Smokey Sun

We are safe from the fires.

Random stuff in my desk drawer

Today I wanted to put some Neosporin on a boo-boo I have on my foot. I
remembered I had some in my desk drawer. Well, I have other, random
things too:

Various chapsticks
Eyeliner
Mascara
Hairbands
Barrett
Eraser
Throat lozenges
Flash drives - 5
Safety pin
Pennies
Various membership cards
Stamps
Pretty coin purse
Lotion
Scotch tape on dispenser
UAL drink coupons (boss doesn't drink so I benefit from his membership)
Mini, small, medium, and large binder clips
Monitor cleaner and soft towel
Various stamps
Butterfly clips
Rubik's cube
Aleve
Lysol spray
Correction tape
Keys to various desks and the office (remember, I'm only employee now)
Staples
Permanent marker
Ruler

What's in your drawer? Do you think it makes life cluttered or easy
peasy to have random objects?

RIP John Hughes

I was born in the 70s and grew-up in the 80s. I don't know anyone in Generation X who doesn't love Writer-Director John Hughes. We grew-up with his movies - all the love and angst.

John Hughes 80s Montage *RIP* - Teenage Wasteland (Baba O'Riley)

I found the jacuzzi!

Update on my 31-day challenge to myself. 6 days in. Let's see, how am I doing?

Pretty good I think.

I haven't had any alcohol since Friday, July 31. And this includes going to two JLP meetings this week (tonight will be my third). Huge WOO-HOO!

I started boot camp on Monday, August 3 at the Rose Bowl Aquatics center with a lot of calisthetics (arm circles, push ups, different sit-ups) then we went to the baseball field and did drills. Reminded me a lot of gym class. . I love Jai and Madison my instructors. The big draw back from day 1 is that I have a weird rash from the grass (insecticide?) on parts of my legs. I haven't worn shorts since.

By Tuesday, I couldn't raise my arms over my head. And I walked, albeit slowly, to a meeting at JLP's headquarters from my apartment (it's about 3.5 blocks). :)

Wednesday morning saw more boot camp at 6:45am. I just tell you that so you can see how early I am rising - definitely bags packed the night before. First sprints for 15 minutes with 1-minute planks in between - both side and neutral. Then we had our own weighted balls and threw them various ways (all controlled). We did a bunch of side twists and crunches with the balls. Then a bunch of push-ups with the balls. And planks (without balls). Shuffled back and forth in a circle. Did some pop-ups and running in place (think football players). This is where I thought I was going to puke (but didn't). A bunch of different stretches, etc.

Last night was rough because of boot camp in the morning. However, I'm determined!

Although I didn't get out of bed today (Thursday) before 7am like I planned, I still left British Boy in bed (why is it during the week he always wants to sleep past 7am, but on weekends he's up at 5:30am). And made it to the Rose Bowl Aquatics Center and in the pool by 7:30am.

Freestyle laps, kicking, and a little breast stroke. I really do love to swim. It felt nice to get in the water and stretch out. The Rose Bowl Aquatics facility is absolutely fantastic. I love both the long course and short course pools. People are generally friendly. The little old ladies are a hoot. And today...

I FOUND THE JACUZZI!

I think this jacuzzi is the best kept secret around. I have not felt jets this powerful in a very long time! You know when you're petting a dog and you find that sweet spot, their leg shakes. Yeah - that was me today when the jet found a particular spot in my low back/ass area. SO AWESOME!

One little old lady warned me about the jacuzzi when I was singing about it in the locker room (figueratively, not literally). She said, Dontcha know - it's a suit wrecker with the chemicals. At this point I don't care. It felt too good.

This weekend will be an alcohol test with a wedding, Santa Barbara Fiesta, and birthday party.

Next week will continue with boot camp mornings and hopefully an evening walk or two with friends.

Cheers!

31 Day Challenge to Me

I have PCOS so I see an endocrinologist about twice a year. Everything has been going smoothly and I even have had regular periods without the use of birth control for the last 18 months. Woo Hoo, me!

So it was that time of the year to go see Dr. S. I had blood work done and apparently my thyroid is high and Vitamin D levels are low. Vitamin D deficiency seems to be a big thing that doctors are looking at nowadays. I've been put on a prescription and need to be better about taking it. My thyroid was the bigger concern since British Boy and I are trying to conceive and babies need a healthy thyroid otherwise it can lead to development disabilities. The article here gives some good recommendation.

After learning that British Boy and I need to stop humping until we figure this thyroid thing out, I was really bummed and whimpered the whole way to the lab. Luckily, my friend Jillian, called right as I was leaving the lab and helped get me out of my funk. I am blessed to have good friends like her to help me get my head out of my ass---just tell me like it is in the big picture.

For the last two days I've been waiting to see if my thryoid really is upset or if it's just a bad blood test. Turns out - bad blood test. Life (especially humping) can resume as normal. British Boy is happy and so am I, but things need to change overall. Therefore, I'm throwing down the gauntlet on *status quo* in the life of Keetots!

31 day challenge to me!

This means NO ALCOHOL (wine, how I love thee) and Exercising 5 out of 7 days.

I can do it *really*. Any recommendations? Need all the encouragement I can get, especially with the alcohol. We have a wedding and a camping trip planned this month.

Cheers!

Awesome Minnesotans

I love this! Those not from Minnesota usually have a wrong impression of those that are from Minnesota. Overall it's a very liberal, open-minded, accepting state. People there like to boogie! Here's proof...

Kevin Heinz and Jillian Peterson, their seven bridesmaids, five groomsmen and four ushers boogied down the aisle to the Chris Brown song "Forever" before the couple exchanged vows June 20 in St. Paul.

New shirts or Smaller boobs

Lately I've been wearing a bunch of button down shirts and noticed right between my boobs the shirt puckers frequently. The rest of the shirt "works" so it's not like I've gained more weight or anything - it doesn't pull anywhere else.

What do other women do - tape your shirt, wear a compression bra, actually sit up straight??

Here are a few pictures from today:

Jawbreakers? Taking Stress Out on Teeth - ABC News

I wear a nightguard every night to bed because I'm a clencher. Sexy or not, it makes a difference in the morning! If you wake up with a sore jaw or something, I definitely recommend it. I have a "fancy" nightguard from the dentist and my dad swears by his $4.99 one from the drugstore.


Jawbreakers? Taking Stress Out on Teeth - ABC News

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Mother Nature is screaming

This month didn't work. More practice needed!!!

----------
This message was composed on an iPhone. Please excuse any typos,
abbreviations, or brevity. Thank you.

At the Hollywood Bowl Featuring Faith Hill

Peeing on a Stick and a flashback...

So British Boy and I are trying to get pregnant. We've been trying for the past month and a half--really not for very long. I'll pee on a stick this weekend if mother nature hasn't informed me otherwise that we are or are not preggo's. At 34, it is kind of weird to go through this process of am I or aren't I because... (Disclosure to Mom & Dad: Please don't read ahead).

Confidentially, I wasn't a virgin when I got married.

Up until now, I've never tried to get pregnant and British Boy has never gotten anyone pregnant, so we decided not to wait long after our marriage. (For continuity, BB's 39). Now that I WANT to be knocked up, it hasn't happened as easily as I thought it would.

Admittedly, I nervously peed on a few sticks in my twenties as I think most girls I know have (some into their thirties or earlier teens)...

My favorite personal "pee on a stick" story was when I was about 23. After a certain fun night a few weeks before, I decided to pee on a stick, but had to go to a dinner party that night. So I went to the grocery story and picked up the trusty EPT test and a bottle of wine. The checker said in her usual cheerful voice, "Have a nice (long pause) night!?!??!". To which I replied, "Hopefully it is!" and walked out with a smile.

I'm sure warm and fuzzy motherhood thoughts were running through her head as I departed.

Old Town Crawl

A high school friend who now lives in Orange County came to visit this weekend with his roommate. I'm housesitting for my boss so there was plenty of room for everyone and the pool to enjoy.

We spent Saturday afternoon floating in the pool and then took a cab into Old Town Pasadena to show them the wonderful place British Boy and I live. This is where the story goes downhill...

There were 5 of us on the crawl - myself, British Boy, High School Friend (HSF), HSF Roommate, and a girlfriend of mine, we'll call Elle. We traversed through many bars and restaurants - Villa Sorriso, Twin Palms, Sushi Roku (dinner and drinks), Old Towne Pub, Barney's Beanery, and finally Bodega. We were absolute idiots with our drinking - mixing beer, sake shots, wine, mixed drinks, etc. You'd think we were still in our 20s!

It was a lot of fun for me to have British Boy and High School Friend hanging out together. HSF Roommate and Elle decided they were hot for each other and started making out wherever we were. Normally I wouldn't care, but Elle is in a very precarious life state - I'll try and be brief.

Elle fell in love with an Irish Boy in February. He came to visit in March and even endeded up at my bachelorette party (bad bad bad). I didn't say anything b/c she was "in love" and really it was the happiest I've seen her in the 10+ years I've known her. 10 days after we got back from the bachelorette party, Elle called to tell me that Irish Boy had died of a heart attack. Needless to say, since then she's been spiraling into a very dark hole. Added to the fact that her new business venture hasn't done very well and she's in dire straits financially.

Ok, so back to Saturday where I watch Elle get drunker and drunker---and continue to make out with HSF Roommate. Although I was pretty drunk myself, I talked to her many times to see if she was ok and offer to call a cab for her if she wanted to remove herself from the situation. Even offered her money for the cab. All the while she said she was ok and that she needed to move on from Irish Boy--even though she was wearing a wedding band signifying their relationship (though on her right hand).

Elle stayed with us the whole time. After we cabbed it home, British Boy, HSF, and myself had a little dessert and then crashed. Elle and HSF Roommate disappeared upstairs and eventually had sex. Elle left shortly after that and drove herself home. So not awesome - we had gone to 6 places and had AT LEAST 1 drink at each. I probably wouldn't have found out about the sex, but HSF Roommate had to wash the sheets and there were suds coming out of the washing machine. Really, all around it was a disaster of an evening except for hanging out with British Boy and HSF.

Since then I've talked to Elle who has now told me that she thinks she's an alcoholic (she continued to drink the whole next day). I have told her that I don't care if she has sex or makes out with someone (I feel we'll never know if she would've lasted with Irish Boy, so I'm not about to canonize their relationship), but I was very clear I was really REALLY upset that she drove. NO WAY was she in any position to do that. For further reference, she's 38 and a mother to a 19 year old.

I think a lot of people have had those "Oh Shit" nights where they are not proud the next morning, but this was a little too out of control for me.

Maybe I'm growing up or growing out of certain friendships or situations?

Is it a phone or computer?

I have been having problems with my 3GS iPhone so thought I should do
something about it.

My problem is is that when my iPhone has been asleep for awhile and
then someone calls, the caller ID doesn't work and the screen remains
black.

I logged into Apple and was able to schedule, at my convenience, a
call at a future time and date. I scheduled today at 10a. Sure enough,
my phone rang at 10:01am and Doug was there ready with the notes I
typed the might before.

Right now the recommendation is to turn off the phone every day for 10
minutes to re-boot it. Or at least do a hard restart by holding down
the power and home button.

I restart my work computer every day so this is just like that.

I wonder if anyone else that has a "smart" phone has this same
problem?? Do blackberries and palms act the same?

Regardless, I continue to be impressed with Apple's customer service.
I even sent Steve Jobs* an email yesterday about an employee at the
Pasadena Apple store who provided excellent service.

*disclaimer: I don't normally email CEOs, but British Boy is an Apple
fanatic and recommended it. I'll let you know if Jobs responds!

Wine Class

British Boy and I take wine classes from YR, a certified wine educator in Altadena from time to time. YR is a few years younger than God and has a fabulously eclectic house and an amazing cellar. She also can beat any story you have. *promise*

This was a one-off class, not part of a series. The friend who set it up basically did it with threats so we were cajoled into it.

First we did a "Components of Wine" where YR had pre-mixed certain elements you'd discover in wine with cheap jug wine. Then we tasted *most* of them before guessing. The 8 components we discovered were: Vinegar, Sugar, Tartaric Acid, Sulfer, Vodka (alcohol), Water, Glycerin, Tannin. It really was interesting how it changes the wine and if we could guess the right element.

We then concentrated on California wines for our tasting. Here are my notes:

WHITES:
1. 2004 Jewel Sauvignon Blanc from North Coast, CA. This wine had turned. YUCK. Learned most whites should be drunk within 3-5 years and this one definitely was past it's prime.

2. 2007 Hahn SLH Pinot Gris from Santa Lucia Highlands. This was yummy and a good food wine. Will need to remember it when needing to buy a white.

REDS:
3. 1993 Cakebread Cellars Rubiat Red Table Wine. Lots of sediment in this wine, which was a syrah and pinot noir blend from Napa. Wasn't my favorite.

4. 2000 Jory Syrah from Paso Robles. Only 22 barrels were made and it was nice.

5. 2001 Flora Springs Napa "Trilogy". This wine was a "meritage", a blend of Bordeaux wines. VERY YUMMY!

6. 2006 Copen Kin Winery "Josephine" - This had 62% Grenache Grapes and 38% Syrah. It was very smooth and yummy. It also seemed a bit young - I'd buy and put it on the shelf for awhile.

7. 2003 Morro Bay Merlot. This was a very enjoyable wine that we did a blind testing of. I was very proud to be the only one to guess "merlot". Great note - Whole Foods sells it for $5.99. BUY IT!

8. 2007 Trace Winery Merlot from Nice, CA. This was ok.

9. 2004 Fife L'Attitude done in the Rhone style from Mendocino, CA. It was pretty good.

10. 2000 Zinfandel that I don't remember a lot of and my notes don't really make sense...

Here's a couple photos of the cellar taken before class started:

keetots has forwarded a page to you from Greenopolis

keetots thought you would like to see this page from the Greenopolis website. Greenopolis is a place for people of all ages, backgrounds and lifestyles to become a part of the ongoing effort towards a greener planet. Greenopolis is a fun, simple and rewarding way to start living more sustainably and connect with others that are doing the same. To get started, visit www.Greenopolis.com.

Message from Sender:

First time recycling at the Whole Foods on Arroyo... Blogged there too. Here's the link:

First time
by keetots

I used the recycling machine for the first time at Whole Foods on Arroyo in Pasadena.  Very interesting experience - all I had was Dasani bottles from the office.  It took the machine awhile to read some of them and then after 30 bottles ($1.50), it said it was full and wouldn't take anymore.  Doesn't seem like a whole lot, especially since this was at 9am.

 Has anyone else had problems with the machines reading the bar code?

Is there a limit to the number of items recycled?

 Happy Green!

Click here to read more on our site

Leftovers

I hate leftovers, but am trying to expand my mind with them. Recently we had a BBQ and friends contributed to the potluck. There were some leftovers, but not many. Everyone left us what they brought except one couple (the woman is notorious for hoarding food) who took every last crumb left they brought and then some. This article therefore cracked me up:


http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/08/dining/08left.html

DINING & WINE
The Question of Leftovers, Ever Fresh
By HENRY ALFORD
Published: July 8, 2009
Frugality may be a virtue, but there is no denying that when it comes to leftovers, people get a little nutty.

Sunday Dinner - July 5

Tonight British Boy and I went with a couple of friends who are "foodies".

foodie: Foodie is an informal term for a particular class of aficionado of food and drink. The word was coined in 1981 by Paul Levy and Ann Barr, who used it in the title of their 1984 book The Official Foodie Handbook.

They took us to Wurstküche and it was fabulous. So many different bratwurst to choose from and so many beers! The Belgian fries were great too - I really liked the curry ketchup (different dipping sauces). Though next time, I think British Boy and I might skip the fries and just order 3 brats between us.

My dinner--Jalepeno, Jack Cheese & Smoked Santa Fe Turkey Brat with Spicy Peppers and Carmelized Onions. Belgian Fries, various ketchups to dip, and a Belgian Floris Apple Ale to drink:



If you're in LA, check it out: http://www.wurstkucherestaurant.com/



Side note, I don't know how to "properly" say the name of the restaurant so I remember it as "Worst Cootchie" - not a good way to define this fabulous place, but it cracks me up and is easy to remember.

Bon Appetit!

Michael Jackson Memorial*

Michael Jackson is an asterisk. I put him in the same category as OJ Simpson. OJ is to murder as MJ is to pedophilia. Both unconvicted. Don't get me wrong, I had MJ's poster on my wall in 1983, but since the 90's and the payoff to his victim, I've lost interest in this freaky "man".

It was amusing to me when I went to LA Live to meet a friend for lunch. He was in town interviewing for a job (good luck A) down in the South Bay so it made sense to meet downtown Los Angeles. Neither of us had been to LA Live so we picked that weeks ago, before MJ died and before the memorial event location was announced as the Staples Center.

Since the memorial isn't until tomorrow, we went through with our lunch. We encountered cops, t-shirt sellers, impersonators, tons of people, and Mario Lopez. Here are a few photos. It'll be interesting (kind of) to see the cluster fuck that happens tomorrow. Too many people in too small a space.

Short Week

How much work will I actually accomplish this week? Four days to power out...

Stay tuned!

Nickel Diner for breakfast

Wasn't impressed at breakfast. Heard lunch is better. Did LOVE the red
velvet donuts.

Runyan Canyo hike today

Poor Bunny!

British Boy (aka the Hubby) got this tooth fixed today - permanent crown. You don't want to know how he cracked it (believe me, I am still sorry for asking). Needless to say, I think tonight will be rubbing his head and feeding him soup from the few phone calls I've received since he left the dentist's chair.

For a preview of my night tonight, let's watch my favorite version, the "Man Cold" from Man Stroke Woman:

Trifecta of Death...

Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett, and now MJ. WOW!


Michael Jackson Dies

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Texting And Driving Worse Than Drinking and Driving - Behind the Wheel with Phil Lebeau - CNBC.com

The facts are very intersting...

Texting And Driving Worse Than Drinking and Driving - Behind the Wheel with Phil Lebeau - CNBC.com

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Free Nights

A magnet a friend gave me last year...

I am a consummate volunteer. Whether it is for a non-profit, a friend, my boss, or whatever, I am always one to raise my hand and say I will be there.

Not lately.

For the past few months, really slowly over the course of the year, I have stopped saying Yes and started saying No (thank you).

My husband, British Boy, and I had a date night tonight - gasp, a Wednesday. It's what triggered this thought because normally I would have committee meetings on Wednesday. Also, Thursday morning at 7am, I would normally have Pilates class.

Tonight I had a wonderful dinner and a funny movie (The Proposal) with British Boy. I'll be able to get a good night's sleep and not wake early.

Don't get me wrong, I still volunteer my time and attention in a variety of ways, but I'm learning to be a little selfish with my time and attention.

And that's ok.

Impressive Break!

I was at my favorite wine bar tonight (more on that later) and a friend both split and beheaded a glass. We all went WOW. Here's the photo:

Testing... First mobile blog. Send!

what's in a name?

where do i start? that's the first question i asked - do i make this blog private or public or something in between? so instead of going into things, i'll start with my name: KEETOTS. my real name is KRISTA, but when i was a little girl, I couldn't pronounce Krista so apparently most conversations went like this...

Someone would ask me - "What's your name little girl??"

I would respond in my little girl voice, "KEETOTS."

For some reason no one seems to remember this except my dad and when he tells the story, he uses a very high pitched voice. Kind of hilarious. Anyway, the nickname stuck.

Happy Friday!