Type A Overload

I am seriously Type A. I believe Mitch is too, but I am sure he doesn't think so because he pretends to be laid back and mellow. Wrong. I think I called him high strung once and he was a little baffled, then shrugged and laughed because he knew in the end it was very true. Enough about Mitch and on to my point...

Yesterday at work we had to stuff all of these reusable water bottles with a post card that has our company info on it. I like to figure out the most productive way to do things, so I tried a couple different methods until I settled on one. About 2 boxes in (out of 10) one of the other girls in the office volunteered to help. Actually she just picked up some of the flyers and started chatting and placing them in bottles. She totally wasn't using my system and it was absolutely killing me, but I had to take a deep breath and remind myself that she was helping. WOOO SAHHH.

Well if she was going to help, I at least was going to do it better and faster than she was. I was stuffing with the precision and speed of an Olympian. Pick up with left hand, pass to right hand and bend in a cylinder in one motion (while sending left hand back over to pick another one up), pop in the bottle; I was knocking them out. Samantha on the other hand was more interested in chatting than stuffing. She was Casey’s onion cutting to my Hung’s chicken deboning.

The first box I managed to finish 30 to her 20. I was on fire. The next box she caught on to my competitive spirit and picked up the pace. I still managed to knock out 27 to her 24. She finally looked up and said, "Is it still a competition if the other person doesn't care who wins?" and laughed.
Oh baby, this is the real world, it's always a competition.
Final Count - Stephenie 111 / Samantha 89.

I wonder, can I ever turn it off or is it always going to be there burning and churning inside me? Quite frankly, is it a bad thing to channel your inner Monica Geller? It does make it tough to be “luggage” as my husband calls it when he is just going with the flow. But I am not sure I would like being luggage. I know there is a place for both and a balance would be wonderful, but is a balance achievable?

The Hits vs The Jams

I had the great pleasure of visiting the new Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre on Sunday for The Black Crowes and Phil Lesh and Friends concert. I was so excited to be back at the "circus" which I hadn't really seen since 1992 when The Grateful Dead rolled through Chapel Hill and my parents had no clue who they were so they let me go. What an experience; though part of me felt sorry for the dirty hippies and more sorry for their children and their dogs. We saw all sorts of amazing spectacles while we were pre-gaming in the parking lot. A hippy with wings, bowls made out of slate, a VW bus park next to a brand new Infiniti and of course my favorite, the grilled cheeses, burritos, and veggie burgers. Greg was more interested in finding balloons, but that is a discussion for a different day.

Phil played with his friends. One included the talented Jackie Greene who I had never heard of before and I now feel like a better person (musically) because I do. Watching him was worth the price of admission.

I have not seen The Black Crowes perform before this show and I didn’t know what to expect. I was thoroughly impressed! It was southern rock meets jam band. It was soul meets country. Watching Chris Robinson do his little chicken strut and step back out of the spot light to just take in the music made it even more of spectacular. I think I even saw a smile between the two brothers! How could you not be moved when the band clearly was?

The show was over and I was smiling ear to ear (and not because of magic brownies, as I was the DD). Much to my surprise I heard the unthinkable as I passed through the gates and spilled into the parking. Someone in the crowd was mumbling that they were disappointed in the show. Excuse me? According to this person, the show was too "jammy" and they didn't get to hear all of the songs they wanted to hear. I am sorry if you are at a concert and you are expecting to hear the greatest hits, then you might as well sit in the parking lot and pop in their CD or become a fan of Mariah Carey.

Isn't the reason you go to a live show to see what the band can do in front of an audience, to hear the creative license they bring to their own music and if you are lucky to a few songs they borrowed from their colleagues? Isn't it to watch how they perform together, and to experience how they explore their talents? In my opinion I would say if there wasn’t some “jam” as this patron mentioned, then it wasn’t a heartfelt performance. It was more like another day at the office.

I remember going to a Steely Dan show a couple of years ago. I spent over $100 a ticket to see icons of rock perform and have a chance to show me why they are who they are today. Instead, i swear i hit "play" on the tape player and was sitting on the lawn with my jam box. I was stunned and completely disappointed. If i am paying good money to watch you play live, you better show me more than what i can purchase at the local best buy.

So thank you Phil Lesh and Friends and The Black Crowes. I thoroughly enjoy your performance.

Vegas In a Day...

...well actually, 36 hours.   I flew out to Vegas Thursday evening and landed just in time to walk in to a perfect dinner with great friends... wine, steak, laughs, Belvedere, chips, BlackJack, Hold 'em, a failed attempt at understanding Bacarrat, RedBull, and hitting the pillow at 6a sounds fun.  It actually was fun.  I woke at 1030 and could feel my legs, but I really couldn't make them move.  I could brush my teeth, but could only taste sand.  For this moment, I could actually say I was seeing the world through rose colored lens - my eyes looked as if they were actually bleeding. What could I tell, I could hardly see out of them.  However with no headache, all was relatively right in the world.  We went to eat, although 2 fries was all I could muster.  19 8 oz. bottles of free water later and the amazing pool at the Wynn, I was talking again - reborn... Literally, I went from not speaking - to grunting - to making half phrases - to talking - then eating and talking and voila - I was reborn.  It only took me 3 hours what took Miles 20 months.  With food in my belly and the sun out, I was back and couldn't resist the BlackJack tables that were out by the pool under the cabana.  There we were at our own table, laughing, winning, having fun... 1 beer - 2 beers (Corona, mind you) - 3 beers... Here we go again - rinse and repeat.  Problem was we're now a little older and little wiser...  Spa. :) Hot tub, eucalyptus steam, deluge, shower and a shave - could this be?  A slow down? A mature approach?  Boringly enough --- yes.  I left the spa, sat at the poker table for while.  We met for dinner.  We played cards - no one was really overly motivated - we went to a club - I was in bed, no lie, at 1145p.  That is a first and with a 430a wake up call, it was smart.

So where am I going with this?  Nowhere really.  I had a great night and great day with great friends in  a cool place. I went to bed earlier on vacation than I would have home.  I had 3 beers all day (and night) IN VEGAS... and I must say, it was one of the better times, I've had there.  I will definitely do it again - next time, I'll stay an extra 12 hours...

It's amazing how time flies when you don't wear a watch.

Hollywood Drivers

Is it really so important to show up at a club or at a party in your very own Mercedes, Range Rover, Astin Martin, or what have you???? If I was rich and famous (more importantly rich) my car would be a chauffeured limo, hell, a chauffeured tricycle, i don't care what it is, the key word is chauffeur!
It just makes no sense to me that all of the stars are getting DUIs. You have the money to afford to not drink and drive, so why do you continue to do it? I remember back in my early 20s the only reason I would drive is that I couldn't AFFORD a cab ride (probably because I spent my last $2.50 on a kamikaze shot) so we would play rock paper scissors and risk it. I'm not saying it was smart, (nor was the 12th kamikaze shot) but it's the truth. I am quite positive that Heather Locklear, Paris Hilton, and Mischa Barton at least had enough money for a cab, or hell enough money to rent a hotel room next door to the club for the evening or even enough money to charter a helicopter to take them home!

Hollywood, stop being stupid. You have the dough, now spend it wisely. You know what, I am moving to Los Angeles and I am opening a high end car service where the star drives there own car to the party so they can be seen in it, then we take their keys from them and meet them back at the club at closing time and drive their drunk asses home. That way they got the grand entrance and no DUI on exit. GIVE ME THE KEYS (you mfcs) I'LL DRIVE!