I like politics and enjoy keeping up with party trends or news.
I also like Stephen Colbert.
I really like the Colbert Super PAC.
In case you do not catch the Colbert Report every night in Comedy Central, Stephen Colbert wanted to form a PAC (a political action committee) for the upcoming 2012 Presidential Election. A PAC is pretty much a fundraising committee dedicated to a candidate or cause. A recent change in PACs has allowed the Super PAC to form. This kind of PAC has uncapped contributions but cannot directly support a candidate. Perfect for Stephen Colbert. His Super PAC, known as Americans for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow, has approximately 165,000 members as of August 2011.
I love it. A political loophole that can allow citizens to take up any reason they see fit to raise money toward a political campaign.
Enter: Rick Parry.
If you happen to glance at the news every other minute you might notice a similarly named Governor from Texas, Rick Perry.
Colbert has created a similarly named fake candidate to endorse on his show. This Rick Parry character even had a few television ads that ran before the Iowa Caucus a few months ago. Guess who got written in as a Republican candidate? None other than Rick Parry.
Colbert had done a fantastic job of exposing the obvious loopholes within the political system, in my opinion. And I think it's great that he is able to laugh at both himself and the obvious flaws that exists in our government. I think it takes a lot of confidence to step back and laugh at something, even if it is mocking. You are expressing your opinion and rejoicing in the fact that you think it's wrong. That is a great way to make life a little easier. A lot of people get angry, try to make others angry and highly criticize such flaws. Why not turn it into laughter? Make light of the situation so to speak.
I love laughing at this kind of humor and really like watching the Colbert report.
I am a proud member of the Colbert Super PAC in fact.
Oh I love laughing. It makes me feel good.
I just need to share this story. I get such a kick out of it.
Enjoy the videos and articles!
EAA
14 September 2011
11 September 2011
time travel
this is a positive turn around. i have starting to think ahead about what i am going to blog about before i start typing. i might actually write more than twice in two years.
before i go and talk about myself, a shout out to our wedding photographer. Caryn Ashley Photography did our engagement and wedding photos. She was wonderful to work with and extremely professional. I would highly recommend her if you are in the Michigan area and looking for a wedding, senior or family photographer. Check out her website at: http://carynashleyphotography.com/
a lot of my thoughts this week have been about music. i love music. all kinds of music. i listen when i am cleaning, cooking, writing this blog, reading, while on the phone and running. I like the beat of some songs, others remind me of my husband, and some are just feel good tunes. in high school we had to make a life CD filled with songs that meant something to us. i loved the project, and I am sure if i dug it out of the "erika's box of life" it would remind me of my high school self. in honor of that project and my thoughts of music, here's a short list of my favorites (with Youtube videos of course!).
only a WEEK until the half-marathon. i went to the course on saturday and ran part of the loop backwards so I could get a good feel for the course. can you tell that I ran in college? I know the course well as I have run almost all of my long runs there since we moved to Erie, but I just wanted to make sure. I am getting nervous but i know those nerves will help me go faster. just have to keep it in for 5 miles before I start racing, that will be the tough part.
it's a friday night tradition in our house to watch a movie or tv shows on friday after work/school. this week was a few episodes of Lost, yes the ABC show that probably no one watched. we have all six seasons. i am on season 5. almost done. i never watched the show when it was on cable, but my husband is getting me caught up. funny thing about the show is that i don't think it makes sense but its addicting! I have to watch the next episode so i know what is going on or who dies. argh. i did not think i would be interested in the show, but here i am almost done with the entire series. and i can't believe it last siz seasons. really. some of the story lines are a bit far fetched. my husband had a roommate in college who used to make fun of him for watching it. he told us that he read that the writers only wrote a few episodes because they thought the show would flop. and i can see why. i will have to finish the series now though, i need to know what happens to the island!
I have had a lot more time to cook since getting married, perhaps that is how it works. less things to plan, make and coordinate after work. more time to prepare wonderful meals! I recently made a delicious bacon meatloaf. It went over ok with my husband, a few too man onion bits perhaps. i thought it was great. i have been baking a lot of sweets lately too. brownies, cookies, cakes, etc.. i even grill!
I never really learned a lot of basic cooking techniques growing up but i have a new appreciation for good cooking. It relaxes me a lot after a long day. I feel good making a meal and then getting to enjoy the results. I am glad that I have taken an interest in it, it was on my mental list of things to be better at as I got older. I always envisioned myself as a better cook and its good to realize a wish like that. I feel accomplished in some arena that i once only thought about. i have always been a thinker about what i could do better, or start to do. it seems like the older I get the more obtainable this wishes are. that is one of the great parts of growing up.
Alright, sunday at 10:55 pm, I have seen enough of you.
EAA
before i go and talk about myself, a shout out to our wedding photographer. Caryn Ashley Photography did our engagement and wedding photos. She was wonderful to work with and extremely professional. I would highly recommend her if you are in the Michigan area and looking for a wedding, senior or family photographer. Check out her website at: http://carynashleyphotography.com/
a lot of my thoughts this week have been about music. i love music. all kinds of music. i listen when i am cleaning, cooking, writing this blog, reading, while on the phone and running. I like the beat of some songs, others remind me of my husband, and some are just feel good tunes. in high school we had to make a life CD filled with songs that meant something to us. i loved the project, and I am sure if i dug it out of the "erika's box of life" it would remind me of my high school self. in honor of that project and my thoughts of music, here's a short list of my favorites (with Youtube videos of course!).
- Toto's Rosana: I used to have a Billboard 1982 cd that I stole from my parents. this was by far my first memory of a song i liked
- Jay Sean's Down: I think this has the highest played rating on my itunes. best song to sing along to i think.
- The Proclaimers, I'm Gonna Be: reminds my of my husband. he dances a little whenever this song is on. at our wedding people went crazy about this song!
- Ben Folds' Luckiest : this song reminds me how wonderful my life is. no matter the day
only a WEEK until the half-marathon. i went to the course on saturday and ran part of the loop backwards so I could get a good feel for the course. can you tell that I ran in college? I know the course well as I have run almost all of my long runs there since we moved to Erie, but I just wanted to make sure. I am getting nervous but i know those nerves will help me go faster. just have to keep it in for 5 miles before I start racing, that will be the tough part.
it's a friday night tradition in our house to watch a movie or tv shows on friday after work/school. this week was a few episodes of Lost, yes the ABC show that probably no one watched. we have all six seasons. i am on season 5. almost done. i never watched the show when it was on cable, but my husband is getting me caught up. funny thing about the show is that i don't think it makes sense but its addicting! I have to watch the next episode so i know what is going on or who dies. argh. i did not think i would be interested in the show, but here i am almost done with the entire series. and i can't believe it last siz seasons. really. some of the story lines are a bit far fetched. my husband had a roommate in college who used to make fun of him for watching it. he told us that he read that the writers only wrote a few episodes because they thought the show would flop. and i can see why. i will have to finish the series now though, i need to know what happens to the island!
I have had a lot more time to cook since getting married, perhaps that is how it works. less things to plan, make and coordinate after work. more time to prepare wonderful meals! I recently made a delicious bacon meatloaf. It went over ok with my husband, a few too man onion bits perhaps. i thought it was great. i have been baking a lot of sweets lately too. brownies, cookies, cakes, etc.. i even grill!
I never really learned a lot of basic cooking techniques growing up but i have a new appreciation for good cooking. It relaxes me a lot after a long day. I feel good making a meal and then getting to enjoy the results. I am glad that I have taken an interest in it, it was on my mental list of things to be better at as I got older. I always envisioned myself as a better cook and its good to realize a wish like that. I feel accomplished in some arena that i once only thought about. i have always been a thinker about what i could do better, or start to do. it seems like the older I get the more obtainable this wishes are. that is one of the great parts of growing up.
Alright, sunday at 10:55 pm, I have seen enough of you.
EAA
07 September 2011
Crooked Pages.
Yes. That was my day yesterday.
I really like my job. In fact, its one of the best jobs I have ever had (my stint as a running store employee was my favorite though). I like the people I work with, my day to day task are enjoyable and I am allowed to be creative with advertising. I am happy there. But some times there are moments where I get so annoyed. I have no idea why. An outside stressor? A mental breakdown? A frustration not properly vented? I try to analyze the situation, review the mistakes I made and figure out how to prevent it but yesterday it was just there. The thing that got me was crooked pages- the stapling of pages together while being crooked. It just looks awful. I have to remove the staple, re-staple the page and then move on. There is no one criminal, no one to always blame but they appear. I have no idea why pages are staple pre-alignment, it does not seem like a daunting task to complete. I must be too type A to deal with crooked pages.
Resisting the urge to bring it up to a co-worker, I am addressing my frustrations here. Thank you blogspeher for listening to my senses frustrations.
I feel better. Phew.
Other new happenings in life: A Job!
Perhaps I should recap: currently I work for a temporary employment agency. I have been assigned to my current position but still receive a pay check from the temp agency. I was approached with a different job opportunity with a different company last week. I wanted to remain at my current job so I approached my boss with the situation. Thankfully he was understanding of the situation and how I might be able to stay with the company, not the temp agency. I am still waiting for all the paperwork, but I hopeful it will all work out. Job security is very nice.
Oh, and the in-laws were here! AH!
No, just kidding they really are great. I am glad to show them around and can’t wait to show off the townhouse, a very clean townhouse I might add. We went out to Waldermeer park, the Zoo, a picnic on the beach and play many rousing board games. I won two rounds of Settlers of Catan, the boys were mad! The weather was beautiful on Saturday and our trip to the amusement park was action packed. My neck did hurt the day after however. I think I am getting too old. A real problem when you are in your twenty's.
Running is going ok this week. Not the best though. I am having trouble recovering for the next day’s workout/run. I ran a good 8 on Tuesday and ever since then it’s been hard to make the legs go. I didn’t run with my GPS on Tuesday, braving just the timed watched for the run, so I am not completely sure of the pace but it felt faster than 7:45/mile. I think perhaps I am eating too little. What a problem, right? I eat a good breakfast, but I am always starving by lunch. Some how lunch doesn’t fill me up and I am starving again when I get home. I have not been very good about snacking twice during the day. I used to do that in college every day, but now I am out of the habit. I guess I will have to get back into the routine of eating more.
Only 11 days until the half marathon!
Happy Wednesday to all my followers (and future followers, I hope!)
25 August 2011
committed.
That's it. I did it. I tool the plunge.
I signed up for my first half marathon.
In means of timing, I didn't follow the best timing.
It's less than 4 weeks away. Even with my current training, fitness level and running log, I might fall behind my goal. Putting my expected finish time was a big realization of how fast my goals are versus the reality of my training. It made me think of my running past and how it has changed.
A funny thing happened since I graduated college, stop competing at a high level in running and became a road racer, I started to care about running differently. Here I am, a college runner loving every minute of competing. Knowing that every race is an opportunity to beat those other women, proving my hard work is paying off. I could earn all conference status (a title won but taken away by some coach who said his athlete's do what there expected to do, mind you), a academic all-American status or most valuable runner. Now I race a clock, my previous time or the random runner ahead of me. I don't think I care less, just differently. It's become more selfish, I don't have a team, teammates or a coach. I run because I want to beat myself. There is no college team to race or even all the same people from race to race. I miss that. I miss the consistency of knowing everyone around me was training for the same race, each with our own goals. I miss being coached full time, now I listen to myself (and Jeff Daniels, sometimes). I miss the long runs spent reminiscing about the glory race or that awful workout. Signing up for a race made me think about all this. I signed up because I wanted to, selfishly trying to reach my own goal without anyone's help. It made me think of all the times that my team trained together, making sure that we could all help each other along the way. Its hard to make a transition some times. I think it makes it harder when I think about all the things I miss, but it keeps running through my head. I am hoping this race will prove to me that doing it by myself, for myself, is the best reality.
I have been looking for more ways to stay organized lately. With the hassle of moving, putting away things and realizing that I don't have room for 50 pairs of shoes I learned that I need to stay on top of that organization thing. I cam across a great blog about crafty things for your home, and thought I would share the great organizational idea I came across. I found it on Design Sponge, an all around crafty, inspirational website. They have lots of DIY blogs, products and design ideas. Here is the organizational baskets I am going to try and make! I am excited about the possibilities, you could do so many different colors, change them with the seasons or make any size. I am thinking these would be a great desk organization piece as well.
My sister-in-law is coming for the first time to our new home tonight. I can't wait to show here around Erie, give her the run down on all our activities and then take her to JR's Comedy Club. My husband and I are big fans of comedy, and the comedy club here in Erie is a great local business. Every time we go the comedians are great, the service is fast and friendly and the manager comes out to great everyone as they leave. It is really a well run establishment. We have taken all of our guest that come to visit there so far.
Looking forward to 5 o'clock!
Like most summers, wedding season is in full effect. A recent wedder myself, I can't express how excited I get about weddings. My husband will be a part of another wedding this weekend. He is the best man, and looking forward to sharing the day with his friends. It's such a beautiful day for the couple and their love. If I could have a dream job, I think it would be to plan weddings. The couples are always happy, the industry practically never goes away and there is always some new trend to keep up with. I secretly love looking at wedding sites, even as my perfect wedding is past, the fun of seeing the new colors or designs keeps me interested. I love the creativity that can be expressed through weddings. Perhaps some day, when my job dream comes true I can plan until my heart's desire is met. Until then, I keep the happiest day of my life in my memory.
Until the next post,
EAA
I have been looking for more ways to stay organized lately. With the hassle of moving, putting away things and realizing that I don't have room for 50 pairs of shoes I learned that I need to stay on top of that organization thing. I cam across a great blog about crafty things for your home, and thought I would share the great organizational idea I came across. I found it on Design Sponge, an all around crafty, inspirational website. They have lots of DIY blogs, products and design ideas. Here is the organizational baskets I am going to try and make! I am excited about the possibilities, you could do so many different colors, change them with the seasons or make any size. I am thinking these would be a great desk organization piece as well.
My sister-in-law is coming for the first time to our new home tonight. I can't wait to show here around Erie, give her the run down on all our activities and then take her to JR's Comedy Club. My husband and I are big fans of comedy, and the comedy club here in Erie is a great local business. Every time we go the comedians are great, the service is fast and friendly and the manager comes out to great everyone as they leave. It is really a well run establishment. We have taken all of our guest that come to visit there so far.
Looking forward to 5 o'clock!
Like most summers, wedding season is in full effect. A recent wedder myself, I can't express how excited I get about weddings. My husband will be a part of another wedding this weekend. He is the best man, and looking forward to sharing the day with his friends. It's such a beautiful day for the couple and their love. If I could have a dream job, I think it would be to plan weddings. The couples are always happy, the industry practically never goes away and there is always some new trend to keep up with. I secretly love looking at wedding sites, even as my perfect wedding is past, the fun of seeing the new colors or designs keeps me interested. I love the creativity that can be expressed through weddings. Perhaps some day, when my job dream comes true I can plan until my heart's desire is met. Until then, I keep the happiest day of my life in my memory.
Until the next post,
EAA
17 August 2011
Oh Happy New Couching!
Wasting my time. That is what I must be doing not writing on this blog.
Actually I have been busy. And time flies when you love your life.
Most nights are relaxing, down time with my husband but recently we have been on a
home improvement kick.
You know when you get started thinking about an idea and then just like that you have
to make it come to life? That is how I operate. I get stuck on one home improvement
idea and need to get all the parts for the project, work on it and finish it in one day.
My husband and I started out thinking about what we could do with our unfinished
basement. There was already some wood paneled walls, a la the ‘70s, and concrete floor
but essentially a blank canvas. We ended up in the flooring section of Lowe’s, eying the
perfect floor solution, tiles. These sticky tiles are great for concrete floors and require
little tools or adhesive products. The tiles were boxed with adhesive backings that pulled
off before sticking to the floor. We hurriedly brought the tiles home, scarffed down a
quick dinner and then heading to our workspace. After staying up until 2 am, moving
a couch at 1:30 am and running a broom over the floor we had finished! The basement
looks great and its now a functioning space for my husband to work in. We added an
older couch, a few lamps, a desk and some stereo equipment to complete the space. Such
a small change made a big impact.
Our second big change came in the form of furniture. The first piece of furniture bought
by us a married couple, hopefully not the last piece. We found a bargain of a price on
a leather sectional, only problem now is the space it takes up in our living room.
There is also the problem of what to put on the walls. Oh gosh, this new couch is turning
out to be a pain! I have a rustic looking large clock, which I love, some pictures, which
are small and not really big enough to fill wall space. I am at a designing dead end. Urgh.
I hate when that happens. I usually try to do a little research via the internet but nothing
caught my eye. Any suggestions?
Actually I have been busy. And time flies when you love your life.
Most nights are relaxing, down time with my husband but recently we have been on a
home improvement kick.
You know when you get started thinking about an idea and then just like that you have
to make it come to life? That is how I operate. I get stuck on one home improvement
idea and need to get all the parts for the project, work on it and finish it in one day.
My husband and I started out thinking about what we could do with our unfinished
basement. There was already some wood paneled walls, a la the ‘70s, and concrete floor
but essentially a blank canvas. We ended up in the flooring section of Lowe’s, eying the
perfect floor solution, tiles. These sticky tiles are great for concrete floors and require
little tools or adhesive products. The tiles were boxed with adhesive backings that pulled
off before sticking to the floor. We hurriedly brought the tiles home, scarffed down a
quick dinner and then heading to our workspace. After staying up until 2 am, moving
a couch at 1:30 am and running a broom over the floor we had finished! The basement
looks great and its now a functioning space for my husband to work in. We added an
older couch, a few lamps, a desk and some stereo equipment to complete the space. Such
a small change made a big impact.
Our second big change came in the form of furniture. The first piece of furniture bought
by us a married couple, hopefully not the last piece. We found a bargain of a price on
a leather sectional, only problem now is the space it takes up in our living room.
There is also the problem of what to put on the walls. Oh gosh, this new couch is turning
out to be a pain! I have a rustic looking large clock, which I love, some pictures, which
are small and not really big enough to fill wall space. I am at a designing dead end. Urgh.
I hate when that happens. I usually try to do a little research via the internet but nothing
caught my eye. Any suggestions?
These are issues that matter. Just kidding. But I glad that these are the problems I face in mu life.
Last weekend I was blessed to have another friend come to visit. One of my best girl friends came all the way from Michigan. We went over to Northeast and explored the vineyards and the wineries, I even found my new favorite wine at a local winery. Delicious! We got to head over to Presque Isle, ride bikes, run and be outside all day on Sunday. It was a great weekend. Luckily the weather was beautiful all weekend. It was great to see someone familiar and show them around our new town. Its fun to discover new places and be able to enjoy all that the outdoors has to offer.
It was also great to spend some time with a girlfriend. I love my husband, but a girl will talk about celebrity gossip, fashion and girly thing! It was nice to share what is going on with another girl. I also loved hearing all about her life and what is going on.
Work is going well. We stay busy every week with our customers need products yesterday. Its demanding at points but that is what makes the days go by faster. Unfortunately I am a temp worker so my full hire status is still unsure. I am working hard to do everything I can extra, try to improve process and make sure I show how worthwhile I can be. Going in with a positive attitude is key some days, there are always time when people or things get you down.
Alright more tv watching time!
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