Can you smell it?

It's the end of my weekends. Please join me in a moment of silence as we remember those days most dear to our hearts.



Ok, now. MMM was awesome! I don't if I'll take up acting as a profession, although it did cross my mind :) But, we had a great turn out. Everything went off without a hitch. Plus, Kiwanis brought in $1400 which will be donated to local children's charities. I have to say it was a little tough to defend my character while under interrogation.

I was in Seattle yesterday. John and I saw Run, Fatboy, Run with John's friend Jay. It was good. Go see it. Jay's a nice guy, from what I can tell. I might go as far to say that I'm glad John has a friend like him in Seattle. I should probably meet more of his friends. And learn how to explain what my job is in a more positive tone. On the way back to John's house afterwards, let's just say that was the longest bus ride of my life.

Portland. I'm trying to find a cheap place to stay for a couple of nights. It's been awhile since Johnny and I have been anywhere. Unfortunately, it takes at least $150 a night in an establishment I feel confident washes the sheets. We're saving up.

It's nice to be back in the office.

With Lora's gentle nudging I'll be back in the gym this evening. Yay, step class.

And. That's it.

Free Pizza

:sigh: It's Friday. My second Monday of the week. Pay day. To be honest, it's been a pretty strange day. I slept in, took my time getting ready. Did a couple devotionals. Walked out the door at 10am. I LOVE mornings like this.

Just got back from a corporate luncheon in Poulsbo. I am BY FAR the youngest in the bunch. AND the newest on top of that. Julie introduced me, and then John Shea (senior management) said that the newbies have to sing a song. And I almost did. I froze up, for sure. Not mortifying, but close enough. I wish I didn't have such a fear of adults. :)

Thursday was wonderful. Spent the night at John's house. We watched Notorious. I liked it. The next morning we got Starbucks for breakfast. Double tall soy caramel latte may be my new favorite of the moment. I walked John to the bus stop, and he said "Val, if you lived here we could do this every morning." Tug at my heart strings, why dontchya.

I met up with Annetta and Sierra after that. My girls. 3 hours of open heart discussion. They challenge me. And I love that.

MMM tomorrow. Let's hope I remember my lines.

One Hour

I'm at work. And I've been pretty productive all day...until now. It's my Friday. And I'm feeling the afternoon take my focus. I just took a call and probably sounded like I have no idea what I'm talking about. But when you call and say "Hi, my name is Dan Howard. My daughter's been talking to you about booking a wedding." That doesn't necessarily mean anything to me. Then the whole conversation is off on the wrong foot. No, the reservation deposit is not refundable.





To Seattle tonight.





My dad came to see me at work today. He was dropping some letters off at the PG PO at 8:15a and saw my car. I was at my desk and saw him peek around the door. It was cute. He is smiley, just like Rachel always says. I like my dad.

I need a new white noise machine. Mine makes me mad, not sleepy. I don't know happened, but every time I turn it on it makes a pretty obnoxious electronic interference noise. Cass has this one. I know it's fabulous. But it's also a little spendy. Dang it, I just paid off my credit card, too.

Could you make yourself available?

:) It's Monday. It's sunny. What a way to start the week. We had a big staff meeting with the big guy, JR. The first thing he did was start ribbing me for not matching the maintenance staff (who all decided to wear their OPG fleece). And then throughout the meeting he proceeded to look at me and say Val, can you take care of that? I have quite the list from him. Which is as much exciting as it is overwhelming. He knows that I can take care of it. Which makes me an official part of the team. Yay!

Easter was yesterday. I watched...well listened to my dad install cabinets all afternoon. Everytime I tried to escape he'd say "Val, it's Easter. You're supposed to hang out all day." Oh Dad.

Church with Nate was excellent. One big party for Jesus.

Late Night, Early Morning

Church last night with Nate was...worth staying out into the wee hours of the morning. I much prefer when the sun wakes me up, even if it's only after a few precious hours of rest. Easter is tomorrow.

It's going to be a quiet day at work. I can tell. One appointment. No phone calls. One wedding. So I've already painted my nails. And after my stint as a door opener/train straightener/bell ringer/parking attendant I'll bust out Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers.

I went to go take a jog in the lodge last night. But the doors were locked. And there were a bunch of shirtless 13 year old boys playing X-Box in the common room. So...I decided to go do some strength exercises in my room instead.

Awakening

It's Friday. Not my Friday, but it's GOOD FRIDAY. 11:00pm, New Life at Klahowya. See you there?

I bought a swimsuit on Wednesday. Went to the gym last night. And there was a kid who was still going strong on his 8th mile on the treadmill. Inspiration anyone? If only I could get my butt out of bed in the morning. The suit's pretty hot though. And it was cheap. Hot and cheap. Just what I like.

Dad was giving me a hard time about wanting to live in the city last night. I said "I love Vancouver, BC." He said "I love Chehalis." And that's why I love my dad.

All Hail the Easy Mac

Never has something so delicious come out of a microwavable cup. My new best friend.

So, today's news.

I did some major shopping at Old Navy yesterday. Swimsuit, shoes, camisoles, etc. I went to Target right after that and had to go straight to the DVD section to prevent myself from buying anything. It's spring. I just want to buy buy buy.

Johnny came over on Tuesday night. We watched Mystic River and No Country For Old Men. Oh, and Arrested Development. He went home this morning. The more time I spend with him the more co-dependent I get. It's a love/hate thing. I love him, but hate the co-dependency. I just want to know that we've moving forward...if you know what I mean. One step at a time.

I came in and Julie had emailed me to say that she'll be happy to do one of the weddings in April. She's a wonderful boss. This being said...my mother is trying to get me to quit because my Uncle Brad is hiring in his Bellevue office. She wants the best for me. But I'm here. That's what I'm doing right now, living in Poulsbo.

Worries

I still don't have a costume for MMM :/ And I haven't worked on my lines at ALL since last weeks rehearsal. Tonight we're running through the entire play. And I've only rehearsed one of the scenes that I have lines in. It should be interesting and overwhelming. There's also a wedding in town tonight. I have a feeling I'm going to be happy when this night is over.

All of my friends are sick. Which means I will be hanging out by myself for the next few days.

I watched Braveheart last night :) Oh, the carnage.

This is the beginning.

I don't have a regular scheduled day all week. I hate being in the office by myself after hours.

There's Always Something

I spent a good hour with Julie this morning talking about issues with the wedding. Issues that I really didn't have any idea about :/ It's no good when the boss comes in pissed on Monday morning. But, every day is a learning experience. And now I know a few more things to look out for. Like kegs in the alley way. One person can only do so much. But I still feel pretty guilty. I wasn't at the staff meeting this moring...so Julie got reamed instead of me. I'm just blessed to have a boss that will really always back me up.

Are you wearing green today?

Quiet Sunday Afternoon

One of my favorite times of the week. There's nothing to be done except laundry and movies.

Kate Nash is wonderful. If only I had her british accent. Irresistible.

Last night Risa came over with her Wii. We cracked open a bottle of wine and played all night <3

I think I'll take a nap now :)

xo.

Photoshoot

While making every effort to stay discreet before today's wedding a nicely dressed girl, about my age, walked past me, stopped and said "I love your make up. Your lipstick really pops."
One of the perks of living with Joel, he keeps me beautiful.

Ok. Not quite.

Make the topaz a diamond and this is it. Well...close enough anyway.

Check it out

I'm lovin' it.

Risa, Joel, and Nate last night. So much fun. But I think I need to cut everyone a break. We're all just doing the best we can.

I stayed up reading all of the letters Johnny's ever sent me. He's always been so good to me. And the older the letter the cuter it is :) Believe me. If you only knew what we've been through.

I hope the wedding today goes really well. So far what I've experienced is an groom. An orange bride. Overwhelming numbers of family/friends. Chaotic children. We'll see. But I'm not afraid to rule with an iron fist. Just watch me.

Chinese Proverb

Kissing is like drinking salted water; You drink and your thirst increases.

I have been so stinkin' lazy lately. All I do is sleep. This week in particular has been outrageously sad. I gave myself like...10 hours of sleep last night. I don't need that. I think. That I will make a change.

On a positive note, I did find an absolutely adorable wedding dress in this random wedding magazine that found it's way into my mailbox.

Attached fun

Jon Rose just called.

About the Event Calendar. He likes the marketing that I'm putting out for PG events. Julie told me. I know it's not "good" design, but if he's happy that means I'm doing something right :D

underneath it all

I <3 Book Club. When I got home I started to tell Joel that it's nice to let your defenses down and have a serious chat. The constant sarcasm and cynicsm wears me out. It's nice to know that we're all real people underneath the mask we so often wear.

Dinner with T.J. tonight. I haven't seen her in two years. But, I have no doubt it'll be just like old times...only now she's a cop :)

xo.

Heart of Life

I hate to see you cry
Laying there in that position
There's things you need to hear
So turn off your tears and listen
Pain throws you heart to the ground
Love turns the whole thing around
No, it won't all go the way, it should
But I know the heart of life is good

You know it's nothing new
Bad news never had good timing
But then the circle of your friends
Will defend the silver lining
Pain throws your heart to the ground
Love turns the whole thing around
No, it won't all go the way, it should
But I know the heart of life is good

Pain throws your heart to the ground
Love turns the whole thing around
Fear is a friend who's misunderstood
But I know the heart of life is good
I know it's good

xo.

<3

Here we are. Aren't we cute?

John plus Valarie equals love

Shenanigans.

I love working for Julie. Especially when she's playing hardball. This week has been full of Julie playing hardball. :)

My first rehearsal for MMM has come and gone. I can't act. And it seems blaringly obvious to me. But. I had fun. And that's more important than talent. I need to make an appointment to go out to the costume barn. How often do you get the opportunity to go to a costume barn? :)

Tonight is our first book club. It's at Yipi Bubble Tea. I should start reading.

Oh. And I broke my camera. It's finally dead meat.

How do you tell people that you need some space? And that you'd rather not. Am I the lame-o?

I've been feeling unsettled in the company of the familiar lately. Maybe I think too much. But, all I'm asking for is a growth spurt. Something drastic.

I had a really hard time sleeping last night. I couldn't get warm. And my room is right next to the living room.

There was also Grasshopper pie allover the freezer this morning.

My theme today: DETOX.

My weekend was great. I got to watch cartoons. Went to SAM. Saw Semi-Pro. Slept in. Dinner with Mom & Dad. It was a totally responsibility free 4 days.

And now I have to make up for that :)

Cassandra is fun.

Please, go to the dentist. Brush, floss, rinse. It really does break my heart.

I'm in Ellensburg...

Sitting on Cassandra's couch, loving on a bulldog named Tank. I'm fond of this town. Maybe for the same reasons I love Vancouver. I could move back. I would if I had a good reason.

Last night I took my first shot of tequila. Tarantula. Are you proud? We ate delicious steak tacos and watched movies all night. No Reservations. The Devil Wears Prada. Margot at the Wedding. The Darjeeling Limited. Johnny might kill me for having a movie marathon without him. But. We didn't finish all of them.

Breakfast at The Starlight Lounge was classy. I acted a bit of a wallflower. Oh well.

Cass is doing homework.

Haircuts at 2. This might be the one.


Then dinner with Dan Beary and a night out.






I miss John. If he didn't have plans tomorrow I would probably ambush him on my way back to Kitsap.

Call me Rebecca.

In a moment of fuzzy thinking I agreed to act in March Murder & Mayhem this year. I've got young, pregnant wife written all over me, don't I?

You can breathe.

Post it notes on my computer screen.

I'm scattered brained. To be honest, I like it that way. So, I take notes for myself.

My child, don't lose sight of good planning and insight. Hang on to them, for they will fill you with life and bring you honor and respect. They keep you safe on your way and keep your feet from stumbling. Proverbs 3:21

I put that one up months ago. But it's been a comfort to me this week.