Buy Me Some Peanuts

"Take me out to the ball game,
Take me out with the crowd.
Buy me some peanuts and cracker jack,
I don't care if I never get back,
Let me root, root, root for the home team,
If they don't win it's a shame.
For it's one, two, three strikes, you're out,
At the old ball game."

Josh and I sung this song Tuesday night during the 7th Inning Stretch at the Mariner's Game at Safeco Field. (Yea, this is a late post - sorry!). We didn't actually buy any peanuts, although I think Josh secretly wanted some; however, he was persuaded otherwise not wanting to pay a billion dollars for a bag of nuts.

We set out for the game because it was an SCU Alumni event. I heard about it from a former SCU Ambassador (aka tour guide) that came into my Starbucks store earlier. She mentioned the game and possibly meeting people. Josh and I thought it would be fun. Perhaps we'd meet some new people, or maybe network. We bought the tickets from the Alumni Office and off we went to see the Mariners.

We got there right on time and headed to the "Will Call" window. They had my ticket, but no Josh's ticket. Sad. The guy was very nice and helpful though, and took us to customer service. With my handy iPhone, I was able to show that we paid for both tickets. This got us in the doors and up to the SCU area.

We arrived to the SCU area, which was basically just a few rows that SCU had bought out. There were some other younger people there, but nobody familiar. In fact, it was really hard to know who was from SCU and who was there just for the game. Well, there goes the friend and networking idea. Oh well, we shrugged our shoulders and decided to just enjoy the game.

It had been a while since I'd been to a baseball game. We were a bit spoiled since our last one was at Petco Park in San Diego for Josh's cousin's Cody's graduation. They had a entire section blocked off and everything; it was quite nice. Even though we didn't get a special section, we still left the park with smiles and an enjoyable evening. And I know you're thinking...did they stay to the end? Naww, I got cold and the game wasn't the closest of scores. We did get to the 7th Inning Stretch though.

P.S. I finally figured out who Ichiro was on the Starbucks Rewards Cards - everyone talks about them and how special they are,  yada yada. Don't know either? Check it out.

Apples to Apples

While Apples to Apples is an excellent game, it's also my clever blog name for all the Farmer's Markets here in Seattle. Josh and I have been enjoying all the flavors at the Farmers Markets. In fact, we've been going to the Queen Anne Farmer's Market Market each Thursday. We missed today's though because of the rain and not wanting to spend money.

These Farmers Markets are all over the place. There is a market in each little part of town - Queen Anne, Fremont, Ballard, Wallingford, Capitol Hill, Magnolia, etc. And each of these fall on different days of the week. This means you can go to one  practically every day of the week. By going to different markets you get to see other areas around town. There are some vendors that travel to each market, so you sometimes see the same vendors. However, there are definitely vendors specific to some markets. Generally there are similar items - apples, pears, peaches, veggies, bread, honey, pasta, jewelry, musicians, and more. Of course, they have all seasonal foods, so come fall and enter many will probably change.

Sadly, most of the markers close down for the winter. Two do stay open - they are the biggest - and these are the Ballard and Fremont Farmer's Markets. These are the best ones though, so I'm happy. As for the others, it makes sense for them to close because, surprise surprise, it rains here. Today is a good example. It was pouring rain and Josh and I decided to stay in (well, we did go to the Wallingford one yesterday, but that doesn't help my point here).

And here is a list with links of some of the foods we've enjoyed at the markets (yes, there is cooked food too & it's been a favorite dinner option for us):

• Tall Grass - Bread, we had the Oat and Honey Wheat Bread


• Anita's Crepes - Nutella & Banana, Ham & Cheese, Spinach & Feta


• Veraci Pizza - New Yorker, Farmer's Feast


• Grateful Bread - Pumpkin Muffins!!


• Columbia City Bakery - Everything But the Kitchen Sink cookies


• Where Ya At Matt - New Orleans Cuisine (ask Josh)


• Maximus Minimus - Pork BBQ sandwiches

Lastly, I've shared some photos on my Flickr site of our Farmers Market experiences. Enjoy!

Red Alert

Last night around 1:55am, I awoke to sirens. A few minutes later I was still listening to sirens. And it kept up what seemed like forever. Eventually I rolled out of bed to see what was happening. I peeked through the window screens, but saw nothing. More research - after a snack  that is. I hate when you get super hungry when waking up in the middle of the night.

Josh started investigating online and found that it was a ship fire. I looked out again to see if I could locate the fire. I thought I saw some flames, but it was just lights. Apparently it was just around the corner though. It was a ship fire on the docks near our apartment. This article shares some photos and details of the fire.

Apparently 100 fire fighters were out there fighting. The smoke was blowing the other direction, so we weren't affected. Plus nobody was hurt. All ends well, just an hour less of sleep for us.

Eureka!

I found it! Oh come on, you know what I'm talking about. What else could it be other than the fabulously delicious frozen yogurt. It's good as gold (reference to eureka).

As you may recall, I've mentioned that the frozen yogurt scene here in Seattle is pretty dang lacking. I've only come across the tart, fruity stuff. No cookie, chocolatey desserty froyo. So very disappointing. The only real place I had found was the little cafe around the corner from my Starbucks that served chocolate and vanilla, which never changes flavors but at least it was YoCream brand. I've been surviving off Red Mango. Don't get me wrong, I like Red Mango, it's good; however, it's not dessert and the creamy I'm looking for (oh all right, obsessed with). There apparently is a TCBY in Bellevue and Shoreline somewhere, but that's not very close to us here in the city. Tear.

The other day I was researching on the Internet and came across a place way down in Federal Way. Who knows where the heck that is! The colorfulness and flavors did catch my attention though so I continued onward. Out of curiosity I went to the locations and looked up Washington. Low and behold there was a coming soon for Queen Anne and Capitol Hill. WHAT?!? Josh and I drove to scope out the location it listed. The place looked like it wasn't very far along. Hmm, how much longer? I took it a step further and emailed them and asked about the projected opening. They replied in one day saying it would be late December. Oh boy! I wish it were sooner, but beggars can't be choosers.

Then my sister and I were talking on the phone and she said she thought of me, a new froyo store opened in Pasadena called Menchies. What?! That's the place I was coming here. Get out of here. It's true though.

And another sign...Josh and I were down in Gig Harbor for the day on Sunday. On the way there I saw a sign on the freeway saying Federal Way. Well, my froyo radar went to red alert. Must. Go. Get. Froyo. Deprived. On the way home we set the navigation and hit up some froyo goodness. Menchies didn't disappoint. It was self-serve and also a cute decor. Oh, and I asked and cookies 'n cream is a regular flavor. They didn't have it that day, but I enjoyed some Peanut Butter, Dulce de Leche, and Banana. Yum.

Can't wait until December! Hurry Menchies. Hurry.

Lend me some Suga'

I am your neighbor. Shake it, shake, shake it, shake it (OHH OH)

Hey ya! I got some bread yo.

Okay, being serious now. It was so nice today. This evening our neighbors downstairs (see there was a point to everything above), came to our door and gave us some homemade, still warm challah bread. How awesome is that?! Nom Nom Nom. <- Sound of eating.

They seems like a pretty nice couple. It was great to start getting to know the neighbors. Who knows, maybe we will need to borrow some sugar.

Round and Round

This is a Seattle bus.



This is a Seattle bus not to ride - the Express Bus.



Okay, I should rephrase that; the bus above is the bus I (Heather) should not ride. Express seems great - fast, convenient, & whatnot. However, when I was on this bus, I saw my stop fly past as we headed over the Ballard Bridge. Then I had to call up my hero, Josh, to pick me up. Luckily, the first stop is just over the bridge near Trader Joes (oh darn) and just a few minutes from our home. Let's just hope it doesn't happen again when Josh isn't around. Imagine poor me walking in the rain over a bridge in the cold, dark evening. Pathetic image right!?!

Not that I'm proud to admit this, but the express bus experience has happened twice. Yes, twice. I know one should learn after the first time, but I guess I'm a slow learner. It was after the second time that I realized the express bus actually has a little green sign on the front that reads, "express." Doh!

Anyway, now that my mistakes are out of the way, let's talk some more about buses. Orca, the Seattle public transportation system, has been an interesting experience thus far. It's convenient enough, yes, but interesting (fyi - interesting is my favorite descriptor word for the bus). The bus is necessary here in the city. It's just the way people get around town. It's just too hard to find parking and too expensive to park once you find a spot. In fact, it seems most people take the bus. All sorts of folks take the bus including some curious characters.

Some experiences:

• Minding my own business, leaning on a light post for my bus, when some homeless guy bumps into me as he was falling down. I yelped in surprise and stood there clueless for a few seconds while nearby bus waiters rushed to the guy. One lady was a hospital worker of some sort and took charge, but the homeless guy's friend lifted him and he yelled about wanting to get on the bus. So off on the bus he went. The people around were nice though - one made sure the bus driver knew and the hospital gal called (the police?) to make sure they knew what was going on...


• I was standing once again at the busy stop home when I struck up a conversation with a gal next to me. She was super nice and we talked for about 10 minutes waiting for our bus. She used to work for Starbucks and is in the process of starting her own business. Nice people at the bus station.


• On the bus last week, I was sitting in the back playing on my iPhone (like most bus-riders do), when the lady next to me asked, "is that a phone?" I look at her and reply, "uhh, yea." She continues, "oh, could I borrow it to make a call?" Me, "uhhhhh, ummm, ohhhh, hmmm (looking around at other passengers, accessing the situation - people know she's doing this, there are others on the bus so it wouldn't be an easy steal, she looks harmless). I don't know." She says, "I need to call 911." And I'm like, "oh my gosh, are you okay?" Lady says, "yes, I just need to make a non-emergency call to the police." "Oh, well, hmmm (thinking to self: why 911 then?), I guess." So I hand over the phone. She didn't know how to use it so I set it up for her. I listen to her conversation - I mean it's my phone and I'm sitting next to her, it's kind of difficult not to eavesdrop - and apparently some homeless lady was screaming obscenities at passerby's on the hill near her house. Geeez. I got my phone back and got to hear the rest of the ride about this homeless lady (who apparently had fine, flowing, blond hair).


• The bus driver had to kick off a homeless guy once we went out of the free-zone. I think being a bus driver is hard work having to deal with some of these people. I have big respect for the bus driver since it's strange people they deal with daily. Strange.

I'm sure there are plenty more of these stories to come. In fact, there are more little things I'm sure I could include, but thought this would do for now. I'm curious as to how this bus thing will go in rainy weather too. And don't freak out for me, there aren't that many homeless people on the bus, mostly just business people going to work downtown or tourists. Just the occasional, interesting homeless person (or I assume homeless).

Lucky for me, it's straight forward one bus to my store. The bus stop near my home, is just down some steep stairs, and the stop near work is just 3 blocks away at 3rd and Pine (fyi - my store is on 5th and Pine). It is a bit more pricey than I though, but again better than driving. All and all, it's a learning experience for me!

Now go ahead and sing...the wheels on the bus go round and round, round and round, round and round. The wheels on the bus go round and round, all day long.

Make it Work

Let's talk about our new home. It's definitely smaller than our Eugene home. We miss our garage. We miss the extra storage space. However, we love our new home. It's so cute and nicely located. All we needed was some clever thinking to make everything fit.

We put four minds together (Don, Nada, Josh, and me) and we came up with some great fixes. Don was great at helping us figure out the furniture layout, hanging photos, and overall feel. Nada helped us figure out the bathroom and kitchen situation (i.e. ok, we got the dishes and appliance in the kitchen, but what about food). Josh and I did the office and bedroom, and lots of unpacking. And all together, we got a place where everything fits! Whoopie!

We would like to thank IKEA, World Market Cost Plus, the Container Store, and Bed, Bath, & Beyond for all their products. We would like to send a big thanks to Don and Nada for all their help!

P.S. Tim Gunn always says, "make it work" in Project Runway. Love that phrase & you may here me say it often...





Photo 1: IKEA curtains. Don and Josh put it up, and I hemmed the length (using an iron and ruler).

Photo 2: Bedroom Closet. I put in a small shoe rack, Rubbermaid drawers (below which you can't see), and sweater slots.

Photo 3: Kitchen Stand. We had the table from our Eugene home, but this time we added baskets for supplies and a little basket drawer system for even more supplies.

Photo 4: Dishes. We used an old bookcase to store our dishes so we could use the kitchen cabinets for food storage.

Photo 5: Coat Closet. More shelves were created by putting a piece of wood on top of two little baskets.

Photo 6: Kitchen Sink. A neat discovery by Nada, a little stand to go over the sink for soaps and other storage. I added a faucet too that does circular spraying and different spray types (rather than just one flow downward).

And that's not all of it! I'll take a video of our home and post once I feel it's totally presentable (almost there!)

Disconnected

Josh and I are experiencing technical difficulties. We will up and running soon. [Troubles with Comcast & wiring.] I'll be sure to update you as soon as we have a fix in place.

P.S. My previous post was via my iPhone and may have some formatting issues.

P.P.S. No Internet, what do do? Ugh!

Play-By-Play

Reader Warning: Some of the below times are approximate and contain mundane, boring details that you may never want to know.

Minute-to-Minute Log on the Big Move

7:30am: Wake-up time. Roll out of the air-mattress and get going.

8:45am: One last breakfast at Full City for a pumpkin muffin and chai tea latte. Not to mention a pumpkin cookie for the road later on.

8:30am: Continue packing up all the remaining stuff small (and let me tell you it was all small stuff and we sweated the small stuff - that is a reference to a book for those of you who didn't catch on).

9:05am: Finish loading my car.

9:30am: I leave our Shasta home and heads for the open road with two quick stops at Bank of America and Cheverin.

10:00am: Josh heads to Comcast to drop off our cable stuff. (Meanwhile, I'm on the 5).

11:00am: Saint Vincent de Paul's comes to our Shasta home to pick-up items we decided to donate instead of bring with us.

11:15am: Josh finishes packing random, small stuff. (Meanwhile, I'm is on the 5).

11:55am: I reach Portland and decide it's the best opportunity for lunch. I drive indecisively when I happen upon a pizza by the slice joint called Sparky's. Actually, I was quite impressed. They even had a $3.75 lunch special. Score. And the best part is (drumroll please), Active Culture Frozen Yogurt was right next door. I don't mind if I do. Yum.

12:30pm: Josh finally puts the last items into his jam-packed car and heads out leaving our Shasta home for good.

12:45pm: Josh stops at the Eugene Post Office to mail our Shasta keys. (Meanwhile, I'm on the 5).
12:55pm: Josh is on the 5 and calls me.

1:15pm: I get a call from the movers. The weight is over the estimate.

1:20pm: I call Josh to relay the information.

1:30pm-3:00pm: Josh is on-and-off the phone with the movers and the truck driver.

1:45pm: I reach Olympia, the Evergreen State capital (that there is little factoid secretly inserted for your educational purposes). I hit traffic.

2:30pm: I reach Tacoma. I hit more traffic.

2:45pm: I realize I'm not going to make it to the leasing office for the 3:30pm appointment and call to let them know.

3:30pm: I reach the outskirts of Seattle. And more traffic.

3:35pm: My GPS decides to go on roads that don't exist. I find myself going in circles, and end up going directly through downtown Seattle where I find more traffic. (Meanwhile, Josh is on the 5 and hitting traffic).

3:57pm: I reach the leasing office with minutes to spare until the 4pm signing (yes, that call at 2:45pm was successful).

4:15pm: The leasing lady was late, but arrived and I signed my life away on to papers committing us for a year in West Queen Anne.

4:30pm: I open the door to our new home. (Meantime, Josh is on the 5 in heavy traffic and still dealing with movers and such on the phone).

4:45pm: I venture out for the first time to find a bank so we can pay the movers.

6:00pm: Josh calls and says the moving truck is not going to arrive until 9pm (there are lots of other complications which is too long, boring to retell - plus, I am trying to forget).

6:30pm: Josh and I decide that I should pick-up food so we can shove it in before the movers arrive. I then venture out again to Thaiku in Ballard (the tried and trusty Thai food option).

7:45pm: Josh reaches Seattle outskirts.

7:48pm: Josh calls and is lost in downtown Seattle.

7:48-8:15pm: I talk Josh through the city using my iPhone's speaker function and Map app.

8:16pm: Josh arrives to our new home. He comes inside and vents about the movers (and makes some calls). We also shovel the food in quickly.

9:03pm: The movers arrive. They hustle to get everything in the home (the guy did actually run at times - the moved much faster this time and on the pick-up).

11:02pm: The movers are finally done and on their merry way. Josh and I put the sheets on the bed and crash.

That concludes our big moving day. Whewee!

Power Pack

Today was power pack day. As I type, the movers are taking our boxes into the truck. We were supposed to get 24 hours notice on when the movers would arrive. This morning the phone ringers and the truck is arriving this very afternoon. Some 24 hours. Must. Pack. Fast. Go, go, go. Now, it's 7:30pm and We're pooped. Almost done though.

If all goes according to plan, the movers will be dropping our stuff off tomorrow evening. The big drive up is tomorrow morning. Then it's Hello Seattle.

Useless and Weird

I was going though the "fun stuff" folder of my email last night and realized I have a lot of weird emails full of did you knows, poems, jokes, surveys, etc. I like to look at these occasionally because they make me laugh. I thought I'd share one of them with you today. Who knows how accurate these are - I don't know the source; just who sent it to me.

Useless and weird facts to add to your wealth of knowledge....

• Butterflies taste with their feet.


• A duck's quack doesn't echo, and no one knows why.


• In 10 minutes, a hurricane releases more energy than all the world's nuclear weapons combined.


• On average, 100 people choke to death on ballpoint pens every year.


• On average people fear spiders more than they do death.


• Ninety percent of New York City cabbies are recently arrived immigrants.


• Thirty-five percent of the people who use personal ads for dating are already married.


• Elephants are the only animals that can't jump.


• Only one person in two billion will live to be 116 or older.


• It's possible to lead a cow upstairs...but not downstairs.


• Women blink nearly twice as much as men.


• The Main Library at Indiana University sinks over an inch every year because when it was built, engineers failed to take into account the weight of all the books that would occupy the building.


• A snail can sleep for three years.


• No word in the English language rhymes with MONTH.


• Average life span of a major league baseball: 7 pitches.


• Our eyes are always the same size from birth, but our nose and ears never stop growing.


• The electric chair was invented by a dentist.


• All polar bears are left handed.


• In ancient Egypt, priests plucked EVERY hair from their bodies, including their eyebrows and eyelashes.


• An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain.


• TYPEWRITER is the longest word that can be made using the letters only on one row of the keyboard.


• "Go." is the shortest complete sentence in the English language.


• If Barbie were life-size, her measurements would be 39-23-33. She would stand seven feet, two inches tall.


• A crocodile cannot stick its tongue out.


• The cigarette lighter was invented before the match.


• Americans on average eat 18 acres of pizza every day.

To the Top

Before I hiked to the top of Spencer's Butte, I almost wimped out. I read a blog to find how to get there just in case my GPS didn't know where it was located. I did find out the location, but I also found out there were...rattle snacks, poison oak, dead trees, and car theft. Eck! I imagined myself bitten and itchy with a tree on top of me. I started to worry about this park. Should I actually go on this hike? But the blog also said, "If you live in Eugene and have never hiked the Butte..well, I'm sorry but I'm a little disgusted with you." Oh no, I'm disgusting someone! I can't do that. Plus I've heard others talk about this butte. I must find out.

My courage won and off I went. I had my trusty Teva sandals on - the same ones that took me all over Italy back in college days. Once I arrived, I felt reassured with seeing people and even a dad and younger son. A little kid can do this hike, so I should too. On that cue, I took a peek at the map and was ready to go.

The plan was to go the long way up and the shorter route back (see the green and red lines on the blogger's map). That'd didn't quite happen. I ended up taking the long way there, and the long way back. After I got to the top, I tried to find the short trail back with no luck. I asked a friend later the next day, and apparently you don't really do the short way back because it's too steep!

It was a pleasant hike. The final ascent was a bit scary with large rocks. Actually, I take that back, the rocks were scarier to walk down than up. I kept sliding on the way down (no falls though, no bruises either).  The weather was perfect. At the top, there was a cool breeze and beautiful, clear skies. I sat up there and watched the butterflies, took some photos (of course!), and just enjoyed nature.

As I was up there, I saw Oregon's beauty. I guess all that rain paid off. It's really quite breath taking here. The sea of trees and green, the mountains in the distance, the tweeting birds. I would definitely recommend this hike. And the lady blogger was right - I'd be ashamed not to have visited this place before I left!

Blood, Sweat, and Tears

Blood. Vampires. Entertainment. It's true, I find much entertainment on this topic lately. I'm definitely not a Twihard or anything; however, I do really enjoy the Twilight films and books. In fact, you may know from the news that the third book, Eclipse, was released as a movie last week and was breaking 4th of July weekend records. I'd been waiting for it to be released and saw it with some co-worker friends (the theater is in the center across from our store & we were all excited dorks). We even made plans and bought tickets days in advance. The insanity doesn't stop there. I'll admit it, I was the first person in the movie line. This wasn't intentional though, I swear. I was there early just to save seats for my friends since we all thought it'd be a long line and super crowded. I mean it was the first night it opened and everything (no, I didn't go to the opening Tuesday midnight showing...it was Wednesday). To top it off, behind me in line were two teenage girls wearing Edward shirts. Hmm, maybe I shouldn't be sharing this on my blog - you might get the wrong impression. Oh well, too late. Luckily, that was the extent of my dorkiness. In the end, I'm happy to report that it although it's not the best film, it was fun and entertaining.

Twilight isn't the only blood I watch. True Blood Season 2 came available on Netflix last week. I lined it up in the queue and now we're going through the season. It's bloody, and more adult than Twilight. I have to cover my eyes at parts when it gets too bloody-ish. This includes fast forwarding the intro because there are some flashes of pictures I can't stand (bla!). Still, it's a good show and more vampire fun.

Sweat. Yes, sweat. Sweaty just sitting writing this post. It's hot here this week. I know I've been complaining about rain, but I was really just hoping for something in between. Not straight to hot. It's been in the 90's the past few days. It's the worst trying to sleep when it's hot. My feet get so hot, I get squirmy and irritable. Is it too much to ask for some pleasant 70 degree weather? Sigh. I think next week. Working is good though because that means air conditioning! And frappuccinos! (I like to drink them at least, but making a bazillion can be hard work).

Tears. Tears of farewell to Eugene. I'm busy trying to search for a Seattle apartment. It's tough from afar. I'm driving up there with my mom Monday and taking a day and a half to look around (and perhaps get something settled...I hope, hope hope). I've really come to like Eugene and got the chance to make some good friends. Luckily Seattle and Eugene aren't too far away. And I'm sure Seattle will be a blast. I just want to get the move part of it over and done with. Man, I wish it were the end of August and this was all behind us. Patience. I need to find it.

Okay, those are my blood, sweat, and tears. I'll be sure to post again soon. I didn't know what pictures would go with this one...

This Time Last Year

Apparently this is the happenin' month - birthday, 100 posts celebration, and now today. Today marks my official one year in Eugene (that's 365 days). Looking back, I can say that it's been a great year. For one (and the best), I am so glad to be here with Josh. Plus the change has been good for me in so many ways too. I'm experiencing all sorts of new things since living here. To name a few, I've experienced life ...

• In a small town (one big on their college sports)


• Outside of California (born and raised Cali girl)


• Working at a non-desk job and on my feet (no computers all-day)


• Without Yumi Yogurt (<- that's my froyo)


• With green all around and rain (and wildlife in the front yard)


• With tons of coffee (not just SBux, but coffee life in the Pacific NW in general)


• Where you can get across the city in 20 minutes (or less)


• With some  wonderful new friends!

As for the flip side, there are a few things I will be glad to see return with a bigger city. These include...

• A bigger Mall (one that includes Nordstroms and an Apple store)


• More dining out options (starting to get tired of just the small choices here)


• An airport with more, and cheaper flights


• People that don't stop before turning right (or drive a bit faster)

On an ending note, let's recall a photo from my first day here...

100th Post

I just realized that my birthday post yesterday was my 100th post! Wow, thanks to all my readers to staying interested (at least, I think people are still somewhat interested since I get some visits yet).

To celebrate the 100th post, I'll give you a little factoid: Did you know I track traffic onto my post? I can't track exactly who, but I can see if it was visited each day and which state (or country) the visit came from. Yesterday there were 7 visits! After these 100 random posts, people are still visiting. Awesome!

Oh, and I realized I had a video for my birthday on my phone. Here's the link or watch it now...

A Miracle...Rice Saves the Day

The main definition of a miracle according to my computer's dictionary is, "a surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divine agency." Perhaps, with this definition, I should say this week's rice miracle wasn't really a miracle. There is explanation. However, the second definition listed is, "a highly improbable or extraordinary event, development, or accomplishment that brings very welcome consequences. " I like the very welcome consequences part, so I think it's okay to stick with the word miracle. Do I have you wondering what rice and miracle are doing in the same sentence yet? (BTW, I was going for The Onion type of post title with this one).

I'll leave you in suspense no longer. Rice saved Josh's iPhone this week. Josh dropped his iPhone in water earlier this week. I was at work and I got an email that his phone would might be "out of commission." I emailed back saying RICE! I had read an article awhile ago (I can't remember the source - probably some blog I follow) saying how rice will save a phone from water damage. Josh also remembered this trick from an article last week. We are geeks, okay. Anyway, he was at school and I was at work. Upon our return home, we investigated the phone. There was moisture in the lens and it definitely wasn't turning on.

We started to plan for what to do? Buy a new iPhone 4? Get an older phone? Hmm. Tough call and bad timing. We decided to hold off for the night and try this rice trick. Apparently, the rice is dry and draws out the moisture from the phone. So we submerged the phone in rice overnight and waited.

The next morning during my break I got a text message from Josh...his phone was alive! A miracle - one with an explanation (something scientific), but one with that brought welcome consequences.

Here's a photo of Josh using his phone just a week ago...

Two for Dad

My dad has two special days this month - his birthday and Father's Day. A double whammy on gift giving - he's the hardest guy when it comes to presents. Usually he buys something and gives it to you to return back to him on the special days (Birthday, Father's day, Christmas, etc). Either that, or he gives specific instructions on what to buy. For instance, a polo shirt, tan pants, or wine. Actually it's one of those three things that he tends to get - ha!

Lately, I've tried to venture away and do a little surprising lately. For his birthday he got the Smithsonian Rick Steves special edition (and a subscription). I thought this clever. I scored points too (at least it appears that way). I won't say what he's getting for Father Day since that is yet to come, but it's another surprise. I love my dad, he's so predictable; it's cute.

I love the below picture because it reminds me of playing catch with him after dinner on week days when I was a kid. The other picture was his 60th birthday in Chicago (oh, and my b-day two...their close together). [Oh and get it...2 days and 2 pictures.]

On the Job

You might be curious about my job these days. I was just checking out my calendar and realized I've been a barista for about 8 months now - shocking. I feel like I know the ropes pretty well now, although there is always room for growth (nobody's perfect I suppose - I keep try though!). Here's some random stuff about life as a barista:

Customers - We have a ton of regulars - no joke. I'm horrible with estimating numbers (i.e. don't ask me the population of Eugene), but it's gotta be something like 50 something regulars many that come everyday. Some of them get something as simple as a cup of coffee (or maybe a grande in a venti Pikes) to more complicated like a decaf venti vanilla soy with whip latte. Some get crazy amounts of shots or flavor, and some get straight up shots. I think my favorite is the grande breve, 3 sugar, with whip and chocolate drizzle mocha. We see lots of crazy drinks folks, but it sure makes it interesting. I actually love our regulars since you get to know them and it's fun to be like "hey so-and-so, want your such-and-such today?"

SBux 7 Dwarfs - Speaking of regulars, I was coming up with Starbucks dwarf alternative names. Doppio, Breve, Starry, Frappie. Still thinking of others. Maybe something with VIA or beans.

AM Stuff - The past few weeks I've been working more open shifts. Our store opens 5:30am on weekdays and 6am on weekends. This means we need to be there at 5am and 5:30am respectively. And that translates to a 4-something wake-up time. It's rough, but then you have the whole day to run errands, appointments, nap. Right now I'm tired because I opened, but I've already done the laundry and had froyo with a friend (work-friend haha). Not bad for a day's work, ehh?

Cheers - Some customer (not a regular) thought I looked like a character from Cheers. Apparently I have a striking resemblance and personality to Shelly. I really can't say since I didn't watch the series except for a few times as a kid and that was just passing through channels, so I don't recall any of it.

Team - Tuesday we had a team outing to Putters. Alright my Cali friends, get this, it's an indoor mini-golf place. Yes, inside. There are indoor tennis courts here too. It also doubles as a lazer tag place and restaurant. You might recall previous posts about lazer tag - this is that place. The whole team enjoyed some pizza, pepsi and mini golf. It was a good time (Sorry, I forgot about picture taking. Okay, I'll be honest, I felt funny asking people for photos - I hate that). Good times though. We have a few new people joining the team, so it was good to get to know them a bit more.

Signs - I'm still of the official store sign maker. I made a new one this week about how to use your VIA. I also made a hiring management sign. On the latter, I did the ultimate challenge: the Starbucks logo. I think I did pretty well except that our white marker paint pen was dry so it was in yellow.

The End. (But Starbuck's life continues).

P.S. You'll see photos of me on the job at my Flickr album. You'll also see some girls I've become friends with at work.

Like Mother, Like Daughter

This is a quick post to wish my mom a Happy Mother's Day!
I'm finding that I'm turning out more like my mom everyday. I'm happy though, because if it means having the same laugh (with a thhhuu sound sometimes), then I've got myself a pretty good deal. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to spend today with my mom, but I know she enjoyed some delicious turkey. Which, by the way, makes me jealous since the love of turkey is another thing we share in common).

And for those that like photos, here's a few Mother - Daughter shots:

A Bit Loco

Josh has been a bit stressed during this final (pun intended) stretch of law school. Graduation is just around the corner, but he has three finals and papers to write before the celebrations came begin. Being the nice person I am, I decided to give him some wish flowers (aka dandelions) while he was studying to brighten his day. I added a few extra flowers thinking his wishes were more likely to come true with a few more. He posed a bit for my camera, but ended up looking like he was going to eat the flowers. I think he's going a bit loca en la cabeza. Here's the shots: