I'm in love...

...with Washington DC.

This past weekend I flew down to DC for my cousin's 40th birthday. Her husband had surprised her with a long weekend in DC and my brother and I thought it would be nice for me to surprise her and come down.

Getting down there was a nightmare! I got stuck in LaGuardia overnight because of rain and an unfriendly gate agent who wouldn't check to confirm that they were supposed to hold the flight for me. I spent the night in a hotel room across the street from the airport...loud and smelly and I got no sleep. Friday morning my flight from LaGuardia to Baltimore was delayed, but they put me on a flight to National, which worked out even better because its super close to where my brother lives. My original flight to Baltimore was eventually cancelled.

I spent Friday morning down by the Capitol and at the Museum of the American Indian. Really made me miss my work in Mexico. Jay and I had Ethiopian food for lunch...yummmm! I met up with Jill and Larry after lunch and walked around the mall for a while. Dinner was at an amazing Asian resturant in the city.

Saturday Jay and I went to the gym. Yes, I go to the gym on vacation if at all possible...I brought my spinning shoes and everything. We met up with Jill and Larry in lunch in Georgetown and then walked around for a while. What a beautiful part of the city. We all had dinner together and then went to a movie. After the movie, Jay and I went back into Georgetown for a drink and to talk. I really enjoy being with my brother, he's one of the most amazing people I know.

Sunday morning we drove around a little bit to look at places where he may want to buy a townhome or condo and then he drove me to the airport. Flights back were fine. I was absolutely exhausted when I got home and really just crashed until bedtime. Which means I have to unpack tonight. :(

It was a fantastic weekend and I got to see some of the most important people in my life for a happy occasion in a beautiful city. What else could a girl want?!

Boxed on a Boat

Okay, so there is this video contest for Black Box wines that my brother and his friends have entered. You've got to check out the video and vote for it as your favorite...

1) click on the following link: http://contest.blackboxwines.com/box/ and follow the instructions to register . IMPORTANT NOTE: don't forget to enter your birthdate when registering (so they know you're over 21). Otherwise, your vote won't be counted.
2) click on view and vote
3) find the film: "Boxed on a Boat", and cast your vote!!!

My brother is the boat owner in the smoking jacket and carrying the Sherlock Holmes pipe. If you need a chuckle, this is a good one...especially knowing Jay. :)

Happy Birthday!!!

Happy birthday to you,
Happy birthday to you,
Happy birthday dear Jay,
Happy birthday to you!

Happy 40th birthday to my big brother!!! I can't believe he is 40 today! Yesterday I went to MA and we went out to lunch at the Fort to celebrate. It was a great lunch and I got to meet Suzanna who is really sweet. Although she reminded me of how horrible my Spanish is now.

I wish I could have spent more time with him or thrown him the big 40th bash I wanted to. I'll find a way to do something special for him. Mom is looking down upon him today and singing to him on the top of her lungs. Our birthdays were always so special to her...

Happy Birthday Jay!!!

Will you still need me, will you still feed me?

Today is my Mom's birthday, she would have been 64 (hence the Beatles reference). I sang happy birthday to her with Lupe this morning. And even added her famous line "You're 64" to the end. :)

Its a big day for my brother and me. My brother's interview for the position in Geneva is today at 10 am. He and I talked about it in length over the weekend. If he gets it, he has a lot of decisions to make and wants me to help make them, act kind of like a sounding board I guess.

My evaluation is at 9 am. My boss has told me that I'm going to be happy, but honestly, I've heard that in the past and nothing really happens. I'm ready to move forward and would like to do it hear, but if they don't give me the chance, I'll have to consider my options.

But its a happy day because its a day to celebrate my Mom and the impact she had on the world, especially on her 2 children.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!! Love and miss you more than words can express!!!

Closing doors...

Don't they say that when a door shuts for you, another opens somewhere else? My question is, how do you find the door that has opened and how to secure the closed one to stay shut?

I realized today that sometime we think we make an impact on people's lives and we really don't. Its a painful thing to come to grips with and its bothering me today.

On a brighter note, today is my oldest friend's birthday. I met Jill when I was going into kindergarten and she was entering first grade. Her family moved to my street and my mom sent my brother and I over with brownies (or were they cookies?). Jay and I were too scared and shy to go over, so my mom had to walk us over. Over the years we had our spats and we grew apart, but Jill was my best friend growing up and she means a lot to me.

Tomorrow is my review and Jay's interview. We are both anxious about things, but its February 24th. We both believe that things happen for a reason. Why would both of these things be scheduled tomorrow if she wasn't looking down at us and didn't have good news coming our way?

Keeping my fingers crossed for both of us. We both could use some good news!!!

Monday blahs...

Well, the weekend didn't go as planned. My brother's flight was cancelled at 8:30 Friday night. This was truly a good thing because the roads were terrible and I would have had to go pick him up at the airport. Plus, we got another hefty dumping of snow on Sunday, they day he would have left.

I ventured out on Saturday b/c I had to go to the bank to refinance my car. I got a MUCH better interest rate and a lower monthly payment. And the best part is that I don't have to make a payment until January 30, 2009!!! I'm hoping this is a sign of positive things to come. *Crosses fingers* Went and payed of the old loan this morning. WOO HOO!!!

My dad informed me that he is going to buy me a GPS for Chanukah. I'm really execited b/c this is really the one thing I wanted this year. Well, I want happiness, good health, peace, joy and all that other stuff but in terms of a material gift, GPS thank you very much. He also asked if he could give one of my mom's necklaces to his girlfriend...ah no. Case closed. *Sigh*

Yesterday was my cousin's son's 8th birthday. Called him to wish him a happy birthday, but he was too interested in his new hand held video game. Hey, I can handle not rating as much as a hand held video game, especially when we are talking about an 8 year old boy. Happy birthday Jude!!!

So, swamped with work. Trying to get things together for Steve' Christmas gift. Kind of down about the holidays, which is to be expected. Saw a bunch of things that I would have loved to get him if things were different between us, but not this year and maybe never. Life takes interesting twists and turns. I can only hope that this time next year, I'll have a clearer view of the road before me...

Why did it have to snow today?

So we are getting hit pretty hard with a snow storm today. Buy why today? My brother is supposed to be flying in from DC to see me this weekend. His flight is supposed to land at 7 pm this evening. Which means, I will have to drive to the airport and pick him up. On a clear day, I live about 20 minutes from the airport, on a snowy day...who knows?! And to top it all off, we are supposed to be getting another storm on Sunday, the day he's supposed to fly back.

They say, "when it rains, it pours." But what do you say when its snow?!

Drive By Update

Dad was released from the hospital yesterday and is home!!! YEAH!!! Not 100% sure what was wrong with him, but maybe I'll find out this weekend.

Going to MA after work and get to see my brother! YEAH!!!

Thanks for all the good vibes for my Dad...looks like he may be turning a corner, do I dare say that?! :)