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By kilax, July 23, 2014 6:02 am

Who’s your celebrity boyfriend/girlfriend? You know, your celebrity crush?!

I seem to stick with super heroes lately – Chris Hemsworth and Henry Cavill. 

My snister and I actually have an ongoing pretend (???) argument about whether Chris is actually her boyfriend or my boyfriend. I thought her getting married may seal the deal (that he’s MINE*) but I guess not:

So I was very surprised to get this package in the mail…

… does this mean Chris is mine now?!

Or maybe he’s just on loan? Either way, I am very happy he’s here to visit. I asked Christina where to put him.

“In your bed obv”

Okay!

Sweet dreams, right?

This gift just cracked me up SO much. I was giggling the whole time I opened it and when I set it up, too. Thanks, snister! I can’t wait to watch our boyfriend… with our boyfriend. Ha ha. 

*Plus the whole Chris and Chris thing just doesn’t work, right?

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By kilax, July 22, 2014 12:15 pm

You know the part of your brain that helps you connect sounds to decipher what someone is saying? When you don’t hear them and need to use logic/common sense to figure it out? I don’t think that part of my brain works. I’m constantly mishearing things:

Steven telling me something is off with his coffee:
What I heard: It doesn’t taste crushed.
What he said: It doesn’t taste fresh.

Steven pointing out a building we’re driving by:
What I heard: mind reading
What he said: winery

The hostess asking me a question when we get to Red Robin:
What I heard: Are you part of a party?
What she said: How many?

Steven’s response after I joined the air drum solo late on a car ride:
What I heard: Get out of the van
What he said: You’re out of the band

Rachel pointing something out to me at the Kansas City market:
What I heard: She’s smoking out of a clarinet!
What she said: She’s drinking out of a coconut!

It must be a blast to talk to me, ha ha! I hope it’s at least amusing.

WHAT’D YOU SAY?!

Seriously though, I don’t understand why I can’t “connect the dots” when I mishear something. It happens every day (it was fun to pick and choose the examples for this post). It’s frustrating for me, and even more, for the people trying to speak to me. I’m listening, I swear! And no, I don’t know why I thought someone would be smoking out of a clarinet!

Do you “mishear” things like this? Or know someone who does?

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By kilax, July 17, 2014 6:21 am

So many of you left nice comments about how much you liked the bridesmaid dress I wore at Christina and Will’s wedding. Thank you! And many also commented about it being a dress that could be worn more than once (or not only to formal events). In fact, when Christina gave it to me last summer I asked her (jokingly) if I could wear it to work before the wedding. Ha ha. Just kidding…

But I am actually doing that today!

Yep! Same jewelry! Different belt and added a cardigan. 

I am really nervous about making a good impression at an important meeting I have this afternoon. More nervous than normal, as I’ve been assigned tasks for this project that I’ve never done before… and don’t quite know what I am doing. And feel very frustrated. ANYWAY! Wearing this dress that so many of you left nice compliments on has me feeling more comfortable, about my appearance, at least!

Thinking about this dress, I wonder if I’ll ever be in any other weddings. Most of my closest friends were married when I met them. You never know what the future holds though (meaning meeting new people – not something happening to my friends’ marriages, ha ha).

Before this wedding, I was only in one other, well, unless you count my aunt’s wedding, which I think maybe I was in? I just remember my dress matched a few other people’s dresses. 

I love that all three of my siblings are in this photo. Sorry for the diaper shot, snister. 

But I have definitely only been a bridesmaid that one other time, and that dress is not one I’ve used since. It was pretty to wear at the wedding, but I should probably donate it. 

How many weddings have you been in?

I have to share our family photo from the wedding. I really like how it turned out and can’t wait to see more photos from Paper Crane Photo!

From L to R: My brother Anthony and his wife Amber, Stefano and me, Christina and Will, my brother Nick and his sons Thomas and Nicky, and Mamba and Daddio

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By kilax, July 15, 2014 6:17 am

Listening to that song “Rude” has me thinking about when Steven asked my dad for permission to marry me. And the whole idea of “asking for permission,” at all. Have you heard that song? It’s about this guy who asks his girlfriend’s dad for permission to marry her, and the dad says no, so the boyfriend asks “why you gotta be so rude?”* The song is super catchy!

I went back to my archives to see if I had already told the story of how Steven asked my dad for permission to marry me and whoops… I wasn’t even blogging then! Ha ha. And, of course, this story is second hand, since I wasn’t there. 

Steven and I had plans to go to the restaurant where we had our first date for our two year anniversary in September of 2004. On his drive in from Chicagoland to Iowa for the date, he stopped at my parent’s house. I asked him if he thinks they knew why he was stopping, and he said he wondered if they thought he was stopping by to ask a car-related question (legit logic there!). 

So he stopped and they chatted a bit then he asked my mom if he could have a private conversation with my dad (aww) and that is when he asked him. He obviously said yes, then he showed both of my parents the ring**. And then he was on his way! But not before my mom gave him some things to give to me, which was really funny, because we unloaded his car to my apartment when he got to Iowa he had to hide the stuff from my mom until after he proposed so I wouldn’t know he had stopped there!

I remember after Steven proposed I asked who knew***, and he told me he stopped at my parents to ask. And that he was really nervous when he did. And that when he asked, my dad wanted to make sure that it was still in the plans for me to finish school. Ha ha, yes. I was in school for three more years after that!

If you’re married, were the parents asked for permission? If you have kids, would you want their suitors to ask you?

I wonder how common it is to get the parent’s blessing for marriage. It would be interesting to see how it is from culture to culture. And really, from relationship to relationship. Each family is different, and each with their own drama. 

Personally, I like the courtesy of letting the parents know. And I am happy my mom was somewhat included and got to see the ring. I bet she was just waiting all night for me to call!

I asked my dad if he appreciated Steven asking, and if he would have cared, if he hadn’t. He said in some ways he appreciated it, as it’s a respectful thing to do, even if a bit outdated. But that he also wouldn’t have thought anything of him not asking. He said he felt the same way about Will asking for Christina. 

Then I asked my dad if he asked his father-in-law for permission, and he said he didn’t! He was too involved/freaked out about asking my mom that it never occurred to ask her dad! He remembered thinking after, that he really should have. 

Aww, my parents have a super cute engagement story. And hopefully Dad will comment if I get a detail off (update – see first comment for his version), but I think for Christmas, my dad got my mom a tool box. And I bet she was looking at it like, “wtf?!” but then he said to her, “would you marry a man who gave you a tool box?” And she opened it and there was a ring inside. Say it with me – awwwwwwwwwwwww!

*Wow, I read the wikipedia page about this song, and the song was actually inspired by what I thought it was originally about before I heard the whole thing – a rude girlfriend. They changed it to be about a girl’s father.
** And they both commented on how “big” it was. This was a common reaction from people in Iowa, but not so much in Chicagoland, which we found interesting. A few people were appalled by the size of it, which was kind of annoying. It’s not that big, and it really is appropriately sized for my large hands, ha ha!
***I wasn’t expecting Steven to propose because he had just bought our house. But during the ONE time we went to look at rings, he secretly bought the engagement ring and it had been at his brother’s house, so his brother knew and my parents (and probably his, too). 

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By kilax, July 10, 2014 5:53 pm

Gosh, I absolutely loved reading Kristina‘s Ironman Coeur d’Alene recaps (swim & bike/run). And really, reading about her training up to the big event. She had such a strong mental stance in training and at the race. You can just tell by reading her recaps how the positive talk and logic she spoke to herself during the race really helped her (as well as all the physical training, too, hee hee). Congrats, Kristina!

One of the things I read in her recap got me thinking about another topic. She mentioned that her parents came to spectate (awesome!) and how it was such a new experience for them – their first triathlon ever! So she got to tell them all about fun triathlon things like body marking, the costs of some of the bikes, what transition area is, and so on. And they had a great time!

That experience reminded me of when my family came to spectate our Half Ironman Relay last year, and what fun it was to have the same conversations. I mean, we put so much time and effort in to our hobbies, it’s nice when someone is genuinely interested, and you get to talk about something you actually know about!

I remember my dad being über impressed by it all, but especially that Andrew swam 1.2 miles. He actually congratulated Andrew and shook his hand. Geesh, I don’t think my dad has ever done that after I’ve run anything. Better take up swimming. Ha! Just kidding. 

That was such a joyous day to me. It was cool enough that I was doing the relay event with my two (not then, but they are now!) brother-in-laws, but to have our families there supporting us made it much more special to me. And it was fun to share the knowledge and tidbits I’ve picked up about the sport (ha, mostly running, of course) with people who were truly interested!

When was the last time you got to share something you were passionate about with a genuinely interested audience? What was the topic?

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By kilax, July 9, 2014 6:15 am

… said the text that I got from Steven at 5:34 am this morning. 

Unfortunately, I was sleeping when I got the text, so I couldn’t help him brainstorm. 

Actually, all I thought about from the moment I got up this morning was sleeping on the train, and that is probably why Data ended up where he did. 

I went in to the guest bedroom to grab some tissue paper this morning. Then when I was packing up my computer in the next room over, I heard a banging noise from downstairs. “That’s weird,” I thought in my half awake state. “The ice maker’s been acting so funny lately!” 

I didn’t even think to mention the weird noise to Steven. I was just focused on getting to the train and getting my nap on. 

Oops. That noise wasn’t the ice maker. It was Data. Wanting out of the guest bedroom. I didn’t even know he followed me in there. Poor little guy! Luckily Steven found him not too long after. 

Of course, this isn’t the first time this has happened. I still laugh about a similar incident from years ago. When we were doing the long distance thing, Steven used to call me in the mornings when he got ready for work. One of those times, he was about to hang up, when he was like “Wait! Where’s Data?!” He back-tracked through all of the steps of things he had done while on the phone with me – grab a coat (no, Data is not in the coat closet), pack lunch (no, Data is not in the fridge, ha ha), close the bedroom (no, Data is not in the bedroom), get ready in the bathroom…? Yep, Data was sitting in a bathroom cupboard, just hanging out, in what we call his “statue cat” pose. Not even phased. Ha ha. Good thing Steven realized Data was “missing” before he went to work!

Oh Pusheen. Data is the same, minus step #4. 

Another time, we had four house guests and couldn’t find Data after everyone came in. We searched the entire house and still couldn’t find him. I looked outside (of course, it was in the winter and dark and cold out), figuring he got out in the chaos of everyone coming in, and no luck. I was starting to freak out when someone went to grab something out of their coat… and hey, there is Data in the hidden part of the coat closet (the extra space under the stairs). Sigh. 

Has your pet ever gone “missing” only to have them right there? 

Ha. Of course, I realize this doesn’t happen with big dogs! Or maybe any dogs? Hee hee. 

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By kilax, July 8, 2014 6:50 am

Do you ever feel the urge to try a new route to get somewhere, even if it’s a place you’ve traveled to before? (Ha, and I mean this quite literally – driving or running or what have you. Of course, the question could take on other meanings, too.)

We’ve been on the road a lot lately, mostly to places we’ve visited before, but to some new places, as well. We’ve been checking out different routes to the places we are familiar with, and trying somewhat separate routes (go a different way there than back) to the new places.

It’s reminding me how much I enjoy the excitement of “seeing what’s out there.” I get way overly enthusiastic when I see a brown informational sign on the highway. WHAT COULD THAT POSSIBLY BE?!?!?! I feel like I need to pull over to check out every little “point of interest.”

I don’t, but I mentally note them, and sometimes research them later. 

On our Thursday drive to Iowa, we went through southern Wisconsin instead of our typical Illinois to Iowa route. It was mostly curvy, hilly back country roads. The landscape was so beautiful, it made the drive fly by. We drove through a cut rock road that was really neat! I’d like to drive that route again and stop to take photos. 

And on our trip back on Sunday, we went a bit out of the way to drive through a little town we had been in the night before for fireworks. We had driven there in the dark and just that was an interesting ride – we were curious to see what it would be like in the daylight. It was another curvy, hilly road – even more so than the one we had taken a few days earlier. It added a few extra minutes to our trip, but I felt like it was totally worth it to check out the landscape and little towns on the route. 

We have a lot of traveling this summer, and I am excited to see where else we end up. Sometimes I explore new routes for local travel, again, just to see what else is “out there,” but I am definitely more likely to do it during leisure trips!

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By kilax, July 3, 2014 6:27 am

• Today I am thankful for internal alarm clocks! I taught my “Friday” 5:00 am class this morning since tomorrow is a holiday, and thought I had set my alarm… nope! Gah! Good thing I woke up in time! I would have felt like a total ass if I slept through a class I was supposed to teach (and especially after moving it to another day of the week!). Do you have an internal alarm clock? For what time is it set?
• Last week I was talking with an engineer who works for the company that designs OFF! bug spray, and he reminded me that mosquitoes are attracted (among other things) to the CO2 we exhale. Of course, my brain immediately started thinking about the increased amount of CO2 we exhale when we start to reach ventilatory thresholds during exercise… and made me wonder if there is any correlation to mosquitoes being more attracted to people who work out. I mean, it helps if you are outside to start, where the mosquitoes are. But I wonder if the higher amount of CO2 makes much of a difference. Hmm. Let me know if you run across a study on that. Ha ha. 
• Despite whining about growing my toenails out for a pedicure for my snister’s wedding, I actually really liked the pedicure (it was my first ever!) and have been enjoying having polish on my toes, since then. Maybe this is something I will do more often! (Or maybe I will get my bike shoes on and have to trim the nails <— that may be more likely)

• Ha! After I scratched myself up so badly attempting to slide at a softball game before the wedding, I was careful not to get dinged up anymore. But now that the wedding is over, all bets are off! Ha ha. I “slid” in to a base at the next game, and dove for a ball at the game after that. Who needs pretty legs (I have my pretty toes… and legs that are covered in mosquito bite scars anyway)?

• Does anyone else have the habit of listening to half on song on their music player before skipping to the next one? I notice myself doing this lately, whether I’m in the car or riding the train… I listen to part of a song, sing along, decide I’ve had enough and skip ahead. Ha ha. 
• I never got that tattoo I talked about last October. Not that I was planning to. But I am still thinking about getting one, and have a design, location and someone to do it with (not the artist, but someone to get a tattoo, as well), in mind!

Link to Random Thoughts Thursday 63

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By kilax, July 2, 2014 7:22 pm

I know I’ve written/asked something similar before, but I was thinking about this again, and, eh, mostly different audience now, so new answers!

At the beginning of each month, I review the pictures from the previous month and add them to the digital photo frame in my kitchen. It’s an exercise that allows me to review all of the fun stuff we’ve been up to, and feel grateful for the people and activities in our lives.

Well, I started reviewing June photos yesterday, and I was grateful for something different – my paparraza mother. I have so many fun photos from the six days I spent with my mom in June – it’s taking me a lot longer than normal to go through all of them (and Steven took a lot of fabulous photos for me to sort, too*)!

Hee hee, but it’s not me who thought to call her paparraza! Jacquie, the bridesmaid to the left in the photo above, actually said that about that photo on Facebook: “Your mom is like the paparazzi! These photos are so candid, didn’t even know she was taking them! Love it!” And another friend mentioned they were glad to have a photographer there to capture those moments. 

If there was such a thing as a good paparazzo, that would be my mom – the person there documenting your normal every day life (and special events like weddings, ha ha). Gosh, saying that makes me think of a favorite quote from the movie Shall We Dance?, about people wanting a witness to their lives. But this is already sappy enough. Back to the point!

Do you have a paparrazo/a in your life (someone documenting your normal day-to-day, not necessarily someone taking candids you don’t realize are being taken, ha ha)? Do you want those moments captured?

Photos are very important to me. I spend a lot of time organizing, editing and enjoying them. I probably got this from my mom – cause when she is not there, I am taking all the pics!

*Especially at TLD!

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By kilax, July 2, 2014 7:01 am

When we were in Kansas City, my mother had THE NERVE to wear these sandals

in to a home with FOUR Iowa State graduates in it! Steven quickly remedied them for her:

I think I will have to get her a pair of these*:

Ha ha ha. So what is the big deal? Well, nothing really. At least to me – I was just joking around. I think the whole rivalry between schools thing is pretty goofy. But it did completely crack me up that she wore University of Iowa/Hawkeye sandals around a bunch of Iowa State/Cyclone graduates… someone was bound to notice and comment!

But like I said – it’s not a big deal, to me, anyway. I have never really gotten in to the “we don’t like them cause they’re the rivals!” mentality. I didn’t even realize there was a college rivalry until I was in school, and would hear about it.  I remember being around relatives during holiday breaks and them razzing me about how the Cyclones were doing in whatever sport… and me having no idea what was going on – because I didn’t pay attention to it at all. Seriously. I spent most of my time working on my architecture projects. I WAS SO FUN! 

And even now, I don’t follow it, but I am more likely to play along with the “I don’t like the Hawkeyes” game, and suggest races like this to my brother-in-law. I get that it’s fun to tease, and bond over something… um, hopefully a shared pride for one team, and not a hatred, for another!

Are you big in to team rivalries (college or professional or whatever)?

I am curious to hear what you have to say! It’s so interesting to me to find out how people were raised and if sports and certain loyalties were a part of growing up, or if it came later on, or if like me, it wasn’t part of your life at all and it’s not really a “thing” for you. 

*She actually gave these to me!