Driving Tips

Top Ten Things Other Drivers Do That Result In Me Flipping The Bird, Screaming Obscenities, and Exhibit Other Classic Signs of Road Rage:

(I realize that by posting this I am indeed a hypocrite, but hey, when I do it it's not to me so I don't care as much. And I really do try to avoid these particular annoyances. And I would love to hear any of yours that I've excluded. It could be a whole other blog.)

10. Get in the turn only/exit only lane to pass traffic that has slowed to a stop, then fail to exit or turn but instead come to a screeching halt to re-enter said traffic.

9. Speed up to pass me on the highway, then get back in my lane and go slower than I am.


8. Talk on your phone, TEXT (yes, this includes "only reading" your emails or text messages), put on your makeup, eat a four course meal, or otherwise engage your hands and brain while they are supposed to be driving.


7. Enter the turning lane to make a left hand turn but swerve sharply to the right into MY lane as I pass you because obviously turning left involves first turning right.


6. Drive a Hummer, Escalade, 18-wheeler, or a monster truck.


5. Drive straight down the middle in an apartment parking lot. Then give me a dirty look when I, driving on the right side of the 2 WAY PARKING LOT LANE, attempt to pass you going the opposite direction..


4. Ignore the tollway signs that indicate quite clearly which lanes are Tolltag only and enter that Tolltag only lane without even knowing what a Tolltag is. Then come to a complete stop and REVERSE on the HIGHWAY to get into the correct lane.


*Side note: This is even more fun now that the Tollways are all electronic tolling and they don't accept cash, so you can go in ANY lane and they'll just bill you. Which means now you same people are coming to a complete stop in the tollbooth to read the sign that says "Do not stop, Keep moving. We will bill you."


3. Drive your motorcycle between lanes in traffic at (minimum) 90 mph.


2. Stop to see what happened at an accident site. On the other side of the road.

1. Fail to check your blind spot OR turn on your blinker before attempting to enter my lane, then react to my honking horn with yelling, horn honking, fist pumping, and absolutely nothing resembling an apology on your face.

That's all. Thank you for listening. Now, back to your regularly scheduled programming.

It's About Time...

...and lately I haven't had any. Change seems to come so quickly, it can be quite painful when it is making it's mark, and then just as swiftly it disappears leaving you breathless in its wake. That's what this year has been about. Change.



The first big change was Blake, who is amazing, still in my life, and a big part of all the changes that have been taking up so much of my time. But you already knew that ;)



The next big change was my job at Microsoft, which is amazing, still in my life, and an even bigger part of all the changes in the last few months.



The BIG change was the official moving out.



I'M OUT!!!!



May 1st I moved into an adorable 1 bedroom plus den apartment in a nice area (it's definitely diverse-and I'm definitely the minority-but totally safe). Philip, Blake, my mother, father, Aunt June, Blake's parents Pat and Kathy, and my cousin Steven all very bravely helped me move my storage unit contents from Flower Mound to Dallas, then proceeded to help me unpack the majority of them. Kathy and Aunt June handwashed every dish I had, Dad determinedly hung my new flat screen tv over my fireplace, Mom helped me sort out everything (including some bad memories of Ben) and pack them away to the storage unit for donation, and Blake and Pat ran all over town getting things that we needed but forgot (everything from coaxial cable to flashlights to pizza-we had to eat sometime).



Luckily the rain held off until after everything had been unpacked from the car, and by 8 pm that night my apartment was almost fully furnished and about 75% unpacked. The only problem was that nothing was actually put away yet. Normally this wouldn't bother me, but turns out I had less than two weeks to get my apartment fully unpacked, put away, and liveable, because I got cast as Maria in the Sound of Music for Garland Summer Musicals.



Which is DEFINITELY a whole other blog.



So I guess that's part one of "Where's Nikki". I hope I get to host many happy get togethers in the next 10 months...after which I will be moving in with Blake =) Again, another blog. I'm ready for wine, friends, and laughter to fill my living room...so let me know if and when you're ready to join me. Till then...

Coming Home

I know it's been months since I've been on here. There is so much I need to catch up on-but right now I just ordered a pizza, opened a bottle of Chardonnay, and sat down in my favorite chair in my new apartment. Candles are lit, Food Network is on, and I can finally, after months-even years-take a deep breath and say...

I'm home. =)

Playing House

It has been some time since I've updated, and since I finally have a free Saturday morning I thought I would catch you all up on my comings and goings.

I still love my job, especially the whole getting paid more than minimum wage part. In fact, because of that paycheck, I'M MOVING OUT!!! I am currently in the process of looking for apartments. I want to be near Blake, and fortunately he also lives near some of my closest friends (Philip, Lindsay and Sean, and Vanessa-if and when she moves out). Turns out it's a lot faster to drive to work on the George Bush tollway than it is from my parents house. And I'll be really close to one of my favorite places in the whole world, Central Market (which, aside from having incredibly fresh produce and a meat lover's heaven of a butcher section, also has the best smelling bathrooms in Dallas-weird, but true). So that's where a lot of my time and energy has been spent-focusing on the move out that I (and my parents) have been hoping and dreaming for for 2 years.

I've also been perfoming at church, going to friends' shows around town, celebrating my birthday, trying to visit with my nephew, celebrating Valentine's Day with Blake...busy busy busy as usual.

Speaking of Blake, we've spent the last week playing house. I think he would love it if I moved in for real, but I really need some time of my own before I do that and he gets it. He is amazing. But back to playing house. He invited me to stay with him for the last few months until I move out. To which I was like, oh goodness, I just don't know...I would feel so in the way. So (because he's amazing) he said, well, then move in for a week. If you like it, stay another week. You can always go home whenever you want. (Have I mentioned he's amazing?) So I spent last week with him. And it was wonderful. So I'm staying another week. And probably another. I'm hopeless. And silly. And completely in love. It's kind of sick.

There's my quick update. I'm going to go enjoy my Saturday morning, and with any luck I'll be back on here sooner than later. =)

Post Script

Blogger is not saving "enter" when I hit the enter button, so until I figure it out we will just have to be patient and read my entries without spaces between paragraphs or thoughts. Which ticks me off, because it completely throws off the rythym of the eye and the thought as you read, and I put a lot of thought into those spaces, but oh well, if Blogger thinks it knows better...

The Reserves

WARNING WARNING WARNING

GAG ALERT

GAG ALERT

*This blog is not for the faint hearted, pessimistic, lonely, or anti-romantic!

Secretly (okay, well maybe NOT so secretly) I am an utter whore for romance. Not the scheduled-within-an-inch-of-your-life kind of romance, but the kind that happens spontaneously when two people are completely in love and say things that in a normal sane world would not only be laughable but absolutely ridiculous.

Here's where you might want to stop reading if you have a sensitive gag reflex.

I am SO in love, and I happen to be in love with a man who is smart, witty, charming, opens doors, talks like a romance novel, and does whatever he can to give me the world. I have gone from a lonely realist to a big pile of lovey-dovey mush. I don't know what it is exactly that I do that makes him so happy, but he makes me feel like freakin' Miss America on a daily basis. I just know that I am living every romantic fantasy I ever dreamed up.

(Done puking yet?)

FOR EXAMPLE...

Last night as we were cuddling Blake kissed each of my fingers and then the palm of my hand-something he does frequently that I absolutely love. As he finished he looked up at me and said, "You know what those are called, right?" I racked my brain, thinking, "Should I?" I said, looking all cute and confused, "No, what are they?"

Blake: "They're reserves."

Me: "Reserves?"

Blake: "Yeah, you know, reserves. For when we can't be together. They're reserve kisses so you

won't miss me so much."

Me: "...................."*

*"................" is a little known technical symbol for girl unable to speak due to an overexcess of happiness.

And now you may proceed with the gagging, vomiting, and eye rolling usually induced by such romantic notions.

I will be over here with my reserves.

Busy Bee

Well, as you can see my blog is once again unformatted. That's because I'm finally trying to figure out this whole create my own format thing out. Again. There's this great site called The Cutest Blog on the Block, and they have awesome tips, hints, and tutorials for just this kind of thing. Using one of those tutorials I was able to create the cute signature at the bottom of my posts-after 6 hours of trial and error. I'm using paint.net, and it's not quite as self-explanatory as I imagine Photoshop would be. Which is why my signature is a little on the simple side. But hey, I did it all by myself. Hmmmm, I wonder how long it will take me to create my own background...

Ode to Wine

"Bottle of red, bottle of white, all depends on your mood tonight..."

Anyone else feel the need for a nice bottle of Pinot Noir or Merlot, some good music, and absolutely NO interruptions? There is nothing more I love than to put on some comfy clothes, decant a Cabernet, and put my feet up while I get drunk on Norah Jones and Billy Joel. Well, the wine helps, too.

"Red red wine, stay close to me..."

I love my parents for letting me live with them while I sort out my life, but now it's pretty well sorted and I'm so impatient to move out. It's impossible to kick back and relax when the tv below is blaring and your dad wants to know if the laundry in the dryer is yours and your mom is answering the phone that's ringing off the hook. It's not their fault. They're living their lives and I'm a little bit of an interruption. But even when they're gone...

"The days of wine and roses, and you..."

It's not my home. It's not my kitchen, my living room, my furniture, my wine glasses, my window with my view. I just feel so temporary, and it's hard to relax when you feel like an intruder in your own life. It's especially hard when those evenings of wine and music are so few and far between...

"Bring me wine, and make the music mine..."

Now that's not to say I don't enjoy a glass of wine or two in my bedroom as I wind down for bed. It's just not my bed, not really, and while it's my room, it's just not the same. So (long dramatic sigh) I just have to be patient for a few more loooooong months to find that little corner of the world where I will so happily inhabit and imbibe that oft sung of spirit.

The Do-It-Yourself Life

Okay, I admit it. I (much like my friend Lauren) blogstalk. I will click on friend's of friend's of friend's blogs...to see if they're interesting, if they have any good stories or tips, and if their blog looks better than mine. (The answer is usually yes.) As I stalk, I've noticed A LOT of sites dedicated specifically to tips: tips on cooking, on raising children, on crafting. My friend Alicia has one (the link is on the side---->) that is wonderful, full of great crafting, cooking, and quilting tips. She has links to all sorts of wonderful websites that inspire her creatively. I love all of them.

And I almost never get to use the tips.

Why? Because I'm single (well, dating with no intention of ever giving him up, but not married or living together), I don't have kids (my nephew is too young and too far away for most of the fun things I'd like to do with him right now), and I work 40 hours a week. I have hobbies and friends that keep me away from my home a lot. Does that mean I can't have a wonderful, crafty, home-cooked life too? ABSOLUTELY NOT. I know many many people like me who live a less than domestic lifestyle, and I think that there should be a place for those people, too. So I created The Do-It-Yourself Life blog. There you can read about how I lost 30 pounds and keep it off (even though I sit on my butt 10 hours a day). You can see how I have homecooked meals EVERY SINGLE DAY at that 10 hour job. You can read about my "crafts" (oh, god, don't think it's gonna be anything special, because I get cuts on my fingers just looking at scissors). Most of all, you can read about what NOT to do, because I pretty much specialize in that (see Cookie Day for more details). Really, I think you'll find it both amusing and helpful. If not, well, I never liked you anyway.

Please note: the blog is under construction. It will look much prettier when I figure out the whole blog layout thing. The Cutest Blog on the Block has great tips for that, but their server keeps crashing, so I have to wait for them to get it back up before I figure it out. Trust me, you'll hear all about it....

The Circle of Life

A few days after the New Year, my Uncle Dennis (my mom's brother-in-law) passed away from lung cancer that spread to his brain. For many the loss of an uncle is a sad but distant happening. Not so for my family. I come from a family where we know everyone-cousins, aunts, uncles, second cousins, step-cousins, grandparents, grandparents of cousins-family is family. I am very lucky that both my parents, and both sets of families, make an effort to keep in touch and visit frequently, even though we live halfway across the country from one another. Therefore I count many of these people not just as family, but as friends. My heart aches for my aunt and cousins, because they are some of those people.


I don't want to eulogize my uncle here, mostly because my cousin Keith's speech at the funeral (which I hope to get a copy of and post here) absolutely cannot be topped. I do want to talk about the wonderful, moving, and practical ways family and friends came together to celebrate a much loved man and to help his family in their time of need.

My Aunt June and Uncle Dennis live in a small town called Catlin, IL. The population is about the same as that of my high school. I have to admit, I've made fun of their choice of home more than once. I never will again after what that community did for my family. I want to pass it on, because many of us wonder what we can do to help a family when they experience a loss. Most send flowers or donate to a cause close to the heart of the deceased. If, however, you are wondering if there is something more concrete you can do, here are some of the things that the wonderful people of Catlin did for my aunt and cousins:

• Make homemade food and take it to the house. Funerals mean lots of people staying over who need to be fed. Think about making something and freezing it first, or sending over a gift card for take-out. My aunt received chicken and noodles from 5 different people, though, so you may want to think about some more unconventional comfort foods. The family has pretty much banned chicken and noodles from our diet now.


• If you're dropping off large portions of food, or something like chips and salsa, include Gladware with the food so that leftovers can be portioned out to people not staying at the house. Or, consider simply taking disposable take-out containers to the house.


• Along the same lines, paper and plastic goods (plates, napkins, cups, eating utensils) WILL be used.


• Kleenex and toilet paper ran out like Wii's at Christmastime. It's a practical option that will last way longer than the chicken and noodles.


• Flowers, gifts, and donations all need thank you notes. One very thoughtful person dropped of several sheets of stamps to help in that endeavor. One less thing for the bereaved to think about.

Remember the next time you know someone who experiences a loss that prayers and flowers are appreciated, but the everyday items we take for granted are needed, often forgotten, but help in the process of moving on.