For the heck of it.

1. YOUR ROCK STAR NAME: (first pet & current street name)
Barney Brighton

3. YOUR "FLY Guy/Girl" NAME: (first initial of first name, first three letters of your middle name)
A Mal

4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite color, favorite animal)
Purple Manatee

5. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, city where you were born)
Malee Emporia

6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first name, first 2 letters of mom's maiden)
Curaube

7. SUPERHERO NAME: (2nd favorite color, favorite drink(alcoholic or non alcoholic) put "The" in front of your answer)
The Pink Margharita

8. NASCAR NAME: (the first name of your grandfathers)
Tommy Howard (similar to Ricky Bobby)

9. FUTURISTIC NAME: (the name of your favorite perfume/cologne and the name of your favorite kind of shoes)
Lavender Steve Madden

10.WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (mother & father's middle name )
Carol Wayne

No worries...things on the dating front are fine. Just sometimes i need to remind myself to stick to my guns about all things in life. :-) Oh...and my mom always tells me I'm too picky...when i start believing her...i have to remind myself that being picky isn't bad. On Thursday the boss of the whole lab division is coming to the lab to discuss the proposed salary adjustments. There are lots of rumors going around about how much, when, and who are getting these adjustments, and now he's coming to put an end to the rumors. So this could potentially be a very good discussion, or a very bad discussion. Best case scenario, it's the 30% they promised us and we're getting it before the end of the year. Worst case scenario, we aren't getting any raise at all. So be crossing your fingers for me!

Today i would like to say...that i deserve the very best. I deserve nothing less than what i want. I am smart, and i work hard for all the things i get. I may be picky, but i have earned the right to be so. I am not demanding, I am not unreasonable. I am not above compromise, but I will not give in on the things that are important. And if that makes me an unbending, cold-hearted bitch...then so be it. That is all.

Today Columbo and I went down to Bluffton for the Weiner Dog Races at their annual Street Fair. Well....Columbo took 2nd place!! He was so fast!!! He would have taken 1st place, but the other dog he was racing against, their person threw a ball down the lane (to get the dog to run) and it distracted Columbo. He was in the lead until he saw the ball, and then he kinda stuttered a little. But that's okay! 2nd place is still great. We got a keychain and a ribbon. Columbo had a ball! He loved it. He was really nervous at first, but once he got done with his first race he was all pumped up and excited. Tonight I'm going to see The Lake House with Sarah at the dollar theater. Hopefully it's good. I like Sandra Bullock.

I haven't been sleeping well i don't think. When my alarm went off at 6:30 to remind me it's time to go running, i woke up in a very odd state. When i opened my eyes, i was suddenly scared, cold and felt incredibly alone. It dawned on me that I haven't routinely slept in the same bed with someone in 2 years. That's when my bed felt remarkably large. It's amazing how that happens. I would like to believe these feelings were sparked by some sort of bad dream. Being as I'm notorious for bad dreams, i think that's a pretty good assumption. It probably didn't help that i read a scary book last night. I gotta cut that out!

Gotta get back to work. Thank God it's Friday.

Back from work, and i am now an official nerd. In fact...i should get the Nerd of the Week award. I wear a lab coat at work (duh..i'm a chemist). I have three pockets, two around my hips and one up on my chest. In the lower pockets I carry my fine permanent marker, my medium permanent marker, my spatula, and my evidence keys. In my breast pocket I carry a pen. The pocket by the way is on the inside of the coat. I decide to stop sampling evidence and put all my stuff away. Including my writing tools in their appropriate pockets. I go wash dishes in the sink, and 20 minutes later I walk to my desk. As i look down, I notice a HUGE ink stain on my lab coat. Yeah...me and my smartness, I forgot to put the cap back on my pen when i put it in my pocket. It's a good thing i get a new lab coat on Mondays! So now i need a pocket protector i think.

I am in fact still alive. Nothing really exciting has been going on this week. Mostly just trying to feel better after being sick last week. I went bowling with Dan on Tuesday. I beat him 100 to 76. Yes...pathetic i know...but hey...i'm a scientist...not a pro bowler. So i've been thinking about my future career goals. In fact this seemed to be the theme of the week. So working for the DEA has been something i want to do; however, i'm not really excited about the location of any of the labs. There are only two that i would consider. Dallas, TX and possibly Chicago, IL. The only time i ever visited Chicago, i wasn't overly impressed. I've been told though that I'm not giving Chicago a fair shake. I went in January, and it was windy, cold and miserable. But i haven't really been back, nor have I spent any kind of time there. So perhaps I'll give Chicago another chance. Anyway...this thinking has made me wonder if the DEA is really the place for me. Here is a list of lab choices for me:

Largo, MD
NYC, NY
Suburb of DC, VA
Miami, FL
Dallas, TX
Vista, CA
San Francisco, CA

If i try to work for the FBI, i'll be in Quanitco, VA. Honestly, I don't particularly want to live in DC. Of all the places listed above (minus the two i said i would consider) DC would be 3rd on the list. If i'm not mistaken though, the Army has a lab in Atlanta. Atlanta i could totally do.

The point of this blog, is to realize a little contradiction with what i want from my career vs. what kind of environment i want to live in. So now the important question becomes, which is more important. A job with the Federal government or living in a city I would like.

Any suggestions from people who may be (or have been) in similar situations?

I have not fully recovered from the bird flu, so i stayed home from work today. However...i still had to run down there at 7:30 this morning to get some evidence out of my locker b/c the trooper was coming to pick it up today b/c the case was going to court. Blah. Thank god only two people were there, b/c i looked like shit. No shower, glasses, sweatshirt, and hair in a pony tail. And let's not forget the red nose and incessant sniffling. It's torture to allow people to see me like that, but i just couldn't bring myself to shower just to be at work for 5 minutes.

Also, i've been thinking about getting my hair cut. Part of me wants to cut it really short. But i'm a little scared...i'll keep you updated on the hair cut search.

Dan update: Things are going really well. Nothing too exciting to report. We've both been really busy, so I haven't got to see him quite as much as I'd like. However...once a week is good for me.

My most recent reading was The Devil Wears Prada. Many of you may have seen the movie, and I have to say the book is quite different.

Perks of the book: Andy seems more realistic. She's very passive aggressive, and a foul mouth much like the average 23 year old. She doesn't sleep with Christian. The book also made me feel bad about my Gap clothes and Fossil watch. So i could really sympathize with Andy.

Perks of the movie: Miranda has some great one liners, and i'm your typical girl so i like the fact that at the end of the movie you believe that Andy and Alex will work things out. Also, Miranda has one redeeming moment when she is makeupless and upset over her husband leaving her. Yeah...that doesn't happen in the book.

I'd say that I like the book and the movie for totally different reasons. Up next A Million Little Pieces.

Ugh! Allergies: you are my bane! Oh Friday I some how contracted the bird flu and have felt crappy ever since. Dianna came up yesterday morning, and we went shopping yesterday. Good fun! Then we were going to go to a country western bar for some line dancing. I ditch my heels in favor of boots, and my cute shirt for a western like tank top. And let's not forget the cowboy hat. So we go to the bar the Rock N' Horse, only to discover it's this shady looking bar with lots of old people. And then there's the drunk screaming on the landing, and it's only 11:00. So we decide to hit the Fort Wayne staple of Piere's. Dancing and a little drinking ensued and a good time was had by all. Today dianna and I had lunch at biaggi's, and we had the weirdest waiter ever. As I mentioned earlier, I'm having some allergy problems. Therefore, on occasion I need to clear my throat of all the phlegm that has accumulated in my throat. The waiter was at our table when I cleared my throat and he stares right at me and says "Was that for me?". I said "uh...no?" And he explained that sometimes people clear their throats to get his attention. Well...even if that was the case...isn't that a little rude of him to point it out to me? Then he goes on to tell us that when people snap at him, he just totally ignores them, and if they wave (to get his attention) he just waves back and goes back to doing what ever it was he was doing. Now...am I wrong in saying YOU'RE A WAITER!! It is your job to serve those who are at your table. While I do believe throat clearing and snapping are rude, it is still your job to provide those people with whatever they want. And this is biaggi's, not McDonald's. So get off your high horse and do some damn work. Needless to say, Dianna and I did not take to him very well at all. Some people amaze me in their apparent inability to completely miss the appropriateness of the moment.

PS. last night i cut up Brett's Triangle t-shirt, and I burned the poem he wrote me. It was incredibly cathartic, but not quite as much as the day he text messaged me, and I realized that i had no feelings left. Go me! For those curious, it has been almost 2 years since we officially broke up, and about a year and 9 months since i saw him last. The healing took a long time, but eventually it happened, and that's what matters.

I'm back from Cali, and surprisingly awake. I thought for sure this morning would be hell after being on Pacific time for almost a week. But I switched back to Eastern amazingly quick! So a recap of my vacation.

Thursday: Flew to Cali and landed around lunch time. We had lunch, and then relaxed at her place until we went out to dinner with Amanda and Mark. Good beer and company, so overall a good night.

Friday: Vacaville outlet mall shopping and then a stop at the Roseville Mall. I bought five sweaters and a pair of couderoys from the Gap, a Fossil watch, and two pairs of Steve Madden shoes...all for $150. I also tried on the most amazing bra!! The Secret Embrace bra at Victoria's Secret. Amazing! We were going to go to the bars later that night, but we decided to relax instead and drank margaritas.

Saturday: Slept late, and had pedicures. Decided to go out to the bars, and had seriously bad bar karma. We first tried the Monkey Bar, and that was a bust. No music...what so ever. Blah! So instead we went to Harlow's instead. The live band played a (no joke) 20 minute rendition of Celebrate. Jackie and I had time to go to the bathroom, wait in the line, pee, wash our hands, leave the bathroom, walk across the bar, and still listen to the song for 5 minutes. Geez! So we left. Then we decided we needed some food. And what is better late night food than Taco Bell? Except all the taco bells in roseville close at 12:00. It was 12:30. Grr!! So we went to Wendy's instead. And two guys roll up behind us. One of them is screaming on his cell phone. F-this and F-that all over the damn place. Then his buddy kicks him out of the car (the screamer was the passenger) and this guy walks over to the bushes. Only he looks like he's cussing out the bush. Well...we get our food...and then as we leave I yell out the window "Dump the bitch!". And then Jackie drove away very fast before he could come after us. :-) By the way, this was totally Jackie's idea! ;-)

Sunday: we painted pottery for several hours. I'll get mine back when we go to Kelly's wedding in October. We were going to out to a bar, but the Powerhouse was having a blues jam session. I'm not really down with blues. So instead of trying our hand at more shitty bars, we bought some tequila and drank margaritas and watched Sex And the City. Definitely way more fun than a bar!

Monday: Cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory, and more Sex And The City. It doesn't get any better than that!