Dairy allergies suck

Ugh. I don't know what I drank or ate, but something is definitely not agreeing with my skin. I'm allergic to dairy products, and it's fairly hard to avoid them altogether, but I try to as much as possible. I don't recall eating or drinking anything with dairy recently, but I've definitely got the itchy skin and breakouts that accompany accidental exposure. I got a facial last night, and it seemed to help, so hopefully everything will subside soon.

Show at the Crocodile this weekend

Rocky Votolato and Slender Means are doing a 21+ show at 9:00 PM at the Crocodile. Should be a really good show...

New music worth checking out

Two great albums came out today...

First, Rocky Votolato, a local musician who was part of Waxwing, about which I wrote in November. I downloaded his new album, Makers, from iTunes last night and it's really terrific. White Daisy Passing is really incredible. You can check out samples on the Barsuk site at http://www.barsuk.com/bands/rockyvotolato or from his site at http://www.rockyvotolato.com/rocky.html.

Second, Cat Power, who has such an amazing voice and a really haunting song with The Greatest. You can hear the song at http://www.catpowerthegreatest.com/, but I highly recommend the whole album. I'm quite happy that I was able to get tickets to see her the Moore in February w/ L. :)

About me

What are your initials?
RKT
When is your birthday?
March 25th
Who is someone with the same birthday as you?
Sarah Jessica Parker
How tall are you?
5'7"-ish
Are you comfortable with your height?
Yep
What is your job title?
Technical Writer
Do you have a best friend?
Several
Do you have a boyfriend?
Yep
Do you have a crush on anyone?
Yep - see above question/answer
Have many US states have you been in?
11
How many US states have you lived in?
1
Have you ever lived outside of the US?
Nope
What is something physical that you like about yourself?
My smile
What is something non-physical that you like about yourself?
My laugh
Do you have any pets?
No, unfortunately :( I hope to get a poodle someday, though!
Do you have freckles?
Yep, and apparently everyone but me thinks that they are cute
Has anyone ever said that you look like a celebrity?
Yep - Demi Moore, although this was years ago
What is the next concert/show you're going to and when?
Cat Power at the Moore Theater on February 20th
What song are you listening to right now?
"And It Stoned Me" by Van Morrison
What is your favorite song at the moment?
"Me and Mia" by Ted Leo and the Pharmacists
Do you like Michael Jackson?
Not since "Thriller"
What is the last movie you watched?
Erin Brockovich
Where was the last place you went today besides your house?
The gym
What is your favorite bottled water?
Aquafina
What is your favorite Starbucks drink?
Soy chai tea or soy pumpkin spice latte
If you could drink anything right this second, what would it be?
This amazing French tea that my mom got me for Christmas - but it would keep me up too late :)
What is your favorite store?
Coach or Banana Republic
What is your favorite fruit?
Tomatoes
Do you own a camera phone?
Yep
Do you have an iPod?
Of course - who doesn't?
What was your elementary school's mascot?
Dunno - maybe my friend C. remembers...
What size ring do you wear?
Well, all of my fingers are a different size, so I guess that would depend. I think my ring finger is around a size 8, but don't really remember for sure...no idea about the other fingers.
Have you ever ridden in a limo?
Yep
Do you own a car?
Yep
What stickers do you have on your car?
A parking sticker for my condo
How old were you when you got your first car?
16
How many driving tickets do you have?
None (knock on wood)
How many parking tickets?
None (knock on wood again)
Have you ever been in a car accident?
Yep
What is your dream car?
BMW Z4 3.0i or BMW M3 Convertable - either in silver
What dream car do you want your husband/wife to drive?
I don't have a husband, but I suppose if I did I'd hope for a car b/c I've been with enough guys who drive trucks. It doesn't really matter that much, though.
Are you, or have you ever been married?
Was married and now divorced
Do you want to get married?
Yep, I'd give it another shot
At what age do you want to get married?
It's not a question of age; just need to marry the right person this time around :)
At what age do you want to have kids?
Well, first marriage & then kids. So, I dunno - probably between 30-35.
How many kids?
1; possibly 2 but I'd have to see how the first one went
What posters do you have in your room?
None
Do you exercise as much as you should?
I try to get in 3 times a week, but could probably use more
Does anything hurt on your body right now?
Nope
Do you sing?
Yep
Have you ever sang in front of a crowd?
Yep
Do you dance?
Yes, but it's the white-girl shuffle
Have you ever done the Electric Slide?
Yep - but I can never remember it, so I have to re-learn at every wedding I go to
Did you attend your High School prom?
Yep
Did you go to someone else's prom?
Yep
How old were you when you got a cell phone?
18
Do you look good in yellow?
Depends on the shade
What is your least favorite color?
Orange
Do you like sparkly things?
Love 'em
How much French do you know?
Un peu
Do you speak any languages other than English?
German
Do you prefer ketchup or mustard?
Ketchup
Have you ever eaten Spam?
Unfortunately
Who is your favorite character on Friends?
Chandler
If you could have anything right now what would it be?
A trip to all of the places in Europe that I want to go - paid in full :)
Do you have any allergies?
Cow dairy products & strawberries if I eat too many of them
Are you racist?
Nope
Are you bisexual?
Nope
Are you for or against gay marriage?
For
Do you like president Bush?
If you're referring to president shrub - Nope
Have you ever slept in someone else's clothes?
Yep
If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?
France or Germany
What is the first thing you notice about the opposite sex?
Eyes and smile
What is your favorite body part on the opposite sex?
Arms
Where would you want to go on a first date?
Someplace where I could talk to the guy and get to know him
Have you ever been kissed under fireworks?
Yep
Have you ever had someone of the opposite sex sleep over?
Yep
Has anyone ever sang or played an instrument for you personally?
Yep
Has anyone ten years older than you ever hit on you?
Yep, and asked my mother for my hand in marriage (no joke)
Have you ever been bungee jumping?
Nope
Have you ever been white-water rafting?
Yep
Have you ever been surfing?
Nope
Have you ever been kicked out of your home?
Nope
Have you ever seriously vandalized someone else's property?
Nope
Have you ever hit someone of the opposite sex?
Yes, but in a joking manner, so no harm done
What is something that really annoys you?
Stupidity
What are some things that you really like?
Friends, music, games (pool, bowling, etc.), reading, dancing
What is the latest you've ever stayed out?
Until 8:00 AM b/c I had class at 8:30 AM :)
What is the weirdest thing you've seen this week?
A guy dressed up as a hot dog, dancing on the corner - pointed out by Kati as we were driving through an intersection in the U district
Say something totally random about yourself...
I like to sing in my car, and enjoy singing songs in French even if I don't know what they mean or how to correctly pronounce the words

Furniture update

I think I must have really pissed of fthe furniture gods or I'm the subject of some kind of cosmic joke. I was supposed to have my custom chair delivered this morning between 8-10 AM. I get a call about 9:00 AM from the delivery guy telling me that the warehouse changed the locks and he doesn't have a key to get in and get my chair. He'd been calling the warehouse for a couple of hours trying to rescue my poor chair (among other people's furniture), but to no avail. So, it seems that he will try to deliver it on Thursday afternoon when my other furniture is scheduled for delivery. I should be receiving my bar stools, TV stand, media cabinets, and bookcases from the other place on that day as well. I'm not holding my breath about the bookcases. After seeing the impossibility of getting the custom couch in the other day, I'm thinking that it will take no less than a miracle to get the bookcases in because they are huge. But, I suppose stranger things have happened - Britney Spears having procreated or president shrub being elected, for example.

I found another couch last weekend, and ordered it. According to the store, it should arrive in 2-3 weeks. Based on my experience so far, I'm going to wager that it will be more like 4-8 weeks, but as long as I can get my chair on Thursday, I don't really care. It would just be nice to have some piece of furniture that I can curl up in when I get home from work every day...

I love Harry Belafonte

This is just too cool for words:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10964067/

Feels like home

I just got back from a movie (Tristan and Isolde) with some friends from work. That probably doesn't sound like anything big, but somehow it is. I finally work in a place where I really respect and like the people that I work with, and I've made good friends with them. Yeah, we deal with crap, and sometimes we deal crap to one another, but we're a team and in the end we all come through. And I work with some of the most amazing women that I've ever met in my life - women who are so smart that I can't even fathom how cool they are and how cool it is that I'm part of that group. I work with really smart men too, but it's so awesome to be around such smart and powerful women.

And hanging out with them is just a blast. I had no idea when I took this job that I'd make such great friends out of my co-workers. So, somehow I finally feel like I've arrived. It feels like home.

Thoughts about working out

I'm going to share something that demonstrates just how lazy I really am. When I was in college, I used the IMA gym probably a total of 15 times throughout the whole 3-1/2 years I was in school (I graduated early). The reason I worked out so little is because the trip to the gym was, in and of itself, a workout. When I lived in the sorority, it was already pretty darned far away, and then when I moved out to an apartment with roommates, it was really far away. Not to mention that you had to pay for parking. So, I guess I must have worked off calories from all of the dancing I was doing at frat parties...or something...like not really being able to afford food all the time, or something. Not really sure.

Anyway, when I lived 45-ish minutes away from work and my gym, I was lucky to work out once a week. After a long day at the office, the last thing I wanted to do was go to the gym and then spend forever in traffic getting home. At least Kati and I walked several times a week. Now, why I can spend forever in traffic getting over to Seattle to walk with Kati, I'm not sure...except that I think I have more fun when I'm walking with someone because I can talk and it doesn't feel so much like a workout.

Now that I live within 5 minutes of work and my gym, I work out on average 3 times a week. I'd like to kick that up to 4 times a week, but I'm cool with 3 for the moment. For one, I can come home and relax a little bit after work before heading to the gym. Then I can change and go workout, and then come home and shower in the comfort of my own home. I should add that I belong to a REALLY nice gym, courtesy of my employer who pays a lot for employees to go to this gym. So, it's not like the locker room is bad or anything. On the contrary, there's tanning, whirlpools, saunas, and every toiletry that you'd ever want at this place. But, I like my own bathroom - call me crazy.

So, I guess that my health somehow depends on how close I live to my gym and whether I can drive there and back in a relatively short amount of time. I'm lucky that I don't have to hunt and gather my own food, or I'd probably starve to death. On the good side of things, I'm seeing results from my workouts, which is always fun. It doesn't show up on the scale because muscle always weighs more than fat, so the weight training I'm doing right now evens things out, but I can tell that things are fitting differently and feel better. I'd like to be nice and toned by the time I go to Hawaii with L. in September and on my family ski trip in December. That's plenty of time to get in shape and be much healthier :) Good times...