A Break-Up Missive

Dear Law and Order,
We need to talk. Really. I know you weren't really expecting to hear those words from me, but, let's face, the writing is on the wall. It's over, Law and Order. Yeah, we've had some good times, but it's time for me to move on. In fact, I have moved on already. Don't look at me like that--you had to know that it was going on. No, it's not important "who with." The point is, I've moved on. And I know you're sad now, but you're going to move on too. Ok?

Oh, where did we go wrong? I think it started when you insisted on having a goddamn twist ending on every single episode. That was just too much. Yeah, I know I'm being harsh, but just listen. Ok? Plus, you know I love me some Southern Fried wit and humor, but do you have to hit me over the head with Fred D. Thompson. Look, I get that he's a country lawyer who made it to the big city. But if I hear one more quip about I will punch you in the throat!!! Ok, I'm sorry, that was out of line. I'll calm down.

Law and Order, we have always been so close. You got me through high school, you got me through college, and we still have some great times when I'm folding laundry and you're on TNT and I can't find anything else to drain all those hard earned brain cells. But I can't make time for you on your new night, Friday, any more. Sure, I might let the TiVo record the first few episodes. But you're not going to be the number one priority in my schedule any more. I'm sorry. I have to move on.

I'm sorry. But hey, at least we'll have the marathons!

Love,
Morgan

101 Ways in Which Today Has Sucked (ok, it's just 10, but doesn't it suck that it's not 101?)

1. I went to bed too late last night, and I couldn't get up this morning. It was very nearly impossible.
2. I burnt my heel on the iron this morning (don't ask) and have been limping around all day.
3. I forgot to pack my lunch today.
4. It's Monday.
5. Everyone here is grouchy, esp. my boss.
6. My place of employment is facing massive budget cutbacks. Massive.
7. My feet hurt.
8. I heated up a Weight Watcher's frozen dinner that a co-worker gave me for lunch, and it had somehow gotten NASTY. As in, rotted NASTY. I don't know how, I don't know why, but I thought it looked suspect. But being quite dumb, I took a bite of it. Oh. My. God. How foul.
9. I had to eat a bag of popcorn and a Hershey's bar for lunch. By the time I realized how nasty the dinner was, I didn't have time to go out for anything, and that was the only thing in the vending machine. Disgusting.
10. And it's September 11, and I feel horrible that in the five years since I woke up and found the world changed, I have remained pretty much a selfish, mean person who thinks more about her Weight Watchers dinners than about children whose parents lost their lives trying to save another. I keep hearing people say things about how 9/11 changed them, and I regret having that it didn't change me. I was a freshman in college the day that it happened, I was sitting in biological anthropology class, trying to look cool and be a star. And now, I am five years older, and I am sitting at work, still trying to look cool but with the cold realization that I will probably never be a star. It's sad. Perhaps it has made me more wary of airline security, more cautious of those around me. Or perhaps not. I don't know. I am still just a girl, a girl who doesn't understand half of what she should. A girl who will go home tonight and watch baseball and eat a salad and feel pretty secure in her overpriced house with her sad-eyed husband. Perhaps the world has changed, but I have not, and I feel so sad that I missed this boat. I want to feel something, I want to know what the world is made of now. But I don't, and it is sad. I think that that is the saddest thing about it all: that we are all stuck in this grand chaotic mess and whether we change or not depends not on that mess, but rather on our own icky, ill-conceived selves. Events do not change us, but rather, we change us, and it breaks my heart that I have not managed to change myself.

It also breaks my heart that I am a big rambling sap. Lord.

On a Cold, Windy Day

I am so sleepy right now. It is such a cold, nasty day out there. I just went to my favorite Chinese restaurant for lunch, where a co-worker and I divided a large hot and sour soup and a pot of tea. It was lovely, but now I am ready to turn it all in and sleep for a bit. Good thing that my boss is in a meeting--he he!

We haven't gotten the mail yet today, but I am really hoping that my jeans and lipstick come in today. The jeans I am currently wearing--more on that later--are a little baggy in the butt, and it makes me look weird. Note that I am happy that I am having that problem, but jeez, I need some new jeans. Need them, need them. And the lipstick wouldn't hurt either. Now, I love, love, love shopping online, but sometimes the delayed gratification kills me. This is one of those times. Someday I will learn that I should spring for the two-day shipping.

I did take my mental health day on Wednesday, and it was great. I went to the ball game, sat in the $2 seats, ate popcorn, and just generally relaxed. Then I came home and watched bad TV. It was funny though, because the next day, I show up for work (with a sunburn no less), and everyone is like, "Oh, how are you fee-ee-ling?" I felt mildly bad for deserting my coworkers...ok, wait, now I didn't. So I crafted some answer about my cold, and went to the office to put on more powder, in hopes of downplaying the pinkness on my nose.

Ok, time for the daycaps:
Today's Outfit: Gap boot-cut jeans, Ann Taylor Loft coral v-neck shirt (I seriously love this shirt--I have it in coral and white. I got in some bizarre buy one get one deal, and at the time I just thought I would wear them on the weekend. But they are so soft and comfy, I feel like I'm going to them more and more), J. Crew white blazer with tortoiseshell buttons, brightly colored t-strap Birks--yeah, I know, they're Birth Control shoes. But they're comfy, and my boss likes them a lot (she of the Manolos and Ferragamos), and hell, it's casual Friday.

Today's Make-Up: Bare Minerals foundation and Mineral Veil, beloved Dallas blush, Cover Girl mascara--you know that type that they advertised on America's Next Top Model...the kind with the funky brush...it's that kind, Kiehl's clear lip balm. (Note: I think my husband stole my Benefit Bad Gal Lash, which I love. I can't find it anywhere. Not that I think my husband is the type to wear mascara. But well, I can't find it, and it's the only logical answer for what happened to it.)

Today's Purchases: hot and sour soup, pot of tea, Starbucks coffee

Have a good one!

The First Day of Classes...

and boy am I tired. Combine a crazy day with the remnants of my cold, and you get a very tired, grumpy Morg. Ok, so I'm not that grumpy now that I am home, but I am tired. And I was grumpy. Seriously. You would not have wanted to be around me.

But I am home now, and it is cool. Both orientations went off without a hitch, and I spoke with my direct supervisor to make sure she was aware that they, indeed, had been totally rockin' orientations. She said she was aware, and that they were making note of it in my portfolio, which basically means that come promotion time (possibly in March), I could be a happy camper. So that was good. All in all, I came home feeling tired, but accomplished.

Matt has gone to the A's game tonight (we, through a long and strange process, acquired a field level seat for tonight's game for free, and since I didn't feel like going, he went), so I am home alone. It is quite nice, if I do say so myself. I called my mom and gossiped for a while, and I laid around and was just generally laze. I made myself a big salad, and enjoyed it while watching the game. So it is low-key and nice. I have basically talked myself into taking a mental health day tomorrow, and going to the game myself to buy a bleacher seat ($2 Wednesday's, you see). I have plenty of sick time accrued, and I don't really ever use the days for anything--last June I had to basically just lay out of work for three days to use them, as I was going to get them taken away if I didn't. So I think it would be a great idea. It will be a nice reward for getting all of my work done, and there is nothing quite like baseball when it's those last waning moments of summer.

Which brings you to ask--When did you become such a baseball fan? Little known fact here: I basically have always been a huge fan, at times more, and at times less. When I was a kid, I was completely obsessed with the Atlanta Braves. I collected all their cards, my mom bought me the jerseys for Christmas, I dreamt of becoming an Atlanta Braves broadcaster. Sad, but true. Hey, I was a tomboy! However, I soon discovered boys and shoes and make-up, so I gave it up for a while. Kind of sad, actually. I always kind of kept up with it, but never exclusively. Now, that I have moved to the Bay, and am just a Bart ride away from the A's, I have rekindled the baseball love. It's also cool that Matt, my academic husband, has just discovered baseball--he had never even seen a game before this year. And he loves it. So I am kind of introducing him to the game, which is fun, and also getting reacquainted with it. It is like coming back to an old friend, kind of. It is amazing what I remember from my past obsessions. Seriously. I could hit you with some obscure fact right now, but I'll spare you.

Ok, now for the daycaps:

Today's Outfit: black Michael Michael Kors pants (comfort due to cold and business), striped Express button down shirt (great Fall colors, I think--it seemed like the right thing for the "first day of school"), denim jacket, black wide hip slung belt from Target, black Aldo ballet blats. And I must say, this was a pretty cool outfit that I put together today. I have not worn this shirt in a while, because it is just this odd length. It is too long to wear out alone, and too short to really tuck (well, I guess,you could tuck it, but it doesn't look good). So I got the idea to wear it out with a belt. And sure enough, it kinda works. Especially since the belt is really cool. I got it at Target from the section of Russian-inspired accessories. I kinda felt that I had to have it, because my husband was in Russia at the time. It's wide and it has cut outs and a big silver circle buckle. I think it rocks. So it made me feel good all day.

Today's make-up: BareMinerals foundation and Mineral Veil, Benefit Dallas blush (it don't get no better!), Sonia Kashuk eyeshadow in Neutral Territory, Benefit lip gloss in Rave Reviews alternated with Kiehl's lip balm. My lips are in a sad state from the cold, ya'll. You would not believe. And I didn't wear mascara because of the cold. Even though it is waterproof, I didn't feel like tempting fate.

Today's purchases: Nada, save a tank of gas.

Have a good one ya'll! Hopefully, I'll be relaxed and rested come this time tomorrow.

The Joys of a Paid Holiday

So ok. Here's what's good: I'm off today, and I can do anything--take a nap, watch Law and Order, take a bubble bath--and I'm getting paid for it. Since I spent quite a bit of time in the thankless service industry, I am still quite enamored with my paid holidays. Here's what sucks: I have somehow gotten a pretty nasty cold. I'm not sure how, I'm not sure why, but I'm all sniffly and snuffly, and my throat is killing me. Not an ideal way to spend my day off. But oh well. I guess that leads to me posting to this blog, and I haven't done that for a while, so that's cool.

Lest you think I have just been lazing around not posting to my blog and falling back on my Back to Morgan tasks, I'll fill you in on my last few days. The last few days at work have been crazy, as we have been preparing for the start of the Fall term. I work for a for-profit institution, so there are a lot of financial issues that goes along with the number of students we recruit and register. So it is a quite stressful time of year for all around the office. I worked part of the day on Saturday, just to get a few extra things done. So, yesterday, Sunday, Matt and I went to the A's game, and then spent the night relaxing and enjoying some pizzas that we got discounted because the A's hit a grand slam yesterday. It was last night that I found out that I have quite a love for the Round Table Maui Zowie pizza. That does not bode well for my diet. However, I figured that falling off of the wagon this once is not too bad. Especially since I packed my own lunch to take to the ball game--a cracked-pepper coated turkey sandwich on whole wheat, fat-free "No Pudge" brownies, and baked chips. So no hot dogs and nachos for me! I think Matt was quite impressed by my insistence on health. That is, until he saw me put down four slices of Maui Zowie.

Here are the daycaps, which are quite sad because of my day-off, cold-infected status:

Today's Outfit: Gap checkered lounge pants (they are really quite hideous, and I only wear them when I don't feel well), a coral colored Ann Taylor Loft v neck shirt (I wore this to the game yesterday, and it is so soft and nice that I just kept it on), white socks.

Today's Make-up: Nada. I see today as a no make-up day.

Recent Purchases: I have a few things to put down here, and I'll leave out the non-interesting things like groceries and such. I recently ordered a new pair of jeans from Old Navy--I really do like their jeans and always see them as the go-to item in my wardrobe. I have jeans that are more expensive, but I have to say that I like Old Navy's just as much or more. So I ordered a size down from that that I normally wear. A bit presumptuous, I guess, but my others are starting to turn my into a plumber every time I bend over. This is not totally because of all the weight I am losing. Maybe part of it is, but more likely, it is because I have a tendency to order some of my jeans a little bigger than normal for no reason whatsoever. So when I lose the tiniest amount of weight, they start falling off. Which sucks, but also makes me feel good. I can't wait for my jeans to come in--I should have just went and bought them at the store, I guess. But I was at work, and somehow convinced myself that I just had to order a new pair of jeans. Oh well, there have been worse things. I also ordered a new shade of lipstick from a new brand that I have been reading a lot about. I ordered "Chocolate Kiss" from Besame Cosmetics. If you haven't checked out Besame's website, you really should. Their stuff is all about old 40's glamour, with the pale alabaster skin, and the brightly colored lips. I have looked at the site a lot, just because I love seeing their displays and the things they do with the make-up. But recently I read some really good stuff about them, so I decided to take the plunge and order some lipstick. If it turns out well, I will probably order more.

Well, I am going to go back to bed and watch some TV. The longer I sit here, the more icky I feel. Oh well. It's a great time to catch up on tv marathons!