Realization

I have just come to the conclusion that I am Liz Lemon.

Thank you and goodnight.

Not Much to Say.

It's about to start raining for 10 days straight. I know I can't really complain given that the Eastern seaboard is being pummeled with snow and ice. I'll just bust out my wellies and see if I can get away with them at work.

In other news, today was the day I said goodbye to my friend. She's moving back home and I'll miss her mucho grande. Goodbye my friend, spread your wings and fly. Ok, kidding. Enjoy the sushi.

The Good, the Bad and the Indifferent.

The good...
--I'm going to see Tosh stand-up tonight - yay!
--My car passed smog.
--I got to do a photo shoot for friends who just got engaged.

The bad...
--Someone actually STOLE the tag off my license plate. Jerks.

The indifferent...
--2010 is almost over. Good riddance.

Hmmmmm.

Yes, it's been a while. What have I been doing, you ask? Well, not too much. I'm excited the snow is coming. I'm excited to wear my new snowboarding clothes (that's what it's all about, right?). I'm excited for any excuse to go to the snow. I'm excited for Thanksgiving. I'm excited for Christmas. I'm excited for my new job. I'm trying to eat better (not easy). I'm trying to work out (not easy either). I'm hoping for a big change. I'm hoping for a change in attitude. I'm thankful for my family. I'm thankful for my new job. I'm thankful for flautas at Chevy's. I'm happy for a friend who's doing what makes her happy. I'm worried for some friends but I hope they know I'm here for them. I'm worried about me (sometimes). I'm not thrilled about much these days and I'm hoping that changes. I'm excited that I used my new coffee cup today.

Memories: Golden Gate's 50th Anniversary

May 24, 1987. I had just turned 9 a few weeks before. My parents took the three of us kids (one brother wasn't born until 1989) to the Golden Gate Bridge's 50th Anniversary walk. I'm not a person with a lot of memories from being a kid. Some things stand out but not much... this is one that stands out vividly.

I remember what stroller my brother was being pushed in. I remember what I was wearing. I remember all the legs and jackets. I'm so happy my parents braved the crowds and brought us to this! Of course, the 800,000 people caused the bridge to flatten but all in all, what a cool experience. I hope they do this in two years for the 75th.

Article from SFGate.

Photo by: John O'Hara/Chronicle 1987

This Friday Morning

Dear Girl in the White Truck with the Social Unrest sticker,

I saw you singing the lyrics to Offspring's Self Esteem. I was belting them out too. I know it was a little awkward when we made eye contact singing the same song on our drive to work. Awkwardness aside, I think we have formed some sort of singing-while-driving bond, a car karaoke bond if you will, and I hope you have a happy day.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
In other news, I LOVE this song. Love it. A lot. LOVE IT.

Brett Domino: Justin Timberlake Medley

Social Media Musings

Social Media - It's fascinating to most, wholly adopted with open arms by others, feared by some, and touches all in some way. Lately I've been intrigued as to why certain people gravitate towards certain social media websites.

Why does "Barney from Walnut Creek" love Yelp and post review after review after review, while simultaneously feeding those reviews to their Facebook and Twitter accounts? Is Barney just a super user? Someone who is fully immersed in social media? Why does he love Yelp so much over other social sites?

Why does "Cheryl from Chicago" only post status updates on Facebook? Why doesn't she embrace Twitter? Is she being selective? Does she think Twitter is "pointless"?

I'm going to hunt down social media user case studies because I think this subject in modern sociology is absolutely fascinating. I've fully accepted social media, I use Facebook, Twitter, Yelp, Blogger (ha obviously.), and a slew of other tools and services. I wonder where I fall on the spectrum...?

Oh No You Di' int...Golden Girls Nesting Dolls

I have found the best gift ever made.

Thank you to Ginger Williams for this fantastic craft and for sharing it with the world. Check out her site - she has Saved by the Bell too!

Incredible Talent of the Day - Sewing

I think I'll start highlighting what I think are incredible talents. Today, based on a Yahoo article I read last night, I'd like to showcase sewing as today's incredible talent.

There once was a girl who lost her job and decided that she would spend $1 on a dress every day and alter it. This girl doesn't just alter these mumus and 60s bridesmaids dresses to fit her, she makes them into her own creations! Whether it's a different style of a dress or a shirt or a necklace or a jacket or a skirt, this chick is talented beyond belief in the sewing category. I'm incredible impressed. And inspired. I wish I could do this, but I'll have to find my one-a-day talent in some other field - I'm not the most domestical person out there.

New Dress a Day
365 Days. 365 New Outfits. 365 Dollars.

And she's SO cute!

Speaking of Typing.......On to Typos......"The Great Typo Hunt"

I think I have found my written word soul mates.




These guys have traveled around the country, correcting typos. My only comments on this are...

1. Awesome.
2. Why didn't I think of that?
3. I'll cut some slack for the actual typos, but I'm pretty sure most of these are because people don't know the English language very well. Punctuation and grammar. Learn them. Love them. Live them.

Typing

I type very quickly, but very incorrectly. I don't look up at the screen often, I only use my thumbs, index and middle fingers, and I don't even know what the home keys are. Despite my flaws, I've gotten along ok in life. I can IM and write emails like nobody's business. There are a few words that I have a difficult time typing though....

• "Umbrellas" Why can I *not* type this word correctly the first, second or third times??
•  Anything with a "tch" For some reason I always type "watch" - "wacth" or "switch" - "swicth." Annoying.
• "Public" I fear that I will forget one important letter in this word and be mortified for the rest of my existence.

Now that I think about it, maybe I'm lysdexic.

Smart Cars....

....are HILARIOUS. If I am in the worst mood ever and see a Smart Car, I crack up. They are so small and silly and the people crammed in them - so awesomely funny. Now, to add to the hilarity of Smart Cars, I just saw this ad:

I like them even more now.

More on Google Analytics

I know I am beating this subject to death but it's so fascinating!! All of a sudden, after 3.5+ years of having the same keywords come up in my analytics, new ones have arrived! I am proud to say that when people search for things Gordita-related, I come up. Yes, that makes me proud.

There's a camping one in there (I love to camp!), there's a lot about Briefcase Brady, a Napa rap artist, one about Comcast (they suck), and different combinations of my blog name. The bragging one is still in there, but it's now number 3.

On an semi-related note, I'm going camping this weekend and I am SO. EXCITED. Gearing up for camping season, literally and figuratively? Check out these awesome checklists from REI - helped me immensely! Now I'm the camping nerd who has everything in two bins. Wanna go camping? Let me grab my bins let's GO!

Overdraft

So, I'm beginning to realize that the only reason you'd need overdraft protection from your bank is so that you're not embarrassed when your card is denied. I don't really care about that. I mean, it's not like the movies where the waiter in a fancy restaurant comes over and cuts up your card in front of you and your new boyfriend. Really.

If I use my debit card and I don't have enough money, deny me and I'll give you a credit card. Half the time the magnetic strip on my card doesn't work anyway. I have gotten so many notices about this from Chase bank I can't even tell you. What a waste of paper. The only reason that want me to have it is so they can make $34 off of me when I obviously don't have it.

Banks suck.

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

With all the driving I've been doing lately, I've decided that I'm sick of being in the car (no offense, Enrique). Don't get me wrong, I love road trips. A lot. But I'm sort of sick of driving, sitting, paying attention, paying for gas and all that jazz. I think I need either 1) a driver (his name will be Jeeves) or 2) a plane (her name will be Penelope.)

This is an artist's interpretation of my two new possibilities:

Thought for the Day...Thunk by Someone Else.

This is so incredibly true....I couldn't have said it better.

Watch out for people who have a situational value system, who can turn the charm on and off depending on the status of the person they are interacting with…Be especially wary of those who are rude to people perceived to be in subordinate roles.

~Bill Swanson, former CEO Raytheon

The Fine Art of Grammar and Spelling

Just a short PSA for the world...

When you're out there on the interweb, promoting yourself, your business or someone else's business, it's probably best that you spell check your posts, bios, contact information, company name, and other such things. You see, if someone's information is spelled incorrectly, improper grammar is used or idioms are misused, I'm never going to contact that business and would hope no one else would either. Immediately this tells me that you do not pay attention to detail, one of the most important skills to have as a professional. If you don't take the time to ensure that the information you post to the world is correct, how could I ever trust you as a business partner/vendor/consultant?

Sidenote: If you are promoting local businesses, food or other consumer packaged goods, please use "Shop Locally" and not "Shop Local." It's driving me crazy. Business Person, this is Adverb. Adverb, this is Business Person. Become well acquainted. Please.

(If you are curious which to use, just think, am I asking people HOW to do something? If so, use the adverb.)

While We're on the Subject...

...of bragging, I just want to give a little shout out to my dear friend, Dear Abby. Ok, she's not my friend. Be picky. But I have read her column every day for as long as I can remember and today's hits home for me (as so many times they do...)

Dear Abby: May 28, 2010
People who are happy, secure and socially sensitive don't usually feel a compulsion to brag about what they have.

Ain't that true, Ms. Dear Abby.

Blog Etiquette

So I'm sure I've broken a lot of these but they're a good read nonetheless for anyone's website or blog....

The 21 Worst Things To Have On Your Blog or Website
written by Chavah Kinloch

Finally, someone who agrees with me about Flash! I thought it was cool when it came out, but now it just drives me insane when I'm visiting websites. And the fact that I can't see Flash websites on my phone? Annoying. It is pretty though...

I don't really agree with the "not making people register for comments" thing. I had my blog set up that way and got spammed like CRAZY over the past 6 months. Now I have to make you register. Sorry.

This one cracks me up: Loooong Blog Posts – If it’s going to take forever to say it, break it up. Create a series. It's common sense yet so many people don't abide by this. It's usually those who like to hear themselves "talk."

Just wanted to share this good list with you...