Pedicures & OPI

There is not much better than a really, really good pedicure. Warm water, a massage chair, leg & foot massage, and OPI polish in fun colors all that result in pretty tootsies for under $30.

Yes, sometimes one can find a bad pedicure joint, but if they are clean- they are generally good. My faves are Bolinger Nail Spa in San Fran east bay and Solar Nail Spa in Park City. Both have really good massage chairs. That is a bonus.

I needed one today (try for every month or so)- I headed on out to Bolinger on this rainy Sunday. Flavor of the day- Strawberry Margarita, of course by OPI. My. Toes. Look. Amazing. and shiny.

What I also like: when they don't go overboard trying to sell you the "upgrades" salt scrub, foot mask, etc. Offer once and move on. Yes, they do need to offer- but just once.

That is all for today. Very content with my fresh and pretty feet. And I really do love OPI polish.

What's on the Mind of a Sick Girl

When I say sick, I mean ill or not feeling well.. I do not mean demented. So, with a bug in me.... mind a bit a skew, here is what occupied my mind this week:

Why is it that women feel the need to talk on the phone in a public bathroom in a stall on a toilet? That is just simply disgusting. I will never understand this one.

I do also do not understand censorship on TV. FX to be exact. They can show the creep factor of American Horror Story and Nip/Nuck, but they replace "practicing kissing on your girlfriends" with "practice kissing on your pillow friends" and they completely cut out a girl-on-girl kiss. Makes no sense to me at all.

How does "medium" at some steakhouses means bright red and others means no red at all? Inconsistent. And hard to order. But I still do.

People take their Southwest airlines free drink coupons very seriously. Simply put: they no longer take the old ones; they only take the new ones with expiration dates. Deal with it. They are free.

Sangria is not tasty at all Mexican joints. Most; just not all.

Animal prints are still; in fashion this season. Don't like it, but they are.

Yes, they do market and see Twilight hairbrushes. For real.

It really sucks to be not able to exercise for 5 days when you are not feeling well.

I am really, really excited to watch Revenge, Up All Night, Parenthood, Hart of Dixie and 2 Broke Girls this weekend. I have many shows to watch, but those are the highlights. Excited!

If it ever stops raining, I will clean the grill this weekend. Not fun, but necessary.

I love it when the super thick December issue of In Style magazine arrives in the mail. Today was the day. Yeah!

Ok, time for Private Practice, some ice cream and a candle or 2. Bye.

Liking the Customer Service

If you read yesterday, you saw that I am dealing with a bout of the stomach flu. It has surpassed the 24 hours and we are now going onto 48 hours... Much better today, but still not great. I have been sucking down Pedialyte (gotta save those electrolytes) all day. This morning I had a banana. It stayed down. I just had some chicken noodle soup... has stayed down. First things to stay down since Friday night. I hope I am on a roll now.

Yesterday I never left the house. Today, while not 100% better, I was going stir crazy and had to run a few brief errands. I must say customer service over the weekend has been great.

First, since I was "couch ridden", I decided to book all my December work hotel stays at Hiltons. Somehow, I made a mistake and booked for last night rather than December. When I tried to cancel- they said, sorry- time has expired and I must pay for it! Really? So I called the 800 number, they heard my store and canceled the room. Nice. Easy.

Today, I ran to Walmart and Home Depot. Now, first I must say... I despise Walmart. I only go when there are things I really must have that cost much more elsewhere. Well, and also because there is no Target in Park City. We need a Target. So, Walmart.... bought the 4 things I needed and the cashier was the friendliest cashier I have encountered in quite some time. She made me smile. Then to Home Depot to return the (wrong) garbage disposal and exchange a kitchen faucet. I did not have my receipt. No questions- just a very easy simple process. Smooth. Loved it.

I must say between Hilton, Walmart (gross) and Home Depot, I was a pleased customer this weekend. Now if my stomach flu could be as accomodating. Please.

Positive Thinking

If there is one thing in the world I detest it's the 24 hour stomach flu. I know there are debates that state there is no such thing, but I am here to tell you.... it exists. I get it about once every other year and it's absolutely miserable. Approximately 24 hours of non-stop puking (yes, I know... not the visual you wanted) and feeling like a Mac truck drove over your entire body.

For me, I started a blissful evening last night with Mr Big.... a usual Park City night of wonder that I look forward to every other week or so and after 6 hours, it hit. Like a bomb. Either that, or the sushi we had for dinner, but I do believe I know the difference between food poisoning and stomach flu. Or at least I hope.

It is now 1PM and here is what I am thinking: this stomach flu is going to help me drop a few pounds. Nothing I can do about it, simply just aiding in my weight loss plan. And because I am such a ridiculously high-strung woman, this will force me to relax today which I truly have a very tough time accomplishing on a regular basis. No cleaning. No errands. No work. Just couch and TV. Right now, it's the BBC DVD series "The Mistresses". Don't ask me why- just sounded intriguing. And thus far it surely is.

So, THINK POSITIVE. There is a light at the end of every tunnel- even the stomach flu deep, dark, gross tunnel: weight loss, cleansing, relaxation and crazy TV shows. With that, I may try some water and an apple for the first time in 18 hours. An apple a day keeps the doctor away, right???

Lazy Saturday

When the retail holiday season is here, and I travel (most weeks) all week, it is really nice to have a Saturday with absolutely nothing I have to do (except exercise, of course!), I love, love, love to simply do the things that are not "necessity", but just plain "nice to have" for this overly- organized girl to do.

Here is my plan on this shiny, happy (enter R.E.M. lyrics here) Saturday:

Wash the sheets
Call and/or email some friends
Pay some bills for December (yes, getting ahead of the game)
Plan the "Holiday Agenda" (when to order Christmas cards, send cards, get the tree, etc.)
Go to grocery store to stock up on fresh fruits & veggies
Pumice my heels (no gross, nasty heels here... even in cold weather, ladies)
Catch up on 45 hours (yes, I really did say 45 hours) of DVR shows from October
Polish the silver Tiffany jewelry
Do a home facial
Update my blog.. obviously :)
Work on my "Christmas Gift List" (both mine for Mom and what I will buy others!)
Make sure all the pots/pans and Tupperware have the proper matching lids (yes, I am that anal)
Cuddle with Casey

Good? Ya... that should do it. And it's only 10AM and I have completed more than 3/4 of what is on this list already this morning... I guess that means lots of luxurious couch cuddling and DVR watching while eating fruit for me today... ahhh....

Love it.

Move Over Halloween; Welcome Festive Holidays

Halloween was fun... I was disappointed that between the hour of 6-7PM I did not get even 1 Trick or Treater, nor did Jarrod get any after I left, but I did have a great dinner with my best friend Andi when she was in town for work. I loved watching the kiddos in their costumes as I drove to dinner. So cute!


But some pasta and sangria made the night grand- oh- and the big, huge bowl of Reeses and Kitkats are going to the office community candy dish. After I have a few.


Now... onto bigger and better things. Let the festivities of Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's begin! What I love most right now, the "limited edition stuff" that comes out for a short time every year. Think Gingerbread Lattes from Starbucks and Peppermint Stick ice cream. Can you say yum!? My fave thus far... just found them yesterday... STACY'S GINGERBREAD PITA CHIPS. Oh- and healthy too. So yummy.


I am feeling festive. It could be the chill in the air, the pumpkin candle I'm burning, the fire in fireplace.... ummm... probably not the AMERICAN HORROR STORY from FX that I am watching on DVR right now... So very, very creepy I must say.


So, It's beginning to feel alot like Christmas... at least for the next 2 months. Lovin' ya November and December.

Coupon Crazy

Have you seen that show about crazy coupon people? Women (yes, it is most always a woman) who spends her life cutting coupons to basically get groceries for free? Insane.

Well, that is not me. But, I will admit I am very gullible when it comes to coupon offers. 30% off at Gap, Banana Republic, etc., 20% off or $5 off a purchase of $15 or more at Bed, Bath & Beyond, surprise 15, 20 or 30% off at Kohls, etc. Give me a coupon to a place I like and I am there.

Ok, I sometimes I will simply go because I have a coupon and other times I will wait to buy something I need or want until I actually have a coupon. For example, Gap... yep, I will just go and shop. BB &B, this time I waited because I needed a new hairdryer and I was not going to spend the extra $5 if I could wait for a coupon! I did that today.

I also sometimes, just sometimes, will actually open a store credit card if the discounts are simply that good. For example, I love J Crew... and for every $500 you spend, you get a $25 gift card. Yep, so worth it for me. Especially visiting the J Cew Outlet in Park City. So great!

Now that I do not get a newspaper at home, I fail to use the proper amount of grocery store coupons, but if I am eating healthy with lots of fruits and veggies, and leans meats, there are not coupons for those places, are there..... nope- just store "specials".

Anyway, I confess to my shopping addiction. It's there. But these coupons do help for saving up for fabulous finds such as my lovely Prada, Jimmy Choo, and others that NEVER have coupons. Oh the horror!

Shop 'til you drop, friends. I do :)

Reno and Prior

I have some good news and some bad news... well, actually lots of good news and just 1 piece of bad news to share today.

Let' start with the good news of course.
Last weekend, after spending some time out of town for some other bad news (that we are not going to talk about since it has been put to rest and we must put positive vibes out there now), I ended the weekend with PINOT ON THE RIVER in wine country.. Healdsburg, CA to be exact.
Check this out:

More than 50 wineries
All serving Pinot Noir (my favorite varietal of red wine)
In 1 square block
With the BEST Humboldt Fog Cypress cheese to nibble on
Other local haunts and wineries to visit (Portalupi was my fave!)
All you can drink for one low price

Wow- huh!? Nice for a sunny Sunday afternoon. My teeth may be permanently purple.

Next up... Holiday Leadership Meeting for work in Reno. That is the bad news. Just Reno. Kids, not a fan. The meeting and people there were FANTASTIC, but Reno lacks some luster. Literally. We stayed at The Nugget. I am sure in the late 80's (when it was constructed) it was quite the joint- but these days... well, let's just say it got the job done, but I am fine if I never visit that hotel again. Ever.

But, to be fair, let's share a few positive points of The Nugget:
Inexpensive
Few edible goodies in my room every night
Starbucks in the lobby
Cute old women serving as hostesses who continually referred to me as "cutie" or "sweetie"
Good water pressure in the shower
Free cocktails

Ok. Done with that.

Aside from The Nugget itself, the meeting was a success (I can breath now) as well as I got to spend time with LOTS of wonderful Best Buy people for 4 days, many who are also great friends. Of course, this mostly involves food, but a few more highlights shall you visit Reno in the near future:

Dinner with my HR team at Ichiban at Harrah's (always a hit)
Bistro 7 with my local team- fabulous red velvet cake after a tasty meal
Gaslamp to round out the week- everything was delicious (thanks Vanessa, Colleen & Rudy!)

Done with HLM. Now onto more holiday prep in the stores. It's retail fever. The time is upon us. But for now... coffee, my couch and E! News are on the agenda.
Happy Saturday to all.

Just Your Average Week

Or rather, just your average Monday.. or Tuesday... take your pick. Both were... well, let's just explain:

Monday started with my "workout neighbor" vomiting on the elliptical and splashing on me. Gross! The day did get better for a bit, but dealt with some major body odor at the San Jose Sharks hockey game last night. Cold BO in the arena is worse. For some reason.

Today was one of those crazy stress days. Issue after issue after issue at work... all I was looking for was a normal Tuesday. Headache began about noon.

Came home from the office about 6:30PM. Watched "American Horror Story" on FX. Wow. Talk about a freaky show. Not sure what to think about that. Not so normal. But kinda intriguing.

Then, back to normal, with some evening cleaning. Is there anything exciting about cleaning the shower on a Tuesday night during TV commercials? Ya... I think not. Oh well.

Forget the puke. Forget the BO. The pizza, Halloween candy, and a cozy little kitty made it all a little bit better.
Next up: Grey's Anatomy. Then back at it tomorrow. Nighty Night!

Darien Does Dallas

Last night I arrived in Park City (yes, Park City... the love of my life) after 4 days in Dallas for work. I knew the week would be stressful so I was very on purpose about planning to be healthy and not sucked into eating like crap and not working out due to staying up late drinking to much. I deal with the "all too familiar endless meal buffets" and late night drinking binges associates with out of town meetings.

So, here is what I promised myself:
Only certain foods consumed from each said buffet (i.e. veggies, lean meats, etc.)
Limited cocktails at night
In bed early enough to be able to get up and exercise at least every other day

And.... drum roll.. it worked! Aside from lots of stress and sad news that occurred, I was not over tired, I felt good and I lost 2 pounds! See, friends, it IS possible to be healthy under peer pressure, traveling and crappy food offerings.

What else can I tell you about Dallas:
No hills or mountains
Cheaper gas (this is where oil comes from, right?)
Lots and lots of beef
Decent weather (apparently the record breaking heat has passed)
Whataburger in place of In & Out Burger
Ranger and Cowboys (the athletic kind of course)

Yep, That's all.
Dallas was decent. Now back to lovely Park City. I love u, PC.