first day of classes

well, here it is. the beginning of the end. my final semester as a graduate student!

i have 8 hours of work and then class in the evening. i have never worked full-time and been in school full-time. this will be interesting (read: stressful). luckily it's temporary as this job will end some time in october. at the rate we're going, it could end prior to that. they just want people until they reach their goal, at which point they could give a shit what happens next. they might keep me on but i doubt it.

dont worry, i'll still have the kennedy center gig and i'll try to make temping work again. as always, i'll be looking for permanent stuff in my field but at that point, i'll be more vigilent.

and dont worry about the blog. i have posts scheduled for the month of september and i plan to have more time to do a better job of posting in october once the job ends and i take that stupid test. with that said, i hope to be back with LIVE posts shortly after my bday. til then, xoxo!

ALSO, COMMENT ON THIS POST REQUESTING TOPICS FOR THE MONTH OF SEPTEMBER. 3 days of posts are still available to be filled by what YOU want me to discuss.

my niece turns 3 today!

she is really great at sassing and ignoring people. i must go work on my blank stare. here she is in her romper, you know, when she wasn't ignoring me:

anyway. happy birthday, Taylor!

you never know who's watching

PJD raised a good point. you dont ALWAYS know who's into you or who's paying attention. just because a guy wasn't so rude as to interrupt our meal to talk to me, as others had done to talk to my friends, doesn't mean he had not noticed me. i dont care because i could never get anywhere with a dude who doesnt open his mouth but it's just something to think about.

i mean i have thought about it, just in a different context. im very careful about the number of people i could potentially kirk off on when they cut in front of me in line or bump into me when there's a world of empty sidewalk available so they did not have to come into contact with my person... Why? well, that's because i'm well on my way to becoming a therapist and ANYONE could be my potential client. i can't help someone manage their anger if they recall seeing me flip the fuck out on some fellow metro passenger who sat down and put their luggage they call a purse directly on me like i wasnt ALREADY SITTING THERE. i've learned to get my point across quietly or in best case scenario, silently and non-aggressively in that situation.

there were plenty of times when i was a teenager when people would report having seen me somewhere. felt they had to share with my mom what they saw me doing. nothing i'd really get in trouble for but my mom would sometimes give me a side-eye. i remember in high school being super oblivious to the point that the assistant principal had to come up and tap me on the shoulder as i made out with my then boyfriend. or that time i was on the train and for whatever reason, there was plenty of space that morning so i didnt have a reason to be hugged up on my boyfriend in such a way and my boyfriend got off but i turned to see that my big cousin was on the train. it was weird seeing as how he wasnt someone i typically bump into. he was ready to kick the dude's ass...so yea, im generally careful about my public behavior unless ive been drinking and then all bets are off.

im a foodie now

lately, ive been less than thrilled with the idea of eating out so when friends hit me up for restaurant week or just to catch up after years of abscence from each other's lives, i was gave a less than enthused response. i would be happy to see them and whatnot but food was even a small part of why i'd be going. that is until i got up with my friend from high school and she suggested founding farmers.

founding farmers opened september 2008, the year i returned to DC and the month i began grad school. it wasnt hard to notice because it's on my bus route to go home (the 36 runs slightly different to come back to southeast than it does to go up to northwest). my friend had been a couple of times and raved about it. some bacon lollipops or some other thing that didn't really catch my interest. but she did say the food was good. lately, i was excited to go because i'd overheard conversations of people with to-go bags making plans to go the next day with another friend and i was like "word? it's like THAT?".

founding farmers was on my must-try list also because they recently opened a sister restaurant, farmers & fishers, on the georgetown waterfront whose menu i've been interested in checking out. former co-workers and i will be going here on aug. 16 (the day this post will publish).

knowing nothing about the place, my friend and i informed out friendly and helpful waiter that it was our first time. he proceeded to explain that everything is "from the farm to the kitchen table". they use locally-produce veggies and other products and keep everything organic. "you may notice everything tastes different; it's fresher than you may be used to", he said. as he explained this, i thought, great, now our food will take forever and im starving. i looked around at the other tables and decided that it would be worth it because of the generous portions and how delicious everything looked and the fact that people were scraping their enormous plates.

our waiter shared his top 3 menu items. i forgot one of them because i did not recall seeing it on the menu. the other two were the pot roast and shrimp and grits. i remember because i was trying to decide between the two. my friend got chicken and waffles which i decided i'd leave gladys knight's to be my favorite of.

i decided on the pot roast and boy am i happy with my decision! i'm remembering the tender beef, perfectly mashed potatoes, and vegetables cooked to perfection. the idea of them is making my mouth water now. there was a hint of cinnamon or maybe nutmeg in the sauce that really complimented the concoction. im leaning toward nutmeg.

it was good, ya'll! im taking everyone who comes to visit me in dc. enjoy these pics and stay tuned for my thoughts on founders & fishers. oh yea, i can't forget dessert: a HUNK of red velvet cake with the richest, most delicious cream cheese icing and a scoop of homemade vanilla ice cream. SIDENOTE: nicki minaj said she loved red velvet...except when it tasted like chocolate on her ustream the other day. i wanted to ask what the hell does her red velvet taste like? simple broad.

my plate: pot roast!!!

my friend's plate: chicken, waffles, corn, mac and cheese

guilty pleasures

are there some shows you are embarassed to admit you watch faithfully? if you've been reading this blog enough, you know by now i am who i am with no apologies. here's a list of crap i watch that other people might not be so apt to divulge with others.

1. pretty little liars- desperate housewives for teens

2. twilight- worst. acting. ever. BUT i love the fight scenes. there's like one per movie but so what?

3. big brother- people are funny. phony people are funnier.

4. gossip girl- i love a jab guised as a compliment and they serve them up so graciously along with drama, deciet, and stupidity.

5. jersey shore- there is nothing more stereotypically ignorant on tv

6. real housewives- new york and atlanta are the only one's i'll watch. im growing tired of them but i'll had them since ive seen the most recent seasons.

7. true blood- another vampire thing but this one is actually GOOD. i wish there was more scenes with pam and her smart mouth. lafeyette has toned down, too. guess they dont know what to do with him since, according to the books, he was to die off last season.

8. bad girls club- i feel better about myself with every episode. just wow!

your turn!

have you commented requesting a topic for me to discuss, yet?

24x24 update

im getting further and further from my goal of earning a clarisonic from myself. i dont think ive run but once this month. august is just going to be a month of fail. i was thinking about running a second time when my temp agency called me for a last minute half day assignment. that was a lame excuse because i wound up at my destination with time to spare and the rest of this month, there's no legitimate excuse. im just lazy. this morning, my stomach hurts. i got dressed to run and had one shoe on before i decided i was too tired and didnt feel like running today. now that's dedication...to being fat.

im just not feeling it. the clarisonic was just a fringe benefit, i really want to lose those pounds and maybe that will make me happy even if the happiness is short-lived. maybe i can get away with bumming around for this month, being careful what i eat, and then kick it into overdrive in september and still manage to achieve my goal. as of this morning (the day im writing this) i'm 167.5. i think the goal was 148.

this lack of energy is a direct reflection of my diet. i haven't really been reporting what i've been eating. if you follow me on twitter, you know about my cupcake addiction, so i'll do a typical day including a cupcake stop.

breakfast- none or yogurt and animal cookies (usually none or water)

lunch: between 1pm and 3pm- cupcake or chips and a juice/soda

dinner: cheez-its or whatever my mom cooks or fast food

actually looking at that make me realize how ridiculous i am. i dont eat enough food to want to run. plus i see how i havent been gaining weight. this also explains why my dad came in my room at 10pm last night with a huge tuna sandwich. my parents know i dont eat right. it's time to do south beach diet. im going to go get some nuts and yogurt (im supposed to get plain but eff that! i'm allowed that cheat because plain tastes like throw up!)

btw, you can comment on any post letting me know what you want me to blog about during the month of September.

"do what makes you happy"

my big brother dropped this along with some other gems in our hour-long convo sunday night. once or twice a season, i can actually get my big brother on the phone and we have good talks. he was drunk but still insightful on this particular occasion.

he told me things i already know but added his 4 additional years of life experience which offered more reassurance. he basically told me he was insanely proud of what im doing and all that extra shit doesn't matter. he said he didnt give a hell what i was doing in comparison with what other people are doing as long as i wasnt out here acting crazy and he knows that im really not. the conversation ended on this note "do what you need to do; you will always have me, kevin and tiffany on your side...and your bat shit crazy parents".

so i'm gonna do what makes me happy. can't wait to figure out what that could be.