Razorback Fruit

Feeling better today than I have in almost a week. Occasionally, when I least expect it, I get reminded that the pain is lurking in the shadows. Thank God the meds are finally kicking in.

It was Bridget's turn to take care of her car and the prognosis? A new transmission. Ouch. She may or may not be at work. My boss is taking his family to the Florida State Fair tomorrow. He'd better take some antacids with that kind of food...

A vendor took my boss and me out to lunch at The Cheesecake Factory. My boss was invited to drive our account manager's brand new BMW 528i Sedan in a Platinum Bronze color. Damn with all the goodies including cream leather seats, it was a sexy ride. I was invited to drive it back to work; I wisely declined.

Work is burying me at the moment. I hope to be able to catch up soon. Two wasted days this week on Monday and Tuesday. Yes, I know I have to take it easy, but it sucks. I am not exercising at all either for fear of an accident caused by side effects like dizziness. One word: Annoying.

Here is the collage pic of my primping the pineapple.


I ate half for dinner and it hit the spot just right. It was a female pineapple because there were seeds near the eyes. This is how my family prepares a pineapple by making "V" cutouts in a spiral around the fruit (to take out the eyes) resulting in razorback slices. This pineapple was sweet and tart in all the right places like someone you know. Hee.
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Razorback Fruit

Let Them Eat Cake

Felt weak getting up this morning and had a hard time getting my breath out. Talking to Cabal was an effort. I had to get ready for work this morning and bake Bridget's birthday cake before I left the apartment. I arrived at work later and had warned Bridget by leaving her a voicemail.

Bridget received a card signed by several people, the rum cake pictured below and our group singing Happy Birthday to her. She was so embarrassed, but smiley especially at the prospect of eating rum cake.

Famous AGOL Rum Cake, disguised as Bridget's Birthday Cake


Today was our group luncheon which was at The Cheesecake Factory. Five of us dined outside in the cool air. Portable propane heater lamps were everywhere so it wasn't bad. We laughed a lot; my boss was in rare form. The meal was a gift from our director while my boss gave each of us gals a gift certificate from Target. Both of these gentlemen were so generous!

Received a call from the owner of the health food store during lunch confirming my request and we chatted a couple of minutes on other stuff from the same brand. She was curious as to how I found out about the product and how did I know she carried them. I am ahead of the curve she says because it was just made available in the US from Canada.

I also couldn't help but take a picture of how beautiful the sky was from where we sat. Blue Sky on Bay Street (International Mall), sitting outside The Cheesecake Factory patio area.


The rest of the afternoon was rough. I forgot I had to go to a meeting! Aargh. My throat was starting to really sting and every time I breathed my throat felt like it was on fire. My boss noticed the volume of my voice had lowered; I told him it was because I had a hard time getting air out.

Rob IM'ed me to respond to my spreadsheet tracker I had sent him. Of course, he had to one-up me and show me his uber geek physical training tracker that could give you different kinds of information to let you know how well you were progressing. He also had another piece of software for his diet. Not there yet. He recommended a special heart rate monitor though. I will be definitely checking it out at this site.

Shared my Godiva Chocolate Cheesecake (I am enjoying it now while I can) late in the afternoon with Tawny. Enjoyed talking with her since I have barely seen her lately. I will see her a bit on Saturday night at her party. She listened to my woes I expressed. Thank goddess she loves me like family.

Had a bit of static trying to get together with my cousin Angie this evening. She wanted to escape the house because my aunt and uncle were having a Christmas party. After a few phone calls back and forth, we weren't able to get it together and will try again later in the week. Just as well. I was feeling really crappy. I took two cold/flu gel caps in the middle of typing this blog. Does that mean that I should sleep like a dream? I hope so.


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Behind the Scenes Secret Pic - Who else would set up gold moire satin fabric as a backdrop for her famous rum cake? My kitchen is cluttered at the moment hence the small pic. I just wanted to show you the crack happening at my place.

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Let Them Eat Cake

Giant Burrito

Had a bit of a challenge getting my boss' going away cake from my trunk on the fourth level garage to being hidden in one of Bridget's upper storage bins at her desk. First of all, I called Bridget's, the temp's and Tawnyia's cell phones to get help. All of their cell phones went to voicemail. Great, I will have to make two trips since I couldn't maneuver everything with my laptop wheelie bag.

By the time the elevator reached the first floor, Bridget rang back. She ran down and met me at by the garage and we ascended back up the fourth floor garage to retrieve the cake...We merrily made it back up inside our own building on the third floor. Just outside these service elevators is a small vestibule. You need card access to get further inside our floor and just before we were making it inside our area, I noticed my boss about 10 feet away to the left where we had to go. I quickly stopped and went back inside the vestibule letting Bridget know we could go no further. We were trapped!

I looked at Bridget and told her I would come back for her so I left her holding the cake. I made it past my boss to drop my stuff off my desk and made it back to the vestibule. Bridget and I were whispering what to do because our boss was still talking to this idiot in the hall.

I had no choice but to take Bridget on an elevator ride to our mailroom on the fourth floor while I made a call to Tawnyia to be our scope. She called a few minutes later to let us know he was now in an office if we wanted to make a break for it. Racing in our high heels, we rode the elevator and zoomed back down to our floor where we hid the cake undetected. Whew!

Our meetings with our interim boss was funny and made us more comfortable with the transition. This was important for Bridget and me. Our only concern was if we would like our new boss, whomever that gets to be. They were interviewing some folks that day.

Tried to get the going away card signed by different people but every time I turned around, it seemed my boss was nearby. My covert plan was not working very well, but I received enough signatures.

Four of us went to The Cheesecake Factory where we enjoyed time away from work as a group. We laughed so hard, we were in tears. We were definitely going to miss my boss' sense of outrageous sense of humor. He ordered this giant chicken burrito pictured below. After my boss made a healthy dent in it, the genius waiter had the nerve to announce that it weighed a pound and a half. Hello! I think we could have figured that out AND you probably shouldn't remind your guests they just pigged out. Duh.



We were stuffed and hurting from a big lunch complete with decadent cheesecake desserts Thinking about the surprise cake in a few hours made both Bridget and I queasy...The cake was later presented nicely with other people in tow. My boss was surprised and pleased. All efforts worth it.

It was a quiet ride on my way home tonight compared to all the hubbub earlier in the day. The tears that never came this morning threatened to overflow on the drive home triggered by a song on the radio. I switched to a Spanish station where the music was upbeat. As I listened, I realized that the song was about heartbreak. Geez! I just can't get away from it even in a Spanish station. Damn me for understanding the words!

Cabal and I chilled in the evening. He loved getting extra attention. At least HE was happy. That's all that matters isn't it?

Giant Burrito

Call of the Mall

With a bowl of Cheerios in hand, I talked with Yummy at the usual 5am mine/10am his time. He was experiencing a rather remarkable phenomenon called full sunshine. It's funny to think of it while I live in the Sunshine State.

Two hours later, I scurried like a bunny to meet Kimmee for our walk. We walked for four miles in the same amount of time as last except for that we walked in high dew point in 82-degree heat. It was oppressive. I drank one bottled water right before the walk and finished the two I took with me. My clothes were drenched. The heat and humidity really kicked our butt today. At least we finished without dying or having to be picked up by the park ranger.

Sweaty and red-faced, I turned up my car's air conditioning and rushed home for a shower and a change for my lunch with Jill at the Cheesecake Factory. We were in tropical cocktail heaven just before noon. I ordered my usual Baja Chicken Tacos and she had the Luau Salad, followed by us splitting a slice of Godiva Chocolate Cheesecake. We walked for a couple of hours around the mall to try burning some calories when we weren't ooh'ing and aah'ing over goodies like clothes, make-up and furniture.

It was four o'clock when we parted ways in the parking lot. We had a great time catching up and laughing. I was grateful for a two-hour nap when I got home. Only had three hours sleep the night before. Watched a melange of British sitcoms on public television such as Are You Being Served?, Keeping Up Appearances, As Time Goes By, The Vicar of Dibley, Fawlty Towers and Dr. Who before bed. A full day of laughing -- my favorite!

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This falls under the heading of WTF?: A Lulu of a Loo. I am not saying anything, I just saying.

Call of the Mall