dreams and such

"If Obama wants to show the world what a real maverick he is, he'd sell Alaska." Okay. I saw this written in black sharpie marker on the hood of a white car outside of my apartment building. I usually don't talk about politics (anymore) because it pisses me off, but I don't think it's a secret that I am a huge Barack Obama supporter. But he never claimed to be a maverick, that was John McCain. So what is this person talking about? Some people are just loony. And besides that, who WRITES on their CAR?!

Simon's owner contacted Keith and asked if we would like to keep him for good. I am so excited. We are of course keeping him and he is excited too. He likes all the attention he gets around here. 

Last night Keith and I went to Portland City Grill for mojitos. It's on the 30th floor of a building downtown and the view is gorgeous. Perfect views of Mt. Hood and Mt. St. Helens. It's so cool! We had beautiful weather yesterday. We ended up sitting there having a total of seven mojitos and getting pretty drunk. We decided to cab it home because I was wearing four inch heels and we were both drunk and lazy. While we were waiting for a cab, some losers sitting on a bench in front of Mary's (a strip club) yelled across the street at me, "Drop that zero and get with a hero!" I responded with a simple middle finger in the air. Then the guy yelled, "Don't walk away from me!" I started to yell an obscenity, but even in my drunken blur I decided that wasn't a very yogic thing to do so I refrained. Mojitos are good. Portland City Grill makes a great one, but The Prado in San Diego takes the cake. 

Keith is working at Soi Cowboy tonight, and I applied at a couple Gap stores, Old Navy and Lululemon online tonight. Hopefully something will come of that. If not, I still have my yoga. A little extra money to play with would be nice, though!

Keith and I went to the mall today so he could get a couple new shirts. In a move that only a wonderful boyfriend would make, he bought me two shirts. One is a cute summery white and yellow striped tee, and the other is a bit fancier, but can also be worn with jeans and flip flops. 

I am supposed to be going out with Terra tomorrow night to a bar right by my house called The Agency. Keith says it's packed with Chad and Julie's (his term for yuppy assholes), but I don't care. I like Terra and the bar is literally right next to my house. I can get drunk at home and walk there if I want and not have to spend a dime. I'm glad I just thought of that, I think that's what I'll do.

Simon is so quirky. He likes to lick the bathtub and one of his favorite things to do is go play in the hall. Sometimes he sits at the front door and quietly stares at it until one of us lets him out. He's weird! He also eats a lot. Keith said last night, "That fat ass's eating is getting out of control!" I told him not to say that because it could hurt Simon's feelings. Poor Simon! :) We are going to get him a spiked collar so he can be a badass. 

I am teaching two classes tomorrow. 

I am going to make green beans and corn for dinner. Some people would go, HUH?! Where's the MEAT?! As if a meal isn't a meal without a dead carcass! 

I had a dream last night that I was on a boat in a river that flipped and I did not like it. I was on the boat with a ton of people I knew, but I can't remember who. We ended up having to camp in the middle of the woods and there were a ton of mattresses on the ground and there was a tarp held up by poles over them. Talk about a nightmare... I also dreamed that I met Cora in Disney World and both of my aunts were there. Maybe this was part of the same dream? I have been wanting to go back to Disney, maybe this means something?

I have to go check on my laundry before it gets dark. I hate going in the basement at night, it freaks me out! 

xoxo,

t

?

The worst things happen to the best people. 

if i was a rich girl... lalalalalalalalalalalalala laaaaaa!

I can't help it. I love Death Cab For Cutie. I'm listening to them right now. Keith is not a fan, but he isn't here. And even if he was, he would deal with it because he is a nice boyfriend. They remind me of Southern California. I would so love to be there right now. Maybe one day...

Erica left this morning. I helped her carry her things to the max stop at 5 this morning, which is right outside my door practically. From there I had to go teach my class, and from there I came home and went straight back to bed until 11. 

I guess there's not much to report in this blog. I'm calling Erica right now to make sure she made it to Honolulu okay. She isn't answering but her phone didn't go straight to voicemail so I am going to assume that she is on the ground and safe. She has a pretty lengthy layover there until she goes to Hilo. She has 10 hours of traveling today. I am such a fan of traveling. Oh, the things I would do if I had lots of money. Since there isn't anything interesting going on right now, I'm going to tell you some things I might do. Realistically, of course. I wouldn't be like a millionaire, for example, just well-off. 

I would go to a Britney Spears concert. Does anyone really know how sad I was that I missed her when she was in Tacoma? I would take a road trip down the west coast and go all the way to San Diego. From there I would drive over to Arizona and go to Phoenix and Scottsdale and of course the Grand Canyon. Then I would go to New Mexico. I'm not sure why, but I think I would like it. I'm a totally free spirit trapped in a broke 23 year old's body! Then I would go over to Vegas and stay at The Palms, The Bellagio, Mandalay Bay or the Wynn (as opposed to Hooters Hotel & Casino where I have previously stayed). From there I would probably be sick of driving and fly home, so I guess I should have mentioned that I rented a cute little Volvo to take this trip. I would buy a condo in La Jolla and move there with Keith. I would open my own yoga studio there and of course buy plane tickets for my whole family to come visit me. I would go to massage therapy school and do that on the side. I would always have nicely manicured hands and pedicured toes. I would wax my eyebrows every other week rather than every other month. I would get spray on tans so I could have some color and not have to deal with harmful uvb rays! I would go through Jivamukti Yoga teacher training. I would visit India. I would drive to Los Angeles once a week (because I'd be living in San Diego) and teach yoga to inner city kids who have nothing. Wow, this is a fun list to make! I don't think I'm being totally unrealistic, either! I am smart enough to realize that this will most likely never be me, but I also realize that there are people in this world who could have these things if they wanted them. If I had money, I would not be one of those snotty women who only cares about collagen injections and tanning beds and her 3 pound dog. Don't get me wrong, I would do my fair share of shopping and primping, but there would definitely be a balance between taking care of myself and taking care of other people. Maybe some things on this list ARE attainable for me? I can see myself living in San Diego. I want it so bad, so I can totally see myself there. And I'm only 23 and have completed 20o hours of yoga teacher training (and want more, more, more!), so I can see myself having my own studio one day. Keith and I both love to travel so I can see us taking a trip down the coast. Okay, so here's my verdict. To some extent, I will have these things at some point in my life. Maybe I won't be able to buy my family plane tickets, but I could definitely live in San Diego and have my own studio. Those two things would make me happy. Not that I'm not already happy, but you know. I'm babbling. Is anyone even still reading this?

I just heard from Erica. She sounds happy and relaxed. She made it to Honolulu and even got her flight to Hilo bumped up so she doesn't have as long of a layover. Good for her! Maybe the bloody mary at pdx helped calm her nerves a bit?

Keith made a pizza and it was good. He bought the sauce and dough from Hot Lips Pizza. I picked the cheese off mine and he ate it. Grosses me out... he is such a cheese fanatic.

Jake and Babette will have a new little baby soon! I just talked to him and he said that if Babette's blood pressure doesn't go down by Tuesday they are thinking about inducing her. Too bad I will not get a chance to see the baby for a long time. There's always pictures and videos, I guess.

I was planning to make this a short blog, but then I started babbling about what I'd do if I had money and now it's really long. So I'm done! Thank you and good night.

xoxo,

t

the last night

So tonight is Erica's last night in Portland. So sad to see her go so soon... I feel like she just got here! Tomorrow she will be in Hawaii, it's so hard to believe! We relaxed all day and did a whole lot of nothing. We played some more Yahtzee and this time Keith joined in on the fun. I think he liked it.

Tonight I taught a class at Beaverton. It was my first class there. I was a little turned off at first because the Turbo Kick Box teacher right before me let her class go until 6:31. She should have ended it at like 6:27 since yoga was right behind TKB. But she didn't, whatever. Well then she stayed in class until 6:34 packing up and talking to people! So already my class gets started five minutes late. And I knew I had to end 3 minutes early because 24Dance was right behind my class. So basically my class was 50 minutes long, but that's ok. The students said they really liked it and I told them I was teaching it for the next three weeks. I called my boss tonight and left her a message letting her know that I'd be happy to take the class over full time, as the students told me there was not a regular teacher. Another thing I like about that gym is that the max goes right to it's front door. Perfect! I drove tonight because I didn't know that, but it's good information for next week. I did have a new student tonight who was very disruptive and I did not like it. She was talking to me and other students during class and even fell out of Warrior 2 and laughed obnxiously and then loudly announced that she had not eaten all day. Then after class she informed me that she was a psychic reader for a living. Okay...

Keith and I both had interviews with Netflix. Because of a scheduling conflict, unfortunately I did not get the job. Keith's interview was today so hopefully he will get it. He also has an interview at Soi Cowboy tomorrow (another bar). He really liked Netflix and hopes he can work at both places. That would be nice, but we wouldn't get to see each other all that much! I wish Netflix had worked out for me, but I am unwilling to give up my yoga to work in a call center, I don't care how good the pay is.

I have to teach early in the morning. So far I only have three classes this week. Eeek! I need some more. One came available for Sunday at Murray Scholls (my home location) but I missed it. Dang!

I'm going to go enjoy my last couple of hours with Erica before she goes to Hawaii!

xoxo,

t

PS- I had a soccer game the other night and it was much better. I am actually starting to like it!

a day at the saturday market

yahtzee

Erica and I played five games last night! Woohoo!! I love it.

namaste

I'm getting fancy with my blog now. I learned how to add pictures!

fun times with erica

Erica and I are having a great time! Our time is over half way up though! I can't believe it, it's gone by so fast. So far we have hiked to the top to Multnomah Falls, gone to Sauvie Island, walked through the Pearl District and Erica has taken two of my yoga classes. Oh yea, and we also went digging for treasures at Goodwill last night and I found a dresser for $9.99! We brought it upstairs all by our cute selves. But it wasn't easy. My room is so much cleaner now because there's a place for all the clothes to go! Last night I did five loads of laundry. Ugh! At least everything is clean now. What a nice feeling.

I'm teaching yoga at 11 this morning at Murray Scholls. Yesterday, I had 42 students there at 10:30, and the day before I had 5o at Hollywood. Class numbers here are huge! Apparently, students used to have to sign up for yoga so there couldn't be more than a certain number, but that obviously is not the case anymore. I didn't even have a place to put a mat down either day! I think I've decided I'm not going to use a mat anymore (when I teach). I rarely use it anyway while I'm teaching. I mostly walk around. And with classes that large, there isn't even space. After class yesterday, a guy came up to me and told me that he really enjoyed my classes and that there was a stark contrast between my youthful looks and my teaching experience. What a compliment! I loved it. Also, a woman talked to me for 25 minutes after class and told me that she has been so stressed out and yoga has been her saving grace. She said I mentioned some things in class that she felt really applied to her, and that was nice as well.

I got some really cute Nick & Nora slippers at Target yesterday for three dollars! I love a good bargain.

Today after class, Erica and I are going to go to the Saturday Market. Yes, I know it's Sunday but the market is technically called the Portland Saturday and Sunday Market. She'll love it. Then I don't know what exactly we'll do. I have a soccer game tonight at 7:15, and tomorrow I think we're going to Mount Saint Helens. The visitor center should be open this time so that will be nice. Tuesday we will go to the coast and that's Erica's last day here. I can't believe it! It's gone by so quickly. There are so many things I want to show her but there's not enough time! Keith's dad will be here next Monday so we'll get to do the show-you-around-Portland thing all over again! I love it.

So, I was an extra in The Free Box. It's a weekly webisode that some of Keith's friends do. My episode is called Deaf, Dumb and Blind. To check it out, go to www.thefreebox.tv. 

I forgot something that Erica and I did. We went to Saint Cupcake! It was so good, obviously. We each got one full sized vegan cupcake, and then a baby red velvet with cream cheese icing cupcake. Cupcakes are awesome. We have at least two cupcake places here that I've seen. We have Saint Cupcake and Cupcake Jones.

I think I'll go shower now.

xoxo,

t

quickie

I picked Erica up from the airport yesterday. We saw Dynamite, but she didn't get on the train. I was happy to be able to point her out to Erica. Welcome to Portland, there's Mz. Dynamite herself! We took a three hour nap when we got back to the apartment and then we went to the showing of Keith's film Winona at Kelly's Olympian. People loved it. They screamed louder for his film than for any of the others. It was perfect. I'm getting ready to go to a second interview at Netflix. I'm not so sure about this job because it sounds like it could really interfere with my yoga schedule, and yoga is half the reason I came to Portland. 

I have been thinking about cutting my hair short recently. I always do this. I love having short hair but growing it out is the worst. 

xoxo,

t

PS- Cakora and Leighzel leave for Disney tomorrow. They're going to have so much fun. Ahh...

what?

Kim Kardashian claims to be a size two. Bitch, please. Your left ass cheek is a size two. 

twilight

Twilight is a terrible movie. The dialogue sucks and so does the acting. When I first moved to Portland, I said to Keith's friend Jon, "That movie is so bad. But, I guess it is made for 12 year olds so whatever." Jon replied, "I think they should give 12 year olds more credit." Yea, it's bad. Which is why it's so confusing to me that I'm watching it for the second time in a week. The books are way better. And did you know that none of the movie was actually filmed in Forks? It was filmed entirely in Portland and it's surrounding areas like Clackamas, Gresham and Multnomah Falls. In fact, near the beginning you can see a building that says Gresham on the side. 

It's not even 10 a.m. yet and I've already done 3 loads of laundry and some straightening up. Yay! Erica will be here in 25 hours, but who's counting?

been awhile

Today was beautiful. 80 degrees and not a cloud in the sky! Keith and I went to Keller Fountain to soak up some sun and Terra met us there with her adorable little 5 year old boy, Ethan. I got burnt so I just had to go buy some aloe!

Erica will be here Wednesday morning. I'm very much looking forward to it.

I have a phone interview tomorrow afternoon with Netflix. It's at 2:30. Please send some positive energy my way!

I took a spinning class tonight. Haven't done one of those in about a year, but it was very good. I think I will try to fit it into my schedule once a week from here on out.

I've gotten back in to watching Desperate Housewives again. I have season one on DVD and I am rewatching it, probably for the eleventh or so time. I enjoy watching TV series on DVD, and that's about the only way I enjoy watching them. I'm not much on television. I could definitely live without it.

Keith's dad is coming to Portland May 4-9. Should be fun, he's never been here before! Luckily there are plenty of fun things to do here that are free.

If you are easily grossed out, stop reading right here. Consider yourself warned. I am so excited because I started Dr. Natura's colon cleanse yesterday. Why am I excited, you ask? Because! Do you have any idea how much GUNK is stuck in YOUR intestines? Do you?! Well, I do and I want it out. I encourage you to check out www.drnatura.com for more information. Being the health nut that I am, this excites me to no end. 

Keith and I have two futons for sale on Craigslist and haven't gotten a single bite. He put his police light bar from the Winona movie on there and it sold the very next day! Who would have thought? Speaking of Winona, please go to www.youtube.com and search 'Winona trailer'. Keith just put it on there today. The movie is showing this Wednesday night downtown and I can not wait! I hope that it is well-received, and I am so excited that Erica will be here to see it. 

I have started letting my hair dry naturally and Keith really likes it, and I'm kind of fond of it myself. It's wavy and pretty. Not to mention, very low-may. I like that.

Hanging out with little Ethan today made me miss my nephews even more than usual. Sometimes I wonder 'Am I crazy to have left them?' They are so cute! I am like that crazy mom that always is pulling out pictures. I brag on them all the time. I miss their sweet faces and I love to hear their tiny voices on the phone! 

This was supposed to be a short entry. So much for that. I'm off to drink my kleri-tea and hit the sack. Wondering what that is? Google it :)

xoxo,

t

PS- I have a soccer game tomorrow night. I'll need positive energy sent my way for that, as well!

pirates and such

Last night at Rogue, we got to talking about pirates and Bigfoot. I had no idea until recently that pirates were real. I thought they were these mythical creatures like unicorns or something that were only real in movies. I am now fascinated by pirates. Apparently this is not a good group of people. I asked if they were pants that were cut off at the knees with jagged edges, and big white puffy shirts and eye patches and those funny shaped hats and Ryan said they did not. Another guy said, "If I were a pirate, I would insist on an eyepatch." Maybe some of them do because they really did lose an eye? Or maybe some of them do it just because they want to? Maybe it's some sort of status symbol in the pirate world? Basically from what people were telling me last night, a modern day pirate is just a professional hijacker (kind of). Why did we never hear of them until recently? This is some crazy stuff. Ryan also said that women will go to the harbors in South America hoping to marry a pirate because they are known for being some of the richest people in the world. But who would want to be married to a pirate? Don't they kill people? Eww!

So put this in your pipe and smoke it... Ryan believes in Bigfoot and sasquatches. A lot of people do out here. He said is most visited website is www.bfro.net and it's where you can go to get the lowdown on these creatures and all of their latest sightings. Of course, I had to come home and check this out and I saw that there have been recent sightings in Clackamas County and Multnomah County. HELLO! We live in Multnomah County! It's an interesting sight, I suggest you check it out if you have nothing better to do. Also, Ryan was talking about the sounds sasquatches make and you can google "Sasquatch sounds" and hear it for yourself. Ramber (remember, Ryan and Amber) likes to go camping (some of you already know how I feel about this!) and Ryan said he saw Saquatch tracks on Mount Hood. They also invited us to go with them this summer. I MIGHT give it a shot, only because I am trying to have a totally open mind in my new life and try things that take me out of my comfort zone. Ramber told me that camping out here is different because there are no bugs and no humidity, but I am still worried about getting devoured by a bear. Wildlife out here is no joke, especially with sasquatches and whatnot running around! Oh, and there are no bathrooms where they go camping either. They go on Mount Hood, and basically if you poo you have to bag it up and carry it around with you! Sometimes when I go on vacations and I am away from home, I can't poo anyway, so I think I will be good in that department. But I just don't know, I will have to think more about this.

While I'm talking about Ramber, this reminds me of Cakora! Cakora is a sanskrit word for some type of bird, I forget which, but I learned it in Fort Lauderdale. It is pronounced "chuckora" and it immediately reminded me of my favorite couple Chuck and Cora. So of course I had to call Cora and tell her about their new nickname AND it's sanskrit meaning! Cora, I know you read this and I think you should start calling Leigh and Hazel "Leighzel". I like it! 

Keith has to work this morning. I think I might go find a yoga class to take today. And I also think this blog has come to and end. Have a great day!

xoxo,

t

PS- Do you believe in Bigfoot? Email me and let me know, I am highly curious. tami.hurley@yahoo.com 

another good day

Today was great. I taught a class at Tualatin this morning and Amber came. I had 25 students, not bad for Easter morning! I had a few first timers, and I got several 'thank yous' after class. I love those. After class Amber and I did some cardio and then went to the Opposable Thumb for bagels and coffee, and then to Saint Cupcake! We split a vegan vanilla cupcake with chocolate icing and we got a cupcake for Ryan and a cupcake for Keith. I got Keith a baby one because I thought it was really cute. I'm a sucker for cute things! After that I did some cleaning, then Amber came back over and we made hummus. It was so easy, I am going to buy a food processor so I can start making it on my own! And after that we all went to Rogue for beers to celebrate Amber's friend Skylar's birthday. I didn't feel like drinking, so I didn't. Now Keith is watching Casino Royale and I am blogging. 

It rained all day. World Cup closed two hours early so Keith got kicked out and had to walk home in a torrential downpour. I don't like the rain because I really don't like to get wet. 

I just looked at some pictures of my nephews that were taken recently and I can't believe how much I miss them. I will continue to send them cards and letters so they will be sure to remember me. I know Hunter will because he is older, but I worry about the little ones forgetting about me, it makes me sad. They are all such sweet little boys and hold a very special place in my heart.

Erica will be here in 9 days. Have I written a single blog yet that doesn't have her name in it?

I miss my mom. But I am happy in Oregon. BUT! I do miss my mom. I love you, mom! You are the cutest and sweetest and prettiest mother in the world. Don't you miss hearing me say that? :)

Most of the apartment, especially the bathroom, is very clean right now. The bedroom on the other hand is a total wreck. Stresses me out!

My lower back hurts, on the left side. I don't know why. 

I picked up three more yoga classes tonight. Two Sundays in August and one Sunday two weeks from now. I'm excited because Erica can come to that one. Maybe Keith will come too.

Tonight at Rogue, someone in our group was picking the Top 4 Worst Bands Ever. As he was picking them, a very drunk Ryan stuck his hand in the air and said, "I'd like to nominate Candlebox." Ha! The guy ended up picking Weezer, Bush, Nirvana and Sublime. Pinkerton and the blue album were fantastic, Bush just plain sucks, Nirvana is great and Sublime is definitely perfect summer music. I used to absolutely love Sublime! The album with Garden Grove on it (I think it's self titled) was my favorite. It also had that lame mainstream "What I Got" song on it, but the other songs make up for it. Oh yes, and 40 oz to Freedom was great too! Ryan disagreed with three of his four picks, and made a bet that he was from the midwest. He then said that he was from Ohio. Haha! His name was Anthony. He is a friend of Amber's and he had me laughing the whole time we were there. Super funny guy. Ryan is hysterical as well. And so is Amber. In fact, tonight we decided that Ryan and Amber will now be referred to as "Ramber" and Keith and I will be called "Teeth". 

The hummus that Amber and I made is so good! Tonight Keith said, "You and Amber are bitches for each other already."

Sometimes Keith sleeps like a mummy with his arms crossed. Sarah does this too. It always makes me laugh when I see it.

I intended to make this blog short. So much for that. I'm going to go canoodle with Keith on the couch now. Good night!

xoxo,

t

good yesterday

Yesterday was a good day! I taught in the morning and had 16 students. Not a bad number for 5:45 in the morning! One of my regular students told me that she really loved my class and that since I permanently took that slot over, that more people have started to come. There was about a month where they had a bunch of subs in that spot and she said one morning there were only 3 students! I have had as many as 25. I'm enjoying getting to know the students. I try to make the class a personal experience for them. I love love love my job. 

I had to park about 20 minutes from the apartment due to street cleaning in almost all of Northwest, and once I got home I went back to sleep and slept until 1:15. Holy crap. Then we went to Biscuits where I had sweet potato pancakes (of course) and some coffee. I love Biscuits and I will officially be taking everyone who comes to visit there. Then Keith and I went to Mt. St. Helens. We got there after the visitor center was closed, but we walked around and it was so beautiful. Silver Lake is a lake that was created after the eruption in 1980 and it's like a mirror! The water was so undisturbed and still. There was so much life all over the place. Fish, birds, plants, lilipads everywhere! It was so cool! And you could see the reflection of the clouds so perfectly in the water. I took pictures, but am still having difficulties with my memory card. I'll try to get them up soon. When Erica gets here (in 11 days!) we will go back when the visitor center is open. I can't wait! I love volcanoes and other natural disasters. I find them fascinating.

We went to Amber's bar when we got home but she wasn't working. It reminded me of a bar in Myrtle Beach. The waitress had the biggest hair I'd ever seen and people were drinking beer from cans and listening to Poison and Bon Jovi. From there we went to Chopsticks, which was awesome because they have karaoke every night and Drew and some other Freebox people were there. We stayed until about 1 and then came home to Skype with Adam. 

Keith and I might be going to Denver in June to see Devotchka and David Byrne (of the Talking Heads). They are also going to be in Berkeley, but the tickets were for some reason twice as much and hotels there were expensive. I went on Priceline.com and found a killer deal on a flight and hotel package to Denver plus the tickets there are much cheaper. So it's kind of an open trip, and anyone can come. Adam is probably going to go and I think Keith is going to invite his dad. Pete and Jarrod might go too, I don't know. I might be the only girl but that's ok. Adam said they had to have their man time and I am totally vetoing that. The deal was that the boys were going to do a guys trip this fall to celebrate Keith and Jarrod turning 30. June is not the fall, therefore this is not the man trip, and me and my vagina will both me in attendance. 

I'm eating fruit right now. I want to feel healthy. I am going to stop drinking for a while. Too much beer makes me feel gross and now I feel the need to detox. I am going to hop in the shower as soon as I finish my fruit and probably meet Terra in the Pearl District for some shopping or coffee or something. 

I talked to Hunter and River on the phone last night. I miss their voices. I told Hunter he should ask his mom and dad if he could come visit me this summer and his cute little self said he already did! That would be so awesome, I can think of a million things we could do! The coast, St. Helens, Mt. Hood, Multnomah Falls, the fountain downtown, he would have so much fun! I wish all the boys could come, but the others are too little. 

I picked up another class Thursday night at Tualatin. I like teaching there. 

I think I will go get in the shower now. I feel pretty gross considering I drank last night, fell asleep wearing mascara and only slept for 4 or 5 hours. Yuck! Shower time.

xoxo,

t

PS- Alyssa's Easter picture is so cute!

yoga leggings

Today was a good day. I took a yoga class at noon and then did some cardio. Then I did two loads of laundry, went out shopping for a bit and came home and made dinner. Spicy black bean burgers and steak fries! Keith's only had a slice of American cheese on it, but mine had tomatoes, spinach and avocado. And I made them in the oven rather than in the microwave so I'm pretty sure that counts as actual cooking.

Keith is sitting on the toilet right now with his head over the trash can. No, he is not throwing up. He is cutting his hair! Yay!

Lululemon gives teachers a 15% discount, and Lucy gives teachers a 30% discount! That is so awesome! I want a pair of yoga leggings. Lucy has them for $48 and Lululemon has them for $58. Lucy is cheaper and I get a bigger discount there. So you can probably figure out which pair I want. That's right, the Lululemon ones! I can't help it, they just feel better and make me look skinnier than the ones at Lucy. I didn't buy either pair though. I miss shopping!

I have to teach in the morning, which means I should probably go to bed soon. I don't know why I even bother trying to go to bed early though, I will come home and go back to bed whether I get 4 hours of sleep or 8. 5:00 is just a terrible time to wake up! But I love this class so much. If I was given the opportunity to trade it for another class, I don't think I would. I've only taught it a handful of times, but I have a decent number of regulars and they are awesome.

I am counting down the days until Erica gets here. I wish she was moving here instead of Hawaii! Maybe I can talk her into moving here once she is done with Hawaii. This place is pretty earthy and wonderful and she loves me a lot so I think I can talk her into it ;)

The Sasquatch Festival is in like a month and a half! I can't wait to see Nine Inch Nails and all four original members of Jane's Addiction on the same freaking day!! It's going to be all kinds of amazing. Oh yea, and TV on the Radio is going to be there that day too!! So exciting. 

Keith and I watched an indy film tonight called The Puffy Chair. It was good and I would suggest that you see it. I think it is available on Netflix, but I am not sure. 

Something really funny just happened. I heard a crashing sound coming from the bathroom, so I asked what it was. Keith replies, "You're flatter thing." MY FLAT IRON?! NO! I ran back there, as if my speed would somehow reverse what just happened, and Keith informed me that it was okay and that it was cushioned. Well, it didn't sound cushioned, but it did appear to be okay. Keith was still sitting on the toilet this whole time with the buzzer in his hand when all of a sudden it died. He wasn't totally done, there were still a few spots that needed to be hit again. The look he gave me was a look I would imagine you would get if you told a 6 year old child that their new puppy was hit and killed by a car. I couldn't help but laugh! Thank God Keith is Keith and didn't yell at me because I could not stop laughing. He tried to restart it a couple times, and after hitting it twice it came back on and he is finished with his haircut. Oh, good times.

I'm going to go make some hot tea! 

xoxo,

t

clouds

So I blog a lot. Sometimes I just can't help myself. 

I just added a new picture. It was taken in Idaho, not too far from the Oregon state line. If I had to say one good thing about Idaho, it would be that the clouds were absolutely breathtakingly beautiful. I have never seen anything like it, and a picture can't do it justice. With that being said, I have never smelled anything as foul as the things I smelled in Idaho, either. Just sayin'...

Hey Erica, you need a blog. 

job hunting

So I have decided to bite the bullet and look for office admin jobs to compensate my yoga income. Eventually, I will be able to live solely off the money I make teaching yoga, but right now is not the time. I'e been looking on Craigslist and I have emailed my resume to 15-20 companies I would guess. Tonight while I was looking, I found several ads that required a college education, and under compensation it said $11/hr. Really? Are you kidding me? I made that much money working in a pizza restaurant! People do not want to go to college to work behind a desk and answer phones and file papers all day, nor do they want to work for $11 an hour. And if they do, they need to take themselves back to college and take a course in common sense. And that's all I have to say about that.

On the other hand, I saw an ad for an executive assistant to the president at Portland State University. They required a BA, but higher education was preferred. Compensation: $90,000-$110,000/yr. That's more like it.

xoxo,

t

indecisive

Ahh, what to do what to do? Amber and I were going to make hummus tonight and go get drinks at McMenaman's but she was so tired after work that she decided to stay in tonight. Here it is, almost 9:00 and I still have not showered and still have no plan. The apartment is a mess. I need to do a load of laundry and do the dishes. But I really would rather go out for a drink. But if I neglect these things that need to get done I will feel annoyed until I get them done. I don't know...

Today I went to the gym and walked two miles and then did a 15 minute amp'd up abs class! It was pretty good, I think I might be sore tomorrow. I haven't had much energy recently so I took it easy on the treadmill. I really wanted to do the elliptical but they were all taken. Dammit. Then I tried to take the max home, and while waiting for one to come I just kept walking to the next stop, and next thing I knew I was at home. The max pulled up to PGE Park as I was sticking my key in the door, so I wouldn't have gotten home any faster if I had waited for it.

Why am I so unmotivated to clean this apartment? Could it be because every time I get it nice and clean it gets dirty again within 24 hours? I think that might be it. 

I picked up quite a few more classes today. I have been using the swap board all wrong and that is why I have been unable to get classes. So far I have 14 classes this month and I am sure I will be able to get at least a couple more. I definitely could have had three or four more already if I had not been an idiot and known how to use the swap board!

I think I have decided that I am going to stay in tonight. I don't know if that means I will clean, but I am pretty sure I will be staying in.

Keith and I went grocery shopping today. I got lots of healthy stuff. If you are going to be lazy like I have been lately, you at least have to eat well.

I mailed my nephews an Easter card today. I drew three hearts inside of it and wrote each of their names in a heart. They are boys so they might think it's stupid but I don't care because I love them.

I think I'll go shower now.

xoxo,

t

did that guy just do a line?

Sushi was so good! I got the Buddha roll and it did not disappoint. I also got vegetable tempura. So good! And I had two pots of hot green tea. I love hot tea! I met Amber's friend Sara and her boyfriend and it was a good time. After dinner we all had to do wall sits with Ryan. Keith cracked first, then Sara, then Amber, then Ryan, and Bryan and I gave up at the same time. Never challenge a yoga teacher to wall sits. With mula bandha and pada bandha, I will always win! Sara and her boyfriend went home from there, and then Keith, Ryan, Amber and I went to Roots. Amber spilled a beer on Ryan. That was pretty much the highlight there. Oh and Amber and I have plans to make hummus together tomorrow. I can learn a lot from her because she cooks and gardens and cool things like that. After we make hummus we will go get drinks from McMenamin's because Keith and Ryan will both be working. I do not plan to get as drunk as I did last Wednesday night. Tonight Ryan said to me, "Do you even remember much from that night?" Well yes, in fact I do. I remember asking the cab driver to turn some music on, and then I remember vomiting. 

The main reason I wanted to write this blog is because as I was driving home tonight I saw a bum do a line of coke. I said, "Did that person just do a line? No, he couldn't have..." Oh yes he could have. And right out in the open like that! AND right in front of a homeless shelter designed to help people get off the drugs and alcohol and get off the street! I laughed about it, but when I really think about it, it isn't funny at all. There are so many homeless people here. We passed a shelter the other night while going to East Burn and I guess it was full because there were so many bums lined up outside sleeping, and some of them had dogs and the dogs just laid beside them as they slept. I think about how sometimes I get bummed because I can't go shopping for clothes right now, or travel the way I want to, and then I think about how whiny I am to be complaining about those things. I have a roof over my head, and I have a car (and a nice one at that), and I always have food to eat. So many people can not say that.

Keith and I stopped at McDonald's before we came home and I got fries and I feel gross now. Since I haven't had any energy, I haven't been to the gym since Friday. I did do yoga Saturday and play soccer, and Sunday I had a soccer game. Yesterday Keith and I walked all over town and today I taught a class. So I haven't been totally inactive, but I still feel like quite the fatass.

I have to teach in the morning and should be calling it a night very soon. Keith is watching The Departed and I think I will lay on the couch with him and fall asleep. It's easy for me to fall asleep while watching a movie for some reason. I have had the hardest time falling asleep on nights when I have to work in the morning. Ha! I say work like I have to go in for more than an hour. I love teaching yoga. 

Okay, off to do the nightly chores- brush the teeth, remove the makeup (I actually wore some tonight, I have barely been wearing it at all since I moved here!), get my bag together for class tomorrow and pick my outfit, blah blah blah.

xoxo,

t

PS- I am going to take Erica to this sushi place I went to tonight because they have a great happy hour! Keith and I had dinner and two things of sake for $15! Also, when Whitney comes here I will take her there, too. It's not Umi, but it's pretty damn good!

stuff i did today

I watched Cloverfield today. Can I have that 82 minutes of my life back please? It was TERRIBLE! It was a cross between War of the Worlds and The Blair Witch Project. I must admit that I like The Blair Witch Project when it came out, but I was definitely about 14 or so. And I liked War of the Worlds, too. It's nothing I could watch over and over, but I remember thinking the concept was pretty cool when I saw it. When Cloverfield came out, the hype was huge! I expected it to be good, something new and refreshing. But boy was I wrong! Like, hello! The documentary-style thing, that's already been done and it sucked pretty bad. "If this is the last thing you see, that means I died." Okay?? And the "something is attacking the city and we have no idea what it is" thing was done in War of the Worlds AND I am Legend. Dear Drew Goddard, you failed. Keith on the other hand thought it was a good movie, which definitely surprised me but oh well.

Today I woke up at 9 and finished watching Little Miss Sunshine. I had already seen it, but I found at it Fred Meyer last night for $7.99 and had to buy it. It's so cute! I fell asleep watching it last night so I just finished it this morning. I love that movie. "Can we get something to eat besides the goddamn fucking chicken?!" Oh, that grandpa! Kinda reminded me of my own! After that I started watching Cloverfield when I got a text from another instructor asking me to cover her class in Tualatin that started in an hour and fifteen minutes. I agreed, but I was feeling pretty lethargic and hadn't showered. So I jumped in the shower and ended up making it to the gym with 15 minutes to spare. Go me! I was worried about how class would go being that my energy was so low, but I listened to Donna Delory and things went pretty well I guess. Someone told me that I reminded her of her teacher in Las Vegas, someone else told me they felt very relaxed and really enjoyed my flow, and several people thanked me. I had a pretty packed house, the room isn't all that big and I had 24 students. After class I came home, finished watching that stupid movie, changed Simon's litter box (GROSS) and did two loads of laundry. Wow, I felt like I had been unproductive all day but writing it out like this makes me feel like I actually did something! I also went to the post office to pick up my retainer brite. Apparently I was not here when they delivered it the first time so it went back to the post office. Since I was still feeling lazy, I rode the max down to Pioneer Square and walked the 6 or so blocks to the post office. If I had my way I would have ridden the max to the front door but it doesn't go that far! Then I was going to walk home and stop in Banana Republic and see if I could find anything cheap and cute, but then I remembered I left two candles burning in the apartment. I normally wouldn't worry so much about that, but since we have Simon I got a little concerned that he might knock one of them over or something. So I came straight home (on the max, of course) and that was probably a good thing.

Keith is at the gym right now, and we are going to dinner with Ryan and Amber and another couple at 7. We are getting sushi. Keith doesn't like sushi (he says) but I think if he tries something vegetarian he will like it. He is allergic to shellfish, so he tends to stay away from seafood altogether for the most part. He will blow up like a balloon if he eats it! I don't plan on drinking tonight. I say that now, but if someone orders a bottle of wine I am highly inclined to change my mind. 

Our bathroom was a tragic mess when I first got here. Our bathtub is right next to a window, so we have to have two shower curtains because obviously one has to cover the window. Keith had a dark blue one and it didn't allow much light to come through, so at Fred Meyer last night I got a more sheer one and put it up. I also got a new shower curtain liner. The other one was so gross. I asked Keith if it was here when he moved in and he said he couldn't remember. That's all I needed to hear, so I changed it. It was really sunny and warm and beautiful today, so the light filled our bathroom very nicely! I also hung some pictures in there so it looks much nicer. I am enjoying turning this apartment into our home, but it is a lot of work, especially on such a tight budget. I feel like I am doing laundry every other day (because I am) and I really hate doing dishes and cleaning Simon's litter box, but it all must get done. Keith is really good and always helps when I ask, and sometimes even when I don't ask. He's not the most neat and tidy person, but I actually really like that. I would rather him be that way, because if the house is messy he really doesn't give a shit. So it's nice and I will never complain that he leaves wet towels on the ground or throws his dirty clothes on the floor rather than in the hamper. Who cares? Having experienced the other side of this, I can gladly say that I never mind picking up after Keith. Plus he is really cute and that helps. 

Erica will be here two weeks from tomorrow. I can't wait! I think I will take her to Mount Saint Helens. I have never been and neither has Keith and I'm pretty sure Erica hasn't been! I don't know exactly what we will do there, but I figure there is bound to be some sort of museum and I'd love to do that. I am fascinated by volcanoes. Keith and I went to the Portland City Grill for cocktails last night (more specifically, mojitos) and it's on the 30th floors, so we could see both Mout Hood and Mount Saint Helens. It's so cool because Saint Helens is decapitated. Apparently it used to be taller than Hood! The two mountains look very different. It's pretty cool. Also, Erica and I will be sure to have breakfast at Biscuits one morning (or afternoon depending on when we wake up), and I'm sure we will go to the coast one day. Whatever we do, I'm sure we'll have fun. I can't wait for her to be here. Have I said that already?

I hope my nephews know that I still love them very much and think of them all the time, every single day! I was drunk at Keith's bar last week and someone picked up my phone and I made them comment on how cute my nephews are (I have a picture of the three of them set as my background). But, I would do that even if I wasn't drunk because my nephews are the cutest little things ever. I'm so glad I spent my last day in Richmond with them. I will always remember that day. 

I think I'm going to go get ready for dinner now! 

xoxo,

t

hmm...

I wonder if anyone reads this besides my mom and Erica?

cristena on soccer

"As long as you were the cutest, you were the best."

soccer

Soccer was a little depressing. For some reason it has really gotten me down since I played my first game! It was very intimidating and overwhelming. I didn't know what I was doing, I didn't know where to stand or what any of the lingo meant. The team convinced me that I was not an embarrassment to them and so I decided to officially sign up, but I know that I sucked. It's not really super serious or anything, but it's really hard to have fun AND learn at the same time. My hope is that I will get the hang of it after playing a few games and start to enjoy it. But everytime it was my turn to go out onto the field my stomach knotted up. I felt like I was in high school gym class all over again. I wish I was more athletic. I remember when I was training for the 10K last year, I trained my ass off. I woke up at 6:30 every morning and ran 2.25 miles before work for three months and it still took me an hour and thirteen minutes. People who barely trained did the same or better than I did. And I'm looking at this Ikea coffee table I put together a couple weeks ago and thinking about how wobbly it is. I am so girly. I hate it. I suck at sports and I suck at putting things together. I'm so down right now! I'd like to get drunk tonight and that reminds me that I'm not even good at drinking. I had 5 or so glasses of red wine the other night and threw up when I got home. And the thing that sucks about me being girly is that I don't even do that well. I burp and have the same nail polish on as I did a month ago and I suck at applying makeup. I feel like a failure at life right now, and all because I was trying to have fun by playing soccer. I'm going to go cry now.

getting fancy

So as you may have just noticed, I have added two pictures to my blog. Let me explain them for you. The main one is of my driving across the country. I think I was in Wyoming. In fact, I'm quite sure of it. The smaller one a little lower down on the right is of me sitting in a tiny capsule waiting to be taken to the top of the Saint Louis Arch. As you can see by the look on my face, I was not so sure about it. Now my blog is much nicer to look at! :)

happy april

This weekend has been so nice! The weather has been fantastic- sunny and warm! I hope it is like this when Erica gets here. Not that she won't be seeing enough nice weather where she's going from here. I'm jealous! I already can't wait to go visit her in Hawaii. Keith and I want to take lots of vacations this year, but I know that won't happen. Maybe we can pick one and save the rest for later. We want to go to Salt Lake City, San Diego, San Francisco, and now I want to go to Hawaii. And also Seattle but that's only a three hour drive or a $30 train ride away. Erica is going to be here for a week and we will for sure want to do things that are cheap or free, so we will probably go spend a day at the coast, and maybe we will go hiking at Mount Hood or Multnomah Falls. I also found out that I can get her a 7 day guest pass for free at 24 Hour Fitness so we can work out every day. That will be fun because we used to do that in Richmond. Maybe I can pick up at class other than 5:45 am that week so she can come to it. I would never expect anyone, even a visiting east coaster, to come to that class because it is so outrageously early. I always come home and go back to bed after I teach it. 

I'm ready to be working more! I have two scheduled classes per week, and the first week I taught four and this week I taught three. I picked up a Friday evening class for Terra because she had a sick daughter. The class was in Vancouver, which is in Washington. I got on the 405 on Friday at 3:45, probably not a good idea because a lot of people who live in Vancouver drive to Portland for work. I assume that's why traffic was so bad. It's normally a 20 minute drive or so, which is basically like driving from Downtown Richmond to Short Pump. However, on this particular day it took me 50 effing minutes to get there. I had to call the gym and ask them to go into my class and tell them I was stuck in traffic and to please not leave because I would be there as soon as I could. Once I got in there, the music wasn't working. Becuase God forbid a gym have the same stereo system in each location, and please don't let it be simple! It's got to be complicated with a million switches and buttons that are not clearly labeled. I finally got the music working and we had a good class. I had a young guy come in during sun salutations (which would have made him 15 minutes or so late) and after he did like two he tried to leave. As I continued to cue the class through sun salutations I walked back there, touched his rolled up mat and pointed to the floor. He looked at me like he didn't know what I meant and I said STAY and then walked away. He did! He audibly struggled through every pose. He grunted and moaned, but at the end of class he asked me when I taught so he could come back. I love it when people ask that, but I also hate it because in every class I sub people always want to know what my normal schedule is, and I tell them and there is no way any of them are going to come to an early morning class. I really can't wait to pick up more classes and I hope it happens soon. I'm going to be in touch with Bally's and LA Fitness soon to see if they are looking for any instructors, and I think I will try some local studios, too. I like Yoga Shala a lot. I'd love to teach there. 

So since I am not teaching enough yet, I have sent my resume to probably ten different companies. A lot of them work office admin stuff, like receptionist, secretary, things like that. One of them was a "front desk agent" at a nice hotel in downtown Portland, whatever that means, and another was a leasing agent for an apartment complex in Vancouver that pays $11/hr. That one starts off full time and will be going down to three days a week. Number one, I don't really want to be a leasing agent (although most of what you do is collect rent and show people the model unit), and number two I don't want to work in Vancouver for several reasons. One being that it will complicate things at tax time because it's in Washington, two I don't want to drive that far and three... I can't remember what the third reason was but I know I had one. The perk of this job is that it would start out as full time. Great, that's money in my pocket right now. And when it goes down to part time I can have a more open schedule for yoga. I am keeping my fingers crossed that at least one of these companies is interested in my resume. I hate resumes because they are all fluff. In the words of Aunt Carolyn, "If you are a housewife, say you are a housewife. You are not a domestic engineer." Well said. I just wanted to put on there, I worked at SyCom Technologies, this is what I did. I am cute and smile a lot (at work anyway) and can do anything I'm asked (while still wearing my $6,480 smile). Basically, people love me. And I love people. There wasn't really a single job I saw that I really really wanted. All I want to do is teach yoga. I didn't spend all this time and money getting certified to teach yoga to sit behind a desk. I feel like I have been blessed with a gift and I should be out there sharing it with others. Not to say I think I'm awesome and all high and mighty, but I feel so comfortable teaching yoga, and I get such great feedback from almost all of the students I teach. It makes me feel good because it makes other people feel good and I love it. Working behind a desk does not make me feel good. I don't leave work thinking, "I made a difference today". I do however leave work thinking, "My bills are paid" and that's a great feeling as well.

Yesterday was so much fun. I woke up early and went to a class a vinyasa two class at Yoga Shala, where I attempted Scorpion for the first time. Woohoo! Then I came home and relaxed for a bit, then I went to Amber's. We went to two places looking for pink soccer socks. Actually we needed socks and shin guards and I needed some shoes, but the first place we went didn't have pink socks so we had to go. The pink socks are a deal breaker for me and I was going to refuse to join the team if I could not have them. So anyway, traffic on the 405 was once again horrendous and it took us forever to get to both places. The second place we went did have pink soccer socks and I was thrilled. I am not all set to play in my first game today. After we got our stuff we went to Taco Bell for food and then to Mel's to practice kicking Amber's new red ball around. I didn't do too bad and Amber did pretty good. I thought I had really strong legs, and then I realized that they are "strong for me" legs because when I went to kick the ball it didn't go very far. Amber and Mel were kicking the shit out of it. Pardon my lingo but I had to get my point across. I do think I am good at trapping the ball though, and I think I will do OKAY during today's game. I'm pretty sure I will have a game while Erica is here so she will get to witness my ridiculousness. The games only last an hour. They don't go over because games are played back to back. Plus they are indoors, which means when you kick the ball there is no grass to slow it down, therefore Mel said people play with 50% power. I took that to mean that I should play with 100% power because that's still not all that much. I guess I will get better, but kicking a soccer ball with the inside of your foot is just not a natural thing. If I kicked it with my toe, I could kick it much farther and harder but apparently if you do that you have no aim. Surprisingly enough, I do have aim when I use the inside of my foot, but only the right one. Mel said that was ok because none of the girls on the team can kick with their left foot no matter what they say, so that makes me feel more normal. Amber is going to call me in a little while and I am going to take the max to the Saturday Market (today is Sunday but it goes on all weekend, technically called the Portland Saturday and Sunday Market) and meet up with her, then she will drive us to the game and then bring me home. Or to get some celebratory beers if we win. I don't know about the beers though I kinda want to go to the gym later tonight and even one beer will ruin that idea. 

Whoever lives upstairs is so loud. I heard them all day yesterday, I heard them again at 4 this morning and it is now 10:40 am and I still hear them. I am going to put a note on their door asking them if they could please cool their jet because the noise really pisses me off. Don't worry, I'll be very yogic about it...

xoxo,

t

PS-17 days until Erica's arrival.