Soul Spin: September 2006

Saturday, September 16, 2006

Happy Birthday To Me!

I'm 26 years young today!

Got a yummy pound cake in the mail from my sweet Grandma and lots of thoughtful e-mails, phone calls and text messages. Speaking of, one was from my mother that came through at 2:30a this morning. Anyone else think this is odd?

Cheers to getting old!

Wednesday, September 13, 2006

Listen to what I got in the mail...

...Or I guess READ what I got in the mail (duh) on a lame excuse for an index card:

Dear Your Girl,

You are an official prizewinner in our new Mercedes, BMW, Porsche or $40,000 cash promotion. We have been unable to contact you, therefore, in compliance with the program regulations, this notice is being forwarded to your attention.

We are holding your choice of a luxury 4-day Royal Caribbean Cruise for two with meals and entertainment included, value $1,398 or pre-paid round trip airfare and two nights accommodations for two to your choice of Las Vegas/Orlando, value $1,250, plus one of the four guaranteed prizes: a new Mercedes Benz M-Class, BMW X5, Porsche Cayenne or $40,000 cash, a $1,500 shopping spree, exotic island adventure, $806 value or $500 cash. To avoid forfeiting your status as a recipient, please call toll free at 1-888-325-XXXX within 72 hours, M-F 9:00am until 8:00pm and Sat. 9:00am until 6:00pm CST and arrange for a time for you and your spouse to visit and claim your prizes. There is no obligation to purchase anything. You are guaranteed to receive your prize and gift immediately, in accordance with your sweepstakes claim letter, dated 8/25/2006.

Sincerely,

Susan Murray, Awards Director

THE ADVERTISING MATERIAL IS BEING USED FOR THE PURPOSE OF SOLICITING TIMESHARE SALES

THE COMPLETE OFFERING TERMS ARE IN AN OFFERING PLAN AVAILABLE FROM THE SPONSOR

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What exactly am I supposed to be thinking? While you noodle that, here's what I am thinking:

In exactly what ways have they been trying to contact me that has been giving them so much trouble? I check my e-mail like a fiend and definitely have not received anything in the mail. Granted, I do screen my phone calls, but I haven't received very many unknown ones lately. Hmmmm

They've worded this just confusingly enough that I've had to read it several times to understand exactly what they're offering. I think it's a ploy...because the more I read, the more I picture me and LC with tropical cocktails in hand laying on the beach ditching meetings with salespeople trying to get us to actually pay for future trips.

I don't like when the only way for me to communicate with you is by phone. Options would be nice...like e-mail...that way I don't have to get drawn into a longwinded sales pitch and waste my cell phone minutes. But I guess I don't want spam either, so never mind.

Should I call?

Tuesday, September 12, 2006

City Adventures

Yesterday was my last day on the old job. It's strange to think that I'll never return to that office and never have that e-mail address again (at least not for a LONG while). For some reason I didn't really feel that sad about leaving...the move from Atlanta was definitely more emotional and I'm definitely more excited about starting the new gig than I am about leaving the old one.

Since I'll leave next Wednesday for a week at home in Atlanta, I'm only taking one day off between jobs. So while everyone else was slaving away at work today, I had to figure out what to do with myself. I picked my two favorite things: burritos + lying around. I stopped by Chipotle and walked up to the park to indulge. It's such a beautiful day! On my way up 5th Ave I'm bopping along dreaming about black beans when I hear a VERY familiar voice. Lo and behold, I am strolling behind none other than Joan Rivers. And she looked a lot like she does on TV:

SCARY.

But that voice was unmistakable. And the STI-LE-TTOS that this woman was rocking were unbelievable. You will not catch me dead in shoes like those when I'm in my seventies. She had on a pump of this variety:

They were very cute, but I kept waiting for her to fall and break a hip.

I made it to the park and am minding my business reading The Art of Happiness when I look up and see a couple walking towards me. I'm in Central Park's famous grassy area called Sheep's Meadow so I found this particularly strange because on a Tuesday in the middle of the day, there weren't a ton of people at Sheep's Meadow. The next closest sun bather was at least 50 feet away. So to my surprise this man and woman set up camp 10 feet from me. Ummm....WTF? Of all the empty spots all throughout the area (and plenty of shade/no shade options, folks!), they had to pick the five square feet right next to me. Makes no sense at all. That reminds me of those people on the train that barely fit through the car door, but feel it necessary to squeeze their big butts in a seat not cut out for said butt. Ugh. So anyway they were only there about 10 minutes because I glanced up from my book and realized they were gone. Weirdos.

That's all for now.

Sunday, September 10, 2006

Insomnia Strikes

I NEVER get insomnia. I can always sleep at night and do so for at least eight hours each time. So why the hell am I awake? I fell asleep at a decent hour but woke up after a crazy dream about a homeless man trying to make out with me (you know how dreams go). That was about two and a half hours ago.

I don't know if I have nerves about the new job, if I'm just antsy to get home in a week and see LC and my family or if I'm just terribly unlucky.

Seriously, folks, it feels like 2p on a Saturday to me right now but it's, oh, 4:56a!! Pray for me...I'm a sleepaholic and this cannot continue.

Okay, off to eat an apple with peanut butter.

Friday, September 08, 2006

I saw Beyonce today

She was performing in Times Square for Good Morning America which just happens to be right outside my office. At dinner last night one of my girls reminded me that she would be out there so I left home a few minutes early and got to work in time to get yelled at by rent-a-cops for not "moving it along." Yeah, I was one of the oglers that didn't want to stand in the sweaty crowd and instead stood behind the stage on Broadway. One female police officer started getting a little testy with me so I found a safe spot out of her view on the island at Broadway and 44th. So yay! Even though I'm not her biggest fan, it was cool to see Miss B perform live. She did a good job and she had her fans going wild.

Okay, more later my sweets.
xoxo

Wednesday, September 06, 2006

Hottie Alert!

Ladies, I was prancing around town over the long weekend and stumbled upon a basketball court dripping with cute boys of all ages (well at least guys in their 20s and 30s). Now granted some of the dudes up in there were lookin' rough, but there were several hotties roaming the grounds.

I was one block west of Washington Square on Monday afternoon. Make it your mission to visit this area sometime soon, my dears. I don't know if something special was going on for the holiday...maybe the goddess of love decided to grace us with eye candy in celebration of Labor Day (we do work hard!). But if we're lucky they play more regularly than that. Not that I have free time on most Monday afternoons to cut clear across the city to ogle at sweaty men through a chain link fence, but I can dream! And I can pass along the wisdom to my fellow single, female New Yorkers.

Bitches unite!

Sunday, September 03, 2006

Rings, sacrifices, drama - The Wedding Post

I was at brunch with a friend today and we were discussing her roommate's upcoming nuptials. Well, actually that's a bit misleading because she's not even engaged yet. And that's the problem. Roommate just moved to New York this past spring leaving her boyfriend at home in Atlanta. Turns out they love each other, so she's making plans to head back to be with him. But she won't move back (and into a house with him) until they've walked down the aisle. An engagement ring won't do the trick. She must be married before she'll live with him (and good for her for sticking to her morals).

So Roommate and my friend have done the math and realize that in order for her to have ample time to plan the wedding before their lease is up in March, he must propose by October 1. I have to imagine that Roommate is getting a little antsy because she just came back from a trip to Atlanta to visit him and NO RING. The stress! The drama!

What's dude waiting on you might ask? Could be that he wants to make sure he's in a financially secure place before he drops $10K on a ring. Understandable, but Roommate might have a coronary if he doesn't pop the question soon. I would too though...her life dangles by a thinner and thinner thread the longer he postpones the proposal. Planning a wedding in less than six months sounds like an absolute nightmare. So if he doesn't get crackin' soon, Roommate's going to have to sign another lease here in New York, thus thinning that thread that connects her to her sanity.

Anyway it got me thinking. She's stressed. She's dangling by a thread. She's probably frustrated that she's not engaged. She's having to base the future of her life on another person.

ALL OF THESE THINGS SUCK. As much as being ready to marry someone must be great, Roommate's situation is reminding me of just how much sacrifice goes into that kind of relationship. Like TOO much. Regardless of how much I love someone I'm just not sure that I'm ever ready to be unhappy or unsure of my life just to be with him. Sure, that sounds selfish, but if it looks like a duck and it sounds like a duck...

I don't know. I'm sucker when it comes to matters of the heart. For some reason I just have no self control when it comes to boys. If I like him, I LIKE him. No halfway. No kinda. No "he's aight." But something about the whole marriage thing just scares me. I don't want to be in Roommate's shoes. I really don't. Maybe I'm just not ready and when the time comes I'll feel differently. In the meantime, I'll just enjoy my singlehood and be thankful I'm not being faced with all of that madness right now. Although a shiny thing on my finger might not be half bad...

Friday, September 01, 2006

My new job

I'm sooooo excited to report that I got a new job! Life at my current post was only average so when a recruiter e-mailed me asking if I'd be interested in going on an interview, I thought "what the heck."

My first interview went okay, but I wasn't convinced that it was the place for me. To my surprise I got a call from the recruiter saying that they really liked me and wanted me to come back to the meet the president and my potential supervisor. So I did, and I'm so glad I did! It feels like this new company is going to be just my style.

I visited the office this week and got to see where I'd be sitting, met some of the team, etc and it just feels right. Plus the clients I'll be working on are right up my alley - luxury and lifestyle products. YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS.

Anyway, I feel like such a lucky girl to have found such a cool place to work. I just hope it's as good as it appears, but more on that later.

Wish me luck!

Soul Spin