8 days!

After celebrating Hanukkah for 8 days, I decided to go 8 days without posting a blog. I figured, if the oil did it, so could I.

Actually, I haven't posted because I've been busy, and traveling. I'm currently in Buffton, SC, which is just outside of Hilton Head. Lets recap, shall we?

Thursday AM: Got up, got in the car, stopped at Starbucks only to find out their oven was broken and I couldn't get a spinach and feta wrap, and then proceeded to head south, south, south. After making excellent time to Richmond (under 2 hours!), I decided to take it slow and enjoy the trip. Blasting the XM radio I borrowed from Beth and Darryl, I leisurely made my way down to Charleston, SC. Along my way, I saw cars from all over, including Alaska, Ontario, Illinois, Nevada, California and Utah. Of course, when I got to Charleston, I found out that there is a REALLY big bridge i had to cross over, and that it was raining. Needless to say, after a long drive, a good bowl of gazpacho, and a beer, I was sound asleep in my all too-comfy Hampton Inn bed way earlier then I should have been.

Friday AM/PM: I got up, got coffee, and heading out to Charleston. Of course, nothing in Charleston actually opens till 10am, so I wondered for a bit. Over the course of 6 hours, I managed to see the historical continuously used sephardic synagogue in the country, visited 4 museum's, saw some of the most beautiful homes in all of America, a did a lot of shopping. By 6pm, I was done. So, I went back to my hotel, and relaxed. Pictures and whatnot will be uploaded when I am back in DC.

Saturday AM: Got up, found out it was raining again, took a quick walk along the beach, and then headed down to Larry's in Buffton, South Carolina. Got stuck in traffic. Took an hour longer then it should have. Thank goodness for XM.

Saturday PM: Went out with a bunch of Larry's friends to dinner and bar hopping in Savannah. It rained the entire time, but I had fun. I even had a turpentine smelling, pepto bismo colored white chocolate pomegranate martini. It was, well, interesting.

Sunday AM: Got up, went back to Savannah, saw lots of fantastic architecture, and then stopped on the way back at a multi-million dollar house development on the water. Fell in love with the rocking chair and the view.

So, that's it in a long nutshell. I'm off to Atlanta tomorrow to spend time with the two cutest kids in the whole wide world! (South of the mason-dixon line, and who are not twins).

Happy New Year, if I don't blog again!

Jews on Shabbat

So, this is what I love about Jews in America.

As I was driving downtown to meet Jason for dessert and a movie, I happened to glance over at the car to my right. (I was waiting for the light, please don't think I take my eyes off the road while I drive, I'm not my mother.) Anyway, there in that Volvo's front seat was a man wearing a kippah. There would be nothing abnormal about this, except that it was 7:15pm, and the sun was most definitely down. On a Friday.

So, I'm just assuming he was driving home from Shabbat services. Which I could totally understand. I fully realize that it is nearly impossible to keep all the commandments, and the rules were written at a time when traveling more then a few hundred feet during the course of a day was unheard of.

But here is the kicker. He turned into the parking lot of a mediocre fast food restaurant. Burrito Bowl for Shabbat dinner, anyone?

What's Meredith Viera REALLY like?

My friend Matt (Berger), made his television debut this morning, covering the Guiliani hospital crisis for NBC on the Today show, talking to Meredith Viera! He was on MSNBC throughout the day, talking to all sorts of people. Matt is a reporter for MSNBC, covering the campaign trail. You can see the video online, definitely watch it!

How awesome for Matt! Congrats! And to think, I knew him when! I'm so proud of him!

WalMart

This is my blog entry for the day. I'm going to try to blog every day. I mean, I eat and drink every day, so why not blog?

I'm reading a very interesting book about WalMart, called The WalMart Effect. It has some fascinating facts about the worlds largest company. Did you know that WalMart sells as much by St. Patrick's day as Target sells every year? Or that WalMart is responsible for 36 supermarket chains to declare bankruptcy over the last 5 years? Or that 91% of Americans live within 15 miles of a WalMart, and the average American household spends $2000 at WalMart each year?

Luckily, I don't fit into the 91%. Another reason I believe its a good thing to live in Bethesda.

My holiday reminder..

It's the most wonderful time of the year. There'll be much mistltoeing, and hearts will be glowing when love ones are near. It's the most wonderful time of the year!

Just a reminder to treat everyone with love and kindness during this holiday season. This commericalized, overdone, in your face holiday season that has become more about the how then the why.

But I digress.

On this, the pagan celebration of the winter solstice, think of those less fortunate then you, and give canned goods, money, unwrapped toys and your time to those who are only thought about once a year, around the same time we are pushed into reviewing our actions for the past year, and it suddenly dawns on us that we only have a few more weeks to realize our previous new years resolutions before we make new, bigger, and more unobtainable ones.

But I digress.

Eat well, for the chocolate is plentiful, the parties never end, the eggnog is rich, and the latkes are fried. Eat well so that Ballys, Golds and other companies who make their millions by telling us that we are fat can make their profit margins for the next fiscal quarter.

But I digress.

Happy Holidays!

How cool is this!

Why I hate red lights.

Oh, red brake lights, how do I hate thee? Let me count thy ways.

1. You suck. Seriously. You make my commute to work (or from work) a living hell. Like today, why did you have to show yourself ever 1.2 miles, for no reason? Why did you have to glow in the darkened night, showing me the line of cars ahead of me?

2. You suck. Seriously. People use you as an excuse. They show you when they are preoccupied, when they want to stop and stare. When another car comes within 200 feet of them.

3. You suck. Seriously. You make it really difficult for me to drive, change the cd, and talk on the phone.

4. And finally, you suck cuz I said so.

Thank you.

Respond, dammit!

One of my biggest pet peeves are people who don't have the common courtesy to respond to emails.

This happens most often at work, where people routinely skip over messages in favor of other ones. For example, I send an email to my boss. She has a crackberry she routinely checks. She initially doesn't respond. Two hours later, she sends out four emails relating to nothing in particular. Yet she never even acknowledges that she got my email. Two days pass. I send another email on the same subject, or ask her about it. Her response, "Oh, I didn't have an answer," or "I haven't gotten to that yet."

Well then, let me tell you when I might get to any of the twenty or so projects you've given me. Oh, I know. After you respond to my email.

How hard is it to respond, to type a simple message like "I don't have an answer, I'll get back to you." Or, "Thanks, got it." Or, "You suck, I'm not doing this."

So, next time I email you, respond. Acknowledge. Or you'll feel the wrath of more emails. A lot more. And then some more.

The first in a series..

I'll post more about my weekend later, but here is the first in a series of funny holiday-inspired jokes.

The big 5 0.

Today, December 7, 2007, a day which will live in infamy, was also the day that I hit 50,000 miles on my car. Whoo hoo! The life changing event occurred at 8:34am just as I was passing over the intersection of Maryland Route 32 and Route I-95.

Its been just under 2.5 years since I brought the car, and I have to say an average of 20K a year isn't outrageous, given how much I drive. But it also means that I have work to do, the brakes are being replaced on Monday, the tires in January.

On a side note, I decided to figure out how much I have spent on gas to reach the 50,000 mark. I typically get 23 miles to the gallon, and I'll use an average gas price of $2.84 a gallon, which comes out to 2174 gallons and a total of $6,173. Eegads.

Can anyone spare a dime?

Happy Hanukkah!

Shopping for toilet paper

So, the DC area has its first possible snow fall this week, and I just want to make sure I have the essential supplies on hand. Let's see...

1. Toilet Paper. Because people poop more then normal in the 24 hours you may be trapped inside by 2 inches of snow.

2. Milk and bread. Oh my gawd, NO milk for your cereal! No bread for your turkey! What, turkey isn't on your list?

3. Batteries. Wait, do I need AA, AAA, D? Are you expecting the power to go out? Then what good is buying MILK?

Let's be serious. If I'm gonna be snowed in, I want to make sure I have plenty of wine, a good book, and chocolate. Lots and lots of chocolate.

Wanted.

WANTED: Handsome, intelligent, independent, comfortable man. 28 - 35yo, white, and Jewish preferred. I enjoy pina coladas, and getting caught in the rain. Entertaining, books, travel. Teach me how to play the piano, or do sign language. Looking for someone ready to settle down, have kids, and tolerate Darryl.

Sorry I haven't posted in so long. Things have been out of hand. Its the end of the semester, and a major time for recruitment. And I was away, and I'm looking for a new job, and its been cold, and I've been attempting to have a renewed social life. Oh, did I mention my biological clock is ticking?

I'm trying to decide if I want to stop in Charleston, or Savannah, or both when I drive down to Atlanta in December. It seems like a great opportunity to see one or both of the cities. Of course, that means I can't go to NYC with my cousin, but that seemed like a lot of driving for me anyway.

Coffee is ready. Man, I love that stuff. If anyone wants to buy me a Hanukkah present, I still want one of the Tassimo Coffee Makers, which makes the individual cups.

Stefanie (from the famed shout out posting earlier this year) was in town this weekend. I got to see her at Beth's birthday party. We fought over Lilah (from the other shout out posting). She's thinking about moving to DC. So, someone hire her. For lots of money.

I'm gonna go babble on the couch. Its Sunday morning, and I believe I should be lazy.