins) a few weeks ago, but survived. He's recenly been seen suspiciously hiding behind the rocks on the fish tank with a guilty look on his face.
Tele was a happy fish, frequenly wagging his fins and shaking what his mama gave him whenever human onlookers stopped by to say hello. He was large, and orange colored with black spots. He had protruding, round, telescopic eyes -- hence, the name "Tele." He was purchased at the Fish Bowl store in Springdale.
He is survived by Casper and Fatty, all of the living room fish tank.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you do a little shaky butt dance because Tele enjoyed watching people dance in front of him.

LUSH is coming to the area! Sweet!

Enough snow already! Basta! I could go on and on about how it snowed and rained and got icy yesterday, and no one could get where they were going, but I won't. Maybe if we don't think about it or talk about it anymore, it will all go away and spring will come. Please!

Igor told me I have to write another fishy obituary. He told me Tele (of Tele, Casper and Fatty) went to fishy heaven, but he was laughing about it. I don't know if he's serious. I need more details.

Vegas. 35 days and counting. Let's go now!

Six weeks from right now I'll be on a plane to VEGA$!
YEAH!

I have really had enough of this snow crap. It's just about March... in about 45 minutes. So yeah, I've had enough. I'd like to wash my car and wear my new spring jacket now please.
Thank you.

Good packing snow my ass.
Jerks.

Bands // Song Titles
Created by BourdiezFreak and taken 21510 times on bzoink!
Choose a band/or artist and answer only in song TITLES by that band:	Motorhead
Are you female or male:	Life's a Bitch
Describe yourself:	Doctor Rock
How do some people feel about you:	Mean Machine
How do you feel about yourself:	Built for Speed
Describe your ex girlfriend/boyfriend:	Die You Bastard
Describe your current girlfriend/boyfriend:	Dr. Love
Describe where you want to be:	Brave New World
Describe what you want to be:	Overnight Sensation
Describe how you live:	No Remorse
Describe how you love:	Red Raw
Share a few words of wisdom:	Live to Win
Create a Survey | Search Surveys | Go to bzoink!

Thanks for the survey, Wishnick.

Happy Valentine's Day!
xoxo
Love,
Pedro


You are Pedro Sanchez and love holy chips.


Which Napoleon Dynamite character are you?
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I am never the one holding someone else's hair. But I am tonight! Dude, it's usually me tossin' it in the pretty porcelain white bowl. It's strange being on the other side, but OK. I am paying my dues. I love him and I just want to help him feel better.
Wow. Now I know what it feels like.

p.s. I got an iPod Shuffle. I should bring it in the bathroom for entertainment.

New pictures!
Blizzard '05 and ghetto Xtreme glow bowling and Rick the kitty.

I'm ready for Philly fun now. Let's go! I don't want to wait until Friday.

I still haven't posted pictures from the so-called blizzard last weekend. But then again, I never got the December Miami pictures off Igor's laptop, either, so go figure.
This is a super draggy Friday afternoon. I've already visited everyone's blogs today. It's nice to see that Nicole is still alive out there. And Beth's blog makes me miss Vegas parties.
I need a vacay.
We're going to Philadelphia next weekend for Igor's birthday, which will be fun. I got us in for Media Day at the Philly Auto Show and we're going to Morimoto for dinner.
But I haven't been to Vegas in almost four months and I'm severely itching to go. Or maybe it's because every minute or so I look down at this picture on my desk:



Vegas, take me away!

And it certainly doesn't help that I have the "M*A*S*H" theme song in my head. It really makes no sense because I never liked or watched that show.
Is it time to go home yet?
It sounds like it's time to go play 20Q now.

Of course, last week I had to go open my big mouth about how no fishies have died recently and BAM!...

PINKY, APPROXIMATELY SEVEN MONTHS, DIES IN HIS STAMFORD HOME
Pinky the goldfish, a Stamford resident, died last weekend at his Springdale home. He was approximately five to seven months old.
Pinky died alone in the little, plantless fish tank in the bedroom.
The exact cause of death is unknown. Pinky suffered a brief illness the week before his death, but was thought to be doing better thanks to his family's care.
Pinky was the mastermind of the big, living room fish tank, and was thought to be behind last month's death of his best friend/nemesis, The Brain. Their deaths fall almost exactly one month apart. Pinky was moved to the bedroom fish tank after The Brain's death. (See the Wednesday, Dec. 22 entry.) Pinky lived in solitary confinement without rocks or plants. (Editor's note: I think Pinky died of a broken heart and his brief illness last week was a noble attempt at suicide.)
Pinky, who was average-sized and orange, was purchased at the Fish Bowl store in Springdale.
He is survived by Tele, Casper and Fatty, all of the living room fish tank. (Editor's note: Can't wait to see what kind of power struggle goes on there now, huh?)
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that your thoughts and prayers be with Pinky and all other helpless goldfish sent to live in solitary confinement.

BLIZZARD!
YEAHHHHHHHHHHHH!

It's been snowing since 1 p.m. and we have seven inches of snow. But the best is yet to come! Bring on the sleds, baby.

Oh, I haven't updated in so long! (Must be because no fishies have died lately, knock on wood.)

Here are some new photo albums:
Holiday tea at Alexa's featuring my favorite Pit Bull mix, Rocky.
Amy and Richie's birthday party, which was so much fun because several old friends we haven't seen in a while were in attendance. :)

Tomorrow it's going to snow! They're talking 8-13 inches, which would be fabulous because it's the weekend and I don't have to commute. And finally I can bring out the sled!
Snow day checklist:
1. DVDs.
2. Sled.
3. Booze.
4. Firewood.
5. Igor.
6. Yarn to crochet.
7. Refrigerator full of food.
8. Ruffles!
9. The R32 for snow adventures.

Feel free to add.

I uploaded more pictures last night:
Rolf's for German gastronomic extravaganza inside a Christmas tree.
Christmas Eve at my house, full of pierogies, presents, booze and the crazy dice game.

Happy New Year!

Here are some photos I recently uploaded:
Happy New Year '05.
New Year's Day '05 Carwash.
I still have to upload Christmas and Miami photos, I know.

Big news in Igor's living room fish tank:
No, I know what you're thinking, no one has perished. There is a new member of the tank — a big, black telescopey-eyed fish. We will call him "Fatty."
So now we have Fatty, Tele and Casper. And they all like to hang out in the corner by the bubbly heater. I call it their Jacuzzi.
(I should take pictures of them!)

*********
NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS 2005:
1. Go back to eating lower-carb.
2. Be better at staying in touch with friends. (Thank you Christine for this idea.)
3. Get my freakin' wisdom teeth out.

As for last year's resolutions, I didn't do so good, unless you count the German I've learned from my German Page-A-Day calendar. (I have one for this year, too. Thanks, Amy.)

NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS 2004:
1. Use my electric toothbrush twice a day.
NOPE, and I have three new fillings and cavities in my wisdom teeth to prove it.
2. Start to learn German.
See above.
3. Learn CPR.
Still need to do that.