Friday, July 29, 2011
Happy Friday.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
the water pilgrimage.
Let me explain.
I work in a really really super nice building.
The nicest building I've ever worked in over the (short) span of my working career thus far. When I move and continue working other places, it'll still probably be the nicest facility I'll have ever worked in. There's glass everywhere. Shiny marble. Fabulous modern furnishings in a four-story atrium and a little cafe serving breakfast and lunch.

There are scores of support staff that man that cafe and clean the building (including the bathrooms, all of them, at least three or four times a day.) It's ridiculous. But I am not complaining - it's also lovely.
Anyway. I have these habits. I think they're good ones. I drink a ton of water. Possibly a gallon a day; not entirely sure. I used to go fill up my trusty plastic cup at the water fountain right by my office. One day, or operations director saw me and said (I kid you not), "WHY, pray tell, are you drinking out of the water fountain?! You do realize that we have nice, filtered, refrigerator water in the break room across the atrium, don't you?"
Well, no I didn't, actually. But I guess since the water fountain is off limits (except for guests - they don't get the good stuff?), I'll start walking across the way for my many times daily fill-up.
So, for the past year or so, I've been trekking across the atrium, from my office to the break room across the way to fill up my water cup. I've really started to enjoy it - my office is nice as far as offices go. I have a secondary window that looks out on to a hallway, through another office and finally out an outside window. I get light of day, indirectly. I have a door. But the atrium. You saw the photo. Now, it's a break I look forward to - getting up, stretching my legs, checking out the action in the atrium (that's where visitors come) and enjoying the full sunshine you see in the fully glassed-in area. Plus, I walk like, half a mile a day, to and fro between office and break room.
This morning, my little routine was interrupted by a really pleasant lady who works in the cafe.
"I see you walking way over there at least 25 times a day," she says. "You know the cafe water is triple-filtered, right? And cold? Why don't you just come get your water from the kitchen?" She says this all very patiently, as I'm obviously a tad slow to be walking a half mile per day just for water.
So anyway, I feel obligated to explain to her that I skip the water fountain because I was encouraged to drink the filtered water. I'm not a water snob, I insist. A little fluoride is good for a person.
In summary:
- Water fountain (is less than) filtered breakroom water (is less than) super awesome triple filtered chilled cafe water.
- I am a weirdo who drinks way too much water, walks too far for it and thinks she's too good for the water fountain.
- We have entirely too many water options. I mean, seriously.
And, I apologize for sharing the weird again. I do think this little exercise will help dissolve the writer's block I've been experiencing while writing pages for our annual report. So this has been beneficial after all. I think I need a water break first, though...
OH! And so this isn't a total loss. I give you, Barcelona:
EF - Live The Language - Barcelona from Albin Holmqvist on Vimeo.
Hm. This isn't my favorite of the series but it still makes me insanely travel-jealous. We wanted to go here for our honeymoon but realized that there was a bit of a cash flow issue for a weeklong (or more) Euro trip. We had the best vacation we've ever had in Vegas, thanks to a family friend. But Barcelona is still on the bucket list. And it sure would be nice to go there while I still look decent in a swimsuit. Although, I'm pretty sure I never looked like the girl in the video. Seesh.
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Bejing
EF - Live The Language - Beijing from Albin Holmqvist on Vimeo.
(By the way, these all came from the ModLife blog, which is almost always interesting reading.)
I am fairly sure I'm more of a Europe girl than an Asia one, but this does make me want to explore the asian side of things as well... Can you study abroad for work? Sigh.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Oh, to be a study abroad student again...
EF - Live The Language - Paris from Albin Holmqvist on Vimeo.
And there are more... I believe I'll share them one at a time since I am the worst blog poster ever lately. This will give anyone who happens to look at my blog something to daydream about :)
Monday, October 25, 2010
Monday, September 27, 2010
And I thought the treadmills were cool
Anyhow - O.K. Go is the best, I've decided.
Also, some other things to make you happy -
Hyperbole and a Half: ever heard of her? Me neither. So I visited her about pageS and continued to die laughing. How completely, awesomely, unhelpful?
Seriously, the best -
Sneaky hate spiral. (this about sums up my last week.)
The alot is better than you at everything.

Thursday, September 2, 2010
Nobody puts Baby in a corner!
This will be epic. And if it's not, I will be highly disappointed.
I hope they don't make Baby wear this:
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
a rediscovered classic.
I adored it - we relived our honeymoon a bit which was awesome as we both are beyond ready for another vacation... In addition to the nice memories, the movie was ridiculously silly and mood-boosting.

Elvis impersonators - black, asian, kid, skydiving and others... SJP in a string of awesomely bad (verging more on just plain awesome, actually) early 90s supertight dresses. Nic Cage in my favorite version of what he does, cringe-inducing and simultaneously endearingly sweet. Vegas, Hawaii. All of these things made for particularly awesome viewing.
Pure escapist pleasure. Check it out if you're feeling like a vacation. Or a sweet soundtrack of Elvis covers.
I'm going to try to keep this going with more frequent, but short and sweet posts with whatever happens to grab my attention. We'll see how this goes :)
Another Vegas shot or two, just because:

If you ever do find yourself in Vegas, please visit the Neon Boneyard. It was so incredibly cool; deconstructed Vegas. Vegas that was. Fun contrast to see what used to be (here) compared to what is now (on the strip.)
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Telephone - three ways
Apparently I can't embed it (bah!) but check out the video here. You'll need it for reference before you see my totally awesome spoofs.
First, we have the soldiers of 82nd Airborne, stationed in Afghanistan. Way to find some way to perk up what must be a completely un-fun and most likely downright hellish military assignment. My friend Alex is in Afghanistan. Apparently she's the only expat girl to be found just about anywhere... wonder if any of these guys are single. Alex... the star is pretty much a catch:
Then - I think this awesome, but this might only be amusing to NPR nerds - NPR staffers did a send up inspired by the 82nd. I adore NPR for it's morning news and weekend programming and always secretly thought it'd be awesome to work there. I saw the building every Wednesday on my drive from work down to kickball on the Mall... don't the producers and directors look so young and FUN? I want to be friends with NPR people. The big names (Nina Totenberg - reading like it's a supreme court transcript - ha!) are pretty funny too. Although their dancing skillz leave something to be desired.
Some Thursday enjoyment for you.
And if you do happen to be in a gay bar when this video comes on, you'll know what I mean. It's the new Single Ladies.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
The Video Post.
So, first - WaPo (whose subsidiary, Slate, is one of my favorite sources for news and commentary) with their Scene In series - this one is Union Station, but I love the Dupont Circle one, too. Makes me really miss the district. I particularly love the dapper guy with the monogrammed cufflinks (he reminds me of my boss while I worked there) and the two little girls with the magic tape.
Unfortunately, this one won't let me embed - but visit the link, it's totally worth it.
WaPo also announces the new Pantone color of the year in the Styles section - Which, as it happens, has been my color of the year every year since, oh, 1999. Delightful!O.K. Next video. The following two are of a similar, slam poetry ilk. Typography was brought to my attention by my old Auburn prof, Robert, who was linked to it by a current student. It's fun staying in touch with people who, without social networks, would likely be lost in space until some big reunion year, if that. Yay for the internet.
Also, I am totally guilty of what this video is railing against, you know? (heh.)
Typography from Ronnie Bruce on Vimeo.
Lastly, Canada! I've been completely fixated on Canadia with the start of the Winter Olympics, gobbling up Slate's Five Ring Circus coverage, and generally contemplating what it means to be sort of Canadian. (If you are not aware, my mom is a Canadian citizen. She married my dad in the seventies and after a stint abroad, moved to the U.S. She's been living here for 30+ years; never naturalized. Our little - legal - alien.) It's interesting, because aside from a visit every year or two, I haven't really explored that part of my identity. Probably why I'm so interested in people's takes on the Canadian people and their culture and lifestyle.Which leads me to Shane Koyczan's take on his mother country in We Are More, which was commissioned by the Canadian Tourism Commission and was used in the Olympic Opening Ceremonies.
So, these are an assembly of things that I have been enjoying lately. Anything good I've been missing out on?
Monday, February 8, 2010
OCTOBER?! REALLY?
Truth is, I spend so much time banging away at the computer for work (we launched a new Drupal Web site in July, and I've been messing with that, oh, forever. Most recently incorporating an intranet for internal users) that I am pretty much over it by the time it comes to anything else.
What's been going on, other than computers? Not much, BUT...
- I did go to the Salesforce conference in San Francisco in November. Amazing trip, both personally and professionally. I was able to meet up with my aunt and uncle which was a blast - lots of amazing food, a performance of Wicked, and a really appreciated mini family reunion. The Salesforce conference itself signified a looong road ahead of more Web wrangling. This time trying to integrate our relationship management system (Salesforce) with an eCommerce element that has yet to be chosen and the Drupal site. Oof. Equally as disturbing - J and I watched Up in the Air in the theater a month or so ago and the whole sequence where they crash the corporate conference was eerily reminiscent of the San Fran conference. Those conferences are ridiculous.
- Christmas and New Year were awesome. Lots of amazing food and really nice times with everyone. Added some new ornaments to the collection and about 33 more strings of lights. Our living room was pretty reminiscent of Vegas. Which was delightful. Coming to find out I'm not really strong on restraint when it comes to home decor. Had great visits with long-lost, out-of-town friends. Ahem, Dustin.
- The weather sucks. No, really. I'm so ready for spring and a bachelorette weekend to the beach for umbrella drinks and excessive sunning that I can't stand it. Damn you, Puxatawney Phil. Which reminds me of a good one I heard recently. "They should re-release Groundhog Day and call it Groundhog Day 2."
- Wedding planning continues. I'm having way too much fun on ETSY.
Monday, September 28, 2009
I Gotta Feeling...
That tonight's gonna be a good night,
That tonight's gonna be a good GOOD night!
I love this song. It's inexplicable. I know the Black Eyed Peas are totally cheesy. And pop-y. But I adore most of their stuff, and especially this little number.
Check 'em out on Oprah. J showed me this video last night and it completely made my evening. I, by the way, am 100 percent that one girl in the front - jamming out while everyone is looking at her like she's having a seizure. Hilarious.
There's a sharper version on YouTube (here), but I like this one because you can see the girl completely spazzing out before the others join her. Heh.
Erm, I hope this will counteract the intensity of my previous post a smidge. Considered removing it, but decided that that would be a cop out. A person can't be all sunshine and happiness all the time. It's all cyclical. And I'm on an upswing. :)
Friday, September 18, 2009
Miscellany
I seem to be leaving you in the lurch all the time lately, don't I? I really do feel guilty on one level. But on another, a neglected blog means a busy and full real life. So yeah. That's a good thing. What have I been up to...
Lots of tours and layout and web at work. Lots of plotting and scheming outside of work for this little event we have coming up in May. Got quite an impressive amount of work done this week on that front.
- Ordered a wedding dress
- Picked a venue (um, gorgeous?!)
- Ordered bridesmaid dresses (Aqua on super sale at J.Crew. I am trying to be a good, recession-conscious, bargain savvy friend...) The J.Crew customer service rep informed me via email how nice "my girls" are to work with and how great my friends are. I couldn't agree more, Veronica. But hearing someone else appreciate them in the way I do makes me feel even better.
- Made an appointment for deposits on the food, photographer and venue.
I am so looking forward to this low-key, understated (gorgeous, fun) observation of the start of our marriage and most of all recognizing this huge event in our lives with our nearest and dearest: Veronica's "best friends ever" and family from all over. And family friends.We start "how-to-handle-your money-now-that-you're-attached-forever-and-ever classes" early next month and pastoral counseling sessions start in December. Is it strange that I'm looking forward to this? I guess these are so attractive to me because I really feel like we're entering into this with eyes open, and minds open. Ready to not just love each other unconditionally and eat lots o' good food, but aware and ready for the real world stuff. The paying off grad school loans and saving for retirement stuff.
Can't remember who - whether it was mom, dad or both, who always said something to the effect of, "money can't buy you happiness, but a lack of it can make you miserable." I want us to be real happy, like comfortable in our lives happy. And I have faith that this will come together for us. With lots of work at it.
Hrm. Aside from financial rants, other interesting things -
Headed to San Francisco in November! I booked airline tickets yesterday and will be spending some time out West. Half with the fam and the rest at a Dreamforce conference. Exciting.
Also, my friend Michelle started a blog! She's too cute and I loved her inaugural post about creative uses for leftovers. Totally keeping an eye out on her for posts like this... extremely useful. She's an entertaining writer, too. Check her out!
Still totally enjoying Glee. For those who haven't watched yet, please do. I am aware that I have a fixation with anything dance and/or musical-related and that not everyone dies over SYTYCD like I do. I can honestly say that this show will be a perfect Wednesday night pick-me-up for anyone. Musically inclined or no. Campy and hilarious. And current/relevant. Quality viewing.
Heading to the Monte Sano art fair this weekend. I love it up there (even more now... :) and the art show is always a blast. It's become one of the first signs of fall here, probably because it's a bit cooler up on the mountain... delightful.
So, blog, again - I apologize for the abandonment. But as you can see, I've been a busy lady. I think less frequent, more action-packed posts are acceptable. And they are going to have to work for a while. This is a fun hobby. Not another job duty. Thankfully.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Lull.
I think the perfect way to get back into the swing of things is to discuss my summertime obsession. SYTYCD (#sytycd on Twitter!)
After an amazing first week of couples competition, yesterday's performances were kinda underwhelming. My early favorites had slow performances... still liking them better than the others, though. Everyone else seemed to love the waltz and spastic popper Phillip, who I can't stand and find painfully goofy.
Other general impressions:
- Love Kayla, but so does everyone else. She'll be fine.
- Also love Caitlin and I'm a bit more concerned about how she'll do this week. On an unrelated note, am I the only one who thinks she looks like Amy Smart? Like her partner too. That Bollywood number last week was incredible.
- The only major change of heart I've had between last week and this one was for Jonathan and his partner uhh... whatsherface. They were AWESOME. I had him totally pegged as a mediocre ballroom dancer, then in comes this incredible choreographer from SYTYCD Canada and her infallible "Falling Slowly" song choice and brings the couple back to life. I feel badly that I don't remember the girls' name (Karla...there!)
- Speaking of Karla, she's fast becoming another of my favorites, she made absolutely no impression on me last week and suddenly comes out of the woodwork with the contemporary number. And lo and behold, she's also an accomplished hip-hopper who dances in a crew! Fun!
- So, other recaps have been calling Lil C's reviews rambling and incoherent, but I was pretty impressed with his philosophical reviews of dances. And his amazing vocabulary. Nice.
- Love Melissa and Ade, too. But didn't fully appreciate their performance the first time, changing my attitude after the reviews and the recap. Is this bad? At least I can claim that the bf came home during this and I felt compelled to talk even though I'd really rather have just shushed everyone till it was finished...
Had to add this photo because (1) it's HILARIOUS. This dude looks so young.. and (2) because he and his partner are first dancers of the season to win me over from skepticism or pure dislike.At any rate, it'll be interesting to see who leaves tomorrow. These reality shows are awfully time consuming with the two night performance-then-elimination format and if I watch them at all I typically skip the performance night and watch the group numbers, recaps and special guests on the results show. But this show is my drug and I can't seem to do that. Addicted.
I do kind of wish that they'd keep the show to once a year. I think that the buildup of waiting SO long between seasons is part of what makes the show so great (you know, that and the enthusiastic, talented - HOT - dancers and fun costumes and music). But as with all things, absence makes the heart grow fonder. I hope this multiple seasons per year thing doesn't kill it for me. Also, I would really like my Wednesday and Thursday nights back. My social life would suffer if this happened twice a year. :)
I really, really, REALLY want to take couples dancing lessons. After the start of this show and a fun Nashville visit, I'm convinced.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
SYCYCD!
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Susan Boyle, i love you. Part two.
Let me count the ways.Apparently, Susan Boyle is not only immensely talented, but she's her own woman as well. I seriously can't get enough of this woman.
Ever since she's been thrown into the international media spotlight with her Britain's Got Talent performance, everyone from Tina Fey to Larry King have been speculating whether Boyle would make an almost inevitable princess transformation.
Love that she says that she feels no need to change her personality for the show. Exactly right, why should she change.
Best to you, Susan Boyle, with or without the bushy eyebrows! Nice leather jacket, too. :)
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
DNA inspired artwork - good combination.
From our site:
The HudsonAlpha DNA Day Art Competition was created to highlight the natural connections that exist between the scientific and artistic fields. Artists from across Alabama were invited to submit works inspired by the human genome and its relationship to health and disease. Kimberly Hart, a Huntsville artist and educator at Greengate School, created the winning submission, Code Cracked. Hart noted that the inspiration for Code Cracked was from a newspaper article describing the sequencing and interpretation of an individual’s DNA:Displayed are some highlights - check out the rest of the photos in our Facebook gallery!
“The article said in the next few years everyone will be able to decipher his or her own DNA and we will be able to have a complete record of the traits we have inherited from our parents. We will all have ‘a genetic mirror’ of ourselves. That phrase mademe think about my own genetic traits and how they shadow me like a reflection.”
Finalists include Gary Anderson, for Teamwork; Gail Bryant, for Life Grows Where the River Flows; Jamie Stautert, for Pieces of Life, John "Jahni" Moore, for The Grand Symbol; and Mark Blevins, for Dominoes.
Come check them out for yourself! Hart’s work - as well as those of the finalists - will be available for viewing during DNA Day activities on April 24. Artwork will be displayed at the institute as part of the DNA Day Art Exhibition until May 29.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Susan Boyle, i love you.
I kinda hate it, but I was even thinking to myself that she was going to be another weirdo who goes on these shows and warbles away. While it makes me cringe to see these people get made fun of post performance, I also kinda wish they would have had the presence of mind not to go on at all.
So this morning, my friend @griffingotgun posted this video of Susan Boyle on Twitter.
It starts badly. She's kind of frowsy. She's smiling way too much, a little uncomfortable, 47 years old and unemployed. She wants to be a superstar and Simon is warming up for a good destruction session. And then:
Susan Boyle shows EVERYONE what's up. This video makes me sooo happy.
Well Susan Doyle is not your typical Professional singer. She’s 47, has a cat named Pebbles, and has never been kissed. And of course, the audience was quite skeptical with much cat-calling and eye-rolling as Susan introduced herself and spoke of her dream to be a professional singer.Happy Wednesday :)
[...]The 47 year old charity worker from West Lothian, drew smirks from the audience when she revealed that she wanted a career like that of West End singer Elaine Paige. But after her jaw-dropping performance and gorgeous voice, who knows what is possible for this sweet-demeanored singer? [source]
Now I need to see an unexpectedly good dancer on my favorite summer reality show. Everyone loves an underdog!
Monday, January 19, 2009
Tweeting a plane crash... mobile phone photographing a terror attack
The first time I remember regular people witnessing and recording newsworthy events with camera phones and pushing those images out through social media was during the terror attacks in London in 2005. Oddly enough, I was there. Two days after I arrived to Middlesex University outside of London for summer marketing classes, it was announced that London would host the 2012 summer Olympics.
The following morning, London erupted. Metro stations and city buses exploded with homemade explosives accompanied by homegrown terrorists. Young men from UK soil, brainwashed into demolishing their countrymen and women, systematically blew up local London transportation hubs.
After calling my mom and J to let them know that I was, in fact, alive and well (at 6 a.m. their time, before they even knew anything was amiss... "Uh, don't worry. Everything blew up here. I'm fine. Sorry to spring this on you first thing in the morning....") we all parked in front of the news, looking for answers about what happened, how many were killed... and why. The photo at the left is one that sticks in my mind from the days following those attacks... Passengers trapped in the tube after a tunnel caved in.The news was thoroughly disappointing. They knew nothing. All they covered were statements from public officials and interviews with stunned victims and witnesses from the attack. The most compelling new information was consistently provided by those on the scene, snapping images with their phones and emailing them to friends and contacts from all over the world. These images, when they finally reached the news media, were far more informative than anything that London journalists were able to gather with their cutting edge video and camera equipment.
What's happened recently is one step beyond London.
Not only are witnesses and victims alike taking photos, but they are going further than emailing their captures to one friend at a time... They are posting images to social media outlets like Twitter in real time.
From an Information Week blog:
Within minutes there were hundreds of Tweets about the crash, complete with pictures from eyewitnesses and even one person who was on a NYC ferry headed to the crash site to pick up passengers.
Crash photos linked from Twitter were circulating all over the world before the story was even picked up by any of the major news outlets - and I'm talking websites, not just televised news! NYTimes.com, CNN.com, FoxNews.com... NOTHING.Hell, back in December when another Continental flight skidded off of a Denver runway, crashing, a passenger live Tweeted the incident (this is actually kind of funny.... from The Guardian)
14 December, 4.06pm Whew! Christmas shopping pretty much done. 100% online except for a couple of gift certs.All I can say is that if something this traumatic ever happens to me, I hope I have this guy's sense of humor about the scenario. And Tweeting it?! I barely have enough going on in my life to keep tweeting on a regular basis anyway. I guess a crisis might spice things up a bit...
20 December, 5.25pm Holy fucking shit, I was just in a plane crash!
5.58pm This was crash No 2 for me. Maybe I should start taking the bus.
8.22pm You have your wits scared out of you, drag your butt out of a flaming ball of wreckage and you can't even get a vodka-tonic. Boo.
11.22pm [From computer at home] Sorry for the radio silence, but my battery died in the middle of all this and I just made it home.
11.57pm Pretty exhausted at this point, so I'm heading off to bed. Good night!
21 December, 8.29am Waiting in the continental club for the "replacement" flight. Noticing I'm a little sore.
5.25pm I'm sitting as close to the exit as possible this time.
7.57pm Touchdown! Crowd goes wild!
Friday, January 16, 2009
Bakula's baaaack!
Holy crap! Scott Bakula of Quantum Leap fame, is back to primetime next season as Chuck's dad in, uh, Chuck!I watched that show last season but lost interest after the writers' strike. This, however, might be the gimmick that brings me back to the show...
I LOVED Quantum Leap! My brother and I were all about that show! That, ChiPs and Charlie's Angels (sorry for implementing you in that one, Greg, but you know it's true...) Granted, all of my memories of the show are the supersweet pool game in the intro where he had this hologram guide to sink all the balls... and his hologram friend who was always smoking a cigar. And that he often was either in a woman's body and then, hilariously in drag. He was always stopping people from committing suicide or abandoning a child or shooting someone... Funny what you remember about shows you watched when you were young.
Anyway, he was the best! (Well, after MacGyver)
Can't wait to see him back on T.V.

