I'm hoping to have some exciting news to share tomorrow. I've been busy this past week...and almost bursting with excitement...but no time to post. You can pbobably guess what it pertains to by the photo...maybe not. If you're stumped maybe this other photo will help you out a little...
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Tomorrow night, Chad and I are going to a party. He kept telling me that there were supposedly going to be "several big name bands from past years" there. But he couldn't remember any names. So I didn't give it much thought.

Tonight he tells me the names...and I have to admit...one or two sounded familiar...but I couldn't tell you anything they sang...or even what type of music they played. Maybe they'll mean something more to someone else. I guess the fact that most of the hits were way before my time is why I didn't jump right out of my seat in excitement at hearing the names. In any case...I appreciate me some oldies and goodies...and I'm really looking forward to a really unique night of hearing some classic bands at an intimate party.

So on the bill tomorrow night are:

Foghat
Blue Oyster Cult
Badfinger
Rare Earth
Mitch Ryder

I wanted to link some youtube examples of their songs...but I couldn't figure out how right now. Maybe tomorrow.

...and other puzzles from my kitchen.

I decided tonight, as I was making tea in my kitchen after work, that some things in my kitchen needed further investigation. Like why does honey turn to a solid when the bottle gets down below half?And what's with that expiration date? Is that October 24th? And what year? What decade? Is it 2008? (I hope) Is it 1999? Who knows. What does expired honey do to you anyway? Is it as bad as expired milk? Eww...sure doesn't look or smell as gross, thankfully.

Since we're on the subject of non-solid items becoming solidified...another little annoyance in my kitchen is my salt constantly turning to a brick in the shaker. See exhibit...Note that the shaker is upside down. I don't know why it always does this. My mom's never did this as often as mine does. I must have a very humid house.

Oh there are many more things to share with you from the dark corners of my kitchen. Many of them are gross, some are puzzling, and some are just plain bizarre. I'm embarrassed to admit the things I've discovered that mold can grow on. However I am strangely delighted every time I find something really disgusting...and have to show the hubby. He usually doesn't share my enthusiasm. This is the product of my good intentions to eat produce and cook more, thwarted by us both working afternoon shift with different days off. So I'm gonna make this a periodic entry...exploring new kitchen experiments each time, and sharing them with you.

Now I wish i had taken a photo the time the bananas mysteriously turned to liquid in the fruit bowl two days after I bought them...

What's happening to me? I used to be such a practical person. I shop for bargains, I use coupons, and I look for sales. I couldn't make myself spend $70 on a pair of tall Express jeans, when I could get tall Levi's for under $30. I always bought $1.50 Wet N Wild nail polish instead of salon polish...but now I've discovered that there really is a difference in OPI polish...it is SO nice! I've become addicted to tea from the Republic of Tea ($8 a pack instead of my old $3 Lipton tea bags.)

I blame the jeans on Liz and Allie. I started to realize that I was becoming more picky about how my jeans fit me. I got tired of jeans that didn't make my butt look great and fit snug down through the knees. I got tired of jeans that gaped in the back when I sat, showing my underpants to the world. I admired their jeans and the way they fit so perfectly on their long legs and slim waists. Since we share the same GENES, I thought I should try their JEANS. (I know BAD pun...but don't pretend you didn't laugh at it just a little!)

I blame the OPI nail polish on Eleanor. We decided to paint our toenails...and the only two polishes she had were Wet N Wild in black or OPI in red. Black isn't really my style...so I used the OPI. I fell in love with it's smoothness and ease to apply. It came out perfectly. I noticed that the salon near my house has a whole rack of OPI polish. I would have gone in there are bought about 50 different colors, except that they were closed...so I resolved to return another day.

I blame the tea on Renee, and also her mom and her sisters. They were having a tea party, which was so fun, by the way. We had little yummy cucumber and cream cheese open face sandwiches, all kinds of delicious cheeses, and cranberry scones. They also had a variety of tea. One of which was "Cardamom Cinnamon" from the Republic of Tea (Link in my sidebar). It is so good. I had to go buy some. Then I bought some more flavors. And some more. Then I sent Allie home to Seattle with some. Because I got her hooked too.

The one friend whom I thought was actually influencing my tastes in a positive was was Helen. She keyed me in to these cute t-shirts from Meijer's that fit so perfectly, go with everything, and look great. Plus they were only $5 most of the summer on sale! Can't beat that. Thing is...Helen is also my hairdresser. Because of her, and how fantastic my hair feels after she shampoos it with her fancy salon shampoo, I actually bought a bottle of shampoo this weekend with the sticker price of $20.95! Don't worry, I didn't pay that much...it was on sale for 50% off, and I had a coupon for $10 off when I bought 3, so I stocked up. The point is, now I'm addicted to Salon quality shampoo and conditioner, when I used to buy Garnier Fructis...only when i had a coupon. What happens when I run out of my stock, and I have to pay $20 for another bottle?

I guess I just began to realize that some things are worth paying a little extra for. I still consider myself a frugal person, and I still try to save money where I can. But after years of settling for $25 jeans I wasn't quite happy with, and then letting them sit in the drawer while I always wore the one pair that was my favorite, made me realize getting the quality you want is better than saving a little on something that is ALMOST as good. I still buy store brand products all the time. But on certain things like my jeans and my tea and my haircare, I'm gonna buy what I like.

The air has turned cool and crisp today. I am thankful, since the AC seems to be having issues in my vehicle, and I drive about 40 minutes to work in the middle of the afternoon. My allergies and sinuses, however, are not so co-operative with the weather change. What I thought was a little cold, won't go away. Every time I eat something, my ears stay plugged up for about 15 minutes afterward. Sinus pressure coupled with a restless night = bad headache.

I'd really rather not go to work today. After two days off, I'm not ready to be back there. There has been a lot of drama recently in our lab due to internal investigations. The FDA is due to show up for an inspection any time this month, and everyone is dreading it. I feel unprepared for this due to my newness at the job. To top it all off, they are re-paving our parking lot and it will be closed for the next three days. That means I have to find somewhere else to park. On the streets of Detroit. With a Dodge Ram Pickup Truck. (Notoriously easy to steal) Oh goody. Who knows how long it is going to take me to find a space, or how far I will have to walk.

I helped a friend with some Organic Chemistry homework last night, after he called me at 10:30 PM. Up till 1 AM doing O-Chem. Got home and crashed. We were woken up repeatedly by our smoke alarms going off FOR NO APPARENT REASON. They are wired into our house, so we couldn't just remove a battery. They are also all connected together, so when one starts, they ALL start. There was no fire. No smoke. I don't think they detect Carbon Monoxide, besides all our windows were open. The finally stopped before we had to result to flipping the circuit breaker on them. I guess a power surge can sometimes make it happen. It was raining (and maybe storming) last night.

We've been up to so much lately. "Busy" isn't even the word for it. I missed posting...it just didn't seem a priority. I'm back now...but I need a vacation day.

Edit (9/14/07): I had a meltdown at work today. They fired my friend after telling him to come in for "discipline" but promising he wouldn't be terminated. It upset me very much. Then I found out the FDA was there for their inspection. On top of all the emotional stress of the week, and peaking yesterday, I freaked. I had to escape to my car for a bit to call chad and cry because I didn't want to stay, and I didn't think I could work, and I knew I would screw up in front of the FDA. He got me calmed down. I talked to my boss about my aprehension. I stayed at work, and the day went by. I'n glad it is over.