Lay Off

So...I didn't get laid off today. That is a huge improvement over last year on this day. Wow...it's really been a year. What a crazy year.

Today was a good day though. Highlights:

1) I kicked butt at my job today and both of my bosses were very proud and grateful for me.
2) I found out my co-worker Greg is deathly afraid of Ostriches. He likes Emus though. I had fun taunting him this afternoon with pictures of Ostriches. He he he :-)
3) I had a good run today. After my first week of training for my two 5K races in May, I feel pretty confident. I ran two miles...I've never done that before. I'm 2/3 of the way there.
4) Adventurous Cafe had their chicken salad sandwich back.
5) I was hit on by a teenage boy.
6) Angie in the legal department and I decided we should be ninjas for Halloween this year.
7) AND...my good friend Rhonda will be here in a couple of hours for the weekend. I haven't seen her in over a year. She spent 10 hours a day with me in a tiny office for two years at the Westin...and still likes me. That is amazing. She's seen the good, the bad, the ugly, the overly stressed out, the demeaned and broken Marie. I get to show her the one of my favorite places on earth...the temple.

5K

I have some weird goals in life. Not really things that I want to achieve, but more along the lines of things I would like to experience. Running a 5K is one of my goals. I decided last Thursday that it was time to make this happen. The ironic thing...I HATE RUNNING. I think running is meant for getting away from bad guys.

I work out (more regularly that I used to, but still not as regularly as I should). I typically do the friendly little elliptical machines, but now it is time to run. Last night was my first time running in...let's just say...a long time. I only ran 1 1/2 miles...but OH MAN I'm sore. Clearly, running uses difference muscles than the elliptical machines. I've been walking funny all day and instead of taking the stairs like I usually do...I'm all about the elevator today!

Shoulder Bump

So I have this bump on my right shoulder. I've had it for a year now, but I'm going to the doctor next month to get it removed. It is the size of a quarter and not really hurting anything, but I don't like it. I call it my shoulder cancer (even though I know it isn't good to joke about that kind of thing), but it is most likely a lipoma (fatty tumor). Shoulders are an odd place to store fat. There is plenty of fat storage elsewhere in my body, I don't know why this one decided to start a new civilization in my shoulder. Whatever it is, I'm getting rid of it. I'm removing the chip (or bump) on my shoulder.

Dark Chocolate M&Ms

I find it interesting that no matter how old I get, how far I've come, or how mature I think I've gotten, when I'm with old friends...I revert back to how I was when I was originally with them. I don't know why that is. It might be that they've labelled me as a certain way and won't let me change into anything better. It might be that I feel comfortable with them to show that horrible side of me. And it might be that they know me so well that they are able to tell stories and push my buttons to get me to react in a certain way. I think it is all three of those theories. It is frustrating to me though. In my mind I've progressed so far since I was an immature, petty, bitter 20 year old. I don't consider myself a bitter person, but my friends from back then will always see me that way. And after spending an evening with them, they bring it out in me. I wish I could be better than that. My friends once told me that I was like a dark chocolate M&M (this was before they actually existed) because I was sweet on the outside and bitter in the inside. I'm not proud of who I was and have worked very hard to try to be better. I just want to others to let go of that old Marie as well.

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day was cool as a kid. You had a class party, decorated bags with hearts, gave out valentines, ate candy and just overdosed on sugar. It was AWESOME. Oh, when the most stressful part of life was deciding which valentine to give to which class member. Those were the days!

Valentine's Day started becoming un-cool in high school when people actually started pairing off and others were left alone. Thus the introduction of Single's Awareness Day (stupid idea). I think we still should have done bag decorating and valentines through high school.

After that comes varying degrees of bitterness. But today is Valentines Day and it is snowing. There are a lot of emotions inside of me today. But today is a good day. My roommate is going through the temple for the first time today. She is about to receive increased knowledge, blessings and peace. She will make higher covenants with an all-knowing and loving God that wants to enable her to reach her dreams. That is perfect event on a day that celebrates love. I think there is no place I'd rather be than in the temple today. Maybe I'll make it a tradition.

Surprisingly Hard to Let Go

It's Thursday. I think Thursdays are going to be the main day I update my blog because I have to cover the front desk of my company for 5 hours with nothing else to do.

I started as an intern at MarketStar in May of 2004. I supported the Sony Retail Brand Advocate Team. Upon fulfilling my internship, I returned to college for my last semester, but I continued to do the weekly Marketing Summary reports compiled by the reps. I've done them for almost five years now. I decided a couple of weeks ago, it would be best to have the Market Analyst take care of the reports from here on. I trained her (not like my job was difficult at all) and this week was her first week doing the reports.

I must admit, I was a little sad when I saw the reports come across my email today. She did them well. I gave up my baby. I have no more security blanket. I'm no longer part of my Sony team. It is hard to let go.

Argyle Sweaters

I have a mild obsession with argyle. I've always loved the print, but since I've moved to Utah, I've become OBSESSED. I don't know if they pass out argyle sweaters to all guys that cross the state borders, but I LOVE IT. It's almost ridiculous how many guys where argyle sweaters to church (argyle sweater vests count but argyle socks do not). I think it makes guys look more sophisticated, intelligent and polished. Argyle sweaters are probably my #1 favorite thing about Utah. Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea to move here afterall!

For Good

So everyone is OBSESSED with the musical Wicked. I saw it in London, and yes, it was good. It's silly to obsess over things like that though. The best song from that show is "For Good." It was quoted today in church by a beloved member of our bishopric. There were many reasons it made me cry today, but mostly because we got a new bishopric today. I know it is silly because I've only been in this ward for ten months, but in that time, this bishopric has changed my life. Life is different in a single's ward versus a family ward. You have a different relationship with the bishopric. They are your second fathers, your counselors, your cheer leaders and your friends. Bishop Matsumori, Brother Baliff and Brother Curtis will always have a very dear place in my heart. They really have changed me For Good.