Swig and Waxing

Good times last night girls! I think we found our new Kates!!! There is this new bar that opened about a month ago near mi casa uptown and it's really awesome. The bartender there is from Scotland and his name is Scott. Isn't that funny. It has photo hunt and good happy hours! What else can you really ask for. Since Lindsay is moving right by me at the end of the month, there is no doubt that we will be frequenting there often. After a few beers and a few first place Photo Hunt rounds, we walked over to Noodles 28 where we stuffed our faces per usual. Quality time with the chicas. It's so great to see them at least once a week to keep my sanity.

I got a bikini wax after work with my girl Rosa. She is so cute. I really respect a job where you look at people's vag-es all day as if it was a piece of paper or a computer screen you were staring at. Throughout my appt. we talked about completely normal things, even as I was all spread eagle on the table. She told me about this yummy recipe of barley and tomatoes and how she cooks and browns them on the stove. It sounded so delicious. Anyway, so I got waxed and learned about this new tomato dish. Life is good.

I have a work softball game tonight. Exciting. I can't really stay out too late for drinks b/c I have to pack for MD since I'm leaving right from work tomorrow. I might try and catch the earlier train back to DC instead of the 6pm. It all depends on how work is going etc.

Kate---thanks for the advice about the DD Coffee. :) I don't know who you are (do i?) but thanks!

Happy Thursday people!

Love,
Lauren

DD and General Life

I've basically become obsessed with Dunkin Donuts Iced Coffee. I mean, I was pretty much obsessed before but now it's part of my daily routine, not just something I like to drink when it's hot outside or I have a craving of sorts. It's an absolute part of my mornings. Not so sure as to how this really affects my or my blog or if it's something you are even interested in, but I thought i'd mention it.

This week (like, the last two days) has left me feeling back to New York normal. I am doing the things I used to do before MLW took over my life and smothered me. I am busy with my usual deluge of extra curricular activities. This whole marathon training is still taking over my life, don't get me wrong, but it's way more manageable I think. It's more of a daily exercise than this chore that I think I felt it was before. It may also have to do with the fact that my endurance has totally skyrocketed. It's pretty much a joke for me to run 5-6 miles. I used to train for races that were that distance, but now it's like my "easy" low mileage runs during the week. It's ALMOST amusing. I think I need to become a better stretcher. I tried to stretch on the grass next to the Met yesterday after my run, but when I stood up to walk back home I got this horrible itchy feeling on the back of my legs and it was so horrible that I'm probably never going to sit on grass again in my life. I hate grass.

So what ELSE is going on? I get to see Jake this weekend which is pretty exciting considering I haven't seen him since that one time back in July that I made the trek up to the catskills to hang out with him for about a day and a half. We have a pretty fun weekend planned though I have to say. We are going to KINGS DOMIONION!!!!! I seriously can't even remember the last time I was there so I'm totally boosted. :) yay! We are going to also make a cameo at the pool on Saturday after I run 13 miles that morning. Should be fun and relaxing.

So---one thing that is on my mind now---funnily enough, is that today is Matt's last day at work. You all remember Matt right? My lovely office crush that I sit very close to. He got into business school at Emory and he's starting in a few weeks. It's really weird. We are pretty close even though we aren't BFF really. I'm going to miss him and thinking too hard about this being his last day is frustrating and makes me sad. Is this normal? I mean, I am totally setting aside the fact that he's my office crush. When you work near someone for a bunch of hours each day it seems like you have this inate closeness that when taken away, seems awkward and foreign. Whatever, I'm being way too much of a weirdo about this. Sorry to take your time.

In other news, my Gator's softball team is probably the most pimp team on the planet right about now. Yeah, we are going to the finals for the first time in franchise history. That's right. I'd like to say that it's because of me but obviously that would be a prevarication. I played like crap during our semi-final win. I think I need to play second base. I think I'm pretty good at stopping the ball. I want to try in the finals game. Whatever. I'm so over talking about softball.

I miss my MLW friends a lot. I'm really jealous b/c they all get to hang out down in MD and DC. The only problem is that I love NYC so much that I really don't want to move down to MD anytime soon. Work, etc. is going so well and i love all my friends here that I can't really consider moving to MD. In fact....I just renewed my lease on my apartment yesterday ---exciting stuff people.

Ok, I'm really procrastinating and I need to get back to work.

A shout out to my IC!

Love,
Lauren

Cable and My Life

As I've mentioned before there are a bunch of things that annoy me about New York in the summer. This though---annoys me no matter what city it happens in . When it's raining outside and then you get on the bus and the air conditioning is so forcefully on that you might as well be in the artic for 20 minutes during your commute. What is up with that? I'm so tired of being some temperature to the extreme!



Drumroll------------I ordered Cable for my apartment! I know most of you know that I don't really watch that much Tv, etc. etc. which is true b/c I never really had the chance. I'm very excited to say that from now on I'll be able to participate in many of your conversations starting off with, "did you see that commercial where...?" or "That movie was on AMC last weekend, did you watch it?" Or even the simple question, "Lauren, can I come over and watch the news?" Ha! I can say YES to all of those questions in just a few weeks.

I'm going through a life organization process of which, there are several components. I'm very excited to sort of have a life plan in mind for the next few years. They involve me working here at my job for a while still and then applying to Business School for an MBA. I plan to graduate and work at MLW in the executive director role or perhaps even in an art museum somewhere. I think it's a perfect blending of worlds and interests. Anyway---that is my plan for now. Knowing me, it will change in about two weeks. :)

Work has sort of been annoying today. Lots of crap going wrong and stress. It doesn't help that outside is totally disgusting and rainy. Luckily I don't have anything really to do after work and I'm just going to go home and take a nap. Then I'm going to wake up and clean and organize. i have the BEST life!

I want to just finish this entry so I can go back to work, etc.

I love all of you.

Love,
Lauren

P.S. Lindsey! Thanks for the shout out! I miss you! Me, you and JB have to hang out---which reminds me, i think i may know a way that can happen! xoxox

Decipticons and Autobots

Obviously this post is going to be about the end of MLW. It was my first summer directing with Jackie. It was an insane summer full of things to do and no time to anything else but those things. They are starting to return to normal although I miss my staff and friends so much!


Last night the Gators clinched a win in the 2nd round of the playoffs! We are in the semi-finals for the first time ever in Gator history. I'm proud to be on the team at this juncture. Yours truly had a GREAT game, probably my best ever. I was two for two last night and ROCKED it. My first at bat I got a solid single after a hustle to first. Then, my second, I got to first again, with two outs. And then when Josh was up---he hit me a nice grounder in the hole and I pretty much did the best base running EVER---and made it all the way home. The "vipers" or whatever the hell the other team was started to come back in the 6th inning making a for a tough 7th, but we made it in the end!

I'm totally in MLW withdrawl right now. Nothing is the same. Work feels different. I"m not printing out handouts on my neon paper and responding to a bazillion emails about random site questions. I"m also remotely frustrated b/c I have to delete a BUNCH of text messages from my phone. I actually really don't like texting and everyone else seems to and that annoys me. So many of them are from MLW and so many of them I have no idea what I was talking about anyway.

Last night was a tornado. And if my tornado I mean a hurricane, and if by hurricane I mean it was POURING. I woke up to thunder and lightening and it just never stopped. I love thunderstorms but when they wake me up and keep me from sleeping in my comfortable bed-----I don't like it. Whatever. I woke up sort of late and rushed to the bus to get to work on time. It worked. Everyone else is late b/c all of the subways are really messed up. Seriously, like ALL of them are broken down. The train that goes right to my office---the E, floods like EVERY time is drizzles. Apparently Grand Central was flooded a little bit this morning. I guess something like the Day After Tomorrow really could ruin New York. I hope I'm not alive or living in this city when it happens.

Yesterday was pretty productive. I ran 4 miles in the park listening to staff jams, a quality pick I must say. It was really humid and that was the only problem. I stretched and then I showered up and went to go see Harry Potter 5 for the second time. It is growing on me. The whole time though I kept thinking about how I need to read books 6 and 7 back to back to get the full HP experience. What do you think?

I still haven't unpacked from Cybertron. It's a disaster in my living room. Also most of my kitchen is filled with mail and trash. Not like food trash, just like papers and clothes strewn about. I hope to start cleaning this weekend, why push it right?

I have a mini-season softball game tonight in Central Park but with all the thunderstorming, I'm not sure it's really going to materialize. The central park in-charge people are really strict about playing on wet fields. I think it will be cancelled. I sort of hope so just b/c I really want to try and get to bed early b/c I'm still completely exhausted from MLW.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY MOM AND POP! It is 42 years today. Can you believe that? So long. They are old. I love you guys.

In other news: I'm hanging out with LB, Beth and Zach Tessler tomorrow night after my training run. Should be really fun. I feel so out of the loop pre-and post MLW so it will be nice to get into the swing of things. Also Jake comes home from camp in about 2 weeks. This is exciting to me. I haven't seen him in a MINUTE. We will have some fun times that weekend when I go down and see him.

Want to hear something REALLY exciting that I found out RIGHT before MLW that I forgot to write about?

I'm going to the 2008 summer Olympics in Bejing. Well---I'm not actually PARTICIPATING in the games, but I'm going to be a spectator. And it's for work! One of our clients is going to be in the Olympics and we get to go and watch! Are you jealous! It's a paid work vacation. I am probably going to end up working at the Bejing office for some of the time to make it worth my while. So exciting. Next summer is going to be wonderful!

So for the end of MLW the staff signed this cool Optimus Prime poster for me (and one for Jaxx too) and I dropped it off to get it framed at the place near my house. I got a really good deal. It's going to look so bad ass. I'm going to put it up in my room, which has the least amount of framed items. I think I have a decent amount of wall space in my apt. but I also have BUTT LOAD of posters and prints that I want framed at some point in my life. It's really expensive though. I also dropped off this print of a church in Ravenna that I picked up when I was there back in 2003. I haven't decided where I'm going to put it. I might move my MD flag from my living room into my bedroom and then start putting prints out there. What do you think?

OK, I really should get back to work as I have a decent amount of things to take care of. Peace out and expect a more regular posting schedule going forward.

Love,
Optimus Prime