took the day off yesterday
Mood:  a-ok
Topic: Losing the blubber
Since Kari & the kids were leaving, and since it was so gosh-darn hot outside! ugh, it was miserable!! We went out to eat at Romano's, and I was good....... I had broiled flounder and a few spoons of applesauce.

It's even more miserable outside today, so I'm going to wait until 7 or 7:30 to go out for my exercise. I did a few jumping jacks and a little isometric work, just to rev up my heartbeat for a bit.

My doctor thinks my thyroid levels are off again, because according to her scale, I've gained 11 lbs in the past 2 months?!? I don't know how that's possible. Oh well, it doesn't matter how the weight got there, what's important is that it comes off. I'm noticing a difference already, and I'm feeling better, more energized and all that.

I got my hair done today, too, and I loooooooooove it... she did a great job. I have some really dark plum red streaks with contrasting light blonde streaks, all at my crown and it frames my face nicely... I had a few inches cut off, but I can still tuck it behind my ears and I can put it in a wimpy ponytail. The cut is a long bob, you could say. It has a little bit of layering, but nowhere near as drastic as it was... I had hair flying all over the place! Not good! The stylist used a flatiron on my hair, which I wasn't really sure about, but I ended up really liking the result.. I may have to get one..... we'll see, though.

That's it for now, I might post tomorrow.

I've been good!
Mood:  celebratory
Now Playing: tori amos
Topic: Losing the blubber
I've been sticking to my diet and exercise plan... today I'm really sore. For the past two days, I've done 40 minute walk/jogs. Tonight I might cut it down to 30 just because I'm so sore. So far I've lost about 4 lbs -- go me! I guess I'm losing about 1 lb a day... of course who knows if that's right or not, because they say that you shouldn't weigh yourself every day. I just needed some positive reinforcement and to see that my program is working so far is nice. This weekend will be the real test, since I won't be at work and I won't be on as much of a schedule. I think since I have a routine now, it's been easier for me to stick to my plan. Like in the morning, I'll have my yogurt and whatever else, then maybe a snack around 10:30 or 11, then I'll have a salad or something else healthy for lunch, with my extra time (about 10-15 minutes) I'll lift weights... then a snack around 3 pm.. when I get home from work, I go for my walk/jog... then dinner! Dinner has been a little difficult because of the other people in the house right now. Hopefully things will be more healthy after they leave. We have two kids who only eat pizza, grilled cheese, and macaroni and cheese... not the best things when you're on a diet! Obviously the adults eat something different, but usually it has involved starchy foods, which I'm trying to avoid. Like last night there were potatoes... so I ate an apple instead... I need to go to the grocery store and get some more veggies. We appear to be out!

The next few weeks are going to busy... sometime I have to fit in taking the math placement test. I'm having a hard enough time finding a spare few minutes to run down to the testing center just to pick it up! Then I'll have to study for it before I take it. I hope that I can pass it this time. Something tells me that's going to be an hour of pure hell. :-/ Anyway........besides that... next weekend, I'm having lunch with my mom and I'm also auditioning for that horror movie part in Towson. I should be even more suited to the role that I want now, since I've been working out. I also have to work on my songs for AI auditions, buy an outfit for auditions..... I'm going to wait until the weekend before, in hopes that I'll need a smaller size. ;)

Time to get back to work......... more later, I want to post an article on AI4 that I just wrote for the Harmonizer.

muy busy
Mood:  rushed
Now Playing: britney spears (no, I'm not joking)
Topic: Losing the blubber
Diet is still going okay, despite being surrounded by cake and other temptations... I'm hoping to lose 10 lbs (at least) by auditions, and I think that I can make that goal. 15 lbs would be better, but to lose it that fast wouldn't be very healthy I don't think... I doubt I could ever develop an eating disorder like anorexia or bulemia because I like food too damn much!! :-P~ My end goal is to be 130 or 135, or to lose at least 16" overall in my hips, waist and thighs. I can drop 4 sizes no problem -- just go to different stores! :-P It would be nice to fit into a size 6 jean, though. We'll see. I am hungry now, already ate some carrots this morning though. I think that I should get some nuts to munch on, I'll have to research which ones would be best for that.

I managed to get in a 25-30 minute walk/jog in last night before it rained... I was risking being struck by lightning, but hey, sacrifices have to be made, right? hehe. I'm getting my hair done this weekend. I was going to wait, but I'm impatient... I'm sure it will still look okay 2.5 weeks after I get it done... I think that I'm going with the bright red streaks and I'm going to go super-blonde with the highlights. I'm considering 2 things: a bob or bangs... if anyone has any ideas about what I should do let me know... I like having long hair, but according to everything I've ever read, people with my hair type should have hair no longer than shoulder-length because it's so fine and flat... I want something low-maintenance, but I also want something that I can do if I want. So that brings up the whole question of having layers. I have layers now and really they're meant to be blow-dryed, curled, the whole 9 yards. Ugh. I hate hair. Why can't we all just be bald? My concern is going to be making my hair look decent after sleeping on the sidewalk all night. No outlets for my hairdryer, etc. Another thing I'd like to get is a perm again, but I don't want to fry my hair anymore than it already is.

Suggestions, please!

so far so good
Mood:  suave
Now Playing: David Bowie
Topic: Losing the blubber
Today is my first full day of diet & exercise. So far, so good. I had a very small amount of whole-grain cereal and a light yogurt. Last night I had a chance to exercise before it started raining... I walked and did some intervals of jogging and short sprints. I think what I'll do is do at least 20 minutes (I'm aiming for 30-40, but I'm not going to get down on myself if I don't hit 30 or 40 every day) of aerobic exercise, and 10-15 minutes of weight training each day. I think that walking with the jogging intervals will be good, then hopefully I can work up to longer jogging intervals... right now I'll just tell myself, "Okay, now we're going to jog to the end of that block..." and then push myself a little bit farther than I think I can go... then walk again. I feel more energized today, but that might just be because I overslept this morning, haha. Woke up at 8:30. I'm going to have to start setting the alarm if Kurtis is going to be going into work early.

I took my measurements last night and I was appalled! Not too long ago, my thigh size was the same size as my waist?! Sheesh. I know that I'll never look like a supermodel, I just don't have the right body type... but I can look better than I do now, and I'm determined to get back into shape... I'm too young to feel as old as I do now... and I'm sure most of it has to do with my lack of exercise. Ugh.

Well, I have to get back to work............ Kurt's mom is coming tonight and we're all going out to dinner for an early bday celebration for Chris and Kari. I'm going to stick to eating healthy, though... I'm going to be good. I already had my first test this morning... the survey crew had donuts this morning in the lunch room.. they had a Boston Creme in there, but I didn't eat it! I was good. I brought carrots with me to munch on in case I get hungry.

busy monday!
Mood:  chillin'
Now Playing: david bowie
As usual, I'm having a busy Monday...

This weekend was okay... Kari and I spent pretty much all of Saturday in Annapolis.. we went to a bead store, Great Harvest Bread co. (yum!), Macaroni Grill for lunch, then the mall.

Found out last night that a woman who used to work at Harms passed away... she was a sweetheart... it's really a shame. Her doctor hospitalized her a week ago, found out she had cancer, now she's gone. :-/

Need to do some laundry, I have no clothes, hehe. Speaking of clothes, I need to start exercising so I can fit into some! Think I can lose 10 lbs in 3 weeks? ahh......... I don't care about losing weight really, I just want to be in shape... it's been really hard with Kari and the kids here, because I have wanted to exercise after work, but I feel bad because they're here and I feel like I might be deserting them or something. Maybe I'll go for a walk tonight and invite them! Then I won't feel as bad, haha! I have it all figured out now. Oh, the other reason that my diet/exercise plan is screwed up is because they eat a lot of junk, and not really at set times. Kurtis and I are rather habitual when it comes to dinner; we eat right after work 90% of the time. It would just be nice to have a healthy meal instead of pizza, chicken nuggets, mac & cheese, spaghetti......... how about some grilled chicken and a baby spinach & arugula salad??? Funny thing is when you're eating junk, you actually crave healthy food! Maybe that's a good thing, then.

Must get in shape, so much depends on it! I guess that my weight is pretty evenly distributed, so if I tell people how much I really weigh, they don't believe it. No, I'm not telling you. It's horrible. Maybe I need my thyroid medication adjusted or something... who knows. I have a doctor's appointment anyway on Friday, I'll ask her to do my TSH levels... haven't had any needles stuck in me lately, so why not?

email to my mom, review, etc
Mood:  celebratory
Now Playing: LOTR - into the west
Topic: Work
This is from an email I just sent my mom:

No, you can send me stuff at work... they still haven't announced when they're going to implement the 'spy' software, and as far as I know, it will only keep track of internet usage, not email. Even so, I don't think that our email constitutes as being too bad... I think they're looking more for constant abuse and questionable content of things.

The review went EXTREMELY well... I don't know why I get so anxious about them, because every year things are fine, even if I've been slacking off! Mitch just asks me, "What's going on" and I tell him. I told him that I'm either bored to tears or up to my eyeballs and that to make me anywhere near happy, they're going to have to give me more/different work and projects. I also told him that I'll be taking classes, and he wants to see what my program of study will be so that he can see if they'll pay for any of it. Of course that means that I may have to finagle my classes somewhat... but if they pay for some of it, I can just put whatever they give me into CDs or some kind of bond so that when it comes to paying off student loans, it will have been there accruing interest.

Anyway, Mitch is going to put in my raise so that it will show up in my paycheck next week... that's about exactly how much I needed to keep me half a step in front of my car payments and credit card companies, haha!

Well, I have to get back to work and justify the raise that I was just given... :-P~ There are 3 people on my side of the building, there is hardly anyone here.



There really are 3 people on my side of the building (including me!)... normally 15 people sit over here... so that should give you an idea of how dead it is.

They've announced where the AI auditions are being held in DC; the Washington Convention Center. I'm trying to decide if I'm going to drive in or do the Metro... I think that I'll probably drive in, there is a 24 hour parking area (250 spaces) within a block of the convention center, but I'm betting it will cost me an arm and a leg to park there. The good thing about the location is that in relative DC terms, it's easy to get to; it's right on New York Avenue, so basically you just take 50 in which turns into NY avenue. Metro is right outside, too... it will be MUCH different from the Atlanta fiasco. I'm so glad that they're having it so close to me this year.

Well, that's it for now... hopefully I'll have time to post a little this weekend. We'll see. If not, hope everyone has a great weekend! :)

Michael Moore
Mood:  quizzical
Now Playing: Sports Junkies
Topic: News
Is going to be on the Sports Junkies, 99.1 WHFS (Washington, DC station) at 9:10 this morning. I'm really curious to see what he has to say.

one more day...
Mood:  chillin'
Now Playing: Junkies
Topic: Miscellaneous goings-on
I was supposed to have my review today, but Mitch forgot that there was a PM meeting today at noon. I told him he was just delaying it because you're supposed to fire people on fridays. So we're going tomorrow at 1 p.m. instead. I hate to admit it, but I'm a little anxious. I just know that I'm going to be so pissed off if people have complained about me; especially with all the crap I see and put up with. People come and go all the time without signing out, people don't show up to work and don't call in... people sign out to job sites and go jet skiing, tanning, shopping. There are more things, but I'm not supposed to know about them... it just makes me sick with the amount of crap they let people get away with. Maybe that's one of the reasons I haven't felt very well the last two days (I woke up with another headache this morning)... now I have to refill my Imitrex. :-P~ I shouldn't get so stressed out about my review... the last two years have been fine... and last year I was even more worked up over it, and my review was 100% better than what I'd expected. The biggest problems I have with my job are this:
1. People think I'm stupid and I get hardly any respect.
2. Certain employees are getting away with anything they want.
3. I'm bored most of the time, but it's feast or famine. Some days I have absolutely nothing to do, others I have to bust my ass to get everything done. I can do my work with my eyes closed. During slow times, I procrastinate as long as I can, because the typical amount of work I get doesn't take me long at all.

That's about it, I suppose. Everything else is okay.

For the time being, I'm changing the comments to moderated, as I just had a lovely porn spammer type person give me a comment. If moderating ends up being too time-consuming or complex, I'll turn it back off. We'll see. So from now on, I'll have to review the comments before they're posted. Sorry if that's a problem for anyone.

In other news, I have another audition... here is the notice:

CASTING FOR FEATURE HORROR FILM
DESCRIPTION:
From the Filmmakers who brought you the
Artisan Entertainment release GhostWatcher comes...
THE MURDER GAME
Wanna play?
Attention Actors,
On October 1, 2004 our first feature film, "GhostWatcher," will be hitting the DVD shelves all over the country thanks to Artisan Entertainment. Pre-production on our second feature is in full swing and casting preparations have begun. We're looking for nine young, enthusiastic, talented and dedicated actors for our horror feature film production, "The Murder Game." Participation requirements, conditions and character breakdowns are listed below. If for some reason you are unable to comply with any of these criteria, please do not audition. All stipulations are non-negotiable. We're going to search far and wide to find the right nine people. So, please come out and meet with us.

BREAKDOWNS:
Character Breakdown:
Eric
A tall, slender, fit jock-type. Popular, sexy, arrogant, cocky.
Donny
An ordinary, average, every-man. Your typical nice, sweet guy. Not popular, but not unpopular.
Will
One half of the "burn-out" duo. Somewhat wimpy. Relatively unkept and not too concerned with his appearance. Non-confrontational. Very easy-going and fun. Enjoys the "occasional" joint.
Dexter
The other half of the "burn-out" duo. Unkept, unconcerned with his appearance. Definitely the more dominant one of the inseparable duo. Also enjoys the "occasional" joint.
Collin
Small, but tough. A loner, antisocial, quiet. Troublesome, with a troublesome past. Cares about his appearance, but for the purposes of repelling others. He deliberately looks like a gang-type thug. He has many piercings and possibly a few small, insignificant tattoos. Rings, chains and spikes are his most commonly chosen accessories. This dark, gritty exterior keeps people away. But, underneath, he may just be another confused teen seeking his identity. Then again, maybe not.
Sarah
Absolutely gorgeous, and she knows it. Not a completely snobby bitch, but it shines through from time to time. Very concerned with her appearance. Make up, looks, and revealing clothing are her priorities. Not stupid, but not the sharpest of the group.
Lucy
Not necessarily unattractive. But, she's unconcerned with her appearance. She might actually be pretty if she tried. Very tough and tomboy-ish. Doesn't need to be big or muscular, but must appear to be strong. As the only child of her father, The General, she's overbearing, sharp, and somewhat of a control freak.
Carrie
Petite, sweet, cute, but pretty ordinary. Not very tough. Kind of inexperienced in the ways of the world. She's innocent and na?ve. Easily frightened. Often depends on others for support and/or protection because she doesn't have the confidence to take care of herself.
Trish
Pretty, with a "bad girl" quality. Independent and somewhat of a risk taker. She's fun and likes to try new things. Pretty confident and sharp. She's witty and speaks her mind. Strong personality.

REQUIREMENTS:
Requirements/Conditions:
1.) Deferred contracts (no pay up front). Deferred compensation will be pro-rated by character.
2.) Non-SAG actors only.
3.) Must be 18 years of age or older to work on this film.
4.) Meals will be provided on set.
5.) Must have your own transportation.
6.) Lodging will not be provided.
7.) Must be available for night shoots from January 7 - January 15 for principle photography at Fullerton Mini-Storage, located in Whitemarsh, Maryland. All other photography is TBA and will most likely be on a weekend to weekend basis running through the following Spring.
8.) All characters are "teen" ages.
9.) "Sarah" player will require consent for very brief, partial nudity.
10.)"Dexter" player will require consent for a plaster cast of the head.
NOTE: Brief kissing/make-out scenes are required for "Eric & Sarah," as well as "Carrie & Donny" characters.

TIMES:
Saturday, August 7th from 10am till 6pm.

ADDRESS: Towson University, 8000 York Road, Baltimore, Maryland 21252, Media Center Building
MISC INFORMATION: email Robert at robert@murdergamemovie.com with any questions. Please bring or email headshot/resume if available.
STATUS: Volunteer
CONTRACT TYPE: N/A

I'm going to be auditioning for Lucy or Trish, although I'd rather play Lucy. She sounds like more fun. The auditions are on the same day that I'm having lunch with my mom, so that will turn out well. The negative thing about this project is that "night shoots" means they will be shooting from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m. So if I DO get a part, I'm going to have to work out a new work schedule for that week & a half. Fortunately, it's being filmed during the winter break, I won't go back to classes until January 18th... so that should work out great. And if they have reshoots, that will just be weekends. I haven't mentioned it to Kurt yet, but I don't see how he'd have a problem with it. I'm going to have to get another cell phone, I think... especially since I'll be going back to school in the fall. I still have to take my math test... need to go up to the school, or call advising to see if I can get a practice test.

So much to do, so little time. The plus side of me being so busy is that I don't have time to go shopping and spend too much money, haha! I think that my car insurance company might have a discount for students, too, so I'll have to look into that once I'm more official. Ugh. What a pain registration has been! I'm thinking about changing around my classes, there is a health/gym class that satisfies one of my course requirements, and I can get in shape while fulfilling a class requirement... so that sounds particularly good to me. :) So we'll see about that. I'll make up my mind when I take my test... if I do decide to do the gym class, I'll probably take ENG Lit & Comp 2 instead of the psychology... I really have to get used to writing papers again, so I think I should take an English my first semester back.

Well, that's it for now........... time to get back to work!

just wanted to say
Mood:  celebratory
Topic: Miscellaneous goings-on
That I'm feeling much better now........ a couple crackers and some ginger ale have fixed me right up... I also took some 'pain & ache' relief stuff that we have at work, it's like excedrin on steroids... powerful stuff! let's see... each tablet has 110 mg acetaminophen, 162 mg aspirin, 152 salicylamide, and 32.4 mg of caffeine. So basically you're taking one tylenol, 3 aspirin, (?? have no clue about salicylamide) and a bottle of Jolt! cola.

Work is better today, and McAnnoying actually found my typed up comment letter amusing... I started it out like this:


Dear Ms. Sanner:

Please give us our permits! We will do anything! We've made all the revisions with regard to your comments, so pretty please approve this submittal!


I told him he should keep it like that and see what they say. They might do it just because we begged! Who knows how the county works? We sure as hell don't. My review with Mitch is tomorrow. I hope that I get a big, fat raise! Not very likely, though. Maybe one day this place will pay me what I'm worth, haha! If not them, someone will recognize my extreme intelligence and obvious superiority.

Obviously my feeling better has nothing to do with my desire to leave this evil place.

BTW, I had a wonderfully prepared filet mignon last night as well as some fresh tuna.. Blaine caught it on Saturday off the coast of Ocean City. Tasty!

i feel
Mood:  don't ask
Now Playing: Junkies
Topic: Miscellaneous goings-on
like 10 different kinds of ass......... unfortunately I've run out of leave (more specifically, I'm actually in the negative!), so I came in this morning......... I had the beginnings of a migraine when I woke up, so I took an Imitrex.. couldn't find my Excedrin, though, I would have tried one of those first. I feel really nauseaus, too........ ugh. Right now I'm drinking ginger ale... feeling a little better, but not by much.

last night I got a letter in the mail from the company that I've been trying to cancel my credit card with (First Premier, don't EVER do business with them) and they're trying to royally screw me over... what happened was that they charged me their exorbitant yearly fee which caused me to go over my meager credit limit by a couple bucks, so then they charged me an overlimit fee, too!!! bastards......... on their bill, the small print on the back said that if you wrote customer service and cancelled your card within 30 days that the annual fee would be removed and you could pay off your balance. So I wrote them a nice letter, telling them that they'd gotten all the money out of me that they were going to get and to please cancel my card and remove the $100 in fees that I was charged. So I get the statement last night and surprise, surprise, my bill has nearly DOUBLED?!!? So I called them in my enraged state and the guy was like, "Oh, well your account was closed on July 13th...." So I tell him, "Well, gee, I sent you the letter requesting my account be closed at about this time last month, so are you telling me that it took over 3 weeks for that to be processed?!??!" Argh. Anyway, I was NOT a happy camper. I got him to take everything off, though, so that was good.

ughhhhhhhhhh I want to go home and go to bed!! :(:(