What to do when…

(Warning:  Boys, you may not like this post)

… you’re an emotional trainwreck thanks to the lovely, ever un-popular PMS (meaning you feel like crying for no good reason, the thought of leaving the puppy you’ve been house-sitting for the last five days makes you sad,you crave sleep, chocolate and junk food, in no particular order and the last thing you want to do is be perky) :

* Choose a kick-ass outfit for the day so at least you don’t look as emotional as you feel

* Kick your heels off under your desk, just because you can

* Choose the “Chill Time,” playlist you have created on Pandora. Fast forward through the songs that make you feel like crying, even though you don’t know why you want to cry

* Give yourself permission to eat a few pieces of chocolate, totally ignoring your diet

* Drink loads and loads of water

* Keep your head down at your desk, working fast and furious

* Don’t take crap from co-workers at office

* Try not to worry about what’s bothering you (for example: need to buy new black dress for upcoming wedding, how is Jack doing? How are my parents dogs? How will I be able to pull off the bachelorette party to the Smokey Mountains this fall? Why are so many people asking when Irish and I are going to tie the knot? Why does my hair look like crap? To tan or not to tan?)

* Mentally plan your workout for the night, hoping the emotions work their way out of your system this way

* Tell yourself that after the workout you can put on sweats and watch any girlie movie you want, bonus if it helps you cry to rid yourself of that “I just need to cry,” feeling

* Cuddle with dog, boyfriend, pillow, whatever is close to you

* Remind yourself that the week is almost over and the weekend is full of fun

* Feel good for having all monthly bills paid in plenty of time and bonus: Tax Refund is on its way!

* Think of all the love that surrounds you in your life

* Choose not to write a mopey, woe-is-me-blog-post, even though it is what you really want to do

* Smile, because even if you don’t mean it at the beginning of the day, by the end of the day the smile(s) will be geunine

Break Time

After Kyla Bea took her blog down for many valid, excellent reasons and after g-chatting with her about it, it got me thinking: how much time do I spend on the internet? How much time do I really need to spend on the internet? Answer #1: TOO MUCH. Answer #2: Maybe an hour a day?

Between my Blackberry which is chock full of constantly-keep-in-touch-with-people applications, my full Google Reader, Twitter, GMail and the fact that my fabulous boyfriend is a bit of a geek and is on his computer, well, 90% of the time, I have a hard time disconnecting. I know several of my other blog friends have posted about this phenomenon in the last few weeks all of us realizing we need to live our “Real Lives,” just as much as virtual ones.

I find myself reading blogs and commenting before I go to sleep because I want to continue to be a good blog friend, a good commenter and keep the networking going. I find that if my Google Reader is full I get stressed out. Marking “all as read,” makes me feel awful, so I tend to tackle my reader in groups of 10 blogs at a time.

I started disconnecting myself in giving up Facebook for Lent. Let me tell you this: withdrawal is a bitch. Yeah, I was a Facebook Addict and I’m not afraid to say it. I’m at my computer at least 75% of every workday so checking Facebook was as habitual to me as it is for me to drink insane amounts of water each day. Not good.

The first three days? I was itching to check Facebook. But I didn’t. I made it through the first five days and I didn’t even check it last Sunday even though I told myself I could. It feels damn good to not be addicted to status updates, who is dating (or not dating) who, and feeling upset or annoyed if people don’t comment back after I leave them my usual perky, upbeat comments. If I’m meant to know something, I’ll find out somehow, maybe by (gasp!) people taking the time to call me or email me. And as for my communication with my friends? I’ve been a better at making phone calls, sending them greeting cards and etc, just to reach out. I can be so old-fashioned sometimes.

LIBERATING.

The last two nights, I’ve ignored my Google Reader. Oh, I’m sure the posts are piling up with people needing advice, encouragement, support, laughter, etc etc. And I promise I’m there for you!  But I can’t explain how great it is to not fall asleep with my laptop on my lap while trying to catch up, how nice it is to convince Irish to put down his laptop and talk to me about his day or simply cuddle while reading.

So, while I’m not giving up my blog, my blog friends (I’d be insane to do that!) and my reading/commenting time, I’ll be on hiatus for a few days. I need to disconnect from the computer and reconnect with the outdoors, my apartment, my camera, and the tangible things in my life.

I also plan to have at least one night a week where I turn my Crackberry completely off. I know, it sounds crazy, but the quiet and not being easily accessible is important.

I’ll be back in full force in no time.

And while I’m on a blogger vacay, feel free to leave me a a burning question you want me to answer about anything and everything. I promise I’ll answer when I return.

Hugs, Happy Friday, and Blog Love to all of you,

~ Nora

Love/Hate, Volume Two

Love: Driving around in my car, singing loudly to whatever song is on the radio.
Hate: Mini-vans. I don’t ever want to own one.

Love: The Facebook addiction is a little bit easier to kick than I thought it would be.
Hate: I do feel slightly out of touch with the world even if they are faux friends.

Love: Ibuprofen.
Hate: Migraines that make me need the darn medicine in the first place.

Love: Pretzels & Junior Mints.
Hate: How addicting that snack can be.

Love: Twenty Something Biggest Loser Group.
Hate: I kind of want to buy Jillian’s 30-Day Shred DVD… but I also don’t like working out at home.

Love: Organic Milk.
Hate: I drink more of it than I did “Regular,” milk, which isn’t really a problem, but I wind up stopping at the grocery store twice a week just for milk.

Love: Rain (duh, this is nothing new).
Hate: Jack’s stubborn attitude when it’s raining; he refuses to go five feet past the front door.

Love: Receiving mail from bloggy friends.
Hate: That I can’t go to 20SB Meet-up in Chicago.

Love: Weekends with no real plans other than to sleep, read, hit up the gym, and spend some time with Irish and my family.
Hate: That Monday will arrive before I’m ready for it.

Love: One of my cousin’s is getting married in Florida.
Hate: The wedding seems far away… hurry up November! I’m ready for the family reunion now.
(Side Note: All of my out-of-town bloggy friends, email me your address if you want fun, random mail. I love to send cards and etc for no reason!)

Love/Hate: The Return

Love: Baking, particularly cookies of varied kinds.
Hate: The number of dishes that stack up and the fact that I want to “test” at least one cookie from each batch.

Love: Jack has taken to his dog bed (purchased in October) extremely well…
Hate: … so well that getting him to cuddle on my bed when TDH isn’t around is impossible.

Love: Warmer weather. Instant mood booster, plus running outside instead of at the gym is a definite bonus.
Hate: Mother Nature is teasing us. We are forecasted to have 30-something degrees again this weekend.

Love: I’ve been on reading nonstop lately. You know, the kind where you can’t put the book down.
Hate: I can’t seem to shake the Vampire Book Addiction. I’m reading a World War II novel; it’s definitely good but not as intriguing as the Vampire Books I’ve been reading since October.

Love: That I’m not a normal Valetine’s Day kind of girl.
Hate: I broke down and bought a pair of Valentine’s Day crop pj pants at Target. On sale and too cute to resist.

Love: I’m planning on volunteering at a Rescue Shelter for Farm Animals with Darling one Saturday a month.
Hate:  I know I’ll want to take all the animals home, no matter what kind they are.

Love: Twitter.
Hate: It’s way too addicting. I’m working to scale it back.

Love: Wii Bowling. Wii Fit. Wii Wrestling.
Hate: My arms are still sore after I play the wrestling game. After all my working out? Seriously? Harumph.

Do you have a LOVE/HATE relationship going on today?

(Very Important Side Note: Darling is editing a prayer book for cancer patients, survivors and their family members. She’s looking for people to submit prayers/poems/mantras that have helped their loved ones or themselves through the difficult times. Please visit her page or contact her at: dlosciale(at)sbcglobal(dot)net. Contributors will receive two free copies of the book as well as have their name published next to their poem. The book will be distributed on amazon.com and local bookstores in the StL.)

Pet Peeves: The Work Edition

What better to address the Case of the Mondays with than a bit o’ bitchin’ about the office?

In particular order, a list of things that really get under my skin:

I have a large, U-Shaped desk. In addition to my ten different hats at my office, I often double as receptionist since I know all of our clients names and have a pulse on the buisness/office as a whole. So with that said, I have many files, post-its, slips of paper, mail, etc. on my desk at any given time. For some reason people who come to my desk to ask me a question/request a favor/tell me something feel the need to rearrange these papers on my desk. Uncool. Don’t touch!

Email. I love email, I really do. What I don’t love is when someone pens an email to me requesting a favor that they could have easily accomplished twice in the time it took them to thoughtfully craft the email. With that said, if I don’t respond to your email in what you expect to be a timely fashion, do not come to my desk, put your face in my personal space and ask if I have received it. Of course I have, I just have a bajillion other customer-facing things to do first.

Coffee. I do not drink it. I do not even like it. While I will make the coffee each morning as it’s become part of my job (evidently being the only woman in the office means I must make the coffee? Hello, 1950s), if it runs out at 10 am because you took the last drop, please make some more. I may not have time to rush back to the break room every 20 minutes to see if the supply has been depleted.

Number Two. I know nature calls when we’re at work. I get it. But please, please, please, men, do not take the magazines that our company pays for into the bathroom and then back out! How gross. Once it’s been in the bathroom, it needs to remain the bathroom. It cannot be salvaged. Oh, and ladies who are students of ours? If you have to take care of business, please feel free to use the Lysol we have graciously (and hopefully) placed in the bathroom. My nose would appreciate it.

As I mentioned above, I often sit at the front desk, a place I enjoy for the most part since it’s apart from the loud sales area. Just because I sit near the front of the office doors does not mean I know where each employee is at every moment of the day. That’s what the phones are for. Or, you know, your legs. Walk back to their office and see if you can find them.

And lastly, because of all the the above, please do not have the audacity to ask me if my project is finished yet. If I didn’t have to make coffee, play Where’s Waldo with the Office Staff, sort through my re-organized papers, trash magazines that had clearly been in bathrooms and deal with silly favors/requests and your incessant questions then yes, it would be done.

What’s your work pet peeve?

Love/Hate the October Edition

Love: Not having to go to campus this semester thanks to online classes.
Hate: The copious amount of reading I must do every week for my Business Law class…upwards of ten hours, not including online discussions and the actual assignments.

Love: Colder weather means jeans, sweaters, boots, scarves, cute wool hats and by favorite winter coat.
Hate:  I need to turn on the heat in my apartment.

Love: TDH was the quintessential boyfriend yesterday as he was able to ignite the pilot light on my heater. Something he was definitely proud of and boasted about all afternoon.
Hate: I can hear the dollar signs clicking each time my heat kicks in. Oh, and the fact that I couldn’t successfully ignite the light on my own.

Love: Friday nights with Darling at ScrapMania (courtesy of Archivers, one of the dorkier things I indulge in). Hate: It took me three hours to get out of my corporate-structured-mind mode before I could finally get creative.

Love: Running! I did 6.5 miles this past weekend.
Hate: How hungry it makes me. I’ve been craving a cheeseburger since Saturday morning. I finally decided to quench that thirst today (my last week before No Mush! begins), and ate seasame seeds which I forgot I can’t have so now I’m groggy thanks to Benadryl. I guess I need to tape a list of my allergies to my forehead so I don’t forget!?!

Love: My relationship with TDH. I know I’m only 25 but it is by far the most mature, giving, caring relationship I’ve ever had. We’ve had no fights, only miscommunications and they have been resolved within 30 minutes, both of us expressing our feelings and thoughts, made suggestions about the issue and moved on. And it’s worked.
Hate: I’m hesitant to post anything remotely serious that he and I have discussed on here as I’m afraid of jinxing it!

Love/Hate

It’s been far too long…

Love: Apartment Hunting.
Hate: The idea of packing. At first I thought I didn’t have a lot until I realized I own 90% of what’s currently in my apartment. I am also a little nervous to live all alone; I know I’ll like it but there will be no ManMate to hang up the curtain rods, take out the trash or walk Jack if I come home a little too inebriated to walk. TDH is just going to have to stick around!

Love: Cheap heels.
Hate: Cheap heels. I bought this hot pink pair at Charlotte Russe only becuase they match a few of my favorite going out shirts. However, the balls of my feet hate me after about one hour and since I wear heels nearly everyday of my life, I know it’s the quality of said shoe.

Love: Summer.
Hate: I feel it slipping away. Grad school courses start again in a month. ONE MONTH. Bridal Showers/Bachelorette Parties/Weddings also start in August. While I’m excited for Canada (okay, who am I kidding? I’m very excited) and my friend Mel’s wedding, I’m not prepared just yet to end the Summer of Nora. I forgot how liberating it is to do things that you want to do and not doing them because you feel obligated.

Love: FOOD.
Hate: I have marginally fallen off the healthy eating bandwagon. I’m still hitting up the gym four-five times a week for an hour each time, but my body is angry with me for neglecting my grilled chicken, broccoli and protein. Dating makes it hard. Having a life makes it hard… so I am going to have to buckle down.

Avversione Di Amore Del Venerdì

(title, loosely translated: Friday’s Love/Hate)

Love: Hanging out with Darling at B&N last night, catching up about our weeks and laughing over some tasty morsels. Bonus: Finding a present for my dad’s upcoming birthday.
Hate: I neglected my operations & project managment book which really does need to be opened for the upcoming mid-term.

Love: Dad and I took some time away from the office for a lovely lunch at our favorite hole-in-the-wall Italian bar near the office. My favorite part is when he reminisced about the first time he went to Yankee Stadium with his father. I think I saw a glimmer of a tear in his eyes at the conclusion of the story.
Hate: That I never met Grandpa Morty.

Love: HB asked me early this a.m. for a dinner and movie night. He’s in charge of dinner (take out, I’m sure) and I’m in charge of movies and drinks.
Hate: I still get nervous before I see him. What is up with that??
Love: Wearing flip-flops.
Hate: Supposedly we are getting snow in the StL tomorrow. Seriously, who pissed Mother Nature off???

Love: Girls’ Night tomorrow.
Hate: The occasion… Sam-Sam and her Marine husband are moving in May. I may not see them as much as the “old days,” but it’s the end of an era. Looks like I’ll be making trips to North Carolina soon.

Post Hump Day Love/Hate

Love: Rain… for the most part.
Hate: We received so much rain this week that my friend M had to cancel the bowling/pizza date last night as her office went into emergency crisis and had to evacuate the office as the flood waters were coming into the office.

Love: The aforementioned group date cancellation allowed for HB and I to have some face time. Just us. His couch. A movie. And an awesome view of downtown from his loft windows.
Hate: Being tired. Was having a great time at HB’s but had to leave to go home to sleep, so I could function at the office today.

Love: My Wednesday night trivia team informed HB that he’s going with me next week, so as to not “steal,” me away from another night with the gang.
Hate: That I didn’t get to invite him myself!

Love: I start house-sitting for a friend tomorrow. Their house, compared to my apartment, is like a castle. They also informed me they have a freezer full of food for me to enjoy.
Hate: MODOT and their ridiculous highway construction projects. I’ll have to leave by 6:45 am every day to get to the office at a reasonable hour.

Love/Hate After a Looonnnnggg Weekend

Love: Planning Darling’s Surprise Party and realizing that when she walked in to the room she really didn’t have a clue about the event.
Hate: That it takes a special event- birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, to gather with your truest and closest friends. Are we all really that busy?

Love: Venturing out with HB to a group gathering, after Darling’s party, to celebrate my friends who were getting married on Saturday.
Hate: The numerous questions that followed as a result of his attendance at said party.

Love: Justin & Meg tied the knot last night; their wedding was incredibly fun and was a semi-high school reunion.
Hate: There were two girls at my table who kept calling me by the wrong name (Layla) rather than my real one. Kind of funny.

Love: Live music at aforementioned wedding.
Hate: The wood floor at this particular venue wasn’t finished so removing our shoes was a no-no… which resulted in a few blisters on the feet this a.m.

Love: Adult sleepovers; myself and two of my best friend couples crashed at the home of the bride and groom since they weren’t using it last night. Doing the post-party wrap-up the same night as the party (and with a tad of alcohol in the system) is lots of fun especially when sub sandwiches from McAllisters deli are in the fridge with potato salad.
Hate: That we don’t have more adult sleepovers.

Love: Allowing myself the day to clean the apartment from head to toe, resulting in a splendid lemon-fresh scent in the apartment. (I know the word choice of “Allowing,” is odd, but cleaning is my stress relief. Yes, I know… weird.)
Hate: Emptying the mop bucket. It’s always so gross.

Love: Talking to HB on my way home from Darling and Dad’s (final birthday celebration for Darling at Cheesecake) about our weekends. We made plans for Friday night.
Hate: Four days until it’s Friday.

Love: That I had such a glorious weekend…two days of parties, friends, cameras, top notch food and wine, music and dancing.
Hate: My writing skills aren’t fantastic enough to express how wonderful everything was.