Thing 14

Drink a beer.  (I hate beer)

Yesterday was St. Patrick’s Day.  Yesterday was St. Patrick’s Day and I am Irish, need I say more?

Okay, for sake of this being a blog and all, I’ll say more.  For as long as I can remember I have hated beer.  It’s not that I just “don’t like it”, no, it’s a totally “hate” relationship.  I added it to the list this year thinking that I’d have to drink one with my cousin’s during the Superbowl.  Alas, our team didn’t make it to the Superbowl, therefore, no beer.  Only one out of the four of us likes beer, so dropping it was a relief to say the least.  But then I realized, crap, it’s still on my list!

St. Patrick’s Day brought lots of people out to the bar across the street from my Dad’s house, and so I dragged my sister out to meet our good friends and some family.  Besides, the fire departments bagpipers were doing a pub crawl and one of the stops was this bar.  Bonus!

And so, after I filled up on corned beef, potatoes, carrots, and fresh rolls, I choked down a green beer and chased it with a lovely can of Dr. Pepper.  That will most assuredly be the only beer I partake of this year.  Back to hard lemonades, desert wines and shots.  Yep, I’m that kind of gal!

I hope that you enjoyed your weekends...  



...more than I enjoy beer!

I'm In A Funk...

I'm ready for the weekend.

This blog isn't going to be as whiny as I have felt this whole week so don't worry.  My Mom would be pissed if I whined.  She never allowed that in her house, so we were raised well!

Let's see, I just spent a decent amount of time reading about being a surrogate Mother.  Why not?  Someone should get some use out of my lady parts before they rot away.  Plus I could make some money and help someone who cannot have their own child...  But then again, I want kids so it's like an extra stab in the heart isn't it?  Bah.

There is nothing exciting to dish about this week for me.  The good news about that is that these moods usually lead me to super productive Saturday cleaning days, and Lord knows I need one BIG time.  It's not so much that I've been bitten by the Spring-cleaning bug, as much as it is I just have a lot of JUNK in my house to go through.  And now the spiders are coming out.  I'd rather tackle this mess now than wait till Winter again because I don't want to see bugs.  Thank goodness I have great hunter kitties.  Beans and Ivy have been on the lookout already and have (that I have witnessed) murdered several unwanted spiders.  Well done, guys.

Maybe I'll paint something in my yard this weekend, or do some yard work...

...probably not.

I am excited to watch My Week With Marilyn tonight though.  I've been looking forward to seeing that movie for a long time now.

Aaaaaaaand, let's end with a quote:

"I've learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow. I've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights. I've learned that regardless of your relationship with your parents, you'll miss them when they're gone from your life. I've learned that making a "living" is not the same thing as making a "life." I've learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance. I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw something back. I've learned that whenever I decide something with an open heart, I usually make the right decision. I've learned that even when I have pains, I don't have to be one. I've learned that every day you should reach out and touch someone. People love a warm hug, or just a friendly pat on the back. I've learned that I still have a lot to learn. I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
― Maya Angelou

Happy weekend, Bloggers!

Things 12 & 13!

This adventure was a double whammy!

Thing 12: Be a part of a flash mob.

Flash mobs used to hold an entirely negative connotation.  The term “flash mob” was used to describe a quick escalating group of people who typically destroyed things.  Flash mobs did things like the riots that happened in California after the O.J. trial.  They were groups that were hard to control and did great damage as a result.

In 2003 that all changed.  It took many years after that to get up and running but I’d guess around 2005-2008 I had my first tastes of flash mobs that were created for entertainment value; the biggest of those being the acting group who randomly froze at 2:30PM in Grand Central Station.  I saw that video and fell in love with flash mobs; particularly the ones involving dance.

In 2009 a woman (Staci) and a man (Conroe) founded an organization called Flash Mob America.  Their first mission: A Michael Jackson Tribute to Beat It.  Sometime in 2010 I joined their mailing list.  At the end of last year, my friend, Mel, and I decided that 2012 would be our year to cross “be a part of a flash mob” off our Bucket Lists.

March 6, 2012 appeared on their website followed by Chicago, IL.  We were in.  We signed up and never looked back.

Flash Mob America is an incredibly detailed group; they leave nothing up to chance, and nothing up to blowing their cover.  Less than a week before show time we got our assignment info: as vague as possible, with instructions that our dance video (sent as a private link) would be emailed to us only days before the event.  And randomly, by awesome luck, my friend was chosen as the mascot!  Mascot for what?  We had no clue, but we were SO in!

The videos arrived and I spent that Saturday rehearsing and getting the first half down.  We had instructions to show up at a center for the arts in Chicago on Tuesday, the day of the mob, at 8am for dance rehearsal.  That is all that we knew.

Monday night, Mel got a call from the producer and found out that she was 1 inch too short to be the mascot.  Being the wonderful friend that she is, she handed my name over and thus a star was born!

8am brought us to the Ruth Page Center for the Arts in Chicago, IL.  Only something this exciting would be able to drag us out of bed and onto the road at 5:45AM!

For 3 hours we danced.  It was a dream come true.

And finally, as I hopped into my Oreo costume, we were given our location and the time (noon) that the business was goin’ down.  At noon we would be celebrating Oreo’s 100^th Birthday party.  On Michigan Avenue.  IN DOWNTOWN CHICAGO!!!!!

It was the most unbelievable day that I have ever had.  Oh, and did I mention that my friend and I were hired to stay for 2 or 3 hours?  Yep, we’re getting paid, baby!  I don’t even care if it’s a dollar, I’m getting paid to dance and be the flippin’ Oreo Man – what is more fabulous than that?  Oh, AND I’m in like a gazillion pictures.  I felt like a celebrity.  The mob ended and everyone (dancer-wise) left, and then a swarm of hundreds of people and cameras surrounded me and my “Handler”, Mel.  It was hilarious.

(Mel, Me, and Mitzie, the Producer)

(this guy worked for oreo, but i like to refer to him as my boyfriend.)

Did I mention that being a cookie is hard work?  It was a sauna in that double stuff cookie.  Plus, I’ve never felt so molested in all of my life.  People are so weird.  And why are people drunk at noon?  I may never get that one.

(can't a cookie get a cab in this town without the paparazzi getting all up in my double stuff?)

WORTHY NOTE:  One of the organizers helped me get into the Oreo suit, in a crammed tent, moments before the mob.  She had these words of wisdom for me, and I quote, “If anyone gets too physical or starts molesting you, slap the sh#t out of them!”  I didn’t expect that one!  “Stay in character”, is more what I was thinking.  But nope, that was so not the case.  Best advise ever.

(Me and Mel)

Highlights:

      -          Being in a flash mob

-          Dancing in a REAL dance studio in a “big” city

-          Working with a for-real producer!

-          Being the Oreo cookie

-          Seeing the Marilyn Monroe statue in person.

-          Being on several News Broadcasts

      -          Getting paid for all of the above!

Bonus: 

Thing 13: Learn to Dougie. Record dance video.

One of our other “things” was to learn how to Dougie.  Yep –the Dougie was in the dance that we did!  Ha!  (See video in previous post)

Preview...

Just a little preview before my post! ;)

Tomorrow...

Tomorrow has all of my attention at the moment.

Tomorrow is less than 24 hours away.

Tomorrow has my belly doing back-flips at the moment.

Tomorrow is so close, yet so far away...

Tomorrow has made me like a kid on Christmas Eve that waiting for Santa to arrive; trying desperately to stay awake and catch a glimpse of his crimson coat and his big bushy beard.  My heart beating ever so quickly as I listen for the clicking of Rudolph's heels on the rooftop and the jingling of Santa's bells...

Tomorrow is huge.

Tomorrow is the day that I cross off something on my list of 52 Things, but beyond that, tomorrow is the day that I cross something off on my life's Bucket List. 

I don't think that I could possibly BE more excited.

Thing 11

Create a budget.

This easily goes along with the last one.  What a strike of luck; a class and a budget at the same time!  I killed two birds with one stone on that one!

 

Clearly I’m not going to take a picture of my actual financial situation and broadcast it to the nations.  What I will do, is take a crappy phone picture of my beautiful binder. 

 

My binder holds my post it notes, my Quickie Budget, my Monthly Cashflow Plan, and my Allocated Spending Plan.  These are forms I will do once a week and once a month; making sure that all of my money is spent on paper before I get it.  My binder also carries my coupon papers that I have to go through.  Have I told you?  I’m couponing now.  And DOUBLE couponing at that!

 

I will never become one of those ladies that proudly shows off 75 boxes of cereal and a stockpile of cleaning supplies that I bought for $32, saving $643 in the process!  Why?  Because what the h am I gonna do with a bunch of crap I will never, in my entire LIFETIME, be able to use?  As for me, I keep it simple.  I buy what I will use and use what I buy.  This has become a challenge for me and I quite enjoy it.

 

Budget. Done!

 

For those of you following my 52 Things, stay tuned for a post that will probably take place next Wednesday. I'm super excited to be checking off a particular thing next Tuesday. I can't wait!!!

 

Thing 10

Take a random class just for fun.

It over a half-decade ago that I discovered random classes were available to the general public.  Funny, I know, but I guess I just never really paid attention.  College courses were for college students after all, right?  Nope. See, I found out that mini-courses were open to the public.  This changed my life.  And the first course I took was Hip Hop dance.

Now it’s 2012 and I needed the perfect class to take.  This 52 Things challenge has completely changed my awareness of life around me; it’s great!  Where before I would walk quickly through life, as if on a mission, I now stop and peruse community boards in public places.  I looked into cooking classes, and cake decorating classes, before finally setting my sites on a class that I’d never in my life have envisioned myself doing. 

Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University.

The class meets weekly, for 2 hours, on Monday nights.  It’s a 13-week course.  We haven’t even hit the halfway marker yet and I have found my life to be forever changed.  This course is fantastic!  Plus, look at all the neat stuff I got!  Plenty of tools, right at my fingertips, to help me succeed.

Dave Ramsey is the author of the best-selling book Total Money Makeover.  It’s an outstanding book, and for some reason in my cleaning last week I found 2 copies of it.  Anyway, I found parts of the book difficult to comprehend, but that’s simply because they didn’t apply to my life at the moment.  I think as a result of that I never really stuck with the program.  Financial Peace is so much better in my humble opinion. 

If you are in control of your finances already, or if your finances are in control of YOU, this course is well worth the investment. 

My goal is to be debt-free in 2 years.  Wish me luck! 
No, not luck, discipline!!