Boy Babies

I’m concerned for the next generation. And no…not for the obvious reasons... war, global warming, etc.. I’m concerned that there won’t be enough boys in this world. Over the weekend I made a startling realization – of all the friends I have with children, they are all girls. Wait, does that make grammatical sense? Some of my friends are men, but all of their children are girls. Oh.. whatever… my point is that I don’t know a single boy child. But I do know 7 girls all under the age of 5. Not to mention another friend just had a newborn who is not included in the 7 (because I haven’t met her) and yet another friend is going to have a girl. What if all of these cute little girls grow up and there are no boys to date? Oh sure, their dads will be happy, but just think!

When I made this realization over the weekend, I told Mr. Mingle that R & J have to have a boy next, and then told him about my discovery. To which he replied, “Wait…you want R & J to have a boy, so you will know a boy baby? Doesn’t that sound a little selfish, and frankly weird?” Well, OK, so maybe he did have a point, but still how many boys and girls do all of you know?? I’m sure that there is going to be a huge majority of women walking this earth in the future. Wait a minute…maybe that isn’t such a bad thing afterall…

Calendar Girl Gets Her Mingle On

Calendar Girl: This is a part of my horoscope today
Calendar Girl: All the most auspicious energies of the week—and with Venus, Jupiter and Uranus in a grand water trine, there are lots of 'em—will swirl around you when you're out, getting your mingle on.
Mingle: no way!
Calendar Girl: oh yes way
Calendar Girl: I'll be 'getting my mingle on' only you won't have anything to do with it
Calendar Girl: however,
Calendar Girl: this new development bodes well for a new Phrase of Summer
Calendar Girl: like on Friday?
Calendar Girl: I'm going to Get My Mingle On when we get the birthday cookies
Calendar Girl: I got my Mingle On last Friday too
Calendar Girl: I'd say it'd have to be a planned event
Calendar Girl: so seeing you in the hallway this morning was NOT an instance of 'getting my mingle on'
Calendar Girl: you see?
Calendar Girl: have I given this too much thought?
Calendar Girl: (don't answer that)

…
Mingle: are you trying to go for another blog mention with this IM chain?
Calendar Girl: no, I hadn't thought about trying to get a blog mention, unfortunately, this is just me
Calendar Girl: but would this qualify for a blog mention?
Mingle: perhaps...
Calendar Girl: so uh, you want a Moroccan mint or anything?
Mingle: now you are thinking...
Calendar Girl: something from the vending machine?
Calendar Girl: a foot massage?
Mingle: no, no - a beverage would be just fine
Calendar Girl: does this mean I've made the blog?
Mingle: does this mean I get a beverage?

What a girl would do to get a Moroccan Mint Tea from Whole Foods…

Here's An Idea

Madam Boss Lady called me into her office yesterday to ask my opinions on what she should bring up at her 2-Day meeting with her boss and counterparts to discuss the future of our grand ol’ department.

I initially started by dancing around a few different issues that I see here, and then finally fell into a 15 minute period of verbal diarrhea where I unloaded such phrases as “I’m not very happy here”, “This department is dysfunctional”, “It’s an extremely negative environment”, “I like some of the work that I do, but that will only get me so far…”, and one of my personal favorites, “I go to the Dublin office to get away from here” (usually I just tell them it’s to save gas), and so it went...

I was actually quite surprised by how calmly she sat and listened to me without putting on one of her facial expressions that I call ‘disgust’. We then discussed the situation a little bit more, until finally it wrapped up by her saying, “Well, I completely agree with you and I’m unhappy too. And although I should probably be more positive with you, I don’t see things ever improving either.”

Ok then! That was pretty much the last straw that I needed to kick me into job-hunt land. Why stay at a job that shows no sign of improving? Even after our long painful discussion she pretty much said that she didn’t see the point of her 2-Day Management meeting and probably wouldn’t say anything. I told her at the very least she could bring me back some free coffee.

Today I am sitting in Dublin (“to save gas”) as I write this. I have to go back tomorrow, but considering nothing will change, at least I know what to expect. However, now I have an idea of something to work on thanks to a well-timed article a coworker sent to me from The Onion.

No, I will not be putting together a suicide note Powerpoint presentation, but perhaps a Resignation Presentation would be appropriate. Mine might have four categories too… like, “Why I Quit”; “Why you Suck”; “Why this department will fold in under a year”; and “Ha Ha I was Right”, although I am open to suggestions…

An Addendum

As a follow-up to the last two days of posting:

First of all, my "Ex-Coworker/Friend" who is referenced in the IM conversation from two days ago read my blog and then complained that she needed a better name then "Ex-Coworker/Friend". Then today she sent me this IM after reading yesterday's entry about our special calendar:

Ex-Coworker/Friend: I use the calendar all the time (when I'm at my desk) and wouldn't ya know it...
Ex-Coworker/Friend: I never noticed that it was Monday - Sunday
Ex-Coworker/Friend: oh man, that's a good one!

************************************************************************************
Dear Ex-Coworker/Friend:

You are right, you do deserve a better blog name. From now on you will be referenced as Goofball.

Sincerely,
Mrs. Mingle

My Favorite Calendar

At the beginning of the year my company gave us all a monthly desk calendar with the theme “The Art of Currency”. And let me just tell you, this calendar is really, really special. The first time I realized this was when I saw that the weeks on this calendar run from Monday to Sunday. I think there was a period of about a month there when everyone in the company was probably scheduling meetings on the wrong day, when they would glance quickly down at the calendar, send out a meeting request for say, Monday, Jan. 17 and then discover later that Monday is actually January 16.

I’m not sure why the calendar is like this – I suspect it was given out to our employees in our international offices too – do they usually think of weeks as Monday – Sunday? No matter, when the realization occurred, many threw the calendar away rather then deal with the confusion.

I, however, kept the calendar but drew clear vertical lines on each month separating Monday-Friday from Saturday and Sunday. But then in May, I got a little nervous when Mother’s Day appeared on the calendar on Wednesday, May 10. “Oh!” I pondered, “I thought Mother’s Day was on Sunday!” Of course it was, as it is every year, on Sunday, May 14 (also the day that I took my mom out to lunch where we all got food poisoning).

But today my calendar proved to be the best ever, because as I was looking at it to make plans for the weekend of July 28, I realized that there is no July 29. Nope, according to my calendar, we are not acknowledging that day this year. Instead we will have Friday, July 28, Saturday July 28 and Sunday, July 30. This new found knowledge made me extremely happy – after all, my birthday is July 28, so now I get to celebrate twice!

The Banality of Work

A typical IM conversation that occured with one of my old co-workers today
(I sure do miss them)

Mingle: hey there
Ex Coworker/Friend: hi
Mingle: I have something for you
Ex Coworker/Friend: ooh goody
Mingle: yes, it's VERY big
Ex Coworker/Friend: what? what???
Mingle: and...let's just say it has something to do with Peet's
Ex Coworker/Friend: (gasp!)
Mingle: a..
Mingle: 50
Mingle: cent
Mingle: giftcard!!
Ex Coworker/Friend: ooooooh!!!!
Mingle: (and don't spend it all in one place)
Ex Coworker/Friend: how exactly, did you come by such a wondrous gift?
Mingle: well...someone else gave me the giftcard to Peet’s so, I went there and asked them (with eager excitement) “how much does this have??”
Mingle: imagining a latte...
Mingle: and she said…
Mingle: “$2.00”
Mingle: so.. I got a small coffee, and then thought I'd save the rest to share the wealth with you
Ex Coworker/Friend: aw shucks!!!!
Ex Coworker/Friend: thank you!!!!
Ex Coworker/Friend: $2 is pretty paltry
Mingle: (I was just hoping for $5)

and so it went... on and on...

Summer TV Line-Up

I know that it’s summertime because the line-up on my Tivo has changed. No longer are we recording new episodes of Lost, Prison Break and Desparate Housewives. The new shows of the summer consist of Jon Stewart’s Daily Show (I know this is on year-round, but we are slow starters), Rockstar SUPERNOVA (you must say “SUPERNOVA!” with a growl when talking about this show), and the newest and favorite show of the Mingle house: The Backyardigans.

I feel like I’m giving up a little of my personality here… I watch Jon Stewart on the Comedy Channel for current events, Rockstar SUPERNOVA, the second cousin to American Idol (although, I’d have to argue it’s by far the more talented cousin), and The Backyardigans – a show made for Nickelodeon Jr. Yep – it’s a cartoon, and not even one for adults or older kids – it’s for 5 year-olds.

If you have not seen this yet – I highly recommend that you check it out. I came across it one Sunday when I was flipping through channels and was immediately transfixed. It’s about a group of friends (who just happen to be talking animals) that create big adventures in their backyard every episode. So far we have seen them chase a yetti, ride on the prairie, and search for dinosaur bones. In each episode the characters will sing songs about their adventures that have clever lyrics and they dance in time to the music. What makes this show so outstanding is the choreography. The animation is simple, yet they’ve got the characters even doing hip hop – I bet they could do the Running Man.

I'm not sure how we reconcile watching Tommy Lee and cute cartoon characters in the same night, and I'm not even sure why we love this animated show so much. The funny thing is that Mr. Mingle and I don’t always agree on movies and TV. He usually likes the more serious, thought-provoking shows from say Discovery or PBS, and the independent films that require way to much brain power for me. I tend to like the blockbuster type films, and the popular dramas and sitcoms. Yet if there is one thing that we agree on, it’s The Backyardigans! So please, before you start judging me and my cartoon selection, check it out, I think you may be surprised!

Houseboat 2006

I can't keep track of how many houseboats I've been on over the years. I'd say more then 10, but less then 20. But perhaps 20. Maybe. They get hazier and hazier as I get older. Perhaps that's due to the alcohol consumption as I've gotten older. Up until I was, say, 21, the ratio of alcoholic drinks to skis per day was 0 to 3. Now, I'd say it's more like 6 to 2. I certainly don't remember doing much more then playing cards and water skiing when I was 10. I certainly don't remember much at all as a 31-year-old.

Houseboat 2006 was a lot of fun and it was so nice to be back after a 3 year absence. If you want the PG-13 (or R-Rated) version, you may want to check with Karin's Chronicles (just ask her what her catch-phrase of the week was), and if you want the pictorial version, you may want to check out Swiss Miss (she and Mr. B took over 500 photos between the two of them), but if you want my version (AKA Mingle's Meltdown) then please stick with me here...

The theme of the week was "Backflips!" Our new friend Tim joined us this year and was a crazy man when it came to special dives, jumps and leaps (in a chair) off of the houseboat. We caught on to his excitement and all tried doing backflips off the back of the boat. A couple of the braver ones did it off the top, but to my recollection none of us ladies did. I was impressed enough that I was able to do a backflip off the back of the boat without losing my swimsuit in the process.

There were lots of tumbles and crashes in the water as everyone spent the week wakeboarding, skiing, and surfing. Wait, wait - surfing? yes, that's right. One of the new toys this year was a small surfboard type thing that we tried out. Once you get up (which fortunately is quite easy) then you try to ride the boat wake as if on a surfboard. I particularly liked this one because I was not bound to the board and we traveled at very low speeds so falling usually did not hurt. I cannot say the same about the wakeboard however. I have not quite grasped the whole 'edge' thing, and caught the front edge real good, which led to huge face-plants - so hard it literally knocked me out of my boots. Twice. In a row.

My face-plants occurred on Tuesday and for the whole week after that I suffered different amounts of dizziness which continue even now. However, a visit to the doctor today confirmed that, NO, it was not a head injury. Somehow, I came down with a case of vertigo, which is a result of a virus in the inner ear. Unfortunately there is no medication for it, I just have to wait it out (hopefully no more then another week).

I was ecstatic when I learned on Monday that Mr. Mingle would be joining me up at the houseboat on Wednesday. Once he arrived, he joined us wakeboarding and surfing, but also spent at least 2 hours a day hiking. On his first hike he even came across a bear in the woods, which fortunately was more scared then he was and ran away. Of course this also prompted Krin to sing my famous bear song from Girl Scouts over and over again for the rest of the trip. "The Other day...the other day...[Mr. Mingle] saw a bear...Mr. Mingle saw a bear..." He was also the only one to spend any significant amounts of time on land and take photos from a perspective other then at lake level:

In summary, I'd say the following words sum up the trip for me: Butterflies, Backflips, Booze, Beauties, Falls and Fashion. We were on the lake for a full week with no shower, except for the natural bathing in a lake, so naturally we were bound to have beauties and fashion. Booze just masked everything, including falls.

Butterflies

Each morning these visited our front deck, sometimes up to about 30 at a time

Backflips

Krin gives the backflip a shot

Booze

Tim saves the booze!

Falls

Mr. Mingle is caught in the act of falling

Fashion

The men take home fashion awards this year

Mr. Obus shows us that no glasses or hat are too big

Mr. Mingle knows how to arrive with style

Beauties

Swiss Miss shows off her butterfly glasses

Mrs. Mingle has fun with her glasses

Sneak Preview

Mr. Mingle and I were told that our wedding would be featured in the next edition of the The Knot Magazine – Northern California edition, and I have been eagerly waiting to see what our “spread” will look like. We contributed to the story, but our photographer sent in all the pictures so we have no clue what will be in there. Last we heard, back in February, was that we would definitely be in the magazine and it is supposed to come out in July.

This morning Gonzaleska surprised me with a sneak preview and although it goes against my desire to share names, I cannot resist sharing this link…


The Mingles on The Knot

My Cubicle

I'm sure many of you have heard the constantly played James Blunt song, "You're Beautiful" on the radio, but have you heard this parody?

To my friends who are locked in cubicles on a daily basis, this is for you:

My Cubicle

Growing Up

Last night my “little” cousin graduated from High School. I don’t feel myself getting older until I see kids like J all grown up. And I say “kid” but she is 18. I remember changing her diapers with Fossie when we were just teenagers ourselves. That one night probably scarred us for life when we realized that little babies could cause nuclear explosions in their diapers. I remember J brushing my hair with awe and wonder when she was 3. I remember watching her and a friend floating around the houseboat when they weren’t much older. I remember going to a dance review, and middle school concert. But before I knew it she wore more make-up then me and was far more fashion conscious then I ever was or have been. J was always the youngest by far at family and friends events, which must have been pretty boring for her at times, but she never complained. She was also quieter then most of us and I think preferred just taking in the loud conversation around her rather then participating. After all, it can’t be very interesting for a high-schooler to hear the constant job talk, or the growing aches and pains of her elders.

Lately the big news was her Senior Ball and my fashion savvy cousin looked like a shining star. She had her dress picked out long before the dance occurred, and before she had a date. But she was confident. The Senior Ball lived up to all of her expectations and she glowed as she talked about that night. And then last night was graduation…

We all went, and fully expected to see her afterwards in her cap and gown so her self-proclaimed photo-crazy mom could get every shot imaginable. J with parents, J with Mingle, J with Auntie S, and on and on. But after the graduation she was not to be found. In a sea of 500 plus graduates it wasn’t surprising but we still canvassed the local area to find her and saw at least 450 of the kids. Finally she was located near the busses (and far from the football stadium where the ceremony occurred) that were to whisk her and her friends off to grad night. We have never seen J so excited or animated – it was obvious that photos were not on her mind – she was ready to GO. She was chatting amiably with friends and her big smile took up half of her face – it was wonderful to see her so happy. We all said our congratulations, forced her to put the cap and gown on for a few required photos, and then said our goodbyes as she ran back to her friends.

Next year she’s off to college to experience a new adventure, and while I am so excited for her, I really wish we could stop time. Because frankly, I don’t want to grow up!

Congratulations J!!!!!

Cabo San Lucas

A Mingle vacation would never be complete without a few unplanned mishaps. However, we Mingles like to look on the bright side and embrace these events whole- heartedly, since more then likely, they provide a lot of color and character for the entire trip. And, without these misadventures, what then my dear friends, would I have to write about?

Before I continue with the good and the bad (from here on known as “funny”), I would like to caveat this by announcing – that we had a fantastic time. That is no lie, Mr. Mingle planned a wonderful trip, and I would go back to Cabo San Lucas in a heartbeat – it was very, very difficult to come home after the nice time that we had. And now…let me take you back to the beginning…

Mr. Mingle planned a 4-night, 5-day trip for the two of us to celebrate our first year anniversary in Cabo San Lucas. We love to travel together, but we also appreciate good deals and he found one. Two things made our trip less expensive:

1) We transferred through Houston (thus adding 5-7 hours onto both our travel days)
2) Our hotel was half-built.

Okay, so the second might sound a little disarming, but we were fully aware of this before we arrived – he had checked out all reviews, and they were positive, despite the construction. What they lacked in building, they made up for in service. The detours through Houston were the biggest downfall of the trip. Not because we were in the air longer, or had layovers in Houston – because we can amuse ourselves and laugh through those - but because they lost my luggage. When we got to Cabo Thursday night, we watched them unload all the bags (it was a small plane) and we watched all the bags get taken away and the luggage cart shut down. Mr. Mingle’s arrived, however mine did not. I was immediately distressed by this because I had nothing to wear except for the clothes I had on and almost everything in the bag was brand new so I thought I’d lost it forever without ever having the chance to wear my new clothes.

On the ride to the hotel I was very sad, which made me even more upset, because at this point I should have been happy, after all, we were in Cabo San Lucas! As I said, we knew the hotel was half-built, so we were not surprised when the taxi drove off into a dirt road, past a half-structure and dropped us off in front of the finished portion by the beach. The lobby was one of the things not built yet, so instead, we checked in at a desk located in the restaurant. There we were greeted by a lovely woman who had good news – the airline had already called and said they found my suitcase which would be delivered late the following day. At that point both of us resisted the urge to leap over the table and hug the woman. Then she said, “I have bad news and good news…” oh..here it comes… “The bad news is we have run out of the studio rooms that you reserved, but the good news is we have given you a free upgrade to a one bedroom suite.” At which point, we were both confused about what the bad news was... “what does that mean?” we asked. That meant that we got a one bedroom suite larger then our apartment, complete with a kitchen, laundry room, two bathrooms and a balcony overlooking the beach. Suite? Sweet!!!

On Friday morning I woke up and was reading on a lounge chair on the balcony while Mr. Mingle continued to sleep. I was enjoying the view, the ocean breeze, and the construction noises in the background when I became aware of a clicking sound that seemed to be getting closer. I turned around and to my surprise found two Mexican construction workers hanging outside my 6th floor balcony hoisting themselves up the building. I quickly departed the balcony, but not without first getting a picture.

Since I didn’t have any of my beachwear, we killed the morning by attending a time share presentation for the place we were staying in and got free breakfast and some other stuff out of it, as well as discounts on our future activities for the weekend. However, we stuck to our guns and did not purchase anything even though they pushed and pushed. Later, I borrowed a shirt and shorts from Mr. Mingle and we walked along the beach to have lunch at The Office, which was supposed to be a fun place. It was obviously located in the party section of the beach. Everyone was tanned and gorgeous and walking around in their little suits with drinks in hand. I felt out of place wearing my husband’s clothes and not feeling glamorous in the least, not to mention we were, by far, the whitest couple on the beach. No worries though – it was just great to be there. My suitcase arrived around 3:00 so we quickly changed into swimsuits and went to the pool complete with a pirate ship in the middle.


On Saturday we had reservations for a snorkeling trip for the afternoon. We went to the wharf to catch our boat and discovered another really nice place in Cabo. The wharf area was beautiful and full of restaurants and fun places to hang out. We caught our boat which came with an open bar and a promise of lunch later in the afternoon. We had a long drive out to the snorkeling beach – probably 45 minutes or so, and I quickly realized that this was going to be a tough day for me. I stopped drinking after one beer when I started to feel seasick. I have never experienced such seasickness in my life… I kept praying that we would get to our destination before I got sick, and luckily we did. I was enjoying the snorkeling and being in the cool water, but still feeling a little queasy, until I accidentally swallowed a large amount of salt water which sent me over the edge. Let’s just say it was unpleasant and I won’t explain further, but luckily no one was around except for Mr. Mingle who was far enough away from me not to get hit… ok, ok, really no more. After that episode I thought I felt better and had some lunch before we took off again for the long journey home. But alas, it wasn’t to be. Some pirates say “yo-ho” when on a boat, but this Mingle said “heave-ho” right over the side. Oh so sick, and unpleasant. I could not wait to get back to dry land. Finally we made it back and somehow I was able to stand enough to get off the boat. It took me awhile to get my strength back, but a little ice cream and a nap helped immensely. The topper to this whole boat trip was the fact that the spray-on sunblock we had was not applied too evenly so the tops of my legs and knees got burnt, and my back looks like a jigsaw puzzle with the red patches asymmetrically appearing around strap lines.

That night I felt much better and was able to enjoy our best dinner out of the whole trip. Mr. Mingle had made special reservations at a boutique hotel called Casa Rafael’s and it was wonderful. The service was impeccable – I think there were 4 or 5 people waiting on us at any one time. There was also a music group playing – a small mariachi band, but with only guitars – no horns. There was a 13 yearold boy in this group who looked like he had been dragged along by his father to occasionally accompany the group with sound effects. All of a sudden, this kid broke out singing with the operatic voice that stunned us – we were amazed. He was also very cheesy and really hammed it up and we enjoyed his performance immensely.

Sunday was our busiest day. First we started off by getting massages and then we rented a sea kayak for two and kayaked out to a place called Lover’s Beach which was quite far away and only accessible by water. We were about a third of the way there when we realized they had sent us out without life jackets. “Oh well, Mingle is a good swimmer” we thought, and carried on. We made it out to the beach with no trouble until we got caught in a mini whirlpool trying to pull up to the beach, but fortunately we didn’t tip and the next wave came and pushed our boat to shore. We walked around this beach for a bit and checked out both sides – the Pacific side and the bay-side. Then we kayaked back. We took a quick break in the pool at a nearby resort where we found a swim-up bar and enjoyed margaritas and ice cream. (As a side note – these do NOT go well together). After this, it was off for parasailing! I have wanted to go parasailing for 14 years, and I was finally going to get my chance. First we were picked up from the beach by a taxi boat which then transferred us to a ski boat in the middle of the bay from which we would parasail. Some other people were already there and while one of them was up in the air we heard a loud crack and then a funny sound. We soon discovered that the fiber glass on the side of the boat had literally cracked in two places and a 4 foot piece of it was flapping around in the breeze. The parasailer came down without incident, but we were worried about the fact that it appeared we had a large hole in our boat. Their boss came out to check the boat out and deemed it unsafe to continue (thank goodness – because I wanted off), and then were put back in a water taxi and transferred to yet another ski boat. Finally I had my chance to parasail, and it was truly amazing. I thought I’d be really frightened, but once I was up there it was so peaceful. They drove us around the bay and I just floated in the air while taking in all the sites, Cabo Bay, our hotel, sea lion rock, the arch, Lover’s Beach…all from a bird’s eye view. I’m so grateful I finally got to go parasailing, and I would do it again.

After Mr. Mingle got his chance to parasail we then went back to our hotel where we relaxed for the rest of the late afternoon by our pool, and then finally into town for one last dinner.

This was an extremely long narrative and if you have read this far – thank you! I had every intention of posting pictures, but am currently having technical difficulties – so those are to come. Our trip was not without its blunders, but as I said in the beginning, all in all it was fantastic. It was so nice to be on vacation together, relaxed and away from work, if only we could have stayed for another week. Mr. Mingle has set the bar very high for our next anniversary.

The Anniversary Trip

"Dear Mr. Mingle,
Thank you for taking me to New York for our anniversary."

This was the note I wrote to Mr. Mingle about 2 months ago when I found out he was planning a surprise four-night trip to celebrate our first year anniversary. I put my note in a sealed envelope and planned to give it to him after he told me where we were going. About 2 weeks ago he disclosed another bit of info: “Technically, we don’t need our passports for where we are going, but it would be helpful.” I knew he wasn’t trying to feed me bogus information because it all made sense with other things that he had said recently. At that point, I threw my New York guess out the window and wrote another note which I then sealed for later viewing:

"Dear Mr. Mingle,
Thank you for taking me on an amazing trip to Mexico."

It was also after this conversation that I tried to weasel a little more info out of him – you see, it was very important for me to know whether or not I needed to go shopping for “cute" clothes. i.e. Were we headed to the tropics or Canada? He confirmed that it might be nice to buy some “cute clothes” so I promptly went out shopping, which led to my whirlwind day last Monday.

At this time I would also like to point out that one day, when Mr. Mingle was rushing off to work on a Saturday morning, he said, “Listen, I accidentally left some anniversary trip info on my dresser – please don’t look.” Normally, I would not rifle through the stuff on his dresser, but now that I knew something was there…it was ooh..soo… tempting. However, except for using my secret x-ray vision to try to look through the pile on the dresser without actually touching it – I did not look. I WAS HOME ALL FRIGGIN’ DAY WALKING BY HIS DRESSER BUT I DID NOT LOOK. Not that it was torture or anything.


This past Saturday was the big revealing of our anniversary trip. He made dinner reservations at the restaurant where we got engaged and told me that we are going to…

drum roll please…

Cabo San Lucas!

We are leaving on Thursday and I can’t wait! My Mexico guess was accurate, however considering I’ve never been anywhere other then Ensenada Mexico, anything was still going to be a surprise. Now that I know where we are going, I am even more excited and wish we could leave NOW. However, my shopping is not yet complete…I still need to buy a swimsuit and sunglasses. After all, what more will I need in Cabo??

Mingle the Sexpot

I went to my last Improv class on Tuesday and we did an activity where our classmates had to choose the characters they wanted to see other people perform. A piece of paper was passed around with my name on it and my classmates had to write down what character they wanted to see me portray on stage. I do not know why they chose the characters that they did, nor did I particularly care for any of them:

An aggravated yetti
A sexpot
A druggie
A waitress at a Reno casino
An overeater

After we all got our list of characters, then our teacher would pull together a scene: “I want to see the nervous cop, the other cop, the jabbering crackhead…and…who would make a good girlfriend? Ah..the sexpot.”

There were a few problems with this scene:

First of all, I’m not honestly sure what defines a ‘sexpot’, except I assumed it was someone who thought she was good looking and was trying to get some. All the time.

Secondly, I have never been a very flirtatious person anyway, and have trouble even acting this way on stage. Nevermind the fact that innocent flirting was the least of my worries in this scene.

Thirdly, I was playing the girlfriend of the “Jabbering Crackhead” who was being played by a guy named Joe, who is equally as square as I am. You should have seen us trying to light up imaginary crackpipes…I’m sorry, what? Let me put this to you in a different light – the best scene I acted in over the past 10 weeks was when I was partnered with this same guy Joe, and we both played 90 year-old women. We were comfortable with those roles. We were not comfortable with these new ones.

The first time we performed this scene, I basically tried to throw myself at everyone (tried being the keyword) – the crackhead, the nervous cop, and the brave cop (who happened to be bald) as they went about trying to arrest the crackhead. The bald head worked to my benefit since I was able to rub it sexily. Ummm…more info then you wanted eh?

When we were done, the teacher wanted to see the Jabbering Crackhead jabber more with a stream of consciousness so asked us to go back up onstage and do it again. He was to jabber more, I was to be more of a sexpot. This time he just jabbered and basically everything I caught him saying, I turned into some steamy sexual innuendo, and then finally dragged him back to my ‘bedroom’. I’ve never said the things to my husband that I said on stage in front of my whole class. It was a big, BIG stretch for my acting skills, and one which I found quite embarrassing.

The only other character I had to play that night from my list above was the “Aggravated Yetti”, however, I initially confused ‘yetti’ with ‘shirpa’. No, no. One is human, one is not. So, in that scene I just grunted my way across stage as a step-sister to Chewbacca, while a guy playing a drag queen tried to pick up on me. What a class. Or should I say, I've got some class.

A Good Weekend for Me/Not for the Hubby

Saturday: I went up to the Russian River with the younger Flosses where we played a fun game of golf, never mind the fact that two of us are really bad golfers. The weather was perfect, the course was surrounded by huge Sequioas, I never lost my ball, (which is quite easy if you really don’t hit it very far to begin with), and we enjoyed a cocktail on the 5th Hole. That night we had a BBQ back at the Cabin and relaxed on deck while hitting a volleyball back and forth as we tried not to send it flying over the deck into the poison oak below. Later that evening Krin introduced me to a new game called SayGo! which is somewhat similar to scrabble, only much faster, and not for points. For those of you who have played with competitive Krin before, I suggest you play a game with her where she has lost the directions. It really takes the competitive edge out of a game if you don’t know how to score it – and yet, it’s still fun!

Mr. Mingle on the other hand was left at home because he had to work, and then he went to a movie and a dinner that evening.

Sunday: Woke up relatively early to go boating at Lake Berryessa. I have never seen a lake so crowded or so choppy, but we still had a great time boating around. The weather was a little chilly, but if we were stopped it was warm enough in the sunshine to lay out and get a little tan. (Or a little splotchy in my case since I didn’t apply the sunblock evenly). The Big Floss went for a short wakeboard when we found a patch of semi-smooth water, but it didn’t last too long once the waves started up again. We amused ourselves by watching Krin and Zach swim the new dog – mini dachshund, Roxy – ashore so she could take a dump. (Roxy, not Krin) And cheered loudly when the mission was successful. (It’s the little things in life that make us happy). Later in the day we boated over to a bridge where there were tons of boats hanging out. It looked like Spring Break at Lake Havasu. If any of you are not familiar with “lake people”, they are a very, very special breed. As Big Floss said, we could have stayed and people-watched all day long. One boat in particular stuck out because the boat was called “Pimp Nasty”, and a bunch of skinheads were yelling out “White Power” and “Hey Mother$#%@” every time they passed. We stayed long enough to see what was going on, to see that it wasn’t our type of crowd, and then boated back to the ramp to go home for the day.

Mr. Mingle on the other hand was at home working again, and also feeling sick. He drove up to meet us at the Russian River cabin Sunday night but by the time he got there was so sick with food poisoning that it wasn’t a fun visit for him.

Monday: Mr. Mingle and I had originally planned to go to a winery and then stop by my dad’s for lunch. Then, we were going to go shopping after that. However, since he was still feeling really sick, we skipped the winery, stopped by my dad’s quickly to pick up some things and then went straight home. Both of us ended up taking a nap, but I woke up about 3 hours earlier then he did and decided that I needed to go shopping. We are going on vacation in a few weeks and I need some new summer clothes – you know how it is. I went to a mall nearby in Emeryville and, after a gluttonous dessert treat, decided to check out the GAP. It was one of those rare days where everything that was on sale, actually fit! I ended up leaving there with two big bags of clothes (for both Mr. Mingle and I) and went home happy.

All in all, I had a really great weekend – I just wish that Mr. Mingle could have enjoyed it too.

A Poem About Yesterday

As I sit here at this hotel on Fisherman's Wharf

it is a beautiful day.

Outside.

Inside, there are no windows, just long tables and chairs.

One man speaks for hours about something I do not know.

They let us out for lunch which is nice.

Good food, sat in the sun.

But then they said, "Come back in now."

There was no caffeine to keep me awake, only water,

and the bathroom is hard to get to.

I wait for a break

and write a poem called

Mingle at the Argonaut.

This was just one of many things I amused myself with as I attended a seminar in the city about something that meant nothing to me. It was all about upgrading some application that I don't use to begin with. If I found myself dozing I would concentrate for 5 minutes at a time and write down every random quote that I could. I'll share some with you so you can share in my 'fun' of yesterday...

"eurobucket"
"A concept that we call existing on or after"
"If I double-click into Avon, I have the Johnson family and the Smith family"
"Drill into the concentration percentage"
"Basically the answer is no."
"As you know, I don't have to click refresh everytime, because you can set it to refresh at any interval you choose, but I'm going to push it."
"What does test class really mean?"
"I don't have nearly enough time to walk through the enhancements or ease of use items in the new version." (And yet he was still able to talk for hours)

Sigh....I'm happy the weekend is here.

Interview

I decided to apply for the position of Director of my old department and had an interview for this on Wednesday. I thought that I might have a good chance at this position considering I actually trained the guy who previously filled it. I thought that I could walk in to the interviews with confidence and “talk the talk”. On Tuesday I met with a friend of mine in HR who proceeded to tell me “they are considering a stronger candidate, but it might be good for you to meet with the CIO anyway, so she can hear what you have to say.” What an intro.

I met with two people the next day – the CIO for an hour in person and then her counterpart for another half hour over the phone. Mind you, I used to work with these people and know their um...habits…they are very demanding. Still though, I went to the interview with as much confidence that I could muster. That’s when they pulled out the business jargon dictionary… “What value proposition can you bring to the table?” “What advice/ideas would you provide to help us build a stronger labor model?” “Tell me an example when you have worked with a matrix management situation…” and so on… (Fortunately, I had looked up “matrix management” on google right before the interview and got that one.) For the other questions, I would put into it into context with the rest of the conversation and just hope I was going down the right track with my answer. She then asked me, “How is your success measured in your current role”, to which I instantly replied, “That’s a really good question, I have no idea.” I could tell this shocked her – ‘you should know that’, she replied. I wanted to say, I KNOW – THIS IS WHY I’M APPLYING FOR A DIFFERENT JOB. But I didn’t, and then she proceeded to ask how I thought my success should be measured in the position I was applying for. To which I made up a long winded answer, which could be summarized by the first sentence that went something like, “I would guess my success would be measured on whether or not I do a good job, and accomplish everything you need.” At the end of the day why can’t we just ask our bosses, “Are you happy with the work I’m doing?” Yes or No. But I digress…


At the end of the interview she also echoed the HR lady with the news of “we have one strong candidate we are considering” thereby implying it was not me. Seriously though, if that interview is an inkling of what I would encounter on the job – then maybe it’s for the best. And to end on a lighter note – my proudest moment of recovery was when I almost fell forward out of the chair, caught myself, continued talking and didn’t bat an eye. She on the other hand said, “oh my!” If anything, they should really hire me for my comic relief.

Things That Make Me Happy

The 'Artwork' I've recently created for our office:

My clever cat and patient husband:

The mini-rosebush I've managed to keep alive that's doubled in size and is now blooming:

The fact that my cats now get along:

Tomorrow is Friday.

Hump Day

I began writing notes for this blog while I was sitting on an airplane this morning headed to Los Angeles for the day. Just one day. My bosses told me last Friday that they wanted me in LA today for a “meeting”. I was appalled at the cost of the roundtrip to LA since it was booked for the same day, and at the last minute. I was even more appalled when I got to the airport this morning and they told me my flight wasn’t actually confirmed when I purchased it on Friday, so they proceeded to charge me today’s price which was $150 more. (I’ll be arguing that with United later). It’s on the company card, but even though it’s not my personal money, I still can’t justify the cost in my own head. This better be some meeting.

Last night was fun – I went to the Jimmy Buffet concert with the Foffs. My dad actually bought all of our tickets, but he and J had to go to Colorado so he ended up giving daughter Foff and me their tickets. The deal was the Mr. Foff had to treat us all to dinner before hand. It was the only time I’ve ever been able to tell an “authority figure”: “My dad said you better take good care of me tonight or he’s going to ‘kick your ass’”. To which Mr. Foff looked me in the eye and replied, “What would you like for an appetizer Mingle?” (Everyone knows that you just need food to make a Mingle happy.) The concert was really good, but probably would have been better in a tropical, or even a warm setting. We were all in jackets zipped up to our chins swaying to the reggae tropical beat. They had huge screens to either side of the stage where they would show a close-up of the performers as well as pan the audience. The blond girl with big boobs who was dancing in the front was on there a lot. No pictures of Mingle and Foffs dressed up in winter gear in section 202. Go figure.

This whole week is weird. I haven’t actually been to my office yet. (Not complaining at all about that!). I had a 2-day course in SF to learn some reporting application, which I found relatively simple since I spend so much time with Excel. So, I spent most of the time checking my email while the teacher would show people how to add a border, or change the color of a header. We would get out of class at 4pm so on Monday I spent the entire evening shopping. It was wonderful. Mr. Mingle was in the city at a meeting so I decided to wait until that was over and take BART home with him. I went to a café on the top floor of Virgin Records and ordered a beer from the tap. The “keg kicked” so the glass was half full of foam. The bartender then gave me a bottle of beer, but also handed me the glass of beer, which by the time I drank it was a full glass of beer. There I was sitting alone with my many shopping bags, overlooking Market St., while double-fisting two beers. It was truly grand. Not to mention they had “Men’s Pocky” which I haven’t seen since I was in Japan, so I bought that as well. (Pocky is long, thin pretzel sticks dipped in chocolate – “Men’s Pocky uses dark chocolate instead of milk.)

So, there’s my week so far – I’m back in the office tomorrow, but then work from our Dublin office on Friday. I love being secluded out there away from the rest of my department. All in all, I’d say it’s a pretty good week.

Give a Cat a Hug

Mr. Mingle’s sister stayed with us this past weekend, and when I brought her home on Friday I introduced her to the cats...”this is Mini and this is Zimby”. She replied “oh yeah, I remember Zimby – she and I bonded the last time I was here.”

This is the cat that rarely lets anyone aside from Mr. Mingle and I get close to her, and even then it’s on her own terms. She will cuddle with me when I’m in bed, and whenever either of us is on the computer, that is her “love-fest time” where she wants as much attention as possible and then proceeds to drool all over the keyboard. But any other time you want to pet her or give her some love, it’s hit or miss whether she wants it.

So, when sis-in-law said those two words in a sentence: “bonded” and “Zimby”, I scoffed internally, and thought, yeah…right. She then proceeded to pick Zimby up and I was quick to say, “ooh….she doesn’t really liked to be picked up much…”, and Mr. Mingle was behind me echoing..”yeah, and when she does, she only likes to be held a specific way…” When to our utter shock we looked at the cat, and realized that she had turned to absolute putty in her arms. It was a sight I have never seen before – and she wasn’t even holding her “right”! I truly wish I had taken a picture because it was amazing. The cat was practically straddling her arm and she wasn’t struggling at all – she looked…happy.

The other reason I wish I had taken a picture is because Mr. Mingle and I cannot figure out how she was holding the cat. We’ve tried now a few times to re-create the putty-cat, but instead we get struggling-angry-cat. But we’ll continue to try…if for no other reason then because its fun to torture her a little bit.

Six Frustrations

1 – The number of Casio keyboards stolen from my car
2 – The number of locks broken on my old car
3 – The number of windows broken on my cars
4 – The number of times Honda Betty was broken into
5 – The number of times I’ve had to pay to fix damage to cars broken into
6 – The number of times my car has been broken into

It’s true. I’ve waited a whole week to write this…I’ve been trying to let it go. But last Wednesday my car was broken into again. I was parked in the financial district of SF where they smashed my passenger side window, stole my CDs, half of a book on tape from the library, and a bag which had some of my favorite pants and shoes, and Jimmy Buffet concert tickets that my dad had given to me that day. Fortunately – the tickets, the most expensive item stolen, can be easily replaced. However, pants, shoes and some personal CDs cannot be. Neither can my frustration be assuaged as to why this continues to happen.

Ironically, I have married a man who has even worse luck with cars then I do. However this makes me feel neither better nor worse. Truthfully, at this point, it’s just bitterly humorous.

The New Global Dialing Plan

Everyday we receive multiple emails from our IT department informing us of changes – but half the time I don’t understand them. Usually they are about server upgrades, system outages, and have a string of acronyms to further confuse the reader. However, the one below is about the phone system – something I get - yet they still manage to confuse me. Here’s portions of the original, and below is my interpretation (also based on previous experience with our current phone system).

"The IT Communications Infrastructure Team has scheduled a series of upgrades to our existing phone system to begin implementing a Global Dial Plan. When the Global Dial Plan is fully implemented it will allow for 7-digit dialing between major campus sites worldwide.
…

When your site is converted to the 7-digit plan all phone extensions will have a "11" added to the beginning of the existing extension.

This will not impact any external calls and you will still be able to use the current 5-digit extensions for calls between the following sites:

San Mateo / Dublin (CA)
Ft Lauderdale
Rancho Cordova
St Petersburg
…

My Interpretation
When dialing Rancho you need to dial 5 digits, but when calling Canada you need to dial 7-digits (if you can guess what they are). This will not have any impact on your site except for the fact that sometimes you have to dial 5-digits, and sometimes 7. But there will also be times when you need to dial 12 (don't forget the 9) and even more if you dial someone's cell phone in another country. Cell phones will not be affected by the new dial plan. They will still only work sporadically. But you can try dialing 7-digits. If you cannot reach someone in the US, try dialing 11 before their old extension, but please be sure not to dial 11 after a 9. If you would like to reach 911 please dial 9911, and if this doesn't work, try dialing 119911, and if that doesn't work, please add one more digit, so that you are dialing 7-digits. Don't call us, we'll call you, and don't even try to contact our office in New York.

Mingle iPod Meme

Inspired by Yay Toast , I decided to test the skills of my iPod in answering some questions about life. As Sactownkid explained, "you shuffle the songs in your iPod and use the resulting songs to answer the following questions, in the order in which they appeared". I found my iPod to be a little insightful, a little stubborn, and it also had a sense of humor. All things that are very important in any electronic gadget. However, one question it did not answer for me was this, "What is a meme??".

How does the world see you?
"Police and Thieves" Junior Murvin
(Hmm...does this mean that people have caught on?)

Will I have a happy life?
"Ice Cream" Lou Bega
(It always comes down to food)

What do my friends really think of me?
"Silent Sea" KT Tunstall
(Surprising - and here I thought I was one of the louder ones)

Do people secretly lust after me?
"Drive In, Drive Out" Dave Matthews Band
(Um..as in...pass right by?)

How can I make myself happy?
"Track 14", Unnamed
(Very funny iPod meme. It was a latin jazz tune - are you suggesting I join a mariachi band?)

What should I do with my life?
"Heal Over" KT Tunstall
(Deep - I need some time to contemplate this one)

Will I ever have children?
"Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)" Steve Harley
(Is that a yes?)

What is some good advice for me?
"Track 6" Unnamed
(Just give me some advice!!!)

How will I be remembered?
"Tempted" Squeeze
(By what?)

What is my signature dancing song?
"Right Place, Wrong Time" The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
(Can anyone say Running Man?)

What do I think my current theme song is?
"Let You Down" DMB
(And now, we take a turn towards depressing)

What does everyone else think my current theme song is?
"Gin and Juice", The Gourds
(Is this why I've "Let You Down"?)

What song will play at my funeral?
"The Sound of Silence" Simon and Garfunkel
(Enough said.)

What type of men do you like?
"I'm Only Thinking of Him," Man of La Mancha
(Mr. Mingle. Too sweet)

What is my day going to be like?
"Independent Women" Destiny's Child
(This is so very true when the hubby is working on the weekends!)

Dancing Torture Flashback

A quote from Mom I'm not used to hearing:

"I really liked that email you wrote about pole dancing."

She told me this yesterday. I wrote the "pole-dancing email" in June 2003. Curious what I had written back then, I used my "valuable" time at work to search through old folders and found the original email, titled - "Torture". Here it is for your enjoyment:


Hello! I told a few of you about the audition callback...so let me tell you about the torture I experienced...
Well...I went to the dance audition last night... and it was one of the most embarrassing moments of my life! Here's the story....
I was called back for a role as a courtesan in "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum", and I didn't know anything about it before the audition. Basically, they're members of a harem and are supposed to seduce the main character...so the first thing they said to us is..."The point of this audition is to show us how sexy you can be.." oh shit, I thought, that is soo not me..in fact that's about as far away as you can get when it comes to my dance style ... (I thought I was going to be "silly dancing"...not pole dancing!!) I was so mortified...
I was the oldest, tallest girl there and also had the least amount (no amount) of dance experience. They taught us a dance, which I never quite got because they went too fast and I just didn't get it, not to mention I'm not flexible...and basically screwed up when I had to perform. I felt like a beached whale. Had you been there, you truly would have laughed your ass off. I now have 3 bruises from last night's experience...one on each knee and midway up my back - can you imagine what type of dancing we were doing??
Once we all performed we had to line up on stage so they could just check us out because they were looking for a specific look and body type for different roles (and in my head I'm screaming.."Get me out of here!!") They also asked us 2 questions...."Does anyone have a problem dancing in 3-inch heels?" (Silence..silence...) "Does anyone having a problem being practically naked?" (Silence...silence) Finally, I shouted out.."um..I might have a problem with 3 inch heels" (If I can't walk in them...I doubt I can dance in them...) They said, "Well, how about 2-inch?" At this point I know they aren't going to call me back anyway, so I respond "yes, that would be fine" (Like I have a clue) They then asked me how tall I was, so I stood up straight and said 5'11'' and they said 2-inch heels would be fine. (Like it matters) And I just let the "naked" question go by, but had a clear image of me dancing half naked on stage with my friends and family sitting in the audience trying to hold back their laughter..or in my parents case, covering their eyes...
Once they were done checking us out, and taking notes they let us go. I could not get out of there fast enough and never looked back! And that...is my first callback experience... kill me..kill me now.

(Needless to say -- I didn't get that role)

Inspired by Open Letters on McSweeneys.net

AN OPEN LETTER TO THE PERSON OR PERSONS WHO KEEP STEALING AND VANDALIZING MY HUSBAND’S ’94 SATURN:


Dear Vandalizing Thief,

Enough is enough. What is it about my husband’s 1994 Saturn that is so intriguing to you? You and I both know that it’s a piece of crap and yet you continually pass by the BMWs, Mercedes, Toyotas and Hondas (which I’m told are just as easy to steal) until you see the Saturn. Is it the grainy gold color from years of not washing, or the droopy ceiling liner that attracts you? I wish you could at least have some heart to steal a car that is fully insured for theft. Why do you think a person drives a car like this? Five words: Full time student. No Money.

Thanks for parking it near the house where you tossed his insurance papers the first time you stole it. We were fortunate to see it when we drove to that neighborhood to pick up the paperwork. You may have stolen everything out of the car, and stripped the license plates, but the word “Bitch” that was scratched into the paint from the first time it was vandalized was a pretty clear indication that it was my husband’s car. Not to mention the donut tire that was still on the car from when he had a flat tire a few days before. That spare tire must have given you a real rough ride when you ground his clutch out. And to this day, I can’t imagine how you managed to blow the speakers in the one day you had the car. Was it from blasting the cassette tape of E.B. White poetry that my husband had, or from blasting his NPR stations that were pre-programmed into the radio? Just kidding, I know it was music from your favorite stations which you took the time to program in. Thanks for sharing.

After that, were you angry we found the car and took it back? A nasty note on the windshield would have sufficed instead of smashing his windows on multiple occasions to steal the contents of his car. I’m sure you realized by now that the only thing he regularly leaves in his car are his gym bags. How many gym bags does one person need anyway? Don’t his dirty gym clothes gross you out? Because I must tell you, he can be one sweaty guy. Fortunately for you, you must wear the same shoe size, but wouldn’t you rather get new shoes? He has already run an average of 300 miles in those shoes by the time you steal them. But don’t worry about the thing on the bottom of his foot that he’s been suffering from. It’s not contagious. Anymore.

The second time you stole the car, did you have to leave it parked in San Francisco? I had made sure it was fully insured this time, and was so excited that I might never see that car again. We could have taken the insurance money to buy another car that is harder to steal. Like a tank.

But no, you left it where the police could find it. Unfortunately they failed to tell us for a couple of days, so by the time we picked it up from the impound lot, it cost us over $300 for them to release it to us. (But thanks for pinning the droopy ceiling liner up with his Trader Joe’s nametag - that was a stroke of genius.)

It’s been awhile since anything has happened to his Saturn, but I wanted you to know that if you are thinking of vandalizing or stealing the car again, please do. I would like to buy a new car now, but I’m afraid no one will ever buy his old car. So, take it, dismantle it, drive it into the bay, burn it…do whatever you must do, just make sure that it will never ever be found again. I’ll even throw in a couple of gym bags full of sweaty clothes and running shoes to sweeten the deal.

Sincerely Yours,
Mrs. Mingle

Stages of Hunger

As you all know, and have teased me about for years, I can get grumpy when I’m hungry. (Other words used at times also include Ornery, Pissy, and “Mean”.) However, I have also always outwardly joked about this, and perhaps blown it out of proportion because it’s just easier. I would also like to point out that most people I have known act differently when they are hungry, whether that be irritated, grumpy, spacey, or tired, but they just don’t admit it, or maybe even notice it themselves. Everyone is affected by hunger, but it takes certain people longer to get hungrier then others so you may not see it as often. Me, however, I get hungry every few hours – so perhaps it’s more apparent.

There is another stage to my hunger, which perhaps you may not be aware of, and that is blindness. The first time I experienced this was when I was in the eighth grade. I specifically remember being in Jazz Band when all of a sudden I couldn’t see a quarter of the music, which quickly was reduced to half of the music and then all of it was swimming around in front of me. My vision does not go black, but everything just starts to blur and I see a lot of spots. That day I went to the nurse’s office because I was very scared that I was in fact going blind and mom came to pick me up. Afterwards we went to my grandma’s house where I’m sure she fed me a good meal, and after a short time I was back to normal. (No comment from the peanut gallery on what “normal” implies here.)

At the time I did not associate that problem with lack of food, but since then it has happened on several other occasions, and I figured out that it was because my blood sugar was too low. As long as I can see enough to grab a bite to eat, I am fine in a about a half hour.

I bring this up because it happened again today. I was in a meeting with my boss, and as it was winding down, I realized the blurred vision was coming on. I hadn’t even realized I was hungry yet, but I’ve learned not to argue when I start having trouble focusing. I quickly ate something and called a friend to chat while my system normalized again. My friend mentioned that perhaps I should tell others so they really understand why I need to eat when I do – so that’s what I’m doing.

If you have traveled with me you have heard me say, “I need to eat when I’m hungry, otherwise I get ornery.” Yes – that is partially true, but honestly, it’s just easier for me to explain. Today I tried being honest with my boss as she continued chatting with me at the end of the meeting. I said, “I need to eat something right now because I’m having trouble seeing.” She gave me a look that said, “You’re a nutcase.” I’m not sure what’s worse, begin considered “mean” or a “nutcase”, but there is one thing for sure – when a girl’s got to eat, a girl’s got to eat.

This Week

Saturday: Sunday:
Thursday:

Put a Sock In It

Last night I started a new class: Improvisation (for acting, not music). It meets once a week for 10 weeks, and if I get over the nervous-I-feel-stupid factor, I think it could be a lot of fun. I’ve taken one improv class before at a community center, but my friend was the teacher, so it was a lot less intimidating. This new class is at a real actor’s school where Mr. Mingle has been taking classes, and I feel much more out of my element. I went to my first class last night with one goal: do not make a fool of myself. Unless it’s on purpose – that is okay.

It started out well when we had to first introduce ourselves. We had to say our names and then tell something interesting about our name. I told the Mingle Ingle story, so I got a good laugh, which made me relax. The class continued without a hitch, and then half way through we took a break. As I was leaving the classroom I put on a fleece jacket that I had brought and heard someone call out, “you dropped something!” I turned around to see this woman leaning over to pick up the item I had dropped when we both realized at the same time, that it was a sock. She unfortunately had already committed to picking it up for me so she gingerly grabbed it by its corners, as I nervously said, “oh..ha ha…you’ve found my laundry!” as I quickly snapped it from her. It was clean, but I know the poor girl wasn’t sure.

Obviously this sock was somehow attached to my fleece jacket, whether the pocket or the back, but I have no idea where it was when I walked from my car to the school… I did however have the impression that people were looking at me funny as I walked down the street, and now, I think I know why.

Mad for March

I don’t follow college basketball at all during the regular season, except for the brief updates that I hear on the radio for the local college teams. But once March Madness rolls around, I am hooked. For the past 3 or 4 years I have joined a pool with coworkers from around the company. I have no idea who organizes this pool, or who participates in it either, except for the one coworker who forwards it to me year after year. The ante to join is $5, and this year the payout to the winner is $195 – not a bad turn-around! If you win…

We use Yahoo to enter our picks and it is a really slick system – once you pick your teams, it monitors everything for you. Each year I do a little research, which basically means I see if the teams won or lost their last couple of games, and how they are ranked in the bracket, league and nation. And then I guess. I guess like a monkey might choose stocks.

Each year, I seem to run the same gamut of emotions, and so far this year is no different. In the first round of play, I generally do very well – of course, I just realized that so does everyone else if you stick with the higher seeds, and then go for a couple of upsets. I did well again this year, and was happy to see my selection for the final four still there.

And then the second round started…and so did the upsets. Bye bye Tennessee, bye bye Ohio, bye bye North Carolina. The last one hurt the most because I had them losing the final game of the tournament. This was compounded by the fact that the radio broadcaster I was listening to at the beginning of the George Mason – North Carolina Game said, “There is no way NC is going to lose this one. In fact I would bet everything that they will win by at least 10.” It was right about then I realized that he jinxed it, and my team was doomed. (On a similar but lighter note – earlier in the day one of the broadcasters commented on the Bradley vs. Pittsburgh St. game and said, “Did anyone notice that the teams’ short names on the scoreboard were Brad Pitt?”)

The slick Yahoo system also has scenario generators so that I can see that I still have a chance to win – if all of the rest of my picks go exactly as planned. I certainly won’t count my chickens, and I know that I most likely will not win, because I never do, but I’ll continue to be excited through the next round of play – and then we’ll see what happens. Poor Mr. Mingle – he’s not interested in this like I am, and I realize that the first thing I say when I walk in the door on game days is a litany of game highlights and scores. At least it’s just one month. Heaven forbid if I liked professional basketball!

My Day Ends Well

I was just about to logoff for the day when my coworker sent me this Instant Message:

Coworker: Hi [Mrs. Mingle]
Mingle: Hi!
Coworker: I want to tell you that I met with [your old boss today] today.
Mingle: [laughing emoticon]
Coworker: He says you are the best employee he's ever hired.
Mingle: [blushing emoticon]
Coworker: Thought you may want to know that.
Mingle: really? that's nice!
Coworker: Yeah.
Coworker: You must be really good.
Mingle: I appreciate you telling me that - thank you

It's nice to end the week on a high note.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Just Another Day

8:00 - 9:00

Checked emails; IM'd Pop to send photos via email - explained "soft copy"
9:00 - 10:00

Went to an "important" meeting
10:00 - 10:30

Met with Boss and Big Boss to talk about stuff - agreed to set up additional meetings to continue to talk about stuff
10:30 - 11:00

Went to Starbucks for free coffee and called Mr. Mingle to tell him about free coffee
11:00 - 11:45

Checked email; blogs; sent cute picture to Mom
11:45 - 1:00

Lunch with friend
1:00 - 2:00

Checked email and to-do list. Made some notes to follow-up on to-do list.
2:00 - 3:30

Researched and and selected picks for March Madness tourney; talked to Floss about crazy small man
3:30 - 4:00

Thought about writing in blog, but have nothing to say
4:00 - 5:00

Read and made notes on document not related to work; went to ATM; contemplated meetings for the next day; posted blog.

Note: All the bosses of the department are in a 2 and 1/2 day meeting beginning at 12:00 today.

Living with a Blind Man

Last Wednesday Mr. Mingle had eye surgery to correct his vision. He couldn’t get the more popular Lasex surgery “because his corneas are too thin”, so he had to get a less well-known surgery – PRK. I’ll save you from the details of what that means, but basically when all is said and done it meant a lot of pain for a few days, and a longer recovery time.

For the first couple of days, he couldn’t read, watch TV, use the computer, drive or exercise. So, that left sleeping, which he did like a champ. I really felt for him when his forehead would crinkle up in pain above the massive black glasses he was wearing.

For the next couple of days, he couldn’t read, see TV very well, use the computer very long, drive or exercise. So, that left sleeping and watching TV or using the computer for a short time until his eyes hurt. Oh, and playing with the cat. Fortunately, he could continue to play with Mini, who refuses to give Mr. Mingle a moment’s rest from “the bird”. Now, I started to feel bad because not only did his eyes hurt sometimes, but when they didn’t, then boredom would start up.

Over the weekend we watched the series Arrested Development, which we have on DVD (very, very funny by the way), which I think to him was like watching blobs with voices. If I felt there was some visual detail that he needed to know, then I’d vocalize it – “ha ha ha, you should see their facial expressions!” (So very helpful isn’t it?) We also went for a long walk and he closed his eyes the whole way home so I could guide him home like a true blind man. He only tripped once. He was able to clean and do basic stuff around the house, although I continued to do most of the cooking. I came home on Sunday to him looking sheepish in the kitchen – “I just broke something”, he said. The poor guy – he couldn’t see this clear dish that was already in the cabinet when he tried to put a salad bowl in the same place. (The clear dish lost.)

Yesterday he had a follow-up appointment that was positive because the Doctor said his eyes look on track to heal fine, but he still was not given the okay to drive. And his vision is still too bad to read a book. But he can use the computer, if the font size is set bigger, and of course, he couldn’t wait any longer, and went for a run yesterday.

I think this surgery had been a good test for the both of us. We are so used to being on the move, and doing things, and go, go, go…but when everything must stop – what does one do??

I have to admit though – I have taken advantage of this surgery in one small aspect… Mr. Mingle loves to read before he goes to sleep, but since he can’t right now I decided to read to him. And since he’s my captive audience – I get to choose the reading materials. Every night Mr. Mingle now goes to sleep after hearing me read from my stories of Japan. What can I say? It’s nice to have an audience.

Mingle Movie Review

With the Oscars coming, and sudden free time on our hands, Mr. Mingle and I have made it our mission to see every best picture nominated, as well as most of the movies with people nominated for Best/Supporting Actor/Actress. In fact, we have gotten so excited over the Oscars this year, that we are making a special trip out to Colorado this weekend to watch the show with R&J. (The artichoke dip alone is worth the trip, not to mention the company.) I even attempted to try to get all of the people in my department to join an Oscar pool. It was my attempt to bring a little social levity to the workplace. (Our department is so dysfunctional – I discovered people in other offices that I didn’t even know reported to the same boss.)

Now, I don’t claim to be a movie aficionado, in fact I think you’ll find by my reviews below, that well, descriptive words are not my forte. However, I must say, that I have really wanted to watch all of the movies we’ve seen over the past 2 months – it wasn’t just a case of going because I had to. You have to understand - when we first started dating – Mr. Mingle and I couldn’t have been further apart in our movie tastes. The blockbusters, and romantic comedies that I love, were nothing like the dark Indy movies that he loves. Going to the movies together was a challenge because one of us would have to sometimes go half-heartedly to the other’s choice of film. But I digress…

The Official 2006 Mingle Movie Review

Crash: Enjoyable Film, but not Best Picture worthy in my opinion. It seemed too cleverly packaged. Sure, they were making a point about race, but did they really have to throw (and try to debunk) every single stereotype in 2 hours?

Munich: Good until the last 20 minutes, and then it plummeted. It was as if they realized, “Shit! This is too long – we have to end this thing! Oh, but wait – we still have to slam our message down their throats! Ta –Da!”

Capote: Great Movie – it makes me want to read In Cold Blood, kind of. He was one strange guy, (excellently acted by Phillip Seymour Hoffman), and I had no idea the author of To Kill a Mockingbird was one of his great friends. The most interesting part of this movie to me was the fact that Mr. Mingle and I left the theater with opposite impressions of Capote.

Good Night, Good Luck: Interesting Movie – Although, I expected more from the story – I didn’t realize the whole movie was about a few broadcasts. Although excellently acted and directed, I didn’t feel like all the characters were fleshed out. Can someone tell me why Patricia Clark and Robert Downey Jr’s characters were even in the movie? JP – I know you loved this one – please enlighten me!

Brokeback Mountain: I agree with Burns here, Excellent!

Transamerica: Storyline was interesting but a little blah. The best part of the movie was one moment when I actually felt that Felicity Huffman was a man (becoming a woman) – her acting was impressive.

North Country: This one required the most tissues – cry, cry, cry. Pretty good, but no Erin Brokavich.

Walk The Line: Just seen on Wednesday (now out on video), this is one of my favorites of all. Great acting (pretty people), and call me a sucker for the music. But seriously – it was a great movie!

Constant Gardener: Interesting plot – I enjoyed the originality of it. (But I have no desire to go to Africa.) Well acted, but I’m not sure why Rachel Wiez was nominated. I’m sure her acting was excellent – I did not feel “wowed”.

Syriana: One of my favorites – I loved how the plot slowly came together and it was an interesting view of the oil industry from many sides. I didn’t even understand the plot entirely, but I enjoyed it so much that I would see it again to figure out what I missed the first time.

Hustle and Flow: This one surprised me - I really, really enjoyed it! Had some trouble with the accent...not always sure what was said...but Terrence Howard was great!! And again...sucker for a little music. "It's Hard Out Here for Pimp..."

Seen months ago with Burns:
A History of Violence: Mingle’s pick for most disturbing of the year. I …did…not…like…this. (And yet Mr. Mingle has put it on our Netflix list – do you see how our tastes differ??)

My Four Things

I haven’t been "tagged", and I’m a little behind the curve when it comes to the topic “Favorite Four Things” but dammit – I love writing lists!! (Inspired by Yay Toast! and Anybody Want a Peanut?)

Four jobs I've had:

1. Project Manager
2. English Teacher (in Japan)
3. Bus Conductor
4. Receptionist at Athletic Club

Four movies I can watch over and over:

This is the category that kept me from making the “Four Things” list at first, because I don’t generally like watching movies over and over again. However…there are a few exceptions:
1. Speed
2. When Harry Met Sally
3. Clueless
4. Chicago

Four places I have lived:

1. Clayton, CA
2. Davis, CA
3. Bethesda, MD
4. Osaka, Japan

Four TV shows I love:

1. Lost
2. Desparate Housewives
3. Prison Break
4. Friends

Four places I've vacationed:

1. Hawaii
2. UK (England/Scotland/Wales)
3. Houseboat on Trinity Lake, CA
4. Vietnam

Four of my favorite dishes:

1. Pizza from Zachary’s in Oakland
2. Paprika Prawns made by Mr. Mingle
3. “Peanut Butter Porkchops” (A Mingle original)
4. Favorite Pasta: Scallops and Shitake Mushrooms on Angel Hair

Four sites I (sometimes) visit daily:

1. Dooce
2. Yah Toast! (Which then links to many other friend sites)
3. Stuff on My Cat
4. Company Intranet (blah)

Four places I would rather be right now:

1. At home with Mr. Mingle and cats
2. In Portland
3. Having a beer at 21st Amendment in SF
4. Hanging out by the fireplace in a cabin in the snow

Four people I am tagging:

1. California Swiss Miss
2. Junkyard Princess
3. Flossie Fossie
4. Any other list-lover out there

An Earful at the Dentist Office

On Thursday I read Karin’s Chronicles and she mentioned that she had recently visited the dentist where she was assisted by a wacky hygienist. I had a dentist appointment later that same afternoon and became nervous when I realized that I go to the same dentist office as Karin.

Now, I have never enjoyed going to the dentist – I hate it when they stick pointy tools in my mouth and then ask me, “have you been flossing?” But on Thursday, the one saving grace of going was that I was looking forward to lying down in the dentist chair and closing my eyes while I had my teeth cleaned. I had been tired all day, and thought I could use that time to rest. But alas, it was not to be…

Sure enough, when I arrived, I discovered that I had the exact same wacky hygienist that Karin had a week earlier. She talked endlessly. Of course, she immediately asked me if I floss everyday, and since I can’t tell a lie, I said, “no”. So, she then asked on average, how many times a week, to which I responded “two” (as of the last two weeks – so I guess I can lie a little...). From then on, she told me why I need to floss, how to floss, when to floss during the day, how to brush, the importance of brushing and on and on and on…. I do need to caveat this by saying that I had perfect bill of health for my teeth and gums – however she still felt the need to impart all of her 34 years of hygienist-knowledge on me, as if it was the first time I’d ever been to the dentist in my life. She also talked about herself too…and occasionally would ask me questions, ultimately ending in “right?” To which I had to respond “garh” since she had tools in my mouth. But, I had to respond – or else she’d continue to ask me again and again.

Here are some of the things she told me that day:

“Not flossing may lead to heart disease. Scientists are now trying to tie back how plaque build-up, which is bacteria, eventually leads to other diseases.”

“When I was 6, my dentist slapped me across the face to get me to open my mouth up. (I won’t do that to you har, har)”

“You have to brush in short quick strokes, for 3 to 4 minutes, because you don’t want to tear your gums up”

“20 years ago I almost knocked myself out cold when I ran headfirst into the old cast-iron x-ray machines they used to have. Did you know you can really see stars and birds floating around when that happens?”

“I’ve never been married, I just haven’t found the person that I want to be with”

“Did you know some people will just spit out blood, and not think anything of it – but if they saw that blood coming from an arm or leg, they would be much more concerned? It’s important to keep your gums healthy.”

“I started in my twenties, now I’m in my fifties, I’ve been a hygienist for 34 years.”

“If you don’t keep your gums healthy….”

And so it went. I never did get my rest in the dentist chair as I couldn’t wait to get out of there. My teeth and gums were fine, and fortunately for all the talking she did, at least she did a good job cleaning my teeth, but has anyone seen my floss?

Fun for Some

A book arrived for our department today titled, "The Visual Display of Quantitative Information". I opened it up and thought "dry, dry, dry" and quickly plopped it into the hands of my eagerly awaiting boss. Later I found myself with time to kill so I blandly asked, "can I look at the new book?" To which my boss replied, "Yes, but bring it back, I'm going to take it home and read it - it is fascinating!!" - with no hint of sarcasm whatsoever.

It's nice that we can all appreciate different things, isn't it?

A Big Day for the Mingles

When it comes to getting something new, Mr. Mingle and I take a long time to commit to a decision. We talked about getting a kitten (for Zimby of course) for two years, before we found Mini. During those two years, we looked at many kittens at the SPCA and other cat shelter groups, but just…couldn’t…quite…decide. Yet on the day we rode our bikes to a friend’s July 4th party last summer, and realized he was giving away two kittens, that’s when we got Mini. (And actually thought we could ride home with her in my backpack – but that’s another story).

We have been talking about getting a car now for at least 6 months, and although we are narrowing down the search, don’t expect news of a new vehicle any time soon. However, partially that’s due to the fact that we hate taking the time to actually car-shop. Oh, and what? It costs money? Huh….

Don’t even get me started on the apartment, which we’ve talked about moving out of for over a year. In this case we are waiting for our future situation to become clear so we move to a place that makes sense – as opposed to moving to a town that increases the commute.

Since we can’t move yet, we have talked about fixing up our apartment, AKA buying new furniture. We’ve looked at sofas here and there over the past year, but never too seriously. So, when we went to Macy’s yesterday to buy pillows, we thought we’d check out the furniture section while we were there. Taking into account the fact that we move as slow as molasses when purchasing anything, imagine our surprise when 15 minutes later we found a sofa set we loved, looked at each other, and said “should we? Should we really??” and purchased it.

Yep! Mr. Mingle and I are the new owners of a matching sofa, chair and ottoman. Well, we will be, once it’s delivered next month. I think this is the first major piece of furniture that I’ve bought that was neither purchased at a discount store, nor owned previously by a relative. And, shockingly, it is not putty-colored or neutral. It is “Merlot”. Go Big! Go Bold! Or something like that…

Needless to say, I am very, very excited to get our new furniture. When it arrives, I will sit down with my feet up and a glass of red wine in hand (since it’s the same color as the couch), and pray that Mini-who-hates-to-be-put-in-a-backpack doesn’t shred it to pieces.

The Things We Do

Sometimes I question my own sanity.

This morning the alarm went off at 5:30am, which is a little early for me, because I had to be at the gym for my Boot Camp at 7:00am. (The hour and half gives me some extra snooze time and includes a 40-minute commute.) When the alarm went off the first time, Zimby, the older cat was curled up against me and I was hugging her with my left arm. Mini, the younger, was between my legs, and Mr. Mingle was on the other side. So, basically, I was totally pinned. This doesn’t bother me since I rarely move in my sleep anyway, and I love to be snuggly warm. There I was - snuggly, sleepy, and happy when the alarm rang.

After the third snooze alarm, I finally forced my way out of my bed-cat cave and got ready for the pain ahead. Seriously, after an hour of torture from the trainer, I found myself thinking, “whatever possessed me to leave the bed in the first place??” Is it willpower, or just plain craziness? I’ll tell you – craziness.

I am now the only person attending the boot camp, and the trainer is kicking my ass. Don’t get me wrong - I like her, and afterall, I am paying for this torture – by why I continue to do this to myself, I have no idea. I was dead tired after 45 minutes, and made the mistake of thinking we were finished. I looked at the clock and to my horror saw that there were 15 minutes left. That’s when she had me do jumping jacks ("what's going on with your arms?"), running in place ("knees high! higher!"), push-ups ("ooh, nice one - let's do 10 more, ready? 20-19-...", and then she said (bitch) “grab the weights and follow me”. Oh Yeah, I followed her – followed her chipper-frickin ass right up 4 flights of stairs while carrying 10-pound weights in each hand. Under normal circumstances this is doable, even easy, (although why this would EVER be a normal circumstance, I can’t figure out), but after 45 minutes of hell, following the chipper trainer up the stairs was grueling. She tried to give me a hint to swing the weights in my arms as I tromped up the stairs, but I misread the cue and thought she was mocking me, “ha ha, I don’t have weights in my hands!” At the top, she took the weights from me and said, in her sing-song-I’ve-already been-awake-for-4-hours-voice, “okay, now run back down and back up again!”

She’s smart though – that trainer. We practiced boxing today with smelly gloves that she brought in, in the beginning of the session. Had it been in the end, when I was shooting darts at her from my eyes, I may have accidentally missed the hand held pad, and oops – hit the face. Not just because of the sing-song torture she was showering on me today, but also the fact that I’d lost all muscle control in my arms. I’m telling you – this is insanity.

My New Role Model

Someone gave me make-up for Christmas because this particular brand is supposed to be very good for the skin, so good in fact that you don’t even have to wash it off at night. It’s nice to know someone is looking out for my skin, and my laziness. (Note – I do wash it off at night…) Anyway, this make-up is called Bare Minerals, and I can say that it seems to be working. I’m not sure that anyone can tell that I wear make-up on a daily basis, however hopefully, they also can’t see my blemishes as easily – after all, that’s really the point. Also, my skin seems to be happy with this new change and that is also a plus.

When I received the Bare Minerals kit, it came with 4 pots of powder, 3 brushes, and a “how-to” DVD. I’m not usually one to watch How-To Videos, and can honestly say I’ve never seen one about putting on make-up, but I thought, “what the heck?” and stuck it in the DVD player one day after Christmas. I sat there and watched the President (aka Senior Mucky-Muck) introduce her line of make-up and explain how it will “change your life” and then she introduced the two people who would help her show me how to apply the make-up. I was watching these two women apply their make-up and gush over how great it is when it struck me - I went to High School with one of them! When I knew her, her name was Angie (it’s Angela on the DVD), and she graduated in my class. At first I wasn’t 100% sure that it was Angie, but there were so many similarities it was hard to believe that it wasn’t her. I pulled out my yearbook, and sure enough, it was the same girl. I mean exactly the same… And, I had to admit, that was a selling point for me to try this make-up…10 years later (this was a recent video)…and this girl still looked exactly the same way she did in HS. Her skin was beautiful.

But, what was not a selling point was the fact that a few days later, when I asked Mr. Mingle what he thought of my new make-up he replied, “It looks great – you look just like Angela!” We all grow up with visions of how we want to look, or who we wish people would compare us to, but to have those models change from Angelina Jolie to Angie from High School…well, gee, my dream has come true at last…