I'm So Cute..

My roommate is the reason I say this so much. I absolutely picked it up from her. Whenever I do something rather dumb [or if someone else does something rather dumb] my immediate response is "I'm so cute" or "you're so cute" as in -- "it's a good thing you're cute because girl, that was dumb." Here is part of an ever growing list of reasons why it's a good thing I'm cute ::

• saying things out loud that I should have just kept in my head // most recently: Tuesday night at work while eating dinner "I wonder what makes curly fries curly, do you think it's a special kind of potato? oh no -- did I say that out loud?"  

  

  fact :: the source of this image according to google search is a Xanga that's no longer active. apparently references from the Newlyweds are no longer current....

• when I try to do any kind of math // I'm still waiting for the day that I need to put calculus to work in the real world -- but I probably shouldn't hope for it since I struggle with basic math. "$400 a week? Four weeks in a month? That's like $1200 a month!" oddly enough -- if you ask me to calculate a batting average or tell you how much that cute dress is going to cost if it's 40% off -- I can usually do that. obviously it's multiplication I'm bad at. 

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• spelling. in general. // I can never EVER spell the word restaurant in one try [not even that time] I always need those squiggly red lines. If I'm writing a thank you note I have to type it in word first to check for said squiggly lines. 

found heeeere!

• balancing my checkbook // this is probably 100% related to my math skills. I cannot balance a checkbook if my life depended on it. My goal is just to have a positive number on the wells fargo website come the day before pay day. Even if that positive number is less than 10. 

  

  found here!

That being said, I hope everyone is having a marvelous Monday. I'm sure I'll do more dumb things to add to this list soon.

Thursday Things :: I Believe.

I don't have anything substantial for today -- except that I believe that we will win. So today's Thursday Things will be a compilation of #USMNT hype videos to get you pumped for today. You're welcome.

 

Post by U.S. Soccer.

"One Moment Does Not Define Us" - USA World Cup Hype Video 2014 from Ted Harrison on Vimeo.

Don't forget, if you didn't already get the afternoon off, Klinsmann has a written excuse for you!

from the US Soccer official Tweeeter

If those don't get you pumped for the game today, you might be a robot.

Martha Berry House O' Dreams

On Saturday, my mother and I decided that 86 degrees with 10000% humidity was an outstanding time to make the hike up to the House O' Dreams at Berry College. I'm pretty sure we burned more calories than RunKeeper said because it was like hiking in a freaking sauna. 

I really love all of the stories behind Berry College. My favorite has to be about how Henry Ford was rude to Martha Berry and tossed her some peanuts when she approached him for a donation for her school.  The House O' Dreams is on top of Lavender Mountain on Berry's Mountain Campus. The house was built in 1922 by students and staff as a gift to Martha Berry, how cool is that? [read more on Berry's website // or you can take a virtual tour here!]

We took one of the dogs, Pete, with us. He was SO EXCITED that he was getting to go for a car ride and adventure -- but I don't know if he'll be trusting us again anytime soon. We trekked up the winding road to the top of the mountain and walked Pete to one of the ponds on the grounds -- while he was trying to decide if it was shallow enough for him to sit in it to cool off, he definitely fell into the pond...

This is Pete

This is the pond Pete fell into

After we made it back down and drove for ice cream -- Pete refused to get out of the car without some treats to entice him. I definitely recommend this hike for everyone. There were even little kids on the trail [total troopers, in my opinion] it's a pretty long hike [I want to say it was about 8 miles total]  but the views are stellar and you can hang out on the House o' Dreams grounds for however long enjoying the scenery. 

Do you have any hikes we should look into? We've got Stone Mountain in mind for our next hike. 

Sunday Social

While down the blog rabbit hole, I stumbled upon this weekly linkup and figured I might as well use it for some inspiration! I don't usually post on weekends because my off Sundays are primarily reserved for bottomless mimosas, brunch, and Netflix binge induced naps.

1. What’s your favorite scary movie? Guys. I'm not a scary movie watcher at. all. That being said, my favorite scary movie is Hocous Pocus. You're lying if you don't think it's a little scary.

found here!

2. What is your favorite weird TV show you think no one else watches? I owned up to this in a humpday confessions post -- but absolutely Warehouse 13. I mean my dad watches it with me -- but I bet everyone else would think it was ridiculous. I don't care I LOVE IT. 

found here!

3. What is the song you can sing all the words to without any music? There are too many of these for me to just pick one. I do consider it a talent that I can do almost every Ludacris song though. I mean if I were ever entered into a beauty pageant, that would probably be my talent....

found here!

4. What is your favorite book to re read? Harry Potter. I can read the Harry Potter series a million times and still find something new, something I missed before, or something that I didn't realize was so important until I finished the series. J. K. Rowling is a literary genius. Sometimes I think that Harry Potter is really a biography series being sold to us as fiction + J.K. is actually Luna Lovegood.

found here!

5. The one website you visit more times a day than others? BuzzFeed. Guys I'm not sorry. I mean I can't help it. It's like an addiction. I need it. I need to know the 21 Amazing Emma Watson Quotes That Every Girl Should Live Their Life By -- how else would I know how to live my life like Hermoine?!

So there you go! My first ever Sunday Social. Check out everyone else who answered too!

A Quarter Life Crisis?

This Free Agency period is kind of killing me. I've been asking for [and not so much asking for but still receiving] a lot of advice on my current career struggles. I'm at what appears to be a turning point in my life and I honestly don't know which way to go. I can safely say I've never felt this lost or disoriented in my entire life. I've always known what my 5 year plan was. It was always "work in the community affairs department for the Atlanta Braves."

A lot of the advice I have received lately has been to get out of sports all together, which terrifies me. Not because I think working in baseball is the only thing I'm good at [but sometimes that is what I think] but because I've worked so hard to get to where I was this time last year. I climbed the ranks, I put in the intern time, I worked hundred hour weeks for months at a time. I haven't taken a vacation since 2008. I haven't had holiday weekends off since I was a freshman in high school. I took a minimum wage, second job, where I'm actually losing money simply to stay involved in baseball. I've spent a small fortune on job fairs, job board subscriptions, and relocating for new opportunities.

I'm hearing a lot of  "why don't you look for a marketing or communications position and then buy season tickets for baseball" or "you can always work gameday as a second job to stay in sports, but why don't you try a different position?" I have come to the conclusion that I would have to work in one of those modern marketing firms with beer in the fridge that takes ridiculous staff trips to food truck parks and baseball games because I am 100% not cut out for the 9-5 sitting in a lonely cube career. I'm sorry, I just can't do it. I've always had "going to work at the ballpark" to keep me afloat when it comes to the whole cubicle life.

I'm also terrified to lose the camaraderie. When you work 100 hours a week with a group of people you can't help but have them as your closest friends. I may be able to make friends with just about anyone, but I don't think I'd be able to make the kind of friends I've made working in baseball. They see you at your best and your worst. They understand why you need 28 cups of coffee on game 9 of the homestand. They have the same sleep schedules, they also pay special attention to how a different team does their promotions or sponsorship fulfillment. They'll tell you "our dizzy bat race is so much more entertaining than this relay thing."

I'm not sure if I'm ready to give up on my career in sports. I don't know if I can look at all of the work I've done and say "well, we had a good run, on to the next one." I don't know if I'm prepared to start all over from scratch. What if my experience doesn't translate and I have to start over as an unpaid intern again? Then how am I going to pay of my student loans for a degree in Sport Management?  How long before I start to almost regret my time in California and Texas thinking "had I stayed one more year I would also have a degree in Business Management..." I'm not sure if I'm at a place where I can see a change as growing instead of quitting.

found here

Humpday Confessions :: Four

Well, hello there Wednesday. You sure did get here fast.

I haven't put my contacts in since Monday and it has been gloooooorious. I've been told that when I wear my glasses I look like that Hipster Ariel meme but I could not possibly care less. My eyeballs are rejoicing in the whole "not leaving the office or interacting with other people" experience that's going on. Tomorrow it will end because there's a game + the sun is pretty brutal without prescription sunglasses. I should get prescription sunglasses.. [side note -- I can't spell prescription, spelling is hard. but when I right clicked to correct it I accidentally corrected it to "superscription" which is fun.]

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I have had the worst attention span this week. We're talking I have to do six things at once to get anything done. Coincidentally? I'm also needing more coffee to get moving in the morning. I'm sure the two of those are not coincidences. I always knew I had more in common with the Gilmore Girls than not.

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I cannot get enough of Pretty Little Liars. I know I'm 25 and I'm watching a show about high school drama, but I refer to it as "my stories" like your grandmother talks about her soap operas. I think that makes it okay. I'm thinking about coming up with a drinking game for the show... which is even more appropriate.

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I'm not going to hit my 150 by June 21st. I have 25 miles to go in the next four days. That's nearly 7 miles a day. I might get really close -- but I've decided I deserve a little bit of an extension for my reward [because I can always justify shopping] -- so if I hit my 150 by Wednesday of next week [that's still like 3.5 miles a day] I'm going to buy myself that workout tank top + maybe this one too. I did hit a PR in my 5k last Saturday -- so that has to count for something!

special thanks to Victoria using voodoo magic to make me look so good crossing the finish line...

I'm more concerned about the lemon, lime, and avacado shortage than I am the gas prices going up. I expect gas prices to always be unreasonable -- but I'm really concerned about the price of my margaritas + guacamole going up. That's stuff I really don't wanna cut out of my discretionary spending. I mean. I love margaritas. I also love fresh guacamole. 

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I think this is my longest humpday confessions blog post -- so I'm just gonna stop here. Head on over + see Kathy for more humpday confessions. BUT FIRST. Minions playing soccer:

Unpopular Opinions on Bandwagon Fans

I've been a Braves fan my entire life. Growing up we had plenty of bandwagon fans because we won all the time [I also kind of thought that the Braves just got to go to the NLDS every year + that the National Anthem ended with "home of the Braves"]. I have an unconventional opinion on bandwagon fans and here's why.

this picture has nothing to do with bandwagon fans & everything to do with the babes I watched the World Cup with this weekend.

If your team has bandwagon fans -- that means they're doing something well. They're either winning all the time or signing those big name stars. It means their revenue is going up, the value of the team is increasing. In that case, I think everyone should want to have bandwagon fans. Plus, it's really not their fault for being late to the party. Not everyone can be as savvy when it comes to picking their sports teams. It's like getting upset when a band you listened to when they were nobody makes it big.

Maybe I have this opinion since technically I'm a bandwagon Blackhawks fan and also a bandwagon soccer fan. I lost my hockey team, Atlanta apparently can't hold on to one. So I decided I would cheer for a team that most likely wasn't going anywhere for a while. I don't have a soccer team, I don't really watch it when it's not the World Cup, but I really do appreciate the sport. It's so much more exciting when a goal is scored than basketball, it requires a substantial level of athleticism to play, and the die-hard fans are so passionate that you can't help but love the sport.

This past weekend I completed the first of my summer bucket list items  -- we watched the England vs. Italy match on Saturday at Fado Irish Pub -- which I'm already a fan of because of their rooftop patio, bottomless mimosas, + rockin' menu. Plus I can always order a Smithwick's there. I've been in playoff baseball situations -- but that's nothing compared to the passion these fans had. It made me want to move to Europe. I don't even think I could describe it if I tried. I also didn't feel like the group of guys we watched the match with hated bandwagon fans or those of us who "watch it wrong" or those of us who call it soccer. Obviously I was too wrapped up in the experience to take any pictures...

I absolutely suggest watching your next World Cup match at a bar where everyone else is watching the World Cup. It's definitely an experience like no other. Just be prepared to have beer spilled on you in celebration and to get sucked into the match like everyone else! Also, if you're watching at Fado, make sure to get the wedges + cheese dip.

 

Baseball -- Behind the Scenes

The top referring search terms for my blog this week were "tommy la stella" + "girlfriend" so I'm going to take that as a sign that I should write more about baseball. That led to my newest series "baseball behind the scenes." Other titles I considered: "baseball from the service level" "tales from the tarp pulls" "beyond the diamond"

This week I'm starting with questions that drive us nuts.

• What do you do in the off-season? 
• What time do fireworks start?
• What time does the game end? 
• What happens if it rains?
• Is the game next week going to get rained out? 
• It's raining at my house in Kentucky, is it raining at your ballpark? 
• Does the first baseman have a girlfriend? 
• Do you work in baseball to date the players? 
• What do you do when the team is out of town?
• Do you travel with the team? 
• Can you introduce me to [player's name]?
• Does that mean you can get me free tickets? 
• Can you send me autographed memorabilia? 
• That's your career?
• Can I propose to my girlfriend on the video board? 
• I know it says 'no outside food or beverages' on your website, but can I bring in... ?
• What can I get for free? 
• Is the game cancelled? 

If I made a nickle for every person who asked me "well what do you do in the off season?" or "so when the season is done you're just on vacation?" I would never actually have to work another day in my life. I don't know what it is about the sport industry that makes people think that we don't work in the off-season -- but that's when the work gets done. That's when you plan next year's events, try to sell season tickets to people who say "but the season doesn't start until April, call me back then."

The video board/on-field proposal is definitely one of my pet peeves. Nine times out of ten, the girl isn't a baseball fan, this isn't her idea of a great proposal, and the guy is hoping that we will do all of the work for them. As a field host who is super bad at lying, I always struggled with the whole signing the girl up for a game or leading into the "trivia" question that was really "Susie Jane, will you marry me?" That's not to say some girls dream of being proposed to on the field at an MiLB game, it's just not my idea of a good time.

So does anyone have a specific behind-the-scenes aspect of professional baseball you would like to see me write about? Let me know!

Humpday Confessions :: Three

Today is Splash Day at the ballpark -- so it's a 1 pm game with lots of water balloons, water guns, + water fun! If you're reading this -- it means I got my act together + scheduled a blog post.. so yeaah! It's Wednesday so it's time for some confessions with Vodka + Soda!

on my current gypsy status // sometimes I get super bummed about the whole "no forever job" situation I'm in [like on Monday, super bummed.] then I think about it -- I'm only 25. I have my whole life to be tied down to a career but not my whole life to be young, not tied down to any real responsibilities [husband, house payment, etc.] so I'm really in the perfect place to jet off to the Dominican for a weekend or Europe for two weeks, or just do whatever I want with what's left of my paycheck after the student loan people get their hands on it.

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on this week's office jams // I've been alone in the office again this week -- bossman comes back from Charlotte today so I'll have to turn them down -- but I definitely listened to "Smart is the New Sexy" on Spotify most of the week + then more than my fair share of classical music. It's one of those weird music weeks.

 

on my subpar driving lately // I have a lot of road rage -- people in Georgia are bad drivers. We'd all get where we're going easier if everyone followed the rules. The left lane is for passing, don't slam on your brakes in stupid places, use your turn signals, just basically don't be an idiot. I don't care how much you paid for your car -- if you're going under the speed limit don't drive in the left lane. Yesterday I kind of ran a red light in front of a police officer -- but he already had someone else stopped + also witnessed the guy stopping for no reason mid-intersection that caused me to be mid-intersection when the light turned red. Obviously he gets it. 

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on my peachtree road race training // hahahahaha I did sign up for a training plan with my RunKeeper app -- so hopefully it will send me passive aggressive reminders to get my ass in gear so I don't die on Cardiac Hill! I won't be fast, but I probably won't be last either!

Top 10 Songs By The Beatles

If you ask for my all time favorite band ever -- I don't hesitate. The answer is always, instantly, The Beatles. I bought Across the Universe the day it came out + watched it so many times I burned a hole in the DVD [movies also in that category include :: Garden State, Titanic, Beauty and the Beast, Pocahontas... my movie habits were built for VHS tapes..] All of my cars have been named after Beatles songs [Lucy, Sadie, and Jude] and I'm pretty sure if I were ever to decide to have babies they would also be named after Beatles songs. Zero regrets here. That being said -- it's impossible for me to pick one single favorite song -- so here are my top 10 in no particular order.

original image from here

1. With a Little Help from My Friends
2. Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds [ and yes -- I will fight you until I'm blue in the face that this song isn't about LSD ]
3. Hey, Jude
4. Blackbird
5. All You Need is Love
6. Come Together
7. Strawberry Fields Forever
8. Get Back
9. Let it Be
10. Why Don't We Do It In The Road?

I always wonder why the Beatles aren't on the radio more + I assume it's probably related to how hard it was for me to find videos or share-able versions of any + all of these songs. What's your favorite Beatles song?

Thursday Things :: Disney

Last night on my drive home from trivia I stopped for what I thought was a stray cat, but turned out to be a raccoon. I swear for a good minute I considered seeing if he would me my friend + decided he did look an awful lot like Meeko. Obviously I came to my senses before I tried to take him home with me..

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So since it's Thursday -- here are some Disney things!

First of all -- Drunk Disney :: If you're not watching the Practical Folks do their Drunk Disney series -- you really should be. I'm genuinely disappointed that I didn't come up with this idea. Just watch it -- Alice in Wonderland is their most recent. 

Disney Ladies From Last Night :: I'm generally a fan of anything that takes screen caps + pairs them with a solid TFLN [[ see also Texts From The Brownstone, Criminal Minds TFLN, etc.]] mostly because it's really clever situation humor.

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THE DISNEY SELECTION ON NETFLIX! :: So, my TV supposedly has like three video inputs -- right? Well apparently there's only one video input [[ maybe that's why it was on sale..]] so if I want to switch from DVDs to VHS I have to get back there and unplug. Makes me less likely to switch back and forth because it always takes twenty minutes to get everything plugged in correctly. THEN I discovered that Netflix will stream a fair amount of Disney movies via my ChromeCast + I don't even have to get up to change it. Related :: all of my suggestions on Netflix are children's movies....

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Do you have any Disney favorites I missed?

 

Humpday Confessions :: Two

on my room :: my room is an absolute disaster right now. I keep telling myself I'll set aside just an hour to clean it up + take all of my laundry upstairs but then I don't. It's not even something I don't have time to do -- I just keep picking the pool over cleaning. I decided to wash my sheets + ended up sleeping on top of a flat sheet for more nights than I'd care to admit to..

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on why I didn't post yesterday :: I wrote 98% of a post + could not commit to a number 1 lesson I had learned from Criminal Minds. So I saved it as a draft + went to the pool. Noticing a trend yet? 

on Warehouse 13 ending :: guys I'm really bummed that they didn't keep going. I don't care who judges me for watching SyFy. That show covered all of my favorite genres -- historical fiction, comedy, crime drama, + adventures. COME ON. They wrapped it up in such a way that it feels like it could come back. come on SyFy, bring it back.

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while we're on TV shows ending :: I'm still not over HIMYM + how it ended. I keep watching old ones + getting more angry about the lies told to us as a fan base. I mean COME ON. 

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all of that being said -- I'm off for the rest of the day -- so I'm obviously off to the pool. Happy Wednesday y'all!

Summer 2014 Bucket List

These are all over the place now -- so obviously I had to make my own so I didn't feel left out..

• make it to the damn beach -- any beach -- at least once before October.
• float the Chattahoochee River.
• successfully make a pair of cutoff shorts.
• re-read the entire Harry Potter series + complete my summer reading challenge
• unplug for an entire weekend.
• buy one of those ridiculous waterproof disposable cameras + take ridiculous underwater pictures.
• canoe or that stand up paddle board thing OR BOTH! probably both...
• day trip to Little River Canyon
• weekend trip to at least one new MLB ballpark + MiLB ballpark. 
• master the mermaid hair.
• try three new local breweries 
• make it to at least four outdoor food + booze festivals.
• all of the things on this list too..
• blog about it all! [yeah I know that's cheating -- whatevs] 

Even though that last one is cheating -- I'm considering it a challenge to accomplish all of them by the end of September. I know that technically Labor Day is the end of summer -- but since it doesn't get cold here until October or November -- I'm considering it a part of summer.

little brother apparently not having as much lake fun as me + our photobomber

I did manage to make it to the lake for the first time of what I'm sure will be many -- swam to the boat without spilling my beer, busted my rear end trying to get out of the lake without spilling my beer, and went down the water slide from the top of the boat with all of the other children! Sunday was definitely a Sunday Funday to remember full of Cards of Humanity, bottomless mimosas at the rooftop bar, and a trip to Sweetwater!

What's on your summer bucket list?