2007: The Rundown
January 1, 2008
Moves: 1 — hopefully our last for a while
Boxes of books our dear friends lugged upstairs for us: 10 or 15
Flights of stairs they had to climb: 3
Jobs: 2 — Starbucks Barista and Biolife Medical Historian
Fingers poked: oh, thousands
Times tardy to work: 0!!!! For once in my life, I’m punctual!
Times a bridesmaid: 1 (5 total)
Weddings: 1
Times we skipped a wedding to go to a Mariner’s Game: 1
Number of candles on my birthday cake in May: 27
Races run: 0 (sigh)
Pounds gained: 15 -20, depending on the day. (double sigh)
Quarters of school attended: 1
Fraction I missed a 4.0 by: 0.10
Fraction Justin missed a 4.0 by: 0.10
Times Justin groaned to have only “tied”: 1
Times we got stranded on the side of the road by The Green Judas before I finally decided to junk it: 2 or 3
New(er) cars: 1
Hours we spent at the dealership before we drove away with a good deal: 5
Times I’ve seen deer in our backyard: 3
Days I’ve been grateful to have married the man I did: 365
Highlights:
Learning how to be a better wife/roommate/buddy to Justin
Learning to trust in Justin’s patience and understanding and humor
Celebrating our first anniversary in Leavenworth
My first fantasy football team
Febr-you-palooza
May-you-palooza
Making pals at work
Learning that I sleep better (translate: sleep, period) if we keep a fan going
Discovering Bham’s used bookstore glory
Finding an apartment that I really and truly love and feel comfortable in
Being fortunate enough to have a schedule that allows me to hang out with my hubby, even though we’re working students
Carving pumpkins/Getting a Xmas tree together
Whatcom Falls
Figuring out that even though school’s hard — I can do it.
My Writing about Lit class
Learning how to make Chicken Marsala/Peanut Sauce/Good Snickerdoodles
Our legendary drive to Mt. Baker
Our White Christmas
Things I’m looking forward to in 2008:
More adventures with Justin! More silly stories!
Justin graduating in the Spring
Getting really close (only a quarter away) to graduating, myself
No longer being tied to my Verizon contract and taking advantage of my husband’s employee discount at That Other Big Company He Works For
Visiting our buddy Chris, if all goes according to plan
Investing more time in friendships as we get used to our crazy schedules
Investing in a closer relationship with the treadmill
Finally having all the car accident stuff wrapped up and no longer having to deal with lawyers
Learning how to play Chess
Taking lots of photos
Figuring out how to beat Justin at Carcossonne
Devoting more hours to photoshop in order to amuse myself and friends (mostly myself), a-like so:
Happy New Year, everyone. May you be more aware of your blessings than ever.
2006: by the numbers
January 18, 2007
major hair color changes: 3
trips outside the United States: 2 (Whistler, B.C. on my honeymoon, Mexico for Christmas)
days spent on the Gulf Coast: 7
perspective shifts while there: many
major injuries: ZERO!
songs on my iPod: 4,933
times I had to take the stupid thing in to Best Buy to get it fixed: 2
weddings: 3
funerals: 1
total blog posts: 58
total blog posts May-December: 14 (ouch)
flat tires: 1
emails exchanged with Justin from March 19th to April 19: Approximately 160
number of hours on the phone it took to be pretty sure I “knew” about us: Approximately 9
number of years we’d been friends: 9
years it had been since we’d seen each other: 6
number of visits it took to “know”: 1
times I received flowers at work: 2
dollars I gave Verizon Wireless in May: 600
times a bridesmaid: 1 (4 total)
times a bride: 1
months from first date to wedding: 6
resulting name changes: 1
free drinks from Starbucks: 1 (apparently if you show up in a big white poofy dress, they feel obliged to treat)
days spent in Whistler, B.C.: 7
number of bears I chased, trying to get a good photo: 1
number of hats I bought: 2
moves: 2
number of large fires: 2 (Mitzel’s and Kevo’s house)
number of times I won at Munchkin: 1
number of times I beat J at Scrabble: more than he beat me
new jobs: 1
number of “The Office” episodes watched back-to-back on DVD: 22 (it would be 28, but some jackass refuses to return the second DVD of Season 2. Jackass: if you’re reading this, I hate you).
SPECIAL HIGHLIGHTS
my small group
my trip to the Gulf Coast in April
finding Justin again and promptly marrying him
camping at Banks Lake
Justin proposing with coffee after my dad spilled the beans
the realization that a job can go absolutely sour and I’ll survive
pre-marital counseling with Daniel
having such amazing bridesmaids
having coffee with Justin, his brother, and Julie in the sunshine the beautiful morning we married
our wedding
having Dan officiate (he stole excerpts from this post on my blog for his message)
cozying up during our honeymoon in Whistler
being with family for Thanksgiving
finding the Little Grey House & moving to Bellingham
Mexico for Christmas
DISCOVERIES
The Office
Little Miss Sunshine
the glory that is having a Starbucks Barista machine
the glory that is having a husband who makes you mochas every morning
why newlyweds have that sparkle in their eye 
the ins and outs of football (and football addiction)
how odd it is to see your brother on the news
why simple, personal weddings are the best way to go
seasickness
Chris’ game: Buffet
Cat Power
Band of Horses
how quickly you get over the fear of farting under the covers… or anywhere else, for that matter
how funny that becomes
how much fun and how much work it is to share your life with someone
chuck norris
January 29, 2006
I originally posted this over the weekend, but it is much more appropriate for a Monday morning.
What is WRONG with me? I can’t read this stuff and not laugh.
After returning from World War 2 unscathed, Bob Dole was congratulated by Chuck Norris with a handshake. The rest is history.
Chuck Norris will never have a heart attack. His heart isn’t nearly foolish enough to attack him.
Only Chuck Norris can prevent forest fires.
Chuck Norris does not sleep. He waits.
Chuck Norris is not Irish. His hair is soaked in the blood of his victims.
They say curiosity killed the cat. This is false. Chuck Norris killed the cat. Every single one of them.
Chuck Norris crossed the road. No one has ever dared question his motives.
One time, at band camp, Chuck Norris ate a percussionist.
“Brokeback Mountain” is not just a movie. It’s also what Chuck Norris calls the pile of dead ninjas in his front yard.
Chuck Norris is not Politically Correct. He is just Correct. Always.
There is no theory of evolution, just a list of creatures Chuck Norris allows to live.
Chuck Norris once bet NASA he could survive re-entry without a spacesuit. On July 19th, 1999, a naked Chuck Norris re-entered the earth’s atmosphere, streaking over 14 states and reaching a temperature of 3000 degrees. An embarrassed NASA publically claimed it was a meteor, and still owes him a beer.
When Chuck Norris falls in water, Chuck Norris doesn’t get wet. Water gets Chuck Norris.
Chuck Norris CAN believe it’s not butter.
Chuck Norris invented black. In fact, he invented the entire spectrum of visible light. Except pink. Tom Cruise invented pink.
Chuck Norris can drink an entire gallon of EGG NOG in thirty-seven seconds.
The original draft of The Lord of the Rings featured Chuck Norris instead of Frodo Baggins. It was only 5 pages long, as Chuck roundhouse-kicked Sauron’s ass halfway through the first chapter.
Along with his black belt, Chuck Norris often chooses to wear brown shoes. No one has DARED call him on it. Ever.
They were going to release a Chuck Norris edition of Clue, but the answer always turns out to be “Chuck Norris. In The Library. With a Roundhouse Kick.”
If at first you don’t succeed, you’re not Chuck Norris.
Chuck Norris shot the sheriff, but he round house kicked the deputy.
When Chuck Norris plays Oregon Trail, his family does not die from cholera or dysentery, but rather, roundhouse kicks to the face. He also requires no wagon, since he carries the oxen, axels, and buffalo meat on his back. He always makes it to Oregon before you.
Chuck Norris once went skydiving, but promised never to do it again. One Grand Canyon is enough.
the fours
January 15, 2006
First:
The Seahawks? A game away from the SuperBowl? And people say miracles don’t happen anymore.
Thank you, Matt Hasselbeck and Co., for giving me the first reason to watch a game with my Dad in about ten years.
***
And now, thanks to JEM, I give you the fours:
Four jobs you’ve had in your life:
1. Legal Secretary
2. Nanny
3. New Accounts/Loan Officer
4. Poucher (As a starving college student, I packaged bags of dry formula containing E. Coli antibiotic for baby cows at a farming factory. No kidding).
Four movies you would watch over and over:
1. Office Space
2. Love Actually
3. You’ve Got Mail
4. Swingers
Four TV shows you love to watch:
1. The Office (best show ever. I’m not kidding)
2. 24 (just recently)
3. The Daily Show
4. Simpsons repeats
Four places you have been on vacation:
1. Maui
2. Mazatlan, Mexico
3. Cayman Islands
4. Lake Cushman, WA
Four websites you visit daily:
1. Guh-mail
2. Google
3. McSweeneys.Net
4. Blogs: Kevin Rich, Kevin Stills, Myles Werntz
Four of your favorite foods:
1. Steak
2. Mashed Potatoes
3. Oriental Chicken Salad at Applebees
4. Chicken Marsala
Four things you would change about your house:
1. INSULATION!
2. A bit more room for bookshelves/seating.
3. There’d be a hammock in the yard (this will change, come summer)
4. Pool Boy. Just kidding.
Four favorite authors:
1. Anne Lamott
2. Brennan Manning
3. Frederick Buechner
4. Philip Yancey
5. David Sedaris
I hereby tag:
1. O’Rich
2. Jules
3. The Twins Webb
4. Anyone else who’s bored and finds themselves needing something pointless to do…
2005: The Rundown
January 1, 2006
BY THE NUMBERS:
Moves: 1! Only 1!
Distance (in miles) I now live from my parents: .25
Harry Potter books read: 6
Time took to read them: 2 weeks
How pathetic this makes me: VERY
Number of times I received something in the mail from someone I know solely through blogging: 4
Times a bridesmaid: 2 (3 total)
Number of pink dresses: 1 too many
Times asked out at a wedding: 2
Major hair-color changes: 3
Major knee-ligament tears: 1
Number of soccer games played before the tear occured: .5
Mountains hiked in knee brace: 1
U2 Concerts: 1
Blind dates: 4 (see also – very funny stories)
Races run: 2
Firefighters dated: 1
Scarves knitted: 6
Job interviews: 4
New jobs: 1
Miles traveled on the company tab: 3,090
Times I lost my keys: 40,000 and some change
Number of songs on my iPod currently: 1,572
Days this amounts to: 4.5
Times attacked by a paranoid schizophrenic: 1
2005’s GREAT DISCOVERIES:
What it feels like to NOT be anybody’s secretary
Baby spinach greens
Knitting
The dangers of the company snack drawer
Pulling weeds
Living near the beach
David Crowder
Wine (white)
Why camera phones are fun
Brandi Carlile
Michael Buble (sorry, Myles… he’s just so hot right now)
Carbon Leaf
Harry Potter (I finally decided to join the rest of the world)
Chocolate Lucky Charms (further proof that God loves me and wants me to be happy)
***
ADDENDUM: 2006 by the numbers…
Times I poured sour milk on my Chocolate Lucky Charms: 1
Seconds it took to realize something was wrong: 3
Number of bad words I said: 2-3
Minutes ago this happened: 1
***
Side note: was anyone else creeped out by Dick Clark laying a big fat smooch on the woman beside him at midnight? That was no way to begin 2006, let me tell you.
happy new year!
December 31, 2005
Hey kiddies.
Happy New Year!
Things to look forward to in 2006:
I’ll be 26. That’s so much older than 25.
Winter Olympics. In Italy (where I’m going next summer). 10-26 February. Ice Skating. Skiing. Snowboarding. Curling. Amazing.
I will get cable. And finally be able to watch my two favorite shows. And lots of VH1.
One year closer to Election 2008. ‘Nuff said.
Best of all, Michael Buble will decide he can no longer live without me. He will serenade me until I can no longer refuse him. (Seriously though, I’m in deep smit).
Happy and safe night to you all. 
May you be more aware of your blessings than ever in the year to come.
The Friday Top Ten
November 11, 2005
Because I demanded of my co-worker Brian a list of his most impacting books, he demanded, in return, a list of my top ten movies. I couldn’t fit them all into ten, so I divided my list up into top ten non-comedies and top ten comedies. Here’s the first list, in no particular order:
1. In America
2. Braveheart
3. The Pianist
4. Castaway (#1 by far)
5. Spanglish (at least this year it’s in the top ten)
6. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy
7. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
8. Hotel Rwanda
9. Shawshank Redemption
10. Gone with the Wind
Feel free to share your own lists… I’m big on getting people’s top tens.
Google is a many-splendored thing
November 7, 2005
STACEY NEEDS:
- Stacey needs to get rid of the mullet.
- Top 10 Reasons Stacey Needs to Graduate
- Stacey needs help getting her name out there. She has started her new solo career…
- Now, 364 pounds lighter, Stacey needs many surgeries to get rid of the excess skin.
- Stacey needs understanding, not rejection.
- Stacey needs a break.
- Thirteen-year-old Stacey needs the support of the Babysitters Club…
- Stacey needs an eyebrow hoop.
- Stacey needs to find happiness.
- Stacey needs to take a long walk off a short pier.
thank you
May 16, 2005
Mom (in advance) for the chocolate cake on Wednesday…
Dad, for the 7 am Happy Birthday call…
Kevo and Jerod, for good times at the Irish Emigrant…
Kevo, for running with me to the bridge, even though you could’ve gone much faster without me…
Jules, for making the drive up from OR and toolin’ around Seattle all weekend with me, and for Dress Your Family in Corderoy and Denim (now you won’t know where to look for me when I get lost in Barnes and Noble)…
Dano, for the flowers…
Natalie and Megann, for the Gerbera’s (which I will try my darndest not to kill)…
Levi, for the card, what you wrote in it, and the phone call…
JENNIE! FOR THE STINKIN’ AWESOME CARE-PACKAGE-BY-MAIL!!! Just got it… made my day… was so surprised!!
Jessy, for the e-card…
Linnea, Jules, Kevo, Amanda, David, Abby… for good meals spent with the dearest of my friends…
Claim Jumper’s, for making such an amazing BBQ chicken sandwich…
Thanks to everyone for making my day such a special one. I got spoiled. Totally spoiled. I have such great friends & fam, and know I’m SO SO lucky.
My heart is full. 25’s gonna be a good one, I’m thinkin’.
