Things I am looking forward to this weekend

Grammy has asked to have the kids over for a sleepover this weekend, which means date night for us. So here's what I'm looking forward to:

1. Seeing Wolverine

(its a win-win movie for me and my hunny)

2. Hugh Jackman

3. Ryan Reynolds

4. Maybe seeing Wolverine twice

5. Sleeping in

I have to admit that I am a bit of an X-Men fan and watched my share of the cartoons back in the day. I have deep nerd roots. I'm not an expert though, and was curious about the Bolt character played by Dominic Monaghan (Charlie on LOST). I didn't know what Bolt's super power was, so I checked IMDb and here's what it says:

Bolt is an alter-ego of Chris Bradley. His powers are levitation and laser nuts

Laser nuts, you say? Consider my curiosity piqued.

A Moment of Silence for the Departed

Today is a sad, sad day, my friends. Matt Giraud, otherwise known as "my boyfriend", has been...(sob)...eliminated from American Idol. I don't understand how America could let this tragedy happen, but I am comforted by the knowledge that grody-to-the-max Adam Lambert was in the bottom two.

Let's compare the two here. You have Matt. Adorable, talented, melodic, Matt. Wearing his very rat-packy suit for Rat Pack night. Just the hat alone...mmm-hmm. I mean, break me off a piece of that, right? And a double helping on Sunday! That boy is crack-a-lackin!

And then you have Adam. Creepy, screechy, emo, theatric, over-the-top Adam. Who wears pounds more makeup than I do and probably spends considerably more time on hair and primping. This is what he looks like at his absolute best. He may be able to give me some great fashion & beauty tips, but...hell naw.

Beauty Bash Trip, Part 2: QVC

The end of our trip was the highlight, and the whole point of even going on the trip. The QVC Beauty Bash. After our day in Amish country, we headed to our hotel in the burbs, near the QVC headquarters. Unfortunately, our GPS had no idea where our hotel was, but it was able to find QVC, so we stopped there first. They were already closed, but we snapped this pic of the sign.
Since we looked like a couple of crazy people who were peeking in the windows, a QVC employee came out to talk to us and kindly gave us directions to our hotel. At the hotel, the woman at the front desk handed us these delicious frosted cookies by Cheryl & Co (seriously, they were so good that I ordered some for my grandma for Mother's Day. Yum!) and she told us that there was a special gift waiting for us in our room. We rushed in, and this is what we found (that's the yellow frosted cookie on top):

Inside the box was all this free stuff! We hadn't even officially gone to the beauty bash, and already we were getting free swag! Awesome!

The next morning, the hotel had a free breakfast for all the beauty bashers (which wasn't even supposed to be included in our package, they just threw that in extra) and we got to sit and talk with all the other women who were attending. Most of them lived within a couple of hours driving distance and had been before, so they gave us some inside scoop. Then, the hotel manager came in to greet all of us and started talking about all the vendors that were staying at the hotel too. Then she started gossiping and talking about random funny stories from the vendors...I think she even outed one of them by mistake, but I'm not 100% sure that I heard her correctly.

After breakfast, we drove back over to QVC to have our studio tour. The tour is about an hour long and takes you through the studio and product rooms. We got to see Jill Bauer presenting some clothing. She's much smaller than she looks on tv.

After the tour, we browsed through their onsite store and bought a few things. We got checked in and were handed a big tote bag and a list of vendors so they could check off your list as you collected your free stuff (no double-dipping!). They let us in to a big warehouse that had rows and rows of booths set up for each vendor. There was music playing and lights and beauty products at every turn. It was great!

We met some of the vendors that actually appear on-air at QVC and even saw some of the models (who are like Nicole Richie-skinny). Here's Mom with Holly Mordini, the Smashbox rep. Holly is probably 6 feet tall, and Mom is only 5'1".

Here's Maureen from Tarte. She's in her early 30's and started this company on her own. She is sooooo pretty in person. She's like a glam version of the chick that played Anne Shirley (Megan Follows) in the Anne of Green Gables movies.

Here's Laura Geller. So sweet and funny. Everyone kept wanting pictures with her and she would do all these faux model poses and laugh. She's thinner and better looking in person too.


Here's Carrie, one of the QVC models, trying to go incognito with no makeup, glasses, hat, and her starbucks. Too bad she was in a room full of rabid QVC watchers, because we all spotted her right away. She was very sweet too and took pictures with everyone. We caught her laughing at something that someone said.

The only host we saw was Jill Bauer, who came into the Bash to do some extra prize giveways (we didn't win). We didn't take a picture of her, and I have no idea why. We saw lots of other models and on-air vendors, but we must have gotten tired of taking pictures or something. By the end of the day, our bags probably weighed about 60 pounds. We got so much stuff. Here it is all laid out, almost covering the entire bed.


I've sorted through most of it, but only started using a few things. So far, there are several products that I really like and would buy. I'll do a post on those later. Really, there is so much stuff that its going to take me a while to use it all. There are some things that I've set aside that I know I won't use or somehow got doubles of. I'm sure I can find a few friends who might be interested in it!

Beauty Bash Trip, Part 1: Historic Philly & Amish Country

Dude, the whole post I had just written up got magically deleted somehow. Le sigh. I will do my best to re-create....

This post is long over due. As some of you may know, I went on a trip that was centered around going to the QVC Beauty Bash with my Mom. Mom & I are both beauty product whores, and we've learned about many of these beauty products through QVC. Since QVC is located in the suburbs of Philadelphia, we decided to extend the trip so we could see all the historic sights and stalk some Amish people.

The first thing I learned about Philly is that the streets are scarily narrow. Like Europe narrow. I guess our forefathers didn't plan on Hummers and Escalades. Or places to park them. There is seriously zero parking anywhere. There aren't even paid parking lots. Valet service at our hotel was $30/day.

The second thing I learned about Philly is that everything closes between 4-5pm. Even during Spring Break, when Daylight Savings Time is in effect, and there are lots of tourists going to tourist sites. They all close by 5pm, several hours before dark. We literally had to run to make it to a couple of sites before closing time. The city basically shuts down at 5pm.

The third thing I learned about Philly is that there is no food. We could not find a single restaurant anywhere in the vicinity of our hotel. Not one. And I'm sure if we did, it would have closed by 5pm anyway. I was led to believe there would be a cheesesteak place on practically every corner. Not so. One day when it was raining, we decided to go to the King of Prussia mall (largest mall on the East Coast!), and we seriously spent the entire day there, just so we could find restaurants and have 3 meals that day. Cause once we got back in the car and headed into the historic district where our hotel was, we knew there wouldn't be any food for miles. And if there was, we wouldn't be able to park our car anyway.

Not to be all complainer-y though about a trip that really was great. Here were some of the highlights and sights.

Here we have the Liberty Bell with Independence Hall in the background. These sights are free to the public, but you have to get a timed ticket from the visitor's center. Our hotel was one block from here and all the historic stuff was within a couple blocks walking distance. It was great to be able to tour everything on foot.



This is the Christ Church Burial Ground. It seemed odd that the burial ground wasn't right next to the church. Not sure why that is. Ben Franklin & several other Declaration of Independence signers are buried here. Most of the tombstones no longer have wording and are extremely worn. I tried to get Mom to take a picture of me lying on the ground with my eyes closed and hands crossed over my chest, but she refused, stating it was "sick & morbid". Woulda made a funny picture though, wouldn't it?

Yo, Adrian! It took us forever to find a place to park to see Rocky. Then we had to find where Rocky was hidden, because he is now at street level and not up at the top of the museum steps. By then, I had to pee like crazy, so I really did run up all those steps, just like he did, but I was in search of a bathroom. I sang "Eye of the Tiger" while I ran and held my arms up just like this.

After a few days in the old city, we drove out to Amish country. There wasn't all that much to see besides rural country. But there were restaurants and parking! You should have seen how excited we were to eat at Cracker Barrel. Seriously. It was our first time, and we were so hungry that we gorged ourselves and even had dessert.

We found an Amish house to tour, but we weren't allowed to take pictures. We learned the basic differences between Amish & Mennonite sects: Mennonites wear lighter colors, Amish wear only dark colors. One of them doesn't believe in infant baptism, so they don't get baptized until they reach adulthood, but I can't remember which one it is. I bought a book about their culture and beliefs, so I'll have to read up. We also learned how to identify their homes, which have no power lines going into them, have dark green shades on the windows, and have no cars parked there. We were surprised to find many Amish homes scattered around the main roads. We had assumed they lived farther off the beaten paths, cloistered in close proximity to other Amish families. Maybe some do, but many don't.

We spotted numerous horse & buggies on the road, like this one, but we still got all excited each time we saw one. (my hand says hi.)

This just in!

I was on the news last night. I didn't see it, but my coworker did (and is threatening to bring a tape of it to work).

I was representing my company at the biggest job fair of the year (for San Diego), and I was one of the few booths there that actually had any open jobs. How sad is that? First, there are only a few employers at a job fair that actually have jobs? Second, there isn't any other "news" to report on?

So anyway, the news correspondent decided to do an interview about it and my two coworkers that were also attending, graciously volunteered me to be the interviewee. And when I say "interview", I mean that she shoved the camera and microphone in my face and asked me to talk about my company and the job vacancies we have.

I am sooo not a good public speaker. Uh, I wonder, um, how many, uh, times, um, I said uh?

But my big question is, how do I threaten bodily harm on my coworker if she brings in that tape, without getting fired?

Earth Day just pissed me off

In honor of Earth Day, the college campus I work on was having a Farmer's Market. Delightful! I planned on walking around and picking up something fresh and yummy for lunch.

Unfortunately, I walked by all the booths that were only geared towards making your home more environmentally friendly. Not wanting to eat an energy efficient light bulb for lunch, I sought out the campus food court.

After eating, I walked a different route back to the office. And you know what I found? The Farmer's Market. And you know what they were selling there? Crepes. Two booths dedicated to fresh, hot, delicious crepes. With multiple varieties of fillings. And they were cheap. Did I mention that they were made to order and fresh and hot? And that they smelled divine?

And I already ate.

BLURG!

Well, you know what Earth? My campus food court salad was served to me in a styrofoam container. With a plastic fork. And I used about 6 napkins.

Maybe that will teach to you hide crepes from me.

Sonic

Before my movie yesterday, I ate at Sonic for the first time. Eating at Sonic is kind of a big deal, because until two weeks ago, the closest Sonic to San Diego was like 100+ miles away. There are a lot of things I am willing to do for good food, but apparently driving 100+ miles is not one of them. So imagine the delight of San Diegans everywhere when the very first one opens in the suburbs of East County, drawing crowds and lines 1-2 hours long.

I decided to wait until my day off, when kids would be back at school, to make an attempt. Even on a Monday at 11:00 am, the drive-thru line was still 20-30 minutes. But that's what day's off are for, right? Waiting in a fast food line in 103 degree weather.

So we waited and finally placed our orders. I got the basic burger combo with a Cherry Limeade. And you know what?

Sonic food pretty much sucks.

But Cherry Limeade is heaven.

Shhh...don't tell anyone!

I saw this yesterday

and loved it!

Little Zac-Attack Morris Efron is adorably coiffed and wearing considerably less makeup than normal. Just a hint of bronzer. He even dances a little bit. And was surprisingly funny. He was also funny as host of SNL too (I still can't believe he let Jason Sudeikis suck on his toes in a sketch! 4 minutes in).

I'm beginning to understand why so many girls/women/gay men are fussing over him.

Schwan's

My friend Lisa turned me on to Schwan's about a year or so ago. She raved about their ice creams and kid-friendly food. I decided to give them a try. I have to be honest, most of the stuff that I've tried has been appetizers and ice cream. I don't really buy their meats or entrees because they're usually too expensive. Actually, even their ice cream is on the pricey side. But, its totally worth it.

Now I won't eat any other kind of ice cream. Grocery store brands are awful in comparison. I've tried a bunch of Schwans flavors, and my favorite is the chocolate peanut butter.

Last summer, I also bought a bunch of their popsicles. It was just so easy and convenient, and I didn't have to worry about rushing home from the store because the popsicles I bought were going to melt. They just got delivered to my front door, right from a freezer truck. And the best thing is that my kids absolutely loved them. We pretty much stuck to the Bomb Pops,

which turned out to be the best popsicles I'd ever tasted. Normally popsicles are very ice-y, seeing as how they're frozen water and all. But these ones...these are the most creamy, soft, non-drippy popsicles I've ever had. Seriously, they're like magic popsicles. I would end up giving my kids one and eating two myself. I thought they were the greatest ice treat ever invented.

Until Wednesday. This past Wednesday was our Schwan's delivery day, and I decided to try a new frozen treat, just for the grown-ups. So I bought these

Lemon Italian Ice cups (they were out of the Cherry). Again, they were on the pricey side. $5.99 for 6 cups. Seriously though, do yourself a favor and try some. They're worth every penny. They are so good, I'm tempted to give them as gifts. I've already pre-ordered the Cherry ones for my next delivery day, but now I'm thinking that one box won't be enough. Do you think my freezer will hold 12 boxes?

P.S. My delivery guy said that Celebrity Apprentice on Sunday is all centered around a Schwan's task.

College Campus Email

I got an email about a seminar titled: When Stars Explode

Imagine my disappointment when I realized it was an astronomy symposium and not about Britney Spears or Paris Hilton. Bummer. Dude, I would have totally signed up.

I wonder who I'd have to talk to make that happen.

One word

REFUND!

Note to self

Dear Self,

Leaving your taxes until the last minute is never a good idea. You are a complete idiot. Don't do it again. You better hope that you're getting money back and don't owe anything, because if you do, I'm going to be REALLY pissed at you.

You know better than to pull this crap,

Kris

American Idol Crush

Dear Matt Giraud,

I love you. I hope you win American Idol. I want to buy your album and go to your concerts. I haven't voted on AI for several years, but ever since you were in the bottom three, I have been voting for you like a maniac. You HAVE to stay on the show!

I think you are adorable. I squee when I see you on tv. I gush about you to my coworkers that watch AI. I don't mind that you have a giant growth in the middle of your forehead. Just curious, is that a zit? a mole? a tumor? What is that? Anyway, you're still adorable. Even with your Will Smith size ears and your slightly overly gummy smile. You're like a mix of Justin Timberlake and Michael Buble (looks wise and vocally) and since those are two of my fave performers, that makes you pretty hot in my opinion.

Don't leave me,

Kris

Girl Crush

I (heart) Tina Fey!