Story Time

We celebrated my nephew, Parker's 5 year birthday last night. At the end of the party when most had gone home, him and his recently turned 4-year old sister stood up on a chair and told stories. They went a little something like this:

Savannah: Once upon a time there was a Dragon (RAAAARRRRR!) who killed the princess. Then the prince killed the dragon. The end.

Parker: Once upon a time there was a princess and a dragon. One day the prince went to the top of the tower to wait for the dragon. Then the dragon killed the prince. And they all lived happily ever after.

Savannah: Once upon a time there was a Dragon (RAAAARRRRR!) who killed the princess. Then the prince killed the dragon. The end.

Parker: Once upon a time there was a T-Rex. The baby T-Rex liked to smell blueberries and eat them. One day a witch came along and poisoned the blueberries. One day the baby T-rex ate the blueberries and died. And they all lived happily ever after.

Savannah: Once upon a time there was a Dragon (RAAAARRRRR!) who killed the princess. Then the prince killed the dragon. The end.

Parker: Once upon a time there was a Lion King. Simba said, "NO!" and Scar died. And they all lived happily ever after.

Savannah: Once upon a time there was a Dragon (RAAAARRRRR!) who killed the princess. Then the prince killed the dragon. The end.

Parker: Once upon a time there was Optimus Prime. One day a robot dragon flew by and Optimus primed killed him. And they all lived happily ever after.

I'm not sure why the kids had such deathly sories to tell, but it was very funny!

Best Part of My Day

At the request of Walt: A new post...

What was my favorite part of today? Why, no. It was not the lady who yelled at me during work, "How would I know about my brother's care?!"
It all started on a litle website called http://www.people.com/people/ where I paroozed over pictures of the sexiest men in 2008. (HELLO DANIEL CRAIG!) After a nice little drool session, Leesa and I took a "Pop Quiz: Guess the Chest" where it gives pics of male celebrities chests and you have to figure out who it belongs to. (We got 6/8 correct. We know our hotties bodies!)
Afterward, we tried to get Travis to play the game... which was highly entertaining! He lasted 3 rounds until he just couldn't do it any longer. Ahhh.... Boys! Too homophobic to stare at 8 guys nicely sculpted bodies even in the name of competition.

Highly amusing!

¡Ella es una perra grande!

I wrote a letter for my Spanish Class, and thought I would use Google Translate to help. I knew it wouldn't translate directly, but I wanted it more to catch misspelled words as those would not translate at all. Here is my opening paragraph. It made me laugh...

How are you? My name is Chelsey. I am an exchange student. I'm 25 years old and live in Salt Lake City, Utah. I live in an apartment with my three friends: Carrie, Tia and Jennifer. They are nice and clean. Would you like to live with my friends. Our apartment is small, but it is at the heart of the city. You can bike to the University of Utah or walk to the park. We also have a bitch. His name is Nikita. She's a bitch great, but it's nice.

Poor Nikita's sweet disposition didn't quite make the translation apparently. Ha ha!

Stinky City...

After my math class I rode Trax down to the City Library so I could have a quiet place to study close to my off campus Spanish Class. My Spanish homework included critiquing my classmates Spanish papers and giving them feedback. I realized I left my spanish dictionary at home, but needed to translate some words. I just figured I would hop on the library's internet really quick.

While walking throughout the different computer areas on each floor, I came across several unpleasant odors to which can only be traced back to the stench a person can elude. Yikes! As I translated my peers work, the last smell came to me. Dirty people can smell very similar to that of an old vaccum bag... which actually makes sense when you think of all the dead skin and dander a vaccum picks up. (Gross!)

Yes, I realize this sounds incredibly snotty to complain about living in a city that offers such great ammenities. I am thankful for it, I just wish my hands weren't all over some nasty-ass keyboard is all. Anyway, I'm thoroughly disgusted that I am on this public computer and wanted to share before I try to detox my hands on the way outta here.

Hasta Luego!

Thanks for the feedback...

I have a job where I call and conduct phone surveys for assisted living residents. All I wanted was an easy job that I can leave behind at the end of my shift so I can focus on my schooling. I just got off the phone with a very delightful old man who laughed and had nothing bad to say about where he stayed. I thanked him for his time, and then he says how I have the wrong voice for surveys because it is too high and I don't sound friendly enough. I laughed and asked why he thinks I don't sound friendly and he says, "Well you are calling for criticism on the facility, and your voice is the only thing I can complain about."

Thanks old man for making my depression that much more severe today. Appreciate it!

Sex and they City Movie

So tonight I went and saw The Sex and the City Movie with my two wonderful sisters, Kierstin and Lindsey. It was great to see it with two of my favorite people in the world! Oh how I loved it, and how I love the show. I still got a little misty eyed during a scene or two because I can't help it. It's just so... fabulous!
I left the movie feeling a little refreshed as if I had just spent the night with my best girlfriends. Although, once thinking about it, I am really missing my girlfriends. I miss my REAL Carrie and giggling with her in person. I miss any best friend that I have lost to marriage and kids, but... I guess that's life right? Rememer the scene where Carrie reads Cinderella to Lily and has to clarify at the end, "You know, life doesn't always turn out this way. I just think you should know that." Well, maybe the same needs to be said for Sex and the City- that the forever girlfriend luncheons and pulling together for crisis doesn't always happen either...

Well, unless you're lucky enough to have Carrie in your life, and I'm beyond thankful that I have her!!

Some love stories aren't epic novels, some are short stories. But, that doesn't make them any less filled with love.

The Dutch!

Oh mann, this puts a smile on my face, just because it's The Dutch...

Growing Up

Does anyone else reach that point in life where they take a look at themselves and don't really like what they have become and/or how they treat others? Since when did my social decency, etiquette, kindness, and concern for other's feelings become nonexistent?
Seriously, how does one change so much from childhood? The loss of innocence and naivity definitely has something to do with it, but I believe there is more to it than that... I'm not quite sure what it is, but a change must occur that I am unable to pinpoint. Is this good or bad? Is it that big of a deal to transition from what your personality was earlier in life? Is what you become simply "the new you" or are you able to redeem some of those brilliant qualities that vanished slowly so many years ago?

I really just don't know.

3 Things

1) Why am I up online "window" shopping for things I want, but can't afford because I, indeed, do not have a job?

2) I miss Paris...


3) I just watched the last episode of Sex and the City, and I LOVE the ending quote of the series... "The most exciting, challenging and significant relationship of all is the one you have with yourself. And if you find someone to love the you you love, well, that's just fabulous." Honestly, is there anything better than that?

Nap Time

So... my brother took a 20 minute nap yesterday to find the kids (Parker and Savannah) had gotten ahold of some markers and colored not only all over the walls, but themselves. Click on the these pictures:


Also, I don't know how long ago, but the kids were over at the house and I was cleaning up once they had left. I stumbled upon this scene, and it was so sad and disturbing on many levels that I couldn't help but take a picture:

Seriously, it would be sad to see any childhood toy lifeless and appearing to have a broken back while being surrounded by knives, but the fact the it's the real as life Woody, is just so depressing! Poor Woody...

Chelsey the European (Part II)

Well, I'm back in the good US of A where freedom rings, Deoderant is applied, and Peanut Butter is accessible. :: Sigh :: It's good to be home.

I'll admit, it is hard to say goodbye to the traveling life. No matter how tiring and unaccomidating it could be at times, it still is hard to leave behind. I know it sounds a little silly, but while in Europe life in America seemed like a distant memory. 40 hour work weeks? Final Exams? Running Errands? Bill payments? Responsibilities? What are these distant memories?

Now it is back to real life. Job hunting. Whoopie. (If anyone happens to have a hook up, I would be much obliged.)

As I walked out to my car yesterday to run some much needed errands, my malamute, Sitka (seen below in the only picture I can get to on this computer at the moment) followed me out of the house and went to the door eager for a car ride. Oh, how I love my Sitka! If only I could take her with me to run my errands, but alas, it just is not possible... or is it?

One of the things I loved about Europe is how dogs went everywhere with their owners. Metros, trams, places of business, even restaurants. I couldn't help but entertain the idea... so I did just that! Embracing the European laid back life style, I grabbed Sitka's leash and we were off for some quality time.

The first two stops were not a big deal as we went through the drive thus at the post office and bank. The bank teller sent Sitka a tasty little treat in the tube. (I think I was more excited than Sitka!) The big test was the Jamba Juice at Jordan Landing. I figured it would be okay as teenagers run the place and wouldn't care-or at least say anything- if she popped inside for a minute. The true test would be customers complaining about a dog being in a food joint. I took my chances. All in the name of prolonging a European lifestyle!

Cute little Sitka was so excited as we walked around Jordan Landing and she sniffed all the new trees, benches, cement, and everything in sight. She gave me a weird look when I beckoned her inside a store. She could tell it wasn't the vet, but just didn't know what to think of it. Once inside, Sitka was fine, and just sat next to me. There were some looks and you could tell the Alaskan Malamute chillin' in line with me was throwing people off. She got a few scratches on the head, and compliments on her beauty. We got Lindsey's Mango-a-go-go without any problems from consumers and I was so happy! Chelsey- 1, Lame people that have nothing better to do than complain (Allergic population are void of this comment)- 0. Sweet!


In the next few weeks the plan is to add some pictures on here, and tell some stories that I was not able to get to while I was on my trip. Hopefully I will be able to do so while I find a 'perfect' job. :)

When in Rome...

I have been in Rome for 2 days and am LOVING life!!! Today has totally felt like a Roman Holiday and my Audrey Hepburn haircut makes it all the more realistic. Although she had 2 cute guys at her side and she didn't deal with all the crowds... you get the idea though.

While here we have:

• Seen the Vatican
• Seen the Sisteen Chapel (Got a couple of blurry pictures in when the guards weren't looking)
• Experienced the Colosseum (Sooooo cool! I LOVED IT!)
• Saw Raphael's tomb inside the Pantheon
• Tested the hand of Truth (I still have mine!)
• Went to the Spanish steps and listened to a band for the Music Festival
• Made a wish at the Trevi Fountain
• Went to the Boghese Museum and saw COOL statues!!!!
• Ate many... MANY a delicious gelatos!
• Avoided being pick-pocketed (so far)

I can't even believe that I am here! It is sheer bliss coupled with heat and exhaustion, but worth every single step! We are planning on going out tonight to celebrate our last night in Rome, and then wake up really early to get some great pictures of the Colosseum before the crowds. Hopefully we can wake up in time! :) Then we are off to Milano tomorrow and end our trip in Barcelona!!! Hurray! I am soooo excited!

My love to you all! I can't wait to see everyone and hear what has happened while I've been gone! Ciao!

Florence!

Today we arrived in Florence and it was most exciting as my dear sister Kierstin, and her husband Ken are spending part of their honeymoon here. I saw Ken in all his tallness as I walked up the platform and was sooooo excited! We walked up the market and saw so many leather clothes along with many ties and scarves. We made our way to the Duomo and and climbed 400 and some odd steps to the top of the dome to overlook the city. YOWZA! It was quite amazing! What an experience to see such an ariel view of the city, especially with those you love most! After that we saw the replica of the Michelangelo's David then made a quick jont over to... some bridge that was beautiful. Before we all left we made our way to the pig statue to rub it's nose which grants us the wish to come back to Florence. I rubbed that snout extra hard!
It was so great to spend time with Kierst and Ken. While I have been loving my time with my friends, it's just a little something extra when you have your family with you. I love them!
I will be home in one week, and am not quite ready to say goodbye to Europe yet. However, after seeing the fam, it reminds me of the things I love most at home, and I start to get the little itch to come home.
See you all soon!!!!

Lots of happenings

Wow.... I am loving life! We spent less than 24 hours in Zurich, Switzerland and had a BLAST! Zurich, like Vienna, is a host city for Euro 2008. We ended up going to a street celebration where big screen tv's were set up and people watched all the games. I ate LOTS of delicious food! DE-LIC-IOUS! There was lots of food, fun, music, dancing, cheering.... oh, it was so much fun! It reminds me of when the Olympics were in SLC, the excitement in the air just buzzes in the air! We met a group of guys and one of my dear friends hit it off with one, so we went to an English pub to go dancing. I had soooo much fun! They played a mixture of different music and I could not hold my dancing side back! I was a little leary how the guys would be here, but it turned out to be nice. They will kinda dance next to you, but wait for you to give the go ahead before they put the moves on you. It was really nice to not deal with any nasty guys!
We have been in Italy for 2 days! Yesterday we were in Milano and we stayed at a great little hostel. They have a dog! His name is Jet and I had so much fun playing with him! I fell in love with him! We actually have to go back to Milano in a few days as it's a connective city for us to travel. I am so stoked to see Jet again!!!! While in Milano I had some of the BEST Penne I have ever ate! It was in a delicious.... lemon/bacon cream sauce.... SO GOOD!
We are now here in Venice!!!!! It is soooo weonderful here! We are getting ready to go out and explore!!! It is TRULY MAGICAL! We all love it to so much! I will write stories when I can about it! Gotta run! My love to you all!!!!!
I LOVE ITALY!

New Travels

My study abroad is over, and I am now traveling to extra cities. Class ended on Wednesday June 11th, where we hopped on a train and made our way to Vienna. I LOVE Vienna! If I was there longer I would have gone apartment hunting. Vienna was especially fun as they are hosting the Euro 2008 Soccer games, so there was a sports electricity in the air which made it all the better.
On thursday the 12th, we took a train into Munich, Germany. We took a day trip to Fussen to see the Cinderella castle and we loved it!!!!
I need to get going as our train to Zurich leaves in a half hour.

My love to you all. Europe is fabulous!!!!

Budapest

Ah, nothing like being at a McDonalds in Budapest to use 20 minute intervals on the internet... ooh.... sweet artery clogging aroma filling the air. It's a nice change from the urine soaked/B.O. filled metro. Mmmmm, nice! Just to clarify, the Z and Y buttons are backwards on this keyboard, so... i won't waste my time fixing them. Zou just might need to fill dislexic for a bit.... and.... i also cant figure out how to make a new paragraph so enjoz the confusion! Budapest has been verz interesting. The economz is not exactlz stable and we are stazing in Pest, which is the poorer part of the citz. Everzwhere we walk, we see homeless people which is verz disheartening to see. I have never felt like such a greedz brattz American. It is a verz humbling experience to understand more fullz the blessings we have in our countrz. The men here are... bad news. Thez are verz much stuck in their Communist wazs and do not tolerate women looking into their ezes. It is different as American girls because -from what I can tell- we are meerlz sex objects that thez treat with little or no respect. Cat calling (far worse than anz new zorker construction worker) is normal here, followed with eerie stairs and distrubing remarks. A couple of mz friends were walking down the street when a guz grabbed her butt, and then a few minutes later a different guz spit on them. Zeah.... never have American jerks looked so good! As with anzthing, there is a lot of good with the bad. I have been fortunate enough to see manz beautiful things! One of which was a Russian Opera which I bought an evening gown for since i could not be allowed in seen in mz tourist blah clothes. The Opera was trulz amaying, and once again, it has been great to experience the breath taking talents of so manz people word wide! Budapest loves two things... meat, and Turkish baths. I have had as much meat as i can afford and tolerate without feeling lathargic. Manz hae gone to the baths and have loved them! I am planning on going later todaz and am plannig on going European, as I am in Europe afterall. I will let zou now how it goes. We are planning on going to a Palace on top of a hill which has a Labrznth underneath. We hear it is wonderful and worth the monez. I know, this might seem lame, being in Europe and all, but I made it a point to see the Sex and the Citz movie as earlz as I could on the trip. That meant seeing here in Budapest as it opened June 5th here. I won't see much about it as to not spoil it, but it was wonderful to see as it made me appreciate and miss home. It was nice to watch the movie ad drift back to the states and think of comforts onlz friends and familz can provide. Specificallz mz dear Carrie as she is mz other half and we both relate everzthing to sex and the citz. (hez, it's what we do) manz others were thought of as well, and it was reallz nice to get a piece of home even if I stole it for a mere hour or two. I two dazs mz class will end, but I start an extra 2 weeks of travel with 3 of the sweetest and coolest girls on the trip. I am sad for mz class to be over but am verz hopeful for the future and diferent sites I will see. I feel fortunate as I suspect the next 2 weeks will flz bz quicklz as i see so much beautz, to onlz return home to the true beautz in mz life which is all of mz loved ones. I will trz to write again in mz travels, but am not sure how the internet cafes will be as I will onlz be in a citz for a daz or two. Just know, I am being smart, safe and have 3 great girls with strong heads on the shoulders and we will all look out for one another. Mz love to zou all for zour support! See zou soon!

Prague

Prague has been a blast. A couple of days ago we made our way to a nearby town called, Kutna Hora. There, is a church decorated with 40,000 corpse bones. It was very interesting as it is not something you see daily that's for sure.
Yesterday we went on a paddle boat ride and got caught in a sudden downpour! I felt like I had just got off a water ride at Bush Gardens.
We are here during the puppet festival and have tickets for 2 shows tomorrow. There are marinettes everywhere and the shop owners will try to entice you in with dancing Pinocchios. Very cute!
I have one more day here in Prague and then I am off to Budapest. Supposedly Budapest is the cheapest. I look forward to the money break as I think I am in the poor house! I might need your pity upon my return!
I can't remember if it was mentioned in my last post, but the ice cream here.... TO DIE FOR! You have not lived until you have ate at Cream and Dream! YUMMERS!
Loves to you all!
p.s. please give hugs and kisses to the pooches as I miss the little furballs!

PRAHA!

So I made it into Prague yesterday morning. Prague has been so cool so far. We had a bus pick us up from the airport and the lady told us a lot about Prague as we drove through. She was very sweet. I took a bit of a nap (okay, 4 hours) when we got to the hotel. We went out to eat at a small little Italian place and it was fabulous! There was only one lady I saw in the entire place serving people, and she was just so sweet! She was so patient with us even though we didn't speak the language. I pretty much fell in love with her kind heart!

This morning I had a delicious breakfast in the hotel with some GREAT peach yogurt with strawberry granola and pineapple. Yummers! This morning we took the tram and a bus and went to the Jiri Anderle Museum. He is a well known Prague Print artist. Ummm, It was crazy, but good to go to. After that we walked up to the Prague Castle. That was beautiful! We climbed up one of the towers (287 Steps) in the cathedral. It was so much fun! The view was WELL WORTH the hike! It was cracking me up on the way down the narrow spiral staircase as you would hear people panting and whimpering on the way up wondering when they would ever get there. There was a group not even half way that asked me if they would see the top any time soon... I let them know they still had a hike to go, but said they could do it and it was worth every step. One lady thanked me through her heavy breathing, "thank you for your encouragement!" it was cute.

As we walked around the palace grounds we went through a corridor that had different armor and helmets on display. At the very end was an area set up to shoot a cross bow for only 5 Korunas! It was so much fun! I shot 6 arrows and had a couple good shots. I was able to keep my target practice. So much fun!!!

After that, we walked through the city a little bit. It was more the touristy stuff, but it was great! We crossed the famous Charles Bridge which is gorgeous! Loved it! After all of this, we made our way to an ice cream shop our teacher always stops off called, "Cream & Dream". Wow. No other words to describe. I got my waffle cone with one scoop of vanilla with chocolate chips and the second scoop of strawberry. One of the girls asked how my ice cream was right when I took my first lick. I literally could not answer. I sat down and composed myself... It was hella good to say the very least!!!!

Now we're back at the hotel and Shala is nice enough for me to use her computer for a bit. We are leaving for dinner in an hour. There is a place right around the corner a few of the people went to last night. It's suppose to be awesome! I'm sure it will be!

I love you all! My only wish is I could share all of these moments with all the people that mean the most to me in my life. Know that I think of everyone back home very often and look forward to seeing everyone again. Love to you all!

Getting Acquainted

Amsterdam has picked up during the last couple of days.

I went to the Van Gogh Museum which is nothing short of spectacular! I wish I could fully describe the feeling that was there as I looked at all of his masterpieces, but alas, it's just not possible. It has truly been a gift to stand in front of such works of art and experience the connection between myself and these expressions. I really am speechless when it comes to Van Gogh. I. Loved. It.

I also had the most wonderful experience of seeing the Anne Frank house. We were told we couldn't go inside, but this was a filthy lie it turns out. Going into the annex was one of the most brilliant things I have ever witnessed and would recommend everyone make a trip to feel it for yourselves. The air is so thick and somber and the public moved with a reverence as we filtered in and out of the empty rooms. What a horrific feeling to see the windows blacked out by fabric with only a dim light shining from the ceiling. One can only imagine the horrors of cabin fever as you watch your people being lead away to their torments. It was a memorable experience, one I shall never forget. (Hope this works.)

We spent today at the Rjiksmuseum which was full of many gorgeous things. Too many to convey at the moment. It has indeed been quite the time seeing such masterpieces. 

On a closing note, I'm still not all about Amsterdam. I hate walking into clouds of Pot smoke and I have never had so many people snap at me and treat me so rudely in all my life. Don't get me wrong, of course, there are many people here that have been very pleasant and more than nice, but for the most part.... ick! :) 

I look forward to my last day in Amsterdam as we leave to Prague tomorrow. I would like to say farewell to his fair city with a little quote from Austin Powers: Goldmember, which I did not truly understand until this weekend. After spending time here, I find it to be incredibly real.

There are two things I hate most in this world: People intolerant of other people's cultures, and the Dutch!

Chelsey the European

Yesterday I came down with a cold/flu. This does not make me happy. I opted to stay home and sleep yesterday instead of going to the annual cheese auction (Don't worry, the lovely Jen took pictures).

While home the maid came in to clean the room, but I asked her to come back in 20. I mustered up all my energy and went downstairs in the lobby and waited for 1 hour and 20 minutes. When i came back, she still hadn't cleaned the room. Ah well, I just put the bathroom trash can outside. The bathroom doesn't have a lot, but if figured I would be okay.

I stripped down to my bra and underwear and began to shave my legs in the sink (this is loads easier than inside the shower for me). With one leg lathered and in the sink, the bathroom door opens, "oh! So sorry!" the older eastern European maid exclaims. I explained to her through the shut door she was okay to clean the hotel room while I was in the bathroom as nothing in the bathroom needed to be cleaned. "This bathroom is okay?" she clarified in her cut accent. "Yes, the bathroom is okay."

I hop in the shower and am enjoying the spray when I hear, very clearly, "You don't need the bathroom to be cleaned?" I turn around and see our maid through the glass shower doors and say it really isn't necessary for her to clean in the bathroom. "I check toilet paper." She comes inside and insists we need more tp. With the bathroom door open directly in front of the hotel room door open, she leaves to her cart, leaving me exposed to the hotel hallway.... oh how I hopped the cheese auction was still entertaining my class mates so they weren't about to walk down any moment and see all of Chelsey (in her glory)!

It turned out fine, but it totally made me smile to have the poor maid see Chelsey naked on several occasions.

To end this post on my sickly days in Amsterdam, I became sicker as the day went on yesterday and moved into the flu portion of my sickness last night and today. When I finally came out of my coma like state at 5:00 pm today, I saw a beautiful arrangement of flowers from Michael! How I love him! 

Home... deprived.

Here I am in Amsterdam. We got in yesterday around 2:00 and had the afternoon to orient ourselves here. Today we met as a class and I gave a presentation on 2 Fred Williams paintings for the Tate Museum in the park with the "I amsterdam" sign.

We later went shopping at the Market which is like Portabello Road. I got kicked out of a guys shop because he didn't like me trying on the hats. We later went to the grocery store where I got attitude from the cashier because I didn't take my food out of the carry cart when I placed it on the counter.

I came back to the hotel and enjoyed being out of the sun, eating some food, and having my room to myself.

So I wouldn't say I'm homesick because it's cool to be in Europe, but I'm definitely feeling missing home right now. I wish Monkey were here to cuddle up on the couch and then bark at the neighbor kids.

There are a lot of dogs here, and it makes me happy. They trot alongside the bikes, or ride in the basket. Love it!

Amsterdam!

I don't know if I will be able to write again as the internet cafes seem scarce in this area. So if you don't hear from me, just know I am in Amsterdam dodging bikes, loving the Van Gogh museum and loving life!

It smells like pot.

Cheerio!

Tonight is my last night in Foggy London Town. Sad, sad, sad! I LOVE London. I swear, I was meant to live here! So just keep that in mind. Maybe you all will all be able to sleep in my flat when you come out to visit! And maybe, just maybe, you'll have the entire place to yourself if i happen to be trotting around EU!

A few things I will not miss about London: The lack of public trashcans and toilets. And, that's pretty much it! :) I'll try to write from Amsterdam this week!

Side note, today at the British Museum (AWESOME!) I swear I saw today's Encino Man. Move over Brendan Fraiser, cuz this guy was good! He has long nappy dread locks and when his girl was expressing her views on the mummy he TOTALLY grunted. It rocked!

Mon petit chou chou!

Paris is by far one of the most MAGICAL cities I have ever been to! Well, once we got into the city that is! We left our London hotel at 5:00 am and made it to Paris at 9:00 am. We got lost lost LOST in Paris and didn't check into our hotel until 5:00 pm!!!!! That didn't stop us for going out for a night on the town!




When we got to the Louvre I was speechless! It was one of the most breathtaking things I have ever seen! I can't believe I was there! It was like being star struck but... European Building struck! Loved it! We also went to the Eiffel Tower and watched it SPARKLE (just like you said Kristen!) It was amazing!



While in Paris we:

*Went inside the Louvre (hello Venus Di Milo!)
*Went to the tip top of the Eiffel Tower (Amazing!)
*Saw the Arch de Triomphe (sweet-sweet!)
*Drove golf carts around Versailles (pimp!)
*Ate many a great food! Including crepes, pastries, wraps, and tiny churros!
*Bought/looked at street markets
*Went to Mass at the Notre Dame
*Was separated from the girls I travled with for several hours wandered around solo
*Walked in the rain.
*Wandered around aimlessly
*Constantly said, "Parlez-vous français?", "merci", and "excuse-moi"


I was pleasently surprised as everyone said the French were all snobby and stuck up, but I found everyone to be most helpful.

Things I will not miss in Paris: The smell of the Metro. Yuck!!!

Coming back to London felt like home. As surreal as Paris was, it was great to be back to London. Even though I have only been here a week, London feels like home! I just might need to look into colleges here. :)

PS. I will upload pics when I get home. So enjoy these internet ones... for now. :) Oh, and if anyone wants to see ADORABLE Shiba Inu Puppies that Michael has, go here. I think the lower righthand is Bruce. I LOVE HIM!

Cheers!!!

I'm in London! I am here at an internet cafe in Leister square. I can't even believe how much I love it here. My feet ache from being all over the city again and again.... and again and again! It's all good though. Usually if I rest a moment or two the pain goes away. I am one of the only ones to not have blisters... yet! :)

We have seen MANY cool cool stuff. Taking the tube (i sound so Enlgish) to many places. Mann, I have the tube DOWN! We have seen:

• Trafalga Square
• Paliment (Outside)
• Big Ben (Outside)
• Westminster Abby (The outside)
• Hyde Park
• James Park
• Buckingham Palace- we saw 4 guards do some fancy footwork/marching before walking inside.
• The Sex and the City LONDON PREMIERE! (Didn't see the movie, but I saw parts of the cast from very far away!)
• Day trip to Oxford
• Tate Museum
• Tate Modern Museum
• Boat ride on London Canal (name? it was between the two tates)
• Shakespere's "The Globe" (Outside)
• St. Paul's Cathedral (SOOOOO BEAUTIFUL! Prob my fav. place so far)
• The play "Wicked" LOVED IT!!!! I got a picture with the main star (Green witch-Elphiba) afterward)
• William Hogarth's house.
• We have been to several museums where our teacher Justin sets up appointments and we see original prints from artists. Including a couple of Picasso's first prints that are worth MILLIONS! They are right there! So cool!

(From these museums, I am writing reports on Henry Moore's "Standing Figures" and Ana Maria Pacheco. -I can't find the portolio online, but here's an idea of her work.) I loved it!

That's all I can think of right now. :) The food is delicious here! Nothing too crazy. I did try some fish n' chips with mashed peas (like mashed potatoes) and had a cheese and chutney sandwhich (a tangy british spread). It's been good!

My room mate is a Simpsons nerd like me and we will both randomly quote the simpsons and it's sweet to have the other know what we're talking about. Last night we were up until 1:00 giggling!

Tonight I am seeing a anything but PC play called Avenue Q. It's like Sesame Street for adults. Then we leave for Paris tomorrow morning and get back Sunday night. Hooray Paris!

Don't mind that I am not spell checking this sucker. No time. Time is money at the internet cafe! I'll write again when I can. Love to all!

Lesbians

Lindsey sent me this article from MSN:

Greek islanders seek to reclaim term ‘Lesbian’
Court has been asked to draw line between Lesbos natives and gay women

updated 1 hour, 45 minutes ago

ATHENS, Greece - A Greek court has been asked to draw the line between the natives of the Aegean Sea island of Lesbos and the world's gay women.
Three islanders from Lesbos — home of the ancient poet Sappho, who praised love between women — have taken a gay rights group to court for using the word lesbian in its name.
One of the plaintiffs said Wednesday that the name of the association, Homosexual and Lesbian Community of Greece, "insults the identity" of the people of Lesbos, who are also known as Lesbians.
"My sister can't say she is a Lesbian," said Dimitris Lambrou. "Our geographical designation has been usurped by certain ladies who have no connection whatsoever with Lesbos," he said.
The three plaintiffs are seeking to have the group barred from using "lesbian" in its name and filed a lawsuit on April 10. The other two plaintiffs are women.
Also called Mytilene, after its capital, Lesbos is famed as the birthplace of Sappho. The island is a favored holiday destination for gay women, particularly the lyric poet's reputed home town of Eressos.
"This is not an aggressive act against gay women," Lambrou said. "Let them visit Lesbos and get married and whatever they like. We just want (the group) to remove the word lesbian from their title."
He said the plaintiffs targeted the group because it is the only officially registered gay group in Greece to use the word lesbian in its name. The case will be heard in an Athens court on June 10.
'Lesbians for thousands of years'Sappho lived from the late 7th to the early 6th century B.C. and is considered one of the greatest poets of antiquity. Many of her poems, written in the first person and intended to be accompanied by music, contain passionate references to love for other women.
Lambrou said the word lesbian has only been linked with gay women in the past few decades. "But we have been Lesbians for thousands of years," said Lambrou, who publishes a small magazine on ancient Greek religion and technology that frequently criticizes the Christian Church.
Very little is known of Sappho's life. According to some ancient accounts, she was an aristocrat who married a rich merchant and had a daughter with him. One tradition says that she killed herself by jumping off a cliff over an unhappy love affair.
Lambrou says Sappho was not gay. "But even if we assume she was, how can 250,000 people of Lesbian descent — including women — be considered homosexual?"
The Homosexual and Lesbian Community of Greece could not be reached for comment.

Awesome!

According to my dr's scale, I now weigh 110! This is awesome as I have never weighed this much in my life... although it's not exactly muscle I've put on the past few weeks... so we got to do some healthy conversions me thinks.

So stoked! Now I actually match the info on my drivers license! :)

Grumbly grumbly

So the other day I was complaining to/warning Michael that I DO NOT do well without food. I get all sorts of raunchy (as many of you have had to experience. Sorry!). He asked if I was hypoglycemic, and you know what.... I have never thought of that before!

Since I'll be leaving the country (yay!) I thought it was a good idea to be up on all my Dr visits. (Lol! My poor dad was questioning me because he saw an HPV pamplet in my car. I comforted him, "Don't worry dad, it was just a check up, and I asked about the prevenative Cervical Cancer shot. Nothing to worry about.") I have a physical scheduled for today and thought I would check the hypoglycemia thing. I need to *fast for 8 hours before. Since my appointment is at 1:00, that means I haven't ate since about 1:00 am last night. I am so hungry!

I feel like Homer when he is on his hunger strike!

*I called the hospital yesterday to see if I needed to fast for today. Here is the conversation that took place:

-I have a physical scheduled for tomorrow and wanted to be tested for hypoglycemia. Do I need to fast for that?
-I don't know. I'm not a nurse.
-Ummm...can you find out?
-Oh wait.... Dr. Rada would always prefer to have his patients fast no matter what he is seeing them for. So yeah, you can fast.
-How long do I have to fast for?
-However long you feel comfortable with. It's just what you prefer.
-Well, if i'm doing the hypoglycemia test isn't there a certain time frame I have to be fasting for?
-It's just whatever you feel comfortable with.
-Really?
(Silence)
-Ummm.... is there a nurse I can talk to?
-I'll have one call you if you would feel more comfortable with that.
-(Hell) Yes. Thanks (for nothing).

This is good

I had a Dr's appointment today and guess what? I am totally up to 108 lbs! Dude, pretty excited about this. Now, if I would just wake up early enough to run and lift weights in the morning, I would be very happy. How sweet to maintain the weight while substituting some of the unhealthy with muscle mass and adding a couple of healthy pounds?

Okay, that's the new plan... although I'm remember why I haven't done so yet. Work and school. I have to focus on finals the next couple of weeks, and before you know it, I'm in Europe. Maybe all the walking around cities will help with cardio and stamina. Maybe, just maybe I can do calf raises/push ups in my room....

Hmmm, we'll see. As of now, I'm just glad my weight is up. Let's not think back to the weight at late last year. ::shudder:: Awful.

Aye yi yi!

Acabo de inscritos para mi Fall 2008 clases y estoy muy entusiasmado de haber firmado para el español. Ah sí, ya me estoy tomando los pasos de convertirse en bilingües, y de tomar nuevas medidas para hacer un estudio en el extranjero de habla hispana el próximo verano. Nice!

Estoy un poco desgarrado si debo tomar una clase de matemáticas de 1030 Razonamiento cuantitativo o de la Nutrición de la clase 3010 que se analiza el papel de la dieta en las enfermedades crónicas. Estoy registrado en la actualidad y veremos qué camino me pasará este otoño. Español será definitivamente en el orden del día sin embargo. Y hey, tengo que ser fluido caso mi amante latino Antonio Banderas llega un llaman derecho no soy yo!?

Y sí, he traducido todo esto con el traductor de Google, ya no sé cualquier español. Así chupo.

What a tease!

I had a dream last night that I was sitting at Cougar Stadium enjoying some killer BYU football and just plain loving life! How could you not? Football makes everything better! Before I knew it, my alarm went off and it was time for work. Sad. I wasn't too tired, and got up with considerable ease. I got ready and was very pleased to do so in my recently cleaned and spotless room. :: sigh :: Nothing like a nice clean room to give you piece of mind. It's so refreshing! I finished getting ready and felt really cute. I could tell it was just one of those days where I was on my game. I was lookin good! I came into work when suddenly...

My alarm REALLY went off. Yeah, all of that "getting up with ease" crap was also a figment of my imagination as is real football in April. I woke up to find I had not actually woke up and did not do morning routine. My room was in fact the same whirlwind of a pig stye and now I would have to get up "again" which is the worse part of any day. It took a lot to drag my tired bones out of bed to only look in the mirror and see... well, not as cute of a Chelsey that had been envisioned mere moments before.

And to top it all off, BYU football is still 138 days away.

Damn my imagination! If only it weren't so vivid!

What are you wearing?

Today I accomplished something huge. We're talking Hu-uge! In order to fully appreciate this awesome achievement, let's take a stroll down memory lane of oh... 24 years ago.

Here, at almost a quarter of a century ago lies a wee babe (wee meaning all cute and chunkified). At 6 months old I was the youngest of 5 children to complete my parents family. It became apparent to them my tear ducts were not working. They took me into the dr, and it appears my tear ducts had never formed and a procedure would need to be done. ;;jk/.;;oll.ol.

(Side note. I left the computer because my brother got here with the kids. I was reading a book with Parker and said, "Oooh, is that a mountain?" (annunciating the 'T' and Parker says, "No, it's Mounain" - in typical Utah fashion. It was cute.... anyway) I hung out with them fot a bit, and when I came back the kids had typed that gibberish above, and there is chocolate over those keys on the keyboard. Love them!)

Anyway, Surgery would need to be done for my tear ducts, but it basically included the Dr. strapping me down, and "drilling" holes in my eyelids while I was awake. Ever since then, I have had this weird eye thing and don't like things too close to them. I've been trying to get over some fears that I have had in the past, and figured this was a good one to deal with.

Today I had an eye appointment, and I am please to announce I am currently wearing contacts! I have had glasses for... I don't know 10+ years. It's pretty sweet to not have them. I feel like I look all weird without them though. I'm just not use to it. I'm way excited to have contacts for when I work out, and for football games.

Let's pretend for a moment I live the type of life where people are constantly and seductively asking what I am wearing. As of today, I would excitedly say, "Contacts!" Hey, it might be a mood killer, but it's pretty cool for this chick!

DAMN YOU MARIE OSMOND!

I was talking to Lindsey tonight on the phone and she went on to tell me a story very similar to the following:

"So I'm at home watching Miss USA and guess who one of the hosts is? Well, it's not that exciting, but it's Marie Osmond. She totally had the exact same hairstyle I wanted for Kierstin's wedding! I know, Marie had my hair style. It was just like, 'Damn you Marie Osmond!' Every time I saw her I thought, 'That's my hair, and it would have looked so cute one me!'

Anyway, I love Lindsey. She's too cute.

(I currently can't find a pic of Marie hosting the contest, but I'll see if I can't get one soon so you can see the adorable hair that could have been apart of the Messenger Wedding '07...)

Day Two

Ain't nothing like an anti-depressant and a bowl of Cookie Dough to get ya outta bed in the morning.

Tear

So, last night one of my dearest of dear friends ended her trip out here in Utah and headed back out to PA. I know... it sucks and I'm completely heartbroken. It was one of those mornings where I couldn't get out of bed (or roll off the couch, whatever) cuz I just wanted to stay home and sulk big time.
I as moping big time when I got in my car to leave the airport as Frontier Airlines sped her 2,100 miles away from me. It didn't help either to turn on the radio to hear the oh-so applicable Whitesnake song, "Here I go Again" from the very beginning. Thanks universe for reminding me how miserably lonely I am as tears stream down my face... thanks a lot.
I'm reminded of Owen Wilson's character on "The Wedding Crashers" when he's all hurt and crushed, and speaks on his answering machine with this unmotivated and depressed, "You've reached John.... whatever. ::beep::". So sad, and so relevant!

(from left to Right: Tia, Carrie, Chelsey, Jessica)

I before E, except after C...

I'm not sure when it's appropriate to use the words "peoples" or "monies" but when I hear it, it puts me in a good mood.

SUPER STAR!

So my nephew has a couple of audio puzzles that are light sensored. He has one inparticular that is the alphabet and when you put the letter in it's correct spot it will say something similar to, "G is for guitar."

Well here I am in the computer room doin my thang when our dog, Sitka, walks in and sits down. I hear the puzzle say, "S is for star!". Now... the way the guy says star... he is sooooooooooo excited. It's like he does jazz hands with the star. "S is for STAR!" This isn't a big deal as you will hear the puzzle on occasion, usually as you turn the light off in the room.

For whatever reason, Sitka was in just the right spot. So wvery few seconds you hear, "S is for STAR!" "S is for STAR!" Sure, I could have gotten up and turned the puzzle upside down, but then I wouldn't be writing this delightful post now would I? Yeah, think about it.

Anyway, Sitka has since let the room so I don't hear some guy getting excited about the constellations above.

JAZZ HANDS!

Kids will be kids

So I signed on to Yahoo for a little email reading where I received some news I was not at all prepared for. My Andy Roddick is engaged! My first reaction was, :: gasp :: "No!" I don't know why I'm so bummed, but I am. He's engaged to 20-year old model Brooklyn Decker. Blah! There's nothing worse than when your athlete or celebrity crush marries a model. We all know we don't have a chance with these heart throbs, but when you come to realize super models are their types... you have to come to terms you have absolutely zero chance in hell of any sort of love match. (LOL! Love. match. tennis. Oh mann, I am hillarious!) Once your guy goes way of the model you can't even entertain the thought of a once beloved fantasy meeting. Like right now, I can't even close my eyes and imagine a flirty conversation with Andy (or as I like to call him, A. Roddick. Sounds a lot like erotic doesn't it? Seriously try it. A. Roddick, Erotic, A. Roddick. Erotic. One in the same baby! And in case you were wondering, yes. Yes, I sing Andy's name in lieu of the steamy adjective when I sing along with Madonna's title song... just so you know... moving on.)

What the... Andy? Don't get married to her. You're both kids... KIDS! There's lots of living and flirting with cute utah girls to be had! I'm sure Brooklyn's a sweetheart and all. (And she better be!) I just didn't even know you were dating her. I thought you were still with Sharapova... or was that just a convenient rumor? Truth be told I'm still mourning the break up between you and Mandy Moore (Love. her. Adorable!). Come on! Andy and Mandy! What's cuter than that? Anyway... I support you in your decision. Be good to him Brooklyn, be good to him! Btw Andy, I'm still planning on watching a match of yours live and having you sign one of your giant balls for me. It'll be sweet!

Freak Out

The other day my brother Matt said his 4 year old, Parker, came downstairs with white all over his head and reported, "Nannah made a mess."
Matt goes upstairs to find his 3 year old, Savannah, had worked her way into his and Kristine's room and found a brand new bottle of baby powder in his wife's gym bag. It was EVERYWHERE! Matt said Savannah was covered head to toe in white, and the only thing he could make out were her little brown eyes glimmering behind the powder. Matt wished he had taken a picture as it was quite funny, but there was just so much to do. The powder was all over the room, on their bed, all over their recently laundered clothes, EVERY WHERE.
He promptly put both kids in the tub after shaking off the excess powder on the bathroom floor. He directly said to both children, "Don't get a single drop of water on the floor or else daddy will freak out." He scurried downstairs to put a load of wash in. As he made his way back up he heard P&S laughing and laughing so hard. As he approached the bathroom he found they were pouring buckets of water out of the tub onto the bathroom floor. Matt said he was so mad he was speechless!

Oh mann, they sure are cute little stinkers (when you don't have to clean up after them). I love this story

Waiting...

Is it Friday the 4th yet? 8 days is sooooooooooooooo close and yet so far away!

Come on Friday... COME ON!

Good Person

As I walked out of my credit union this morning, I held the door open for a man who was walking inside. As he approached I noticed he was wearing a most horrifying New England Patriots t-shirt. ::Shudder:: He thanked me for my service upon entering and I replied with a sweet "You're welcome".

See, I'm a good person. I still help out the enemy. :)

Como esta bitches?

This news was posted on imdb today. I dont' have time to fully express how much Heather Mills pisses me off, but in the meantime you can read her insane remarks and I will highlight everything she said that is ludicrous.

Sir Paul McCartney's ex-wife Heather Mills has been awarded $48.6 million in a divorce settlement. The couple - who wed in 2002 - failed to reach an agreement last month and it was left to a London High Court judge to make the final decision. According to High Court papers, Mills asked for $250 million, but the former Beatle offered her $31.6 million. On Monday, Mills was awarded $33 million cash with assets worth $15.6 million. Speaking outside the court, Mills said she is pleased with the judgment and remains friends with her ex-husband: "I am very, very, very happy. I was always going to get between $40 and $60 million, but Sir Paul was offering much less than that. The judge said Paul was only worth $800 million, but everyone has known he has been worth $1.6 billion for the last 15 years. I wasn't allowed any access into any of our accounts, I was locked out of every home. I hope now that me and my daughter can have a life and not be followed every single day. Apart from one TV thing, I have kept silent for 21 months. I wanted to keep it private but he wanted it made public he always wants to look like he's generous Sir Paul." Mills will not appeal against the judge's decision, but will appeal on Tuesday against the decision to release court papers which disclose details about the couple's four-year-old daughter Beatrice. She adds, "I am standing here because Paul is insistent on the whole judgment being put out. I've said that if the whole judgment goes out then all the transcripts have to go out because it's going to be written in a way that they will try and make it that I wasn't successful. The only reason I'm appealing tomorrow morning... I'm not appealing the judgment but the publication of it as it includes private secure matters about my daughter. It's gone against everything to do with human rights." The couple's divorce case had been held in private, but it is believed the judge released the agreed figure in a bid to end speculation over the size of the financial settlement. McCartney, 65, married Mills, 40, four years after his first wife Linda died from breast cancer.

She is a freakin' selfish, lying idiot. (The feminist in me is repressing any degrading name or phrase that would easily apply to her.) I hate her. Keep up your chin Paul. We love you. Here you are a year past 64 and I find you as adorable as ever! As do Vera, Chuck, and Dave. You're the best.

Exhausted

I was so out of it this morning that when I got up to get dressed I started to put my underwear (cute pair btw) ontop of my Pajama bottoms! Uh-huh. That's right, you read correctly. Right on over my comfty little pj pants. Who does that? The thing is, it's not like this was my first action out of bed. I talked to Keri for a minute, hung out with the pooches and fed them...
Hmmm... I do hope that was dog food I put in their bowls and not cherrios. Who knows since I was so tired... Hmmm.

DST

I do not adjust well to day light savings at all! (Although, I dig the fall back and gaining an extra hour.) Yesterday was one of those days where I just crashed and slept through everything and didn't wake up until 1:00, e.g. 2:00 in the p.m. I didn't complain too much as I think I needed the rest. I saw my adorable friend, Kristen, had left me a text message that read:

Daylight Savings... The Universe's latest move in its proverbial chess game to keep me from getting to church on time. Well played, Universe. Well played.

Oh Kristen! How I love you and your wit! Especially wit so early in the morning. While you were late to church, at least you went and didn't sleep through the ENTIRE thing and then some, leaving your carpooling friend in the dark like some of us do. Mann, i'm a horrible friend.

I had slept in my parents bed last night as they're out of town and have the house to myself... I don't know why, but us kids will always sleep there if they're gone... it's just something we do. Anyway, I set the alarm for this morning, and there is nothing worse than waking up at 6:30 am ... or is there?

How about waking up at 6:30 after Daylight Savings making it feel like 5:30... on a Monday... to the preset radio station of your parents choice that played, wait for it, Shania Twain! I know! No one should be subjected to country-none the less- Shania that early in the morning.

I definitely woke up on the wrong side of the bed... literally, as I tend to sleep on the left, but was on the right this morning.

Merry Christmas!

Stop wearing my socks!

Squeeky Clean

So I'm in the *shower, and I don't like this shower spray nonsense. You know, when the shower head has a delicate array of sprays sprinkling out and you can barely feel anything? Oh no... I can't do that. I need a thick strong stream beating down on me. Aw yeah, it's so relaxing! It can massage all stress down the drain along with the oil, sweat and dirt the day has brought.

Well, here's the thing... when my shower head is adjusted to this setting, it actually has 3 different slots to come out of. So, the water will be shooting out hard for a few minutes, and then without warning water comes out of a different part of the shower head, many times taking you by surprise. Tonight was no exception my friend. So I'm lathering up my leg while the piercing shot of water strikes my lower back. When, without warning, Beeeeyoooom! A water shot strikes me right in the back! It COMPLETELY took me off guard inas much that I let out a little shriek, to only laugh at myself seconds later. Who does that? It then reminded me of a similar shower experience... oh yeah, you'll hear it. I know you're stoked too!

My old apartment had awesome water pressure. Oh mann, it was very nice! However, my bathroom sucked! We lived in the basement of a house and the bathroom was very small. It was more of a closet... a water closet... if you will. Well, the fan was connected to the light switch, so if you wanted light... you had to take the fan too. Being in the basement, there was also no window to let some kind of light in. This fan proposed a problem as it was right about the shower and the pressure of the water would suck the shower curtain INTO the shower. Leaving no room to bathe and often soaking the floor with water. So annoying! Being poor college students, Carrie and I rigged up a pole that we could move in and out of place that would keep the curtain somewhat at bay as to not stick to our skin as we showered in this tiny 1 man stand in shower. By the way.... that has nothing to do with the story... it just sucked ass and was so annoying to deal with. Keep following, you'll like where this story goes. So I'm showering away one day and I have the thick stream of water pounding down on me. Mmmm, that's nice. Although... the spray was just a little bit off. I reach up to the head and try to adjust it to a more convenient spot. The head was hard to move, so I push just a little more force on it... when BAM! The water pressure was so strong it knocked our cheap plastic shower head off and hit me SQUARE BETWEEN THE EYES. THE EYES! The most vulnerable of all Chelsey parts! That hurt like one motha'! I quickly punched the knob as now the pressure was shooting out an incredible force upon me (Think Kramer with his elephant shower head in Seinfeld). As I stand underneath the whirling fan trying to suck my shower curtain into it, I was afraid to open my eyes. I just knew I would see striking red blood dripping and running down into the drain. Through the stinging, I managed to get my eyes open. Luckily there was no blood. I did however see the broken shower head on the floor, and that straight up pissed me off. Damn shower and it's water pressure!

One more, shower story for the peeps. I love how great ideas can come from shower time. The head is cleared, the body is relaxed, aromatherapy overtakes the senses... what a spendid time to get ideas! I full on had a KILLER idea the other day. Oh mann, it's so good! If only I had the time to carry it through, for it is an idea that ignites my hatred, lights my fire, magnifies my passions and of course makes me smile! Oh, it's a glorious idea! I should make time for it, as it's ingenious... well... at least I think so.

Moral? I don't know. Funny, crappy, and great things can all happen in the shower. But whatever the case, please take one as to not stink out your fellow patrons. It's greatly appreciated.



*Note- Start every post this way, because how cool is that?

Set the Scene

Let me set the scene for you.

Take one Twin size waterbed in my tiny pig stye of a room. Add ontop:

*One tired Chelsey
*One hella hot and awesome boyfriend
*One Finish Spitz, Sierra, who has been sleeping all night on my pillow growling under her breath at-
*One adorable Isis, Michael's Shiba Inu, who keeps giving Sierra the Stink Eye, but at this point just wants to cuddle up and sleep with the rest of us
*One Alaskan Malamute, Sitka, at the foot of the bed- who normally NEVER hops on my bed
*and one gargantuan of a Shiba Inu, Odin, ... well, only his front half on the bed because he can't find room to fit his entire body

...and that my friend is what you would see in my room this morning. How we all fit on my itty bitty bed, I will never know, but below are some pictures to try and capture the essence of the scene.

Owie

Remember on the Simpsons when Comic Book Guy is in a wheelbarrel at the ER and he exasperates, "Oh! Loneliness and cheeseburgers are a dangerous mix!"?

You know what else is a dangerous mix? Chelsey and a box of Girl Scout Samoa cookies at work. I'm so sick, but I can't help but keep eating them. They're soooo good!

Censorship

Did I really just have a meeting with my boss where I said I would turn tricks for food in Europe?

...Mind you, this is a meeting to discuss my performace reivew...

Almost sensuous...

I don't know why, but my work gets all these sex spam emails and I'm not gonna lie... it's annoying. However, they can be quite entertaining at times. Because seriously... sex spam emails at work? Who pulled that fast one on the company? The majority of the emails have to do with enlarging penises. Today I received one where the subject is "Why did she choose him over me?!" and when you open it up, there is a link that says, "Let's get freaky tonight in the sack baby"

Lol... I don't know why, but that is hella funny! I use to just delete them, but i'm so gonna start reading these now. Sorta like... the joke of the day. This is awesome.

World Traveler

I'M GOING TO EUROPE!!!!

Let There Be Light

Seriously, is it really too much to ask that if the job demands so much overtime to not have the lights automatically shut off at 6:00 pm? The lights have shut off like... 4 times in the last half hour. I think someone keeps turning them on, but they're on some sort of a sleep timer and turn off again moments later.

On that note, it's 7:00. I'm tired. The lights have gone off for the 5th time. I'm complaining. I'm going home.

Eye-Catching

I enjoy the Three Tenors, and I would so buy this cd for the coverwork alone. Cute.

Smart.

"Cancel your group therapy, delete your therapist's number and stop seeing your tarot card reader - Dupree is the only man for you. Check out the 'Wisdom of Dupree'! And have Dupree give you the only advice you will ever need on life, love and living."

My favorite is asking him dirty questions... gets me everytime!

God Bless America

I applied for my passport on January 31, 2008. I know people were experiencing problems getting their passports in a timely matter. The man who assisted me was extremely helpful and said they are caught up with Passports and have seen the designated 3-8 week turnaround.

So imagine my surprise today when I had a package in the mail which contained MY PASSPORT! Seriously! A week and two days and it's here! That is the coolest thing ever! I am so stoked. I can hardly concentrate today because I keep thinking of all the cool places i'm going to experience with it!

AWESOME!

Pet da Pooch

For those of you who have dogs, or have at least been around dogs a lot, you will understand.
I don't know how many times a family member has been getting food in the kitchen and within seconds one of my dogs is suddenly there begging for food. They have a particular knack for knowing the sound of cheese, carrots, bread, and dog bisquits. Once the dog is in sight you will hear a family member say, "How do they know?" I mean, those dogs will freakin' be outside and they will be barking at the door to come in when they hear that cheese wrapper. Seriously... how do they distinguish the cheese wrapper from other wrappers when outside or downstairs?
Just now I'm typing away at work when I hear "it" from Lindsey's cubicle. A little somethin-somethin that grabs my attention. "Lindsey?" I ask in my sweetest voice. "Can I have some?"
There is silence for a moment or two. Through a grin Lindsey responds, "Some of what?"
"Some of your M&M's" I say while keeping my salavating at bay.
Lindsey and our Co-worker Kathy just start laughing. Lindsey walks over to my cubicle and at the same time we both say, "I heard that coming a mile away. Pardon? Who said that? Who's speaking?" (Which is a line from Robin Hood: Men in Tights which we quote all the time.)
I pour my handful of M&M's and Lindsey says, "You're just like the dogs!"

...

I'm just sitting here minding my own, plugging away at work when down the way from me I hear a loud beep. Then an automated voice that says, "Call for help now." "Remove all clothing."

Silence. What was that? I look around sheepishly. In a mere 15 seconds I hear a repeat. "Remove all clothing. Pull red lever." What tha?

It sounded like a recording played on a speaker phone. My question however is... what kind of trouble could you possibly get into where you are instructed to "remove all clothing" from an automated system? I could see if you fall through ice into a river and need to warm up and treat hypothermia... but seriously... what was up with that message? Why was somebody listening to it on speaker phone?

It reminds me of an episode of the Simpsons. Bart thinks Flanders has killed Mod and will soon kill Lisa when he finds her snooping around his house in this delightful parody of Rear Window. Bart calls the police and he hears an automated menu, "If you know the name of the felony being committed press 1 now." Bart gets impatient and just starts pressing buttons. "You have selected Regicide. If you know the name of King or Queen being murdered, press 1 now."

I seriously think someone at my office just called an automated police line with inquiries about hypothermia. Is there any other logical explanation anyone?

WAIT! ... Do you have to remove clothing in order to use a defibrillator? That's probably it... At least, I sure hope so. I don't want some robotic woman instructing me to remove my clothing if I have a toothache... Or do I?

The Morning After

This is always the most depressing time of year for me. At least there are others out there who are feeling the same as I.

Is it August yet?

Sexiest Quarterbacks?

MSN's Top Ten Sexiest QBs and my thoughts on the fellas:

1- Tom Brady. Yes. Although, what's up with the photo on file? This is probably the worst photo I have ever seen of him. Is it just me or does he look like a snarling beast (ooh la la!) in a showdown with red lasers ready to shoot out of his eyes at any moment? Damn, he's still hot though. (Mmmm, scan through these Pics... You'll see something you like gauranteed! I rather appreciate the Stetson advertising!)

2- Brett Favre. Oh yeah! He is definitely a good lookin' dude! He is the reason I enjoy There's Something About Mary. Not only is he physically attractive, he has that fire and drive that make him irresistable. People are aware of his past and the struggles he overcame to make his family his priority. There is nothing sexier than a man who can push his demons aside and never look back. He's just such a stud!

3- Joe Namath. Sorry, But I can't help but think of this everytime I see him. (btw, NOT impressed with Chad Pennington at all! There were far more talented QB's drafted in 1999. Unfortunately the cards were against them and the NFL didn't quite work out as it should have, while subpar QB's like Pennington are still out there. Mann, if the NFL had known the gem they could have had and kept him in their system... they would be loving life right now, and he would definitely be on this top ten sexiest list.)

4- Donovan McNabb. He's cool. I admire his determination and endurance. And I like Daryl from The Office simply because he reminds me of McNabb.

5- Tony Romo. Cute. He has that babyface which shows his love for the game of football. Ugh, although his love for other things is not desirable to this girl. Tony Romo + Jessica Simpson = Not Attractive. Although, I'll admit, this commercial makes me smile and I can't help but lovingly say, "Oh Romo!" every time it comes on.

6- Johnny Unitas. You know I'm going to love this man since he did so much for the Baltimore Colts. He's a legend that accomplished so much. How could you not respect the man? Plus, they don't name awards after lame ass guys. He has award status. That's way cool! (I love how dapper he looks in this picture!)

7- Doug Flutie. Talent is very attractive in a man. Doug Flutie is very talented, however... I'm sorry Doug, you just don't cut it for me. Don't get me wrong, I have mad respect for you and your supreme hail mary thow, but... yeah... Not a good looking man. (The photo they use cracks me up. Like him biting his lower lip will throw in some sex appeal. No. Doesn't work that way.)

8- Matt Hasselbeck. Ew! (That was LITERALLY what came out of my mouth when I saw this) I don't care how adorable your wife is, the fact that she is a cast member on The View automatically is a downer. Sorry, you can't get rid of that black mark.

9- Randall Cunningham. Honestly, I have heard the name (or am I thinking of Richie Cunningham and his wife Oprah?) but I can't tell you anything about him. I could see how the ladies would find him attractive though.

10- Matt Lienart. You use to be attractive to me. Until that is you put football on the back burner and spent more time hobnobbing with Hollywood Socialites. Don't get me wrong, I would also be drawn to Hollywood parties. But if you were the QB for the #1 NCAA team and were drafted into the NFL, you keep football as your priority. There's just no excuse for cutting down football like that. Not to mention you took over the starting position from my man Kurt Warner. Kurt is far more talened than Matt. I defintitley think Warner is a goodlooking guy, but it's his character that truly makes him sexy. Yeah... none of these things are working in your favor. ICK! And i'll never forget the day I read you were seen canoodaling with Paris Hilton. Brother... the girl is a walking disease! Take the advice from Dr. Seuss and don't touch her with a 39 and a half ft pole!

World Religion Part 2

I love a teacher who compares Hinduism to The Matrix and grabs his pecks when referring to the physical body.

On Thin Ice

I was just notified our Casual Friday has been cancelled this week.

Bastards.

Fuming

It is taking everything I have to not walk over to an AM and give them a piece of my mind. My job sucks ass, and this is very apparent. But I draw the line when I see coworkers begging my sister for her help, and then pinning the problem on her during a client call and taking absolutely no responsibility for it. Nevermind that this is NOT Lindsey's problem, and our department does not have the access or training or know how to fix the problem... but it sure has become her problem. Nevermind that Lindsey has already put in her fair share of OT, but the AM still went ahead and told the client Lindsey just needs to "put in more OT." Dude, screw you. I'm pissed. Don't mess with my family.
I really want to say things to the AM. I have thought of many ways to confront her appropriately, but I know Lindsey doesn't want me to. So... against every driving force in my body, I have chosen to restrain. I am NOT HAPPY to say the least right now. So lame. I can't wait to quit this pos job.

Amen Bilbo Baggins, Amen!

Although Bilbo said the following in reference to feeling his age, I can't help but think of these words concerning how tired I am and what will ultimately lead to exhaustion if things do not change.

I know I don't look it, but I'm beginning to feel it in my heart. I feel thin. Sort of stretched like butter scraped over too much bread.

I love how he continues to say:

I need a holiday. A very long holiday, and I don't expect I shall return.

That sounds so nice. I just close my eyes and think how nicely that would apply to any of the following travel plans: Mexico, Philadelphia, Las Vegas, Europe, and Buenos Aires. To experience such wonderful places with some of the people I love the most? Well, that thought might be able to get me through such wearing days.

Stringy!

I am eating the stringiest piece of Sting Cheese I have ever ate... and it is delicious!

Also, I love doing an image search on Google and seeing random stuff you wouldn't expect to see under something like, Oh, I don't know... "String Cheese".

Good Stuff!

The Whole Time?!

I have to wear a name badge at work. I don't wear it around my neck. Ew! I don't use the little slate of metal to slide into my pant pocket because then it locks the badge so you can't pull it out by the string, and that's annoying since you have to scan your card going through all the doors in the building. I do, however use the hook and clamp it onto my belt loop. I never attach it to the front belt loop though because when you walk it taps against your thigh and is highly annoying. So i'll place it on the loop that is to the back right... I don't know, something tapping my ass doesn't bother me as much I guess. Ha ha.

So I have a pair of khaki cargo pants that I LOVE! I'm sure you've all seen them, (all 2 of you who read my blog. Always glad to accomodate you!) as I've had them since high school. Yeah, high school, and I still bust them out and get all excited to wear them. I pull them off as dress pants because they're not levis, although they are probably not business appropriate since they are so old, dingy and stained. Oh well... I'm still gonna rock them like it's 1999 (Which is honestly when I probably got them). Anyway, whenever I have these pants on, I forget they don't have belt loops on them, and it's the one drawback! There is nowhere to put my badge but to slide it into the pocket, but like stated above, that screws up the whole highly sophisticated rotarty mechanism, and I also think the badge will snag on something and I'll have to pay $15 for a stupid badge.

There is a point. It might be a stupid point, but it's in here. Just wait for it.

Just now I grabbed my badge so I could go to the bathroom (that's right... 7:48 pm... I'm at work even though I got here at 7:30 am.) when I realized which pants I was wearing today and was sad with the inconvenient attachment I had to resort to. I connect my badge to my pant pocket, and slide my hand up and back around my waist. My finger caught ahold of something... A BELT LOOP! I have had a belt loop on the right back side of my favorite pair of dingy pants this WHOLE TIME ('99 shall we?) and I didn't know?! How could I miss this?! Think of all those wasted moments of worrying I'd lose my badge, or needing to detach it to swipe against security. I guess I just assumed since I didn't have belt loops in the front, I wouldn't have them in the back.

Let this be a lesson to you... Old school pants never go out of style and they help you out in the most unlikely of circumstances. Be good to your pants!

Pep Talk

I can't even begin to describe the stress and fatigue I am feeling through the pressure of school and work. Well, mostly work which in turn is effecting my schooling. It's a very stressful time for my deparment. Amidst a merging of companies, and downsizing, my department feels like a mouse on the eternal wheel of struggle. You look at my team (at work, not the Cougars or Colts) and we are dead to the world. You can see the toll it is taking on us. The overwhelming demands are seen on distraught and tired faces. There have been plenty of breakdowns at work (I just witnessed one mere moments ago).

So, what to do? Well, I needed a little pick me up today. (Ha ha... I looked in the mirror this morning, and I did not like the reflection. It was bad! My eyes are all blood shot, I've completely broken out, I feel like death, it's just... it's bushly!) So, I turned to a person who I knew I could count on. What truly great advice!

You have no idea how much that helped this morning! Seriously.

Fantastical!

This morning I had to run up to the U of U bookstore to purchase my remaining text for the semester. When I saw the magazine cubby section, I remembered my sister saying Johnny was on the cover of Rolling Stones this month. So I went over and started looking. Brittney Spears, blah blah... Little Teen Boppers from the Disney Channel, whatever... Will Smith, you're cool. Tom Brady, GRRR! Stupid Patriots going to the Super Bowl again! How I hate the though! Mmmmm although how I do love the beauty that is Tom. When suddenly I see it in all his glory. Johnny on the cover. Holy mother of all that is good. That is a good picture. I scooped up my copy and eagerly skipped to the check out. I step up to the first counter and recognise the kid as he assisted me just a week earlier. We exchange pleasantries and he says, "Johnny Depp huh?" and I exclaim, "YES!" (Think of Will Ferrell as Buddy the Elf when Mary Steenburgen confirms syrup does indeed contain sugar and Buddy responds back, "Then YES! I LOVE syrup!" Well, I responded very similarly.) We talk about the awesomeness that is Johnny while he rings me up and at the end of it all he says, "You enjoy Johnny Depp!" To which I replied, "Ooh hoo hoo! I WILL! And by the way, I appreciate that you would tell me to 'enjoy' Johnny Depp. That makes me feel good!" I left the bookstore with a spring in my step towards the cashiers office. It was bitterly cold this morning. A radio DJ had said, "Temperature has gone UP to 7° downtown." So as I walked on the icy sidewalks/snow (slipping twice, but never falling) I clutched Johnny and held him close to my chest. Oh mann.... how sweet is that?! When I was done at the U, I drove to work (which was miserable... but let's not be a downer on such a wonderful post) I worked my crappy shift and made it back out to my car at 6:37 pm. I hop inside and turn the engine on to warm up while I scrape some frost off the windows. I reached into the backseat for the scraper to see a chest bearing Johnny seductively wanting me from my back seat. I giggled like a school girl, and probably blushed like one too. Mmmm, Johnny in the backseat. I can't help but have the infamous words of Luda come to the forefront of my mind, "Backseat, windows up, that's that way I like to %*$^" Mmmm.... good times!
Oh, and for the record, I love how they start Johnny's article out with, "Attend the tale of Johnny Depp" tying in the main titles for Sweeney Todd. I rather enjoy that!


So, my soon to be brother in-law just called me. This is EXACTLY how the conversation went down:


Chelsey: Hello?
Travis: Did you hear who died?
Chelsey: Oh, yeah. Heath Ledger
Travis: Who told you?!
Chelsey: Lindsey
Travis: DAMMIT! (Hear Lindsey in the background laughing)
Chelsey: Why do you ask?
Travis: Cause I want to be the first to tell someone.
Chelsey: Why don't you try Keri?
Travis: Does she not know yet?!
Chelsey: I don't know. I haven't seen her today.
::click:: End of transmission.