Relaxation Day

Since I am working all day tomorrow I decided to take today off and enjoy a nice relaxing day. Mike had given me a spa gift certificate for Christmas so I figured today was a good day to use it. I just got back from an amazing facial, massage and pedicure. I have to say I am a little jealous of women who do this on a regular basis. I am so relaxed from the treatments! The only thing I don't like about spas is how they try to sell you every product on the shelf. I have purchased way too many foot scrubs and toners to know I'm not really going to use them. Luckily this spa was pretty low key and didnt push it too much so I walked out without spending any extra money.

Now I am hanging out with the dogs on the patio enjoying the gorgeous weather, eating a Panera panini and drinking some Choco Vine. Next thing on the list is to do a little laundry and some cleaning while watching bad tv. Yes, I even make to do lists on relaxation days.

Two things I learned this week:
Playing Twister with your little sister is a challenge when you have three dogs curious as to what you are doing. Lots of face licks, getting knocked over, and the spinner being stolen is involved. Definitely not for beginner Twister players.

Even though our community is considered a "working" community there are way too many people at home during a workday. So either everyone has off, everyone is rich enough not to have to work, or the economy sucks and everyone is unemployed. I'm going with the last statement.

Hoping you all are having as relaxing a day as me. :) You can brag tomorrow while I'm at work.

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Random Thoughts

First a confession, I am reading Lauren Conrad's young adult novel L.A. Candy and I hate to say it but I am really enjoying it.  So much that I will most likely read her sequel and any others that come out in the series.  We all have to have our guilty pleasures, right?  Actually it's to the point where I have Tess Gerritsen's new book waiting for me and I don't want to stop reading this one- Tess Gerritsen is one of my favorite authors and I look forward to when she publishes a new book.  So it is kind of scaring me that I am not super excited to drop the current book and lunge into Gerritsen's new one.  What are my literary interests coming to?

And another confession, I have had my Droid X phone for a few months now and I was super excited to be getting it, but do you think I have used it to its full potential yet?  No.  I have limited myself to reading email, blogs, facebook posts, and newspapers.  Why am I not taking advantage of all the cool apps?  Tonight will be download a bunch of fun apps on my phone night since I need to justify having such a great phone and using very little of its capabilities.

This Saturday I am taking the little girl I mentor to the Palm Beach Zoo and I don't know who is more excited about this.  What could be better than spending the day at the zoo especially when they just got an exhibit of koala bears!  Be on the lookout for lots of pictures of the adorable animals. 

Too many books, So little time

We had our annual BookMania event yesterday for the library only this year it was at Jensen Beach High School so that we could accommodate more people. The venue was perfect and I always have quite a few more books to add to my "I want to read" list. The only problem is that I still have books on my list from last year's event. I think if I didn't have a job I would probably become a hermit and read books all day although my job is the cause of my book list being so long. You can't work in a library and not be tempted by each book list or advanced reader copy that comes across your desk.

Here are a few that I am most excited about reading:
Through a Dog's Eyes by: Jennifer Arnold
Scent of the Missing by: Susannah Charleson
Stiltsville by: Susanna Daniel (I have this one on my ebook reader right now)
Up From the Blue by: Susan Henderson
Dear Money by: Martha McPhee
Adam and Eve by: Sena Jeter Naslund

Let's see how long it will take me to get through this list with all of the other books waiting for me.

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Big Brothers, Big Sisters

A few months ago I applied to become a mentor in the Big Brothers, Big Sisters program.  Mike has been a mentor to a nine year old boy, AJ, for a little over a year now and it has been such a great experience for him that it made me want to participate too.  I met with my new "little sister" tonight for the first time and she is an adorable, patient eight year old girl who loves Disney and arts and crafts.  She is talkative and warmed up to me quickly and best of all, her mom is hoping that I can help her with her reading since it hasn't become a favorite hobby just yet.  Of course my mind started brainstorming of all the books we could read together in our own mini-bookclub and all of the activities we can do related to those books.  But first we are going to go bowling Monday night to get to know each other a little better (this was the first thing Seschay mentioned when asked what she loves to do).  I'm excited about starting this mentor program with her and hope that things work out well for a long friendship.

I'm Home!

Actually I have been home for a few days but I just got a chance to sit down to write this post after trying to catch up at work and getting past a cold that kept me in bed for most of the weekend. Although I had a fabulous time in San Diego, I am so glad to be home. The weather was cooler there than I had expected- didn't I hear somewhere that San Diego is eighty degrees all year long? I guess not since it was in the fifties and sixties the whole time. The conference was very informative, especially the full day pre-conference I attended on Friday and it was so amazing to actually be there live when the Newbery and Caldecott award winners were announced. Since our flight was canceled because of the snow in Atlanta, we had an extra day to go to the San Diego zoo on Monday. The best part about the zoo was seeing the polar bears playing underwater. I even got this great video of this with my phone:

Heading to San Diego

I will be flying out to San Diego tomorrow for the American Library Association Midwinter Conference and will be returning late Monday night.  So although I won't be writing any blog posts, I will be posting on my Facebook and Twitter accounts.  I normally feel completely re-energized and full of new ideas when coming back from a conference so I'm hoping this will happen again.  It would definitely be a welcome feeling right now.

I won't go into the details as to why I am so happy to see 2010 behind us but let's just say it sucked.  Like, really sucked.  But this year is looking up already because Mike just landed a huge project with his cabinet company that will give him work for the next four or five months and I was called back for a second interview for the Library Director position at my library.  My interview is next Friday so start saying those prayers and crossing your fingers for me.  This is something I feel I have worked very hard for and would be thrilled to be given the chance to take on the role.

Now back to doing laundry and getting organized for my trip.  I will be leaving the packing until tomorrow morning though, hence the need for doing the laundry.

TechnoLust

Mike and I have what I call technolust.  No, it's not a love for techno music.  It's a love of technology and even more than that, an urge to purchase every new technology as soon as it comes out.  So when I was scrolling through the Mashable blog today and came across a new technology being announced soon from Toshiba, I had to forward it on to Mike, who in turn was just as excited as I was.  What is this new piece of technology?  It's a tablet similar to the iPad but soooooooo much better.  It doesn't have a name yet but it is sure to impress once it arrives on the market.  What makes this tablet so awesome is that it runs on the Android operating system, has USB ports, front and back video cameras, and has a rubbery backing to prevent it from slipping in your hands.  Here is more info.  This is getting so close to what I think would be the ultimate technology: one that would incorporate every gadget that currently weighs down my purse into one device.  Here is what my perfect tablet would include:

• a screen that allows you to either have the glossy effect for movie watching and picture viewing but also allow you to turn off the gloss when reading an ebook (not sure if this is even possible)
• bluetooth capability so that it would work as a phone but using a wireless earpiece so you aren't holding up a huge device to your head (although that would be kind of funny to see)
• a kick-butt still camera and video camera
• tons of free apps optimized for the big screen size

This way I could stop carrying around so many devices.  At this moment I have the following in my purse, including various battery chargers for these gadgets: Sony Ebook Reader, Digital Camera, iPod Touch, and my regular cellphone.  No wonder the airport security guys look at the x-ray machine strangely when my bag passes through.  It must look like I am getting ready to assemble an intricate bomb.  So technology companies, if you are listening please put together a product with all of these things and you will have my attention and money immediately.

Grocery Store Self Checkout

Here are some rules to remember if you decide to use grocery self checkout machines.  This will make everyone standing behind you on line very happy.

1.  Count the items in your basket- if that number exceeds the number of fingers on your hands, move to a line with a cashier.
2.  If you do not know how to scan produce by yourself and there is a line behind you, now is not the time to learn.
3.  Don't use this as a time to chat with the person behind you.  That person just wants you to move faster.  There is a reason why we have chosen the self checkout machine and chatting with you isn't one of them.
4.  Paying with a credit or debit card is best, but cash is fine too.  Coins, on the other hand, are not okay especially if you are paying with coins for all 20 of your items.  By the way, you need to look back on rule #1 if you have 20 items in your cart.  To be even more honest, you shouldn't be on the self checkout line if you need a cart to carry all of your items.
5.   Make sure to bag your items as you go.  It is a horrible joke to play when we see that you have finally finished scanning your order and paying for it only to realize that you still have to bag all of your stuff.
6.  Finally, there is plenty of space to organize your receipt in your wallet, take out your sunglasses, and take out the keys to your car just ahead of the machine.  There is no need to add another five minutes onto the wait time of the people behind you.

This was all seen while waiting fifteen minutes for one of four self checkout machines at our local Walmart.  I guess I could have moved to another line with a cashier but then how would I have entertained you with my rules.

New Year's Resolutions and some updates

So it has been exactly two years since my last post and I realized how much I missed writing a personal blog, so here I go again.

I have decided that the only New Year's resolution I am making this year is to try to do at least some sort of exercise each day.  I walked this morning and Mike and I have a half-day kayak tour tomorrow so I'm off to a good start.  I am not going to bother with a healthy eating resolution because, well, I like food way too much.  Especially fast food and junk food.  For example, for dinner tonight I happily ate up a double cheeseburger and large fries from McDonalds with absolutely no guilt at all.  I will instead focus on more exercise and I really want to work my way through the Couch to Five K program which I purchased an app for my iPod quite a few months ago and have not used once.  The app let's me use my own playlists instead of suffering through the techno music that are in the podcasts.  I am making a deal with myself that I will have started the program by the end of January.

Now for some updates on our growing zoo at home.  We now have another dog (making a total of 3) and a ferret.  We decided to find a loving home for our bird, Sonny.  A friend's mom adopted Sonny into her flock of other birds and I hear that she is doing really well.  The new dog that we adopted is named Duke and he is the most friendly, cuddly black lab/pitbull mix I have ever met.  He loves to snuggle, get warm under the blankets, is scared of our beagle, and has a strange obsession with the cat.  The only thing I will say about the ferret is that we have a hate/hate relationship.  I hate having to change his cage and feed him everyday and he attacks me anytime he gets the chance.  This is clearly Mike's ferret since it cuddles right up to him but somehow I get the fun part of taking of it.  Here is the adorable Duke (you don't really need to see a picture of the ferret- just picture a rat-looking thing but longer):

I'm looking forward to a hopefully happy, productive, and profitable year ahead.  And lots of writing on this blog, of course!

Happy New Year!

The new year has started out really nice so far. Mike made cinnamon and brown sugar pancakes with bacon this morning for breakfast, then we cleaned out his closet (this should have been done a year ago), then we went up to the tennis courts to hit a little (I can't believe how out of shape I felt- time to start exercising again). Now we are just vegging out in front of the tv. I think maybe I'll make paninis for dinner later with the new panini maker I got for Christmas. I swear I could eat those things every day.



The next two days will be spent getting ready for the cruise we are taking on Sunday, cleaning the house, and working on my scrapbooking projects. We are going on a week long Caribbean cruise on the new Celebrity ship, The Solstice. I can't wait- the reviews of this ship have been amazing. There are cabanas at the pool, a martini bar made out of ice, and the food is supposed to be incredible. I will definitely be taking lots of pictures and will post some when we get back. Here is how relaxing the cruise we took two years ago was:

99 Things

I took this from a few other blogs I follow.

THE 99 THINGS MEME

Things you’ve already done: bold
Things you want to do: italicize
Things you haven’t done and don’t want to:leave in plain font

1. Started your own blog.
2. Slept under the stars. (camping counts right?)
3. Played in a band.
4. Visited Hawaii. (I cannot wait to visit)
5. Watched a meteor shower.
6. Given more than you can afford to charity.
7. Been to Disneyland/world.
8. Climbed a mountain.
9. Held a praying mantis.
10. Sang a solo.
11. Bungee jumped.
12. Visited Paris. (although Mike despises France so I'm not sure if this will happen anytime soon)
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea. (a few too many times on our boat)
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch. (I think scrapbooking counts as an art)
15. Adopted a child.
16. Had food poisoning. (unfortunately twice from the same restaurant- I'll never eat chicken at Duffy's again)
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty.
18. Grown your own vegetables. (I'll pretend they meant fruit too- we have a banana tree in our backyard)
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France.
20. Slept on an overnight train. (on my high school trip to Europe)
21. Had a pillow fight.
22. Hitch hiked.
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill. (although I haven't taken a sick day, real or not, in almost four years)
24. Built a snow fort.
25. Held a lamb. (I may have when I was little- I definitely have vivid memories of milking a goat)
26. Gone skinny dipping.
27. Run a marathon.
28. Ridden a gondola in Venice. (this will definitely happen sooner than visiting Paris since Mike really wants to go to Italy)
29. Seen a total eclipse.
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset.
31. Hit a home run.
32. Been on a cruise. (I'm going on my third cruise in less than two weeks)
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person.
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors.
35. Seen an Amish community.
36. Taught yourself a new language.
37.Had enough money to be truly satisfied.
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person.
39. Gone rock climbing.
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David in person.
41. Sung Karaoke.
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt.
43. Bought a stranger a meal in a restaurant.
44. Visited Africa. (I desperately want to go on a safari)
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight.
46. Been transported in an ambulance. (I think I was taken by ambulence as a baby when I fell off a bed)
47. Had your portrait painted. (my brother and I had caricatures done in Las Vegas)
48. Gone deep sea fishing.
49. Seen the Sistine chapel in person.
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris.
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling. (snorkeling- I would like to try scuba diving but Mike wouldn't be able to join me with his lung having collapsed a few years ago and I wouldn't want him to be jealous)
52. Kissed in the rain.
53. Played in the mud.
54. Gone to a drive-in theater. (the movie I remember seeing is Gremlins although I went to a few others)
55. Been in a movie.
56. Visited the Great Wall of China.
57. Started a business. (just working on that now)
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia.
60. Served at a soup kitchen.
61. Sold Girl Scout cookies.
62. Gone whale watching.
63. Gotten flowers for no reason.
64. Donated blood.
65. Gone sky diving.
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp. (although not in the way Mike would like to visit- he wants to do a tour that makes you feel like you were in the army at that time, camping in the cold and all that)
67. Bounced a check.
68. Flown in a helicopter. (I think this would be fun to do in Hawaii)
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy.
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial.
71. Eaten Caviar.
72. Pieced a quilt.
73. Stood in Times Square.
74. Toured the Everglades. (this shouldn't be too hard being that I don't live that far away)
75. Been fired from a job.
76. Seen the Changing of the Guard in London.
77. Broken a bone. (I really wanted to break a bone when I was a kid. I think it had to do with getting to leave class early when you were on crutches. I definitely don't think this is a good idea anymore)
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle. (I have been on two different motorcycles)
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person. (and honestly I wasn't that impressed)
80. Published a book.
81. Visited the Vatican.
82. Bought a brand new car. (I have bought/leased 4 brand new cars so far)
83. Walked in Jerusalem.
84. Had your picture in the newspaper. (once as a kid and once for a library article)
85. Read the entire Bible.
86. Visited the White House. (I have been outside the White House numerous times but I don't ever remember actually taking the tour inside)
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating. (and I hope I never have to)
88. Had chickenpox. (I had the chicken pox shot because I never got them)
89. Saved someone’s life.
90. Sat on a jury.
91. Met someone famous.
92. Joined a book club. (but I didn't stay long)
93. Lost a loved one.
94. Had a baby.
95. Seen the Alamo in person.
96. Swum in the Great Salt Lake. (I'm pretty sure I've done this- I know I visited there as a kid)
97. Been involved in a law suit.
98. Owned a cell phone. (um... who hasn't?)
99. Been stung by a bee.

A Big Smooch to Your Computer

How could I resist posting this video of Curtis- makes me smile each time.

A Short Trip from Friday

On Friday we went to the Florida Oceanographic Center and then went for a walk on the beach. Here are a few pictures of the day:

Flowers in Florida in November

My mom, dad, and I took a trip to the Heathcote Botanical Gardens this afternoon and it was so nice to see so many flowers still in bloom. It's still taking some time to realize that things still bloom down here in the winter, unlike in NY. Here are some pictures I took there:

My Favorite Authors

I have two favorite authors that up until recently were not very well known and to tell you the truth, I liked it better that way. I started reading Cecelia Ahern before her first novel was turned into a movie:

I have yet to see the movie, not because I'm afraid I won't like it as much as the book (although this is usually the case- not many directors can compete with our own imaginations) but because Mike is a tv hog and doesn't feel like watching the movie. So I have to wait for a time when I have the tv all to myself to watch it.

Cecelia Ahern is coming out with a new book this spring but since she is now more popular I am going to have to wait on a long list of holds at the library:

My other favorite author who has become more and more popular is Jane Green. She writes really cute chick lit books that are based in both England and New England. Actually one of her books reminds me a lot of the movie The Holiday with Kate Winslet and Cameron Diaz.

For anyone who is looking for a place to track what they are reading now, what they've read, and what they would like to read in the future, check out Shelfari. You can see my bookshelf of what I'm reading now on the left column of the blog.

The Zoo

I'll start by introducing my own little zoo at home. Amazingly they all get along very well and like to play with each other although sometimes a little too rough. Curtis, the cat, bruised his nose by wrestling too much with Angel, the beagle. Sonny, the cockatoo, doesn't necessarily care for Curtis but I don't blame him when you have a cat stalking you around every corner. Baloo, the black lab, is the sweetest and most well behaved of the bunch so he naturally gets picked on by all the others. We also have fish but I was told at some point that taking flash pictures of fish can blind them so I'm going to pass on taking their pictures.

So here are the animals that run the house:

Angel

Baloo

Curtis

Sonny

At this point, I would need a bigger house to expand this brood anymore. Of course that doesn't mean I can't get a pet that lives someplace else, such as....... a horse. =) Then again maybe not.