Create

what. writings? art? life? I'm a bit tired. not tired like "sleepy" but tired like, ugh. Don't quite know why. Maybe a combo of the past weekend and work (or lack of work that really makes me work) and just boredom. I don't know what I am bored of though. Think I'll go home (no computer at home, no internet...BF is working on the computer for me though). Entertain myself at home. Have about 4 hours before I have to hit the road. Interviewing for an organizational change consultant. Which is interesting because as I sit across from the table, I think, "I can do this" and wonder why I have not. I need to settle in, simmer down some. Need to have a reason to do that I suppose. I just need to find some sort of balance I suppose. There are parts of my life that are absolutely amazingly fantastic. Others that are "ehhh". And still others that are bad or downright non-existent. I want to figure that out. Maybe I'll take some time to start working that. Yeah. I'm going to go and do that.

ETA: The interviewing went great! We selected the consultant that I most wanted to work with so I hope she does a bang up job so that I'm not responsible for the downfall of the organization. If nothing else, I certainly have the powers of persuasion!

wOw

Is that a good enough title to tell you what is contained within? Probably not. I cannot even begin to put in words everything from this weekend. Almost a thousand pictures between the two of us later, I couldn't even begin to put it into pictures.

So a simple list of 10 {in no particular order}

Fireplaces are cozy

Falcon Cove is Rad {dude!}

Sand Dollars are squishy

long drives when he talks are my favorite

Go Mexican...it's always a safe bet

13 speed zones...and counting

Pizza Hut is open late on a Sunday

Was that an earthquake?!

You've never seen a sunset until you've seen an Oregon coastal sunset

I absolutely, positively, unequivocally ADORE this life and love that man

Dead...win...yummy

The computer is dead. So goes the laptop. Thankfully I have a computer genius on hand to just build me another AND I work for an institution of higher education so worse case sceneraio, I get a Dell for peanuts and lots of built in, on site maintenance. Hmmm.

Win! Took her DOWN in court. She didn't want to mediate. Which is a shame for her because I would have said, fine, we can drop the $335 if you agree to agree not to sue me in the future. Instead, the judge had to take her to task and tell her that the Roto Rooter contract was not valid as evidence since I couldn't...

Anyhow, I won. On the way out of court she muttered that she was going to sue my ass for the $7000 I owe her. Told her that essentially, this ruling meant that I didn't skip out on the lease and that I don't owe her shit. Then she came to it and instead said I would never rent another apartment. Good thing BF is pretty up on how to be the heavy...

Yummy...Morton's steakhouse. I had no steak (come on now) but the crab cakes...and Shrimp Alexander...and the wine. Wow. It was for BF's birthday. Never paid that much for a meal in all my life, but would definitely do it again. He thoroughly enjoyed himself as did I. Good times are worth good money.

Off to prep for the trip to Oregon. Lots of close time...I'm so looking forward to it.

Ready...set...

...wait. I'm not ready. Nor am I set. I ... uhmmm. I have to stay at BF's place tonight so that I can try to get my computer up (there will be lots of downloading of software and drivers to to get my system back up...no eyepatches necessary). But mostly, I have to so that when it comes time to wake up in the morning, I not only wake up, but I get up. Sure...he could call me, but I'll just think it is my alarm, hit the phone and go back to sleep.

Gotta love a girl who knows what her weaknesses are.

Tomorrow morning court. Yesterday night, dropped the car off for repairs. Today...not so sure, but I *{thought}* they were supposed to call me back with an estimate. Tad bit worried, but not really.

If I wanted to be a total book groupie nowadays, I could go to another book signing tonight, but I think I'd rather get stuff done around the house.

Because (of course because), I go to Morton's tomorrow. No...I really am NOT a steak lady. But the boyfriend is definitely a steak man. I figure if he can take me out for organic veggie food on Valentine's Day, least I can do for his special day is get him full on beef. Then...this weekend we're going south. No...not straight to hell...just Oregon. Which is much more pleasant I have been told (smile).

Off to drive my mini rental. What a beautiful day and so much time left to go play in it!

Ensure you are insured

And I am. And so was he. Good thing about insurance was that in the event that he wouldn't have been insured, I would have only had to have paid $100 to get my car fixed. Not bad.

But he is insured. By my company. So they essentially know that they're gonna pay through his or mine to get my car fixed. So it's been painless. So far. I drop my car off at 2:00.

I called it in yesterday after work and went through my insurance. I haven't heard "it's clearly not your fault because...well...you just can't run a red light" so many times in all my life. Go figure--you cannot run a red light? Not even when you're in a hurry?

Right.

So the saga continues...

Krash...into me

That's what happened yesterday.

So what happens when you're in a hurry? And you don't take the time to slow down. And to be present. And to look? Life gets blurry. And crunchy.

I was in an accident yesterday. Coming off of the James' St. Hill right at the turn on to the 5 (sure...the, I...I don't care...the interstate).

I was waiting at the light looking straight ahead at the tow truck towing someone out of my lane up at the next light.

Then I glanced right a bit and saw the woman on the corner doing her stretches at the streetlight and I wondered how long it would take her to get up the hill I had just come down.

Then I glanced into my passenger side mirror and saw the car behind me creeping forward. I remember thinking he was impatient.

Then I glanced left and saw that the light was red..."Oh" I thought, "My light must be green and that is why he is impatient."

I looked forward, and let up off of the brake. Out of the corner of my eye, to my right, I saw the look of terror on the woman's (Madam Hillclimber) face so I looked right to see what was her problem.

My heart dropped.

I thougth I was about to witness an accident.

Then I heard the deafening crunch. I watched a car spin through four lanes of on ramp traffic just after rush hour.

I saw people scatter. I pulled over. Hit my hazards. Turned off the radio. Popped the ashtray ("I have an ashtray?" Was the thought that went through my mind) back into it's slot. Pulled up the e-brake, put it in park. Looked out the driver side mirror, pulled up my cell phone and dialed 911. Amused, but not understanding why (until today) the operator didn't "get" that of course I was at 6th and James in Seattle. Now I get the issue with 911 and cell phones. Got out the car.

Guy in the black SUV that was sitting behind me pulled over too. Asked if I was okay.

Yeah...I'm fine.

Tow truck driver is also on phone. I'm still on phone talking to Seattle PD now. I'm flustered because two driver wants to know if I need SPD. I tell him I'm on phone with SPD who is telling me that as long as both drivers are WA residents and no one is injured, we just need to exchange insurance info and be on our ways.

"Uhhhmmm...well, sir, the problem is that this guy really blew this light and I think there needs to be a report." I say. I think "Hell if I'm paying to replace his Lexus because he didn't stop."

Hillclimber overhears SPD telling me to carry on and is adamant that a report needs to be taken.

While waiting for a car to come out, Red Light Driver comes over and apologizes to ped who says he almost killed her. I tell him I thought he was going to tag her too. He tells us he knew he wasn't going to be able to stop in time and he tried to honk, but couldn't do that either. I ask him where he was going in such a hurry. I am remarkably cheery. Probably because I'm just happy that we're all alive and walking and really, some burn and a crunched bumper is fixable.

Car arrives and statements are taken. Officer Patti (fantastic lady) gives me the case number and is amused that Mr. Red Light wanted to just give me his insurance info and be on his way. More amused when I note that he didn't even ask (and I wasn't giving until demanded to) my insurance info. Unfortunately, it is now on the police report, BUT he has all sorts of tickets from the accident so I want to see his insurance try to get mine to pay for this.

Dilema--it was not my fault of an accident. Do I get my insurance involved on this? I think I do--rather they hear about it from me and I get them the proper reports than have his company call and get it from him. Thing is...we're insured by the same folks so...

Anyhow. That was the drama of yesterday. Krash...into me. Slow it down folks...slow it down...

Smart, funny and she scraps

So...how do you know if those absolutely famous people scrapbook? well, duh...you ASK them.

Madam [former] Secretary Albright does it. Do you? If not, you should!

Why? Because aside from it being fun, it is therapeutic (trust me on this one), justifiable, smart, easy, out of the box and just...well...she does it, why not you?

You know how I know she does it? Check out her Memoire. Scraps galore! Pics and memories and she shares them with the WORLD. So there...she scraps.

How do I know she's funny? Well...I saw her last night. Though I was in a crowd of 800 folks, it was such an intimate gathering. Course, you feel that way when about 750 of those folks are chillin' behind you, but no matter. She has a way of speaking that just draws you in. Honestly, it probably helps if you are relatively (if not wholly) liberal to be able to stomache her obvious dislike of Bush Part II. But this IS Seattle so it's not like she was being lead into the Lion's Den.

So then. The evening was moderated by Michael Kinsley who has written for everyone and their mother. I strongly suspect that he scrapbooks too, but he was not the focus of attention tonight.

Some of my favorite comments (loosely translated because I don't write so fast) from last night:

Kinsley asks Albright where she feels the contradiction is in Bush's contention (during the election) that he would not do nation building as opposed to the nation building that appears to be happening in Iraq now.

Albright responds that rather than looking for the contradiction in assumptions that "nation building is nation building is nation building" just because you say it is, we should really define what nation building is. To that, she speaks of her time in the UN where she found herself separating the member countries into 4 categories:

Internationalists, New Wannabe Internationalists, Rogue Nations and Failed States.

{though these are the gist of her characterizations, I did the labeling}

With nation building, Internationalists (most of the super powers of course) provide resources to New Wannabe's (those would be the new and newly free countries that are trying to be international in scope) so that they can establish the structures to be international in nature. Internationalists also do their share of pro bono work by helping the Failed States (think Africa by and by) keep their heads afloat. Failed States are not wannabes in that wannabes have no structures yet (they're babies...let them grow into it) and failed states have or had the structures, but they (obviously) failed. failure, being relative of course I might add.

Anyhow. The key to all of this nation building as she sees it is that it is building when we offer and provide, not when we force and demand. When we offer democracy without forcing it upon people, that is when we are nation building as opposed to mini me shaping.

All in all, Albright had some VERY strong opinions. BF noted that she must be done politically to so blatantly, negatively, speak her mind. I don't know...one of the aspects I most loved about her was that she was (and still is) no holds barred. For what that is worth.

One of the almost throw away comments she made that really hits home with the message of her book is what I loved:

While you can separate church and state, you can not separate people from their faith. Nor should you.

Future leaders take note--you don't have to advocate theocracy to embrace the need to understand people at their base, most holistic level. Everyone believes in something unbelievable to another. Theology should be required coursework for any emerging leader.

Off the soap box. First book signed...Madame Albright. Thanks chica!

Yesterday, James Whitaker (first American to climb Everest), tonight I get my Post Secret book signed. Check out the blog, the project, buy the book, head over to Elliot and get it signed! See you there!

Work...

You know, if folks would stop passing by my cubicle, I could blog this already and be done.

Right.

I have a few tasks to get done. Reminded by one that just walked by. Another story for another time.

In the meanwhile...BF comes home tonight! Well...very early tomorrow morning. As in midnightish. I don't know if I'm going to make it. I think (shhhhhhhhh) I'm seriously smitten with this cat. To the point of really wanting to hang with him lots more. And then some.

So...maybe I'll be traveling to NYC soon.

I'm definitely going to Oregon this month (real big time, I know, but trust me on this one...)
I get to see the Funky Divas this Friday (smooches!) and guess who is being dragged along for the ride?

I just finished my ordering for the month (well, not ever done) and I just finished a piece that is to be reckoned with...

All systems a go. Maybe I'll walk the beach this evening...procrastination alert.