MIA

In case anyone's been wondering why I've been so quiet, I've been kidnapped by vampires and werewolves. ... I picked up Twilight on Aug. 10 and haven't stopped reading since. I'm almost done with Breaking Dawn - have to leave the house for work sometimes. Hopefully will get that one finished tonight and I can go back to my normal life.

I know some of my friends are reading too - so maybe they're all missing too and I didn't even notice!

What accent?

What American accent do you have? Your Result: The Northeast Judging by how you talk you are probably from north Jersey, New York City, Connecticut or Rhode Island. Chances are, if you are from New York City (and not those other places) people would probably be able to tell if they actually heard you speak.
Philadelphia
The Inland North
The Midland
The South
Boston
The West
North Central
What American accent do you have? Quiz Created on GoToQuiz

Michael Phelps makes it hard to focus

I just finished writing this week's Spotlight on the Studio Matters blog. I still need to pinch myself sometimes to think I'm part of the Crew! I think it's almost my scrapping anniversary. I joined SBB in October 2004, but I think I started lurking there in August, soon after Betty's wedding since I wanted to start scrapping the photos.

I've been feeling pretty overwhelmed lately - not really with scrapping stuff since that's what calms me down - but with work and family stuff. I find it really hard to focus and get things done. Today, I made a list for myself. I kept the TV off. Stayed signed off email so that I could work. It helped a little.

I've been loving the Olympics! How awesome is Michael Phelps! I heart him. He's amazing to watch! I felt pretty bad for the women gymnasts last night, too. I think the reason I love the Olympics so much is that it's filled with useless information! Sports you only watch every four years. Those sappy profiles of athletes. All those stats, facts and hard to pronounce last names!
Did you know Togo won it's first medal! A Bronze in single kayak slalom. I just had to google Togo to see where it is. See what I mean!

I also started reading Twilight! I'm about three-fourths of the way through it. I'm only letting myself read a little each day because I get so obsessed and I want to enjoy it! I really love the story so far and I can see why people are crazy about it!

I need to go make some lunch and maybe get off the computer for awhile. And I leave you with some of my latest scrapping...

Rocky down on the waterfront. He's so handsome! Lots of goodies by Jenn Trippetti and Holly McCaig, Jess Bolton and a Tracy Blankenship template! Credits

This is my new favorite photograph that I've taken! I took some shots of the skyline last weekend from the new little park in town. It's like a whole different planet down there these days. Doesn't feel like West New York at all. It's quiet, serene and so pretty. A nice change from the chaos, crowds and noise up here on the cliff. So I did this page for a circle journal I'm doing with some of my bestest digi friends. And I'm so happy with how it turned out. It was one of those pages that took awhile to come together! And I also got to play with stuffs from the designer at SBG, Phuong Ton. Credits

Soon after I finished this page - with a little snarky journaling about how I didn't like my sister and the funny overalls I was wearing - Randi and I were going through a stash of photos she took home from our scanning day at Grandma's and we put together two collage's for her apartment. I'll have to take some photos since I think they look cool. I thought Traci Reed's new kit had a sort of retro feel so it inspired me to look back into my old pictures. Credits

A super cool exhibit on top of the Met! I did this one for a Baersgarten play day. Credits
And here's T at the zoo being a grumpy old lady! Credits

Yay! It's Friday!

I've been kinda quiet this week. Mostly spent my days keeping the doggies apart. And guess what? Rocky's on his way back here. Randi's going to a wedding and getting back late. Dogs can be pretty exhausting! They finally started getting along better on Wednesday, and yesterday they pretty much ignored each other. Rocky went upstairs. Penny stayed here with me.

I also did a little scrapping this week. I'll share some new pages after tomorrow since most of them were assignments. Here's one from CHA!


I used one of Tracy Blankenships templates from her new shop at Funky Playground! I'm so exicited for her! And the kit is by Jennifer Trippetti for her Teacher's Pet entry, which I just love! Credits

Here are some other things I just love. How fun are Jenn's Jelly Buttons!!!!
And Kim has done it again this week for Teacher's Pet! These tags are so cool!

Well Rocky's back again and the doggies are at it again. Randi's modeling some dresses for me and it upset I told her she can't wear white to a wedding. That's probably the nicest dress too.
Here's a photo of them from earlier this week.

And here's where Randi was while we were "playing."
That is none other than former President Bill Clinton! She was at a program for teachers hosted by one of his foundations at the Clinton library. He gave her an award and she got to talk to him!

I kept getting interrupted as I try to write this! I'm going to hit publish and hang out with the dogs now for a bit before I have to get to work!

My funny nieces

This is a conversation between the girls this weekend, as told by my brother...

Taylor, age 5: Do you know how to ice skate?
Kylie, age 2 1/2: Yes!
Taylor: Can you teach me?
Kylie: OK!

I would love to see how those lessons go!

Why am I awake?

I know most people are getting up and going to work now, but I am not most people. I get home late and then do dumb things like stay up until 5:30 am reading a book. (Thanks for keeping me up Jodi Picoult.) That was two hours ago.

For some reason, all summer, I wake up feeling terribly hot if I don't have the fan and AC on. So I only had the AC on. I have to go splash some water on my face, turn on the fan and that usually helps me cool off. Sometimes just leaving the room and coming back in makes it feel cool again.

But today, my stomach is feeling gross. Stupid acid reflux. And the bug bites from my brother's yard this weekend are so irritated. I've covered the bites in anti-itch cream and it's not helping.

Mom hasn't left yet. I heard her yelling at the dogs. Penny came up here for a bit, but Mom came up to take her out. So now it's quiet again.

And of course, when I wake up like this, I start thinking of the million things I should do today, but won't get done because I'll be too exhausted now. But sometimes writing and getting thoughts out of my head helps me relax a bit. Hope it works now. Going back to bed.

Dog fighting

I'm here with Penny and Rocky and I'm just exhausted. They won't leave each other alone or play nice. I'm afraid they will hurt each other. I try to be calm assertive - I watch a lot of Dog Whisperer these days - but I'm just too beat. It doesn't help when mom's around because she yells like a nut at them. I gave Penny a time out in her crate and Rocky's tied up outside. It's been like this since Saturday. Randi's in Little Rock for a teacher conference - she had to take three planes because of a delay yesterday - and she'll be gone until Thursday. In the meantime, I'm covered in scratches, hives and dog hair. Ugh!!!!

Other than that, I had a nice weekend. I had a fun night with some girlfriends on Friday. I went shopping on Saturday and spent a lot of money in Michael's. I'm going to work on a hybrid project for my mom's birthday, which is coming up soon. I got the new Aerosmith Guitar Hero, but haven't had a chance to play yet! And I finally did some long overdue grocery shopping. And yesterday we got together at Mike's house for his birthday. My nieces were a lot of fun. Joanie was there and she seemed to be doing well - she was participating more in conversations.

Oh, now the dogs are being noisy. Rocky's barking and Penny's whining at the door. Before I go see what they are up to, here are some new pages....

The girls at the zoo.... lots of new and old goodies from Holly McCaig. She's the guest designer at a new store Inspiration Lane this month! Credits
Wasn't I a cute kindergartener? This one's using a collab by Michelle Godin and Aja Abney called Life is Art. Credits
And here are my pups in a moment where they were getting along! Credits

Rewinding a bit

I forgot to recap the other half of my weekend! Saturday, I met up with some of my college friends from The Daily Targum. I got to see Jessica, Jeannine and Jim - haven't seen these last two in ages. We met up at the Shake Shack in New York City where the burgers are sickeningly amazing. There's a big long line - but we didn't mind waiting since it gave us time to catch up.
I don't usually eat burgers, but after waiting so long, I figured I'd see what the fuss was about! We realized after there was a shorter line just for drinks - and we could have gotten beers while we waited. Oh well!

After hanging out in the park where the shack is situated for awhile, we took a walk down 23rd street and had another drink at a bar next to the Chelsea Hotel, which for some reason I thought wasn't around anymore. I always find something new when I go to the city!

When I got back to New Jersey, I met up with Randi and we headed over to the Rover. And while Randi has been there plenty of times, she hasn't been around some of my friends who you'd think never saw a female before! It was pretty funny!

On Monday, Randi and I went to lunch with Grandma, Corinne and Joanie. I don't think I've mentioned that my aunt is home now. She seems to be doing better - she was pretty coherent at lunch. Still has a lot of recovering to do. But we thought they might want to get out of the house so we had a nice lunch at Houlihan's and then had some ice cream on the waterfront.

If you've seen my previous post, you can see how I spent most of the day Tuesday. Randi went with Mike, Vez and the girls to Sesame Place, so I had the crazy doggies over. They bickered so much it was driving me nuts. But after they got it out of their system they were getting along OK or ignoring each other. I got some cute photos too.

I'm so excited to see that some of my friends are joining in the Teacher's Pet thing over at Funky Playground! I still have no idea what it's all about, but I do know they've been designing some cute mini kits! Get yourself signed up so you can grab these from Jenn and Kim! Oh I just noticed my fellow Studio Crew chick Michelle over there too! And I know at least one person should have something coming soon too!

Since Bruce Springsteen is the only music I care to listen to right now, I decided I would organize my Bruce CDs, which meant digging around my room and my car. Has anyone seen my Rising CD? LOL! Hate when I have the case but can't find the disc! I'm also missing one of my Live 1975-85 CDs and I know my stupid ex-boyfriend stole the Ghost of Tom Joad and Live in New York City. Gotta figure out what I have and then I want to load up the iPod.

Well, enough rambling for now. Gotta get some stuff done!

Attack dog!

Here's my first attempt at uploading a video! The dogs were crazy yesterday!

Magic in the Meadowlands

I have been trying to gather my thoughts after Sunday night but find it hard because I'm still in a state of post-concert euphoria. I still get chills thinking about Bruce!

The show was 3 hours and 12 minutes according to NJ.com. I was up in the three hundred level of Giants Stadium but I still had a great view of the stage and screen. While I was up in the nosebleeds with my friend Billy, our other friend Dean was down in the 100 level and said Pierce Bronsan was two rows behind him! I had been freaking out all day about the weather, but it only rained for a little bit when the encore was just starting. Otherwise, the weather was perfect!

I was thinking of doing a page or two about the show, but I think I want to do a mini-album. I have so much I can write about - I've been a fan since Born in the USA came out. It was one of my first albums as a kid. I saw the E Street band reunion tour back in 1999. I was worried about bringing a camera though because of the increased security these days and the possibility of rain. So I've had to find some (like the one above) on the web.

Here's the set list and some notes from me: (thanks to Backstreets.com)

• Tenth Avenue Freeeze-out ... I met my friend Dean after he sang this song at karaoke night years ago.
• Radio Nowhere .... from his new album Magic, which rocks!
• Lonesome Day
• No Surrender
• Adam Raised a Cain
• Spirit in the Night
• Summertime Blues ... fun cover. He collected signs from the audience for requests.
• Brilliant Disguise ... nice duet with his wife Patti
• Atlantic City
• Growin' Up .... this was a request from a 10 year old girl!
• Janey, Don't You Lose Heart ... a nice surprise! I don't even think I have this song!
• I'll Work for Your Love ... another one from Magic. Love it!
• Youngstown ... got up for a 2nd round of beers. not one of my favorite songs! LOL!
• Murder Incorporated ... still on the line. Not a big fan of this one either!
• The Promised Land

• Livin' in the Future ... another new songs that just rocks. Crowd went crazy!
• Mary's Place ... Bruce gives his little speech about going to the river. If you're not a believer by now, go home! LOL!
• Working on the Highway
• Tunnel of Love ... I think this song is so cheesy. There was a girl sitting next to us who was sitting the whole time , but got up for this one! She left early too. Lame!
• The Rising
• Last to Die
• Long Walk Home
• Badlands ... They left the stage and the crowd keep singing... until they came back for ....

* * *

• Girls in Their Summer Clothes ... oh man I love this one too. Another Magic song.
• Jungleland ... this one gave me chills. Dean says they don't play it often. It was unbelievable.
• Born to Run ... Lights went on, whole place was nuts!
• Bobby Jean
• Dancing in the Dark ... a little cheesy, but still fun!
• American Land ... they rocked this out! Two accordians, Celtic sound. Everyone clapping and thumping along. Seemed like that was it until they closed with .......
• ROSALITA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! .... my all-time favorite! I could have died right there. What an awesome way to end the night!

After the show, we met Dean and Joy back down on the ground. We had gotten a ride from a cab driver friend of Dean's, so we walked all the way toward the race track trying to find a cab. I have to say Bruce fans are pigs! The stadium tailgaters left such a hideous mess. The traffic out of there was horrible - so we just ended up waiting for Dean's friend to get back to pick us up. He knew all the shortcuts so we were out of there in no time!

I'm still pretty thrilled that I saw the show. I told Billy to remind me that if I'm every cranky or complaining to remind me that I've seen Bruce sing Rosalita - something I've always wanted to see. What could be better than that!

Today... I need that reminder. I've got Penny and Rocky here and they've been fighting all morning. I'm covered in dog hair, scratches and hives from playing referee. Gotta go play some of those videos to get back in the groove of things!

My music type...

I saw this on Meredith's blog... Weird because I usually hate this kind of music!

You Are Electronic Music

You are energetic and expressive. You love feeling alive. You never get sick of your favorite things - they're what makes life special. You don't take tradition or conventions too seriously. You live for the future. You enjoy remixes and re-interpretations of things. Life is about making improvements.

What Kind of Music Are You?

Tagged

Just got tagged by Sarah...

The Rules: Answer the questions using only one word. Then tag four others.

1. Where is your cell phone? In my pocket
2. Your significant other? Somewhere out there
3. Your hair? A frizzy mess
4. Your mother? At work
5. Your father? Town hall at work I would think
6. Your favorite thing? My dog
7. Your dream last night? I dreamed about my sister's old dog Katie
8 Your favorite drink? Diet Coke
9. Your dream/goal? Winning the lottery
10. The room you’re in? office
11. Your hobby? digi scrapping
12. Your fear? clowns
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Enjoying my lottery winnngs
14. What you’re not? Tall
15. Muffins? Can I have a cookie instead?
16. One of your wish list items? A DSLR
17. Where you grew up? In the same house I live in now
18. The last thing you did? Checked plurk
19. What are you wearing? Pink t, jeans
20. Favorite gadget? camera
21. Your pets? Penny
22. Your computer? Is where all my friends live
23. Your mood? Rockin'
24. Missing someone? My dog
25. Your car? Red hot new Corollla
26. Something you’re not wearing? A Hawaiian shirt (like all the guys at work)
27. Favorite store? Target
28. Like someone? maybe!
29. Your favorite color? yellow
30. When is the last time you laughed? a few minutes ago
31. Last time you cried? yesterday over something dumb. I blame pms.

I'm tagging anyone who wants to play!
** I didn't follow the one word rule! Ooops!

Stuck upstairs

Mike started working on the living room while I was away. He and some friends put in a new ceiling and now he's almost done re-painting the room. But in the meantime, Penny and I have been spending our time upstairs since all the furniture is jammed in the living room and there's dust all over. Not good with my asthma. Isn't Penny good at pathetic posing!

I thought this was funny. I spotted one of my pages from work on the back of a bus a few weeks ago. I got this bad shot through the bus window.

I need to get ready for work and need to pick up my new registration, but I'm procrastinating since I have a headache from the paint fumes.

Family

Randi and I finally talked Mike into getting tested for allergies, so we all went together to the doctor on Monday. We were in the car wondering when was the last time the three of us were in the car together - just us. The last time I could remember was when we drove to and from Wildwood that one summer when we went with Teri and Mikey. Mikey was still a toddler then. I remember listening to Hole's Live Through This on the way home and that we had to follow Mom, who was driving Teri's car, because the speedometer in the Mazda was broken. That was back when I was in college.

On Monday, we also had lunch at Blue Moon before heading over to see Dr. Goodstein. And I also noted that the last time we all went to the doctor together was probably when we were kids going to the pediatrician or maybe when we had dentist appointments on the same day.

We do spend a lot of time together - but it's rare these days when it's just the three of us. It's a long time since these days .....

Judging by the hair and glasses, I think I was in seventh grade. I think we're playing Simon Says at Grandma's house in Union City.

Crazy NJ Laws

I don't know how real these are, but I found a thread at SBB about the Craziest Laws in America.

Here are some strange things about New Jersey...

• Automobiles are not to pass horse drawn carriages on the street.
• Bernards Township: It is illegal to frown as the town is a "Frown-Free Town Zone".
• Caldwell: You may not dance or wear shorts on the main avenue.
• Cranford: Citizens are not permitted to park their own boat on their lawn.
• Cresskill: All cats must wear three bells to warn birds of their whereabouts.
• Elizabeth: It is forbidden for a woman, on a Sunday, to walk down Broad Street without wearing a petticoat.
• If you have been convicted of driving while intoxicated, you may never again apply for personalized license plates.
• In Berkley Heights you may not walk your cattle on the street on Sunday.
• In New Jersey it is illegal to delay or detain a homing pigeon.
• In New Jersey, it is illegal to slurp soup.
• It's illegal in New Jersey for parents to give their children under the age of 18 even a sip of alcohol.
• It is against the law for a man to knit during the fishing season.
• It is against the law to "frown" at a police officer.
• It is illegal to offer whiskey or cigarettes to animals at the local zoo.
• It's also illegal in this state to throw a bad pickle on the street.
• Lovers in Liberty Corner should avoid satisfying their lustful urges in a parked car. If the horn accidentally sounds while they are frolicking behind the wheel, the couple can face a jail term.
• Manville: It is illegal to offer whiskey or cigarettes to animals a the local zoo.
• Newark: It is illegal to sell ice cream after 6pm, unless the customer has a note from his doctor.
• Pinball machines are not to be played on Sunday.
  
• Raw hamburger may not be sold.
• On a highway you can not park under a bridge.
• Raritan: Profanity is prohibited.
• Sea Isle City: There will be no boiling of bones on the property.
• There is no horse racing allowed on the New Jersey Turnpike.
• You cannot pump your own gas. All gas stations are full service and full service only.